Florence I Roullet

Florence I Roullet
McMaster University | McMaster · Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences

PhD

About

21
Publications
2,337
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1,740
Citations
Introduction

Publications

Publications (21)
Article
Full-text available
Mice produce ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) at different ages and social contexts, including maternal-pup separation, social play in juveniles, social interactions, and mating in adults. The USVs' recording can be used as an index of sensory detection, internal state, and social motivation. While sensory deprivation may alter USVs' emission and so...
Article
Full-text available
Previous studies have reported that visual impairment can affect the quality of life leading to mental health disorders. This study aimed to investigate associations between vision impairment, depression and anxiety using a mouse model of congenital blindness. We phenotyped 15 anophthalmic and 17 sighted adult mice in a battery of tests for anxiety...
Chapter
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder thought to be caused by predisposing high-risk genes that may be altered during the early development by environmental factors. The impact of maternal challenges during pregnancy on the prevalence of ASD has been widely studied in clinical and animal studies. Here, we review some clini...
Article
Valproic acid (VPA) is both an anti-convulsant and a mood stabilizer. Clinical studies over the past 40 years have shown that exposure to VPA in utero is associated with birth defects, cognitive deficits, and increased risk of autism. Two recent FDA warnings related to use of VPA in pregnancy emphasize the need to reevaluate its use clinically duri...
Article
Full-text available
Mutations in the synaptic scaffolding protein gene SHANK3 are strongly implicated in autism and Phelan-McDermid 22q13 deletion syndrome. The precise location of the mutation within the Shank3 gene is key to its phenotypic outcomes. Here, we report the physiological and behavioral consequences of null and heterozygous mutations in the ankyrin repeat...
Article
Full-text available
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder with a strong genetic component. Core symptoms are abnormal reciprocal social interactions, qualitative impairments in communication, and repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior with restricted interests. Candidate genes for autism include the SHANK gene family, as mutations in SHANK2 and SHANK3 have...
Article
Full-text available
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is currently diagnosed by the presence of three behavioral criteria (1) qualitative impairments in reciprocal social interactions, (2) deficits in communication, including delayed language and noninteractive conversation, and (3) motor stereotypies, repetitive behaviors, insistence on sameness, and restr...
Article
Despite the evidence for a communicative function of rodent scent marks and ultrasonic vocalizations, relatively little is known about the impact of social factors on these two forms of communication. Here, we tested the effects of two important social factors, prior exposure to a female and freshness of female urine, on male scent marks and ultras...
Article
Experiments in rodents have indicated that maternal valproic acid (VPA) exposure has permanent adverse effects upon neurological and behavioral development. In humans, prenatal exposure to VPA can induce fetal valproate syndrome, which has been associated with autism. The present study examined mouse pups exposed in utero to VPA, measuring physical...
Conference Paper
Background: Mouse models of autism provide translational strategies to test hypotheses about causes and to develop treatments. While assays are available for social interaction and repetitive behaviors in mice, there is a need for relevant methods to assess communication impairments. We are currently developing behavioral tools to assay olfactory c...
Article
Qualitative impairments in communication, such as delayed language and poor interactive communication skills, are fundamental to the diagnosis of autism. Investigations into social communication in adult BTBR T+tf/J (BTBR) mice are needed to determine whether this inbred strain incorporates phenotypes relevant to the second diagnostic symptom of au...
Article
In rodents, a single administration of valproic acid (VPA) in utero leads to developmental delays and lifelong deficits in motor performance, social behavior, and anxiety-like behavior in the offspring. Recently, we have demonstrated that VPA mice show alterations in postnatal growth and development, and deficits in olfactory discrimination and soc...
Conference Paper
Background: Delayed language and poor communication skills are fundamental to the diagnosis of autism. Mice utter distinct types of ultrasonic vocalizations, which differ depending on the animal’s age, its current affective state, and environmental factors. Infant mice emit ultrasonic vocalizations when isolated from their dam and litter. It is kno...
Article
Because of its anatomical and functional features, the piriform cortex (PC) could play a crucial role in olfactory learning and memory. We studied its implication in mnesic processes using the immunodetection of Fos protein in rat. A water-rewarded olfactory discrimination task in a four-arms maze was used for conditioning. We analysed Fos expressi...
Article
Fos protein immunodetection was used to investigate the neuronal activation elicited in some olfactory-related areas after either learning of an olfactory discrimination task or its reactivation 10 d later. Trained rats (T) progressively acquired the association between one odor of a pair and water-reward in a four-arm maze. Two groups of pseudotra...
Article
By using Fos immunocytochemistry, we investigated the activation in olfactory-related areas at three stages (the first and fourth days of conditioning and complete acquisition) of an olfactory discrimination learning task. The trained rats (T) had to associate one odour of a pair with water-reward within a four-arm maze whereas pseudo-trained (P) r...
Article
The piriform cortex (PCx) and related structures such as hippocampus and frontal cortex could play an important role in olfactory memory. We investigated their involvement in learning the biological value of an odor cue, i.e. predicting reward or non-reward in a two-odor discrimination task. Rats were sacrificed after stimulation by either rewarded...
Article
The piriform cortex (PCx), the main area of the primary olfactory cortex, is assumed to play a role in olfactory memory. Involvement of this paleocortex in mnesic processes was investigated by using Fos immunocytochemistry after acquisition of a two-odor discrimination task. Trained rats had to associate one odor of a pair with water reward while p...

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