Article
Neurosciences
Xinqi Zhou, Ting Xu, Yixu Zeng, Ran Zhang, Ziyu Qi, Weihua Zhao, Keith M. Kendrick, Benjamin Becker
Summary: Social deficits and dysregulations in dopaminergic midbrain-striato-frontal circuits are common symptoms across psychiatric disorders. The present study investigated the effects of the AT1R antagonist losartan on social reward and punishment processing in humans. The findings suggest that losartan modulates approach-avoidance motivation and emotional salience during social punishment versus social reward by influencing the core nodes of the midbrain-striato-frontal circuits.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Ferdos Zamanirad, Mojdeh Fattahi, Haleh Amirteymori, Zahra Mousavi, Abbas Haghparast
Summary: Targeting the orexin system, particularly in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), has been shown to be a promising approach for treating drug addiction. Modulating the orexin system in the VTA can facilitate the extinction process of drug-related memories and prevent their relapse.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Guilian Tian, May Hui, Desiree Macchia, Pieter Derdeyn, Alexandra Rogers, Elizabeth Hubbard, Chengfeng Liu, Jose J. Vasquez, Lara Taniguchi, Katrina Bartas, Sean Carroll, Kevin T. Beier
Summary: This study reveals the selective role of ventral tegmental area dopamine projection to the amygdala in cocaine-induced anxiety. The activity of inhibitory GABAergic cells and downstream dopamine cells in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis and amygdala is elevated even after a single cocaine exposure. Silencing this projection prevents the development of anxiety during protracted withdrawal after cocaine administration. Furthermore, the activation of dopamine cells in the amygdala is necessary and sufficient for reinstatement of cocaine place preference.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Yongxiang Li, Lvshuang Chen, Weijie Zhao, Lijuan Sun, Ruixue Zhang, Shuqing Zhu, Kailai Xie, Xiajie Feng, Xin Wu, Zhonghua Sun, Gang Shu, Songbo Wang, Ping Gao, Xiaotong Zhu, Lina Wang, Qingyan Jiang
Summary: TLR4 signaling plays a critical role in regulating the activity of VTA DA neurons and the normal function of the mesolimbic DA system, which may contribute to food reward.
PHARMACOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Daniel R. Garton, Giorgio Turconi, Vilma Iivanainen, Jaan-Olle Andressoo
Summary: Cocaine addiction is a serious and deadly condition without effective pharmacological treatments. The neurotrophic factor GDNF and its receptor RET may be a promising approach to treating psychostimulant addiction. In this study, reducing RET expression in the VTA accelerates extinction of conditioned place preference and reduces reinstatement, while reducing GDNF in the NAc prolongs conditioned place preference and increases preference during reinstatement. This suggests that RET antagonism in the VTA and intact or enhanced GDNF function in the NAc could be a new approach for treating cocaine addiction.
Article
Cell Biology
Karolina Farrell, Armin Lak, Aman B. Saleem
Summary: Midbrain dopamine neurons encode reward prediction error signals to improve goal-directed navigation.
Article
Neurosciences
Mary R. Shanley, Yuka Miura, Christopher A. Guevara, Amanda Onoichenco, Rufina Kore, Emine Ustundag, Rania Darwish, Lauren Renzoni, Ashley Urbaez, Ella Blicker, Alec Seidenberg, Teresa A. Milner, Allyson K. Friedman
Summary: The estrous cycle affects the activity of VTA neurons, leading to changes in stress response and motivated social behaviors. This effect is potentially mediated by alterations in excitability and potassium channel activity.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jia-Hou Poh, Mai-Anh T. Vu, Jessica K. Stanek, Abigail Hsiung, Tobias Egner, R. Alison Adcock
Summary: Motivational states, especially curiosity, can engage reward circuitry to promote hippocampal memory formation. This study demonstrates that the typicality of anticipatory hippocampal patterns increases during high curiosity, and this increase is associated with midbrain activation and subsequent recall. The findings suggest that hippocampal convergence states may be a key factor in memory enhancement and a general predictor of memory formation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Beibei Peng, Qikuan Xu, Jing Liu, Sophie Guo, Stephanie L. Borgland, Shuai Liu
Summary: The study found that chronic corticosteroid treatment induces anxiety-like behavior and impairs food-seeking behavior. Additionally, chronic CORT treatment decreases excitability and excitatory synaptic transmission onto VTA dopamine neurons, while increasing somatodendritic dopamine concentration. Restoring D2R signaling in the VTA can ameliorate these deficits induced by chronic CORT exposure.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Review
Behavioral Sciences
E. Theresa Bjorness, W. Robert Greene
Summary: Dopamine, orexin, and adenosine systems play dual roles in reward and sleep/arousal. Drug abuse may influence both reward and sleep/arousal mechanisms. Cocaine can cause acute sleep loss and abnormal recovery patterns under chronic exposure conditions. Experimentally induced sleep disturbance may increase cocaine seeking behavior.
