Objective: Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, including coronary artery disease (CAD), myocardial infarction (MI), carotid atherosclerosis (CAS), and cerebral ischemic stroke (CIS), continue to impose a significant global health burden due to the limited therapeutic efficacy of current clinical interventions. Punicalagin (PU), a pomegranate-derived polyphenol with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, exhibits therapeutic potential but requires mechanistic clarification. Methods: This study employed integrated network pharmacology, molecular docking, and experimental validation to identify PU’s multi-target mechanisms. Results: PU has 519 potential targets and shares 185 common targets with CAD, MI, CAS, and CIS. Molecular docking analysis showed that PU had strong binding affinity with HIF-1α, CASPASE3 and TLR4 targets. Experimental validation using the OGD/R model in HT22 cells revealed that PU treatment significantly reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and apoptosis, while downregulating the expression of HIF-1α, CASPASE3 and TLR4. PU plays a critical role in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases through the modulation of pathways associated with HIF-1α, CASPASE3 and TLR4. Conclusion: Our study revealed the therapeutic effects and underlying mechanisms of PU on CAD, MI, CAS, and CIS, providing a foundation for subsequent in vivo and clinical studies on PU as a potential therapeutic agent.
Background. Modern pedagogy is facing the challenges of modern times related to the conditions of information overload of students, which determines the need to find new teaching methods and explain the effectiveness of existing ones. The methods of brain research developed in recent decades make it possible to apply neuroscience data in pedagogy today, explaining the principles of functioning of different parts of the brain and higher mental functions of a person in their relationship with the learning process. The authors prove that the use of neurodidactic techniques in teaching, and in particular teaching foreign languages, increases the effectiveness of teaching and contributes to the long-term results.
Purpose – analysis of the expediency and effectiveness of the use of neurodidactic techniques in teaching foreign languages.
Materials and methods. To solve the tasks set in the work, various methods of analysis were used: observation, description and the comparative method. The article is based on the analysis of exercises based on the principles of neurodidactics and used in German language classes in the first and second year groups of Volgograd State University (pedagogical education with two training profiles (English and German).
Results. Emerging at the intersection of neuroscience, such as neuroscience, neurophysiology, neuropsychology and pedagogy, neurodidactics allows for a fresh look at the pedagogical experience available to teachers today and explains its achievements and failures. The information accumulated over several decades about the principles of functioning of different parts of the brain and higher mental functions of humans is now supported by modern methods of brain research that allow us to observe the learning process directly during their visualization. The principles of neurodidactics based on the data obtained determine the application of neurodidactic teaching methods, in particular in foreign language classes. The most effective and convenient to use were such neurodidactic techniques as alternation, interval repetition and extraction practice, which were already in the arsenal of reform educators before the advent of neuroscience data, but were explained and carefully developed only within the framework of neurodidactics.
EDN: CULIAR
Yara J. Toenders, Kayla H. Green, Lysanne W. te Brinke
et al.
Insights from developmental neuroscience are not always translated to actionable policy decisions. In this review, we explore the potential of bridging the gap between developmental neuroscience and policy through youth participatory research approaches. As the current generation of adolescents lives in an increasingly complex and rapidly changing society, their lived experiences are crucial for both research and policy. Moreover, their active involvement holds significant promise, given their heightened creativity and need to contribute. We therefore advocate for a transdisciplinary framework that fosters collaboration between developmental scientists, adolescents, and policy makers in addressing complex societal challenges. We highlight the added value of adolescents' lived experiences in relation to two pressing societal issues affecting adolescents’ mental health: performance pressure and social inequality. By integrating firsthand lived experiences with insights from developmental neuroscience, we provide a foundation for progress in informed policy decisions.
