PUBLICATION

Exposure to leucine alters glutamate levels and leads to memory and social impairment in zebrafish

Authors
da Silva Lemos, I., Wessler, L.B., Duarte, M.B., da Silva, G.L., Bernardo, H.T., Candiotto, G., Torres, C.A., Petronilho, F., Rico, E.P., Streck, E.L.
ID
ZDB-PUB-220831-19
Date
2022
Source
Metabolic Brain Disease   37(8): 2925-2935 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Keywords
Alpha-branched-chain amino acids, Behavior, Glutamate, Maple syrup urine disease, Zebrafish
MeSH Terms
  • Leucine
  • Zebrafish*
  • Animals
  • Maple Syrup Urine Disease*/metabolism
  • Glutamic Acid
  • Amino Acids, Branched-Chain/pharmacology
PubMed
36040712 Full text @ Metab. Brain Dis.
Abstract
Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD) is a metabolic disorder characterized by high levels in blood and urine of branched-chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine and their alpha-ketoacids, by a partial or total blockade in the activity of branched-chain complex alpha-keto acids dehydrogenase. The main symptoms in MSUD occur in the central nervous system, including cognitive deficits, locomotor, poor feeding, seizures, psychomotor delay, and mental retardation, but the mechanisms of neurotoxicity and behavior alteration due to this disease are poorly understood, thus this study aimed at showing the effects of leucine exposure on glutamate levels and behavior in zebrafish. For this, we analyzed the behavior using the social preference test and novel object recognition test, moreover, we analyse the glutamate levels and uptake using scintillation and high-performance liquid chromatography methods. Our results demonstrated a decrease in glutamate levels and uptake, accompanied by memory and social impairment. In conclusion, these results suggest that alterations in glutamate levels can be associated with behavior impairment, however, more studies are necessary to understand the mechanisms for brain damage in MSUD.
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