摘要:

CONTRALATERAL rotations induced by the D1-like agonist SKF 38393 in unilaterally 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats were completely prevented by the administration of the D1-like antagonist SCH 23390. A similar result was obtained after intracerebroventricular administration of an antisense oligodeoxynucleotide for the D1 receptor (D1R-as). Contrariwise, administration of a D5R-as potentiated the effects of SKF 38393, showing a 60% increase in the rotational scores. Both effects were reversible upon cessation of D1R-as or D5R-as treatment and were also specific since rotational scores in rats treated with vehicle or with a randomly designed oligodeoxynucleotide were not modified. These results suggest that whereas D1 receptors play a facilitatory role in locomotion, D5 receptors exert an inhibitory effect.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

PREVIOUS studies have shown that substance P (SP) exerts reinforcing effects following injection into the region of the nucleus basalis magnocellularis (NBM) in rats. The aim of the present study was to further characterize this effect by examining its anatomical specificity. Reinforcing effects of SP were assessed following unilateral microinjection into the NBM or into the nearby rostral part of the ventral pallidum (VP), using conditioned place preference as an index for reinforcement. Intracranial injection of SP was performed through small diameter glass micropipettes which allowed precise delivery of SP in minute quantities. A single microinjection of SP (0.2 and 1 ng) into the NBM produced a conditioned place preference, whereas injection of SP into the rostral VP failed to alter the preference behavior. The results confirm that SP has reinforcing effects when administered into the NBM and provide evidence that these effects are brain-site specific.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

TO determine whether embryonic spinal cord transplants retained the ability to prevent retrograde death of Clarke's nucleus (CN) neurons if supplied after a delay, we hemisected adult rats at the T8 spinal cord segment and placed transplants of fetal tissue into the hemisection cavity immediately or up to 14 days later. Transplants provided in the first 7 days after injury prevented virtually all of the 30% loss of CN neurons at L1 ipsilateral to hemisection that occurs without a transplant. Transplants supplied at 14 days post-hemisection were ineffective. Because prevention of retrograde neuron death is one mechanism by which transplants may contribute to locomotor recovery after spinal cord injury, this window of effectiveness should be considered in the design of clinical trials.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

WE show that the pro-apoptotic proteins Bax and Bak trigger apoptosis when over-expressed in sympathetic neurons cultured in the presence of NGF. This effect can be blocked with z-VAD-fmk, a peptide inhibitor of caspases, but not with anti-apoptotic chemical compounds such as antioxidants or proteasome inhibitors. These results demonstrate that in sympathetic neurons Bax and Bak are sufficient to induce apoptosis in the absence of any other apparent cell death stimulus and that their effect is mediated by caspases but does not require reactive oxygen species nor activity of the proteasome.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

FOLLOWING severe cranio-cerebral trauma that affected the optic radiation, patient FS suffers from an incomplete macula-splitting hemianopia. Within the hemianopic field, FS exhibits blindsight, i.e. he detects and discriminates visual stimuli he cannot (consciously) see. We performed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) at high spatial resolution using a large flickering stimulus field to assess visual responsiveness of deafferented V1. Contrasting strong activation of the normal contralesional visual cortex, ipsilesional V1 displayed no stimulus-related MRI signal changes. However, activation was observed in ipsilesional extrastriate cortex. We conclude that blindsight does not depend on functional islands of tissue preserved within the deafferented striate cortex.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

THE heterogeneity of c-fos and hsp72 mRNA expression during focal ischemia was studied in mice by combiningin situhybridization with metabolic imaging. Focal ischemia was produced by middle cerebral artery occlusion for 3 h. The infarct core and the penumbra were differentiated by regional ATP and cerebral protein synthesis (CPS) imaging. hsp72 mRNA expression was restricted to the ischemic penumbra, as defined by the dissociation between preserved ATP and suppressed CPS. c-fos mRNA was expressed not only in the penumbra but also in the peri-ischemic normal brain tissue in which both ATP and CPS were preserved. These data demonstrate a highly selective differential expression of immediate-early and stress-related genes in the peri-infarct surrounding which is explained by different mechanisms of gene induction.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

INDUCTION of long-term potentiation (LTP) in the hippocampus is associated with changes in expression of a variety of different proteins and is thought to be the mechanism which underlies synaptic plasticity. The 25 kDa synaptosomal-associated protein (SNAP-25) is a presynaptic protein which is involved in neurotransmitter exocytosis at the nerve terminal. Two isoforms of SNAP-25 have so far been identified (a and b) which differ in their distribution and developmental regulation. Usingin situhybridization, we demonstrated that the mRNA levels of the two isoforms of this protein are increased 2 h after the induction of LTP in granule cells of the dentate gyrus following high frequency stimulation of the perforant pathin vivo. These observations further demonstrate the involvement of both isoforms of SNAP-25 in functional synaptic plasticity, although their exact roles have yet to be fully determined.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

WE report here the cloning of a novel form of the murine glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) receptor. Northern blot analyses of various mouse tissues, including whole brain, demonstrated the existence of multiple transcripts of GDNF receptor. Screening of an adult mouse liver cDNA library yielded two isoforms of the receptor. One of the forms (β) shows a high degree of homology with other mammalian GDNFR-α and the other novel form (β) is identical to the α form except for a deletion of five amino acids. These two forms do not share high sequence homologies with the recently isolated neurturin receptor. Both the α and β forms are expressed in various murine tissues but not in muscle.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

GLIAL cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is trophic to motor and sensory neurones in animal models. GDNF mRNA is up-regulated in Schwann cells after peripheral nerve injury in rats. We have quantified and localized GDNF and its receptor component Ret, for the first time in any species, in injured human peripheral nerves and dorsal root ganglia (DRG) avulsed from the spinal cord. Significantly higher levels of GDNF were found in nerve distal to the site of the injury than in proximal or intact nerve, and in avulsed DRG than in post-mortem control DRG. GDNF immunostaining was seen in Schwann cells and in DRG neurones, especially of small and medium size, with significantly increased numbers of medium sized sensory neurones immunore-active for GDNF after avulsion. Ret immunoreactivity was restricted to DRG neurones and axons, with no significant changes in numbers of positive DRG cells after injury. Our findings suggest that GDNF may play a role in injured human nerves and sensory ganglia, particularly in medium sized sensory neurones.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID

摘要:

WE investigated the effect of sleep deprivation on postural control during a simple reaction time task (SRT), during a task requiring the intermittent inhibition of a reaction (IRT), and in the absence of a concurrent information processing task. Postural sway, i.e. changes in center of pressure on a force platform, was recorded in three increasingly difficult standing conditions (fixed platform, sway-referenced platform and sway-referenced platform with sway-referenced visual scene) during the three information-processing task conditions. Five healthy subjects performed the tasks either after normal sleep or following 24 h of sustained wakefulness. As hypothesized, sleep deprivation significantly increased postural sway only in the IRT condition. Within the IRT condition, sleep deprivation significantly increased sway across all postural conditions.

ISSN:0959-4965    

出版商:OVID    

年代:1998

数据来源: OVID