Publications (2)10.15 Total impact
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Article: Acute nicotine treatment prevents REM sleep deprivation-induced learning and memory impairment in rat.
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ABSTRACT: Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep deprivation (SD) is implicated in impairment of spatial learning and memory and hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP). An increase in nicotine consumption among habitual smokers and initiation of tobacco use by nonsmokers was observed during SD. Although nicotine treatment was reported to attenuate the impairment of learning and memory and LTP associated with several mental disorders, the effect of nicotine on SD-induced learning and memory impairment has not been studied. Modified multiple platform paradigm was used to induce SD for 24 or 48 h during which rats were injected with saline or nicotine (1 mg kg(-1) s.c.) twice a day. In the radial arm water maze (RAWM) task, 24- or 48-h SD significantly impaired learning and short-term memory. In addition, extracellular recordings from CA1 and dentate gyrus (DG) regions of the hippocampus in urethane anesthetized rats showed a significant impairment of LTP after 24- and 48-h SD. Treatment of normal rats with nicotine for 24 or 48 h did not enhance spatial learning and memory or affect magnitude of LTP in the CA1 and DG regions. However, concurrent, acute treatment of rats with nicotine significantly attenuated SD-induced impairment of learning and STM and prevented SD-induced impairment of LTP in the CA1 and DG regions. These results show that acute nicotine treatment prevented the deleterious effect of sleep loss on cognitive abilities and synaptic plasticity.Hippocampus 08/2011; 21(8):899-909. · 5.18 Impact Factor -
Article: Impaired neural transmission and synaptic plasticity in superior cervical ganglia from β-amyloid rat model of Alzheimer's disease.
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ABSTRACT: Basal synaptic transmission and activity-dependent synaptic plasticity were evaluated in superior cervical sympathetic ganglia (SCG) of amyloid-β rat model of Alzheimer's disease (Aβ rat) using electrophysiological and molecular techniques. Rats were administered Aβ peptides (a mixture of 1:1 Aβ1-40 and Aβ1-42) by chronic intracerebroventricular infusion via 14-day mini-osmotic pumps (300 pmol/day). Control rats received Aβ40-1 (inactive reverse peptide: 300 pmol/day). Ganglionic compound action potentials were recorded before (basal) and after repetitive stimulation. In isolated SCG, ganglionic long-term potentiation (gLTP) was generated by a brief train of stimuli (20Hz for 20s) and ganglionic long-term depression (gLTD) was produced with trains of paired pulses. The input/output (I/O) curves of ganglia from Aβ rats showed a marked downward shift along all stimulus intensities, compared to those of ganglia from control animals, indicating impaired basal synaptic transmission. In addition, repetitive stimulation induced robust gLTP and gLTD in ganglia isolated from control animals, but, the same protocols failed to induce gLTP or gLTD in ganglia from Aβ rats indicating impairment of activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in these animals. Western blotting of SCG homogenate from Aβ rats revealed reduction in the ratio of phosphorylated-/total-CaMKII and in calcineurin protein levels. Although other mechanisms could be involved, these changes in signaling molecules could represent an important molecular mechanism linked to the failure to express synaptic plasticity in Aβ rat ganglia. Results of the current study could explain some of the peripheral nervous system manifestations of Alzheimer's disease.Current Alzheimer research 04/2011; 8(4):377-84. · 4.97 Impact Factor
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Institutions
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2011
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University of Houston
- Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Houston, TX, USA
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