The Brain in a Physician’s Life

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peggy Mason
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Altered State ◽  
Compassionate Care ◽  
Clinical Impairment ◽  
Altered State Of Consciousness ◽  
Individual Nature ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

With the knowledge acquired from this book, the brain regions responsible for each of the symptoms suffered by Jean-Dominique Bauby can be identified. It is also possible to understand why thought, language, and memory were unaffected in Bauby. Bauby’s narrative is used to launch a consideration of the role of embodiment in affective experience. The experience of Clive Wearing who, after a bout of encephalitis, was left without the ability to make new declarative memories is introduced to illustrate the highly personal and individual nature of people’s reactions to disease or clinical impairment. The impact of disease does not stop with the patient but extends to the patient’s loved ones and caregivers. This is particularly true of patients with dementia or those in an altered state of consciousness. Finally the reader is encouraged to use their understanding of the nervous system to provide compassionate care for patients.

scholarly journals Does COVID-19 Affect Adult Neurogenesis? A Neurochemical Perspective

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayakumar Saikarthik ◽  
Ilango Saraswathi ◽  
Abdulrahman A. Al-Atram
Keyword(s):  
Adult Neurogenesis ◽  
Cell Activation ◽  
Immune Cell ◽  
Neuropsychiatric Symptoms ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Immune Cell Activation ◽  
Brain Involvement ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

COVID-19 has been found to cause neuropsychiatric symptoms which indicate brain involvement. SARS-CoV-2 may enter the brain by damaging and penetrating olfactory mucosa and via other possible routes like damaged blood–brain barrier, and hematologic spread. With SARS-CoV-2 having a higher affinity to ACE2 receptors, brain regions that have higher ACE2 receptors like the hippocampus, are more vulnerable to the effect of the viral invasion. In addition, immune cell activation, an important feature of COVID-19, leads to cytokine storm which causes neurotoxicity, neuroinflammation, and neurodegeneration. Impaired adult neurogenesis is related to many psychiatric disorders including depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, and PTSD. It is known to be related to the depletion of neurotransmitters, dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, GABA, and glutamate which play a major role in adult neurogenesis. A recent study reveals that SSRI which acts by increasing serotonin is proven beneficial in COVID-19 patients. Thus, the current chapter will discuss the impact of COVID-19 on adult neurogenesis with emphasis on the role of ACE2 and neurotransmitters.

The role of mitochondria in cocaine addiction

2021 ◽  
Vol 478 (4) ◽  
pp. 749-764
Author(s):  
Claire Thornton ◽  
Etty Grad ◽  
Rami Yaka
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Dynamics ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Cocaine Exposure ◽  
Transport Chain ◽  
Metabolic Gene Expression ◽  
Mitochondrial Functions ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain ◽  
And Oxidative Stress

The incidence of cocaine abuse is increasing especially in the U.K. where the rates are among the highest in Europe. In addition to its role as a psychostimulant, cocaine has profound effect on brain metabolism, impacting glycolysis and impairing oxidative phosphorylation. Cocaine exposure alters metabolic gene expression and protein networks in brain regions including the prefrontal cortex, the ventral tegmental area and the nucleus accumbens, the principal nuclei of the brain reward system. Here, we focus on how cocaine impacts mitochondrial function, in particular through alterations in electron transport chain function, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and oxidative stress (OS), mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy. Finally, we describe the impact of cocaine on brain energy metabolism in the developing brain following prenatal exposure. The plethora of mitochondrial functions altered following cocaine exposure suggest that therapies maintaining mitochondrial functional integrity may hold promise in mitigating cocaine pathology and addiction.

scholarly journals Modulation of Tumor Tolerance in Primary Central Nervous System Malignancies

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore S. Johnson ◽  
David H. Munn ◽  
Bernard L. Maria
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes ◽  
Tolerance Mechanism ◽  
Antigen Presenting ◽  
Open Question ◽  
Infiltrating Lymphocytes ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

Central nervous system tumors take advantage of the unique immunology of the CNS and develop exquisitely complex stromal networks that promote growth despite the presence of antigen-presenting cells and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes. It is precisely this immunological paradox that is essential to the survival of the tumor. We review the evidence for functional CNS immune privilege and the impact it has on tumor tolerance. In this paper, we place an emphasis on the role of tumor-infiltrating myeloid cells in maintaining stromal and vascular quiescence, and we underscore the importance of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase activity as a myeloid-driven tumor tolerance mechanism. Much remains to be discovered regarding the tolerogenic mechanisms by which CNS tumors avoid immune clearance. Thus, it is an open question whether tumor tolerance in the brain is fundamentally different from that of peripheral sites of tumorigenesis or whether it simply stands as a particularly strong example of such tolerance.

scholarly journals Transcending the brain: is there a cost to hacking the nervous system?

