• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• 제16권1호
• /
• pp.65-70
• /
• 2012

Synaptic long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) have been studied as mechanisms of ocular dominance plasticity in the rat visual cortex. Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) inhibits the induction of LTP and LTD during the critical period of the rat visual cortex (postnatal 3~5 weeks). However, in adult rats, the increase in 5-HT level in the brain by the administration of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) fluoxetine reinstates ocular dominance plasticity and LTP in the visual cortex. Here, we investigated the effect of 5-HT on the induction of LTP in the visual cortex obtained from 3- to 10-week-old rats. Field potentials in layer 2/3, evoked by the stimulation of underlying layer 4, was potentiated by theta-burst stimulation (TBS) in 3- and 5-weekold rats, then declined to the baseline level with aging to 10 weeks. Whereas 5-HT inhibited the induction of LTP in 5-week-old rats, it reinstated the induction of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDA)-dependent LTP in 8- and 10-week-old rats. Moreover, the selective SSRI citalopram reinstated LTP. The potentiating effect of 5-HT at 8 weeks of age was mediated by the activation of 5-$HT_2$ receptors, but not by the activation of either 5-$HT_{1A}$ or 5-$HT_3$ receptors. These results suggested that the effect of 5-HT on the induction of LTP switches from inhibitory in young rats to facilitatory in adult rats.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
• /
• 제17권1호
• /
• pp.12-20
• /
• 2000

The memory of pain can be more damaging than its initial experience. Several factors arc related the directions of pain memory: current pain intensity, emotion, expectation of pain, and peak intensity of previous pain. The possible mechanisms behind the memory of pain are neuroplastic changes of nervous system via peripheral and central sensitization. Peripheral sensitization is induced by neurohumoral alterations at the site of injury and nearby. Biochemicals such as K+, prostaglandins, bradykinin, substance P, histamine and serotonin, increase transduction and produce continuous nociceptive input. Central sensitization takes place within the dorsal horn of spinal cord and amplifies the nociceptive input from the periphery. The mechanisms of central sensitization involve a variety of transmitters and postsynaptic mechanisms resulting from the activations of NMDA receptors by glutamate. and activation of NK-1 tachykinnin receptors by substance-P and neurokinnin. The clinical result of peripheral and central sensitization is hyperalgesia, allodynia, spontaneous pain, referred pain, or sympathetically maintained pain. These persistent sensory responses to noxious stimuli arc a form of memory. The hypothesis of preemptive analgesia is that analgesia administered before the painful stimulus will prevent or reduce subsequent pain and analgesic requirements in comparison to the identical analgesic intervention administered after the painful stimulus, by preventing or reducing the memory of pain in the nervous system. Conventionally, pain management was initiated following noxious stimuli such as surgery. More recently, however many have endorsed preemptive analgesia initiated before surgery. Treatments to control postsurgical pain are often best started before injury activates peripheral nociceptors and triggers central sensitization. Such preemption is not achieved solely by regional anesthesia and drug therapy but also requires behavioral interventions to decrease anxiety or stress. Although the benefit of preemptive analgesia may not be obvious in every circumstance, and in many cases may not sufficient to abolish central sensitization, it is an appropriate and human goal of clinical practice.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• 제23권5호
• /
• pp.317-328
• /
• 2019