Serge Onyper Department of Psychology, St Lawrence University, Canton, NY, USACorrespondence: Serge Onyper, Email sonyper@stlawu.eduPurpose: The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a shift to working and learning from home and a concomitant rise in the use of virtual communication technology, such as videoconferencing. The current study prospectively examined the association between videoconferencing and sleep in a sample of young adults attending a university during the pandemic. The effects of videoconferencing on health and wellness outcomes and academic performance were also evaluated.Patients and Methods: Participants completed the core Consensus Sleep Diary and reported engagement in videoconferencing, the use of electronic devices, and physical activity daily for 8 consecutive days. They also completed baseline measures of sleep, communication technology use, physical activity, and mental distress, as well as released their end-of-term GPA. Results were evaluated via multilevel modeling and path analysis.Results: Participants with a heavier videocall volume lost 17 m of sleep and suffered nearly a 1% reduction in sleep efficiency for each additional hour of videoconferencing compared to those with a lower call volume. They also tended to spend more time awake during the night, have earlier sleep midpoints, and report worse sleep, although those trends did not reach statistical significance. For everyone, including individuals with lower videocall volume, earlier sleep midpoints, lower sleep quality, somewhat shorter sleep, and higher fatigue were reported on days with a relatively high videocall load compared to days with a low videocall load. Increased academic engagement with videoconferencing predicted lower academic performance and higher psychological distress: Both relationships were mediated by sleep. Use of videoconferencing for personal reasons, however, was directly associated with a reduction in distress.Conclusion: Videoconferencing is an important determinant of sleep and may impact health and wellness as well as academic outcomes in young adults. The effects of virtual communication on sleep and human behavior warrant further study in this and other populations.Keywords: videoconferencing, virtual communication, sleep, Zoom fatigue, screen time, COVID-19
Human brain undergoes rapid growth during the first few years of life. While previous research has employed graph theory to study early brain development, it has mostly focused on the topological attributes of the whole brain. However, examining regional graph-theory features may provide unique insights into the development of cognitive abilities. Utilizing a large and longitudinal rsfMRI dataset from the UNC/UMN Baby Connectome Project, we investigated the developmental trajectories of regional efficiency and evaluated the relationships between these changes and cognitive abilities using Mullen Scales of Early Learning during the first twenty-eight months of life. Our results revealed a complex and spatiotemporally heterogeneous development pattern of regional global and local efficiency during this age period. Furthermore, we found that the trajectories of the regional global efficiency at the left temporal occipital fusiform and bilateral occipital fusiform gyri were positively associated with cognitive abilities, including visual reception, expressive language, receptive language, and early learning composite scores (P < 0.05, FDR corrected). However, these associations were weakened with age. These findings offered new insights into the regional developmental features of brain topologies and their associations with cognition and provided evidence of ongoing optimization of brain networks at both whole-brain and regional levels.
Weight bias exerts an adverse impact on the overall health and well-being. This study examined dieting behaviors, the effect of the BMI chart in one’s body perceptions by using the photographic figure rating scale, and explicit weight bias among university students (N = 192) in different career-focused disciplines such as allied health programs. Participants tended to select larger photographic figures when asked to choose an image that represents a healthy, an overweight, and an obesity figure without viewing the BMI chart. Results showed no significant differences in anti-fat attitudes between different career-focused groups. While gender played a significant role in anti-fat attitudes, weight status influenced participants’ fear of becoming fat. To a similar degree across career paths, weight bias might evenly exist. Using the BMI chart to determine one’s weight status might create inconsistent body perceptions, which may lead to weight stigmatized attitudes toward individuals labeled as overweight or obesity.
Margrethe Collier Høegh, Ingrid Melle, Sofie R. Aminoff
et al.
