Physiological Processes Commons^™

Nf1 Loss And Ras Hyperactivation In Oligodendrocytes Induce Nos-Driven Defects In Myelin And Vasculature, Debra A. Mayes, Tilat A. Rizvi, Haley E. Titus-Mitchell, Rachel Oberst, Georgianne M. Ciraolo, Charles V. Vorhees, Andrew P. Robinson, Stephen D. Miller, Jose A. Cancelas, Anat O. Stemmer-Rachamimov, Nancy Ratner

Neuroscience, Cell Biology & Physiology Faculty Publications

Patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) and Costello syndrome Rasopathy have behavioral deficits. In NF1 patients, these may correlate with white matter enlargement and aberrant myelin. To model these features, we induced Nf1 loss or HRas hyperactivation in mouse oligodendrocytes. Enlarged brain white matter tracts correlated with myelin decompaction, downregulation of claudin-11, and mislocalization of connexin-32. Surprisingly, non-cell-autonomous defects in perivascular astrocytes and the blood-brain barrier (BBB) developed, implicating a soluble mediator. Nitric oxide (NO) can disrupt tight junctions and gap junctions, and NO and NO synthases (NOS1-NOS3) were upregulated in mutant white matter. Treating mice with the NOS inhibitor …

Diabetes Mellitus And Hypercholesterolemia Are Risk Factors For Alzheimer’S Disease And Appear To Affect The Integrity Of The Blood Brain Barrier, Jacqueline Dash

Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences Theses and Dissertations

Studies have shown that the vascular risk factors common to diabetes mellitus and hypercholesterolemia are also risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). It is currently unknown how these diseases are associated with AD, but they may cause a leak in the blood brain barrier (BBB), which is one of the hallmarks of AD. In this preliminary study, over 150 pig brain slides were tested for the expression levels of tight junction proteins occludin and claudin V in the BBB microvasculature. There were three groups of pig brains used in this study namely, control pigs, pigs with diabetes mellitus and hypercholesterolemia …

Mid-Morning Break And Poster Sessions: Psychological And Physiological Responses To Gambling Cues In Pathological Gamblers, Stephen P. Sharman Mr, Eve Limbrick-Oldfield, Mike R. Aitken, Henrietta Bowden-Jones, Luke Clark

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Introduction

Gamblers experience exposure to gambling cues on a daily basis, ranging from celebrity-endorsed TV commercials, to walking past a high street bookmaker. Research on substance addictions indicates that these cues are likely to activate urges / cravings to gamble.

Wulfert et al (2005) found higher ratings of subjective excitement following a horse race with a wager on in students, Kushner et al (2008) used frequent gamblers in a simulated casino environment and found positive anticipation and positive priming increased urges to gamble, however these studies used only a single self report item to measure craving. Ashrafioun et al (2012) …

Gender Differences In Frontal Plane Lower Extremity Kinetic Variability During Landing, Andrew Nordin

Interdisciplinary Research Scholarship Day

Investigations of human movement variability have been used as a
means of exploring neuromotor functioning, where performance variability is
thought to provide the system with flexibility and a mechanism for adaptation to
movement repetition [1,2,4,6]. Operationally, variability has been considered to
fall within optimal limits (Figure 1), while excessively high or low variability has
been implicated in injury susceptibility [1,2,4,6]. Landing has been explored
due to a high incidence of injury in athletic performance, as well as the ability
to easily control task demands through increases in landing height [3,4].
The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate changes in …

Lateralized Difference In Tympanic Membrane Temperature: Emotion And Hemispheric Activity, Ruth E. Propper, Tad T. Brunyé

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

We review literature examining relationships between tympanic membrane temperature (TMT), affective/motivational orientation, and hemispheric activity. Lateralized differences in TMT might enable real-time monitoring of hemispheric activity in real-world conditions, and could serve as a corroborating marker of mental illnesses associated with specific affective dysregulation. We support the proposal that TMT holds potential for broadly indexing lateralized brain physiology during tasks demanding the processing and representation of emotional and/or motivational states, and for predicting trait-related affective/motivational orientations. The precise nature of the relationship between TMT and brain physiology, however, remains elusive. Indeed the limited extant research has sampled different participant populations …

Sex Differences In Cell Death And Steroid Hormone Receptors In Cortical Explants, Amanda L. Trout

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Estrogens, such as the biologically active 17-b estradiol (E2) have many actions in the male and female brain. Not only does E2 regulate reproductive behavior in adults, it organizes and activates the brains of younger animals in a sex-specific manner. In addition, many human studies have shown E2 to provide protection against a variety of neurological disorders, including stoke. These studies have been controversial and depend largely on the type and timing of hormone replacement. Animal studies are much less controversial and clearly demonstrate a neuroprotective role for E2 following ischemic brain injury. Because much of E2 neuroprotection requires sex …

Regulation Of Alpha Synuclein Following Chronic Methamphetamine Administration In Guinea Pigs: Correlation With Memory And Synaptic Plasticity, Adnouse Blanc

PCOM Biomedical Studies Student Scholarship

Methamphetamine (METH) is a highly addictive drug of abuse that has a severe impact on neuronal changes in the brain including modulations of plasticity, cognitive dysfunction, as well as memory impairment. These changes can be seen as modifications in the expression of biochemical markers associated with synaptic plasticity. One such marker associated with memory impairment is alpha synuclein (α-syn). Alteration of α-syn expression has been linked to memory impairment in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Here we assess the effect of chronic METH treatment in correlation to cognitive functions.

Twenty-nine guinea pigs (male, 150-250 g) were …

Is Laparoscopic Gastric Banding An Effective Treatment For Obesity In Adolescents And Adults As Measured By Physical Function?, Shawna Mccormick

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not “Is laparoscopic gastric banding an effective treatment for obesity in adolescents and adults as measured by physical functioning?”

STUDY DESIGN: Review of all English language primary studies from 2009, 2010, and 2011.

DATA SOURCES: Two randomized control trials and one cohort study were found using PubMed, Medline, and OVID.

OUTCOMES MEASURED: There were multiple outcomes measured in the studies but the outcome of concern is quality of life post-operatively, specifically, physical functioning as measured by surveys including SF-36, Moorehead-Ardelt, BAROS, and CHQ CF-50. …