Article
Behavioral Sciences
Wiktor Bilecki, Joachim Latusz, Kinga Gawlinska, Magdalena Chmelova, Marzena Mackowiak
Summary: The study showed that short-term adolescent social isolation did not significantly affect fear memory and anxiety in adult rats, but altered protein levels related to synapse maturation and energy transfer. Additionally, the impact of adolescent social isolation on normally developing brains was different than those with a history of MAM administration.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biology
Rebecca A. Mount, Sudiksha Sridhar, Kyle R. Hansen, Ali Mohammed, Moona Abdulkerim, Robb Kessel, Bobak Nazer, Howard J. Gritton, Xue Han
Summary: The study found that different populations of hippocampal CA1 neurons play different roles in trace conditioning and extinction learning, with unique connectivity patterns. Additionally, differences in CA1 network connectivity were observed between conditioning and extinction, despite overall connectivity density remaining constant.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Daniel Jercog, Nanci Winke, Kibong Sung, Mario Martin Fernandez, Claire Francioni, Domitille Rajot, Julien Courtin, Fabrice Chaudun, Pablo E. Jercog, Stephane Valerio, Cyril Herry
Summary: The study found that threat representations and avoidance behavior initiation are dynamically encoded in the overall population activity of dmPFC neurons in mice. While dmPFC population activity at stimulus onset encodes sustained threat representations driven by the amygdala, it does not predict action outcome. Transient dmPFC population activity before the initiation of action reliably predicts avoided from non-avoided trials, revealing the dynamic process of information linking threats with defensive actions within prefrontal networks.
Article
Neurosciences
Annalise N. Binette, Jianfeng Liu, Hugo Bayer, Kennedi L. Crayton, Laila Melissari, Samantha O. Sweck, Stephen Maren
Summary: Stress has a significant impact on fear extinction and affects the activity of PV interneurons in the mPFC. PV interneurons regulate extinction learning under stress in a sex-dependent manner, and this effect is mediated by amygdaloprefrontal projections.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Weronika Szadzinska, Konrad Danielewski, Kacper Kondrakiewicz, Karolina Andraka, Evgeni Nikolaev, Marta Mikosz, Ewelina Knapska
Summary: Fear extinction training gradually changes the vHIP-PL connectivity, allowing for fear suppression. In the absence of fear suppression from the vHIP, signals from the BL play a dominant role, resulting in heightened fear levels.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Hiroshi Kuniishi, Yuko Nakatake, Masayuki Sekiguchi, Mitsuhiko Yamada
Summary: Early-life social isolation is associated with social and emotional problems in adulthood. The present study investigates the neural mechanisms underlying how social deprivation impairs social and emotional development through the disruption of information processing in the OFC-BLA pathway. The results suggest that distinct postsynaptic changes in the mOFC-BLA and lOFC-BLA synapses contribute separately to abnormalities in social and emotional development.
NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Neurosciences
Christine Stubbendorff, Carl W. Stevenson
Summary: Research has shown that dopamine plays a crucial role in regulating various contextual fear processes, although the related neurochemical mechanisms are still not fully understood. Understanding how dopamine regulates contextual fear can provide novel insights into the neurochemical modulation of neural circuit function underlying memory processing.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Anabel M. M. Miguelez Fernandez, Hanna M. Molla, Daniel R. Thomases, Kuei Y. Tseng
Summary: The study shows that disruption of prefrontal cortex (PFC) alpha 7nAChR signaling impacts hippocampal and amygdalar transmission, with significant effects observed in adult rats. Prefrontal infusion of MLA affects trace fear-conditioning and extinction in an age-dependent manner, potentially due to the late-adolescent maturation of ventral hippocampal-PFC functional connectivity and its modulation by alpha 7nAChR signaling.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Alisa Pajser, Christian Foster, Brooke Gaeddert, Charles L. Pickens
Summary: Extended fear training can lead to fear incubation, while single fear conditioning results in high fear expression sustained over time. The observed low fear soon after training may be related to fear extinction-like processes.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biology
Jose A. Fernandez-Leon, Douglas S. Engelke, Guillermo Aquino-Miranda, Alexandria Goodson, Maria N. Rasheed, Fabricio H. Do Monte
Summary: The study demonstrates that neurons in the prelimbic cortex play a crucial role in regulating memory-based risky decision-making by modulating threat-avoidance vs. reward-approach behaviors. Individual variability in behavioral responses during conflict may be linked to the activity levels of glutamatergic neurons in the prelimbic cortex.
Article
Neurosciences
Doyoung Park, Taehyun Kim, Sue-Hyun Lee
Summary: The study found that the prefrontal cortex has a differential impact on the processing of emotional information compared to neutral information, leading to better memory for semantic components of emotional stimuli. This suggests that emotional stimuli are more directly influenced by higher-order information from the prefrontal cortex during sensory representation.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2021)
Article
Biology
Miguel Antonio Xavier de Lima, Marcus Vinicius C. Baldo, Fernando A. Oliveira, Newton Sabino Canteras
Summary: This study reveals the important role of the anterior cingulate area (ACA) in the acquisition and expression of contextual fear in mice.
