• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.555-564
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• 2021

Thalamus is known to play an important role in the regulation of nerve function. Thalamus, located in the center of the brain, is involved in sleep, arousal, and emotional regulation, and has been reported to be associated with multiple sclerosis, essential tremors, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease. In addition, it has been reported that iron deposits in the thalamus can cause depressive symptoms with age. Although there are discrepancies between studies, it can be deduced that the thalamus region has a clear effect on neurological disorders due to a strong relationship between the thalamus and neurological functions such as emotional control and processing. Through tractography analysis, the connectivity between the detailed areas of each subcortical region was investigated in the form of a matrix, showing strong connectivity and weak interhemispheric connectivity. In the 59> group, the WM connectivity of thalamus was found to be weaker than those of the two groups. Comparisons between the two groups showed that the young groups (10-39 and 40-59) had higher connection intensity than the 59> group and that statistically significant differences in 3 connection pathways were found in each hemisphere. A decrease in thalamus-related connection strength in aging has shown that it can affect emotional and neurological disorders such as anxiety and depression, and network measurements can help assess cognitive impairment across clinical conditions.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.129-132
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• 2004

Single unit responses of the ventral posterior medial (VPM) thalamic neurons to stimulation were monitored in anesthetized rats during activation of contralateral primary somatosensory (SI) cortex by GABA antagonist. The temporal changes of afferent sensory transmission were quantitatively analyzed by poststimulus time histogram (PSTH). Mainly, afferent sensory transmission to VPM thalamus was facilitated (15 neurons of total 23) by GABA antagonist (bicuculline) applied to contralateral cortex, while 7 neurons were suppressed. However, when ipsilateral cortex was inactivated by GABA agonist, musimol, there was significant suppression of afferent sensory transmission of VPM thalamus. This suppressed responsiveness by ipsilateral musimol was not affected by bicuculline applied to contralateral cortex. These results suggest that afferent transmission to VPM thalamus may be subjected to the interhemispheric modulation via ipsilateral cortex during inactivation of GABAergic neurons in contralateral SI cortex.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2015

This study was aimed to observe that extremely low frequency magnetic field (ELF-MF) may be relevant to changes of major neurotransmitters in rat brain. After the exposure to ELF-MF (60 Hz, 2.0 mT) for 2 or 5 days, we measured the levels of biogenic amines and their metabolites, amino acid neurotransmitters and nitric oxide (NO) in the cortex, striatum, thalamus, cerebellum and hippocampus. The exposure of ELF-MF for 2 or 5 days produced significant differences in norepinephrine and vanillyl mandelic acid in the striatum, thalamus, cerebellum and hippocampus. Significant increases in the levels of serotonin and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid were also observed in the striatum, thalamus or hippocampus. ELF-MF significantly increased the concentration of dopamine in the thalamus. ELF-MF tended to increase the levels of amino acid neurotransmitters such as glutamine, glycine and ${\gamma}$-aminobutyric acid in the striatum and thalamus, whereas it decreased the levels in the cortex, cerebellum and hippocampus. ELF-MF significantly increased NO concentration in the striatum, thalamus and hippocampus. The present study has demonstrated that exposure to ELF-MFs may evoke the changes in the levels of biogenic amines, amino acid and NO in the brain although the extent and property vary with the brain areas. However, the mechanisms remain further to be characterized.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.167-172
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• 1990

Astrocytoma in the thalamus is not so frequent in incidence (1%). Moreover, bilateral thalamic tumor is rare. Certain tumors of the thalamus are considered resectable but most of thalamic tumors are thought to be untouchable. Bilateral thalamic astrocytoma with hydrocephalus was diagnosed by stereotactic biopsy and ventriculo-peritoneal shunt operation was done with result of improvement. We report a case of astrocytoma in the bilateral thalamus with literature review.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.68-74
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• 2001

Objective: To describe the brain CT and MR imaging findings of unusual acute encephalitis involving the thalamus. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records and CT and/or MR imaging findings of six patients with acute encephalitis involving the thalamus. CT (n=6) and MR imaging (n=6) were performed during the acute and/or convalescent stage of the illness. Results: Brain CT showed brain swelling (n=2), low attenuation of both thalami (n=1) or normal findings (n=3). Initial MR imaging indicated that in all patients the thalamus was involved either bilaterally (n=5) or unilaterally (n=1). Lesions were also present in the midbrain (n=5), medial temporal lobe (n=4), pons (n=3), both hippocampi (n=3) the insular cortex (n=2), medulla (n=2), lateral temporal lobe cortex (n=1), both cingulate gyri (n=1), both basal ganglia (n=1), and the left hemispheric cortex (n=1). Conclusion: These CT or MR imaging findings of acute encephalitis of unknown etiology were similar to a combination of those of Japanese encephalitis and herpes simplex encephalitis. In order to document the specific causative agents which lead to the appearance of these imaging features, further investigation is required.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.61 no.3
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• pp.352-362
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• 2018

