Patients with absence epilepsy frequently develop convulsions later in life. We were therefore in... more Patients with absence epilepsy frequently develop convulsions later in life. We were therefore interested whether tissue from rats with a genetic absence epilepsy is more prone to seizure generation than normal animals. We compared the epileptiform activities induced by 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) induced in hippocampal-entorhinal cortex slices from genetic absence epilepsy rats of Strasbourg (GAERS, age 6 months) in which absence seizures have been present for about 4 months and from control non epileptic rats (NE). 4-AP induced short recurrent discharges in area CA1 of rat hippocampus, seizure-like events and interictal discharges in the entorhinal cortex. The various epileptiform discharges did not differ between the two strains in amplitude, duration and frequency. However, the latency for induction of different epileptiform activities by 50 microM 4-AP was significantly shorter in GAERS (about 16 min) than in NE rats (about 25 min). We also analysed differences in evoked field potentials (fp) in hippocampal area CA1 before, during and after application of 4-AP. Before application of 4-AP, responses to stimulation of Schaffer collateral were smaller in GAERS than in NE rats. Paired pulse potentiation was significantly larger in GAERS than in NE rats. 4-AP in the bath augmented the size of the evoked field potentials and this increase was larger in GAERS than in NE rats. Our findings show a greater excitability of hippocampal area CA1 in GAERS rats and a greater ability to develop 4-AP-induced epileptiform activity in combined hippocampal-enthorhinal cortex slices in GAERS than in NE rats.
IntroductionPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder developed in individua... more IntroductionPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder developed in individuals who expose to traumatic events. These patients may experience symptoms, such as recurrent unwanted memory of the traumatic event, avoidance of reminders of the trauma, increased arousal, and cognitive difficulty. The hypocretinergic system originates from the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) and projects diffusely to the whole brain, and hypocretin may be involved in the features of stress-related disorder, PTSD.MethodsOur study aimed to investigate the role of basolateral amygdala (BLA) hypocretin signals in the pathophysiology of PTSD-like symptoms induced by the modified multiple-prolonged stress (MPS) protocol. The BLA, a brain region involved in fear-related behaviors, receives the hypocretin projections. In this study, TCS1102, a dual hypocretin receptor antagonist, was used to block the hypocretin signal in BLA.ResultsOur data indicated that the MPS protocol is a potential PTSD-...
Previous results demonstrated that 10 Hz electroacupuncture (EA) of Anmian acupoints in rats duri... more Previous results demonstrated that 10 Hz electroacupuncture (EA) of Anmian acupoints in rats during the dark period enhances slow wave sleep (SWS), which involves the induction of cholinergic activity in the caudal nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) and subsequent activation of opioidergic neurons and μ-receptors. One ascending projection is from NTS to the ventromedial nucleus (VM) of the thalamus (the NTS-VM pathway). Wakefulness is accompanied by synaptic potentiation in the cortical circuits, whereas slow wave activity (SWA) during SWS promotes a generalized depression or downscaling of synaptic strength. The VM receives opioidergic inputs from NTS and the activation of opioid receptors hyperpolarizes neurons of VM. Accordingly, 10 Hz EA may increase synaptic activity of NTS and subsequently hyperpolarize and downscale the synaptic strength in the VM of thalamus by inhibitory afferents, which lead to enhance SWS. Enhancement of excitatory synapses in NTS and inhibitory synapses in...
Acupuncture or electroacupuncture (EAc) exhibits various therapeutic functions, such as relieving... more Acupuncture or electroacupuncture (EAc) exhibits various therapeutic functions, such as relieving pain, reducing inflammatory responses, and alleviating sleep disruptions. In this chapter, we discuss the neuronal mechanisms involving the electroacupuncture of bilateral Anmian (EX17) acupoints on sleep regulation. We found that administration of 20-min EAc before the beginning of the dark period increases sleep, including rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-REM (NREM) sleep. Intraperitoneal injection of a muscarinic receptor antagonist scopolamine attenuates the EAc-induced enhancement of NREM sleep and REM sleep. This signal is relayed to the caudal nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS), since lesion of caudal NTS blocks EAc’s effect on sleep. We further determine the role of opioid receptors in the EAc’s effect. Our results indicate that low frequency (10 Hz) EAc-induced enhancement of sleep is mediated by the μ-opioid receptor in the NTS, rather than the κ- and δ-opioid receptors, w...
