Search results for "nucleus"
showing 10 items of 1803 documents
Evidence for increased nitric oxide production in the auditory brain stem of the aged dwarf hamster (Phodopus sungorus): an NADPH-diaphorase histoche…
2000
Age-related changes of the auditory system such as presbyacusis are believed to be due, at least in part, to alterations of central structures. The superior olivary complex (SOC), a group of interrelated brain stem nuclei, projects to a variety of neuronal structures including the cochlea and the inferior colliculus (IC). The soluble gas nitric oxide (NO), believed to function as a neuroactive substance within the SOC and cochlea, is thought to be involved in ageing processes. Since it is unknown whether NO-production is altered in the ageing auditory system, the present study was conducted to investigate whether the number of NO-producing cells in the SOC is changed with increasing age. Th…
Projection Neurons in the Superior Olivary Complex of the Rat Auditory Brainstem: A Double Retrograde Tracing Study
1998
The superior olivary complex (SOC), a group of interrelated brainstem nuclei, sends efferents to a variety of neuronal structures including the cochlea and the inferior colliculus (IC). In the present study conducted in rats, we sought to investigate whether single SOC efferent neurons project to both cochlea and IC. These neurons were identified by retrograde axonal transport of the neuronal tracers fluoro-gold upon application to the cochlea and cholera toxin B subunit injected into the central nucleus of the IC. Projections to the cochlea were found to stem predominantly from the ipsilateral lateral superior olive (LSO) and medial superior olive (MSO) as well as from the bilateral superi…
Toxicological profile of cereulide, the Bacillus cereus emetic toxin, in functional assays with human, animal and bacterial cells
2007
International audience; Some strains of the endospore-forming bacterium Bacillus cereus produce a heat-stable ionophoric peptide, cereulide, of high human toxicity. We assessed cell toxicity of cereulide by measuring the toxicities of crude extracts of cereulide producing and non-producing strains of B. cereus, and of pure cereulide, using cells of human, animal and bacterial origins. Hepatic cell lines and boar sperm, with cytotoxicity and sperm motility, respectively, as the end points, were inhibited by <= 1 nM of cereulide present as B. cereus extract. RNA synthesis and cell proliferation in HepG2 cells was inhibited by 2 nM of cereulide. These toxic effects were explainable by the acti…
Food Intake Adaptation to Dietary Fat Involves PSA-Dependent Rewiring of the Arcuate Melanocortin System in Mice
2012
International audience; Hormones such as leptin and ghrelin can rapidly rewire hypothalamic feeding circuits when injected into rodent brains. These experimental manipulations suggest that the hypothalamus might reorganize continually in adulthood to integrate the metabolic status of the whole body. In this study, we examined whether hypothalamic plasticity occurs in naive animals according to their nutritional conditions. For this purpose, we fed mice with a short-term high-fat diet (HFD) and assessed brain remodeling through its molecular and functional signature. We found that HFD for 3 d rewired the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus, increasing the anorexigenic tone due to activated pro-opio…
Gene toxicity studies on titanium dioxide and zinc oxide nanomaterials used for UV-protection in cosmetic formulations
2010
Titanium dioxide and zinc oxide nanomaterials, used as UV protecting agents in sunscreens, were investigated for their potential genotoxicity in in vitro and in vivo test systems. Since standard OECD test methods are designed for soluble materials and genotoxicity testing for nanomaterials is still under revision, a battery of standard tests was used, covering different endpoints. Additionally, a procedure to disperse the nanomaterials in the test media and careful characterization of the dispersed test item was added to the testing methods. No genotoxicity was observed in vitro (Ames' Salmonella gene mutation test and V79 micronucleus chromosome mutation test) or in vivo (mouse bone marrow…
Induction of brain CYP2E1 changes the effects of ethanol on dopamine release in nucleus accumbens shell.
2009
CYP2E1 is an important enzyme involved in the brain metabolism of ethanol that can be induced by chronic consumption of alcohol. Recent works have highlighted the importance of this system in the context of the behavioural effects of ethanol. Unfortunately, the underlying neurochemical events for these behavioural changes, has not been yet explored. In this work, we have started this exploration by analyzing the possible changes in the neurochemical response of the mesolimbic system to ethanol after pharmacological induction of brain CYP2E1. We have used the dopamine extracellular levels in nucleus accumbens (NAc) core and shell, measured by means of microdialysis in vivo, as an index of th…
Local salsolinol modulates dopamine extracellular levels from rat nucleus accumbens: shell/core differences.
2008
Salsolinol (SAL), a condensation product of dopamine and acetaldehyde that appears in the rat and human brain after ethanol ingestion, has been largely implicated in the aetiology of alcoholism. Although the behavioural consequences of systemic or intracerebral SAL administrations have been described, the neurochemical effects of pharmacologically relevant doses of SAL and other tetrahydroisoquinolines (THIQs) in the brain areas involved in alcohol addiction are practically unknown. To gain an insight into this topic, male Wistar rats were stereotaxically implanted with one concentric microdialysis probe in either the shell or the core of the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Treatments involved loc…
Influence of the amount of food ingested on mesolimbic dopaminergic system activity: a microdialysis study.
1996
Abstract The mesolimbic dopaminergic system (MDS) has been shown to be activated by ingestive behaviors, and it has been suggested that this activation may be related to the rewarding properties of foods. Because rats eat more when given a more palatable diet, this study was undertaken to determine the relationship between the amount of food ingested and DA release in the nucleus accumbens of freely moving rats. The extracellular levels of dopamine (DA), 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA) were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection on microdialysis samples from the nucleus accumbens. Each rat underwent three microdia…
Induction of conditioned place preference and dopamine release by salsolinol in posterior VTA of rats: involvement of μ-opioid receptors.
2011
Salsolinol (Sal), locally administered into the posterior VTA (pVTA) of rats, produces psychomotor responses and reinforcing effects, probably, through the activation of μ-opioid receptors (MORs). The neurochemical correlates of these phenomena are, however, practically unknown. In this paper, we explore the neurochemical events and the mechanisms involved in these behaviors. To do that, we test the ability of Sal, directly microinjected into the pVTA, to induce conditioned place preference (CPP) and to increase dopamine levels in the nucleus accumbens shell. Bilateral injections of 30 pmol of Sal induced a strong CPP (rats spent around 70% of the total test time), a result that could be ex…
Dose-dependent induction of CPP or CPA by intra-pVTA ethanol: Role of mu opioid receptors and effects on NMDA receptors.
2020
AbstractThe neurobiological mechanisms underlying alcohol motivational properties are still not fully understood, however, the mu-opioid receptors (MORs) have been evidenced as central elements in the manifestation of the alcohol reinforcing properties. Drug-associated environmental stimuli can trigger alcohol relapse and promote alcohol consumption whereby N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors play a pivotal role. Here we sought to demonstrate, for the first time, that ethanol induces conditioned place preference or aversion (CPP or CPA) when administered locally into the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and the associated role of MORs. We further analyzed the changes in the expression and mRN…