scholarly journals A Longitudinal Pilot Study on Cognition and Cerebral Hemodynamics in a Mouse Model of Preeclampsia Superimposed on Hypertension: Looking at Mothers and Their Offspring

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lianne J. Trigiani ◽  
Clotilde Lecrux ◽  
Jessika Royea ◽  
Julie L. Lavoie ◽  
Frédéric Lesage ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Study ◽  
Mouse Model ◽  
Cognitive Deficits ◽  
Urine Analysis ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Spatial Learning And Memory ◽  
Hypertensive Disorder ◽  
Negative Consequences

Preeclampsia is a common hypertensive disorder in pregnant women and whose causes and consequences have focused primarily on cardiovascular outcomes on the mother and offspring, often without taking into consideration the possible effects on the brain. One possible cause of preeclampsia has been attributed to alterations in the renin-angiotensin system, which has also been linked to cognitive decline. In this pilot study, we use a transgenic mouse model that chronically overexpresses human angiotensinogen and renin (R+A+ mice) that displayed characteristics of preeclampsia such as proteinuria during gestation. Offspring of these mothers as well as from control mothers were also examined. We were primarily interested in detecting whether cognitive deficits were present in the mothers and offspring in the long term and used a spatial learning and memory task as well as an object recognition task at three timepoints: 3, 8, and 12 months post-partum or post-natal, while measuring blood pressure and performing urine analysis after each timepoint. While we did not find significant deficits in preeclamptic mothers at the later timepoints, we did observe negative consequences in the pups of R+A+ mice that coincided with hemodynamic alterations whereby pups had higher whisker-evoked oxygenated hemoglobin levels and increased cerebral blood flow responses compared to control pups. Our study provides validation of this preeclampsia mouse model for future studies to decipher the underlying mechanisms of long-term cognitive deficits found in offspring.

scholarly journals Cerebrolysin improves cognitive performance in rats after mild traumatic brain injury

2015 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 843-855 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanlu Zhang ◽  
Michael Chopp ◽  
Yuling Meng ◽  
Zheng Gang Zhang ◽  
Edith Doppler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Function ◽  
Dentate Gyrus ◽  
Brain Injuries ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Memory Deficits ◽  
Treatment Modalities ◽  
Spatial Learning And Memory ◽  
Odor Recognition ◽  
Social Odor

OBJECT Long-term memory deficits occur after mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs), and effective treatment modalities are currently unavailable. Cerebrolysin, a peptide preparation mimicking the action of neurotrophic factors, has beneficial effects on neurodegenerative diseases and brain injuries. The present study investigated the long-term effects of Cerebrolysin treatment on cognitive function in rats after mTBI. METHODS Rats subjected to closed-head mTBI were treated with saline (n = 11) or Cerebrolysin (2.5 ml/kg, n = 11) starting 24 hours after injury and then daily for 28 days. Sham animals underwent surgery without injury (n = 8). To evaluate cognitive function, the modified Morris water maze (MWM) test and a social odor–based novelty recognition task were performed after mTBI. All rats were killed on Day 90 after mTBI, and brain sections were immunostained for histological analyses of amyloid precursor protein (APP), astrogliosis, neuroblasts, and neurogenesis. RESULTS Mild TBI caused long-lasting cognitive memory deficits in the MWM and social odor recognition tests up to 90 days after injury. Compared with saline treatment, Cerebrolysin treatment significantly improved both long-term spatial learning and memory in the MWM test and nonspatial recognition memory in the social odor recognition task up to 90 days after mTBI (p < 0.05). Cerebrolysin significantly increased the number of neuroblasts and promoted neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus, and it reduced APP levels and astrogliosis in the corpus callosum, cortex, dentate gyrus, CA1, and CA3 regions (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that Cerebrolysin treatment of mTBI improves long-term cognitive function, and this improvement may be partially related to decreased brain APP accumulation and astrogliosis as well as increased neuroblasts and neurogenesis.

scholarly journals Marked Mild Cognitive Deficits in Humanized Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s-Type Tau Pathology

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua D. Cho ◽  
Yoon A. Kim ◽  
Elizabeth E. Rafikian ◽  
Mu Yang ◽  
Ismael Santa-Maria
Keyword(s):  
Mouse Model ◽  
Learning And Memory ◽  
Cognitive Deficits ◽  
Late Onset ◽  
Tau Pathology ◽  
Humanized Mouse Model ◽  
Behavioral Deficits ◽  
Spatial Memory Deficit ◽  
The Impact

