scholarly journals The Role of the Cerebellum in Swallowing

Dysphagia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayodele Sasegbon ◽  
Shaheen Hamdy
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Applications ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Neurogenic Dysphagia ◽  
Complex Activity ◽  
Motor Responses ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Increased Activity ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Cerebellar Stimulation

AbstractSwallowing is a complex activity requiring a sophisticated system of neurological control from neurones within the brainstem, cerebral cortices and cerebellum. The cerebellum is a critical part of the brain responsible for the modulation of movements. It receives input from motor cortical and sensory areas and fine tunes these inputs to produce coordinated motor outputs. With respect to swallowing, numerous functional imaging studies have demonstrated increased activity in the cerebellum during the task of swallowing and damage to the cerebellum following differing pathological processes is associated with dysphagia. Single pulses of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) have been applied to the cerebellum and have been shown to evoke motor responses in the pharynx. Moreover, repetitive TMS (rTMS) over the cerebellum can modulate cerebral motor (pharyngeal) cortical activity. Neurostimulation has allowed a better understanding of the connections that exist between the cerebellum and cerebral swallowing motor areas in health and provides a potential treatment for neurogenic dysphagia in illness. In this review we will examine what is currently known about the role of the cerebellum in the control of swallowing, explore new findings from neurostimulatory and imaging studies and provide an overview of the future clinical applications of cerebellar stimulation for treating dysphagia.

Neurotrophins and Proneurotrophins: Focus on Synaptic Activity and Plasticity in the Brain

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 587-604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Gibon ◽  
Philip A. Barker
Keyword(s):  
Long Term Potentiation ◽  
Synaptic Activity ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Term Potentiation ◽  
Neurotrophin 3 ◽  
New Findings ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
The Brain

Neurotrophins have been intensively studied and have multiple roles in the brain. Neurotrophins are first synthetized as proneurotrophins and then cleaved intracellularly and extracellularly. Increasing evidences demonstrate that proneurotrophins and mature neurotrophins exerts opposing role in the central nervous system. In the present review, we explore the role of nerve growth factor (NGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurotrophin 3 (NT3), and neurotrophin 4 (NT4) and their respective proform in cellular processes related to learning and memory. We focused on their roles in synaptic activity and plasticity in the brain with an emphasis on long-term potentiation, long-term depression, and basal synaptic transmission in the hippocampus and the temporal lobe area. We also discuss new findings on the role of the Val66Met polymorphism on the BDNF propeptide on synaptic activity.

Decreased lymphocyte dopamine transporter in romantic lovers

CNS Spectrums ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 290-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donatella Marazziti ◽  
Stefano Baroni ◽  
Gino Giannaccini ◽  
Armando Piccinni ◽  
Federico Mucci ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Cells ◽  
Healthy Subjects ◽  
Psychiatric Illness ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Romantic Love ◽  
Synaptic Cleft ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Resting Lymphocytes ◽  
The Brain

ObjectiveThe role of dopamine (DA) in romantic love is suggested by different evidence and is supported by the findings of some brain imaging studies. The DA transporter (DAT) is a key structure in regulating the concentration of the neurotransmitter in the synaptic cleft. Given the presence of DAT in blood cells, the present study aimed to explore it in resting lymphocytes of 30 healthy subjects of both sexes in the early stage of romantic love (no longer than 6 months), as compared with 30 subjects involved in a long-lasting relationship.MethodsAll subjects had no physical or psychiatric illness. The DAT was measured by means of the [3H]-WIN 35,428 binding and the [3H]-DA reuptake to resting lymphocytes membranes. Romantic love was assessed by a specific questionnaire developed by us.ResultsThe results showed that the subjects in the early phase of romantic love had a global alteration of the lymphocyte DAT involving both a decreased number of proteins (Bmax) and a reduced functionality (Vmax).ConclusionsTaken together, these findings would indicate the presence of increased levels of DA in romantic love that, if paralleled by similar concentrations in the brain, would explain some peculiar features of this human feeling.

scholarly journals Brain Imaging Biomarkers for Chronic Pain

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengwu Zhang ◽  
Jennifer S. Gewandter ◽  
Paul Geha
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Brain Imaging ◽  
Substance Misuse ◽  
Clinical Applications ◽  
Imaging Biomarkers ◽  
Costs And Benefits ◽  
Brain Circuitry ◽  
Chronic Pain Conditions ◽  
The Brain

