Article
Neurosciences
Steliana Yanakieva, Mathias L. Mathiasen, Eman Amin, Andrew J. D. Nelson, Shane M. O'Mara, John P. Aggleton
Summary: This study compared collateral projections from different rostral thalamic nuclei terminating in different cortical areas. The results showed that these projections predominantly arise from separate populations of neurons with discrete cortical termination zones.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Jean-Christophe Cassel, Maeva Ferraris, Pascale Quilichini, Thibault Cholvin, Laurine Boch, Aline Stephan, Anne Pereira de Vasconcelos
Summary: The ReRh nuclei, as components of the ventral midline thalamus, have received increasing attention over the past twenty years. Recent research has expanded anatomical knowledge, introduced new electrophysiological insights, and provided novel results on cognitive functions. These findings suggest that the ReRh nuclei play a key role in coordinating information flow and activity between brain regions such as the medial prefrontal cortex and hippocampus.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Thomas Morvan, Laurine Boch, Elena Mikhina, Brigitte Cosquer, Aline Stephan, Anne Pereira de Vasconcelos, Jean-Christophe Cassel
Summary: The study revealed the involvement of the reuniens and rhomboid nuclei of the ventral midline thalamus in working memory tasks lasting from seconds to minutes, with c-Fos expression indicating the importance of this area in spatial memory.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Zaki Ajabi, Alexandra T. Keinath, Xue-Xin Wei, Mark P. Brandon
Summary: The head direction (HD) system functions as the brain's internal compass, but its mechanisms of anchoring and drift remain unclear. In this study, population recordings of thalamic HD cells revealed a second dimension of activity, referred to as network gain, which predicted realignment and drift dynamics. Moreover, the network gain maintained a 'memory trace' of previously displayed landmarks and influenced the internal HD representation. These findings challenge the classical one-dimensional interpretations of the HD system.
Article
Neurosciences
Roddy M. Grieves, Michael E. Shinder, Laura K. Rosow, Megan S. Kenna, Jeffrey S. Taube
Summary: The brain has robust mechanisms to counter spatial disorientation, including neural cell activity, visual landmarks, and vestibular input. Rotation speed affects neural cell activity, and head-fixed rotations impact the perception of angular velocity.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mehdi Fallahnezhad, Julia Le Mero, Xhensjana Zenelaj, Jean Vincent, Christelle Rochefort, Laure Rondi-Reig
Summary: The head-direction (HD) system is a neural circuit crucial for navigation, consisting of anatomical structures with neurons selective to the animal's head direction. HD cells display temporal coordination across brain regions, independent of the animal's behavior or sensory inputs, which mediates a single, stable, and persistent HD signal necessary for intact orientation. By manipulating the cerebellum, researchers identify pairs of HD cells recorded from two brain structures that lose their temporal coordination, specifically during the removal of external sensory inputs. The cerebellum contributes to the preservation of a single and stable sense of direction through distinct mechanisms depending on sensory signals.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Ian F. Smith, Zachary H. Gursky, Anna Y. Klintsova
Summary: This study investigated the effects of early life alcohol exposure on brain connectivity in rats. The findings showed that alcohol exposure can impair axonal connections of prefrontal cortex neurons, resulting in impaired executive functioning. Additionally, alcohol exposure led to a reduction in the volume of the thalamic nucleus. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the effects of early alcohol exposure on brain function.
