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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Locus Ceruleus Regulates Sensory Encoding By Neurons And Networks In Waking Animals, David M. Devilbiss, Michelle E. Page, Barry D. Waterhouse Sep 2006

Locus Ceruleus Regulates Sensory Encoding By Neurons And Networks In Waking Animals, David M. Devilbiss, Michelle E. Page, Barry D. Waterhouse

Department of Neurosurgery Faculty Papers

Substantial evidence indicates that the locus ceruleus (LC)–norepinephrine (NE) projection system regulates behavioral state and state-dependent processing of sensory information. Tonic LC discharge (0.1–5.0 Hz) is correlated with levels of arousal and demonstrates an optimal firing rate during good performance in a sustained attention task. In addition, studies have shown that locally applied NE or LC stimulation can modulate the responsiveness of neurons, including those in the thalamus, to nonmonoaminergic synaptic inputs. Many recent investigations further indicate that within sensory relay circuits of the thalamus both general and specific features of sensory information are represented within the collective firing patterns …


Pro-Opiomelanocortin Co-Localizes With Corticotropin-Releasing Factor In Axon Terminals Of The Noradrenergic Nucleus Locus Coeruleus, Beverly A.S. Reyes, Julia D. Glaser, Ronaldo Magtoto, Elisabeth K. Van Bockstaele Apr 2006

Pro-Opiomelanocortin Co-Localizes With Corticotropin-Releasing Factor In Axon Terminals Of The Noradrenergic Nucleus Locus Coeruleus, Beverly A.S. Reyes, Julia D. Glaser, Ronaldo Magtoto, Elisabeth K. Van Bockstaele

Department of Neurosurgery Faculty Papers

We previously demonstrated that the opioid peptide, enkephalin, and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) are occasionally co-localized in individual axon terminals but more frequently converge on common dendrites in the locus coeruleus (LC). To further examine potential opioid co-transmitters in CRF afferents, we investigated the distribution of proopiomelanocortin (POMC), the precursor that yields the potent bioactive peptide, ß-endorphin, with respect to CRF immunoreactivity using immunofluorescence and immunoelectron microscopic analyses of the LC. Coronal sections were collected through the dorsal pontine tegmentum of rat brain and processed for immunocytochemical detection of POMC and CRF or tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). POMC-immunoreactive processes exhibited a distinct …


Dopamine-D1 And Δ-Opioid Receptors Co-Exist In Rat Striatal Neurons, L. M. Ambrose-Lanci, S. M. Gallagher, E. M. Unterwald, E. J. Van Bockstaele Feb 2006

Dopamine-D1 And Δ-Opioid Receptors Co-Exist In Rat Striatal Neurons, L. M. Ambrose-Lanci, S. M. Gallagher, E. M. Unterwald, E. J. Van Bockstaele

Department of Neurosurgery Faculty Papers

Cocaine’s enhancement of dopaminergic neurotransmission in the mesolimbic pathway plays a critical role in the initial reinforcing properties of this drug. However, other neurotransmitter systems are also integral to the addiction process. A large body of data indicates that opioids and dopamine together mediate emotional and reinforced behaviors. In support of this, cocaine-mediated increases in activation of dopamine D1 receptors (D1R) results in a desensitization of δ-opioid receptor (DOR) signaling through adenylyl cyclase (AC) in striatal neurons. To further define cellular mechanisms underlying this effect, the subcellular distribution of DOR and D1R was examined in the rat dorsolateral striatum. Dual …