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Chelonis JJ, Cox AR, Karr MJ, Prunty PK, Baldwin RL, Paule MG. Comparison of delayed matching-to-sample performance in monkeys and children. Behav Processes 2014; 103:261-8. [PMID: 24440984 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2014.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2013] [Revised: 12/18/2013] [Accepted: 01/02/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Although research has consistently demonstrated that accuracy on a variety of memory tasks decreases as delay increases, relatively little research has been conducted to quantify this relationship across development in humans or directly compare rates of forgetting between humans and monkeys. This study utilized a delayed matching-to-sample (DMTS) task to compare the relative contributions of proactive interference and attention on the rate of forgetting in monkeys and children. The performance of 1125 children from four to fourteen years of age and 10 adult rhesus monkeys was compared. For this DMTS task, a shape was displayed on the center one of three press-plates. After a delay, the subjects were required to match the original shape with one of three choice shapes to receive a banana-flavored food pellet for monkeys, or a nickel for children. A modified power function provided an excellent fit for the data for monkeys and children. The forgetting rates in children decreased with age, and the forgetting rates for monkeys were most comparable to those of younger children. The data also suggest that proactive interference did not significantly contribute to the forgetting rates for monkeys or younger children. Further, the monkeys appeared to attend to the task at a level similar to that of younger children as evidenced by the similarities in response latencies. The results from this study indicate that the rate of forgetting in monkeys, as well as the mechanisms underlying this rate, appears to share more similarities with that of younger children than of older children.
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Affiliation(s)
- John J Chelonis
- Division of Neurotoxicology, National Center for Toxicological Research, FDA, United States; Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences - Arkansas Children's Hospital, United States.
| | - Andrew R Cox
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences - Arkansas Children's Hospital, United States
| | - Michael J Karr
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences - Arkansas Children's Hospital, United States; Department of Psychology, Hendrix College, United States
| | - Patricia K Prunty
- Department of Psychology, Lindenwood University-Belleville, United States
| | - Ronald L Baldwin
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences - Arkansas Children's Hospital, United States
| | - Merle G Paule
- Division of Neurotoxicology, National Center for Toxicological Research, FDA, United States; Department of Psychology, Hendrix College, United States
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Webster SJ, Wilson CA, Lee CH, Mohler EG, Terry AV, Buccafusco JJ. The acute effects of dimebolin, a potential Alzheimer's disease treatment, on working memory in rhesus monkeys. Br J Pharmacol 2011; 164:970-8. [PMID: 21486290 PMCID: PMC3195919 DOI: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.2011.01432.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2010] [Revised: 01/04/2011] [Accepted: 03/02/2011] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Dimebolin (latrepirdine), a compound with multiple potential drug targets, is being evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and preliminary results suggest it can slow the disease process. There is also evidence that dimebolin directly improves aspects of cognition. Here we examined the acute effect of dimebolin on components of working memory in non-human primates, young adult (11-17 years old) and aged (20-31 years old) rhesus macaques. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH The effects of dimebolin (3.9-118 µg kg(-1)) on working memory, as measured by performance on delayed matching-to-sample (DMTS), were examined in the normal young adult monkeys and aged adult monkeys. All the monkeys studied were proficient in the performance of a computer-assisted DMTS task. In a subsequent experiment in the same subjects, dimebolin was administered 15 min before a cognitively-impairing dose (20 µg kg(-1)) of scopolamine. KEY RESULTS In both the young adult and aged monkeys, dimebolin significantly increased the DMTS task accuracies. In young adults, the task improvement was associated with long (retention/retrieval) delay trials, and a protracted enhancement was observed for sessions run 24 h post administration of a single dose. Dimebolin did not significantly attenuate the scopolamine-induced impairment. In the aged monkeys, dimebolin significantly improved the reduced task accuracies associated with long delay intervals. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Here we demonstrated that dimebolin is able to improve components of working memory in monkeys and to induce a protracted response for at least 24 h after administration of a single dose.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott J Webster
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Alzheimer's Research Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, USA