The prevalence of chronic pain has reached epidemic levels. In addition to personal suffering chronic pain is associated with psychiatric and medical co-morbidities, notably substance misuse, and a huge a societal cost amounting to hundreds of billions of dollars annually in medical cost, lost wages, and productivity. Chronic pain does not have a cure or quantitative diagnostic or prognostic tools. In this manuscript we provide evidence that this situation is about to change. We first start by summarizing our current understanding of the role of the brain in the pathogenesis of chronic pain. We particularly focus on the concept of learning in the emergence of chronic pain, and the implication of the limbic brain circuitry and dopaminergic signaling, which underly emotional learning and decision making, in this process. Next, we summarize data from our labs and from other groups on the latest brain imaging findings in different chronic pain conditions focusing on results with significant potential for translation into clinical applications. The gaps in the study of chronic pain and brain imaging are highlighted in throughout the overview. Finally, we conclude by discussing the costs and benefits of using brain biomarkers of chronic pain and compare to other potential markers.

Targeted Circuit Manipulations in the Modeling of OCD

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne E. Ahmari
Keyword(s):  
Neural Circuit ◽  
Brain Network ◽  
Repetitive Behaviors ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Targeted Treatments ◽  
Excessive Grooming ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Shed Light ◽  
Deep Brain

Work in animal models has great potential to shed light on the neural circuit perturbations that lead to OCD-related behaviors. Circuit-specific manipulations allow testing of the causal role of the brain network abnormalities observed in clinical imaging studies, with a precision that is not possible in investigations in humans. In recent years, circuit-specific manipulations in animals using a range of technologies have confirmed that abnormalities in the cortico-striatal circuitry can produce repetitive behaviors, such as excessive grooming. This chapter summarizes these advances. Refining our understanding of the contribution of particular neural circuits to OCD-relevant behaviors can inform the development of anatomically targeted treatments, such as deep brain stimulation.

scholarly journals Active Forgetting: Adaptation of Memory by Prefrontal Control

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael C. Anderson ◽  
Justin C. Hulbert
Keyword(s):  
Emotional State ◽  
Memory Loss ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Top Down ◽  
The Past ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Nonhuman Animals ◽  
The Brain

Over the past century, psychologists have discussed whether forgetting might arise from active mechanisms that promote memory loss to achieve various functions, such as minimizing errors, facilitating learning, or regulating one's emotional state. The past decade has witnessed a great expansion in knowledge about the brain mechanisms underlying active forgetting in its varying forms. A core discovery concerns the role of the prefrontal cortex in exerting top-down control over mnemonic activity in the hippocampus and other brain structures, often via inhibitory control. New findings reveal that such processes not only induce forgetting of specific memories but also can suppress the operation of mnemonic processes more broadly, triggering windows of anterograde and retrograde amnesia in healthy people. Recent work extends active forgetting to nonhuman animals, presaging the development of a multilevel mechanistic account that spans the cognitive, systems, network, and even cellular levels. This work reveals how organisms adapt their memories to their cognitive and emotional goals and has implications for understanding vulnerability to psychiatric disorders.

Microglia in development: linking brain wiring to brain environment

2011 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa C. Paolicelli ◽  
Cornelius T. Gross
Keyword(s):  
Resting State ◽  
Brain Connectivity ◽  
Neuronal Cells ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Synaptic Pruning

Microglia are enigmatic non-neuronal cells that infiltrate and take up residence in the brain during development and are thought to perform a surveillance function. An established literature has documented how microglia are activated by pathogenic stimuli and how they contribute to and resolve injuries to the brain. However, much less work has been aimed at understanding their function in the uninjured brain. A series of recent in vivo imaging studies shows that microglia in their resting state are highly motile and actively survey their neuronal surroundings. Furthermore, new data suggest that microglia in their resting state are able to phagocytose unwanted synapses and in this way contribute to synaptic pruning and maturation during development. Coupled with their exquisite sensitivity to pathogenic stimuli, these data suggest that microglia form a link that couples changes in brain environment to changes in brain wiring. Here we discuss this hypothesis and propose a model for the role of microglia during development in sculpting brain connectivity.

scholarly journals Variability in Reward Responsivity and Obesity: Evidence from Brain Imaging Studies

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Stanley Burger
Keyword(s):  
Food Intake ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Vulnerability Factors ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Vulnerability Model ◽  
Reward Responsivity ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Neuroimaging Techniques