Abstract Background Affective lability is elevated and associated with increased clinical burden in psychosis spectrum disorders. The extent to which the level, structure and dispersion of affective lability varies between the specific disorders included in the psychosis spectrum is however unclear. To have potential value as a treatment target, further characterization of affective lability in these populations is necessary. The main aim of our study was to investigate differences in the architecture of affective lability in different psychosis spectrum disorders, and if putative differences remained when we controlled for current symptom status. Methods Affective lability was measured with The Affective Lability Scale Short Form (ALS-SF) in participants with schizophrenia (SZ, n = 76), bipolar I disorder (BD-I, n = 105), bipolar II disorder (BD-II, n = 68) and a mixed psychosis-affective group (MP, n = 48). Multiple analyses of covariance were conducted to compare the ALS-SF total and subdimension scores of the diagnostic groups, correcting for current psychotic, affective and anxiety symptoms, substance use and sex. Double generalized linear models were performed to compare the dispersion of affective lability in the different groups. Results Overall group differences in affective lability remained significant after adjusting for covariates (p = .001). BD-II had higher affective lability compared to SZ and BD-I (p = .004), with no significant differences between SZ and BD-I. There were no significant differences in the contributions of ALS-SF dimensions to the total affective lability or in dispersion of affective lability between the groups. Conclusions This study provides the construct of affective lability in psychosis spectrum disorders with more granular details that may have implications for research and clinical care. It demonstrates that despite overlap in core symptom profiles, BD-I is more similar to SZ than it is to BD-II concerning affective lability and the BD groups should consequently be studied apart. Further, affective lability appears to be characterized by fluctuations between depressive- and other affective states across different psychosis spectrum disorders, indicating that affective lability may be related to internalizing problems in these disorders. Finally, although the level varies between groups, affective lability is evenly spread and not driven by extremes across psychosis spectrum disorders and should be assessed irrespective of diagnosis.
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) signaling in the mesocorticolimbic system is known to modulate anxiety-like behavior and alcohol consumption, behaviors that also have been associated with the hyper-glutamatergic state of the lateral habenula (LHb) neurons in rats. However, the role of CRF signaling in the LHb on the glutamate transmission, anxiety-like behaviors and alcohol consumption is unknown. Here, we used male rats that had been consuming alcohol for three months to address this gap in the literature. First, using electrophysiological techniques, we evaluated CRF's effects on the glutamate transmission in LHb neurons in brain slices. CRF facilitated glutamate transmission. The facilitation was greater in neurons of alcohol-withdrawing rats than in those of naïve rats. The facilitation was mimicked by the activation of CRF receptor 1 (CRF1R) but attenuated by the activation of CRF receptor 2 (CRF2R). This facilitation was mediated by upregulating CRF1R-protein kinase A signaling. Conversely, protein kinase C blockade attenuated CRF's facilitation in neurons of naïve rats but promoted it in neurons of alcohol-withdrawing rats. Next, using site-direct pharmacology, we evaluated the role of CRF signaling in the LHb on anxiety-like behaviors and alcohol consumption. Intra-LHb inhibition of CRF1R or activation of CRF2R ameliorated the anxiety-like behaviors in alcohol-withdrawing rats and reduced their alcohol intake when drinking was resumed. These observations provide the first direct behavioral pharmacological and cellular evidence that CRF signaling in the LHb modulates glutamate transmission, anxiety-like behaviors and alcohol consumption, and that adaptation occurs in CRF signaling in the LHb after chronic alcohol consumption.
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system
Therapy-responsive immune thrombocytopenia and anemia shortly after the second dose of an mRNA-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, which was complicated by symptomatic bleeding within a pre-existing brainstem cavernoma, has not been reported.The patient is a 68yo male who experienced gait disturbance and hypoesthesia of the left face and left upper extremity two days after the second dose of the mRNA-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccine BNT162b2 (Tozinameran). Clinical neurologic exam revealed hypoesthesia of the left face and the left upper extremity and ataxic gait. Blood tests revealed macrocytic anemia and marked thrombocytopenia, interpreted as vaccination induced immune thrombocytopenia (ITP). Cerebral MRI revealed subacute bleeding within a pre-existing solitary cavernoma located in the right cerebellar peduncle. With proceeding resorption of the bleeding, symptoms gradually regressed.This case shows that SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations may be followed by ITP and bleeding in pre-existing vascular malformations. In order to avoid cavernoma bleeding in patients with SARS-CoV-2 vaccination associated ITP and thrombocyte dysfunction, urgent treatment of ITP is warranted. In order to identify patients at risk for experiencing SARS-CoV-2 vaccination induced ITP, further studies are urgently warranted.
Hafsa Mobeen, Naveed Ullah Khan, Muhammad Hassan
et al.