It is known that top-down associative inputs terminate on distal apical dendrites in layer 1 while bottom-up sensory inputs terminate on perisomatic dendrites of layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons (L2/3 PyNs) in primary sensory cortex. Since studies on synaptic transmission in layer 1 are sparse, we investigated the basic properties and cholinergic modulation of synaptic transmission in layer 1 and compared them to those in perisomatic dendrites of L2/3 PyNs of rat primary visual cortex. Using extracellular stimulations of layer 1 and layer 4, we evoked excitatory postsynaptic current/potential in synapses in distal apical dendrites (L1-EPSC/L1-EPSP) and those in perisomatic dendrites (L4-EPSC/L4-EPSP), respectively. Kinetics of L1-EPSC was slower than that of L4-EPSC. L1-EPSC showed presynaptic depression while L4-EPSC was facilitating. In contrast, inhibitory postsynaptic currents showed similar paired-pulse ratio between layer 1 and layer 4 stimulations with depression only at 100 Hz. Cholinergic stimulation induced presynaptic depression by activating muscarinic receptors in excitatory and inhibitory synapses to similar extents in both inputs. However, nicotinic stimulation enhanced excitatory synaptic transmission by ~20% in L4-EPSC. Rectification index of AMPA receptors and AMPA/NMDA ratio were similar between synapses in distal apical and perisomatic dendrites. These results provide basic properties and cholinergic modulation of synaptic transmission between distal apical and perisomatic dendrites in L2/3 PyNs of the visual cortex, which might be important for controlling information processing balance depending on attentional state.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• 제7권2호
• /
• pp.85-89
• /
• 2003

The basic mechanism for the excitation of the peripheral vestibular receptors following acute hypotension induced by sodium nitroprusside (SNP) or hemorrhage was investigated in anesthetized rats. Electrical activity of the afferent vestibular nerve was measured after pretreatment with kynurenic acid, an NMDA receptor antagonist. The activity of the vestibular nerve at rest following acute hypotension induced by SNP or simulating hemorrhage was a greater increase than in control animals. The gain of the vestibular nerve with sinusoidal rotation following acute hypotension increased significantly compared to control animals. The acute hypotension induced by SNP or hemorrhage did not change the activity of the afferent vestibular nerve after kynurenic acid injection. These results suggest that acute hypotension produced excitation of the vestibular hair cells via glutamate excitotoxicity in response to ischemia.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
• /
• 제42권2호
• /
• pp.55-61
• /
• 2017

Recent studies indicate that mitochondria are an important source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the spinal dorsal horn. In our previous study, application of malate, a mitochondrial electron transport complex I substrate, induced a membrane depolarization, which was inhibited by pretreatment with ROS scavengers. In the present study, we used patch clamp recording in the substantia geletinosa (SG) neurons of spinal slices, to investigate the cellular mechanism of mitochondrial ROS on neuronal excitability. DNQX (an AMPA receptor antagonist) and AP5 (an NMDA receptor antagonist) decreased the malate-induced depolarization. In an external calcium free solution and addition of tetrodotoxin (TTX) for blockade of synaptic transmission, the malate-induced depolarization remained unchanged. In the presence of DNQX, AP5 and AP3 (a group I metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) antagonist), glutamate depolarized the membrane potential, which was suppressed by PBN. However, oligomycin (a mitochondrial ATP synthase inhibitor) or PPADS (a P2 receptor inhibitor) did not affect the substrates-induced depolarization. These results suggest that mitochondrial substrate-induced ROS in SG neuron directly acts on the postsynaptic neuron, therefore increasing the ion influx via glutamate receptors.