Hyperphosphorylation and the subsequent aggregation of tau protein into neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) are well-established neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and associated tauopathies. To further examine the impact and progression of human tau pathology in neurodegenerative contexts, the humanized tau (htau) mouse model was originally created. Despite AD-like tau pathological features recapitulated in the htau mouse model, robustness of behavioral phenotypes has not been fully established. With the ultimate goal of evaluating the htau mouse model as a candidate for testing AD therapeutics, we set out to verify, in-house, the presence of robust, replicable cognitive deficits in the htau mice. The present study shows behavioral data collected from a carefully curated battery of learning and memory tests. Here we report a significant short-term spatial memory deficit in aged htau mice, representing a novel finding in this model. However, we did not find salient impairments in long-term learning and memory previously reported in this mouse model. Here, we attempted to understand the discrepancies in the literature by highlighting the necessity of scrutinizing key procedural differences across studies. Reported cognitive deficits in the htau model may depend on task difficulty and other procedural details. While the htau mouse remains a unique and valuable animal model for replicating late onset AD-like human tau pathology, its cognitive deficits are modest under standard testing conditions. The overarching message is that before using any AD mouse model to evaluate treatment efficacies, it is imperative to first characterize and verify the presence of behavioral deficits in-house.

scholarly journals Adaptive Memory: Remembering Potential Mates

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 147470491774280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josefa N. S. Pandeirada ◽  
Natália Lisandra Fernandes ◽  
Marco Vasconcelos ◽  
James S. Nairne
Keyword(s):  
Source Memory ◽  
Working Condition ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Distractor Task ◽  
Adaptive Memory ◽  
Work Relationship ◽  
Memory Perspective

According to the adaptive memory perspective, memory should function more efficiently in fitness-relevant domains. The current work explored whether there is a mnemonic tuning in a fundamental domain for human evolution: reproduction. In two experiments, female participants assessed how desirable potential male candidates (represented by a face and a short descriptor) would be in the context of a long-term mating relationship or in the context of a long-term work relationship. Then, after a short distractor task, participants performed a recognition task for the faces and a source memory task. Finally, they were asked to recall the descriptors presented during encoding. Experiment 1 used a between-subjects design, whereas Experiment 2 employed a within-subject design. In both experiments, participants remembered the faces best when they were encoded in the mating condition. Also, in Experiment 1, source memory performance was better in the mating condition than in the working condition with the reverse being true for free recall of the descriptors. The latter difference was not observed in Experiment 2. These results suggest a potential mnemonic tuning for the faces of potential mate partners.

scholarly journals SOCIAL WORK AS A TOOL FOR ANOMIE CORRECTION ON SECOND STAGE OF PRIMARY SCHOOL

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 353-357
Author(s):  
MIROSLAV TVRDOŇ ◽  
PETER KONDRLA ◽  
LUCIA MESÁROŠOVÁ
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Research Method ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Target Groups ◽  
Second Stage ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Development Of Students

Anomie is a sociological term that expresses the state that we can describe as a condition without law or rules. In the school environment, the condition is manifested by the failure to comply with the rules, and broken relationships between students as well as in relation to teachers and authorities in general. A state of anomie in the school environment reduces the effectiveness of the teaching process and creates an environment for the emergence of pathological phenomena that can affect the development of students and cause long-term negative consequences. In the pilot study, we selected the specific school environment that manifested the signs of anomie. Subsequently, we carried out research on the chosen environment with specific attention to the manifestations but also the perceptions of an anomic state in the school environment. We decided for our own research method, because the available methods from social sciences were developed for the needs of other target groups and are not suitable for the school environment. The study results show specific manifestations of anomie in the behavior and thinking of students and teachers. It was confirmed that teachers and poor emphasis on the validity of the existing rules have a great impact on the emergence of anomie. The tendencies to develop pathological phenomena in the anomic environment were also confirmed. The study results in the specific findings that should be part of a holistic preventive programme.

Effect of sleep on memory for binding different types of visual information

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
John J Shaw ◽  
Zhisen Urgolites ◽  
Padraic Monaghan
Keyword(s):  
Visual Information ◽  
Storage Capacity ◽  
Declarative Memory ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Forced Choice ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Types Of Information

Visual long-term memory has a large and detailed storage capacity for individual scenes, objects, and actions. However, memory for combinations of actions and scenes is poorer, suggesting difficulty in binding this information together. Sleep can enhance declarative memory of information, but whether sleep can also boost memory for binding information and whether the effect is general across different types of information is not yet known. Experiments 1 to 3 tested effects of sleep on binding actions and scenes, and Experiments 4 and 5 tested binding of objects and scenes. Participants viewed composites and were tested 12-hours later after a delay consisting of sleep (9pm-9am) or wake (9am-9pm), on an alternative forced choice recognition task. For action-scene composites, memory was relatively poor with no significant effect of sleep. For object-scene composites sleep did improve memory. Sleep can promote binding in memory, depending on the type of information to be combined.

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