Sexual dimorphism and the NMDA receptor in alloparental behavior in juvenile prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster).

The prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) exhibits parental behavior in both males and females and extensive alloparenting in juveniles. The authors studied the effects on juvenile alloparenting of antagonists for the PCP, glycine, and glutamate sites on the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor. In male voles, all 3 drugs had an inverted-U dose-response curve.

Nicotine improves delayed recognition in schizophrenic patients.

Rationale: Nicotine has been shown to enhance some aspects of memory, attention and cognition in normal subjects and in some patient populations such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease groups.

Objectives: Memory disorders are consistently observed in schizophrenic patients, so it is of interest to determine whether nicotine might improve memory performance in these patients.

Methods: Delayed recognition was assessed using yes/no recognition of visuospatial designs.

Interstitial cells of the white matter in the inferior parietal cortex in schizophrenia: An unbiased cell-counting study.

Previous studies have found an increased density of the interstitial cells of the white matter (ICWMs) in the frontal and temporal cortex in schizophrenia. Some data suggested this abnormality was restricted to a subgroup of patients, whose clinical features were consistent with the presence of the deficit syndrome. Clinical studies suggest deficit features are due to an abnormality in a cortical-subcortical circuit that includes dorsolateral prefrontal and inferior parietal cortex.