Neuroscience and Neurobiology Commons^™

Estrogen Replacement Therapy To Reduce Neurodegeneration And Socio-Cognitive Deficits In A Female Sprague Dawley Rat Model Of Early-Onset Alzheimer’S Disease, Miriam Kirylo

Senior Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

The Development Of Immunohistochemistry (Icc) And Transcriptomic Protocols To Uncover Neurophysiological Markers Of Stress In Red-Eyed Tree Frogs As A Novel Biome, Shirin Dadina

Senior Theses and Projects

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) include various forms of physical and emotional abuse that lead to detrimental long term effects. Agalychnis callidryas (red-eyed tree frogs) have been identified as a novel biomedical model for ACEs. Red-eyed tree frogs demonstrate an escape hatch mechanism under stressors including those from predators, flooding and hypoxia where the embryo undergoes an accelerated developmental process similar to what is observed in the human population regarding precocious puberty. In order to assess this model for neurobiological outcomes of ACEs, morphological and genomic protocols must be developed and validated which is this study’s focus. Paraffin embedding and microtome …

Altered Sensitivity To Cocaine In Adolescent Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats, A Rodent Model Of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Ingrid Schoenborn

Senior Theses and Projects

Adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at greater risk for psychostimulant abuse compared to those without ADHD. This may be due to alterations in the mesolimbocortical dopamine system; indeed, psychostimulant-induced dopamine release is greater in adult spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs; a rodent model of ADHD) compared to controls. Here, we sought to determine the extent to which neurobehavioral responses to cocaine are altered in adolescent SHRs. To begin to address this question, adolescent male and female SHRs and Sprague Dawley (SD; a reference strain) rats were first assessed for behavioural signs of ADHD, including inattention (Y-maze test) and hyperactivity (open-field …

Curcumin Regulation Of Oligodendrocyte Differentiation And Development, Anna Tangiyan

Senior Theses and Projects

Curcumin is a naturally obtained hydrophobic polyphenol that is under investigation for its potential benefits in multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment. MS development involves two main stages in its pathophysiology – the establishment and progression of inflammation that causes blood and brain barrier (BBB) damage, followed by neurodegenerative mechanisms that result in myelin sheath disruption and oligodendrocyte apoptosis. These immunopathological and neurodegenerative processes lead to disrupted remyelination in MS, which has been previously associated with the oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). Specifically, disrupted OPC differentiation has been hypothesized to have a large role in impaired remyelination in MS. Curcumin’s immunoregulatory, anti-apoptotic, anti-oxidant, …

Characterizing Prospective Memory Errors And Their Neuropsychological Correlations In Persons With Ms, Caitlyn Nguyen

Senior Theses and Projects

Background: Prospective memory (PM) or “remembering to remember” is an important cognitive domain for everyday tasks. PM errors (e.g., loss of content, task substitution, or loss of time) have been noted in certain neurological disorders, with detrimental effects on a person’s quality of life and independent functioning. While PM deficits have been documented in multiple sclerosis (MS), little is known about the specific errors made.

Objectives: 1) To characterize types and frequencies of PM errors and 2) investigate whether other cognitive processes (i.e., processing speed and verbal learning) or personality traits (i.e., Five Factor Model of Personality) are …

Learned But Not Distracting: Low-Value Stimuli And Value-Driven Attentional Capture, John Albanese

Senior Theses and Projects

Stimuli previously associated with reward slow response times (RTs) when presented as irrelevant distractors in subsequent, unrewarded tasks (value driven attentional capture, VDAC). Typical VDAC training requires search for one of two experimentally-determined, colored circles and an orientation judgement of a line inside the color-defined target. Reward follows correct responses, associating high- or low-value with specific colors. Distractors rendered in high-value colors consistently slow RTs in an unrewarded test phase, an outcome that is rarely observed for low-value colors. Might this be due to a failure to adequately learn the reward contingencies during training? 22 observers underwent a modified training …

Amino Acid Sensing Ability By The Mechanistic Target Of Rapamycin In Oligodendrocytes, Emma England

