Exaggerated thoughts, diminished mood and impaired cognition are the hallmarks of the schizophrenia-like condition. These symptoms are attributed to the dysregulation of dopamine and glutamate signaling in the brain. Since cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide (CART) modulates actions of dopamine as well as glutamate, we tested the role of this peptide in MK-801-induced schizophrenic dementia-like condition. MK-801-treated rats were allowed to interact with conspecific juvenile and tested for short-term (30-min) and long-term (24-h) social memory acquisition and recall. While MK-801 impaired the social interaction with a juvenile, the behavior was restored in CART [intracerebroventricular (icv) or intra-ventral tegmental area (VTA)] pre-treated animals. This action of CART was blocked by SCH23390 (dopamine D1 receptor antagonist) administered directly into the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Application of neuronal tracer Di-I in the PFC retrogradely labeled dopamine cells of the VTA, which in turn seem to receive CARTergic innervation. A significant increase in CARTimmunoreactivity was evidenced in the VTA, PFC and accumbens of the animals allowed to interact with a juvenile. However, MK-801 treatment attenuated the peptide expression and induced social memory deficits. The schizophrenic dementia-like symptoms following antagonism of glutamatergic receptors may be attributed to the reduced dopamine activity in the mesocortical system. We suggest that CART may, positively modulate the dopamine system to alleviate cognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2018.01.056 | DOI Listing |
Neuroscience
April 2018
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Nagpur 440 033, Maharashtra, India. Electronic address:
Exaggerated thoughts, diminished mood and impaired cognition are the hallmarks of the schizophrenia-like condition. These symptoms are attributed to the dysregulation of dopamine and glutamate signaling in the brain. Since cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide (CART) modulates actions of dopamine as well as glutamate, we tested the role of this peptide in MK-801-induced schizophrenic dementia-like condition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Int Neuropsychol Soc
October 2017
3Walter Reed National Military Medical Center,Bethesda,Maryland.
We review the changing conceptions of schizophrenia over the past 50 years as it became understood as a disorder of brain function and structure in which neurocognitive dysfunction was identified at different illness phases. The centrality of neurocognition has been recognized, especially because neurocognitive deficits are strongly related to social and role functioning in the illness, and as a result neurocognitive measures are used routinely in clinical assessment of individuals with schizophrenia. From the original definitions of the syndrome of schizophrenia in the early 20th century, impaired cognition, especially attention, was considered to be important.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPsychopathology
November 2010
University Department of Psychiatry, Psychiatric Center Hvidovre, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Background: The recent literature frequently represents schizophrenia as a deteriorating neurocognitive process similar to organic degenerative dementia.
Methods: This study addresses the following questions: (1) Did the classic authors equate degenerative dementia with schizophrenia? (2) Is there empirical evidence pointing to a close similarity between schizophrenia and organic dementia? (3) Does empirical evidence support the view that intellectual impairment and/or more specific neuropsychological dysfunctions are core features of schizophrenia? The classic authors agreed that the intellectual dysfunctions were most likely a consequence rather than a primary, causal factor in the manifestation of schizophrenia despite their consensus on the assumption of its neurobiological origins. Rather, they considered impairments of intelligence and neurocognition as an expression of pseudodementia, i.
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
August 1997
Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, USA.
The authors investigated the syndromal and cognitive profiles of 25 DSM-III-R older schizophrenic inpatients with continuous acute psychotic symptoms and compared them with 20 younger schizophrenic patients by means of a multidimensional assessment battery. Subjects were medically well and without neurological comorbidity and were comparable in length of current hospitalization and medication regimens. There were no significant differences between the two groups on various symptom rating scores or on neurological variables.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!