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shujhat Khan ◽  
Tipu Aziz
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Human Enhancement ◽  
Technological Advancement ◽  
Ethical Guidelines ◽  
Legal Doctrine ◽  
Performance Improvements ◽  
Clinical Impairment ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Great advancements have recently been made to understand the brain and the potential that we can extract out of it. Much of this has been centred on modifying electrical activity of the nervous system for improved physical and cognitive performance in those with clinical impairment. However, there is a risk of going beyond purely physiological performance improvements and striving for human enhancement beyond traditional human limits. Simple ethical guidelines and legal doctrine must be examined to keep ahead of technological advancement in light of the impending mergence between biology and machine. By understanding the role of modern ethics, this review aims to appreciate the fine boundary between what is considered ethically justified for current neurotechnology.

scholarly journals The Role of Neuropeptide Y in the Nucleus Accumbens

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (14) ◽  
pp. 7287
Author(s):  
Masaki Tanaka ◽  
Shunji Yamada ◽  
Yoshihisa Watanabe
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Nucleus Accumbens ◽  
Neuropeptide Y ◽  
Emotional Behavior ◽  
Characteristic Functions ◽  
Receptor Subtypes ◽  
Neuroendocrine Mechanisms ◽  
Fear And Anxiety ◽  
The Brain

Neuropeptide Y (NPY), an abundant peptide in the central nervous system, is expressed in neurons of various regions throughout the brain. The physiological and behavioral effects of NPY are mainly mediated through Y1, Y2, and Y5 receptor subtypes, which are expressed in regions regulating food intake, fear and anxiety, learning and memory, depression, and posttraumatic stress. In particular, the nucleus accumbens (NAc) has one of the highest NPY concentrations in the brain. In this review, we summarize the role of NPY in the NAc. NPY is expressed principally in medium-sized aspiny neurons, and numerous NPY immunoreactive fibers are observed in the NAc. Alterations in NPY expression under certain conditions through intra-NAc injections of NPY or receptor agonists/antagonists revealed NPY to be involved in the characteristic functions of the NAc, such as alcohol intake and drug addiction. In addition, control of mesolimbic dopaminergic release via NPY receptors may take part in these functions. NPY in the NAc also participates in fat intake and emotional behavior. Accumbal NPY neurons and fibers may exert physiological and pathophysiological actions partly through neuroendocrine mechanisms and the autonomic nervous system.

scholarly journals Developmental cannabidiol exposure increases anxiety and modifies genome-wide brain DNA methylation in adult female mice

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole M. Wanner ◽  
Mathia Colwell ◽  
Chelsea Drown ◽  
Christopher Faulk
Keyword(s):  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Coat Color ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Functional Enrichment ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Nulliparous Female ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Background Use of cannabidiol (CBD), the primary non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis, has recently risen dramatically, while relatively little is known about the underlying molecular mechanisms of its effects. Previous work indicates that direct CBD exposure strongly impacts the brain, with anxiolytic, antidepressant, antipsychotic, and other effects being observed in animal and human studies. The epigenome, particularly DNA methylation, is responsive to environmental input and can direct persistent patterns of gene regulation impacting phenotype. Epigenetic perturbation is particularly impactful during embryogenesis, when exogenous exposures can disrupt critical resetting of epigenetic marks and impart phenotypic effects lasting into adulthood. The impact of prenatal CBD exposure has not been evaluated; however, studies using the psychomimetic cannabinoid Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) have identified detrimental effects on psychological outcomes in developmentally exposed adult offspring. We hypothesized that developmental CBD exposure would have similar negative effects on behavior mediated in part by the epigenome. Nulliparous female wild-type Agouti viable yellow (Avy) mice were exposed to 20 mg/kg CBD or vehicle daily from two weeks prior to mating through gestation and lactation. Coat color shifts, a readout of DNA methylation at the Agouti locus in this strain, were measured in F1 Avy/a offspring. Young adult F1 a/a offspring were then subjected to tests of working spatial memory and anxiety/compulsive behavior. Reduced-representation bisulfite sequencing was performed on both F0 and F1 cerebral cortex and F1 hippocampus to identify genome-wide changes in DNA methylation for direct and developmental exposure, respectively. Results F1 offspring exposed to CBD during development exhibited increased anxiety and improved memory behavior in a sex-specific manner. Further, while no significant coat color shift was observed in Avy/a offspring, thousands of differentially methylated loci (DMLs) were identified in both brain regions with functional enrichment for neurogenesis, substance use phenotypes, and other psychologically relevant terms. Conclusions These findings demonstrate for the first time that despite positive effects of direct exposure, developmental CBD is associated with mixed behavioral outcomes and perturbation of the brain epigenome.

