Eva Kueppers

University of Tuebingen | EKU Tübingen · Institute of Anatomy

Previously we have demonstrated that intraventricular injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) results in increased proliferation and de-differentiation of rat cortical astrocytes into progenitor-like cells four days after lesion (Wachter et al., 2010). To find out if these cells express tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), the rate-limiting enzyme in the cat...

Background/Aims: Small-conductance calcium-activated (SK) channels play an important role by controlling the after-hyperpolarization of excitable cells. The level of expression and density of these channels is an essential factor for controlling different cellular functions. Several studies showed a co-localization of KCa2.3 channels and Endophilin...

The neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) is frequently used in animal models to mimic Parkinson's disease. Imaging studies describe hyperintense signalling in regions close to the site of the 6-OHDA injection in T2-weighted (T2w) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The nature of this hyperintense signal remains elusive and still is matter of discuss...

The effects of estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) on alveolar epithelial Na+ transport were studied in isolated alveolar epithelial cells from 18- to 19-d GA rat fetuses, grown to confluence in serum-free media supplemented with E2 (0-1 μM) and P (0-2.8 μM). Short-circuit currents (ISC) were measured, showing an increase by E2 and P in a dose-depe...

Alveolar fluid clearance from the distal airspaces is mainly driven by vectorial sodium transport, where sodium enters the alveolar epithelial cells through apically located sodium channels (ENaC) and is extruded by basolaterally operating Na-K-ATPases. Hence sodium transport plays a crucial role in the immediate postnatal alveolar fluid clearance...

Background and aims: Sodium transport plays a crucial role in alveolar fluid clearance (AFC), where sodium enters the alveolar epithelial cells through apical sodium channels (ENaC) and is extruded by basolateral Na,K-ATPases. Women with acute respiratory distress syndrome have higher AFC and higher survival than males. Female sex steroids are supp...

Reactive astrogliosis is the universal response to any brain insult. It is characterized by cellular hypertrophy, up-regulation of the astrocyte marker glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and proliferation. The source of these proliferating cells is under intense debate. Progenitor cells derived from the subventricular zone (SVZ), cells positiv...

Despite the rapid rise of integrated curricula, the teaching of gross anatomy by traditional dissection remains a central element in most medical programs worldwide. However, modern didactic concepts demand the integration of clinical content in preclinical settings. The implementation of interdisciplinary tools often leads to a reduction in teachi...

Dopamine and L: -glutamate are important signals which guide the development of functional neural circuits within the striatal complex. Disequilibrium of these neurotransmitter systems is believed to be etiological for the genesis of neurological and psychiatric diseases. Since dopamine plays a crucial role for the early transmitter-regulated diffe...

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is essential for embryonic lung development and has been shown to be regulated by estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P). To investigate the effects of prenatal E2 and P withdrawal by specific receptor antagonists on the mRNA expression of VEGF, surfactant proteins (SP-B and SP-C) and on alveolarisation in lun...

Proliferation of astrocytes plays an essential role during ontogeny and in the adult brain, where it occurs following trauma and in inflammation and neurodegenerative diseases as well as in normal, healthy mammals. The cellular mechanisms underlying glial proliferation remain poorly understood. As dopamine is known to modulate proliferation in diff...

Aquaporin-4 (AQP4) is the principal water channel protein in the mammalian brain and known to exist in two distinct splice variants, M1 and M23. AQP4 is typically found in support cells of the CNS such as astrocytes and ependyma but not in excitable cells. Brain AQP4 is expressed at the borders between fluid compartments and parenchyma and, indirec...

Estrogen represents an important factor for the development and function of the nigrostriatal dopamine system. Estrogen also controls sex-specific differentiation and activity of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system. We used an estrogen receptor-alpha knockout (-/-) model (ERKO) to study the influence of this particular receptor subtype on the reg...

Exposure to high levels of estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) derived from the fetoplacentomaternal unit during the last trimester of pregnancy may play a crucial role in prenatal lung development and immediate postnatal alveolar fluid clearance (AFC). To measure prenatal alveolar formation and postnatal amiloride-sensitive AFC after pharmacologic...

Estrogen influences neuronal development and a broad spectrum of neural functions. In addition, several lines of evidence suggest a role as neuroprotective factor for estrogen in the CNS. Neuroprotection can result from direct estrogen-neuron interactions or be mediated indirectly involving the regulation of physiological properties of nonneuronal...

It is well known that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and the early nigrostriatal dopaminergic input are implicated in the regulation of developmental processes in the neostriatum. There is growing evidence that interactions between these developmental signals rather than singular actions are critical for cellular differentiation and compa...

