Search results for "Sparta"
showing 10 items of 301 documents
Hippocampal dopamine receptors modulate the motor activation and the increase in dopamine levels in the rat nucleus accumbens evoked by chemical stim…
2005
A number of studies have shown that chemical stimulation (using N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) infusions) or electrical stimulation of the ventral hippocampus (VH) elicits locomotor activation and sustained increases in nucleus accumbens (NAc) dopamine (DA) levels in rodents. How DA neurotransmission in NAc is involved in these effects has also been well established. However, the modulatory role of the DA receptors located in VH is not yet fully understood. The purpose of this study was to characterize the role played by VH D1 and D2 subtype receptors in both the locomotor activation and NAc DA increases induced by NMDA stimulation of the VH. This was assessed by studying how retrodialysis app…
Effects of excitatory amino acids and neuropeptide Y on the discharge activity of suprachiasmatic neurons in rat brain slices
1997
Effects of L-glutamate, AMPA, NMDA and NPY on the discharge activity of neurons located in the ventral subdivision of the suprachiasmatic nucleus were examined in submerged coronal slices of the rat hypothalamus. All substances were bath applied. Application of L-glutamate (14 neurons examined) induced an excitatory response in 8 suprachiasmatic neurons (+248.9 +/- 122.24%, mean +/- S.E.M.; P0.001). A biphasic response, i.e. an initial transient excitation (+54.3 +/- 8.21%; P0.001) succeeded by an inhibition (-66.2 +/- 9.31%; P0.001), was observed in 6 neurons. Application of AMPA (36 neurons examined) resulted in an excitation of 31 neurons (+209.2 +/- 58.58%; P0.0001). Application of NMDA…
Hippocampal dopamine receptors modulate cFos expression in the rat nucleus accumbens evoked by chemical stimulation of the ventral hippocampus
2005
Recently, we have shown that D1 and D2 receptors in the ventral hippocampus (VH) modulate both the locomotor activation and the increase in dopamine (DA) levels in the rat nucleus accumbens (NAc) induced by NMDA stimulation of the VH. In the present study we analyze the possible role of VH D1 and D2 receptors in the modulation of the cFos expression in NAc (core and shell subregions) and in dorsal striatum. This was assessed by immunohistochemical analysis of cFos expression in the rat brains after retro-dialysis application of NMDA (50mM, 10 min) into VH, in absence and in presence of either the D1/D5 receptor antagonist SCH 23390 (100 and 250 microM, 60 min) or the D2 receptor antagonist …
Dose-dependent effect of S(+) ketamine on post-ischemic endogenous neurogenesis in rats.
2009
Background: Ketamine is a non-competitive antagonist at N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors and reduces neuronal injury after cerebral ischemia by blocking the excitotoxic effects of glutamate. However, cerebral regeneration by means of endogenous neurogenesis may be impaired with blockade of NMDA receptors. The effects of S(+) ketamine on post-ischemic neurogenesis are unknown and investigated in this study. Methods: Thirty-two male Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly assigned to the following treatment groups with intravenous S(+) ketamine anesthesia: S(+) ketamine 0.75 mg/kg/min with or without cerebral ischemia and S(+) ketamine 1.0 mg/kg/min with or without cerebral ischemia. Eight non…
Pregnenolone sulfate, a naturally occurring excitotoxin involved in delayed retinal cell death.
2002
The present study was designed to investigate the neurosteroid pregnenolone sulfate (PS), known for its ability to modulate NMDA receptors and interfere with acute excitotoxicity, in delayed retinal cell death. Three hours after exposure of the isolated and intact retina to a 30-min PS pulse, DNA fragmentation as assessed by genomic DNA gel electrophoresis and a modified in situ terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end-labeling (TUNEL) method appeared concurrently with an increase in superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) levels. At 7 h, the increased amount of DNA laddering was accompanied by a higher number of TUN…
Acute ammonia intoxication induces an NMDA receptor-mediated increase in poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase level and NAD+ metabolism in nuclei of rat brain…
2004
Acute ammonia toxicity is mediated by excessive activation of NMDA receptors. Activation of NMDA receptors leads to activation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) which mediates NMDA excitotoxicity. PARP is activated following DNA damage and may lead to cell death via NAD+ and ATP depletion. The aim of the present work was to assess whether acute ammonia intoxication in vivo leads to increased PARP in brain cells nuclei and to altered NAD+ and superoxide metabolism and the contribution of NMDA receptors to these alterations. Acute ammonia intoxication increases PARP content twofold in brain cells nuclei.NAD+ content decreased by 55% in rats injected with ammonia. This was not due to decre…
Molecular and functional interactions between tumor necrosis factor-alpha receptors and the glutamatergic system in the mouse hippocampus: Implicatio…
2009
Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha is a proinflammatory cytokine acting on two distinct receptor subtypes, namely p55 and p75 receptors. TNF-alpha p55 and p75 receptor knockout mice were previously shown to display a decreased or enhanced susceptibility to seizures, respectively, suggesting intrinsic modifications in neuronal excitability. We investigated whether alterations in glutamate system function occur in these naive knockout mice with perturbed cytokine signaling that could explain their different propensity to develop seizures. Using Western blot analysis of hippocampal homogenates, we found that p55(-/-) mice have decreased levels of membrane GluR3 and NR1 glutamate receptor subuni…
Transient oligemia is associated with long-term changes in binding densities of cortical inhibitory GABAA receptors in the rat brain
2009
Recently, we could demonstrate in rats that a short transient oligemic period of only 20-minute duration, induced by systemic hypotension, resulted in a transient decline of spatial memory capacities without any histological damage over a subsequent period of 6 months. In our present study, we checked for more subtle alterations within the highly vulnerable hippocampal CA1 subfield using quantification of neuronal cell density and semi-quantitative analysis of the ischemia-sensitive protein MAP2. Since hippocampal excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitter receptors are crucially involved in spatial memory processes, quantitative in vitro receptor autoradiography was performed using [(3)H]M…
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…
Aspartate aminotransferase and carbohydrate metabolism of rat brain
1969
E stato determinato il rapporto tra forma «piridossalica» e forma «piridossaminica» dell'aspartato aminotransferasi nell'encefalo totale di ratti albini durante l'ipoglicemia da insulina e l'iperglicemia da allossana. Il rapporto tra le due forme catalitiche dell'enzima e stato considerato un indice dell'efficienza del ciclo degli acidi tricarbossilici, ed e stata prospettata la possibilita che l'aspartato aminotransferasi abbia una funzione regolativa nei riguardi del ciclo.