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Decamp E, Clark K, Schneider JS. Effects of the alpha-2 adrenoceptor agonist guanfacine on attention and working memory in aged non-human primates. Eur J Neurosci 2011; 34:1018-22. [PMID: 21883531 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2011.07815.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Alpha-2 adrenergic receptors are potential targets for ameliorating cognitive deficits associated with aging as well as certain pathologies such as attention deficit disorder, schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease. Although the alpha-2 agonist guanfacine has been reported to improve working memory in aged primates, it has been difficult to assess the extent to which these improvements may be related to drug effects on attention and/or memory processes involved in task performance. The present study investigated effects of guanfacine on specific attention and memory tasks in aged monkeys. Four Rhesus monkeys (18-21 years old) performed a sustained attention (continuous performance) task and spatial working memory task (self-ordered spatial search) that has minimal demands on attention. Effects of a low (0.0015 mg/kg) and high (0.5 mg/kg) dose of gunafacine were examined. Low-dose guanfacine improved performance on the attention task [i.e. decreased omission errors by 50.8 ± 4.3% (P = 0.001) without an effect on commission errors] but failed to improve performance on the spatial working memory task. The high dose of guanfacine had no effects on either task. Guanfacine may have a preferential effect on some aspects of attention in normal aged monkeys and in doing so may also improve performance on other tasks, including some working memory tasks that have relatively high attention demands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuel Decamp
- Department of Pathology, Anatomy and Cell Biology, Thomas Jefferson University, 1020 Locust street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
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Barak S, Weiner I. Putative cognitive enhancers in preclinical models related to schizophrenia: The search for an elusive target. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2011; 99:164-89. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2011.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2010] [Revised: 02/27/2011] [Accepted: 03/12/2011] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Floresco SB, Jentsch JD. Pharmacological enhancement of memory and executive functioning in laboratory animals. Neuropsychopharmacology 2011; 36:227-50. [PMID: 20844477 PMCID: PMC3055518 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2010.158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Investigating how different pharmacological compounds may enhance learning, memory, and higher-order cognitive functions in laboratory animals is the first critical step toward the development of cognitive enhancers that may be used to ameliorate impairments in these functions in patients suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. Rather than focus on one aspect of cognition, or class of drug, in this review we provide a broad overview of how distinct classes of pharmacological compounds may enhance different types of memory and executive functioning, particularly those mediated by the prefrontal cortex. These include recognition memory, attention, working memory, and different components of behavioral flexibility. A key emphasis is placed on comparing and contrasting the effects of certain drugs on different cognitive and mnemonic functions, highlighting methodological issues associated with this type of research, tasks used to investigate these functions, and avenues for future research. Viewed collectively, studies of the neuropharmacological basis of cognition in rodents and non-human primates have identified targets that will hopefully open new avenues for the treatment of cognitive disabilities in persons affected by mental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stan B Floresco
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
| | - James D Jentsch
- Departments of Psychology and Psychiatry & Bio-behavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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The dopamine D3 receptor antagonist, S33138, counters cognitive impairment in a range of rodent and primate procedures. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2010; 13:1035-51. [PMID: 20663270 DOI: 10.1017/s1461145710000775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Although dopamine D(3) receptor antagonists have been shown to enhance frontocortical cholinergic transmission and improve cognitive performance in rodents, data are limited and their effects have never been examined in primates. Accordingly, we characterized the actions of the D(3) receptor antagonist, S33138, in rats and rhesus monkeys using a suite of procedures in which cognitive performance was disrupted by several contrasting manipulations. S33138 dose-dependently (0.01-0.63 mg/kg s.c.) blocked a delay-induced impairment of novel object recognition in rats, a model of visual learning and memory. Further, S33138 (0.16-2.5 mg/kg s.c.) similarly reduced a delay-induced deficit in social novelty discrimination in rats, a procedure principally based on olfactory cues. Adult rhesus monkeys were trained to perform cognitive procedures, then chronically exposed to low doses of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine which produced cognitive impairment without motor disruption. In an attentional set-shifting task of cognitive flexibility involving an extra-dimensional shift, deficits were reversed by S33138 (0.04 and 0.16 mg/kg p.o.). S33138 also significantly improved accuracy (0.04 and 0.16 mg/kg p.o.) at short (but not long) delays in a variable delayed-response task of attention and working memory. Finally, in a separate set of experiments performed in monkeys displaying age-related deficits, S33138 significantly (0.16 and 0.63 mg/kg p.o.) improved task accuracies for long delay intervals in a delayed matching-to-sample task of working memory. In conclusion, S33138 improved performance in several rat and primate procedures of cognitive impairment. These data underpin interest in D(3) receptor blockade as a strategy for improving cognitive performance in CNS disorders like schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease.