Multisystem involvement has not been uncommon in SARS-CoV-2 infection. There has been reports of devastating neurological complication both during and after the infection. Here we present a rare case of sino-orbital mucormycosis, diagnosis of which was confirmed on histopathology. Our patient presented with headache, 18 days after her recovery from SARS-CoV-2 infection and was extensively worked up for the cause. Initially she was treated as a severe sinusitis but failure to response to antibiotics treatment warranted for further investigations and imaging. Our patient had to undergo right eye enucleation plus debridement under general anesthesia. She is currently on anti-fungal treatment as advised by infectious disease department.
Lida Du,1 Linhao Xu,1,2 Tuo Liang,1 Yun-Kwok Wing,3 Ya Ke,1,4 Wing-Ho Yung1,4 1School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Cardiology, Affiliated Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 4Gerald Choa Neuroscience Centre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Wing-Ho Yung; Ya KeSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +852-39436880; +852-39436780Fax +852-26035123Email whyung@cuhk.edu.hk; yake@cuhk.edu.hkBackground: Clinical observations reveal that rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD) often develops prior to alpha-synucleinopathies including Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, a causal relationship between alpha-synucleinopathy and Parkinsonian neurodegeneration has not been delineated.Methods: Rats were chronically treated with rotenone and EEG and EMG signals were recorded for analysis of sleep behavior, assisted by video recording of body movements. C-fos expression and TUNEL staining were used to assess neuronal activation and apoptosis, respectively. Chemogenetic manipulation of brain stem nuclei was conducted to ameliorate RBD symptoms in rotenone-treated rats.Results: Rats chronically exposed to rotenone exhibited progressive RBD features, from EEG slowing to REM sleep motor behavior and NREM muscle activities. Temporally, these phenomena correlated well with progressive alpha-synuclein aggregation and neuronal apoptosis in the sublaterodorsal tegmental nucleus (SLD) and gigantocellular ventricular reticular nucleus in the brainstem. Chemogenetic activation of glutamatergic neurons in SLD alleviated RBD symptoms in the rotenone model.Conclusion: Taken together, these results are consistent with a progressive degeneration in the REM sleep promoting and atonia circuit in early Parkinsonism that underlies the emergence of RBD symptoms, and demonstrate that the rotenone model is useful for further studies into RBD and its relationship to PD.Keywords: Parkinson’s disease, REM sleep behavior disorder, neurodegeneration, parasomnia, early biomarker
Bijia Song,1,2,* Yuanyuan Chang,1,* Yang Li,1 Junchao Zhu1 1Department of Anesthesiology, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Anesthesiology, Friendship Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Junchao ZhuDepartment of Anesthesiology, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail zhujunchao1@hotmail.comObjective: Postoperative sleep disturbances have serious adverse effects on postoperative outcomes. Our paper aimed to observe the effect of using transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) on sleep quality and complications after surgery in patients undergoing selective video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.Patients and Methods: Eighty-five patients were divided into the TEAS group or the control group randomly. Thirty minutes of TEAS treatment was performed on TEAS group at the following time points: the first night before surgery, at the end of surgery, and before sleeping on the second and third nights after surgery. The Portable Sleep Monitor (PSM) was performed to determine the sleep quality of the two nights before the operation (Sleep preop 2 and Sleep preop 1) and the first and third night after surgery (Sleep POD 1 and Sleep POD 3). The visual analog scale (VAS) was performed to evaluate pain scores after surgery and the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS) was used for evaluating subjective sleep quality.Results: Participants in the TEAS group had a lower AIS score and higher sleep efficiency at each time point except Sleep preop 2. Participants in the TEAS group showed significantly higher proportion of each sleep stage during Sleep-preop 1, Sleep POD 1, and Sleep POD 3. Patients in the TEAS group had significantly lower VAS scores at 2, 4, and 6 h during the first 24 h after surgery. The incidence of nausea and vomiting and dizziness in the control group was statistically higher than in the TEAS group.Conclusion: Patients usually have sleep disturbances after video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, such as decreased distribution of each sleep stage, lower sleep efficiency, and higher AIS score. Undergoing TEAS treatment perioperatively can improve sleep quality, and effectively promote the postoperative analgesic effect and alleviate postoperative complications.Keywords: acupoints, general anesthesia, pain, sleep quality, transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation
الهام شکرانه, حمید طاهر نشاطدوست, محمد رضا عابدی
et al.
