Search results for "motor activity"
showing 10 items of 486 documents
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor But Not Forced Arm Use Improves Long-Term Outcome After Photothrombotic Stroke and Transiently Upregulates Binding …
2008
Background and Purpose— Both application of neurotrophic factors like brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and constraint-induced movement therapy like forced arm use have been shown to potentially improve outcome after stroke. The aim of the present study was to check whether postischemic long-term outcome correlates to specific modifications in the abundance of various neurotransmitter receptors. Methods— Adult male Wistar rats were subjected to photothrombotic ischemia and assigned to various treatment groups (n=5 each) with end points at 3 and 6 weeks: (1) ischemic control (saline); (2) BDNF (ischemia, 20 μg BDNF); (3) forced arm use (ischemia, saline, and ipsilateral plaster cast …
Factors Associated with Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet among Adolescents Living in Sicily, Southern Italy
2013
The present study aimed to examine the factors associated with increased Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence among a sample of Italian adolescents. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 1135 students (13–16 years) attending 13 secondary schools of Sicily, southern Italy. Validated instruments were used for dietary assessment and the KIDMED score to assess adolescents’ adherence to the MD. A higher adherence to the MD was associated with high socioeconomic status (Odds Ratio [OR] 1.53, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.03–2.26) and high physical activity (OR 1.19, 95% CI: 1.02–1.70), whereas lower adherence was associated with living in an urban environment (OR 0.65, 95% CI: 0.44–0.97) and b…
Differences in muscle and adipose tissue gene expression and cardio-metabolic risk factors in the members of physical activity discordant twin pairs
2010
High physical activity/aerobic fitness predicts low morbidity and mortality. Our aim was to identify the most up-regulated gene sets related to long-term physical activity vs. inactivity in skeletal muscle and adipose tissues and to obtain further information about their link with cardio-metabolic risk factors. We studied ten same-sex twin pairs (age range 50-74 years) who had been discordant for leisure-time physical activity for 30 years. The examinations included biopsies from m. vastus lateralis and abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue. RNA was analyzed with the genome-wide Illumina Human WG-6 v3.0 Expression BeadChip. For pathway analysis we used Gene Set Enrichment Analysis utilizing…
Recess physical activity and school-related social factors in Finnish primary and lower secondary schools: cross-sectional associations.
2014
Abstract Background Participation in physical activities provides students with opportunities for social interaction and social skills development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations of students’ recess physical activity with school-related social factors. Methods Data were collected in 19 schools countrywide in autumn 2010, and 1463 students from grades 4 and 5 (primary school) and from grades 7 and 8 (lower secondary school) completed an anonymous questionnaire. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to investigate whether self-reported physical activity at recess was associated with peer relationships at school, relatedness to school and school clim…
Relation between physical activity and academic performance in 3rd-year secondary education students
2011
The main aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between the amount of physical activity and academic performance in 3rd-year secondary education students. The sample was taken from three secondary schools in the area of Barcelona. 284 students (158 girls, 126 boys) with an average age of 14.7 yr. participated. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire was used by students to self-report their amount of physical activity. Students’ academic records were obtained for comparisons. Results showed that there was a linear relationship between academic performance and physical activity; nevertheless, there was a trend to stronger correlation when modeling the relationship betwee…
Acute behavioural and neurotoxic effects of MDMA plus cocaine in adolescent mice.
2008
The poly-drug pattern is the most common among those observed in MDMA users, with cocaine being a frequently associated drug. This study evaluates the acute effects of MDMA (5, 10 and 20 mg/kg), alone or in combination with cocaine (25 mg/kg), on motor activity, anxiety (elevated plus maze and social interaction test), memory and brain monoamines in adolescent mice, Both drugs, administered alone or concurrently, produced hyperactivity and a decrease in social contacts. However, an anxiolytic effect, studied by means of the elevated plus maze and expressed as an increase in the time spent on the open arms, was observed only in those animals treated with cocaine and MDMA. The passive avoidan…
Behavioural and neurotoxic long-lasting effects of MDMA plus cocaine in adolescent mice
2008
The poly-drug pattern is the most common among MDMA users, with cocaine being a frequently associated drug. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the behavioural and neurotoxic long-term effects of exposure during adolescence to MDMA alone or plus cocaine. Mice of 28 to 30 days of age received a treatment of two daily injections of an identical dose of MDMA (5, 10 or 20 mg/kg), alone or plus cocaine (25 mg/kg), for 3 days (6 administrations). Three weeks after receiving MDMA, an increase in the time dedicated by the animals to social contacts with their conspecifics was observed, whilst their behaviour in the elevated plus maze showed no differences from that of non-treated mice. Afte…
Central serotonin depletion modulates the behavioural, endocrine and physiological responses to repeated social stress and subsequent c-fos expressio…
1999
Abstract Intraspecific confrontation has been used to study effect of depleting central serotonin on the adaptation of male rats to repeated social stress (social defeat). Four groups of adult male rats were used (serotonin depletion/sham: stressed; serotonin depletion/sham: non-stressed). Central serotonin was reduced (by 59–97%) by a single infusion of the neurotoxin 5,7-dihydroxtryptamine (150 μg) into the cerebral ventricles; levels of dopamine and noradrenaline were unaltered (rats received appropriate uptake blockers prior to neurotoxic infusions). Sham-operated animals received solute only. Rats were then either exposed daily for 10 days to a second larger aggressive male in the latt…
Behavioral deficits induced by lead exposure are accompanied by serotonergic and cholinergic alterations in the prefrontal cortex
2013
The effects of long-term lead (Pb) exposure producing a blood Pb concentration of lower than 20 μg/dL, i.e. below that associated with overt neurological deficits in occupationally exposed individuals, was studied in adult rats. In order to assess gender differences, we performed parallel behavioral experiments in male and female rats. Exposure to Pb acetate (50 ppm in drinking water) for 6 months induced motor and cognitive alterations, however these effects were gender- and task-dependent. Chronic lead exposure impaired spatial learning assessed in the Morris water maze test (MWM) in both genders, whereas it only induced hyperactivity in the open field and impaired motor coordination in t…
Adolescent pre-exposure to ethanol or MDMA prolongs the conditioned rewarding effects of MDMA
2011
Adolescents often take ethanol (EtOH) in combination with MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethylamphetamine). In the present work we studied the effect of repeated intermittent adolescent pre-exposure to both drugs on the behavioral and neurochemical effects of MDMA in mice. Sixteen days after pre-treatment, the rewarding and reinstating effects of MDMA in the conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm were evaluated, along with the levels of biogenic amines, basal motor activity and corticosterone response to different challenges. Pre-exposure to EtOH, MDMA or EtOH+MDMA did not affect the CPP induced by 10mg/kg of MDMA. However, adolescent exposure to EtOH or MDMA increased the duration of the co…