Objective: Curcumin is a major constituent of turmeric and influences many functions of the brain. In the present study, we investigated the effect of curcumin on yawning induced by apomorphine in rats. Materials and Methods: Curcumin administered orallyfor 10 consecutive days. Yawning was induced by subcutaneous (s.c.) injection of apomorphine (a dopamine receptor agonist) and the number of ya...

Contagious yawning-the urge to yawn when thinking about, listening to, or viewing yawning-is a well-documented phenomenon in humans and animals. The reduced yawn contagion observed in the autistic population suggested that it might be empathy related; however, it is unknown whether such a connection applies to nonclinical populations. We examined influences from both empathy (i.e., autistic tra...

Students of behavior have neglected yawning. It is rarely mentioned in animal behavior texts, and even books that would seem to be particularly relevant, such as Hinde's (1972) Non Verbal Communication, do not include yawning in the index. In physiology the standard texts such as Starlings Human Physiology (Davson & Eggleton, 1962) or the revised Johns Hopkins Atlas of Human Functional Anatomy ...

objective: curcumin is a major constituent of turmeric and influences many functions of the brain. in the present study, we investigated the effect of curcumin on yawning induced by apomorphine in rats. materials and methods: curcumin administered orallyfor 10 consecutive days. yawning was induced by subcutaneous (s.c.) injection of apomorphine (a dopamine receptor agonist) and the number of ya...

Yawning was evoked by electrical or chemical stimulation in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of anesthetized, spontaneously breathing rats. To evaluate physiological aspects of yawning, we monitored polygraphic measures as follows; a coordinated motor pattern of yawning was assessed by monitoring breathing [intercostal electromyogram (EMG)], mouth opening (digastric EMG), and stretching of the...

Contagious yawning (i.e., yawning triggered by perceiving others’ yawning) is a well-documented phenomenon, but the mechanism underlying it is still unclear. In this chapter, I review the current evidence about (a) developmental studies with typically and atypically developing population and (b) comparative studies in non-human animals. Developmental studies have revealed that contagious yawnin...

Yawning behaviour has been associated with a variety of physiological and social events and a number of corresponding functions have been attributed to it. Non-directed (self-directed behaviour) and directed yawning (display behaviour) might nonetheless encompass all expressions of yawning, although it is difficult to differentiate one type from the other in a social context. Here we analysed m...

OBJECTIVE Curcumin is a major constituent of turmeric and influences many functions of the brain. In the present study, we investigated the effect of curcumin on yawning induced by apomorphine in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS Curcumin administered orally for 10 consecutive days. Yawning was induced by subcutaneous (s.c.) injection of apomorphine (a dopamine receptor agonist) and the number of y...

In a study of human yawning Robert Provine (1986) remarked that yawning is a prominent stereotyped action pattem and releasing stimulus which “does not deserve its current status as a minor behavioural curiosity”. Indeed, “yawning may have the dubious distinction of being the least understood, common, human behaviour”. In contrast, a large body of experimental data has been collected during the...

Contagious yawning, in which yawning is triggered involuntarily when we observe another person yawn, is a common form of echophenomena-the automatic imitation of another's words (echolalia) or actions (echopraxia) [1]. The neural basis for echophenomena is unknown; however, it has been proposed that it is linked to disinhibition of the human mirror-neuron system [1-4] and hyper-excitability of ...