• 대한소아신경학회지
• /
• 제26권4호
• /
• pp.205-209
• /
• 2018

목적: 마그네슘은 N- 메틸 -D- 아스 파르 테이트(NMDA) 이온 채널 수용체를 차단하여 NMDA 관련 발작을 조절하는 데 중요한 역할을 한다는 것이 밝혀져 있다. 경련 시 총 혈청 마그네슘 수치를 주로 측정하고 있는데, 생물학적으로 활성화된 형태인 이온화 마그네슘 수치를 측정하는 것이 체내 마그네슘 양을 평가하기 위한 보다 적절한 방법이다. 이에 연구자는 뇌전증 환아들 중 발열과 동반된 경련 발작(FTS) 이 있었던 환아들과 없었던 환아들에서 혈청 이온화 마그네슘($iMg^{2+}$) 수치를 비교해 보았다. 방법: 2015년 1월부터 2017년 7월까지 고려 대학교 구로 병원 외래 또는 소아 응급실을 방문한 뇌전증 환아들 중 2년 이내에 새로 진단받은 1-8 세의 환아들을 대상으로 하였으며 열과 동반된 경련을 할 수 있는 뇌전증 증후군(드라베 증후군, PCDH19 뇌전증 증후군 등)은 제외하였다. 결과: 12명의 발열을 동반한 경련 발생군(FTS)과 16명의 발열을 동반한 경련이 없었던 군(without FTS)으로 분류를 하였으며, 혈중 $iMg^{2+}$ 농도는 0.93 (0.85-1.14, quartile) mEq/L이었다. 혈청 $iMg^{2+}$ 수치는 without FTS 군(1.10 mEq/L)에 비해 FTS군에서 0.86 mEq/L으로 유의하게 낮았다(P=0.005). 두 군간의 임상 적 변수에는 차이가 없었다. 혈청 $iMg^{2+}$ 수준이 낮을수록 다 변수 로지스틱 회귀 분석(OR=0.028)에 근거하여 뇌전증 환아에서 FTS를 가질 위험이 유의하게 증가했다. 결론: 혈청 $iMg^{2+}$ 수치는 FTS 가 있었던 뇌전증 환아들에서 FTS가 없었던 환아들보다 유의하게 낮았다. 반복적인 FTS를 가진 뇌전증 환아들에서 생물학적으로 활성화 형태인 혈청 $iMg^{2+}$ 수치를 측정을 고려할 수 있겠으며, 앞으로 대규모 전향적 연구가 필요할 것으로 생각된다.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• 제34권3호
• /
• pp.246-253
• /
• 2010

Ginsenoside $Rg_3$ ($Rg_3$), one of the active ingredients in Panax ginseng, attenuates NMDA receptor-mediated currents in vitro and antagonizes NMDA receptors through a glycine modulatory site in rat cultured hippocampal neurons. In the present study, we examined the neuroprotective effects of $Rg_3$ on 24-hydroxycholesterol (24-OH-chol)-induced cytotoxicity in vitro. The results showed that $Rg_3$ treatment significantly and dose-dependently inhibited 24-OH-chol-induced cell death in rat cultured cortical neurons, with an $IC_{50}$ value of $28.7{\pm}7.5\;{\mu}m$. Furthermore, the $Rg_3$ treatment not only significantly reduced DNA damage, but also dose-dependently attenuated 24-OH-chol-induced caspase-3 activity. To study the mechanisms underlying the in vitro neuroprotective effects of $Rg_3$ against 25-OH-chol-induced cytotoxicity, we also examined the effect of $Rg_3$ on intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ elevations in cultured neurons and found that $Rg_3$ treatment dose-dependently inhibited increases in intracellular $Ca^{2+}$, with an $IC_{50}$ value of $40.37{\pm}12.88\;{\mu}m$. Additionally, $Rg_3$ treatment dose-dependently inhibited apoptosis with an $IC_{50}$ of $47.3{\pm}14.2\;{\mu}m$. Finally, after confirming the protective effect of $Rg_3$ using a terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling assay, we found that $Rg_3$ is an active component in ginseng-mediated neuroprotection. These results collectively indicate that $Rg_3$-induced neuroprotection against 24-OH-chol in rat cortical neurons might be achieved via inhibition of a 24-OH-chol-mediated $Ca^{2+}$ channel. This is the first report to employ cortical neurons to study the neuroprotective effects of $Rg_3$ against 24-OH-chol. In conclusion, $Rg_3$ was effective for protecting cells against 24-OH-chol-induced cytotoxicity in rat cortical neurons. This protective ability makes $Rg_3$ a promising agent in pathologies implicating neurodegeneration such as apoptosis or neuronal cell death.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• 제24권4호
• /
• pp.196-201
• /
• 2000

