@article{pmid40644546,

title = {Structural and genetic determinants of zebrafish functional brain networks},

author = {Antoine Légaré and Mado Lemieux and Vincent Boily and Sandrine Poulin and Arthur Légaré and Patrick Desrosiers and Paul De Koninck},

doi = {10.1126/sciadv.adv7576},

issn = {2375-2548},

year  = {2025},

date = {2025-07-01},

journal = {Sci Adv},

volume = {11},

number = {28},

pages = {eadv7576},

abstract = {Network science has revealed universal brain connectivity principles across species. However, several macroscopic network features established in human neuroimaging studies remain underexplored at cellular scales in small animal models. Here, we use whole-brain calcium imaging in larval zebrafish to investigate the structural and genetic basis of functional brain networks. Mesoscopic functional connectivity (FC) robustly captures the individuality of larvae and reflects structural connectivity (SC) derived from single-neuron reconstructions. Several connectome properties, including diffusion mechanisms and indirect pathways, predict interregional correlations. SC and FC share a hierarchical modular architecture, with structural modules shaping spontaneous and stimulus-driven activity patterns. Visual stimuli and tail monitoring reveal a functional gradient that coincides with sensorimotor functions. Last, regional expression levels of specific genes predict interregional FC. Our findings reproduce key mammalian brain network features, demonstrating larval zebrafish as a powerful model for studying large-scale network phenomena in a small and optically accessible vertebrate brain.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid39746401,

title = {Development of sensorimotor responses in larval zebrafish: A comparison between wild-type and GCaMP6s transgenic line},

author = {Margaux Caperaa and Mathilde Roland-Caverivière and Chelsea Herdman and Nesrine Imloul and Sandrine Poulin and Mado Lemieux and Paul De Koninck and Gabriel D Bossé},

doi = {10.1016/j.bbr.2024.115412},

issn = {1872-7549},

year  = {2025},

date = {2025-03-01},

journal = {Behav Brain Res},

volume = {481},

pages = {115412},

abstract = {During early development, zebrafish larvae exhibit stereotypical behaviors, which rapidly become more complex. Thus, generating mutant transgenic lines that maintain transparency throughout their larval stage and that can be used to record brain activity has offered strategic opportunities to investigate the underlying neural correlates of behavior establishment. However, few studies have documented the sensorimotor profile of these lines during larval development. Here, we set up a behavioral characterization using diverse stimuli (light and vibration) throughout larval development to compare the responses of a transgenic strain expressing a pan-neuronal calcium indicator (GCaMP6s) with that of a wild-type strain. Interestingly, we report a drastic switch in behavioral responses to light transitions at 11 days post-fertilization (dpf) and to vibration stimuli at 14 dpf in both lines. These data highlight a specific time window representing an increase in behavioral complexity. Meanwhile, we found some differences in the maturation of sensorimotor responses between GCaMP6s and wild-type strains. Although some of these differences are minor, they highlight the need for careful attention when using mutant/transgenic lines for behavioral studies. Overall, our results support using GCaMP6s strain in investigating the neural mechanisms underlying the developmental maturation of sensorimotor responses.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid39389154,

title = {Treatment with Tau fibrils impact Huntington's disease-related phenotypes in cell and mouse models},

author = {Shireen Salem and Melanie Alpaugh and Martine Saint-Pierre and Flavia Natale Alves-Martins-Borba and Catalina Cerquera-Cleves and Mado Lemieux and Soki Bradel Ngonza-Nito and Paul De Koninck and Ronald Melki and Francesca Cicchetti},