FRONTIERS IN BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ruchi Malik, Yi Li, Selin Schamiloglu, Vikaas S. Sohal
Summary: This study describes a monosynaptic long-range GABAergic projection from the prefrontal cortex (PFC) to the hippocampus, which enhances hippocampal information processing by inhibiting specific interneurons. Stimulation of this projection increases hippocampal feedforward inhibition and reduces activity, resulting in improved hippocampal encoding of object locations and spatial information. Activation or inhibition of this projection also promotes or suppresses object exploration behavior.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Yudi Chen, Zhi Xiong, Jianye Liu, Chuang Yang, Lijun Chao, Yang Peng
Summary: This paper proposes a brain-inspired positioning method based on multi-sensors' input, utilizing head-direction cell model and place cell model to encode information, decode direction and position, and output more accurate and stable navigation parameters.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jie Hong, Jia-Ni Li, Feng-Ling Wu, Shang-Yi Bao, Han-Xue Sun, Ke-Hua Zhu, Zhi-Ping Cai, Fei Li, Yun-Qing Li
Summary: Prior research has shown that the midcingulate cortex (MCC) and its downstream pathway play a role in regulating pain. However, it is still unclear how pain information is transmitted to the MCC. This study used various techniques to investigate the involvement of the MCC, anteromedial thalamus nucleus (AM), and AM-MCC pathway in pain and emotional regulation. The results showed that manipulating the MCCCaMKII alpha, AM(CaMKII alpha), and AM(CaMKII alpha)-MCC pathway can affect pain sensitivity and anxiety-like behaviors. In an inflammatory pain model, inhibiting the AM(CaMKII alpha)-MCCCaMKII alpha pathway provided pain relief. This study also identified the AM as a regulator of nociception and negative emotions, with the MCC receiving projections primarily from the AM, highlighting the importance of this pathway in pain and emotional information transmission.
NEUROCHEMISTRY INTERNATIONAL
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Susumu Takahashi, Takumi Hombe, Sakiko Matsumoto, Kaoru Ide, Ken Yoda
Summary: Animals demonstrate remarkable navigation abilities, possibly due to the presence of head direction cells that encode the animal's heading information. In the study of shearwater chicks, it was found that their head direction cells exhibited a preference for the north direction, indicating the existence of an internally generated magnetic compass in animals.
Editorial Material
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Aylin Apostel, Jonas Rose
Summary: The study found head-direction cells, but not place cells, in the hippocampal formation of quails, shedding light on the poorly understood avian hippocampus.
Article
Cell Biology
Giuseppe Balsamo, Eduardo Blanco-Hernandez, Feng Liang, Robert Konrad Naumann, Stefano Coletta, Andrea Burgalossi, Patricia Preston-Ferrer
Summary: Research on the mouse dorsal presubiculum demonstrates a modular patch-matrix organization that is conserved across species, including human. The restricted apical dendrites of HD cells within the matrix suggest a non-random sampling of patterned inputs and a precise structure-function architecture in the cortical representation of HD.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xiaoyang Long, Bin Deng, Calvin K. Young, Guo-Long Liu, Zeqi Zhong, Qian Chen, Hui Yang, Sheng-Qing Lv, Zhe Sage Chen, Sheng-jia Zhang
Summary: Head direction cells are an important component in the brain's spatial navigation system. FS HD cells in the somatosensory cortex display sharper head-directionality than RS HD cells and coexist with RS HD cells and AHV cells in a layer-specific manner. These findings challenge the concept that FS interneurons are weakly tuned to sensory stimuli and provide insights into the local circuit organization of HD signaling in the brain.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
G. Torromino, V Loffredo, D. Cavezza, G. Sonsini, F. Esposito, A. H. Crevenna, M. Gioffre, M. De Risi, A. Treves, M. Griguoli, E. De Leonibus
Summary: Incidental memory is influenced by retention delay and memory load. This study reveals that female and male mice process high memory load differently, leading to resistance to distraction and memory decay, respectively. The dorsal hippocampus and ventral midline thalamus play important roles in incidental memory, and manipulating the activation of these regions can affect memory differences between sexes.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Pediatrics
Maarten H. Lequin, Sylke J. Steggerda, Mariasavina Severino, Domenico Tortora, Alessandro Parodi, Luca A. Ramenghi, Floris Groenendaal, Karlijn M. E. Meys, Manon J. N. L. Benders, Linda S. de Vries, Seralynne D. Vann
Summary: The study highlights the importance of assessing the status of the mammillary bodies (MBs) in neonatal encephalopathy and the need for long-term follow-up of infants with abnormal MB signal to determine effects on cognition. It also suggests that therapeutic hypothermia may not provide complete protection against MB injury and calls for improvements in scanning protocols to properly assess the MBs.
