9 documents found, page 1 of 1
Impact of chronic stress protocols in learning and memory in rodents: systemati...
Moreira, Pedro Miguel Silva; Almeida, Pedro R.; Almeida, Hugo Leite; Sousa, Nuno; Costa, Patrício SoaresThe idea that maladaptive stress impairs cognitive function has been a cornerstone of decades in basic and clinical research. However, disparate findings have reinforced the need to aggregate results from multiple sources in order to confirm the validity of such statement. In this work, a systematic review and meta-analyses were performed to aggregate results from rodent studies investigating the impact of chro...
The advantages of Structural Equation Modelling to address the complexity of sp...
Moreira, Pedro Miguel Silva; Sotiropoulos, I.; Silva, Joana Margarida Gonçalves Mota; Takashima, Akihiko; Sousa, Nuno; Almeida, Hugo LeiteBackground: Cognitive performance is a complex process influenced by multiple factors. Cognitive assessment in experimental animals is often based on longitudinal datasets analyzed using uni- and multi-variate analyses, that do not account for the temporal dimension of cognitive performance and also do not adequately quantify the relative contribution of individual factors onto the overall behavioral outcome. T...
Selective impact of Tau loss on nociceptive primary afferents and pain sensation
Sotiropoulos, I.; Lopes, André T.; Pinto, Vítor; Lopes, Sofia; Carlos, Sara; Silva, Sara Carina Duarte; Carvalho, Andreia Alexandra Neves deTau protein hyperphosphorylation and consequent malfunction are hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease pathology; importantly, pain perception is diminished in these patients. In physiological conditions, Tau contributes to cytoskeletal dynamics and in this way, influences a number of cellular mechanisms including axonal trafficking, myelination and synaptic plasticity, processes that are also implicated in pain perc...
Asymmetric c-fos expression in the ventral orbital cortex is associated with im...
Almeida, Hugo Leite; Guimarães, Marco Rafael; Cerqueira, João; Costa, Nuno Ribeiro; Martins, Helena Anjos; Sousa, Nuno; Almeida, ArmandoBACKGROUND: Recently we showed that unilateral peripheral neuropathic lesions impacted differentially on rat's emotional/cognitive behavior depending on its left/right location; importantly, this observation recapitulates clinical reports. The prefrontal cortex (PFC), a brain region morphofunctionally affected in chronic pain conditions, is involved in the modulation of both emotion and executive function and d...
Variable delay-to-signal: a fast paradigm for assessment of aspects of impulsiv...
Almeida, Hugo Leite; Melo, António; Pêgo, José M.; Bernardo, Sara; Milhazes, Nuno; Borges, Fernanda; Sousa, Nuno; Almeida, Armando; Cerqueira, JoãoTesting impulsive behavior in rodents is challenging and labor-intensive. We developed a new behavioral paradigm-the Variable Delay-to-Signal (VDS) test-that provides rapid and simultaneous assessment of response and decision impulsivity in rodents. Presentation of a light at variable delays signals the permission for action (nose poke) contingent with a reward. 2 blocks of 25 trials at 3 s delay flank a block ...
Benefits of spine stabilization with biodegradable scaffolds in spinal cord inj...
Silva, Nuno; Sousa, R. A.; Fraga, J. S.; Fontes, Marco; Almeida, Hugo Leite; Cerqueira, R.; Almeida, Armando; Sousa, Nuno; Reis, R. L.; Salgado, A. J.Spine stabilization upon spinal cord injury (SCI) is a standard procedure in clinical practice, but rarely employed in experimental models. Moreover, the application of biodegradable biomaterials for this would come as an advantage as it would eliminate the presence of a nondegradable prosthesis within the vertebral bone. Therefore, in the present work, we propose the use of a new biodegradable device specifica...
Development and characterization of a novel hybrid tissue engineering-based sca...
Silva, Nuno; Salgado, A. J.; Sousa, R. A.; Oliveira, J. T.; Pedro, A. J.; Almeida, Hugo Leite; Cerqueira, R.; Almeida, Armando; Mastronardi, F.Spinal cord injury (SCI) represents a significant health and social problem, and therefore it is vital to develop novel strategies that can specifically target it. In this context, the objective of the present work was to develop a new range of three-dimensional (3D) tubular structures aimed at inducing the regeneration within SCI sites. Up to six different 3D tubular structures were initially developed by rapi...
Medullary control of nociceptive transmission: reciprocal dual communication wi...
Almeida, Armando; Almeida, Hugo Leite; Tavares, IsauraControl of pain perception, essential for organism surviving and recovery from disease, is exerted by higher brain centers integrating nociception with emotional and cognitive information and modulating the brainstem-spinal feedback loops that regulate spinal nociceptive transmission. Development of chronic pain deregulates the forebrain-brainstem-spinal pain control system, which leads to neuroplasticity and d...
Brain projections from the medullary dorsal reticular nucleus : an anterograde ...
Almeida, Hugo Leite; Fernandes, Ana Valle; Almeida, ArmandoIn the last 15 years a role has been ascribed for the medullary dorsal reticular nucleus as a supraspinal pain modulating area. The medullary dorsal reticular nucleus is reciprocally connected with the spinal dorsal horn, is populated mainly by nociceptive neurons and regulates spinal nociceptive processing. Here we analyze the distribution of brain projections from the medullary dorsal reticular nucleus using ...