Stimulate or Degenerate Deep Brain Stimulation of the Nucleus Basalis Meynert in Alzheimer’s Dementia.
Stimulate or degenerate Deep brain stimulation of the Nucleus basalis Meynert in Alzheimer’s dementia.
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
World Neurosurg. 2012 Dec 11;
Hardenacke K, Kuhn J, Lenartz D, Maarouf M, Mai JK, Bartsch C, Freund HJ, Sturm V
OBJECTIVE: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a therapeutically effective neurosurgical method originally applied in movement disorders. Over time, the application of DBS has increasingly been considered as a therapeutic option for several neuropsychiatric disorders, including Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, obsessive compulsive disorder, major depression and addiction. Latest research suggests beneficial effects of DBS in Alzheimer’s dementia (AD). Due to the high prevalence and the considerable burden of the disease, we endeavored to discuss and reveal the challenges of DBS in AD. METHODS: Recent literature on the pathophysiology of AD, including translational data and human studies, has been studied to generate a fundamental hypothesis regarding the effects of electrical stimulation on cognition and to facilitate our ongoing pilot study regarding DBS of the Nucleus basalis Meynert (NBM) in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. RESULTS: It is hypothesized that DBS in the Nucleus basalis Meynert (NBM) could probably improve or at least stabilize memory and cognitive functioning in patients with AD by facilitating neural oscillations and by enhancing the synthesis of nerve growth factors (NGF). CONCLUSIONS: Considering the large number of patients suffering from AD, there is great need for novel and effective treatment methods. Our research provides insights into the theoretical background of DBS in AD. Providing that our hypothesis will be validated by our ongoing pilot study, DBS could be an opportunity in the treatment of AD.
HubMed – addiction
Effects of cannabis use status on cognitive function, in males with schizophrenia.
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
Psychiatry Res. 2012 Dec 12;
Rabin RA, Zakzanis KK, Daskalakis ZJ, George TP
Cognitive impairment and cannabis use are common among patients with schizophrenia. However, the moderating role of cannabis on cognition remains unclear. We sought to examine cognitive performance as a function of cannabis use patterns in schizophrenia. A secondary aim was to determine the effects of cumulative cannabis exposure on cognition. Cognition was assessed in male outpatients with current cannabis dependence (n=18) and no current cannabis use disorders (n=29). We then parsed non-current users into patients with lifetime cannabis dependence (n=21) and no lifetime cannabis dependence (n=8). Finally, as an exploratory analysis we examined relationships between cumulative cannabis exposure and cognition in lifetime dependent patients. Cross-sectional comparisons suggest that lifetime cannabis users demonstrate better processing speed than patients with no lifetime dependence. Exploratory analyses indicated that patients with current dependence exhibited robust negative relationships between cumulative cannabis exposure and cognition; these associations were absent in former users. Cannabis status has minimal effects on cognition in males with schizophrenia. However, cumulative cannabis exposure significantly impairs cognition in current, but not former users, suggesting that the state dependent negative effects of cannabis may be reversed with sustained abstinence. Prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.
HubMed – addiction
Calorie restriction inhibits relapse behaviour and preference for alcohol within a two-bottle free choice paradigm in the alcohol preferring (iP) rat.
Filed under: Addiction Rehab
Physiol Behav. 2012 Dec 12;
Guccione L, Djouma E, Penman J, Paolini AG
Among its many beneficial effects, calorie restriction (CR) has also been found to reduce anxiety related behavior in the rodent. With heightened levels of stress and anxiety implicated as a key precipitating factor of relapse and alcohol addiction, it was found that a 25% CR in addition to inducing anxiolytic effects also had the capacity to reduce intake of alcohol and inhibit relapse within a model of operant self-administration. The aim of this study was to investigate if a 25% CR would also display similar effects in a two-bottle free choice paradigm, whereby 24 h ad libitum access to both 10% ethanol and water is provided. All animals were initially tested on the elevated plus maze (EPM) and open field test prior to commencing the two-bottle free choice paradigm. Differences between control and CR25% animals demonstrated the anxiolytic effects of CR, with the CR25% group displaying greater percentage of open arm/total arm duration and open arm/total arm entries in the EPM. During the acquisition phase of the paradigm, CR25% animals showed a reduced intake of 10% ethanol in both ml and ml/kg, in comparison to the control group. Whilst control animals displayed a strong preference for 10% ethanol, the CR25% group consumed both 10% ethanol and water equally with no differences found in total fluid intake between groups. Similarly this was also the case following forced deprivation. In addition to reduced intake and lack of preference for 10% ethanol, CR 25% animals unlike controls failed to display a typical alcohol deprivation effect following abstinence. Taken collectively the results of this study suggest that CR may act as a protective factor against addiction and relapse in the alcohol preferring (iP) rat. In addition, given CR25% animals did not display a preference for 10% ethanol, results also suggest that CR may be altering the hedonic impact of ethanol within this group.
HubMed – addiction
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