Estrogen plays an important role during midbrain development. This is indicated by the presence of nuclear estrogen receptors and the transient expression of the estrogen-forming enzyme aromatase. A number of recent studies have shown that estrogen promotes the differentiation and survival, as well as physiological performance, of midbrain dopamine...

In the mammalian lung, estrogen and progesterone seem to be import for the morphological and functional maturation. Despite this, only sparse information is available on the onset and ontogenic expression of estrogen receptors (ER) and progesterone receptors (PR) in the perinatal lung. The expression patterns of the two known nuclear isoforms ER-al...

Estrogens have widespread biological functions in the CNS involving the coordination of developmental processes, the regulation of cell physiology, and the control of neuroendocrine systems. In the midbrain, estrogens promote the survival, maturation, and function of neurons and, in particular, of dopamine cells. Aside from classical signaling thro...

Progesterone participates in the regulation of developmental processes in the brain and controls the function of distinct neural circuits. We have studied the expression of progesterone receptor (PR) isoforms in the developing and adult male and female mouse ventral midbrain. Transcripts of both receptor isoforms (PR-A and B) were detectable pre- a...

We have provided evidence that 17beta-estradiol (E) synthesized in the midbrain promotes the differentiation of midbrain dopamine neurons through nonclassical steroid action. Because these developmental effects resemble those reported for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), we hypothesized that E influences dopaminergic cell differentiation t...

There is widespread acceptance that estrogen is involved in various steps of cellular differentiation during brain development. In the past years, we have demonstrated such a developmental role for estrogen in the rodent midbrain. Precisely, estrogen affects midbrain dopamine neurons with respect to functional and morphological maturation. On the c...

The differentiation of striatal GABAergic neurons coincides with the perinatal establishment of nigrostriatal dopaminergic synaptic connections. We have shown previously that dopamine stimulates the maturation of striatal GABAergic neurons. Since BDNF also regulates the development of GABAergic cells, we hypothesized that dopamine might affect stri...

Dopamine (DA) promotes the morphological differentiation of striatal GABAergic neurons through D(1) receptor activation and cAMP/PKA signaling. In this study, we investigated the developmental role of DA on the expression of the two GAD(65/67) genes and the alternative splicing of GAD(67) transcripts in the rat striatum. In vivo, embryonic and adul...

Gonadal steroids affect a wide variety of functions in the mammalian brain ranging from the regulation of neuroendocrine systems and the modulation of behavior to the stimulation of differentiation and plasticity of distinct neuronal populations and circuits. The last decades have also demonstrated that estrogen serves as a neuroprotective factor f...

Estrogen not only modulates nigrostriatal function but also developmental processes in the striatum. Recently, we have demonstrated the presence of the estrogen-synthesizing enzyme aromatase in the developing mouse striatum. This study is concerned with the expression of estrogen receptor-alpha/beta (ER) mRNA in the developing and adult mouse stria...

Estrogen influences striatal activity and the development of the nigrostriatal system. This study is concerned with the ontogenetic and postnatal expression of aromatase in the mouse striatum. Aromatase activity and mRNA expression were detectable in the embryonic striatum and increased postnatally with no differences between sexes. Aromatase-posit...

Androgen metabolites synthesized by neural aromatase and 5alpha-reductase are implicated in many aspects of mammalian brain development and, in particular, in the masculinization of distinct central nervous system structures and brain functions. The present study was designed to determine (1) the developmental profile of aromatase- and 5alpha-reduc...

Androgen metabolites synthesized by neural aromatase and 5α–reductase are implicated in many aspects of mammalian brain development and, in particular, in the masculinization of distinct central nervous system structures and brain functions. The present study was designed to determine (1) the developmental profile of aromatase- and 5α–reductase typ...

In order to investigate genetic factors that interfere with hormone-mediated sex differentiation of dopaminergic neurons, we raised sex-specific primary cultures from embryonic day 13 diencephalon (D) or mesencephalon (M) of three different strains of mice, NMRI, CBA/J, and BALBc/J. Part of the cultures were maintained for 6 or 13 days in vitro (DI...

Morphological differentiation of tyrosine hydroxylase‐immunoreactive neurons was investigated in dissociated cell cultures of rhombencephalon of male and female day 14 rat embryos grown in the presence or absence of sex steroids. Numbers of cells were counted and morphometrical measurements carried out of soma size and length of tyrosine hydroxylas...

Morphological differentiation of tyrosine hydroxylase‐immunoreactive neurons was investigated in dissociated cell cultures of rhombencephalon of male and female day 14 rat embryos grown in the presence or absence of sex steroids. Numbers of cells were counted and morphometrical measurements carried out of soma size and length of tyrosine hydroxylas...