Ghrelin receptor agonist MK0677 and overnight fasting do not rescue deficient fear extinction in 129S1/SvImJ mice.

The hunger hormone ghrelin has been implicated in the modulation of anxiety- and fear-related behaviors in rodents and humans, while its dysregulation may be associated with psychiatric illness. Along these lines, the ghrelin system has been suggested as a potential target to facilitate fear extinction, which is the main mechanism underlying cognitive behavioral therapy. So far, this hypothesis has not been tested in individuals that have difficulties to extinguish fear.

β2-subunit alternative splicing stabilizes Cav2.3 Ca channel activity during continuous midbrain dopamine neuron-like activity.

In dopaminergic (DA) (SN) neurons Cav2.3 R-type Ca-currents contribute to somatodendritic Ca-oscillations. This activity may contribute to the selective degeneration of these neurons in Parkinson's disease (PD) since Cav2.

Altered sleep behavior in a genetic mouse model of impaired fear extinction.

Sleep disturbances are a common complaint of anxiety patients and constitute a hallmark feature of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Emerging evidence suggests that poor sleep is not only a secondary symptom of anxiety- and trauma-related disorders but represents a risk factor in their development, for example by interfering with emotional memory processing. Fear extinction is a critical mechanism for the attenuation of fearful and traumatic memories and multiple studies suggest that healthy sleep is crucial for the formation of extinction memories.

Stabilization of negative activation voltages of Cav1.3 L-Type Ca-channels by alternative splicing.

-->Low voltage-activated Cav1.3 L-type Ca-channels are key regulators of neuronal excitability controlling neuronal development and different types of learning and memory. Their physiological functions are enabled by their negative activation voltage-range, which allows Cav1.

The Good, the Bad and the Unknown Aspects of Ghrelin in Stress Coping and Stress-Related Psychiatric Disorders.

Ghrelin is a peptide hormone released by specialized X/A cells in the stomach and activated by acylation. Following its secretion, it binds to ghrelin receptors in the periphery to regulate energy balance, but it also acts on the central nervous system where it induces a potent orexigenic effect. Several types of stressors have been shown to stimulate ghrelin release in rodents, including nutritional stressors like food deprivation, but also physical and psychological stressors such as foot shocks, social defeat, forced immobilization or chronic unpredictable mild stress.

A potential Human Rights Act in Queensland and inclusion of the right to health.

Objective: To identify the level of public support for a Human Rights Act for Queensland (HRAQ) and for inclusion of the right to health by participants in a public inquiry process.

Methods: We reviewed the 492 written submissions to the Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee's Inquiry into a potential HRAQ and the transcripts documenting the public hearings held by the Committee in 2016.

Results: A total of 465 written submissions were analysed; 419 (90%) were for a HRAQ.