Senior Theses and Projects

Oligodendrocytes (OLs) are a type of glial cell in the central nervous system that require substantial nutrients such as lipids and amino acids to create the extensive, metabolically expensive myelin sheath surrounding the axons of neurons. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a regulatory kinase that is necessary for the maturation of progenitor OLs through their distinct oligo-lineage phases. Amino acids are vital for the functioning of cells. The focus of this study was to determine if mTOR activity is dependent on the availability of leucine, methionine, and alanine. This was assessed by examining the phosphorylation level of the …

The Expression Of Mtor And Trib3 In Oligodendrocyte Lineage Cells, Katie Lazur

Senior Theses and Projects

Oligodendrocytes are a type of glial cell in the central nervous system that are responsible for producing the myelin sheath which allows for faster neuronal firing rates. Myelin production is a metabolically expensive process, which requires the oligodendrocytes to be aware of the nutrients are available to them. It has been demonstrated that the mammalian target of Rapamycin (mTOR) is required for the later stages of maturation in oligodendrocytes. However, when mTOR is inhibited by Rapamycin in the early stages of oligodendrocyte development, the oligodendrocytes are still able to fully differentiate. Tribbles Homolog 3 (Trib3) is a pseudo …

The Effect Of Hypoxia On Brain Cell Proliferation In Weakly Electric Fish, Petrocephalus Degeni, Kaitlin Klovdahl

Senior Theses and Projects

Oxygen levels tend to remain at a steady state concentration in the Earth’s atmosphere, yet in some bodies of water, they can fluctuate and decrease drastically. Many organisms that inhabit the swamps, lakes, streams, and parts of the ocean where this occurs have evolved adaptations to manage this environmental uncertainty and continue normal oxygen consumption. The Lwamunda swamp in Uganda is chronically hypoxic, yet it is home to many species, including the electric fish Petrocephalus degeni. P. degeni are unusual by nature of their immense brain, and the Lwamunda swamp appears ill-suited for maintaining this large, metabolically active organ. To …

Electrophysiological Response To Classical Music In Instrumentalists, Vocalists, And Non-Musicians, Brielle Mcdonald

Senior Theses and Projects

Musical experience has been shown to impact electrophysiological response in response to sudden changes in music. The purpose of this exploratory case study is to investigate responses to a variety of continuous classical music stimuli in individuals with varying musical backgrounds, through the use of electroencephalography (EEG). Individuals were categorized as instrumentalists (5+ years of instrumental training), vocalists (5+ years of vocal training), or non-musicians (training). Participants were played a variety of classical vocal and instrumental music while an EEG was recorded. Data were then collected and analyzed using independent component analysis (ICA) and time/frequency analysis through EEGLAB. It was …

Measuring The Effects Of Acculturation On Different Types Of Memory In Spanish Speaker, Laura Cadavid

Senior Theses and Projects

Studies show that minorities are more likely to be misdiagnosed as neuropsychologically impaired than non-Hispanic whites due to artificially depressed neuropsychological test scores (Arentoft et al., 2012). One aspect to consider as a possible factor is acculturation (Arentoft et al., 2012). Acculturation is the process of psychological and behavioral changes that occur due to prolonged contact with another culture (Zea et al., 2003). Previous studies have found acculturation into U.S (dominant) culture is correlated with better neuropsychological performance on a variety of neuropsychological realms, such as information processing (Razani et al., 2007) and working memory (Coffey et al., 2005). Latinxs …

Manipulation Of Conscious Awareness Using Continuous Flash Suppression And Virtual Reality, Patricia Gaitan

Senior Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Electroencephalogram As A Diagnostic Tool In Acquired Brain Injury, Michael Zarra