흰쥐 소뇌로부터 과립신경세포를 배양하여 NaCN으로 유도되는 신경세포손상에 대한 ginsenosides의 보호효과를 검토하였다. NaCN(I~10 M)을 배양된 세포에 1시간 동안 처리하면 농도 의존적으로 신경세포사를 일으켰다. Ginsenosides(Rb$_1$, Rc, Re, Ri, Rg$_1$)(0.5, 5 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml를 세포에 전처치하면 10 mM NaCN으로 유도되는 세포사가 현저히 감소되었다. Rb$_1$과 Rc(5$\mu\textrm{g}$/ml)는 5 mM NaCN에 의하여 배양액 중으로 유리되는 glutamate의 증가를 현저히 억제하였으며, 1 mM N3CN에 의하여 유발되는 세포내 $Ca^{2+}$농도의 증가를 억제하였다. NaCN으로 유발되는 세포독성은 또한 MK-801, verapamil, NAME에 의하여도 억제되었다. 따라서, NaCN으로 유도되는 신경세포사는 glutamate release를 통한 NMDA수용체의 활성화와 그에 따른 $Ca^{2+}$의 세포내유입에 의한 것임을 알수 있고, ginsenosides, 특히 Rb$_1$과 Rc는 $Ca^{2+}$의 유입을 억제하므로서 NaCN에 의한 신경세포사를 억제하는 것으로 생각된다.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
• /
• 제25권4호
• /
• pp.374-382
• /
• 2017

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remains unexplained and untreated despite the high attention of research in recent years. Aside from its various characteristics is the baffling male preponderance over the female population. Using a validated animal model of ASD which is the telomerase reverse transcriptase overexpressing mice (TERT-tg), we conducted ASD-related behavioral assessments and protein expression experiments to mark the difference between male and females of this animal model. After statistically analyzing the results, we found significant effects of TERT overexpression in sociability, social novelty preference, anxiety, nest building, and electroseizure threshold in the males but not their female littermates. Along these differences are the male-specific increased expressions of postsynaptic proteins which are the NMDA and AMPA receptors in the prefrontal cortex. The vGluT1 presynaptic proteins, but not GAD, were upregulated in both sexes of TERT-tg mice, although it is more significantly pronounced in the male group. Here, we confirmed that the behavioral effect of TERT overexpression in mice was male-specific, suggesting that the aberration of this gene and its downstream pathways preferentially affect the functional development of the male brain, consistent with the male preponderance in ASD.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
• /
• 제28권2호
• /
• pp.96-104
• /
• 2015

Background: The present experiment was conducted to identify the cooperative effect of serine histogranin (SHG) and noradrenaline in alleviating peripheral neuropathic pain. Methods: Chronic constriction injury of the right sciatic nerve was used to induce chronic neuropathic pain. For drug delivery, a PE10 tube was inserted into the subarachnoid space. Acetone drops and a $44^{\circ}C$ water bath were used to evaluate the cold and heat allodynia, respectively. Placing and grasping reflexes were used to assess the locomotor system. Results: SHG at 0.5 and $1{\mu}g$significantly (P < 0.05) decreased the thermal allodynia. The cold allodynia was also significantly reduced by intrathecal injections of 0.5 (P < 0.05) and $1{\mu}g$(P < 0.001) of SHG. $1{\mu}g$of noradrenaline, but not $0.5{\mu}g$, significantly alleviated the cold (P < 0.01) and thermal (P < 0.05) allodynia. The ameliorating effect of noradrenaline or SHG disappeared when the two compounds were administrated in equal concentrations. A significant difference (P < 0.01 in the acetone and P < 0.05 in the heat) was observed in the groups under equal doses of the two compounds, with a lower effectiveness of the combination therapy. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the simultaneous administrations of noradrenaline and SHG do not result in synergistic analgesia, and combination therapy may not be a good approach to the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain syndrome.