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Mathiasen JR, DiCamillo A. Novel Object Recognition in the Rat: A Facile Assay for Cognitive Function. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010; Chapter 5:Unit 5.59. [PMID: 22294372 DOI: 10.1002/0471141755.ph0559s49] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Amy DiCamillo
- Discovery Research, Cephalon West Chester Pennsylvania
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Schneider JS, Tinker JP, Decamp E. Clonidine improves attentional and memory components of delayed response performance in a model of early Parkinsonism. Behav Brain Res 2010; 211:236-9. [PMID: 20347876 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2010.03.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2010] [Revised: 03/17/2010] [Accepted: 03/22/2010] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Cognitive deficits, including attention and working memory deficits, are often described in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients even during the early stages of the disease. However, cognitive deficits associated with PD have proven difficult to treat and often do not respond well to the dopaminergic therapies used to treat the motor symptoms of the disease. Chronic administration of low doses of the neurotoxin 1-methy,4-phenyl,1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) can induce cognitive dysfunction in non-human primates, including impaired performance on a variable delayed response (VDR) task with attentional and memory components. Since alpha-2 adrenergic receptor agonists have been suggested to improve attention and working memory in a variety of conditions, the present study assessed the extent to which the alpha-2 noradrenergic agonist clonidine might influence VDR performance in early Parkinsonian non-human primates. Clonidine (0.02-0.10 mg/kg) improved performance on both attentional and memory components of the task, performed in a modified Wisconsin General Test Apparatus, in a dose-dependent manner and the cognition enhancing effects of clonidine were blocked by co-administration of the alpha-2 noradrenergic antagonist idazoxan (0.10 mg/kg). These data suggest that clonidine or drugs of this class, perhaps with greater receptor subtype selectivity and low sedation liability, might be effective therapeutics for cognitive dysfunction associated with PD.
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Affiliation(s)
- J S Schneider
- Department of Pathology, Anatomy and Cell Biology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, United States.
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Buccafusco JJ, Terry AV, Vazdarjanova A, Snutch TP, Arneric SP. Treatments for neuropathic pain differentially affect delayed matching accuracy by macaques: effects of amitriptyline and gabapentin. Pain 2010; 148:446-453. [PMID: 20092945 DOI: 10.1016/j.pain.2009.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2009] [Revised: 11/09/2009] [Accepted: 12/02/2009] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Current clinical treatments for neuropathic pain include amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant with mixed pharmacology that is also clinically reported to impair cognitive performance; and gabapentin, a compound that selectively interacts with alpha2delta-1 calcium channel subunits. Since few assessments of cognitive performance have been made in non-human primates with these marketed treatments, the purpose of this study was to determine their relative abilities to alter working memory as measured in mature macaques in their performance of a delayed matching-to-sample task. Four delay intervals of increasing duration provided increasing impairment in task accuracies during vehicle sessions. Administration of clinically relevant doses of amitriptyline significantly decreased task accuracy at the highest dose tested (3mg/kg). Administration of gabapentin increased mean task accuracy, though the effect was not statistically significant until intra-subject variability was reduced by selecting the individual best dose for each animal (which averaged 12.8mg/kg). Most of the effect was obtained during the presentation of long delay trials (18.2% above vehicle). Task improvement was sustained during sessions run 24h after gabapentin administration. In a series that used a task-relevant distractor to determine gabapentin's effect on attention, drug treatment reversed distractor-impaired accuracy during long delay trials (25.4% above vehicle). The selective improvement in long delay accuracy in both paradigms suggests improvement in encoding or retention components of working memory. It is currently unclear whether the ability of acute administration of gabapentin to modestly improve working memory occurs by a mechanism that could be related to its anti-allodynic mechanism of action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerry J Buccafusco
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Alzheimer's Research Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA, USA Charlie Norwood Veterans Administration Medical Center, Augusta, GA, USA Department of Neurology, and Brain Discovery Institute, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA, USA Neuromed, Vancover, BC, Canada Pain/Migraine Neuroscience Research, Lilly Corporate Center, Indianapolis, IN, USA
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Abstract
The marked decline in FDA-approved new drug candidates in recent years suggests the possibility that the "low-hanging fruit" has been almost entirely harvested. This might be particularly applicable to drugs acting on the central nervous system. Fortunately, there are several examples extant for the utility of multifunctional drugs, compounds, or drug mixtures that act on multiple additive or synergistic targets. However, to exploit this approach may require the willingness to consider the possibility that drug targets might be addressed by molecules of rather low specificity and moderate potency. The expectation is that single target molecules with high specificity might not have access to complex interacting neural pathways, and that moderate potency could engender fewer off-target side effects. Though novel compounds might be developed by combining the active functional groups of two or more drug molecules, the approach still lends itself to high throughput screening of large chemical libraries. Multifunctional compounds might be designed with the ability to: 1) offer both palliative and disease modifying actions, 2) act on targets that produce additive or synergistic therapeutic responses, 3) simultaneously evoke a therapeutic response at the desired target and prevent an undesired response mediated by an alternate target, 4) allow one component to promote the drugable characteristics (e.g., brain penetration) of the therapeutic component, and 5) prolong the duration of effectiveness of one compound by contributing the pharmacodynamic actions of another. The author takes the liberty to include examples of the situations just mentioned from studies in his laboratory in the following discussion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerry J Buccafusco
- Alzheimer's Research Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia 30912 and Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center, Augusta, Georgia 30904, USA.
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