Stress-related impairment of fear memory acquisition and disruption of risk assessment behavior in female but not in male mice.

Stress encompasses reactions to stimuli that promote negative and positive effects on cognitive functions, such as learning and memory processes. Herein, we investigate the effect of restraint stress on learning, memory, anxiety levels and locomotor activity of male and female mice. We used the plus-maze discriminative avoidance task (PMDAT), a behavioral task based on the innate exploratory response of rodents to new environments.

Effects of prenatal exposure to fluoxetine on circadian rhythmicity in the locomotor activity and neuropeptide Y and 5-HT expression in male and female adult Wistar rats.

Serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitors, such as fluoxetine, are the most prescribed antidepressant for maternal depression. In this sense, it exposes mothers and the brains of infants to increased modulatory and trophic effects of serotonergic neurotransmission. 5-HT promotes essential brain changes throughout its development, which include neuron migration, differentiation and organisation of neural circuitries related to emotional, cognitive and circadian behavior.

Memory impairment induced by different types of prolonged stress is dependent on the phase of the estrous cycle in female rats.

A growing body of evidence demonstrates that estrogen and corticosterone (CORT) impact on cognition and emotion. On the one hand, ovarian hormones may have beneficial effects on several neurophysiological processes, including memory. On the other hand, chronic exposure to stressful conditions has negative effects on brain structures related to learning and memory.

Extract Delays the Development of Motor Signs and Prevents Dopaminergic Loss in a Mice Model of Parkinson's Disease.

Masters is a Brazilian native species of passionflower. This genus is known in the American continent folk medicine for its diuretic and analgesic properties. Nevertheless, few studies investigated possible biological effects of extracts.