Aim and Background: Obesity in childhood, as a global and growing health problem, is the cause of many chronic diseases in adulthood, which is associated with several socio-psychological problems such as low self-confidence and social isolation. In order to improve the psychosomatic problems of obese children, this study aimed to investigate the effect of motivational interviewing on body mass index (BMI) and self-esteem in obese girls. Methods and Materials: This experimental study was conducted with experimental and control groups. A pretest and a posttest were performed and the process was followed up for 3 months. The sample was comprised of twenty-four 10-12-year girl students who were obese with BMI more than 25 in 2015. They were selected through cluster-random sampling from a school in the first district of Isfahan city. The mothers of both groups were trained about the principles of healthy feeding in 4 sessions. Psychodrama intervention motivational interviewing was applied only in the experimental group during the six 2-hour sessions of group therapy. The data collection tools consisted of the BMI and Rosenberg self-esteem scale (RSES). The data were analyzed via analysis of variance with repeated measures. Findings: The effects of motivational interviewing in BMI and self-esteem of the experimental group were statistically significant (P ≤ 0.05). Conclusions: The therapeutic intervention of motivational interviewing would be helpful in order to reduce the weight of obese children and to increase their self-esteem.
Fero Matthew, Chien Wei-Ming, Baehr Wolfgang
et al.
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The response of mammalian glial cells to chronic degeneration and trauma is hypothesized to be incompatible with support of neuronal function in the central nervous system (CNS) and retina. To test this hypothesis, we developed an inducible model of proliferative reactive gliosis in the absence of degenerative stimuli by genetically inactivating the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor <it>p27<sup>Kip1 </sup></it>(<it>p27 </it>or <it>Cdkn1b</it>) in the adult mouse and determined the outcome on retinal structure and function.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>p27-deficient Müller glia reentered the cell cycle, underwent aberrant migration, and enhanced their expression of intermediate filament proteins, all of which are characteristics of Müller glia in a reactive state. Surprisingly, neuroglial interactions, retinal electrophysiology, and visual acuity were normal.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The benign outcome of proliferative reactive Müller gliosis suggests that reactive glia display context-dependent, graded and dynamic phenotypes and that reactivity in itself is not necessarily detrimental to neuronal function.</p>
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
Britton Robert S, Fleming Robert E, Haapasalo Hannu
et al.
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Defective iron homeostasis may be involved in the development of some diseases within the central nervous system. Although the expression of genes involved in normal iron balance has been intensively studied in other tissues, little is known about their expression in the brain. We investigated the mRNA levels of hepcidin (<it>HAMP</it>), HFE, neogenin (<it>NEO1</it>), transferrin receptor 1 (<it>TFRC</it>), transferrin receptor 2 (<it>TFR2</it>), and hemojuvelin (<it>HFE2</it>) in normal human brain, brain tumors, and astrocytoma cell lines. The specimens included 5 normal brain tissue samples, 4 meningiomas, one medulloblastoma, 3 oligodendrocytic gliomas, 2 oligoastrocytic gliomas, 8 astrocytic gliomas, and 3 astrocytoma cell lines.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Except for hemojuvelin, all genes studied had detectable levels of mRNA. In most tumor types, the pattern of gene expression was diverse. Notable findings include high expression of transferrin receptor 1 in the hippocampus and medulla oblongata compared to other brain regions, low expression of HFE in normal brain with elevated HFE expression in meningiomas, and absence of hepcidin mRNA in astrocytoma cell lines despite expression in normal brain and tumor specimens.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results indicate that several iron-related genes are expressed in normal brain, and that their expression may be dysregulated in brain tumors.</p>