Advances in neuroimaging techniques have provided insight into the role of the brain in the regulation of food intake and weight. Growing evidence demonstrate that energy dense, palatable foods elicit similar responses in reward-related brain regions that mimic those of addictive substances. Currently, various models of obesity’s relation to reward from food have been theorized. There is evidence to support a theory of hypo-responsivity of reward regions to food, where individuals consume excess amounts to overcome this reward deficit. There is also data to support a theory of hyper-responsivity of reward regions, where individuals who experience greater reward from food intake are at risk for overeating. However, these seemingly discordant theories are static in nature and do not account for the possible effects of repeated overeating on brain responsivity to food and initial vulnerability factors. Here we review data that support these theories and propose a dynamic vulnerability model of obesity that appears to offer a parsimonious theory that accommodates extant findings.

Brain Laterality: Differences in Cognitive Style or Motor Function?

1983 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugene H. Galluscio
Keyword(s):  
Motor Function ◽  
Cognitive Styles ◽  
Spatial Task ◽  
Matching Task ◽  
Motor Responses ◽  
Brain Laterality ◽  
Left Brain ◽  
Key Press ◽  
The Brain

Two studies were completed to evaluate the role of motor function in the observable brain laterality of normal, familial, dextral males. A right-brain advantage was demonstrated on a figure-matching task and on a sequential-spatial task when subjects responded with a manual key press. A left-brain advantage for the same two tasks was demonstrated when subjects responded by compressing a microswitch embedded in a mouthpiece. The data suggest that both hemispheres of the brain may be capable of processing visuosparial stimuli but do not share the same facility for effecting appropriate motor responses. The results were discussed in terms of lateralized cognitive styles in brain and lateralized control of effector systems.

Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Enables Updating of Established Memories

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (10) ◽  
pp. 4154-4168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Marieke Kluen ◽  
Lisa Catherine Dandolo ◽  
Gerhard Jocham ◽  
Lars Schwabe
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Related Activity ◽  
Future Behavior ◽  
New Information ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Increased Activity ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Updating established memories in light of new information is fundamental for memory to guide future behavior. However, little is known about the brain mechanisms by which existing memories can be updated. Here, we combined functional magnetic resonance imaging and multivariate representational similarity analysis to elucidate the neural mechanisms underlying the updating of consolidated memories. To this end, participants first learned face–city name pairs. Twenty-four hours later, while lying in the MRI scanner, participants were required to update some of these associations, but not others, and to encode entirely new pairs. Updating success was tested again 24 h later. Our results showed increased activity of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) specifically during the updating of existing associations that was significantly stronger than when simple retrieval or new encoding was required. The updating-related activity of the dlPFC and its functional connectivity with the hippocampus were directly linked to updating success. Furthermore, neural similarity for updated items was markedly higher in the dlPFC and this increase in dlPFC neural similarity distinguished individuals with high updating performance from those with low updating performance. Together, these findings suggest a key role of the dlPFC, presumably in interaction with the hippocampus, in the updating of established memories.

scholarly journals Current Understanding of the Involvement of the Insular Cortex in Neuropathic Pain: A Narrative Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 2648
Author(s):  
Ning Wang ◽  
Yu-Han Zhang ◽  
Jin-Yan Wang ◽  
Fei Luo
Keyword(s):  
Neuropathic Pain ◽  
Information Integration ◽  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Insular Cortex ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Cognitive Evaluation ◽  
Neuropsychiatric Diseases ◽  
Increased Activity

Neuropathic pain is difficult to cure and is often accompanied by emotional and psychological changes. Exploring the mechanisms underlying neuropathic pain will help to identify a better treatment for this condition. The insular cortex is an important information integration center. Numerous imaging studies have documented increased activity of the insular cortex in the presence of neuropathic pain; however, the specific role of this region remains controversial. Early studies suggested that the insular lobe is mainly involved in the processing of the emotional motivation dimension of pain. However, increasing evidence suggests that the role of the insular cortex is more complex and may even be related to the neural plasticity, cognitive evaluation, and psychosocial aspects of neuropathic pain. These effects contribute not only to the development of neuropathic pain, but also to its comorbidity with neuropsychiatric diseases. In this review, we summarize the changes that occur in the insular cortex in the presence of neuropathic pain and analgesia, as well as the molecular mechanisms that may underlie these conditions. We also discuss potential sex-based differences in these processes. Further exploration of the involvement of the insular lobe will contribute to the development of new pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy treatments for neuropathic pain.

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