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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
The Expression And Function Of Phosphacan/Rptpβ In Adaptive Synaptogenesis After Traumatic Brain Injury, Janna Harris
The Expression And Function Of Phosphacan/Rptpβ In Adaptive Synaptogenesis After Traumatic Brain Injury, Janna Harris
Theses and Dissertations
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects 1.5 million Americans annually and is a major health concern. Increasing evidence suggests that the brain extracellular environment regulates plasticity and synaptic recovery following TBI. Here we have focused on phosphacan/RPTPβ, an alternatively spliced group of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans which are prominent within the mature brain extracellular matrix (ECM). Previous studies show that phosphacan/RPTPβ influences neuronal migration, adhesion, neurite outgrowth, and morphogenesis. However, our understanding of how these important ECM components are involved in recovery from brain trauma remains unclear. In the present study, we used unilateral entorhinal cortex lesion (UEC), a model which induces …
Discovery And Initial Characterizations Of Neurofascin 155 High And Neurofascin 155 Low, Anthony Pomicter
Discovery And Initial Characterizations Of Neurofascin 155 High And Neurofascin 155 Low, Anthony Pomicter
Theses and Dissertations
This thesis contains the findings from four years of research regarding an oligodendrocyte protein named neurofascin 155. The role of this protein in maintaining adhesion between the myelin sheath of oligodendrocytes and the axons of neurons has become well established in recent years and the research presented here has revealed that while western blots have previously shown one protein/band representing neurofascin 155, there are two proteins/bands. These two proteins have been named neurofascin 155 high and neurofascin 155 low due to their previous inclusion in the single band. The work leading up to their discovery, findings, and the relevance of …
Interneuron Subtypes Are Differentially Altered In Malformed, Epileptogenic Cortex, Amanda George
Interneuron Subtypes Are Differentially Altered In Malformed, Epileptogenic Cortex, Amanda George
Theses and Dissertations
The propensity for seizures in patients with epilepsy is due to underlying cortical hyperexcitability, the mechanisms of which are poorly understood. Particularly difficult to treat are patients with developmental malformations of cortex. Using the freeze-lesion rat model of one such malformation, polymicrogyria, we identified, in lesioned cortex, alterations in specific interneuron subpopulations that may promote hyperexcitability. Previous studies demonstrate increased excitatory input to the paramicrogyral region. An increase in the frequency of spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents (sEPSCs) recorded from pyramidal cells has also been shown. We report an increase in sEPSCs recorded from one subtype of interneuron, the low threshold-spiking …
Modeling Pure Vasogenic Edema In The Rat Brain, Charles Nottingham
Modeling Pure Vasogenic Edema In The Rat Brain, Charles Nottingham
Theses and Dissertations
Targeted drug delivery to the brain is difficult to achieve using conventional techniques, largely due to the blood-brain barrier’s (BBB) impediment to drug diffusion into the brain parenchyma. In response, development of convection-enhanced delivery (CED) offers the ability to circumvent the BBB and target specific areas of the brain. Predictability of infusate movement in pathological brain states during CED will maximize the effectiveness of this treatment, and therefore modeling of infusate movement must be characterized. Previous work from our lab effectively modeled CED in rats using the middle carotid artery occlusion model of cytotoxic edema. However, previous models examined for …
The Effects Of Atomoxetine On Cognitive Performace And Neuroplasticity After Traumatic Brain Injury, Wendy Reid
The Effects Of Atomoxetine On Cognitive Performace And Neuroplasticity After Traumatic Brain Injury, Wendy Reid
Theses and Dissertations
Catecholaminergic neurotransmission is regionally altered following injury, and drugs aimed at these systems offer promising avenues for post-TBI pharmacotherapies. Atomoxetine is a selective norepinephrine transporter (NET) inhibitor currently indicated for treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The studies in this dissertation were designed to test the efficacy of atomoxetine for treating cognitive deficits following experimental TBI and the potential mechanism for any beneficial effect. The first part of the study focused on behavioral recovery following atomoxetine treatment. Several important questions of dose, therapeutic window, and duration of treatment were addressed in these studies. Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to lateral fluid-percussion …