doi = {10.1016/j.nbd.2024.106696},

issn = {1095-953X},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-11-01},

journal = {Neurobiol Dis},

volume = {202},

pages = {106696},

abstract = {There is now compelling evidence for the presence of pathological forms of Tau in tissues of both patients and animal models of Huntington's disease (HD). While the root cause of this illness is a mutation within the huntingtin gene, a number of studies now suggest that HD could also be considered a secondary tauopathy. However, the contributory role of Tau in the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of this condition, as well as its implications in cellular toxicity and consequent behavioral impairments are largely unknown. We therefore performed intracerebral stereotaxic injections of recombinant human Tau monomers and fibrils into the knock-in zQ175 mouse model of HD. Tau fibrils induced cognitive and anxiety-like phenotypes predominantly in zQ175 mice and increased the number and size of insoluble mutant huntingtin (mHTT) aggregates in the brains of treated animals. To better understand the putative mechanisms through which Tau could initiate and/or contribute to pathology, we incubated StHdh striatal cells, an in vitro model of HD, with the different Tau forms and evaluated the effects on cell functionality and heat shock proteins Hsp70 and Hsp90. Calcium imaging experiments showed functional impairments of HD StHdh cells following treatment with Tau fibrils, as well as significant changes to the levels of both heat shock proteins which were found trapped within mHTT aggregates. The accumulation of Hsp70 and 90 within aggregates was also present in mouse tissue which suggests that alteration of molecular chaperone-dependent protein quality control may influence aggregation, implicating proteostasis in the mHTT-Tau interplay.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid38545127,

title = {Understanding the nervous system: lessons from Frontiers in Neurophotonics},

author = {Yves De Koninck and Johanna Alonso and Stéphane Bancelin and Jean-Claude Béïque and Erik Bélanger and Catherine Bouchard and Marco Canossa and Johan Chaniot and Daniel Choquet and Marie-Ève Crochetière and Nanke Cui and Lydia Danglot and Paul De Koninck and Anna Devor and Mathieu Ducros and Angela M Getz and Mohamed Haouat and Iván Coto Hernández and Nate Jowett and Iason Keramidis and Céline Larivière-Loiselle and Flavie Lavoie-Cardinal and Harold D MacGillavry and Asiye Malkoç and Mattia Mancinelli and Pierre Marquet and Steven Minderler and Maxime Moreaud and U Valentin Nägerl and Katerina Papanikolopoulou and Marie-Eve Paquet and Lorenzo Pavesi and David Perrais and Romain Sansonetti and Martin Thunemann and Beatrice Vignoli and Jenny Yau and Clara Zaccaria},

doi = {10.1117/1.NPh.11.1.014415},

issn = {2329-423X},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-01-01},

journal = {Neurophotonics},

volume = {11},

number = {1},

pages = {014415},

abstract = {The Frontiers in Neurophotonics Symposium is a biennial event that brings together neurobiologists and physicists/engineers who share interest in the development of leading-edge photonics-based approaches to understand and manipulate the nervous system, from its individual molecular components to complex networks in the intact brain. In this Community paper, we highlight several topics that have been featured at the symposium that took place in October 2022 in Québec City, Canada.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid38550388,

title = {Special Section Guest Editorial: Frontiers in Neurophotonics},

author = {Yves De Koninck and Paul De Koninck and Anna Devor and Flavie Lavoie-Cardinal},

doi = {10.1117/1.NPh.11.1.014401},

issn = {2329-423X},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-01-01},

journal = {Neurophotonics},

volume = {11},

number = {1},

pages = {014401},

abstract = {The editorial presents the two-part Special Section on Frontiers in Neurophotonics.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid37786400,

title = {Zebrafish brain atlases: a collective effort for a tiny vertebrate brain},

author = {Antoine Légaré and Mado Lemieux and Patrick Desrosiers and Paul De Koninck},

doi = {10.1117/1.NPh.10.4.044409},

issn = {2329-423X},

year  = {2023},

date = {2023-10-01},

journal = {Neurophotonics},

volume = {10},

number = {4},

pages = {044409},

abstract = {In the past two decades, digital brain atlases have emerged as essential tools for sharing and integrating complex neuroscience datasets. Concurrently, the larval zebrafish has become a prominent vertebrate model offering a strategic compromise for brain size, complexity, transparency, optogenetic access, and behavior. We provide a brief overview of digital atlases recently developed for the larval zebrafish brain, intersecting neuroanatomical information, gene expression patterns, and connectivity. These atlases are becoming pivotal by centralizing large datasets while supporting the generation of circuit hypotheses as functional measurements can be registered into an atlas' standard coordinate system to interrogate its structural database. As challenges persist in mapping neural circuits and incorporating functional measurements into zebrafish atlases, we emphasize the importance of collaborative efforts and standardized protocols to expand these resources to crack the complex codes of neuronal activity guiding behavior in this tiny vertebrate brain.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid37766924,

