Neuroscience
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Comparative Study
Basolateral amygdala lesions impair both cue- and cocaine-induced reinstatement in animals trained on a discriminative stimulus task.
Drug-associated environmental cues can maintain drug use and contribute to relapse even after long periods of abstinence. We investigated the ability of sensory stimuli that signaled periods of reward availability to sustain cocaine self-administration and trigger the reinstatement of reward-seeking behavior. We demonstrate that lesions of the basolateral amygdala (BLA), a structure strongly implicated in attributing salience to environmental stimuli, significantly reduced the power of predictive cues to elicit reward-seeking behavior. ⋯ In sham-lesioned animals, cocaine and the DS, but not the CS or the S-, triggered reinstatement. BLA lesions abolished DS-induced reinstatement and significantly attenuated cocaine-induced reinstatement. These results demonstrate 1) that when tested under the same conditions, a discriminative cue which signals reward availability is a more robust trigger of reward-seeking than a Pavlovian CS which signals reward delivery and 2) that the BLA contributes to reinstatement in response to these discriminative cues.
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To gain insight into the role of melatonin and dopamine in retinal development, gene expression of two melatonin receptors, MT1 and MT2, as well as five dopamine receptors, D1, D2, D3, D4 and D5, in the rat eye was analyzed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction across various developmental stages. MT1 transcript levels reached maximum levels at embryonic day (E) 16 and then decreased gradually until reaching adult levels by postnatal day (P) 14. MT2 transcript levels similarly peaked at E16, but then decreased dramatically until birth to its lowest levels, which were maintained throughout the postnatal period. ⋯ Gene expression of D1-like receptors, D1 and D5, showed a substantial increase to adult levels during the fetal period at E16 and E20, respectively. Transcript levels of D2-like receptors, D2 and D4, on the other hand, were not detected before birth but increased significantly to adult levels by P7 and P14, respectively. The present findings suggest the presence of unique developmental mechanisms by which transcription of various G protein-coupled receptors are regulated in the eye.
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Comparative Study
Neuropeptide Y, GABA and circadian phase shifts to photic stimuli.
Circadian rhythms can be phase shifted by photic and non-photic stimuli. The circadian clock, anatomically defined as the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), can be phase delayed by light during the early subjective night and phase advanced during the late subjective night. Non-photic stimuli reset the clock when presented during the subjective day. ⋯ The administration of bicuculline during light exposure, before NPY microinjection did not alter the ability of NPY to attenuate light-induced phase delays and block photic phase advances. These results indicate that NPY attenuates photic phase shifts via a mechanism independent of GABA(A) receptor activation. Furthermore it is evident that NPY influences circadian clock function via differing cellular pathways over the course of a circadian cycle.
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Comparative Study
A combined blockade of glycine and calcium-dependent potassium channels abolishes the respiratory rhythm.
In order to test whether glycinergic inhibition is essential for the in vivo respiratory rhythm, we analysed the discharge properties of neurones in the medullary respiratory network after blockade of glycine receptors in the in situ perfused brainstem preparation of mature wild type and oscillator mice with a deficient glycine receptor. In wild type mice, selective blockade of glycine receptors with low concentrations of strychnine (0.03-0.3 microM) provoked considerable changes in neuronal discharge characteristics: The cycle phase relationship of inspiratory, post-inspiratory and expiratory specific patterns of membrane potential changes was altered profoundly. Inspiratory, post-inspiratory and expiratory neurones developed a propensity for fast voltage oscillations that were accompanied by multiple burst discharges. ⋯ In contrast, rhythmic activity was only weakened, but preserved after the "small" Ca2+-dependent activated K+ conductance was blocked with apamin (8 nM). Also low concentrations of pentobarbital sodium (6 mg/kg) abolished rhythmic respiratory activity after blockade of glycine receptors in the wild type mice and in glycine receptor deficient oscillator mice. The data imply that failure of glycine receptors provokes enhanced bursting behaviour of respiratory neurones, whilst the additional blockade of BKCa channels by charybdotoxin or with pentobarbital abolishes the respiratory rhythm.
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Comparative Study
Highly differential expression of the monocarboxylate transporters MCT2 and MCT4 in the developing rat brain.
Monocarboxylate transporters (MCTs) play an important role in the metabolism of all cells. They mediate the transport of lactate and pyruvate but also some other substrates such as ketone bodies. It has been proposed that glial cells release monocarboxylates to fuel neighbouring neurons. ⋯ In contrast to MCT2, MCT4 is exclusively present in astroglia during all stages of development. Furthermore, MCT4 expression is very low at birth and reaches adult level by P14. Our results are consistent with previous data suggesting that in the immature brain much of the energy demand is met by monocarboxylates and ketone bodies.