We previously reported the different motor abilities of D1R knockout (KO), D2R KO and wild-type (WT) mice. To understand the interaction between the cerebellum and the striatal direct and indirect pathways, we examined the expression patterns of immediate early genes (IEG) in the cerebellum of these three genotypes of mice. In the WT naive mice, there was little IEG expression. However, we obse...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of early motor balance and coordination training on functional recovery and brain plasticity in an ischemic rat stroke model, compared with simple locomotor exercise. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats with cortical infarcts were trained under one of four conditions: nontrained control, treadmill training, motor training on the Rota-rod, or both Rota...

Beppu H, Takayanagi N, Tomita Y, Mizutani K, Orand A, Tamai I, Takahashi H, Sonoda S. Improvement of gait and coordinated movement by forced gait training in cerebellar ataxic B6-wob/t mice. Jpn J Compr Rehabil Sci 2015; 6: 64-70. Objective: The effect of forced gait training was investigated in cerebellar ataxic mice (B6-wob/t) using gait analysis and a rota-rod test. Methods: B6 and B6-wob/t ...

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the progressive loss of the dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta which innervates the dorsal striatum. Using haloperidol induced catalepsy in rat and muscle rigidity in mice effects of aq. extract of Ocimum sanctum (OSEaq) were studied. Haloperidol was administered to induce either short term model (0....

Nuclear encoding of mitochondrial DNA transgenes followed by mitochondrial targeting of the expressed proteins (allotopic expression; AE) represents a potentially powerful strategy for creating animal models of mtDNA disease. Mice were created that allotopically express either a mutant (A6M) or wildtype (A6W) mt-Atp6 transgene. Compared to non-transgenic controls, A6M mice displayed neuromuscul...

Aloe vera ( Family: Liliaceae) has been used for the treatment of diabetes, skin disorders and as anti-inflammatory agent. To evaluate the anti-parkinson effect, Rota rod and catalepsy bar models were used. Assessment of oxidative stress was done in the striatal region of the brain by malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduced glutathione (GSH) measurement. A.vera (200 and 400 mg/kg, p.o.) was found to ...

Both D1R and D2R knock out (KO) mice of the major dopamine receptors show significant motor impairments. However, there are some discrepant reports, which may be due to the differences in genetic background and experimental procedures. In addition, only few studies directly compared the motor performance of D1R and D2R KO mice. In this paper, we examined the behavioral difference among N10 cong...