title = {Shining light on the noradrenergic system},

author = {Emmeraude Tanguay and Sarah-Julie Bouchard and Martin Lévesque and Paul De Koninck and Vincent Breton-Provencher},

doi = {10.1117/1.NPh.10.4.044406},

issn = {2329-423X},

year  = {2023},

date = {2023-10-01},

journal = {Neurophotonics},

volume = {10},

number = {4},

pages = {044406},

abstract = {Despite decades of research on the noradrenergic system, our understanding of its impact on brain function and behavior remains incomplete. Traditional recording techniques are challenging to implement for investigating  noradrenergic activity, due to the relatively small size and the position in the brain of the locus coeruleus (LC), the primary location for noradrenergic neurons. However, recent advances in optical and fluorescent methods have enabled researchers to study the LC more effectively. Use of genetically encoded calcium indicators to image the activity of noradrenergic neurons and biosensors that monitor noradrenaline release with fluorescence can be an indispensable tool for studying noradrenergic activity. In this review, we examine how these methods are being applied to record the noradrenergic system in the rodent brain during behavior.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid36322761,

title = {Nano-positioning and tubulin conformation contribute to axonal transport regulation of mitochondria along microtubules},

author = {Valérie Van Steenbergen and Flavie Lavoie-Cardinal and Youcef Kazwiny and Marianna Decet and Tobie Martens and Patrik Verstreken and Werend Boesmans and Paul De Koninck and Pieter Vanden Berghe},

doi = {10.1073/pnas.2203499119},

issn = {1091-6490},

year  = {2022},

date = {2022-11-01},

journal = {Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A},

volume = {119},

number = {45},

pages = {e2203499119},

abstract = {Correct spatiotemporal distribution of organelles and vesicles is crucial for healthy cell functioning and is regulated by intracellular transport mechanisms. Controlled transport of bulky mitochondria is especially important in polarized cells such as neurons that rely on these organelles to locally produce energy and buffer calcium. Mitochondrial transport requires and depends on microtubules that fill much of the available axonal space. How mitochondrial transport is affected by their position within the microtubule bundles is not known. Here, we found that anterograde transport, driven by kinesin motors, is susceptible to the molecular conformation of tubulin in neurons both in vitro and in vivo. Anterograde velocities negatively correlate with the density of elongated tubulin dimers like guanosine triphosphate (GTP)-tubulin. The impact of the tubulin conformation depends primarily on where a mitochondrion is positioned, either within or at the rim of microtubule bundle. Increasing elongated tubulin levels lowers the number of motile anterograde mitochondria within the microtubule bundle and increases anterograde transport speed at the microtubule bundle rim. We demonstrate that the increased kinesin velocity and density on microtubules consisting of elongated dimers add to the increased mitochondrial dynamics. Our work indicates that the molecular conformation of tubulin contributes to the regulation of mitochondrial motility and as such to the local distribution of mitochondria along axons.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{pmid35434179,

title = {Toward an integrative neurovascular framework for studying brain networks},

author = {Jérémie Guilbert and Antoine Légaré and Paul De Koninck and Patrick Desrosiers and Michèle Desjardins},

doi = {10.1117/1.NPh.9.3.032211},

issn = {2329-423X},

year  = {2022},

date = {2022-07-01},

journal = {Neurophotonics},

volume = {9},

number = {3},

pages = {032211},

abstract = {Brain functional connectivity based on the measure of blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signals has become one of the most widely used measurements in human neuroimaging. However, the nature of the functional networks revealed by BOLD fMRI can be ambiguous, as highlighted by a recent series of experiments that have suggested that typical resting-state networks can be replicated from purely vascular or physiologically driven BOLD signals. After going through a brief review of the key concepts of brain network analysis, we explore how the vascular and neuronal systems interact to give rise to the brain functional networks measured with BOLD fMRI. This leads us to emphasize a view of the vascular network not only as a confounding element in fMRI but also as a functionally relevant system that is entangled with the neuronal network. To study the vascular and neuronal underpinnings of BOLD functional connectivity, we consider a combination of methodological avenues based on multiscale and multimodal optical imaging in mice, used in combination with computational models that allow the integration of vascular information to explain functional connectivity.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}