Article
Neurosciences
Xiaoyu Ma, Charles Zheng, Yenho Chen, Francisco Pereira, Zheng Li
Summary: The ability to perceive and locate spatial environments is crucial for animal survival. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been implicated in spatially related behaviors, but its properties and how it is influenced by animal behavior are not well-defined. This study found that the population activity of mPFC neurons can predict animal locations, and this coding accuracy is higher in tasks involving working memory and reward-seeking.
Review
Neurosciences
Tadeu Mello E. Souza
Summary: This review discusses the contributions of Izquierdo and colleagues in the field of declarative memory, focusing on fear memory. It covers the philosophical and evolutionary issues related to declarative memory definition, and describes the underlying processes of declarative memory, including the formation and progression of memory trace in short-term and long-term memory, as well as the involvement of molecular cascades in the hippocampal formation, mesocortex, and frontal areas. The review also mentions the potential contributions of this research to therapy and understanding cognitive processes.
Editorial Material
Neurosciences
Carolyn Dicey Jennings
Summary: Pessoa proposes a perspective of neuroscience that views the brain as an intricately complex system, which cannot be comprehended solely by analyzing and manipulating its individual components. While I agree with Pessoa's overall approach, I have reservations about some of the specific claims.
JOURNAL OF COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Lucas Gazarini, Cristina A. Stern, Reinaldo N. Takahashi, Leandro J. Bertoglio
Summary: Systemic administration of drugs that activate the noradrenergic or glucocorticoid system enhances the consolidation and reconsolidation of aversive memories. An imbalance of these neurotransmitters can lead to the formation and maintenance of traumatic memories, which are often maladaptive. Combined interference with adrenaline, corticosterone, and the cannabinoid type-1 receptor antagonist/inverse agonist AM251 intensifies and generalizes newly acquired and destabilized threat memory traces.
Article
Neurosciences
Hugo Bayer, Cristina A. J. Stern, Fernanda Troyner, Lucas Gazarini, Francisco S. Guimaraes, Leandro J. Bertoglio
Summary: Growing evidence suggests that cannabidiol (CBD) may have therapeutic potential in regulating abnormal emotional memories. CBD can attenuate the value of abnormal emotional memories or enhance their suppression. The mechanisms through which CBD exerts its effects may involve the modulation of brain activity and plasticity.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Alana Castro Panzenhagen, Amanda Cavalcanti, Dirson Joao Stein, Ligia Lins de Castro, Mailton Vasconcelos, Mariana Boechat Abreu, Roberto Farina Almeida, Leandro Jose Bertoglio, Ana Paula Herrmann
Summary: This study aims to evaluate the consistency of commonly used rodent models of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in displaying autistic-like behavior through a systematic review and meta-analysis. The review focuses on genetic models, chemically induced models, and an inbred model, with data extraction, bias evaluation, and meta-analysis planned.
SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Jaqueline M. Franzen, Felipe Vanz, Isabel Werle, Francisco S. Guimaraes, Leandro J. Bertoglio
Summary: Women are more susceptible to anxiety and stress-related disorders compared to men, and CBD may impair the reconsolidation of aversive memories by affecting the activation of cannabinoid receptors in the hippocampus.
EUROPEAN NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Lia P. Iglesias, Heliana B. Fernandes, Aline S. de Miranda, Malena M. Perez, Lucia H. Faccioli, Carlos A. Sorgi, Leandro J. Bertoglio, Daniele C. Aguiar, Carsten T. Wotjak, Fabricio A. Moreira
Summary: This study found that hippocampal TRPV1 channels play a role in the modulation of fear memories. Endocannabinoid signaling may mediate the effects of TRPV1 blockers. The intensity of the aversive stimulus affects the regulation of fear memories by TRPV1 channels. TRPV1 blockers also promote the transcription of specific genes, leading to a decrease in fear memory reinstatement.
Article
Neurosciences
Jaqueline M. Franzen, Isabel Werle, Felipe Vanz, Bruno Biscaia de Oliveira, Laura Maria Martins Nascimento, Francisco S. Guimaraes, Leandro J. Bertoglio
Summary: Growing evidence suggests that cannabidiol (CBD) modulates aversive memories and anxiety-related responses in females. This has therapeutic implications for treating anxiety and stress-related disorders in women. Studies in adult female rats show that CBD can attenuate the behavioral manifestations of learned fear and anxiety.