PHARMACOLOGY BIOCHEMISTRY AND BEHAVIOR
(2021)
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Emmanuelle Courtiol, Edenia C. Menezes, Catia M. Teixeira
Summary: Serotonin plays a critical role in development and behavior, with its involvement in reward being a topic of debate. Classical studies using electrical stimulation and pharmacological approaches have produced contradictory results on the role of serotonin in reward. More recent optogenetic studies suggest that activation of the serotonergic cells in the Raphe to VTA pathway can mediate reinforcement learning through the excitation of dopaminergic neurons. Understanding the interaction between the serotonergic and dopaminergic systems is crucial for insights into neuropsychiatric disorders.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Maryam Majidinezhad, Haleh Amirteymouri, Saeideh Karimi-haghighi, Masoumeh Kourosh-Arami, Abbas Haghparast
Summary: The study reveals that OX receptors in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) play a crucial role in the acquisition and expression phases of METH-induced conditioned place preference (CPP).
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yongxin Guo, Yanping Song, Fuyang Cao, Ao Li, Xinyu Hao, Wenzhu Shi, Zhikang Zhou, Jiangbei Cao, Yanhong Liu, Weidong Mi, Li Tong
Summary: The mechanism of general anesthesia is still not well understood. However, recent studies have shown that the activity of GABA neurons in the ventrolateral periaque-ductal gray (vlPAG) decreases during sevoflurane anesthesia and is reactivated after anesthesia. Activating GABAergic neurons in vlPAG promotes arousal during anesthesia, while inhibiting them delays this process. Furthermore, cortico-midbrain circuits involving vlPAG GABAergic neurons and their projections to the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and ventral tegmental area (VTA) play an important role in the anesthesia-awake transition.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Imre Kallo, Azar Omrani, Frank J. Meye, Han de Jong, Zsolt Liposits, Roger A. H. Adan
Summary: Orexin neurons play a role in homeostatic regulatory processes and provide input to VTA, a central hub processing reward and motivation. This study found that the VTA neurons projecting to the mNAcs receive more input from orexin neurons compared to those projecting to the mPFC. Orexin exerts facilitatory effects on both clusters of dopamine neurons.
BRAIN STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Ruud van Zessen, Jacques P. Flores-Dourojeanni, Timon Eekel, Siem van den Reijen, Bart Lodder, Azar Omrani, Marten P. Smidt, Geert M. J. Ramakers, Geoffrey van der Plasse, Garret D. Stuber, Roger A. H. Adan
Summary: Recent research shows that calcium activity and dopamine signals from VTA play important roles in the process of learning reward associations. Optogenetic inhibition during reward delivery disrupts learned behavior, while continued interference with these signals leads to impaired learning behavior. Cue-induced dopamine signals play a crucial role in driving learned behavior.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Xiaomei Lin, Tianyuyi Feng, Erheng Cui, Yunfei Li, Zhang Qin, Xiaohu Zhao
Summary: This study successfully established a rat model based on the genetic-environmental interaction, which exhibited phenotype characteristics similar to human AD in terms of cognitive function, brain microstructure, and immunohistochemistry. The genetic factor (APP mutation) and the environmental factor (acrolein exposure) accounted for 39.74% and 33.3% of the AD-like phenotypes in the model, respectively.
Article
Neurosciences
Gustavo Guimara Guerrero, Giovanna Bignoto Minhoto, Camilla dos Santos Tiburcio-Machado, Itza Amarisis Ribeiro Pinto, Claudio Antonio Federico, Marcia Carneiro Valera
Summary: The present study evaluated the influence of head and neck radiotherapy on the behavior and body weight gain in Wistar rats. The results demonstrated that different doses of radiation induced depressive behavior in the animals, and that the weight gain tended to be lower in the irradiated groups.
Article
Neurosciences
Ziwei Gao, Chao Lu, Yaping Zhu, Yuxin Liu, Yuesong Lin, Wenming Gao, Liyuan Tian, Lei Wu
Summary: This study reveals the underlying mechanisms of the rapid antidepressant effects of merazin hydrate (MH), which activates CaMKII to promote neuronal activities and proliferation in the hippocampus.
Article
Neurosciences
Kathleen E. Murray, Whitney A. Ratliff, Vedad Delic, Bruce A. Citron
Summary: Gulf War Illness (GWI) is a chronic disorder that affects approximately 30% of Veterans deployed to the Persian Gulf. This study found that exposure to toxicants during the Gulf War resulted in long-term changes in the morphology of dentate granule cells and that treatment with Nrf2 activator could improve neuronal health in the hippocampus.
Article
Neurosciences
Jing Li, Yan Zou, Xiangchuang Kong, Yangming Leng, Fan Yang, Guofeng Zhou, Bo Liu, Wenliang Fan
Summary: This study examines the functional connectivity changes in individuals with sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) at the integrity, network, and edge levels. The findings reveal reduced intranetwork connectivity strength and increased internetwork connectivity in SSNHL patients. These alterations are associated with the duration of SSNHL and Tinnitus Handicap Inventory scores. The study provides crucial insights into the neural mechanisms of SSNHL and the brain's network-level responses to sensory loss.
