• 대한수의학회지
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• 제48권3호
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• pp.251-258
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• 2008

The neurotoxicity of C-terminal fragments of amyloid precusor protein (CT) is known to play some roles in Alzheimer's disease progression. In this study, we investigated the effects of the recombinant C-terminal 105 amino acid fragment of amyloid precusor protein (CT105) on cholinergic function using CT105-injected rat. To study the effects of CT105 on septohippocampal pathway, choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) positive neurons were examined in the medial septum and in the diagonal band after an injection of CT105 peptide into the lateral ventricle. Immunohistological analysis revealed that the number of ChAT-immunopositive cells decreased significantly in both medial septum and diagonal band. In addition, CT105 decreased ChAT-immunopositive cells in the hippocampal area, particulary in the dentate gyros. To study the effect of amyloid beta peptide ($A{\beta}$) and CT105 on the cholinergic system, each peptide was injected into the left lateral ventricle, and acetylcholine (ACh) levels were monitored in hippocampus. ACh level in the hippocampal area was reduced to 60% of control level in $A{\beta}$-treated group, and the level was reduced to 15% of control level in CT105-treated group, at one week after the injection. ACh level was further reduced to 35% of control in $A{\beta}$-treated group, whereas the level was slightly increased to 30% of control in CT105-treated group at 4 weeks after the injection. Taken together, the results in the present study suggest that CT105 impairs the septohippocampal pathway by reducing acetylcholine synthesis and release, which results in damage of learning and memory.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제17권4호
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• pp.331-338
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• 2013

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), an important regulator of energy metabolism, is activated in response to cellular stress when intracellular levels of AMP increase. We investigated the neuroprotective effects of AMPK against scopolamine-induced memory impairment in vivo and glutamate-induced cytotoxicity in vitro. An adenovirus expressing AMPK wild type alpha subunit (WT) or a dominant negative form (DN) was injected into the hippocampus of rats using a stereotaxic apparatus. The AMPK WT-injected rats showed significant reversal of the scopolamine induced cognitive deficit as evaluated by escape latency in the Morris water maze. In addition, they showed enhanced acetylcholinesterase (AChE)-reactive neurons in the hippocampus, implying increased cholinergic activity in response to AMPK. We also studied the cellular mechanism by which AMPK protects against glutamate-induced cell death in primary cultured rat hippocampal neurons. We further demonstrated that AMPK WT-infected cells increased cell viability and reduced Annexin V positive hippocampal neurons. Western blot analysis indicated that AMPK WT-infected cells reduced the expression of Bax and had no effects on Bcl-2, which resulted in a decreased Bax/Bcl-2 ratio. These data suggest that AMPK is a useful cognitive impairment treatment target, and that its beneficial effects are mediated via the protective capacity of hippocampal neurons.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제25권10호
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• pp.1103-1109
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• 2015

뇌 해마의 콜린성 신경분포는 학습과 기역에 연관성이 있는 것으로 알려져 있으며 이의 작용제인 carbachol 투여 시 장기기억 저하가 유도됨이 알려져 왔다. 그러나 이러한 콜린성 자극에 의한 해마 신경세포의 시냅스 내 변화기작은 완전히 알려지지 않고 있다. 본 연구에서는 아세틸콜린 수용체의 활성에 의하여 유도되는 장기기억 저하 현상에 있어 alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionate (AMPA) 수용체가 후시냅스 표면으로부터 사라지는 현상과 이의 조절기작에 대하여 알아보고자 한다. 이를 위하여 쥐 해마의 일차세포를 추출하고 체외에서 배양한 성숙 신경세포에 carbachol 을 투여하여 장기기억 저하를 유도 하였으며, 후시냅스의 표면으로부 터 AMPA 수용체의 아단위체인 GluA2가 M1 무스카린 수용체의 길항제에 의하여 저해 되었다. 또한 콜린성 자극 에 의한 GluA2의 내재화 현상의 작용기작 연구를 위하여 쥐 해마 절편에 carbachol 투여 후 GluA2와 직접적인 상호작용을 하는 Glutam내재화 되었음을 확인하였다. 이러한 현상은 ate receptor-interacting protein 1 (GRIP1) 과 clathrine 단백질이 매개하는 세포내이입 작용을 하는 adaptin-α 단백질의 결합 변화를 관찰하였다. GluA2는 carbachol 자극에 의해 세포내이입 과정에서 adaptin-α 와의 결합이 증가하였으며 반대로 GRIP1과는 해리되었다. 이는 아세틸콜린의 수용체의 자극에 의하여 GluA2의 내제화 작용이 수반되며, 이의 작용기작으로 GluA2의 후시 냅스 표면 발현시에 결합하고 있는 GRIP1과 해리 되면서 장기기억 저하 현상이 유도됨을 의미한다.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제1권4호
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• pp.345-353
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• 1997

