The International journal of neuroscience
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Comparative Study
Comparison of the after-effects of transcranial direct current stimulation over the motor cortex in patients with stroke and healthy volunteers.
It is known that weak transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) induces persistent excitability changes in the cerebral cortex. There are, however, few studies that compare the after-effects of anodal versus cathodal tDCS in patients with stroke. This study assessed the after-effects of tDCS over the motor cortex in patients with hemiparetic stroke and healthy volunteers. ⋯ We found no significant change in the duration of the silent period after anodal or cathodal tDCS. We found that both anodal and cathodal tDCS increased the affected M1 excitability in patients with stroke. It is thought that the after-effects of tDCS are different in patients with stroke compared with healthy subjects.
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The hydroxy-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase inhibitors, better known as statins, are principally used in the treatment of hyperlipidemia and play a pivotal role in the primary and secondary prevention of atherosclerotic heart disease and stroke. Evidence also exists for the potential benefits from statin use in a variety of other disease processes, conferred via their non-lipid lowering properties, which are known as pleiotropic effects. Our paper serves as a focused and updated discussion on the pleiotropic effects of statins in neurological disorders. Emphasis is placed on the discussion of randomized, placebo-controlled trials, and their importance in further elucidating this interesting phenomenon.
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The lysophosphatidic acid LPA₁ receptor has recently been involved in the adaptation of the hippocampus to chronic stress. The absence of LPA₁ receptor aggravates the chronic stress-induced impairment of both hippocampal neurogenesis and apoptosis that were accompanied with hippocampus-dependent memory deficits. Apoptotic death and neurogenesis in the hippocampus are regulated by oxidative stress. ⋯ Furthermore, only malpar1 KO mice submitted to chronic stress exhibited a severe downregulation of the COX activity, suggesting the presence of mitochondrial damage. Altogether, these results suggest that malpar1 KO mice display enhanced oxidative stress in the hippocampus after chronic stress. This may be involved in the hippocampal abnormalities observed in this genotype after chronic immobilization, including memory, neurogenesis, and apoptosis.
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Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH)-induced brain injury is highly related to neurological deficits and mortality. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) changes and vasoconstriction are two complications that occur soon after SAH experimentally. In this study we investigated the changes in rCBF and vertebro-basilar arterial diameter in a cisterna megna SAH model in Sprague-Dawley rats and intended to explore whether improving early rCBF reduction and cerebral vasospasm could contribute to alleviating blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction. ⋯ Pronounced rCBF reduction and vasospasm were observed soon after SAH, followed by BBB permeability increment. NDP administration could improve rCBF and attenuate vasospasm, followed by the alleviation of BBB permeability. Our results demonstrate that early improvement of cerebral circulation by NDP may contribute to the reduction in brain injury indexed by BBB disruption.
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Patients seeking help for pathological gambling often exhibit features of impulsivity, cognitive rigidity, poor judgment, deficits in emotion regulation, and excessive preoccupation with gambling. Some of these characteristics are also common among patients presenting with neurological pathology associated with executive deficits. ⋯ Significant differences between the groups emerged over all nine subscales of executive functioning with the most dramatic differences on BRIEF-A subscales Inhibit, Plan/Organize, Shift, Emotion Control, Self-Monitor, and Initiate among the pathological gamblers. These results provide evidence that support findings among pathological gamblers using objective neuropsychological measures and suggest that the BRIEF-A may be an appropriate instrument to assess possible problems with executive control in this population.