Sleep disturbances have been the hallmark of the recent coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Studie... more Sleep disturbances have been the hallmark of the recent coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Studies have shown that once sleep is disrupted, it can lead to psychological and physical health issues which can, in turn, disrupt circadian rhythm and induce further sleep disruption. As consumers are trying to establish healthy routines, nutritional and preclinical safety investigation of fermented hispidin-enriched Sanghuangporus sanghuang mycelia (GKSS) as a novel food material for spontaneous sleep in Sprague-Dawley rats is conducted for the first time. Results showed that the nutritional analysis of GKSS including moisture, ash, crude lipid, crude protein, carbohydrate, and energy were found to be 2.4 ± 0.3%, 8.0 ± 2.5%, 1.7 ± 0.3%, 22.9 ± 1.2%, 65.1 ± 3.1%, and 367.1 ± 10.2 kcal/100 g respectively. In the 28-day repeated-dose oral toxicity study, only Sprague-Dawley male rats receiving 5 g/kg showed a slight decrease in feed consumption at week 3, but no associated clinical signs of t...
An acute stressor can cause sleep disruptions. Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the major t... more An acute stressor can cause sleep disruptions. Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the major tools to measure sleep. In rats, sleep stages are classified as rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep and non-rapid-eye movement (NREM) sleep, by different characteristics of EEGs. Sleep alterations after exposure to an acute stress are regularly determined by the power spectra of brain waves and the changes of vigilance stages, and they all depend on EEG analysis. Herein, we hypothesized that the Shannon entropy can be employed as an indicator to detect stress-induced sleep alterations, since we noticed that an acute stressor, the footshock stimulation, causes certain uniformity changes of the spectrograms during NREM and REM sleep in rats. The present study applied the Shannon entropy on three features of brain waves, including the amplitude, frequency, and oscillation phases, to measure the uniformities in the footshock-induced alterations of sleep EEGs. Our result suggests that the footshock...
Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2014
Background. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is the preferred option for urolithiasis... more Background. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is the preferred option for urolithiasis treatment. However, intensities of pain may be induced and the sedative anesthetic or analgesics were usually needed. The aim of this study was to develop an improved acupuncture-assisted anesthesia approach in pain relief. Methods. We conducted a single-blind, randomized controlled study in China Medical University Hospital. Patients treated by ESWL due to upper urolithiasis were randomly divided into control group, sham-EA group, and 100 Hz EA group. The high frequency electroacupuncture (EA) was applied at the Weizhong acupoint (100 Hz EA group) for 20 minutes prior to the ESWL. In the sham-EA group, the same procedures were performed as those of 100 Hz EA group but no electric current was given to stimulate the acupoints. In the control group, no action was taken before operation. The information including the numbers and dosage of analgesic requirements, pain score, vital signs, an...
Background The effect of seizure suppression by acupuncture of Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints has been... more Background The effect of seizure suppression by acupuncture of Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints has been documented in the ancient Chinese literature, Lingshu Jing (Classic of the Miraculous Pivot), however, there is a lack of scientific evidence to prove it. This current study was designed to elucidate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints on the epileptic activity by employing an animal model of focal epilepsy. Methods Administration of pilocarpine into the left central nucleus of amygdala (CeA) induced the focal epilepsy in rats. Rats received a 30-min 100 Hz EA stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi acupoints per day, beginning at 30 minutes before the dark period and performing in three consecutive days. The broad-spectrum opioid receptor antagonist (naloxone), μ-receptor antagonist (naloxonazine), δ-receptor antagonist (naltrindole) and κ-receptor antagonist (nor-binaltorphimine) were administered directly into the CeA to elucidate the in...
American journal of physiology. Regulatory, integrative and comparative physiology, 2002
Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) mediates responses to a variety of stressors. We subjected ... more Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) mediates responses to a variety of stressors. We subjected rats to a 1-h period of an acute stressor, physical restraint, and determined the impact on subsequent sleep-wake behavior. Restraint at the beginning of the light period, but not the dark period, increased waking and reduced rapid eye movement sleep without dramatically altering slow-wave sleep (SWS). Electroencephalogram (EEG) slow-wave activity during SWS and brain temperature were increased by this manipulation. Central administration of the CRH receptor antagonist astressin blocked the increase in waking after physical restraint, but not during the period of restraint itself. Blockade of CRH receptors with astressin attenuated the restraint-induced elevation of brain temperature, but not the increase of EEG slow-wave activity during subsequent SWS. Although corticosterone increased after restraint in naive animals, it was not altered by this manipulation in rats well habituated to h...
