Recreating an introductory physiology unit in the Core Concepts form: helping students to think like a physiologist.

This article showcases the redesign of an introductory undergraduate vertebrate physiology unit at Murdoch University (BMS107) to promote student mastery of six Core Concepts of Physiology (Michael J, Cliff W, McFarland J, Modell H, Wright A, SpringerLink. , 2017). Concepts were selected for their suitability in an introductory physiology unit and their ability to scaffold advanced physiology learning.

Unpacking and validating the "cell membrane" core concept of physiology by an Australian team.

A task force of physiology educators from 25 Australian universities generated an Australia-wide consensus on seven core concepts for physiology curricula. One adopted core concept was "cell membrane," defined as "Cell membranes determine what substances enter or leave the cell and its organelles. They are essential for cell signaling, transport, and other cellular functions.

Accelerated low-intensity rTMS does not rescue anxiety behaviour or abnormal connectivity in young adult rats following chronic restraint stress.

Currently approved repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) protocols for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) involve once-daily (weekday) stimulation sessions, with 10 Hz or intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) frequencies, over 4-6 weeks. Recently, accelerated treatment protocols (multiple daily stimulation sessions for 1-2 weeks) have been increasingly studied to optimize rTMS treatments. Accelerated protocols might confer unique advantages for adolescents and young adults but there are many knowledge gaps related to dosing in this age group.

A Preclinical Study of Standard Versus Accelerated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression in Adolescents.

Ongoing studies are focused on adapting transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) for the treatment of major depressive disorder in adolescent humans. Most protocols in adolescent humans to date have delivered daily 10 Hz prefrontal stimulation with mixed results. Novel TMS dosing strategies such as accelerated TMS have recently been considered.

Validation of Chronic Restraint Stress Model in Young Adult Rats for the Study of Depression Using Longitudinal Multimodal MR Imaging.

Prior research suggests that the neurobiological underpinnings of depression include aberrant brain functional connectivity, neurometabolite levels, and hippocampal volume. Chronic restraint stress (CRS) depression model in rats has been shown to elicit behavioral, gene expression, protein, functional connectivity, and hippocampal volume changes similar to those in human depression. However, no study to date has examined the association between behavioral changes and brain changes within the same animals.

Pressure pain threshold and temporal summation in adults with episodic and persistent low back pain trajectories: a secondary analysis at baseline and after lumbar manipulation or sham.

Background: People with chronic low back pain (LBP) typically have increased pain sensitivity compared to healthy controls, however its unknown if pain sensitivity differs based on LBP trajectory at baseline or after manual therapy interventions. We aimed to compare baseline pressure pain threshold (PPT) and temporal summation (TS) between people without LBP, with episodic LBP, and with persistent LBP, and to compare changes over time in PPT and TS after a lumbar spinal manipulation or sham manipulation in those with LBP.

Methods: Participants were aged 18-59, with or without LBP.

Changes in pressure pain threshold and temporal summation in rapid responders and non-rapid responders after lumbar spinal manipulation and sham: A secondary analysis in adults with low back pain.

Background: People with LBP who experience rapid improvement in symptoms after spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) are more likely to experience better longer-term outcomes compared to those who don't improve rapidly. It is unknown if short-term hypoalgesia after SMT could be a relevant finding in rapid responders.

Objectives: We aimed to explore whether rapid responders had different short-term pressure pain threshold (PPT) and temporal summation (TS) outcomes after SMT and sham compared to non-rapid responders.

Frequency-specific effects of low-intensity rTMS can persist for up to 2 weeks post-stimulation: A longitudinal rs-fMRI/MRS study in rats.

Background: Evidence suggests that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a non-invasive neuromodulation technique, alters resting brain activity. Despite anecdotal evidence that rTMS effects wear off, there are no reports of longitudinal studies, even in humans, mapping the therapeutic duration of rTMS effects.

Objective: Here, we investigated the longitudinal effects of repeated low-intensity rTMS (LI-rTMS) on healthy rodent resting-state networks (RSNs) using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and on sensorimotor cortical neurometabolite levels using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS).

Feasibility of using the Neuropen for temporal summation testing.

This pilot study aimed to assess the feasibility of measuring pinprick temporal summation (TS) with the Neuropen, a cheap and accessible device. Ten asymptomatic participants underwent TS testing using the Neuropen and answered a tolerability questionnaire. Results were compared against reference values, averaging three and five TS tests.

No difference in pressure pain threshold and temporal summation after lumbar spinal manipulation compared to sham: A randomised controlled trial in adults with low back pain.

Background: Changes in quantitative sensory tests have been observed after spinal manipulative therapy (SMT), particularly in pressure pain thresholds (PPT) and temporal summation (TS). However, a recent systematic review comparing SMT to sham found no significant difference in PPT in patients with musculoskeletal pain. The sham-controlled studies were generally low quality, and conclusions about other quantitative sensory tests could not be made.

Manipulation-induced hypoalgesia in musculoskeletal pain populations: a systematic critical review and meta-analysis.