The effects of crude saponin (SAP) and alkaloid (ALK) fractions of Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer on the detrimental effects of electroconvulsive shock (ECS) and scopolamine on passive avoidance response (PAR) were studied in male Sprague-Dawley rats, referring their effects on the neuronal injury and plasticity of hippocampus in response to electrolytic lesion of left entorhinal cortex (ECL). The detrimental ECS effect on PAR was attenuated by pre- and post-treatments with SAP and ALK, respectively, or by pretreatment with aminoguanidine (AG), an inhibitor of diamine oxidase and NO synthase. And the detrimental scopolamine effect on PAR was also inhibited by pre-treatment with ALK or AG, and by post- treatment with SAP or ALK, respectively. On the 7th day after ECL, the brain sections stained by cresyl violet and by acetylcholinesterase (AChE) histochemistry, respectively, showed the chromatolysis and numeral decrease of neurons and the reduction of AChE reactivity in the hippocampus CA1 area and to a lesser extent, in the dentate gyrus. The neuronal cell death of the CA1 area was significantly reduced by SAP, ALK, or AG, and the reduction of AChE reactivity was significantly attenuated by SAP or ALK and to a lesser extent by AG. These results suggests that the protective effect of ginseng SAP and ALK fractions on ECS- or scopolamine-induced impairment of PAR may be ascribed in part to preservation of hippocampal neurons, particularly cholinergic neurons.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제15권6호
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• pp.333-338
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• 2011

Black ginseng (BG) has been widely used as herbal treatment for improving physiological function. In order to investigate the neuroprotective action of this herbal medicine, we examined the influence of BG on the learning and memory of rats using the Morris water maze, and we studied the effects of BG on the central cholinergic system and neural nitric oxide synthesis in the hippocampus of rats with neuronal and cognitive impairment. After middle cerebral artery occlusion was applied for 2h, the rats were administered BG (100 or 400 $mgkg^{-1}$, p.o.) daily for 2 weeks, followed by training and performance of the Morris water maze test. The rats with ischemic insults showed impaired learning and memory on the tasks. Treatment with BG produced improvement in the escape latency to find the platform. Further, the BG groups showed a reduced loss of cholinergic immunoreactivity and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase (NADPH-d)-positive neurons in the hippocampus compared to that of the ISC group. These results demonstrated that BG has a protective effect against ischemia-induced neuronal and cognitive impairment. Our results suggest that BG might be useful for the treatment of vascular dementia.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제24권6호
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• pp.517-527
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• 2020

Layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons (L2/3 PyNs) of the cortex extend their basal dendrites near the soma and as apical dendritic tufts in layer 1, which mainly receive feedforward and feedback inputs, respectively. It is suggested that neuromodulators such as serotonin and acetylcholine may regulate the information flow between brain structures depending on the brain state. However, little is known about the dendritic compartment-specific induction of synaptic transmission in single PyNs. Here, we studied layer-specific serotonergic and cholinergic induction of long-term synaptic plasticity in L2/3 PyNs of the agranular insular cortex, a lateral component of the orbitofrontal cortex. Using FM1-43 dye unloading, we verified that local electrical stimulation to layers 1 (L1) and 3 (L3) activated axon terminals mostly located in L1 and perisomatic area (L2/3). Independent and AMPA receptor-mediated excitatory postsynaptic potential was evoked by local electrical stimulation of either L1 or L3. Application of serotonin (5-HT, 10 μM) induced activity-dependent longterm depression (LTD) in L2/3 but not in L1 inputs. LTD induced by 5-HT was blocked by the 5-HT₂ receptor antagonist ketanserin, an NMDA receptor antagonist and by intracellular Ca²⁺ chelation. The 5-HT₂ receptor agonist α-me-5-HT mimicked the LTD induced by 5-HT. However, the application of carbachol induced muscarinic receptor-dependent LTD in both inputs. The differential layer-specific induction of LTD by neuromodulators might play an important role in information processing mechanism of the prefrontal cortex.

• 동의생리병리학회지
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• 제28권3호
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• pp.337-345
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• 2014

The present study examined the effects of soybean-derived phosphatidylserine (SB-PS) on the learning and memory function and the neural activity in rats with trimethyltin (TMT)-induced memory deficits. The cognitive improving efficacy of SB-PS on the amnesic rats, which was induced by TMT, was investigated by assessing the Morris water maze test and by performing cholineacetyl transferase (ChAT), acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and cAMP responsive element binding protein (CREB) immunohistochemistry. A positron emission tomography (PET) scanning the rat brain was by performed administer 18F-Fluorodeoxy-glucose (18F-FDG). The rats with TMT injection showed impaired learning and memory of the tasks and treatment with SB-PS produced a significant improvement of the escape latency to find the platform in the Morris water maze at the 2nd day compared to that of the MCT group. In the retention test, the SB-PS group showed increased time spent around the platform compared to that of the MCT group. Consistent with the behavioral data, SB-PS 50 group significantly alleviated the loss of acetyl cholinergic neurons in the hippocampus compared to that of the MCT group. Treatment with SB-PS significantly increased the CREB positive neurons in the hippocampus as compared to that of the MCT group. In addition, SB-PS groups increased the glucose uptake in the hippocampus and SB-PS 50 group increased the glucose uptake in the frontal lobe, as compared to that of the MCT group. These results suggest that SB-PS may be useful for improving the cognitive function via regulation of cholinergic marker enzyme activity and neural activity.

• 동의생리병리학회지
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• 제16권2호
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• pp.303-310
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• 2002

Ancient Korean physicians have used several oriental herbs to cure dementia and these effects were described in the Korean herbal books. Some cognitive-enhancing oriental herbs have been widely used as a herbal medicine against dementia. However, few of studies have proved their efficacy in treatment for dementia. In the present study, we investigated the effects of herbal compounds, which are mainly consisted of Uncaria sinensis, Corydalis yanhusuo and Acorus gramineus on learning and memory in Mortis water maze task and the central cholinergic system of the rats with neurotoxic medial septum lesion. In water maze test, the animals were trained to find a platform in a fixed position during 6 days and then received a 60-s probe trial in which the platform was removed from the pool on the 7th day. Ibotanic and 192 saporin lesion of the medial septum (MS) impaired the performance of maze test and degenerated choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) in the brain, which is a marker of the central cholinergic system. Daily administrations of herbal medicine (100mg/kg, p.o.) for 21 consecutive days produced significant reversals of the neurotoxic-induced deficit in learning and memory. These treatments also reduced the loss of cholinergic immunoreactive neurons in the brain induced by neurotoxin. These results demonstrated that herbal compounds ameliorated learning and memory deficits through effects on the central nervous system, partly through effect on the acetylcholine system. Our studies suggest an evidence of these herbs as treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

• Applied Microscopy
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• 제34권4호
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• pp.285-294
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• 2004

