Dietary Levels of Pure Flavonoids Improve Spatial Memory Performance and Increase Hippocampal Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor

Early-life adverse experiences (first hit) lead to coping strategies that may confer resilience or vulnerability to later experienced stressful events (second hit) and the subsequent development of stress-related psychopathologies. Here, we investigated whether exposure to two stressors at different stages in life has long-term effects on emotional and cognitive capabilities, and whether the interaction between the two stressors influences stress resilience. Male rats were subjected to social defeat stress (SDS, first hit) in adolescence and to a single episode of prolonged stress (SPS, second hit) in adulthood. Behavioral outcomes, hippocampal expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and plasma corticosterone levels were tested in adulthood. Rats exposed to both stressors exhibited resilience against the development of stress-induced alterations in emotional behaviors and spatial memory, but vulnerability to cued fear memory dysfunction. Rats subjected to both stressors demonstrated resilience against the SDS-induced alterations in hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression and plasma corticosterone levels. SPS alone altered locomotion and spatial memory retention; these effects were absent in SDS-exposed rats later exposed to SPS. Our findings reveal that exposure to social stress during early adolescence influences the ability to cope with a second challenge experienced later in life.

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A Lack of Correlation between Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Serum Level and Verbal Memory Performance in Healthy Polish Population

Frontiers in Neural Circuits ◽

10.3389/fncir.2016.00039 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 10 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Monika Wilkosc ◽

Anita Markowska ◽

Ludmila Zajac-Lamparska ◽

Maria Skibinska ◽

Agnieszka Szalkowska ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Serum Level ◽

Verbal Memory ◽

Neurotrophic Factor ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor ◽

Polish Population

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Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Delayed Verbal Recall in Crack/Cocaine Dependents

European Addiction Research ◽

10.1159/000430436 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 21 (5) ◽

pp. 273-278 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Thiago Wendt Viola ◽

Saulo Gantes Tractenberg ◽

Bruno Kluwe-Schiavon ◽

Mateus Luz Levandowski ◽

Breno Sanvicente-Vieira ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Neurotrophic Factor ◽

Formal Education ◽

Crack Cocaine ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor ◽

Memory Retention ◽

Memory Impairments ◽

Verbal Recall ◽

Healthy Women

Background/Aims: Considering the role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in memory processes and its peripheral response during the detoxification of cocaine, the aim of this study was to investigate whether plasma BDNF levels could be related to memory performance in women with crack/cocaine dependence. Methods: Twenty-five abstinent female crack/cocaine users (CCD) and 25 unmedicated healthy women (HW), carefully matched for age and years of formal education, were assessed regarding memory performance. Logical Memory was used to assess the immediate verbal recall (IVR), delayed verbal recall (DVR) and memory retention. Plasma BDNF levels were measured by Elisa immunoassay. Beck Depression Inventory was used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms, and the Cocaine Selective Severity Assessment the severity of cocaine abstinence symptoms. Results: The CCD group had lower DVR scores and higher plasma BDNF levels when compared to HW group. In addition, a linear regression model showed that BDNF levels predicted DVR scores within CCD group independently of depressive symptoms (R = 0.51; R2 = 0.26; t(22) = 4.025, p = 0.03). Conclusion: Despite higher plasma BDNF levels, crack users exhibited memory impairments when compared to healthy women. Specifically, peripheral BDNF levels predicted better cognitive performance only within individuals who already had cognitive impairment.

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