Curcumin Acts as a Positive Allosteric Modulator of -Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors and Reverses Nociception in Mouse Models of Inflammatory Pain.

Effects of curcumin, a major ingredient of turmeric, were tested on the function of the -subunit of the human nicotinic acetylcholine (-nACh) receptor expressed in oocytes and on nociception in mouse models of tonic and visceral pain. Curcumin caused a significant potentiation of currents induced by acetylcholine (ACh; 100 M) with an EC value of 0.2 M.

Assessment of nicotine withdrawal-induced changes in sucrose preference in mice.

Anhedonia, induced by nicotine withdrawal, may serve as an important affective sign that reinforces tobacco use and smoking relapse rates in humans. Animal models provide a way to investigate the underlying neurobiological factors involved in the decrease in responding for positive affective stimuli during nicotine withdrawal and may aid in drug development for nicotine dependence. Thus, we explored the use of the sucrose preference test to measure nicotine withdrawal-induced reduction in response for positive affective stimuli in mice.

Nicotine Enhances the Hypnotic and Hypothermic Effects of Alcohol in the Mouse.

Background: Ethanol (EtOH) and nicotine abuse are 2 leading causes of preventable mortality in the world, but little is known about the pharmacological mechanisms mediating co-abuse. Few studies have examined the interaction of the acute effects of EtOH and nicotine. Here, we examine the effects of nicotine administration on the duration of EtOH-induced loss of righting reflex (LORR) and characterize the nature of their pharmacological interactions in C57BL/6J mice.

A Cannabinoid CB1 Receptor-Positive Allosteric Modulator Reduces Neuropathic Pain in the Mouse with No Psychoactive Effects.

The CB1 receptor represents a promising target for the treatment of several disorders including pain-related disease states. However, therapeutic applications of Δ(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol and other CB1 orthosteric receptor agonists remain limited because of psychoactive side effects. Positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) offer an alternative approach to enhance CB1 receptor function for therapeutic gain with the promise of reduced side effects.

The neuroprotective effect of vitamin E on chronic sleep deprivation-induced memory impairment: the role of oxidative stress.

Sleep deprivation induces oxidative stress and impairs learning and memory processes. Vitamin E, on the other hand, is a strong antioxidant that has neuroprotective effect on the brain. In this study, we examined the potential protective effect of chronic administration of vitamin E on chronic sleep deprivation-induced cognitive impairment.

Functional diversity among 5-substituted nicotine analogs; in vitro and in vivo investigations.

Two 5-substituted derivatives of nicotine (nicotinic acetylcholine receptor: K(i)=2.4 nM) were synthesized and evaluated: 5-bromonicotine (K(i)=6.9 nM) and 5-methoxynicotine (K(i)=14.