Review
Neurosciences
Didier Majou, Anne-Lise Dermenghem
Summary: In the early stages of SAD, memory impairment is strongly correlated with cortical levels of soluble amyloid-beta peptide oligomers. A beta disrupts glutamatergic synaptic function and leads to cognitive deficits. This article describes the pathogenic mechanisms underlying cerebral amyloidosis, involving amyloid precursor protein synthesis, A beta residue clearance processes, and the role of specific molecules.
Article
Neurosciences
Jing Li, Yi Shan, Xiaojing Zhao, Guixiang Shan, Peng-Hu Wei, Lin Liu, Changming Wang, Hang Wu, Weiqun Song, Yi Tang, Guo-Guang Zhao, Jie Lu
Summary: This study investigates changes in brain anatomical structures and functional network connectivity after chronic complete thoracic spinal cord injury (cctSCI) and their impact on clinical outcomes. The findings reveal alterations in gray matter volume and functional connectivity in specific brain regions, indicating potential therapeutic targets and methods for tracking treatment outcomes.
Article
Neurosciences
Anllely Fernandez, Katherine Corvalan, Octavia Santis, Maxs Mendez-Ruette, Ariel Caviedes, Matias Pizarro, Maria -Teresa Gomez, Luis Federico Batiz, Peter Landgraf, Thilo Kahne, Alejandro Rojas-Fernandez, Ursula Wyneken
Summary: This study reveals the importance of SUMOylation in modulating the protein cargo of astrocyte-derived small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) and its potential impact on neurons.
Article
Neurosciences
Anika Luettig, Stefanie Perl, Maria Zetsche, Franziska Richter, Denise Franz, Marco Heerdegen, Ruediger Koehling, Angelika Richter
Summary: This study found that changes in c-Fos activity during short-term stimulation of the entopeduncular nucleus (EPN) are associated with improvement in dystonia, and also discovered that the cerebellum may be involved in the antidystonic effects.
Article
Neurosciences
Yanlin Tao, Wei Shen, Houyuan Zhou, Zikang Li, Ting Pi, Hui Wu, Hailian Shi, Fei Huang, Xiaojun Wu
Summary: Depression has a higher incidence in women compared to men, and this study investigated the impact of sex on depressive behaviors and underlying mechanisms using a corticosterone-induced depression model in mice. The results showed sex-specific anxiety and depression behaviors in the model group, as well as differences in protein expression and neurotransmitter levels between male and female mice. These findings enhance our understanding of sex-specific differences in depression and support tailored interventions.
Review
Neurosciences
Dnyandev G. Gadhave, Vrashabh V. Sugandhi, Chandrakant R. Kokare
Summary: This article discusses the characteristics and importance of the tight junctions of endothelial cells in the CNS, which act as a biological barrier known as the blood-brain barrier (BBB). It focuses on overcoming the challenges of delivering therapeutic agents to the brain in neurodegenerative disorders, particularly multiple sclerosis, through the use of biomaterials. The article also highlights the current limitations of animal models for studying multiple sclerosis and suggests a potential future research direction.
Article
Neurosciences
Li-Min Mao, Khyathi Thallapureddy, John Q. Wang
Summary: Propofol can enhance synapsin phosphorylation and modulate synaptic transmission in the mouse brain. The study reveals the potential role of synapsin as a substrate of propofol and its effects on neurotransmitter release machinery.
Article
Neurosciences
Syed Maaz Ahmed Rizvi, Abdul Baseer Buriro, Irfan Ahmed, Abdul Aziz Memon
Summary: This study explores the effects of prolonged mask usage on the human brain by analyzing EEG and physiological parameters. The results show that the mean EEG spectral power in alpha, beta, and gamma sub-bands of individuals wearing masks is smaller than those without masks. The performances on cognitive tasks and oxygen saturation level differ between the two groups, while blood pressure, body temperature, and heart rate are similar. The analysis also reveals that the occipital and frontal lobes exhibit the greatest variability in channel measurements.
Article
Neurosciences
Rui-Fang Ma, Lu-Lu Xue, Jin-Xiang Liu, Li Chen, Liu-Lin Xiong, Ting-Hua Wang, Fei Liu
Summary: This study observed changes in brain infarction and blood vessels in rats during neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (NHIE) modeling using Transcranial Doppler Ultrasonography (TCD). Longer duration of hypoxia was associated with more severe nerve damage. TCD can dynamically monitor cerebral infarction after NHIE modeling, which may serve as a useful auxiliary method for evaluating animal experimental models.
Article
Neurosciences
Yuxiang Dai, Chen Yu, Lu Zhou, Longyang Cheng, Hongbin Ni, Weibang Liang
Summary: Overexpression of CXCR4 in glioma is correlated with patient survival, and its inhibition can reduce invasion and migration of glioma cells. Inhibiting Nur77 also decreases cancer progression associated with CXCR4.