In previous experiments it has been demonstrated that the synthesis of BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) and NGF in neurons of the hippocampus is regulated by neuronal activity. The glutamate system is predominantly responsible for upregulation and the GABAergic system for downregulation both in vitro and in vivo (Zafra et al., 1990, 1991). The aim of the present study is to examine the ...

In the olfactory system, cholinergic modulation has been associated with contrast modulation and changes in receptive fields in the olfactory bulb, as well the learning of odor associations in olfactory cortex. Computational modeling and behavioral studies suggest that cholinergic modulation could improve sensory processing and learning while preventing pro-active interference when task demands...

objective(s): alzheimer's disease (ad) is a neurodegenerative disorder in elderly patients. decrease in cholinergic neurotransmission is the main known cause in the pathophysiology of the disease. improvement and potentiation of the cholinergic system could be beneficial for treatment of the ad. acetylcholinesterase inhibitors such as donepezil can enhance the duration of action of acetylc...

Acetyl-CoA provision to the synaptoplasmic compartment of cholinergic nerve terminals plays a regulatory role in the synthesis of acetylcholine. The disturbances in glucose utilization and in decarboxylation of the end product of its metabolism pyruvate, are considered to be significant factors causing cholinergic deficits in several diseases of the central nervous system. In this article we re...

The central cholinergic system has been implicated in the pathophysiology of mood disorders. An imbalance in central cholinergic neurotransmitter activity has been proposed to contribute to the manic and depressive episodes typical of these disorders. Neuropharmacological studies into the effects of cholinergic agonists and antagonists on mood state have provided considerable support for this h...

The anatomical organization of the basal forebrain cholinergic system with emphasis on the basal magnocellular nucleus, was studied by means of the choline acetyltransferase immunohistochemistry. The basal forebrain cholinergic system extends from the medial septum to the caudal part of the globus pallidus, and is organized as a continuous valley of cholinergic neurons. The arrangement of choli...

As an essential component of ascending activating systems, cholinergic neurons with diffuse projections are supposed to be involved in the regulation of cognitive processes such as attention, consciousness, learning, and memory. As for the role of cholinergic projections from the basal forebrain nuclei to cerebral cortical regions including hippocampus, a couple of models have been proposed tha...

In addition to classical genomic mechanisms, estrogen also exerts nonclassical effects via a signal transduction system on neurons. To study whether estrogen has a nonclassical effect on basal forebrain cholinergic system, we measured the intensity of cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation (pCREB) in cholinergic neurons after administration of 17beta-estradiol to ovariecto...

Although several cytokines and neurotrophic factors induce sympathetic neurons to transdifferentiate into cholinergic neurons in vitro, the physiological and pathophysiological roles of this remain unknown. During congestive heart failure (CHF), sympathetic neural tone is upregulated, but there is a paradoxical reduction in norepinephrine synthesis and reuptake in the cardiac sympathetic nervou...

Delirium is a profound, acute confusional state that leads to long-term cognitive decline. Increased anticholinergic medications and prior dementia, in which basal forebrain cholinergic degeneration is a prominent feature, both predict delirium. Thus, cholinergic hypoactivity is thought to be important in cognitive dysfunction during delirium, and acute systemic inflammation is a major trigger ...