Article
Biology
Geoffrey W. Diehl, A. David Redish
Summary: Decision-making requires different aspects of information and involves multiple cognitive processes. The rodent medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is believed to play a central role in these abilities. Previous studies on mPFC function have yielded controversial results, but this study with rats performing an economic decision task revealed four distinct functional domains within mPFC, closely related to anatomical subregions. Dorsal mPFC regions were more involved in processing active decisions, while ventral regions were more engaged in motivational factors.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jose A. Pino, Nora Awadallah, Alessandra M. Norris, Gonzalo E. Torres
Summary: Monoamine neurotransmitters play a crucial role in neurologic and psychiatric disorders, requiring technically complex methods for studying monoamine function. This optimized two-step approach presented in the study detects monoamine release in acute brain slices and measures it using HPLC-ECD, supporting previous findings.
JOVE-JOURNAL OF VISUALIZED EXPERIMENTS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ying Duan, Pei-Jung Tsai, Betty Jo Salmeron, Yuzheng Hu, Hong Gu, Hanbing Lu, Jean Lud Cadet, Elliot A. Stein, Yihong Yang
Summary: This study investigates the role of the lateral habenula in the development of drug dependence. Using a rat model of methamphetamine self-administration with concomitant footshock, the researchers found that functional connectivity between the lateral habenula, frontal cortices, and substantia nigra was positively correlated with the level of compulsive drug use. These findings suggest that these circuits may serve as biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets for personalized treatment of addiction.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ryan J. Post, David A. Bulkin, R. Becket Ebitz, Vladlena Lee, Kasey Han, Melissa R. Warden
Summary: Tonic activity in lateral habenula neurons suppresses engagement in reward-seeking behavior in response to both negative and positive valence factors. This finding is important for understanding the balance between reward pursuit and behavioral regulation.
Article
Neurosciences
Paula Kaanders, Hamed Nili, Jill X. O'Reilly, Laurence Hunt
Summary: In this study using fMRI, researchers investigate the neural basis of information sampling in economic choice. The activity of the medial frontal cortex (MFC) was found to predict further information sampling, while a distributed network of regions across the prefrontal cortex encoded key features of the sampled information.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Congwu Du, Yueming Hua, Kevin Clare, Kicheon Park, Craig P. Allen, Nora D. Volkow, Xiu-Ti Hu, Yingtian Pan
Summary: Individuals with substance use disorder are at a higher risk of contracting HIV and progressing to AIDS. Neurotoxicity and neurodegeneration are characteristic of HIV-1-associated neurocognitive disorders. Studies have found that cocaine potentiates the neurotoxic effects of HIV-associated proteins. The NMDA antagonist drug memantine shows potential in attenuating the neurotoxicity caused by cocaine and HIV.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Cell Biology
Ellen P. Woon, Laura M. Butkovich, Arianna A. Peluso, Aziz Elbasheir, Kian Taylor, Shannon L. Gourley
Summary: We have discovered a connection between the ventral hippocampus and the medial orbitofrontal cortex that plays an important role in the updating of value memories, and this connection is mediated by the neuroplasticity-associated neurotrophin receptor TrkB.
Article
Neurosciences
Wen-Jing Ren, Ya-Fei Zhao, Jie Li, Patrizia Rubini, Zeng-Qiang Yuan, Yong Tang, Peter Illes
Summary: This study found that in a mouse model of major depressive disorder, depression-like behavior can be aggravated by microinjecting the P2X7R agonist ATP or its analog dibenzoyl-ATP into the medial prefrontal cortex, and this effect can be reversed by the P2X7R antagonist JNJ-47965567.
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Yufan Chen, Tao Gong, Cong Sun, Aocai Yang, Fei Gao, Tong Chen, Weibo Chen, Guangbin Wang
Summary: In this study, the relationship between age-related changes in neuromelanin signal and iron content in the subregions of substantia nigra was investigated in a normal population. It was found that the contrast ratio increased with age, while the volume decreased. These findings may be useful for understanding neurodegenerative diseases in the future.
EUROPEAN RADIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Risako Kato, Edlyn R. Zhang, Olivia G. Mallari, Olivia A. Moody, Kathleen F. Vincent, Eric D. Melonakos, Morgan J. Siegmann, Christa J. Nehs, Timothy T. Houle, Oluwaseun Akeju, Ken Solt
Summary: The study found that D-amphetamine can accelerate the recovery of consciousness from dexmedetomidine anesthesia, and this effect is influenced by dopamine receptor antagonists, while its effect on ketamine anesthesia is minimal. Gender has a significant impact on recovery time, suggesting the clinical potential of D-amphetamine as a reversal agent for dexmedetomidine.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Qiang Shan, Ye Tian, Hang Chen, Xiaoli Lin, Yao Tian
Summary: Curiosity and novelty-seeking are fundamental for animals and humans to explore and adapt to their environment, but these traits decline with age in humans and can even predict cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease. This study shows that aged mice exhibit compromised seeking behaviors for both social and inanimate novelties, suggesting a biological process behind the aging-related decline in curiosity. The study also identifies a reduction in the activity of dopaminergic neurons in specific brain regions as causally related to the decline in novelty-seeking behaviors. These findings could provide intervention strategies to maintain curiosity in the aging population.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ayesha Khan, Saadia Zahid, Beena Hasan, Abdul R. Asif, Nikhat Ahmed
Summary: In this study, protein expression profiling of three distinct brain regions in schizophrenia patients was compared with healthy controls. 58 differentially expressed proteins were found, and several key protein-protein interaction networks were identified. These findings provide new insights into the pathways and protein interactions related to schizophrenia, expanding the conceptual framework for future research.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jonas-Frederic Sauer, Shani Folschweiller, Marlene Bartos
Summary: The study reveals the emergence of a dynamic and topographically organized place code in the medial prefrontal cortex of mice during spontaneous locomotion. This representation discriminates between familiar and novel environments and is reinstated upon reexposure to the same familiar environment. The topographical analysis shows a dorsoventral gradient in the representation of the own position, which is opposite to the innervation density of hippocampal inputs.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Auxiliadora Mena, Sandra Lopez, Juan C. Ruiz-Salas, Aaron Fernandez, Francisco J. Perez-Diaz, Juan C. Lopez
Summary: The study aimed to analyze the relationship between the adult medial prefrontal cortex (mPfc) and dopaminergic involvement in PPI, finding that dopamine is essential for modulating PPI during adulthood, and mPfc plays a crucial role in this modulation.
BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Silvia Maggi, Mark D. Humphries
Summary: In this study, the researchers found that the neural population activity in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPfC) of rats learning a task is represented in different low-dimensional subspaces during trials and intertrial intervals (ITI). These subspaces encode distinct task features and are reactivated during sleep. The findings provide insights into how the brain represents and processes information about different states of the world.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
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.