Employment status as a major determinant for lower physical activity of patients with epilepsy: A case-control study.

Background: People with epilepsy (PWE) may have a sedentary lifestyle and less physical activity (PA) as they are often advised against engaging in sports, despite a plethora of evidence suggesting seizure control, major health and psychosocial benefits associated with PA. We aimed to investigate PWE's beliefs on PA and their level of PA compared to controls.

Methods: The Baecke questionnaire for measuring habitual PA in adults, comprising three domains (occupational PA, leisure, and locomotion), was applied in 97 consecutive PWE (96.

Is self-report sleepiness associated with cognitive performance in temporal lobe epilepsy?

Objectives: Sleepiness and cognitive impairment are common symptoms observed in patients with epilepsy. We investigate whether self-reported sleepiness is associated with cognitive performance in patients with refractory mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis (MTLE-HS). Seventy-one consecutive patients with MTLE-HS were evaluated with the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS) before neuropsychological evaluation.

Decline in word-finding: The objective cognitive finding most relevant to patients after mesial temporal lobe epilepsy surgery.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the following: i) the objective impairment in neuropsychological tests that were associated with the subjective perception of cognitive function decline in Brazilian patients who underwent mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) surgery and ii) the predictive variables for those impaired objective neuropsychological tests.

Methods: Forty-eight adults with MTLE (27 right HS and 23 male) were divided according to their perception of changes (Decline or No-decline) of cognitive function domain of the QOLIE-31 questionnaire applied before and 1year after the ATL. The mean (SD) of changes in the raw score difference of the neuropsychological tests before and after the ATL was compared between Decline and No-decline groups.

Moderate traumatic brain injury increases the vulnerability to neurotoxicity induced by systemic administration of 6-hydroxydopamine in mice.

Moderate traumatic brain injury (TBI) might increase the vulnerability to neuronal neurodegeneration, but the basis of such selective neuronal susceptibility has remained elusive. In keeping with the disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) caused by TBI, changes in BBB permeability following brain injury could facilitate the access of xenobiotics into the brain. To test this hypothesis, here we evaluated whether TBI would increase the susceptibility of nigrostriatal dopaminergic fibers to the systemic administration of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), a classic neurotoxin used to trigger a PD-like phenotype in mice, but that in normal conditions is unable to cross the BBB.

Deep brain stimulation improves gait velocity in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

In Parkinson's disease (PD), slow gait speed is significantly related to clinical ratings of disease severity, impaired performance of daily activities, as well as increased overall disability. Conducting a meta-analysis on gait speed is an objective and quantitative technique to summarize the effectiveness of DBS and to determine the effect sizes for future studies. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis that analyzed the effects of deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery on gait speed in patients with PD to gain fundamental insight into the nature of therapeutic effectiveness.

Decreased synaptic plasticity in the medial prefrontal cortex underlies short-term memory deficits in 6-OHDA-lesioned rats.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by motor dysfunction associated with dopaminergic degeneration in the dorsolateral striatum (DLS). However, motor symptoms in PD are often preceded by short-term memory deficits, which have been argued to involve deregulation of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). We now used a 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) rat PD model to explore if alterations of synaptic plasticity in DLS and mPFC underlie short-term memory impairments in PD prodrome.

Developmental exposure to manganese induces lasting motor and cognitive impairment in rats.

Exposure to high manganese (Mn) levels may damage the basal ganglia, leading to a syndrome analogous to Parkinson's disease, with motor and cognitive impairments. The molecular mechanisms underlying Mn neurotoxicity, particularly during development, still deserve further investigation. Herein, we addressed whether early-life Mn exposure affects motor coordination and cognitive function in adulthood and potential underlying mechanisms.

Effects of pentylenetetrazole kindling on mitogen-activated protein kinases levels in neocortex and hippocampus of mice.

The epileptogenesis process involves cell signaling events associated with neuroplasticity. The mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) integrate signals originating from a variety of extracellular stimuli and may regulate cell differentiation, survival, cell death and synaptic plasticity. Here we compared the total and phosphorylated MAPKs (ERK1/2, JNK1/2 and p38(MAPK)) levels in the neocortex and hippocampus of adult Swiss male mice quantified by western blotting analysis 48 h after the last injection of pentylenetetrazole (PTZ), according to the kindling protocol (35 mg/kg, i.

Role of agmatine in neurodegenerative diseases and epilepsy.