PEDIATRIC RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Md Sohel, Partha Biswas, Md. Al Amin, Md. Arju Hossain, Habiba Sultana, Dipta Dey, Suraiya Aktar, Arifa Setu, Md. Sharif Khan, Priyanka Paul, Md. Nurul Islam, Md. Ataur Rahman, Bonglee Kim, Abdullah Al Mamun
Summary: This review explores the molecular mechanisms and anticancer activities of genistein (GNT) in breast cancer (BC). GNT exerts its effects through multiple pathways, including apoptosis induction, cell cycle arrest, inhibition of angiogenesis and metastasis, and enhancement of the efficacy of standard chemotherapeutic drugs. These findings suggest that GNT could serve as a beneficial therapeutic agent when standard drugs are not available in the pharma markets.
Review
Oncology
Md Sohel, Md. Nurul Islam, Md. Arju Hossain, Tayeba Sultana, Amit Dutta, Md. Sohanur Rahman, Suraiya Aktar, Khairul Islam, Abdullah Al Mamun
Summary: The use of dietary phytochemicals to treat cancers, including breast cancer, is a well-known approach. Sesamin, a natural phytochemical, has shown potential as a chemopreventive agent for breast cancer. It can target multiple molecular pathways involved in cell growth, metastasis, and apoptosis. The combination therapy with other drugs can enhance its anticancer effects.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BREAST CANCER
(2022)
Review
Clinical Neurology
K. M. E. Meys, L. S. de Vries, F. Groenendaal, S. D. Vann, M. H. Lequin
Summary: Despite their small size, mammillary bodies play a crucial role in supporting recollective memory. However, their significance is often overlooked in assessing memory-related neurological disorders, especially in infants and children. This literature review indicates that mammillary body pathology is present in pediatric populations with various conditions, as shown by signal change and atrophy on brain MR imaging. The main causes of pathology are thiamine deficiency, hypoxia-ischemia, direct damage, or deafferentation within the Papez circuit. Given their importance in memory processes, it is critical to optimize scanning protocols and include assessment of mammillary body status as a standard procedure.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF NEURORADIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Neurosciences
Neil McNaughton, Seralynne D. Vann
Summary: The construction of complex engrams requires interactions between the hippocampus and cortex, including both direct interactions and interactions via subcortical loops. These loops, which involve the hypothalamus, supplement direct connections and enhance desired connections through iterative reprocessing, ultimately increasing the signal-to-noise ratio in distributed engrams necessary for complex learning and memory.
TRENDS IN NEUROSCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Aviv Sharon, Maciej M. Jankowski, Nava Shmoel, Hadas Erez, Micha E. Spira
Summary: This study suggests that young rats show better cortical tissue recovery and improved recording performance when compared to adult rats after implantation of multielectrode arrays. The removal of microglia adhering to the implant surfaces is correlated with improved recording performance.
ACTA BIOMATERIALIA
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Maciej M. Jankowski, Bogna M. Ignatowska-Jankowska, Wojciech Glac, Marek Wiergowski, Paulina Kazmierska-Grebowska, Artur H. Swiergiel
Summary: This study investigates the interaction between haloperidol and cocaine on immune cells and behavior. The experiments show that cocaine induces locomotor response and stereotypic behaviors in rats, which can be completely blocked by pretreatment with haloperidol. The study also reveals that both haloperidol and cocaine lead to changes in the distribution of lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood and spleen. The results suggest that the decrease in blood lymphocytes induced by haloperidol and cocaine (except for natural killer T cells) is independent of D2-like dopaminergic activity and likely a result of corticosterone secretion. Pretreatment with haloperidol prevents the cocaine-induced decrease in NKT cell numbers. Moreover, the increased systemic D2-like dopaminergic activity after cocaine administration plays a significant role in retaining T CD3(+)CD4(+) lymphocytes and non-T/NK CD45RA(+) cells in the spleen.
CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Hiroki Nabekura, Md Nurul Islam, Hideyuki Sakoda, Takashi Yamaguchi, Atsuhito Saiki, Taiki Nabekura, Takashi Oshiro, Yuri Tanaka, Shinya Murayama, Weidong Zhang, Ichiro Tatsuno, Masamitsu Nakazato
Summary: A retrospective study found that preoperative serum LEAP2 concentration can predict weight loss and complete remission of type 2 diabetes mellitus after vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG).
Article
Biology
Maciej M. Jankowski, Ana Polterovich, Alex Kazakov, Johannes Niediek, Israel Nelken
Summary: Researchers developed a programmable interactive arena called the Rat Interactive Foraging Facility (RIFF) to simultaneously monitor behavior and brain activity in rats. The RIFF revealed that rats not only have auditory responses in the auditory cortex and auditory field in the posterior insula, but also show sensitivity to non-auditory parameters such as location and head-to-body angle. This study provides insights into the cognitive capabilities and learning mechanisms of rats.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Bshara Awwad, Maciej M. Jankowski, Ana Polterovich, Sapir Bashari, Israel Nelken
Summary: The article discusses the relationship between unexpected changes in sensory streams and prediction errors in deviant stimulus. It explores the association between Mismatch Negativity (MMN) and Stimulus-Specific Adaptation (SSA) in humans and animals. Research findings show that violation of expectations due to unexpected stimulus omission can elicit omission MMN. These responses reflect temporal expectancy and are often time locked to the end of the omitted stimulus. The study also demonstrates the occurrence of offset responses in the auditory cortex of unanesthetized rats, which contribute to a rich and varied representation of prediction-related signals.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
John P. Aggleton, Seralynne D. Vann, Shane M. O'Mara
Summary: Understanding the neural basis of episodic memory requires an appreciation of the significance of the fornix. Through studying patients with colloid cysts, it was found that there is a consistent relationship between mammillary body volume and episodic memory recall. Additionally, a dissociation between recollective-based recognition and familiarity-based recognition was observed, highlighting the importance of the mammillary body-anterior thalamic nuclei axis and the hippocampus for episodic memory.
Article
Psychiatry
Michal M. Milczarek, Syed Irtiza A. Gilani, Maarten H. Lequin, Seralynne D. Vann
Summary: While the frontal cortices and medial temporal lobe are associated with schizophrenia, the involvement of wider limbic areas is uncertain. The mammillary bodies, crucial for memory and anxiety, have been implicated in various neurological disorders, but their role in schizophrenia is not well understood. Post-mortem studies have shown neuron loss in the mammillary bodies, while in vivo MRI studies have yielded mixed results. To investigate further, we measured mammillary body volumes in 72 individuals with schizophrenia and 74 controls, finding smaller volumes in the patient group. This atrophy, along with lower hippocampal volumes, may contribute to the symptomology in schizophrenia.
Review
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Muzahidul I. Anik, Niaz Mahmud, Abdullah Al Masud, Md Ishak Khan, Md Nurul Islam, Shihab Uddin, M. Khalid Hossain
Summary: Research on the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in aging has made significant advancements in the past two decades. While the complete understanding of ROS-regulated aging process is not yet achieved, current insights into cellular sources of ROS, their correlation with aging and age-related diseases, and the role of antioxidants in ROS homeostasis and aging process are summarized in this review. The review also discusses the advances in clinical trials and provides future directions for ROS-mediated anti-aging research.
ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Ophthalmology
Asma A. A. Zahidi, Lee McIlreavy, Jonathan T. Erichsen, J. Margaret Woodhouse
Summary: Children with Down's syndrome have poorer visual acuity compared to neurotypical children, and nystagmus leads to further visual impairment and a higher prevalence of myopia. However, nystagmus does not seem to affect the prevalence and axis direction of astigmatism.
INVESTIGATIVE OPHTHALMOLOGY & VISUAL SCIENCE
(2022)