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Cirulli F, Spencer SJ, Zhang C. The Landscape of Publishing in Neuroscience: Honouring Our Scientific Heritage and Shaping the Future of Research. Neuroscience 2024; 544:138-139. [PMID: 38447687 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2024.02.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Cirulli
- Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Sarah J Spencer
- School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, Vic., Australia.
| | - Chen Zhang
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing Key Laboratory of Neural Regeneration and Repair & Beijing Laboratory of Oral Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China; State Key Laboratory of Neurology and Oncology Drug Development, Nanjing, China
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Bai J, Gu L, Chen Y, Liu X, Yang J, Li M, Dong X, Yang S, Huang B, Wang T, Jin L, Liu J, Wang S. Evaluation of psychological stress, cortisol awakening response, and heart rate variability in patients with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome complicated by lower urinary tract symptoms and erectile dysfunction. Front Psychol 2022; 13:903250. [PMID: 36405196 PMCID: PMC9674019 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.903250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mental stress and imbalance of its two neural stress systems, the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, are associated with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) and erectile dysfunction (ED). However, the comprehensive analyses of psychological stress and stress systems are under-investigated, particularly in CP/CPPS patients complicated by lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and ED. MATERIALS AND METHODS Participants were 95 patients in CP/CPPS+ED group, 290 patients in CP/CPPS group, 124 patients in ED group and 52 healthy men in control group. The National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI), the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) and the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) were used for assessing the disease severity of CP/CPPS, LUTS and ED. Psychometric self-report questionnaires including the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Type A Personality Test (TAPT) and Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90) were completed for distress from physical symptoms. Twenty-five subjects per group were randomly selected for further investigating the changes of the HPA axis and ANS. Saliva samples were taken on 3 consecutive days at 8 specific times with strict reference to time of morning awakening for evaluation of free cortisol. Heart rate variability (HRV) as marker of the ANS was measured using 24 h electrocardiography, and time-and frequency-domain variables were analyzed. RESULTS The BAI and SCL-90 scores were significantly higher in the CP/CPPS+ED, CP/CPPS and ED groups compared with the control group (p < 0.01). The PSS scores of both groups with ED were significantly higher than the control group (p < 0.01). Compared with the CP/CPPS group, the differences of PSS, SCL-90 and TAPT scores were statistically significant in CP/CPPS+ED patients (p < 0.01). The IPSS scores were shown to have significantly positive correlations with BAI (r = 0.32, p < 0.0001), PSS (r = 0.18, p < 0.01) and SCL-90 (r = 0.19, p < 0.01) in the CP/CPPS patients. However, in all subjects, the IIEF-5 scores were shown to have significantly negative correlations with BAI (r = -0.17,p < 0.001), PSS (r = -0.25,p < 0.0001), SCL-90 (r = -0.20,p < 0.001) and quality of life score in NIH-CPSI (r = -0.14,p = 0.0075). Cortisol awakening response (CAR) parameters and diurnal cortisol levels did not significantly vary between the four groups. Time-dependent parameters of HRV also did not differ significantly across groups. In the frequency domain analysis, low frequency (LF) was significantly lower in ED patients when compared with CP/CPPS+ED patients (p = 0.044) and healthy controls (p = 0.005), high frequency (HF) power was significantly higher in healthy controls compared to patients with ED (p < 0.001), CP/CPPS (p < 0.001) and CP/CPPS+ED (p < 0.001), and the CP/CPPS+ED group had significantly higher LF/HF ratio than the control group (p = 0.001). CONCLUSION CP/CPPS and ED patients score exceedingly high on most psychosocial variables. The symptom scores of LUTS and ED positively correlate with the severity of psychological stress. Our findings also suggest that the ANS sympathovagal imbalance is associated with ED and LUTS in CP/CPPS, whereas HPA axis activity is not.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Bai
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Longjie Gu
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Yinwei Chen
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiaming Liu
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Jun Yang
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Mingchao Li
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiyuan Dong
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Shulin Yang
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Bo Huang
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Tao Wang
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Lei Jin
- Reproductive Medicine Center, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Jihong Liu
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Shaogang Wang
- Department of Urology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
