Research reportElevated prostacyclin biosynthesis in mice impacts memory and anxiety-like behavior

•Prostacyclin-overexpressing mice display enhanced motor coordination at 3 months of age.•Prostacyclin-overexpressing mice exhibit alterations in anxiety-associated behavior.•Six-month old transgenic-mice displayed improved short-term memory in the contextual fear-conditioning test.•Our observations suggest that prostacyclin expression can modulate anxiety and memory.

Prostacyclin is an endogenous lipid metabolite with properties of vasodilation and anti-platelet aggregation. While the effects of prostacyclin on the vascular protection have been well-documented, the role of this eicosanoid in the central nervous system has not been extensively studied. Recently, a transgenic mouse containing a hybrid enzyme, of cyclooxygenase-1 linked to prostacyclin synthase, was developed that produces elevated levels of prostacyclin in vivo. The goal of this study was to investigate whether increased prostacyclin biosynthesis could affect behavioral phenotypes in mice. Our results uncovered that elevated levels of prostacyclin broadly affect both cognitive and non-cognitive behaviors, including decreased anxiety-like behavior and improved learning in the fear-conditioning memory test. This study demonstrates that prostacyclin plays an important, but previously unrecognized, role in central nervous system function and behavior.