# Deconstructing the cellular control of hippocampal functions related to mental health: a role for birth order.

> **NIH NIH R01** · NEW YORK STATE PSYCHIATRIC INSTITUTE DBA RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR MENTAL HYGIENE, INC · 2022 · $580,260

## Abstract

The hippocampus has been implicated in the biology of stress as both a stress sensor and a regulator
of the stress response. It exhibits the brain's highest concentration of glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid
receptors, as well as extensive structural and physiological plasticity in response to chronic stress exposure7.
The hippocampus is also involved in encoding context, learning and memory, and has been repeatedly
implicated in performance on depression and anxiety-related tasks in rodents and humans. Hence, it is no
surprise that hippocampal pathology has been attributed to a wide range of psychiatric diseases like
Schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, and Alzheimer's disease.
 Within the hippocampus, a postnatal neural stem cell system is exquisitely sensitive to environmental
changes including stressful and enriching experiences. Exposure to chronic stress decreases neurogenesis
and increases the proliferation of stem cells, while exposure to environmental enrichment, exercise, and
antidepressants increases neurogenesis without impacting stem cells. While hippocampal neurogenesis is
highly sensitive to environmental manipulations, the resulting neurons are thought to contribute to all of the
hippocampal functions described above including stress regulation. Thus, neurons that support diverse
functions are born continuously throughout postnatal development and this process of neurogenesis is
sensitive to stress and to other environmental changes.
 We are interested in unraveling the cellular logic supporting the functional repertoire of the hippocampal
dentate gyrus. Studies outlined in this proposal aim to identify cells within the dentate gyrus of the
hippocampus that are important for each of the hippocampal functions. We will use a series of state of the art
genetic approaches for targeting discrete populations of dentate gyrus neurons as they would be by stress
during development and then examine how each population of cells contributes to normal hippocampal
functioning and circuitry. Completing the proposed studies will help decipher which hippocampal neurons
contribute to encoding stress responses and determine whether the same or different cells support other
hippocampal functions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10322677
- **Project number:** 5R01MH115215-04
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK STATE PSYCHIATRIC INSTITUTE DBA RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR MENTAL HYGIENE, INC
- **Principal Investigator:** ALEX DRANOVSKY
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $580,260
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-01-01 → 2023-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10322677

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10322677, Deconstructing the cellular control of hippocampal functions related to mental health: a role for birth order. (5R01MH115215-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10322677. Licensed CC0.

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