Senior Theses and Projects

The ability of electroencephalogram (EEG) to be used as a diagnostic device for acquired brain injuries (ABI) has been conceptualized previously. Averaged event-related potentials (ERP) derived from an EEG are suitable as markers of dysfunction however, distinctive properties in the frequency domain have not been established previously. In the present study, we examined pre- existing EEG signal data of healthy adults (HA), mild ABI (mABI), and severe ABI (sABI) human groups. Through Fourier analysis performed in MATLAB, we found that individuals in our sample population (n=80) were able to be categorized into their respective group based on common neuronal activity …

Neurological Discrepancies Between Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia And Schizoaffective Disorder, Nat Bush

Senior Theses and Projects

As neurological research advances, so does the understanding of how disorders and diseases develop and how they can be treated. The debate of how mental disorders develop has been ongoing and complicated, as there is still no clear understanding of their cause. In this study, fMRI scans of individuals with bipolar disorder (BPD), schizophrenia (SZP), and schizoaffective disorder (SAD), and a control group were collected in six cities in the United States and were preprocessed to screen out scans that do not succeed in the standardization process. The subjects were included in three analyses: one that compares the subjects based …

Development Of An Intrahippocampal Kindling Model Of Epilepsy, Carter F. Jones

Senior Theses and Projects

Epilepsy is a neurological condition that affects about 1% of the global population. This debilitating condition is associated with overexcitation and ineffective inhibition of neuronal pathways in the brain causing serious and a diverse set of symptoms, most prominently seizures. While some antiepileptic drug (AED) regimes have been proven to be effective in treating this condition, there are many cases where the drugs do not do enough. The ketogenic diet (KD) has been used for decades as an effective anticonvulsant. Its powerful and natural processes result in some patients becoming seizure-free. Sometimes, these patients remain free of seizures even after …

Cognitive Rehabilitation Of Prospective Memory Deficits After Acquired Brain Injury: Cognitive, Behavioral, And Physiological Measures, Meaghan Race

Senior Theses and Projects

Acquired brain injury (ABI) affects approximately 3.5 million Americans each year and is associated with cognitive and emotional changes. Prospective memory (PM) deficits are important predictors of functioning in daily life for individuals with ABI. Previous studies have shown that cognitive rehabilitation therapy (CRT) via PM training has a high rate of success in improving quality of life, independence and productivity for ABI survivors. There is limited information on utilizing imaging techniques in relation to changes in cognition and behavior following rehabilitation; however, previous studies suggest that imaging provides evidence that CRT could be related to changes to underlying brain …

Social Buffering Of Brain Cell Proliferation And Behavioral Responses To Tail Injury In Weakly Electric Fish, Apteronotus Leptorhynchus, Margarita M. Vergara

Senior Theses and Projects

Social interactions can mitigate the damaging effects of threatening stimuli, a phenomenon termed ‘social buffering’. In two different forms of social buffering, social interactions reduce stress-induced decreases in brain cell proliferation and enhance recovery from somatic injury. However, the positive effects of social interactions on the brain cell proliferation response to somatic injury have not been extensively examined. Here, I investigated the social buffering of the brain cell proliferation response to tail injury in an electric fish, Apteronotus leptorhynchus. I ask three major questions: 1) Does social interaction mitigate the decrease in brain cell proliferation caused by simulated predatory tail …

Increased Contagious Itch In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd), Molly Schineller

Senior Theses and Projects

It has been previously demonstrated that contagion of yawning and laughter is significantly reduced in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in comparison to age-matched typically developing (TD) children, but contagion of itch has not been studied in this population. In this study, 55 children with ASD and 55 TD children, all aged 9-14, were exposed to video clips depicting actors yawning, laughing, and itching. In line with previous data, children with ASD demonstrated decreased contagious yawning and laughter in comparison to their TD peers. Surprisingly, they demonstrated increased contagious itch compared to their TD peers. However, susceptibility to contagion …

Influence Of Alcohol On Time-Based Prospective Memory And Electrophysiological Measures In College-Aged Individuals, Christy C. Chan