Patients with absence epilepsy frequently develop convulsions later in life. We were therefore in... more Patients with absence epilepsy frequently develop convulsions later in life. We were therefore interested whether tissue from rats with a genetic absence epilepsy is more prone to seizure generation than normal animals. We compared the epileptiform activities induced by 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) induced in hippocampal-entorhinal cortex slices from genetic absence epilepsy rats of Strasbourg (GAERS, age 6 months) in which absence seizures have been present for about 4 months and from control non epileptic rats (NE). 4-AP induced short recurrent discharges in area CA1 of rat hippocampus, seizure-like events and interictal discharges in the entorhinal cortex. The various epileptiform discharges did not differ between the two strains in amplitude, duration and frequency. However, the latency for induction of different epileptiform activities by 50 microM 4-AP was significantly shorter in GAERS (about 16 min) than in NE rats (about 25 min). We also analysed differences in evoked field potentials (fp) in hippocampal area CA1 before, during and after application of 4-AP. Before application of 4-AP, responses to stimulation of Schaffer collateral were smaller in GAERS than in NE rats. Paired pulse potentiation was significantly larger in GAERS than in NE rats. 4-AP in the bath augmented the size of the evoked field potentials and this increase was larger in GAERS than in NE rats. Our findings show a greater excitability of hippocampal area CA1 in GAERS rats and a greater ability to develop 4-AP-induced epileptiform activity in combined hippocampal-enthorhinal cortex slices in GAERS than in NE rats.
IntroductionPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder developed in individua... more IntroductionPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder developed in individuals who expose to traumatic events. These patients may experience symptoms, such as recurrent unwanted memory of the traumatic event, avoidance of reminders of the trauma, increased arousal, and cognitive difficulty. The hypocretinergic system originates from the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) and projects diffusely to the whole brain, and hypocretin may be involved in the features of stress-related disorder, PTSD.MethodsOur study aimed to investigate the role of basolateral amygdala (BLA) hypocretin signals in the pathophysiology of PTSD-like symptoms induced by the modified multiple-prolonged stress (MPS) protocol. The BLA, a brain region involved in fear-related behaviors, receives the hypocretin projections. In this study, TCS1102, a dual hypocretin receptor antagonist, was used to block the hypocretin signal in BLA.ResultsOur data indicated that the MPS protocol is a potential PTSD-...
Previous results demonstrated that 10 Hz electroacupuncture (EA) of Anmian acupoints in rats duri... more Previous results demonstrated that 10 Hz electroacupuncture (EA) of Anmian acupoints in rats during the dark period enhances slow wave sleep (SWS), which involves the induction of cholinergic activity in the caudal nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) and subsequent activation of opioidergic neurons and μ-receptors. One ascending projection is from NTS to the ventromedial nucleus (VM) of the thalamus (the NTS-VM pathway). Wakefulness is accompanied by synaptic potentiation in the cortical circuits, whereas slow wave activity (SWA) during SWS promotes a generalized depression or downscaling of synaptic strength. The VM receives opioidergic inputs from NTS and the activation of opioid receptors hyperpolarizes neurons of VM. Accordingly, 10 Hz EA may increase synaptic activity of NTS and subsequently hyperpolarize and downscale the synaptic strength in the VM of thalamus by inhibitory afferents, which lead to enhance SWS. Enhancement of excitatory synapses in NTS and inhibitory synapses in...
Acupuncture or electroacupuncture (EAc) exhibits various therapeutic functions, such as relieving... more Acupuncture or electroacupuncture (EAc) exhibits various therapeutic functions, such as relieving pain, reducing inflammatory responses, and alleviating sleep disruptions. In this chapter, we discuss the neuronal mechanisms involving the electroacupuncture of bilateral Anmian (EX17) acupoints on sleep regulation. We found that administration of 20-min EAc before the beginning of the dark period increases sleep, including rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-REM (NREM) sleep. Intraperitoneal injection of a muscarinic receptor antagonist scopolamine attenuates the EAc-induced enhancement of NREM sleep and REM sleep. This signal is relayed to the caudal nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS), since lesion of caudal NTS blocks EAc’s effect on sleep. We further determine the role of opioid receptors in the EAc’s effect. Our results indicate that low frequency (10 Hz) EAc-induced enhancement of sleep is mediated by the μ-opioid receptor in the NTS, rather than the κ- and δ-opioid receptors, w...
