Morphine addiction is a growing problem with severe consequences. Interestingly, Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1), a hormone with the ability to modulate neural pathways and exert neuroprotective and regenerative properties, could emerge as a potential treatment. However, to the best of our knowledge, the role of IGF-1 in the extinction and reinstatement phases of morphine...
Adverse psychiatric symptoms caused by cannabis are a significant concern, and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) has been identified as a key contributor to these symptoms. THC binds to cannabinoid type 1 receptors (CB1Rs), which are abundant in the brain and associated with cognition. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is crucial for cognitive functions. However, the functions of CB1Rs in...
The psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) is a cognitive test commonly used to measure sustained attention and vigilance in humans in healthy and diseased states. Here, we aimed to utilize a recently designed rat version of the PVT to assess potential cognitive enhancer effects of various pharmacological compounds in a natural model of age-related cognitive decline. Therefore, we...
Multivariate neuroimaging studies have shown a functional dissociation between the temporal and frontoparietal cortices in action representation. However, it remains unclear to what extent this specificity is modulated by motor experience. To address this question, we employed functional magnetic resonance imaging-based multivoxel pattern analysis (MVPA). Neural activation...
To observe the effects of copper sulfate (CuSO4)-induced copper loading on neurobehaviour, mitochondria-associated endoplasmic reticulum membranes (MAMs) and related regulatory proteins in the hippocampal CA1 region of Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats. Forty SD male rats were randomly divided into control and copper loading groups of 20 rats each. The control group rats were fed with...
Pleckstrin homology (PH) domain leucine-rich repeat protein phosphatases (PHLPP) has been associated with several neurodegenerative diseases, however, few studies have investigated the role of PHLPP in Parkinson’s disease (PD). The present study aimed to answer this question through establishing a Parkinson’s disease (PD) model using the Phlpp1-/- and wild-type (WT) mice and...
Recent studies have demonstrated a close association between neuroinflammation and depression. Isoacteoside (ISO) has recently been reported to exhibit anti-inflammatory properties. However, the effects of ISO on neuroinflammation-induced depression and its underlying mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of ISO on...
Visual selective attention can be categorized into top-down (goal-driven) and bottom-up (stimulus-driven) attention, with the fronto-parietal network serving as the primary neural substrate. However, fewer studies have focused on the specific roles of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and superior parietal lobule (SPL) in top-down and bottom-up attention. This...
Although creativity is an essential cognitive function to adapt to an ever-changing world, its neurocognitive and cerebral bases still need clarification. Current models highlight the interaction between associative and executive processes underpinned by the default mode (DMN), executive control (ECN) and salience networks (SN). Furthermore, recent neuroimaging studies highlight...
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is an incurable neurological disorder, and current pharmacological therapies primarily address symptoms without halting disease progression. Emerging evidence highlights PD as a neuroinflammatory disease, with chronic brain inflammation preceding the onset of motor dysfunction. This study investigates the role of C18:0 GM3, a long-chain fatty acids...
Mu-opioid receptors (MORs) are critical regulators mediating the modulation of several behavioral reactions, including analgesia, addiction, and sedation. Recent studies have reported that MORs are closely associated with mood disorders or anxiety behaviors; however, the underlying neural mechanisms remain unclear. The periaqueductal gray (PAG), a key brain area, participates in...
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by cognitive decline. Working memory impairment, a hallmark of early-stage AD, is hypothesized to arise from deficits in encoding processes. Given the critical role of hippocampal-prefrontal interactions in working memory, we investigated whether disrupted encoding mechanisms in this circuit...
Besides deficits in social communication and interaction, repetitive behavior patterns are core manifestations of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Phenotypes are heterogeneous and can range from simple lower-order motor stereotypies to more complex higher-order cognitive inflexibility and fixated interests. Due to ASD’s multifaceted etiology, animal models are often generated from...
G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (Gper1) is widely expressed in the brain, while its function in traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the role of Gper1 in TBI pathology and the underlying mechanisms using a mouse model. Gper1 knockout (Gper1KO) mice were generated, and TBI was induced via controlled cortical impact (CCI...
The demethylase fat mass and obesity-related associated protein (FTO) is strongly associated with depression. Aging is a risk factor for synaptic plasticity damage in the brain and leads to neurocognitive dysfunctions. FTO-dependent m6A modification plays an important role in neurodevelopment and cognitive function. However, whether FTO is associated with susceptibility to...
In addition to classical gastrointestinal symptoms, patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) often exhibit neurological manifestations, such as mood disorders and cognitive dysfunctions, which are frequently overlooked. However, the potential pathogenesis of IBD-related encephalopathy remains unclear, and few studies have explored the influence of interactions between the...
The primary protein components of white matter include myelin basic protein (MBP) and 2’,3’-cyclic nucleotide 3’-phosphodiesterase (CNP). Alterations in their expression are significantly implicated in depression. This study investigated changes in MBP and CNP expression associated with depressive-like behaviors induced by chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) and evaluated...
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) presents a wide range of cognitive and language impairments. In this study, we investigated the genetic basis of non-verbal status in ASD using a comprehensive genomic approach. We identified a novel common variant, rs1944180 in CNTN5, significantly associated with non-verbal status through family-based Transmission Disequilibrium Testing. Polygenic...
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that affects dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. It is a complex disease that is strongly influenced by environmental and genetic factors. While the exact causes of PD are not well understood, research on the effects of toxic substances that induce neuronal death has shed some light on...
Ligand of NUMB protein-X 1 (LNX1) and LNX2 proteins are closely related PDZ domain-containing E3 ubiquitin ligases that interact with and potentially modulate numerous synaptic and neurodevelopmentally important proteins. While both LNX1 and LNX2 are expressed in neurons, it is noteworthy that neuronal LNX1 isoforms lack the catalytic domain responsible for ubiquitination of...
The health risks associated with acute noise exposure are increasing, particularly the risk of mental health. This study aims to identify the association between acute high-intensity noise exposure and anxiety behavior in male rats, and to explore the associated neurobiological mechanisms. Male rats were subjected to different levels of acute high-intensity noise to determine the...
Cerebral large artery and small vessel diseases are considered substrates of neurological disorders. We explored how the mechanisms of neurovascular uncoupling, dysfunctional blood–brain-barrier (BBB), compromised glymphatic pathway, and impaired cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) and autoregulation, identified through diverse neuroimaging techniques, impact cerebral large artery...
Neuroplasticity, a phenomenon present throughout the lifespan, is thought to be influenced by physical training. However, the relationship between neuroplastic differences and attentional abilities remains unclear. This study explored the differences in brain function and attentional abilities between professional football athletes and novices, and further investigated the...
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by memory decline and mood alterations. A growing body of evidence implicates stress and other social determinants of health as potential contributors to the progressive cerebral alterations that culminate in AD. In the current study, we investigated the impact of neonatal maternal separation (MS) on the susceptibility of male and female...