The impact of long-term isolation on anxiety, depressive-like and social behavior in aging Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) and spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) male rats.

Aging is a complex process associated with multimorbidity. Hypertension, one of widespread states, is among main causes of age-related alterations in behavior, emotionality and sociability. We studied the effects of long-term isolated housing on anxiety, depressive-like and social behavior as well as changes in the adrenocortical and sympathetic systems in the aging normotensive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR).

N-Pep-Zn Improves Cognitive Functions and Acute Stress Response Affected by Chronic Social Isolation in Aged Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (SHRs).

Background/objectives: Aging and chronic stress are regarded as the most important risk factors of cognitive decline. Aged spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) represent a suitable model of age-related vascular brain diseases. The aim of this study was to explore the effects of chronic isolation stress in aging SHRs on their cognitive functions and response to acute stress, as well as the influence of the chronic oral intake of N-Pep-Zn, the Zn derivative of N-PEP-12.

Ambiguous Contribution of Glucocorticosteroids to Acute Neuroinflammation in the Hippocampus of Rat.

Effects of modulation of glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptors (GR and MR, respectively) on acute neuroinflammatory response were studied in the dorsal (DH) and ventral (VH) parts of the hippocampus of male Wistar rats. Local neuroinflammatory response was induced by administration of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to the DH. The modulation of GR and MR was performed by dexamethasone (GR activation), mifepristone, and spironolactone (GR and MR inhibition, respectively).

Neonatal Proinflammatory Stress and Expression of Neuroinflammation-Associated Genes in the Rat Hippocampus.

Differential effect of the neonatal proinflammatory stress (NPS) on the development of neuroinflammation in the hippocampus and induction of the depressive-like behavior in juvenile and adult male and female rats was studied. NPS induction by bacterial lipopolysaccharide in the neonatal period upregulated expression of the Il6 and Tnf mRNAs accompanied by the development of depressive-like behavior in the adult male rats. NPS increased expression of the mRNAs for fractalkine and its receptor in the ventral hippocampus of the juvenile male rats, but did not affect expression of mRNAs for the proinflammatory cytokines and soluble form of fractalkine.

Differential early effects of traumatic brain injury on spike-wave discharges in Sprague-Dawley rats.

Unprovoked seizures in the late period of traumatic brain injury (TBI) occur in almost 20% of humans and experimental animals, psychiatric comorbidities being common in both situations. The aim of the study was to evaluate epileptiform activity in the early period of TBI induced by lateral fluid percussion brain injury in adult male Srague-Dawley rats and to reveal potential behavioral and pathomorphological correlates of early electrophysiological alterations. One week after TBI the group of animals was remarkably heterogeneous regarding the incidence of bifrontal 7-Hz spikes and spike-wave discharges (SWDs).

Cholinergic Deficit Induced by Central Administration of 192IgG-Saporin Is Associated With Activation of Microglia and Cell Loss in the Dorsal Hippocampus of Rats.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is associated with degeneration of cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain. Administration of the immunotoxin 192IgG-saporin to rats, an animal model of AD, leads to degeneration of cholinergic neurons in the medial septal area. In the present study, cholinergic cell death was induced by intracerebroventricular administration of 192IgG-saporin.

Effects of individual stressors used in a battery of "chronic unpredictable stress" on long-term plasticity in the hippocampus of juvenile rats.

We have studied alterations in the properties of long-term potentiation (LTP) in hippocampal slices of juvenile rats induced by the exposure of animals to different individual stressors usually used in batteries of chronic unpredictable stress (CUS), a widely used model of depression. Social isolation for 16 h did substantially affect neither the magnitude and nor the development of LTP. The effects of stroboscopic illumination and water deprivation appeared most severe, though opposite: the first stressor had activating effect, whereas the second one inhibited the development of LTP.