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Activation of CB1 cannabinoid receptors in the basal ganglia interferes with movement regulation. The aim of this study was to characterize the effect of Δ9‐tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9‐THC) on neurons in the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and to elucidate the mechanisms involved in this effect using single‐unit extracellular recordings in anesthetized rats. Administration of Δ9‐THC (0.25–2 mg/kg, i.v.) stimulated...
High levels of anandamide are located in the basal ganglia. The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is considered to be an important modulator of basal ganglia output. The present study aims at characterizing the modulation of the electrical activity of STN neurons by exogenous anandamide or endocannabinoids. Single‐unit extracellular recordings in anesthetized rats and patch‐clamp techniques in rat brain slices...
Escitalopram, the S‐enantiomer of citalopram, possesses superior efficacy compared to other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in the treatment of major depression. Escitalopram binds to an allosteric site on the serotonin transporter, which further enhances the blockade of serotonin reuptake, whereas R‐citalopram antagonizes this positive allosteric modulation. Escitalopram's effects...
Antidepressant drugs are frequently used to treat affective symptoms in schizophrenia. We have recently shown that escitalopram, but not citalopram or R‐citalopram, increases firing rate and burst firing of midbrain dopamine neurons, potentiates cortical N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) receptor‐mediated transmission and enhances cognition, effects that might influence the outcome of concomitant antipsychotic...
Many aspects of the dopamine (DA) system mature during adolescence. For example, the DA modulation of glutamate responses in the rat prefrontal cortex (PFC) acquires adult characteristics during late adolescence. In the striatum, D1 receptors modulate NMDA responses, but whether this behaviorally important interaction matures during adolescence is not known. Here, we tested whether the D1 agonist...
The hippocampal synapses display conspicuous ability for long‐term plasticity which is thought to underlie learning and memory. Growing evidence shows that this ability differs along the long axis of the hippocampus, with the ventral CA1 hippocampal synapses displaying remarkably lower ability for long‐term potentiation (LTP) compared with their dorsal counterpart when activated with high‐frequency...
N‐Methyl‐D‐Aspartate (NMDA) receptors are inhibited during acute exposure to ethanol and are involved in changes in neuronal plasticity following repeated ethanol exposure. The postsynaptic scaffolding protein Homer2 can regulate the cell surface expression of NMDA receptors in vivo, and mice with a null mutation of the Homer2 gene exhibit an alcohol‐avoiding and ‐intolerant phenotype that is accompanied...
Homozygous or heterozygous mutations in the PTEN‐induced kinase 1 (PINK1) gene have been linked to early‐onset Parkinson's disease (PD). Several neurophysiological studies have demonstrated alterations in striatal synaptic plasticity along with impaired dopamine release in PINK1‐deficient mice. Using electrophysiological methods, here we show that PINK1 loss of function causes a progressive increase...
In the last two decades adiponectin, member of the adipokines family, gained attention because of its unique antidiabetic effects. However, the presence in the brain of adiponectin receptors and adiponectin itself raised interest because of the possible association with neuropsychiatric diseases. Indeed, clinical studies found altered concentration of adiponectin both in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid...
Chronic stress induces maladaptive neural responses in several brain areas including hippocampus. It has been demonstrated that chronic stress exposure induced a downregulation of the putative presynaptic type 2 metabotropic glutamate (mGlu2) receptors, which would reduce the negative feedback role exerted by these receptors. The reduced availability of these receptors would enhance glutamate overflow...
Levetiracetam (LEV) is a widely prescribed antiepileptic drug, but its actions on neuronal function are not fully characterized. Since this drug is believed to enter neurons by binding to a vesicular protein during endocytosis, we used motor axons of the crayfish opener neuromuscular junction to examine potential impacts of LEV on axon excitability. Two electrode current clamp from the inhibitory...
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