Editorial Material
Neurosciences
Xu O. Zhang, Fabricio H. Do Monte
Summary: In a recent study, researchers investigated the role of brainstem networks in threat prediction. Through experiments with rats, they found that brainstem neurons can estimate the likelihood of a threat and generate positive aversive prediction errors in response to unexpected outcomes. These findings suggest that brainstem neurons are not only involved in defensive behaviors but also in threat prediction computations.
TRENDS IN NEUROSCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Yane Costa Chaves, Ana Maria Raymundi, Ana Paula Farias Waltrick, Jose Alexandrede Souza Crippa, Cristina Aparecida Jark Stern, Joice Maria da Cunha, Janaina Menezes Zanoveli
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the effects of cannabidiol (CBD) on contextual fear memory consolidation, generalization, and anxiety-like responses in animals with experimentally induced type-1 diabetes mellitus. The results showed that CBD can impair the consolidation and generalization of fear memory and reduce the expression of activity-regulated cytoskeletal-associated (Arc) protein in the hippocampus. Moreover, prolonged treatment with CBD also reduced the persistence of context-conditioned fear memory and induced an anxiolytic-like effect.
ACTA NEUROPSYCHIATRICA
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Ana Maria Raymundi, Jeferson Machado Batista Sohn, Bruna Wuilleumier Salemme, Nathalie Carla Cardoso, Francisco Silveira Guimaraes, Cristina Aparecida Stern
Summary: Cannabis preparations could be an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. The study found that THC has a bidirectional effect on fear memory labilization, and this effect is associated with the involvement of hippocampal GluN2B-NMDA receptors.
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Lucas Gazarini, Cristina A. J. Stern, Leandro J. Bertoglio
Summary: Fear conditioning and avoidance tasks reveal adaptive aversive memories, while traumatic memories are more intense, generalized, inflexible, and resistant to strategies for weakening through extinction and reconsolidation. Analyzing over 350 studies on adult rats and mice, the use of stressful conditions, aversive training, and administration of drugs to induce neurochemical or epigenetic alterations in the aftermath of trauma could provide insights into posttraumatic stress disorder's neurobiology and potential treatments.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Bruna Wuilleumier Salemme, Ana Maria Raymundi, Jeferson Machado Batista Sohn, Cristina Aparecida Stern
Summary: Sex differences in the response to cannabinoids in anxiety-like behavior are influenced by hormone levels, mainly estradiol. The levels of endocannabinoids (eCBs) in specific brain areas vary according to sex and estrous cycle phase (ECP). Modulation of AEA and 2-AG levels elicits anxiety-like responses, with females being more sensitive than males.
CANNABIS AND CANNABINOID RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Yang He, Jun Tang, Meng Zhang, Junjie Ying, Dezhi Mu
Summary: This study investigated the protective effects and mechanisms of human placenta derived mesenchymal stem cells (hPMSCs) transplantation in a rat model of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). The results showed that hPMSCs transplantation reduced apoptosis and improved long-term neurological prognosis. Furthermore, the downregulation of Sema 3A/NRP-1 expression and activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway played a key role in the protective effects of hPMSCs.
Article
Neurosciences
Emily L. Isenstein, Edward G. Freedman, Jiayi Xu, Ian A. DeAndrea-Lazarus, John J. Foxe
Summary: This study evaluated electrophysiological discrimination of parametric somatosensory stimuli in healthy young adults to understand how the brain processes the duration of tactile information. The results showed that participants did not electrophysiologically discriminate between 100 and 115 ms, but they exhibited distinct electrophysiological responses when the deviant stimuli were 130, 145, and 160 ms. These findings contribute to a better understanding of tactile sensitivity in different clinical conditions.
Article
Neurosciences
Juliana R. Souza, Ludmila Lima-Silveira, Daniela Accorsi-Mendonca, Benedito H. Machado
Summary: This study demonstrates that A2A receptors play a crucial role in modulating synaptic transmission in the NTS neurons and are required for the enhancement of glutamatergic transmission observed under short-term sustained hypoxia conditions.
Article
Neurosciences
Miki Hashizume, Rina Ito, Rie Suge, Yasushi Hojo, Gen Murakami, Takayuki Murakoshi
Summary: The basolateral amygdaloid complex (BLA) is closely involved in the formation of emotional memories, including both aversive memory and contextual fear memory. Acute sleep deprivation (SD) disrupts the acquisition of tone-associated fear memory in juvenile rats, but has no significant effect on contextual fear memory. Slow network oscillation in the amygdala contributes to the formation of amygdala-dependent fear memory in relation to sleep.
Article
Neurosciences
Qunxian Wang, Shipeng Guo, Dongjie Hu, Xiangjun Dong, Zijun Meng, Yanshuang Jiang, Zijuan Feng, Weihui Zhou, Weihong Song
Summary: GSDME plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease by regulating the switch from apoptosis to pyroptosis and participating in neuroinflammatory response. Knockdown of GSDME has been shown to improve cognitive impairments, indicating that GSDME could be a therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease.