Possible causal relationships between cerebellar patterns of foliation andhindlimb coordination in laboratory mice: A quantitative trait locus analysis

The cerebellum is involved in a large set of integrative functions includin g memory, affect, and motricity. The cerebellar patterns of foliation and t heir causal relationships with motricity were investigated via a wide genom e scan approach and quantitative trait locus (QTL) strategy. QTLs were mapp ed in an F-2 population derived from NZB/B1NJ and C57BL/6By inbred strains of mice for cerebellar fissures in the four vermal lobules (intraculminate, uvula, declival, and intracentral) and for hindpaw slips in a bar crossing test. No linkage was detected for uvula and intracentral fissures. We foun d five QTLs linked to declival fissure: Cpfd-1q and Cpfd-2q (chromosome 1), Cpfd-3q (chromosome 5), Cpfd-4q (chromosome 9), and Cpfd-5q (chromosome 13 ). Two QTLs were also mapped for intraculminate fissure Cpfi-1q (chromosome 4) and Cpfi-2q (chromosome 1). Most of the confidence intervals of these Q TLs included genes that were previously identified for their implication in the physiological mechanisms underlying cerebellar patterns of foliation. Only one significant QTL was found for the measure of hindpaw coordination (Tne-1q). It was linked with Cpfd-1q and Cpfd-2q on the telomeric part of c hromosome 1.