Behavioural brain research
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Behavioral sensitization to psychostimulants reflects neural adaptation, which might share a common mechanism with drug addiction. Outbred male rats show different locomotor sensitization responses to cocaine, and cocaine also produces varied addictive progress in humans. We investigated whether differences in the induction of sensitization would affect the long-term persistence of sensitized locomotor activity, and we sought to determine the molecular basis for the variability in sensitization. ⋯ We examined the level of phosphorylation of the GluA1 subunit of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropioniate receptor (AMPAR) in the dorsal striatum and found that there were significant differences between the sensitized rats and the non-sensitized rats. pGluA1-Ser831 was increased in the SENS rats during the induction of locomotor sensitization, and pGluA1-Ser845 was increased in the SENS-C rats during the expression of locomotor sensitization. These phosphorylation changes were observed in the dorsomedial striatum (DMS) of adult rats but not in the dorsolateral striatum (DLS) of adults. Our findings suggest that differential phosphorylation of AMPAR might be an important mechanism that contributes to the development of locomotor sensitization to cocaine in adult rats.
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Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterized by recurrent thoughts and repetitive motor actions. Hyposerotonergic signalling in the cortico-striatal circuitry is believed to be central to the pathology of OCD, while many patients only respond to chronic treatment with high dose selective serotonin (5HT) reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). ⋯ Furthermore, HS deer mice present with a significant decrease in striatal SERT density compared to non-stereotypical (NS) controls. Building on previous validation studies, we conclude that deer mouse stereotypy is a valid naturalistic animal model of OCD with robust face, construct and predictive validity.
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We characterize the effects of sleep deprivation on sleep-wake behavior, neurogenesis and stress in adult zebrafish, and describe light-induced changes in gene expression. Sleep deprivation was performed using two stimuli: mild electroshock and light. Comparisons were made between five groups of fish: naïve; electroshock sleep-deprived and yoked-control; fish exposed to constant light (increasing wakefulness); and fish exposed to constant darkness (increasing sleep). ⋯ Finally, modulation of gene expression by light and dark was observed. Genes upregulated during the dark period are broadly related to growth, morphogenesis, energy balance, and lipid synthesis. Genes upregulated during light are broadly related to synaptic plasticity and cell proliferation.
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The stop-signal paradigm is increasingly being used as a probe of response inhibition in basic and clinical neuroimaging research. The critical feature of this task is that a cued response is countermanded by a secondary 'stop-signal' stimulus offset from the first by a 'stop-signal delay'. Here we explored the role of task difficulty in the stop-signal task with the hypothesis that what is critical for successful inhibition is the time available for stopping, that we define as the difference between stop-signal onset and the expected response time (approximated by reaction time from previous trial). ⋯ We found that the time available for stopping distinguished successful from unsuccessful inhibition trials, was independent of stop-signal delay, and affected successful inhibition depending upon individual SSRT. We also found that right IFG and adjacent anterior insula were more strongly activated during more difficult stopping. These findings may have critical implications for stop-signal studies that compare different patient or other groups using fixed stop-signal delays.
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Sleep deprivation (SD) has been shown to induce oxidative stress which causes cognitive impairment. Melatonin, an endogenous potent antioxidant, protects neurons from oxidative stress in many disease models. The present study investigated the effect of melatonin against SD-induced cognitive impairment and attempted to define the possible mechanisms involved. ⋯ The results of immunoreactivity showed that SD decreased gray values of BDNF and CaMKII in CC and hippocamal CA1, CA3 and dentate gyrus regions, whereas melatonin improved the gray values. In conclusion, our results suggest that melatonin prevents cognitive impairment induced by SD. The possible mechanism may be attributed to its ability to reduce oxidative stress and increase the levels of CaMKII and BDNF in CC and hippocampus.