Would frontal midline theta indicate cognitive changes induced by non-invasive brain stimulation? A mini review.

To the best of our knowledge, neurophysiological markers indicating changes induced by non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) on cognitive performance, especially one of the most investigated under these procedures, working memory (WM), are little known. Here, we will briefly introduce frontal midline theta (FM-theta) oscillation (4-8 Hz) as a possible indicator for NIBS effects on WM processing. Electrophysiological recordings of FM-theta oscillation seem to originate in the medial frontal cortex and the anterior cingulate cortex, but they may be driven more subcortically.

Hypermethylation status of DAPK, MGMT and RUNX3 in HPV negative oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity and oropharynx is the sixth most common type of cancer in the world. During tumorigenesis, gene promoter hypermethylation is considered an important mechanism of transcription silencing of tumor suppressor genes, such as DAPK, MGMT and RUNX3. These genes participate in signaling pathways related to apoptosis, DNA repair and proliferation whose loss of expression is possibly associated with cancer development and progression.

BDNF mRNA Expression in Leukocytes and Frontal Cortex Function in Drug Use Disorder.

The brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a neurotrophin recognized to play a major role in neuroplastic modifications associated to drug abuse, being involved in various behavioral changes found in drug use disorders, such as drug sensitization, craving and relapses. These neuroplastic changes were shown to affect the prefrontal cortex functions, which can be briefly measured through cognitive tests such as the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB). In this study we investigated the BDNF mRNA expression in peripheral blood lymphocytes of crack-cocaine use disorder (CUD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) patients, after drug detoxification treatment, using a real-time PCR approach and examining its association to FAB performance.

mRNA Expression in Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes in Drug Addicted Patients.

gene heterodimerizes with Jun family proteins to form activator protein 1 (AP-1) complexes that bind to AP-1 sites in responsive genes to regulate transcription in all cells. The genic expression of seems to be modified after long time exposure to drugs of abuse and these changes may be involved in craving and addicted behavior. This study investigated the mRNA expression in peripheral blood lymphocytes of drug addicted patients using real-time PCR approach.

Lack of Effects of Extended Sessions of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) Over Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex on Craving and Relapses in Crack-Cocaine Users.

Non-invasive brain stimulation such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been investigated as additional therapeutic tool for drug use disorder. In a previous study, we showed that five sessions of tDCS applied bilaterally over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) reduced craving to the use of crack-cocaine in inpatients from a specialized clinic. In the present study, we examine if an extended number of sessions of the same intervention would reduce craving even further and affect also relapses to crack-cocaine use.

Multiple Sessions of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) Reduced Craving and Relapses for Alcohol Use: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial in Alcohol Use Disorder.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a non-invasive brain stimulation technique, has been studied as an adjunctive therapeutic agent for alcohol dependence. In a previous study, we showed that five consecutive sessions of tDCS applied bilaterally over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) reduced relapse to the use of alcohol in alcohol use disorder (AUD) outpatients. However, no changes on craving scores were observed.