Chronic (3-Weeks) Treatment of Estrogen (17β-Estradiol) Enhances Working and Reference Memory in Ovariectomized Rats: Role of Acetylcholine.

Recently there has been a growing interest in the effects of estrogen on cognitive functions. In this study, we aimed to examine 17β-estradiol treatment on working and reference memory in ovariectomized rats. We also examined the changes in the acetylcholine (ACh) levels in the brain areas associated with learning and memory.

Pre- and post-estrogen administration in global cerebral ischemia reduces blood-brain barrier breakdown in ovariectomized rats.

The aim of present study was to determine the effect of estrogen treatment on blood-brain barrier permeability in rats with induced global cerebral ischemia. The study included six-month-old female Sprague-Dawley rats which were divided into the following groups: Control-Ischemia-Reperfusion (C + I-R); Ovariectomy-Ischemia-Reperfusion (Ovx + I-R); Ovariectomy + Estrogen + Ischemia-Reperfusion (Ovx + E + I-R); Ovariectomy + Ischemia-Reperfusion + Estrogen (Ovx + I-R + E). Ischemia-reperfusion was induced by clamping two carotid arteries, then opening the clamp.

Leptin transport in the central nervous system.

Synthesized and released by the adipose tissue, leptin is the widely studied 167-amino acid hormonal protein product of the obesity gene. Originally leptin was defined in association with satiety and energy balance and claimed to be an anti-obesity factor that functioned via a feedback effect from adipocytes to hypothalamus. There is a growing body of evidence that emphasizes the importance of leptin in the regulation of food intake and body weight in animals and humans, alike.

Sex differences in modulating blood brain barrier permeability by NO in pentylenetetrazol-induced epileptic seizures.

Susceptibility to epilepsy as well as BBB dysfunction in some pathological conditions varies depending on sex difference. It has recently been shown that systemically given NO donor and antagonists modify the nature of seizures induced by PTZ (pentylenetetrazol) differently in male and female rats. This study investigates the role of NO on BBB permeability in PTZ seizures with sex differences using NO donor, sodium nitroprusside (SNP), and NOS inhibitor, NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME).

The relationship between erythropoietin pretreatment with blood-brain barrier and lipid peroxidation after ischemia/reperfusion in rats.

Blood-brain barrier (BBB) leakage plays a role in the pathogenesis of many pathological states of the brain including ischemia and some neurodegenerative disorders. In recent years, erythropoietin (EPO) has been shown to exert neuroprotection in many pathological conditions including ischemia in the brain. This study aimed to investigate the effects of EPO on BBB integrity, infarct size and lipid peroxidation following global brain ischemia/reperfusion in rats.