Search results for " striatum"

Behavioural parameters in aged rats are related to LTP and gene expression of ChAT and NMDA-NR2 subunits in the striatum.

2004

Striatal parameters were assessed for their relevance to age-related behavioural decline. Forty aged rats (28-30 months) were tested in the water maze and open field. Of these, seven superior and seven inferior learners were compared with each other in terms of levels of in vitro short- and long-term potentiation (STP and LTP), and gene expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) as well as of the NMDA-NR2A-C subunits assessed by quantitative RT-PCR. Results revealed that the superior as compared with the inferior learners had higher levels of ChAT mRNA in the striatum. For the superior group, ChAT mRNA was correlated with escape on to the cued platform in the water maze, whereas level o…

Voluntary wheel running protects against the increase in ethanol consumption induced by social stress in mice

2020

Abstract Previous studies have shown that exposure to social defeat (SD), a model of social stress, produces a long-term increase in the consumption of ethanol, most likely through an increase in the neuroinflammation response. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether exposure to physical activity in the form of voluntary wheel running (VWR) could block the increase in ethanol consumption and the neuroinflammatory response induced by social stress. Mice were exposed to either 4 sessions of repeated social defeat (RSD) or a non-stressful experience. During the whole procedure, half of the mice were exposed to controlled physical activity, being allowed 1 h access to a low-profile…

Increased neuropeptide Y mRNA expression in striatum in Parkinson's disease.

2003

High levels of neuropeptide Y (NPY) are found in basal ganglia where it is co-localised with somatostatin (SOM) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase (NADPH/d) in a population of striatal GABA containing interneurones. Although alterations occur in the levels of various neuropeptides in basal ganglia in Parkinson’s disease (PD), it is not known whether NPY is affected. Using in situ hybridisation immunohistochemistry, we have examined the distribution of NPY mRNA in the caudate nucleus, putamen and nucleus accumbens of normal individuals and patients with PD. NPY mRNA was weakly expressed in the caudate nucleus, putamen and nucleus accumbens in normal individuals with a…

Inhibition of nitric oxide synthase influences the activity of striatal neurons in the rat

2002

The activity of single units in the striatum of urethane-anesthetized rats was recorded before and after the systemic administration of 7-nitro-indazole (7-NI; 50 mg/kg intraperitoneally), a selective inhibitor of neuronal nitric oxide (NO) synthase. Two neuronal types were clearly distinguishable electrophysiologically, on the basis of either discharge frequency pattern or features of the individual spike waveform (spike duration, negative phase/total duration ratio, and negative phase/total amplitude ratio). Only sporadically discharging neurons (basal firing rate, <0.1 spikes/s) were influenced by 7-NI, which caused a statistically significant increase in their firing rate. In contrast, …

Chronic l-DOPA treatment increases striatal cannabinoid CB1 receptor mRNA expression in 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats

2000

Abstract The effect of a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion of the left medial forebrain bundle and 3 weeks treatment with l -DOPA of normal and 6-OHDA lesioned rats on CB1r mRNA expression was investigated by in situ hybridization. A 6-OHDA lesion of nigrostriatal pathway alone, confirmed by the loss of nigral tyrosine hydroxylase mRNA, did not alter CB1r mRNA levels in the dopamine depleted striatum. Similarly, chronic l -DOPA treatment of normal rats had no effect on striatal CB1r mRNA expression. In contrast, chronic l -DOPA treatment of 6-OHDA-lesioned rats significantly increased CB1r mRNA expression in the denervated striatum. These results suggest that the CB1r activity ma…

Pravastatin treatment causes a shift in the balance of hippocampal neurotransmitter binding densities towards inhibition

2009

Since pravastatin, a HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, has recently been shown to reduce infarct volumes and glutamate release in a rat model of ischemic stroke, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether this neuroprotective effect may be due to a modulation of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitter receptors. Therefore, Wistar rats were treated six times in 4 days with pravastatin or saline and allowed to survive for 6 hours or 5 days (n=10 per time point and group), respectively. Using quantitative receptor autoradiography, ligand binding densities of [(3)H]MK-801, [(3)H]AMPA, and [(3)H]muscimol for labeling of NMDA, AMPA, and GABA(A) receptors were analyzed in sensorimotor c…

Involvement of estrogen receptors in the resveratrol-mediated increase in dopamine transporter in human dopaminergic neurons and in striatum of femal…

2011

Treatment with resveratrol (RSV) has been shown to protect vulnerable neurons after various brain injuries and in neurodegenerative diseases. The mechanisms for the effects of RSV in brain are not fully understood, but RSV may affect the expression of various gene products. RSV is structurally related to the synthetic estrogen, diethylstilbestrol so the effects of RSV may be gender-specific. Here we studied the role of RSV in the regulation of dopamine transporter (DAT) in the striatum using male and female mice. The basic levels of DAT in the striatum showed no sex difference, but the levels increased significantly by RSV (20 mg/kg i.p.) in female but not in male mice. Pretreatment of mice…

Outbreak of multi-resistant Corynebacterium striatum infection in an Italian general intensive care unit.

2007

Dual modulation of striatal acetylcholine release by hyperforin, a constituent of St. John's wort.

2002

Extracts of the medicinal plant St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) are widely used for the treatment of mild to moderate depression. Hyperforin, a constituent of St. John's wort, is known to inhibit the sodium-dependent uptake of catecholamines and amino acids into synaptic nerve endings, probably by interference with mechanisms controlling the synaptic sodium concentration. Because de novo synthesis of acetylcholine (ACh) is dependent on sodium-dependent high-affinity choline uptake, we studied the effect of hyperforin on choline (Ch) uptake in vitro and on striatal ACh release in vivo using microdialysis. In rat brain synaptosomes, hyperforin inhibited high-affinity choline uptake wit…

Projections from the posterolateral olfactory amygdala to the ventral striatum: neural basis for reinforcing properties of chemical stimuli

2007

Abstract Background Vertebrates sense chemical stimuli through the olfactory receptor neurons whose axons project to the main olfactory bulb. The main projections of the olfactory bulb are directed to the olfactory cortex and olfactory amygdala (the anterior and posterolateral cortical amygdalae). The posterolateral cortical amygdaloid nucleus mainly projects to other amygdaloid nuclei; other seemingly minor outputs are directed to the ventral striatum, in particular to the olfactory tubercle and the islands of Calleja. Results Although the olfactory projections have been previously described in the literature, injection of dextran-amines into the rat main olfactory bulb was performed with …