Neuroreport
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Anesthesia neurotoxicity in developing brain has gained increasing attention. However, knowledge regarding its mitigating strategies remains scant. Sevoflurane, a commonly used anesthetic, is responsible for learning and memory deficits in neonates. ⋯ The data showed that the spatial recognition memory and fear memory of the rats treated with sevoflurane decreased compared with the control, and the cognitive function of the rats treated with sevoflurane and hydrogen gas significantly increased in comparison with treatment with sevoflurane alone. Moreover, hydrogen gas suppressed NF-κB phosphorylation and nuclear translocation and reduced the production of interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α following sevoflurane administration. Thus, the results proposed that hydrogen gas might protect against sevoflurane neurotoxicity by inhibiting NF-κB activation and proinflammatory cytokine release, providing a novel therapeutic strategy for anesthesia neurotoxicity.
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The sedative state is a transitional state from wakefulness to general anesthesia. However, little is understood regarding the mechanism of conscious sedation, different from general anesthesia while maintaining wakefulness. In this study, we aimed to investigate changes in functional connectivity of the parietal-frontal network, implicated in wakefulness during conscious sedation induced by propofol infusion. ⋯ Contrary to the GC changes in the frontoparietal direction, GC from the parietal to frontal areas was increased in the high-frequency bands during propofol administration and significantly decreased after discontinuation of propofol. In summary, we showed that frontal-parietal neural networks were significantly changed differently by the frequency of the brain rhythm and the directions of connections during sedation by propofol administration. Our result suggests that the alteration of brain interaction may induce sedative state lying between awake and general anesthesia.
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The purpose of this study was to compare diffusion tensor metrics in normal age-matched neonates with survivors of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Thirty-five normal, 27 HIE, and 13 ECMO infants underwent MRI at 3 T. Neurodevelopmental assessments were performed. ⋯ The group difference in the FA and RD between the normal and ECMO groups was seen in the anterior commissure, genu corpus callosum, right inferior longitudinal fasciculus, fronto-occipital fasciculus, centrum semiovale, and superior longitudinal fasciculus (P<0.05). Patients who were outside the 95% confidence intervals of the FA, AD, and RD overlapped with those with abnormalities clinically and on the conventional MRI. In conclusion, diffusion tensor imaging can play a significant role in detecting infants with early indications of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury.
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Neuropathic pain is characterized by central sensitization. The interaction between N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) and postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD-95) plays a major role in central sensitization. Here, we aimed to investigate the analgesic effect of disruption of the interaction between NMDAR and PSD-95. ⋯ Myr-NR2B9c disrupted the interaction between NR2B-containing NMDARs and PSD-95 in the spinal cord. Intrathecal administration of Myr-NR2B9c attenuated neuropathic pain behaviors and downregulated the expressions of phospho-NR2B, PSD-95, CaMKII, and CREB in the spinal cord. The present study indicates that dissociation of NR2B-containing NMDARs from PSD-95 inactivates CaMKII and CREB signaling and relieves pain.
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Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a severe neurodevelopment disorder. This study tests the hypothesis that children with ASD show atypical intrinsic complexity of brain activity. Electroencephalogram data were collected from boys with ASD and matching normal typically developing children while performing an observation and an imitation task. ⋯ A decreased electroencephalogram complexity was observed in the ASD children both during the observation and during the imitation tasks. On comparing the two tasks, significant differences were observed between groups in the right hemisphere, and also the central cortex for the observation task. Multiscale entropy could provide further evidence of the relationship between ASD and cerebral dysfunction.