Preserving Integrity in the Face of Performance Threat

2012 ◽  
Vol 23 (12) ◽  
pp. 1455-1460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Legault ◽  
Timour Al-Khindi ◽  
Michael Inzlicht
Keyword(s):  
Error Detection ◽  
Error Monitoring ◽  
Error Related Negativity ◽  
Threatening Information ◽  
Electrophysiological Responses ◽  
The Face ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

Self-affirmation produces large effects: Even a simple reminder of one’s core values reduces defensiveness against threatening information. But how, exactly, does self-affirmation work? We explored this question by examining the impact of self-affirmation on neurophysiological responses to threatening events. We hypothesized that because self-affirmation increases openness to threat and enhances approachability of unfavorable feedback, it should augment attention and emotional receptivity to performance errors. We further hypothesized that this augmentation could be assessed directly, at the level of the brain. We measured self-affirmed and nonaffirmed participants’ electrophysiological responses to making errors on a task. As we anticipated, self-affirmation elicited greater error responsiveness than did nonaffirmation, as indexed by the error-related negativity, a neural signal of error monitoring. Self-affirmed participants also performed better on the task than did nonaffirmed participants. We offer novel brain evidence that self-affirmation increases openness to threat and discuss the role of error detection in the link between self-affirmation and performance.

scholarly journals Research participants as collaborators: Background, experience and policies from the PREVENT Dementia and EPAD programmes

Dementia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 1045-1054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Gregory ◽  
Katie Wells ◽  
Kate Forsyth ◽  
Cate Latto ◽  
Helen Szyra ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Patient Involvement ◽  
Research Participant ◽  
Steering Committee ◽  
Research Participants ◽  
Prospective Cohort Studies ◽  
Participant Experience ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Public And Patient Involvement

Aim Despite the growing importance of public and patient involvement in biomedical research, comparatively little attention has been paid to the important role of research participants themselves. Our aim in this paper is to explore the impact research participant involvement has within the PREVENT and the European Prevention of Alzheimer’s Dementia (EPAD) projects. Method In this paper, we report the experiences of involving research participants as collaborators in prospective cohort studies exploring early changes in the brain as pathways towards and risks for dementia. We use minutes and feedback from members of the panel and steering committee to understand the experience and impact on the study. Results We describe the aims and structure of the participant panel established within the PREVENT Dementia study and highlight its contributions to the organisation, conduct and future of the study. Key areas of contribution identified include recruitment, inclusion of additional sub-studies, understanding the participant experience and contributing to the future of the study. Discussion We then describe how the PREVENT Dementia panel forms the basis for participant involvement within EPAD project.

scholarly journals Is There a Link between Oropharyngeal Microbiome and Schizophrenia? A Narrative Review

2022 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 846
Author(s):  
Stanislas Martin ◽  
Audrey Foulon ◽  
Wissam El Hage ◽  
Diane Dufour-Rainfray ◽  
Frédéric Denis
Keyword(s):  
Periodontal Disease ◽  
Research Team ◽  
Oral Microbiome ◽  
Oral Microbiota ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Moment ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

The study aimed to examine the impact of the oropharyngeal microbiome in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and to clarify whether there might be a bidirectional link between the oral microbiota and the brain in a context of dysbiosis-related neuroinflammation. We selected nine articles including three systemic reviews with several articles from the same research team. Different themes emerged, which we grouped into 5 distinct parts concerning the oropharyngeal phageome, the oropharyngeal microbiome, the salivary microbiome and periodontal disease potentially associated with schizophrenia, and the impact of drugs on the microbiome and schizophrenia. We pointed out the presence of phageoma in patients suffering from schizophrenia and that periodontal disease reinforces the role of inflammation in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Moreover, saliva could be an interesting substrate to characterize the different stages of schizophrenia. However, the few studies we have on the subject are limited in scope, and some of them are the work of a single team. At this stage of knowledge, it is difficult to conclude on the existence of a bidirectional link between the brain and the oral microbiome. Future studies on the subject will clarify these questions that for the moment remain unresolved.

scholarly journals A selective effect of dopamine on information-seeking

eLife ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina Vellani ◽  
Lianne P de Vries ◽  
Anne Gaule ◽  
Tali Sharot
Keyword(s):  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Selective Effect ◽  
Reward Seeking ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Primary Reward

Humans are motivated to seek information from their environment. How the brain motivates this behavior is unknown. One speculation is that the brain employs neuromodulatory systems implicated in primary reward-seeking, in particular dopamine, to instruct information-seeking. However, there has been no causal test for the role of dopamine in information-seeking. Here, we show that administration of a drug that enhances dopamine function (dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine; L-DOPA) reduces the impact of valence on information-seeking. Specifically, while participants under Placebo sought more information about potential gains than losses, under L-DOPA this difference was not observed. The results provide new insight into the neurobiology of information-seeking and generates the prediction that abnormal dopaminergic function (such as in Parkinson’s disease) will result in valence-dependent changes to information-seeking.

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