Agmatine, a cationic polyamine synthesized after decarboxylation of L-arginine by the enzyme arginine decarboxylase, is an endogenous neuromodulator that emerges as a potential agent to manage diverse central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Consistent with its neuromodulatory and neuroprotective properties, there is increasing number of preclinical studies demonstrating the beneficial effects of exogenous agmatine administration on depression, anxiety, hypoxic ischemia, nociception, morphine tolerance, memory, Parkinson`s disease, Alzheimer`s disease, traumatic brain injury related alterations/disorders and epilepsy. The aim of this review is to summarize the knowledge about the effects of agmatine in CNS and point out its potential as new pharmacological treatment for diverse neurological and neurodegenerative diseases.

Vatairea macrocarpa lectin (VML) induces depressive-like behavior and expression of neuroinflammatory markers in mice.

Lectins are proteins capable of reversible binding to the carbohydrates in glycoconjugates that can regulate many physiological and pathological events. Galectin-1, a β-galactoside-binding lectin, is expressed in the central nervous system (CNS) and exhibits neuroprotective functions. Additionally, lectins isolated from plants have demonstrated beneficial action in the CNS.

Chronic brain hypoperfusion causes early glial activation and neuronal death, and subsequent long-term memory impairment.

Reduction of cerebral blood flow is an important risk factor for dementia states and other brain dysfunctions. In present study, the effects of permanent occlusion of common carotid arteries (2VO), a well established experimental model of brain ischemia, on memory function were investigated, as assessed by reference and working spatial memory protocols and the object recognition task; cell damage to the hippocampus, as measured through changes in immunoreactivity for GFAP and the neuronal marker NeuN was also studied. The working hypothesis is that metabolic impairment following hypoperfusion will affect neuron and glial function and result in functional damage.

Forced treadmill exercise prevents oxidative stress and memory deficits following chronic cerebral hypoperfusion in the rat.

Physical activity impacts functional recovery following stroke in humans, however its effects in experimental animals submitted to chronic cerebral hypoperfusion have not been investigated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic potential of exercise, as assessed by cognitive activity in the Morris water maze and the brain oxidative status, through measurement of macromolecules damage, TBARS levels and total cellular thiols, as well as antioxidant enzymes in hippocampus, striatum and cerebral cortex. Adult male Wistar rats were submitted to the modified permanent bilateral occlusion of the common carotid arteries (2VO) method, with right common carotid artery being first occluded, and tested 3 months after the ischemic event.

Running exercise effects on spatial and avoidance tasks in ovariectomized rats.

Since previous studies have shown that ovariectomy impairs memory and cognition, we investigated whether physical exercise would affect ovariectomy-induced memory deficits in inhibitory avoidance and Morris water maze tasks. Female adult Wistar rats were assigned to one of the following groups: sham (submitted to surgery without removal of the ovaries), exercise, ovariectomy (Ovx) and Ovx plus exercise. Thirty days after ovariectomy or sham surgery, animals were submitted to 1 month of treadmill exercise training for 20 min, three times per week.

Exercise effects on activities of Na(+),K(+)-ATPase, acetylcholinesterase and adenine nucleotides hydrolysis in ovariectomized rats.

Hormone deficiency following ovariectomy causes activation of Na(+),K(+)-ATPase and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) that has been related to cognitive deficits in experimental animals. Considering that physical exercise presents neuroprotector effects, we decide to investigate whether exercise training would affect enzyme activation in hippocampus and cerebral cortex, as well as adenosine nucleotide hydrolysis in synaptosomes from cerebral cortex of ovariectomized rats. Female adult Wistar rats were assigned to one of the following groups: sham (submitted to surgery without removal of the ovaries), exercise, ovariectomized (Ovx) and Ovx plus exercise.

Ovariectomy impairs spatial memory: prevention and reversal by a soy isoflavone diet.

Since a previous study has shown that ovariectomy impairs spatial memory, we, herein, investigate the influence of pre- and post-treatment with a soy diet on the effects elicited by ovariectomy on spatial memory. In the pre-treatment, 20-day-old female Wistar rats were first fed for 60 days on a standard diet with casein (control) or a soy diet. At 80 days of age, the animals were assigned to one of the following groups: sham (submitted to surgery without removal of ovaries) and ovariectomized.

Intrastriatal injection of hypoxanthine impairs memory formation of step-down inhibitory avoidance task in rats.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of intrastriatal injection of hypoxanthine, the major compound accumulated in Lesch-Nyhan disease, on performance step-down inhibitory avoidance task in the rat. Male adult Wistar rats were divided in two groups: (1) saline-injected and (2) hypoxanthine-injected group. Treated-group received intrastriatal hypoxanthine solution 30 min before training session (memory acquisition) or immediately after training session (memory consolidation) or 30 before test session (memory retrieval) on step-down inhibitory avoidance task.