생쥐의 망막에서 아세틸콜린의 합성효소인 choline acetyltransferase (ChAT)에 대한 항체를 이용한 면역세포화학법으로 콜린성 무축삭세포를 동정하고 분포양상을 조사하였다. 콜린성 무축삭세포는 망막에서 세포체의 위치에 따라서 두 종류로 구분된다. 즉 속핵층에 세포체가 위치하고 세포돌기는 속얼기층의 a 아층판에 위치하는 세포와 세포체가 신경절세포층에 위치하면서 세포돌기는 b 아층판에 위치하는 세포이다. GABA 항체를 이용한 이중 면역염색 결과 모든 콜린성 무축삭세포가 GABA에 대한 염색반응성을 나타내었다. 전자현미경 관찰 결과 콜린성 무축삭세포의 연접회로가 속얼기층에서 관찰되었다. 콜린성 무축삭세포는 두극세포와 가장 많은 수입연접을 형성하고 있었으며, 이 외에 콜린성 무축삭세포와 염색되지 않은 무축삭세포와의 연접도 관찰되었다. 콜린성 무축삭세포의 수출연접의 주요 대상은 신경절세포로 속얼기층의 b 아층판에서 더 빈번하게 관찰되었다. 이러한 연구결과로 생쥐 망막의 콜린성 무축삭세포도 다른 종류의 포유류와 매우 유사한 특징을 가지고 있으며, 방향선택성 신경절세포로 신호가 전달되는 과정에서 중요한 역할을 할 것으로 생각된다.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제1권3호
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• pp.303-313
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• 1997

The role of the lower esophageal sphincter(LES) is characterized by the ability to maintain tone and to relax allowing the passage of a bolus. It is known that LES relaxation during swallowing may be induced by the cessation of the tonic neural excitation and the activation of non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic(NANC) inhibitory neurons. Furthermore, it is generally accepted that the relaxation of the smooth muscle is mediated primarily by the elaboration of adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate(cyclic AMP) and guanosine 3',5'-cyclic mono-phosphate(cyclic GMP) via activation of adenylate cyclase and guanylate cyclase, respectively. It is thus possible that cyclic nucleotides might be a second messenger involved in neural stimulation-induced relaxation of LES, although a relationship between relaxation and changes in cyclic nucleotides after neural stimulation has not been established. The present study was performed to define the participation of cyclic nucleotides in the relaxation of LES of dog in response to neural stimulation. Electrical field stimulation(EFS) caused relaxation of the canine isolated LES strips in a frequency-dependent manner, which was eliminated by pretreatment with tetrodotoxin$(1{\mu}M)$, but not by atropine$(100{\mu}M)$, guanethidine$(100{\mu}M)$ and indomethacin$(10{\mu}M)$. The nitric oxide synthase inhibitors, $N^G-nitro-L-arginine$, $N^G-nitro-L-arginine$ methyl ester and $N^G-monomethyl-L-arginine$ inhibited EFS-induced relaxation. Additions of sodium nitroprusside, a nitrovasodilator and forskolin, a direct adenylate cyclase stimulant, caused a dose-dependent relaxation of LES smooth muscle. Effects of sodium nitroprusside and forskolin were selectively blocked by the corresponding inhibitors, methylene blue for guanylate cyclase and N-ethylmaleimide(NEM) for adenylate cyclase, respectively. Dibutyryl cyclic AMP and dibutyryl cyclic GMP caused a concentration-dependent relaxation of the LES smooth muscle tone, which was not blocked by NEM or methylene blue, respectively. However, both NEM and methylene blue caused significant antagonism of the relaxation in LES tone in response to EFS. EFS increased the tissue cyclic GMP content by 124%, whereas it did not affect the tissue level of cyclic AMP. Based on these results, it is suggested that one of the components of canine LES smooth muscle relaxation in response to neural stimulation is mediated by an increase of cyclic GMP via the activation of guanylate cyclase. Additionally, an activation of cyclic AMP generation system was, in part, involved in the EFS-induced relaxation.