Senior Theses and Projects

College students have higher rates of alcohol-use disorders (AUDs) than that of same-aged non-college students, with an estimated 31% of U.S. college students meeting the diagnostic criteria for alcohol abuse (Borsari et al., 2007; Knight et al., 2002). College age is also a critical period for brain development, including regions responsible for the development of prospective memory (PM), making the brains of college students vulnerable to the effects of alcohol. This study investigated the influence of alcohol on the underlying brain activity associated with PM in light- and heavy-alcohol-drinking college students. PM was measured with the Memory for …

The Effects Of Soil Copper Contamination On Earthworm Cholinergic Transmission, Locomotion And Muscle Physiology, Tommaso Meregalli

Senior Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Cross-Sectional Analysis Of Cortical Thickness Across The Lifespan, Thomas J. Hum-Hyder

Senior Theses and Projects

An understanding of the normal aging process across the lifespan is important for gaining an understanding the pathophysiological changes that occur in accelerated aging diseases, such as Alzheimer’s Disease Dementia (ADD) and Vascular Dementia (VaD). The present study cross-sectionally analyzed cortical thickness values derived from T1-weighted magnetic resonance images for two large cohorts: Human Connectome Project and the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. The 897 participants aged between 22-36 from the Human Connectome Project and the 801 participants aged between 52-92 from the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging created a robust cohort of non-demented individuals across the lifespan. We found …

An Initial Analysis Of A Long-Term Ketogenic Diet’S Impact On Motor Behavior, Brain Purine Systems, And Nigral Dopamine Neurons In A New Genetic Rodent Model Of Parkinson’S Disease, Jacob Rubin, William H. Church

Senior Theses and Projects

A growing body of research suggests that dopaminergic cell death seen in Parkinson’s disease is caused by mitochondrial dysfunction. Oxidative stress, with subsequent generation of reactive oxygen species, is the hallmark biochemical product of mitochondrial dysfunction. The ketogenic diet has been found to enhance mitochondrial energy production, protect against reactive oxygen species-generated cell death, and increase adenosine, a purine that modulates dopamine activity. The current study evaluates the effects of a long-term (5-month) ketogenic diet on behavioral, neurochemical, and neuroanatomical measures in PINK1-KO rats, a new animal model of Parkinson’s disease. Both wild-type and PINK1-KO animals fed a ketogenic diet …

An In Vivo Study Of The Effects Of Perinatal Caffeine Exposure On Synaptic Efficacy In The Hippocampus Of Freely Moving Adult Rats, Jee Eun Park

Senior Theses and Projects

The synapse from the perforant path to the dentate gyrus has been widely used successfully to demonstrate long-term potentiation, a cellular model underlying learning and memory. Caffeine is one of the most widely consumed psychoactive stimulants in the world. Caffeine consumption increases in alertness, improvements in motor skills, and neurological functions, and these effects have promoted its use throughout history. Although the many short term cognitive benefits of caffeine intake are well understood, the long term effects of caffeine exposure have been widely disputed. Despite this, it is estimated that over 80% of women continue to consume caffeine throughout pregnancy. …

The Effects Of The Ketogenic Diet (Kd) On Inflammatory Pain, Livia S. Wyss

Senior Theses and Projects

BACKGROUND: Pain is the most common ailment around the world, according to the American Academy of Pain Medicine; 100 million Americans suffer with chronic pain, which is more than any other main disorder and is described by more than 60% as impacted their overall enjoyment of life (AAPA). The ketogenic diet (KD) is a high fat, low carbohydrate dietary regimen, which is described to decrease neuronal excitation, increase ketone bodies and ATP levels, while lowering glucose and proinflammatory cytokines. The KD is an effective therapy for epilepsy; a disorder that arises from either lowered inhibition or increased excitation, similar to …

Clinical And Physiological Measures Of The Efficacy Of Prospective Memory Treatment, Tessa Bloomquist

Senior Theses and Projects

Prospective memory (PM) involves the ability to form and realize intentions after a time delay (Einstein & McDaniel, 1990). This study examines the relationship between clinical measures of PM and an event-related potential paradigm (West & Ross-Munroe, 2002) before and after Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy (CRT). Participants with traumatic brain injury (TBI) were assigned to one of two groups, CRT and an active control condition. Electrophysiological and behavioral data were collected while subjects performed a computerized PM measure and the Memory for Intentions Screening Test (MIST) (Raskin, Buckheit, & Sherrod, 2011), a clinical measure. The results from the two groups were …