Gliomas are the most common pediatric tumors of the central nervous system. In this review, we discuss the clinical features, treatment paradigms, and evolving concepts related to two types of pediatric gliomas affecting two main locations: the optic pathway and thalamus. In particular, we discuss recently revised pathologic classification, which adopting molecular parameter. We believe that our review contribute to the readers' better understanding of pediatric glioma because pediatric glioma differs in many ways from adult glioma according to the newest advances in molecular characterization of this tumor. A better understanding of current and evolving issues in pediatric glioma is needed to ensure effective management decision.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.130-141
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• 2015

Objectives : The aim of this study is to report the effect of Korean medicine treatment on ocular motility disorders (ptosis, bilateral upward gaze palsy, adduction impairment, and strabismus) caused by thalamus, midbrain and pontine infarctions.Methods : The patient was treated by using acupuncture, hominis placenta pharmacoacupuncture, and electroacupuncture treatment. The change of ptosis was evaluated by measurement of palpebral fissure width. The change of gaze palsy and strabismus were evaluated by comparison the photographs of the extraocular movements of patient. Strabismus also was evaluated by corneal reflex test.Results : Gaze palsy and strabismus were improved. Ptosis disappeared after Korean medicine treatment.Conclusions : Korean medicine treatment should be effective for the ocular motility disorders caused by thalamus, midbrain and pontine infarctions.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.443-450
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• 2009

The purpose of this study is to observe activation of limbic system during performing visuospatial tasks by 21% and 30% oxygen administration. Eight right handed male college students were selected as the subjects for this study. A visuospatial task was presented while brain images were scanned by a 3T fMRI system. The experiment consisted of two runs: one was a visuospatial task under normal air(21% oxygen) condition and the other under hyperoxic air(30% oxygen) condition. The neural activations were observed at the limbic system which is seperated 8 regions such as cingulate gyrus, thalamus, limbic lobe, hypothalamus, hippocampus, parahippocampa gyrus, amygdala, and mammiilary body. By two oxygen levels, activation areas of limbic system are almost identical. Increased neural activations were observed in the cingulate gyrus and thalamus with 30% oxygen administration compared to 21% oxygen. During 30% oxygen administration, improvement of visuospatial task performance has a relation to increase of neural activation of subcortical structures such as thalamus and cingulate gyrus as well as cerebral cortex.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.540-547
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• 2015

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders, affecting approximately 5% of children. However, the neural mechanisms underlying its development and treatment are yet to be elucidated. In this study, we report that an ADHD mouse model, which harbors a deletion in the Git1 locus, exhibits severe astrocytosis in the globus pallidus (GP) and thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN), which send modulatory GABAergic inputs to the thalamus. A moderate level of astrocytosis was displayed in other regions of the basal ganglia pathway, including the ventrobasal thalamus and cortex, but not in other brain regions, such as the caudate putamen, basolateral amygdala, and hippocampal CA1. This basal ganglia circuit-selective astrocytosis was detected in both in adult (2-3 months old) and juvenile (4 weeks old) $Git1^{\check{s}/\check{s}}$ mice, suggesting a developmental origin. Astrocytes play an active role in the developing synaptic circuit; therefore, we performed an immunohistochemical analysis of synaptic markers. We detected increased and decreased levels of GABA and parvalbumin (PV), respectively, in the GP. This suggests that astrocytosis may alter synaptic transmission in the basal ganglia. Intriguingly, increased GABA expression colocalized with the astrocyte marker, GFAP, indicative of an astrocytic origin. Collectively, these results suggest that defects in basal ganglia circuitry, leading to impaired inhibitory modulation of the thalamus, are neural correlates for the ADHD-associated behavioral manifestations in $Git1^{\check{s}/\check{s}}$ mice.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.201-208
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• 2018

Objectives: This is a case report about the effect of Korean medicine on blepharoptosis and ocular motility disorders that occur with thalamus, midbrain, and cerebellum infarctions. Methods: The patient was treated using Korean medicine such as acupuncture, moxibustion, and herbal medicine (Boyanghwano-tang-gamibang). The change of blepharoptosis was evaluated by measurement of palpebral fissure width (PFW), marginal reflex distance-1 (MRD1), and marginal reflex distance-2 (MRD2). The change inocular motility disorders was evaluated by comparison using photographs of the extraocular movements of the patient. We used the Numeric Rating Scale-11 (NRS-11) of diplopia and dizziness to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment. Results: After treatment, blepharoptosis and ocular motility disorders were improved. The NRS-11 score of dizziness decreased from 10 to 7, and diplopia disappeared after Korean medicine treatment. Conclusions: According to this study, Korean medicine can be effective for treating blepharoptosis and ocular motility disorders in thalamus, midbrain, and cerebellum infarctions.