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Factors that regulate intracellular calcium concentration are known to play a critical role in brain function and neural development, including neural plasticity and neurogenesis. We previously demonstrated that the neurosteroid allopregnanolone (APα; 5α-pregnan-3α-ol-20-one) promotes neural progenitor proliferation <it>in vitro </it>in cultures of rodent hippocampal and human cortical neural progenitors, and <it>in vivo </it>in triple transgenic Alzheimer's disease mice dentate gyrus. We also found that APα-induced proliferation of neural progenitors is abolished by a calcium channel blocker, nifedipine, indicating a calcium dependent mechanism for the proliferation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In the present study, we investigated the effect of APα on the regulation of intracellular calcium concentration in E18 rat hippocampal neurons using ratiometric Fura2-AM imaging.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Results indicate that APα rapidly increased intracellular calcium concentration in a dose-dependent and developmentally regulated manner, with an EC<sub>50 </sub>of 110 ± 15 nM and a maximal response occurring at three days <it>in vitro</it>. The stereoisomers 3β-hydroxy-5α-hydroxy-pregnan-20-one, and 3β-hydroxy-5β-hydroxy-pregnan-20-one, as well as progesterone, were without significant effect. APα-induced intracellular calcium concentration increase was not observed in calcium depleted medium and was blocked in the presence of the broad spectrum calcium channel blocker La<sup>3+</sup>, or the L-type calcium channel blocker nifedipine. Furthermore, the GABA<sub>A </sub>receptor blockers bicuculline and picrotoxin abolished APα-induced intracellular calcium concentration rise.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Collectively, these data indicate that APα promotes a rapid, dose-dependent, stereo-specific, and developmentally regulated increase of intracellular calcium concentration in rat embryonic hippocampal neurons via a mechanism that requires both the GABA<sub>A </sub>receptor and L-type calcium channel. These data suggest that APα-induced intracellular calcium concentration increase serves as the initiation mechanism whereby APα promotes neurogenesis.</p>
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The nasal cavity of all vertebrates houses multiple chemosensors, either innervated by the Ist (olfactory) or the Vth (trigeminal) cranial nerve. Various types of receptor cells are present, either segregated in different compartments (e.g. in rodents) or mingled in one epithelium (e.g. fish). In addition, solitary chemosensory cells have been reported for several species. Alligators which seek their prey both above and under water have only one nasal compartment. Information about their olfactory epithelium is limited. Since alligators seem to detect both volatile and water-soluble odour cues, I tested whether different sensory cell types are present in the olfactory epithelium.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Electron microscopy and immunocytochemistry were used to examine the sensory epithelium of the nasal cavity of the American alligator. Almost the entire nasal cavity is lined with olfactory (sensory) epithelium. Two types of olfactory sensory neurons are present. Both types bear cilia as well as microvilli at their apical endings and express the typical markers for olfactory neurons. The density of these olfactory neurons varies along the nasal cavity. In addition, solitary chemosensory cells innervated by trigeminal nerve fibres, are intermingled with olfactory sensory neurons. Solitary chemosensory cells express components of the PLC-transduction cascade found in solitary chemosensory cells in rodents.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The nasal cavity of the American alligator contains two different chemosensory systems incorporated in the same sensory epithelium: the olfactory system proper and solitary chemosensory cells. The olfactory system contains two morphological distinct types of ciliated olfactory receptor neurons.</p>
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
Messenger Tara, Rasmussen Mads F, Ferris Craig F
et al.
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Alterations in arginine vasopressin regulation and secretion have been proposed as one possible biochemical abnormality in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. In golden hamsters, arginine vasopressin microinjections into the anterior hypothalamus trigger robust grooming and flank marking, a stereotyped scent marking behaviors. The intensity and repetition of the behaviors induced by arginine vasopressin is somewhat reminiscent of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in humans. The present experiments were carried out to test whether pharmacological agents used to alleviate obsessive compulsive disorder could inhibit arginine vasopressin-induced flank marking and grooming.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Male golden hamsters were treated daily for two weeks with either vehicle, fluoxetine, clomipramine, or desipramine (an ineffective drug), before being tested for arginine vasopressin-induced flank marking and grooming. Flank marking was significantly inhibited in animals treated with fluoxetine or clomipramine but unaffected by treatment with desipramine. Grooming behavior was not affected by any treatment.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These data suggest that arginine vasopressin-induced flank marking may serve as an animal model for screening drugs used in the control of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.</p>
Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry, Neurophysiology and neuropsychology