Background: Manipulation-induced hypoalgesia (MIH) represents reduced pain sensitivity following joint manipulation, and has been documented in various populations. It is unknown, however, whether MIH following high-velocity low-amplitude spinal manipulative therapy is a specific and clinically relevant treatment effect.

Methods: This systematic critical review with meta-analysis investigated changes in quantitative sensory testing measures following high-velocity low-amplitude spinal manipulative therapy in musculoskeletal pain populations, in randomised controlled trials.

Resting-state fMRI study of brain activation using low-intensity repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in rats.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a non-invasive neuromodulation technique used to treat many neuropsychiatric conditions. However, the mechanisms underlying its mode of action are still unclear. This is the first rodent study using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) to examine low-intensity (LI) rTMS effects, in an effort to provide a direct means of comparison between rodent and human studies.

Combined rTMS/fMRI Studies: An Overlooked Resource in Animal Models.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a non-invasive neuromodulation technique, which has brain network-level effects in healthy individuals and is also used to treat many neurological and psychiatric conditions in which brain connectivity is believed to be abnormal. Despite the fact that rTMS is being used in a clinical setting and animal studies are increasingly identifying potential cellular and molecular mechanisms, little is known about how these mechanisms relate to clinical changes. This knowledge gap is amplified by non-overlapping approaches used in preclinical and clinical rTMS studies: preclinical studies are mostly invasive, using cellular and molecular approaches, while clinical studies are non-invasive, including functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), TMS electroencephalography (EEG), positron emission tomography (PET), and behavioral measures.

Repetitive low intensity magnetic field stimulation in a neuronal cell line: a metabolomics study.

Low intensity repetitive magnetic stimulation of neural tissue modulates neuronal excitability and has promising therapeutic potential in the treatment of neurological disorders. However, the underpinning cellular and biochemical mechanisms remain poorly understood. This study investigates the behavioural effects of low intensity repetitive magnetic stimulation (LI-rMS) at a cellular and biochemical level.

But science is international! Finding time and space to encourage intercultural learning in a content-driven physiology unit.

Internationalization of the curriculum is central to the strategic direction of many modern universities and has widespread benefits for student learning. However, these clear aspirations for internationalization of the curriculum have not been widely translated into more internationalized course content and teaching methods in the classroom, particularly in scientific disciplines. This study addressed one major challenge to promoting intercultural competence among undergraduate science students: finding time to scaffold such learning within the context of content-heavy, time-poor units.

Modulation of synaptic vesicle exocytosis in muscle-dependent long-term depression at the amphibian neuromuscular junction.

We have labeled recycling synaptic vesicles at the somatic Bufo marinus neuromuscular junction with the styryl dye FM2-10 and provide direct evidence for refractoriness of exocytosis associated with a muscle activity-dependent form of long-term depression (LTD) at this synapse. FM2-10 dye unloading experiments demonstrated that the rate of vesicle exocytosis from the release ready pool (RRP) of vesicles was more than halved in the LTD (induced by 20 min of low frequency stimulation). Recovery from LTD, observed as a partial recovery of nerve-evoked muscle twitch amplitude, was accompanied by partial recovery of the refractoriness of RRP exocytosis.

Postnatal development of intrinsic and synaptic properties transforms signaling in the layer 5 excitatory neural network of the visual cortex.

Information flow in neocortical circuits is regulated by two key parameters: intrinsic neuronal properties and the short-term activity-dependent plasticity of synaptic transmission. Using multineuronal whole-cell voltage recordings, we characterized the postnatal maturation of the electrophysiological properties and short-term plasticity of excitatory synaptic transmission between pairs of layer 5 (L5) pyramidal neurons (n = 158) in acute slices of rat visual cortex over the first postnatal month. We found that the intrinsic and synaptic properties of L5 pyramidal neurons develop in parallel.

Role for the skeletal muscle action potential in non-Hebbian long-term depression at the amphibian (Bufo marinus) neuromuscular junction.

Retrograde signaling from skeletal muscle cells to motor nerve terminals is a recognized mechanism for modulating the strength of neuromuscular transmission. We recently described a form of long-term depression of transmitter release at the mature neuromuscular junction that is dependent on the production of nitric oxide, most likely by the muscle cell (Etherington and Everett 2004 J Physiol (Lond) 559:507-517). We now show that the depression is blocked by treating neuromuscular preparations with mu-conotoxin G111A, an antagonist of skeletal muscle voltage gated sodium channels, indicating that the depression requires postsynaptic action potential firing.

Postsynaptic production of nitric oxide implicated in long-term depression at the mature amphibian (Bufo marinus) neuromuscular junction.

We report here evidence for endogenous NO signalling in long-term (>1 h) synaptic depression at the neuromuscular junction induced by 20 min of 1 Hz nerve stimulation. Synaptic depression was characterized by a 46% reduction in the end-plate potential (EPP) amplitude and a 21% decrease in miniature EPP (MEPP) frequency, but no change to MEPP amplitude, indicating a reduction in evoked quantal release. Both the membrane-impermeant NO scavenger cPTIO and the NOS inhibitor L-NAME blocked depression, suggesting that it is induced by NO originating from a source outside the terminal.