CANTAB object recognition and language tests to detect aging cognitive decline: an exploratory comparative study.

Objective: The recognition of the limits between normal and pathological aging is essential to start preventive actions. The aim of this paper is to compare the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) and language tests to distinguish subtle differences in cognitive performances in two different age groups, namely young adults and elderly cognitively normal subjects.

Method: We selected 29 young adults (29.

Fingerprinting of psychoactive drugs in zebrafish anxiety-like behaviors.

A major hindrance for the development of psychiatric drugs is the prediction of how treatments can alter complex behaviors in assays which have good throughput and physiological complexity. Here we report the development of a medium-throughput screen for drugs which alter anxiety-like behavior in adult zebrafish. The observed phenotypes were clustered according to shared behavioral effects.

Nitric oxide as a regulatory molecule in the processing of the visual stimulus.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a highly reactive gas with considerable diffusion power that is produced pre- and post synaptically in the central nervous system (CNS). In the visual system, it is involved in the processing of the visual information from the retina to superior visual centers. In this review we discuss the main mechanisms through which nitric oxide acts, in physiological levels, on the retina, lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) and primary visual cortex.

Local NO synthase inhibition produces histological and functional recovery in Achilles tendon of rats after tenotomy: tendon repair and local NOS inhibition.

Repair of injured tendon is a very slow process and involves the release of many molecules, including nitric oxide. We investigate the influence of local nitrergic inhibition in histological and functional recovery of injured Achilles tendon. A standard murine model of tendon injury by rupture was used.

Adenosine A1, but not A2, receptor blockade increases anxiety and arousal in Zebrafish.

Adenosinergic systems have been implicated in anxiety-like states, as caffeine can induce a state of anxiety in human beings. Caffeine is an antagonist at A(1) and A(2) adenosine receptors but it remains unclear whether anxiety is mediated by one or both of these. As the adenosinergic system is rather conserved, we opted to pursue these questions using zebrafish, a widely used model organism in genetics and developmental biology.

Mercury and human genotoxicity: critical considerations and possible molecular mechanisms.

Mercury compounds versatility explains their numerous applications in diverse areas of industry. The growing use of this metal has resulted in a significant increase of environment contamination and episodes of human intoxication, arousing the concern of international organisms. Meanwhile, consequences of these intoxication outbreaks are still not fully understood, especially if we consider long-term effects of chronic exposure to relatively low levels of mercury compounds.

Three dimensional morphometric analyses of axon terminals early changes induced by methylmercury intoxication in the adult cat striate cortex.

The aim of the present report is to investigate in detail morphometric changes of axon terminals of area 17 of adult cat induced by methylmercury intoxication. Six adult male cats (Felix catus), with 12 h day-light cycle and ad libitum water and food regimen, received a single dose of MeHgCl (6.4 mg/kg) dissolved in milk, whereas control subjects (n=6) received only milk.