Study for the Function of ERK2 in the Brain Using ERK2 Conditional Knockout Mouse

细胞外信号调节激酶(ERK)在中枢神经系统(CNS)的多个信号转导网络中发挥着重要作用。然而，ERK2在活体脑功能中的具体作用还不完全清楚。在这里，我们表明ERK2在调节小鼠的社会行为以及认知和情感行为方面发挥着关键作用。为了研究ERK2的脑功能，我们采用了一种条件的、区域特异性的遗传学方法来靶向ERK2，该方法使用Cre/loxP策略，并使用Nestin启动子驱动的Cre转基因小鼠来诱导中枢神经系统中的重组。由此产生的ERK2条件基因敲除(CKO)小鼠，其中ERK2在中枢神经系统中被特异性地取消，在与自闭症谱系障碍(ASD)的各个方面相关的社会行为的多个方面显示出显著的异常。我们的发现表明，ERK2在中枢神经系统中具有复杂和多重的作用，对以社会行为缺陷为特征的人类精神障碍具有重要意义。

Signaling through extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) is important in multiple signal transduction networks in the central nervous system (CNS). However, the specific role of ERK2 in in vivo brain functions is not fully understood. Here we show that ERK2 play a critical role in regulating social behaviors as well as cognitive and emotional behaviors in mice. To study the brain function of ERK2, we employed a conditional, region-specific, genetic approach to target Erk2 using the Cre/loxP strategy with a nestin promoter-driven cre transgenic mouse line to induce recombination in the CNS. The resulting Erk2 conditional knockout (CKO) mice, in which Erk2 was abrogated specifically in the CNS, exhibited marked anomalies in multiple aspects of social behaviors related to facets of autism-spectrum disorders (ASD). Our findings suggest that ERK2 has complex and multiple roles in the CNS, with important implications for human psychiatric disorders characterized by deficits in social behaviors.