Changes in cyclin and cyclin-dependent protein kinase expression in the long-tailed ground squirrel (Spermophilus undulatus) brain during hibernation and awakening

Abstract

We have studied the expression of cyclins (Cicl A and Cicl B1) and cyclin-dependent protein kinases (Cdk1, Cdk2, Cdk4, and Cdk5) in the brain of the long-tailed ground squirrel (Spermophilus undulatus) during different phases of their yearly cycle of life activities. We found that the expression of protein kinases in the frontal neocortex, hippocampus, and caudal brainstem differed by from three to five times, which indicates the regional specificity of the activity of cell-cycle proteins in the brain of a hibernating animal. During the end of winter hibernation, a significant increase in the expression of Cdk1, Cdk2, and Cdk4 were found in the hippocampus, which is due to the presence of progenitor neural cells in the subgranular region of the dentate gyrus. These cells are able to produce new neurons during all of ontogenesis. Our results show that during winter hibernation and awakening, region-specific changes in the expression of cell cycle proteins occur in the brain of a long-tail ground squirrel, which provides the appropriate activity of the cell cycle during the new functional state of a hibernating animal.