Aberrant Monoaminergic System in Thyroid Hormone Receptor-β Deficient Mice as a Model of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

BACKGROUND: Thyroid hormone receptors are divided into 2 functional types: TRα and TRβ. Thyroid hormone receptors play pivotal roles in the developing brain, and disruption of thyroid hormone receptors can produce permanent behavioral abnormality in animal models and humans. METHODS: Here we examined behavioralchanges, regional monoamine metabolism, and expression of epigenetic modulatory proteins, including acetylated histone H3 and histone deacetylase, in the developing brain of TRα-disrupted (TRα(0/0)) and TRβ-deficient (TRβ(−/−)) mice. Tissue concentrations of dopamine, serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine) and their metabolites in the mesocorticolimbic pathway were measured. RESULTS: TRβ(−/−) mice, a model of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, showed significantly high exploratory activity and reduced habituation, whereas TRα(0/0) mice showed normal exploratory activity. The biochemical profiles of dopamine and 5-hydroxytryptamine showed significantly low dopamine metabolic rates in the caudate putamen and nucleus accumbens and overall low 5-hydroxytryptamine metabolic rates in TRβ(−/−) mice, but not in TRα(0/0) mice. Furthermore, the expression of acetylated histone H3 was low in the dorsal raphe of TRβ(−/−) mice, and histone deacetylase 2/3 proteins were widely increased in the mesolimbic system. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that TRβ deficiency causes dysfunction of the monoaminergic system, accompanied by epigenetic disruption during the brain maturation process.