Feeling And Speaking: The Role Of Sensory Feedback In Speech, Francesca R. Marino

Senior Theses and Projects

Sensory feedback allows talkers to accurately control speech production, and auditory information is the predominant form of speech feedback. When this sensory stream is degraded, talkers have been shown to rely more heavily on somatosensory information. Furthermore, perceptual speech abilities are greatest when both auditory and visual feedback are available. In this study, we experimentally degraded auditory feedback using a cochlear implant simulation and somatosensory feedback using Orajel. Additionally, we placed a mirror in front of the talkers to introduce visual feedback. Participants were prompted to speak under a baseline, feedback degraded, and visual condition; audiovisual speech recordings were taken …

Effects Of Ketogenic Diets On Autistic Symptoms Of Female El Mice, Subrina N. Bisnauth

Senior Theses and Projects

The ketogenic diet (KD) is a restricted carbohydrate, high fat and sufficient protein metabolic therapy that elevates ketones as an alternative fuel source, and that reduces seizures in persons with epilepsy which is often comorbid with autism. Autism is characterized by communication deficits, decreased sociability and repetitive behaviours. A restrictive KD reverses symptoms in the BTBR mouse model of autism but its severity is a factor in its clinical applicability. In a study with the EL mouse model of epilepsy and autism, sex-dependent effects were found where only females displayed the behavioural effects of the KD. In the current study, …

Mtor Signaling And Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress In Mixed Glial Cultures, William Theodore Schreiber-Stainthorp

Senior Theses and Projects

Oligodendrocytes are the myelinating cells of the central nervous system. The extraordinary protein and lipid synthesis that myelin production entails makes oligodendrocytes especially prone to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. In this experiment, we set out to investigate the dynamics of ER stress in mixed glial cultures, and how the consequences of that stress vary based on the activity of the anabolic PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. Previous experiments in isolated oligodendrocyte cultures demonstrated a negative correlation between AKT/mTOR signaling and oligodendrocyte cell viability in the presence of ER stressors. Because ER stress leads to a buildup of improperly processed proteins, decreases in mTOR …

Relationship Between Physiological And Clinical Measures Of Prospective Memory In Individuals With Mild Acquired Brain Injury, Severe Acquired Brain Injury And Healthy Adults, Consuelo M.A Pedro

Senior Theses and Projects

Prospective memory (PM) involves the ability to form and realize intentions after a time delay (Einstein & McDaniel, 1990). This study examines the relationship between clinical measures of PM and an event-related potential paradigm (West & Ross-Munroe, 2002). Electrophysiological and behavioral data were collected while subjects performed a computerized laboratory PM measure and was compared to a clinical measure, the Memory for Intentions Screening Test (MIST) (Raskin, Buckheit, & Sherrod, 2011) in healthy adults (HA), individuals with severe acquired brain injury (sABI) and mild acquired brain injury (mABI). Individuals with sABI performed significantly worse than individuals with mABI and HA …

The Effects Of Even- And Odd-Numbered Medium Chain Triglyceride Ketogenic Diets On Autistic Behaviors In A Mouse Model, Lisa Saa

Senior Theses and Projects

BACKGROUND: A ketogenic diet (KD), which has restricted carbohydrates, sufficient protein, and a very high fat content, causes the body to switch from a glucose-based metabolism to a ketone-based metabolism. The KD has been effective at reducing seizures in epileptic patients. Autism is comorbid with epilepsy and characterized by restricted and repetitive behaviors, low sociability, and deficits in communication. A strict version of the long-chain triglyceride (LCT) KD has been effective at reducing autistic symptoms in BTBR T+tf/J, an autistic model of mice. However, a more moderate and clinically relevant version of the LCT KD has been shown to be …