Sleep disturbances have been the hallmark of the recent coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Studie... more Sleep disturbances have been the hallmark of the recent coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Studies have shown that once sleep is disrupted, it can lead to psychological and physical health issues which can, in turn, disrupt circadian rhythm and induce further sleep disruption. As consumers are trying to establish healthy routines, nutritional and preclinical safety investigation of fermented hispidin-enriched Sanghuangporus sanghuang mycelia (GKSS) as a novel food material for spontaneous sleep in Sprague-Dawley rats is conducted for the first time. Results showed that the nutritional analysis of GKSS including moisture, ash, crude lipid, crude protein, carbohydrate, and energy were found to be 2.4 ± 0.3%, 8.0 ± 2.5%, 1.7 ± 0.3%, 22.9 ± 1.2%, 65.1 ± 3.1%, and 367.1 ± 10.2 kcal/100 g respectively. In the 28-day repeated-dose oral toxicity study, only Sprague-Dawley male rats receiving 5 g/kg showed a slight decrease in feed consumption at week 3, but no associated clinical signs of t...
An acute stressor can cause sleep disruptions. Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the major t... more An acute stressor can cause sleep disruptions. Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the major tools to measure sleep. In rats, sleep stages are classified as rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep and non-rapid-eye movement (NREM) sleep, by different characteristics of EEGs. Sleep alterations after exposure to an acute stress are regularly determined by the power spectra of brain waves and the changes of vigilance stages, and they all depend on EEG analysis. Herein, we hypothesized that the Shannon entropy can be employed as an indicator to detect stress-induced sleep alterations, since we noticed that an acute stressor, the footshock stimulation, causes certain uniformity changes of the spectrograms during NREM and REM sleep in rats. The present study applied the Shannon entropy on three features of brain waves, including the amplitude, frequency, and oscillation phases, to measure the uniformities in the footshock-induced alterations of sleep EEGs. Our result suggests that the footshock...
Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2014
Background. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is the preferred option for urolithiasis... more Background. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is the preferred option for urolithiasis treatment. However, intensities of pain may be induced and the sedative anesthetic or analgesics were usually needed. The aim of this study was to develop an improved acupuncture-assisted anesthesia approach in pain relief. Methods. We conducted a single-blind, randomized controlled study in China Medical University Hospital. Patients treated by ESWL due to upper urolithiasis were randomly divided into control group, sham-EA group, and 100 Hz EA group. The high frequency electroacupuncture (EA) was applied at the Weizhong acupoint (100 Hz EA group) for 20 minutes prior to the ESWL. In the sham-EA group, the same procedures were performed as those of 100 Hz EA group but no electric current was given to stimulate the acupoints. In the control group, no action was taken before operation. The information including the numbers and dosage of analgesic requirements, pain score, vital signs, an...
Background The effect of seizure suppression by acupuncture of Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints has been... more Background The effect of seizure suppression by acupuncture of Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints has been documented in the ancient Chinese literature, Lingshu Jing (Classic of the Miraculous Pivot), however, there is a lack of scientific evidence to prove it. This current study was designed to elucidate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints on the epileptic activity by employing an animal model of focal epilepsy. Methods Administration of pilocarpine into the left central nucleus of amygdala (CeA) induced the focal epilepsy in rats. Rats received a 30-min 100 Hz EA stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi acupoints per day, beginning at 30 minutes before the dark period and performing in three consecutive days. The broad-spectrum opioid receptor antagonist (naloxone), μ-receptor antagonist (naloxonazine), δ-receptor antagonist (naltrindole) and κ-receptor antagonist (nor-binaltorphimine) were administered directly into the CeA to elucidate the in...
American journal of physiology. Regulatory, integrative and comparative physiology, 2002
Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) mediates responses to a variety of stressors. We subjected ... more Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) mediates responses to a variety of stressors. We subjected rats to a 1-h period of an acute stressor, physical restraint, and determined the impact on subsequent sleep-wake behavior. Restraint at the beginning of the light period, but not the dark period, increased waking and reduced rapid eye movement sleep without dramatically altering slow-wave sleep (SWS). Electroencephalogram (EEG) slow-wave activity during SWS and brain temperature were increased by this manipulation. Central administration of the CRH receptor antagonist astressin blocked the increase in waking after physical restraint, but not during the period of restraint itself. Blockade of CRH receptors with astressin attenuated the restraint-induced elevation of brain temperature, but not the increase of EEG slow-wave activity during subsequent SWS. Although corticosterone increased after restraint in naive animals, it was not altered by this manipulation in rats well habituated to h...
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