Phosphenes can be induced by applying transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to the visual cortex. Since multiple factors influence phosphene perception, this study aimed to examine the effects of different TMS coil types on phosphene thresholds (PTs). Additionally, the relationship between PT and motor cortex excitability was explored. In Session 1, TMS was applied to the left...
Perioperative use of dexmedetomidine (DEX) reduces the incidence of Delayed Neurocognitive Recovery (DNR) in elderly patients, though mechanisms remain unclear. This study investigated whether DEX improves DNR by inhibiting microglial activation and explored the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway’s role. An exploratory laparotomy model was established in aged C57BL/6J mice...
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive primary brain cancer. It is considered an ‘immunologically cold’ tumour where immune infiltrates are polarised to drive immunosuppression—and therefore tumour proliferation. An important driver of neuroinflammation in glioma is the purinergic P2X7 receptor (P2X7R). While much of the complex glioma microenvironment has been characterised...
Cognitive network dysfunction represents a core pathophysiological feature across major neuropsychiatric disorders, including Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder (BD), and schizophrenia (SZ). The procedural memory network (PMN), involving cortico-striatal-cerebellar circuits, is vital for skill learning and automatic cognition. However, its...
Emerging evidence suggests a connection between mitophagy-a key mitochondrial quality control mechanism-and depression. Furthermore, sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), a NAD⁺-dependent deacetylase, has been implicated in the pathophysiology of depression, though its precise role remains elusive. This study aimed to investigate how SIRT1 modulates depressive-like behaviors in mice and to...
Social anxiety (SA) is characterized by cognitive control impairments, particularly in the processing of threat, yet how threat-laden environments modulate cognitive control over neutral stimuli remains unclear. This study examined whether threat context impairs the processing of neutral words in individuals with high social anxiety (HSA) through electrophysiological and...
Depression is a prevalent mental disorder, and prolonged exposure to social defeat is a major contributing factor in the onset of depression. Repeated social defeat stress (RSDS) is a commonly used animal model for depression, significantly impacting on the pathogenesis of depression-related to social disorders. The basolateral amygdala (BLA) and the ventral hippocampus (vHPC...
Investigating how the human brain processes the emotional valance of sounds is critical for understanding sensory, emotional, and motor integration at the neurobiological level. The current study utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the differential brain activation patterns elicited by pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral sounds from the...
Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness characterized by retinal ganglion cell (RGC) degeneration. SA-10, a dual-acting compound with ROS scavenging and NO-donating properties, was evaluated to enhance RGC survival and function in models of oxidative stress, ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, and neurotrophic factor (NF) deprivation. SA-10-loaded nanoparticles (SA-10-NP) with a...
Change-related brain responses are specifically elicited when the regularity of a continuous sensory stimulus is disrupted and are recorded by electroencephalography or magnetoencephalography. These responses are one of the higher brain functions representing memory-based comparison processes between the current and previous sensory states. The present study aimed to record...
Essential tremor (ET) is a common neurodegenerative disorder characterized by action tremors and various non-motor symptoms. This study investigated the potential therapeutic effects of ketamine, an NMDA receptor antagonist with known GABA modulatory and anti-inflammatory properties, in a harmaline-induced model of ET in mice. We also evaluated the changes in expression of...
Epilepsy is characterized by recurrent seizures and neurological consequences, which may be associated with impaired myelin and glial integrity, and exacerbated by environmental neurotoxicants. Environmental neurotoxicants, such as Cypermethrin (CPM), may heighten these impairments, worsening seizure outcomes. This study investigates the effects of Cypermethrin (CPM) on...
Repetitive somatosensory stimulation (RSS) reduces paired-pulse depression (PPD), reflecting GABAergic inhibition in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1). This effect may vary by tactile stimulation pattern. Therefore, this study aimed to clarify the effects of RSS intervention with stationary and moving pattern tactile stimulation on PPD. In a crossover study of 15 healthy...
Chronic neuroinflammation, driven by M1-polarized microglia, is a core pathological mechanism of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Elevated expression levels of miR-199a-3p and pro-inflammatory cytokines were detected in the hippocampi of AD transgenic mice and in LPS-stimulated BV2 microglial cells. We hypothesized that miR-199a-3p exacerbates neuroinflammation by promoting M1...
Hemiplegia is characterized by muscle weakness on one side of the body, often resulting from damage to the brain, spinal cord, or associated nerves. This condition commonly occurs due to strokes, traumatic brain injuries (TBI), or spinal cord injuries (SCI), which can damage corticospinal neurons (CSNs) and the corticospinal tract (CST). However, there is still a notable lack of...
In humans, vasopressin AVP1BR receptor (hV1B) plays key roles in hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis regulation and social behavior. Three hV1B polymorphisms, rs35369693 (K65N), rs28632197 (R364H) and rs33990840 (G191R), have been related to psychiatric disorders with altered HPA axis function and social behavior. The aim of this study was to explore hV1B pharmacological...
Stroke induces gut dysbiosis and reduces microbial production of short-chain carboxylic acids (SCCAs), which negatively correlates with stroke outcomes. Previous studies have demonstrated that SCCA supplementation can improve functional recovery, with one recent study suggesting this occurs via modulation of microglial responses. However, the effects of individual SCCAs on...
Tamibarotene, a synthetic retinoid used in the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia, has been reported to induce differentiation in the SH-SY5Y cell line into neurons. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the optimal concentration of Tamibarotene (Am80) for promoting neuronal differentiation and to elucidate the underlying...
To explore the effects of arabinoxylan on the BDNF/TrkB/p-CREB signaling pathway in the prefrontal cortex of post-stroke depressed rats, and to explore its neuronal protective effects through the microbial-gut-brain axis in the regulation of this pathway. The rat model of post-stroke depression (PSD) was established by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) combined with chronic...
Emerging evidence implicates the gut microbiome in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathogenesis, yet the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. This study elucidates the bidirectional relationship between gut microbiota and AD using fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) in a mouse model. Through meticulous experimentation, we conducted reciprocal FMT between AD (5xFAD) and healthy...
Shikonin, an active compound from the rhizome of Lithospermum erythrorhizon, exerts anti-tumor effects in various cancers, including glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). This study explored the mechanism of Shikonin for inhibiting the migration and invasion of GBM cells, providing a rationale for developing novel glioma therapies. The effects of Shikonin on GBM cell proliferation...
Methamphetamine (METH) is a widely abused neurotoxic substance that can lead to neurocognitive disabilities. Recent studies have shown that memantine (MEM), an NMDA receptor antagonist, can improve cognitive function across various disorders. Given that previous studies have revealed that exposure to METH leads to several social and cognitive impairments, this research aimed to...
Ageing is associated with lower levels of cognitive performance, and novel therapeutics are warranted to correct this defect. Aged rats represent a favourable model of human ageing. The aim of the present study is to examine the effect of a novel neurotropic S100B-targeted drug, Prospekta, on the parameters of delayed alternation in the aged rats compared to responses in the...