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van den Brink WJ, Palic S, Köhler I, de Lange ECM. Access to the CNS: Biomarker Strategies for Dopaminergic Treatments. Pharm Res 2018; 35:64. [PMID: 29450650 PMCID: PMC5814527 DOI: 10.1007/s11095-017-2333-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2017] [Accepted: 12/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Despite substantial research carried out over the last decades, it remains difficult to understand the wide range of pharmacological effects of dopaminergic agents. The dopaminergic system is involved in several neurological disorders, such as Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia. This complex system features multiple pathways implicated in emotion and cognition, psychomotor functions and endocrine control through activation of G protein-coupled dopamine receptors. This review focuses on the system-wide effects of dopaminergic agents on the multiple biochemical and endocrine pathways, in particular the biomarkers (i.e., indicators of a pharmacological process) that reflect these effects. Dopaminergic treatments developed over the last decades were found to be associated with numerous biochemical pathways in the brain, including the norepinephrine and the kynurenine pathway. Additionally, they have shown to affect peripheral systems, for example the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Dopaminergic agents thus have a complex and broad pharmacological profile, rendering drug development challenging. Considering the complex system-wide pharmacological profile of dopaminergic agents, this review underlines the needs for systems pharmacology studies that include: i) proteomics and metabolomics analysis; ii) longitudinal data evaluation and mathematical modeling; iii) pharmacokinetics-based interpretation of drug effects; iv) simultaneous biomarker evaluation in the brain, the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma; and v) specific attention to condition-dependent (e.g., disease) pharmacology. Such approach is considered essential to increase our understanding of central nervous system (CNS) drug effects and substantially improve CNS drug development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Willem Johan van den Brink
- Division of Systems Biomedicine and Pharmacology, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Semra Palic
- Division of Systems Biomedicine and Pharmacology, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Isabelle Köhler
- Division of Systems Biomedicine and Pharmacology, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Elizabeth Cunera Maria de Lange
- Division of Systems Biomedicine and Pharmacology, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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Anxiety and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responses to psychological stress are attenuated in male rats made lean by large litter rearing. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2011; 36:1080-91. [PMID: 21349647 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2010] [Revised: 01/12/2011] [Accepted: 01/28/2011] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
An excellent strategy to treat overactive responses to stress is to exploit the body's inherent stress-inhibitory mechanisms. Stress responses are known to differ between individuals depending upon their level and distribution of adiposity and their experiences in early life. For instance, we have recently shown that female rats made obese by overfeeding during the neonatal period have exacerbated responses to psychological stress. The converse may be true for those that are underfed during this period. In this investigation we hypothesized that rats made lean by neonatal underfeeding would have reduced anxiety and attenuated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis responses to psychological stress. Our findings show that male (but not female) rats, made smaller by being suckled in a large litter, show reduced anxiety-related behaviour compared with those from normal litters when tested in the elevated plus maze. These smaller males also have attenuated activation of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus in response to the psychological stress, restraint, and corticosterone responses to restraint that return more quickly to baseline than controls. These findings are exciting from the perspective of understanding and potentially exploiting the body's inherent stress-inhibitory mechanisms to treat overactive responses to stress. They also provide an indication that being lean may be able to ameliorate overactive stress responses. Understanding the mechanisms by which these stress responses are attenuated in lean animals will be important for future strategies to treat diseases associated with overactive HPA axes in humans.
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Olivier JDA, de Jong TR, Jos Dederen P, van Oorschot R, Heeren D, Pattij T, Waldinger MD, Coolen LM, Cools AR, Olivier B, Veening JG. Effects of acute and chronic apomorphine on sex behavior and copulation-induced neural activation in the male rat. Eur J Pharmacol 2007; 576:61-76. [PMID: 17826765 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2007.08.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2007] [Revised: 08/13/2007] [Accepted: 08/15/2007] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Apomorphine is a non-selective dopaminergic receptor agonist. Because of its pro-erectile effects, apomorphine is clinically used for treatment of erectile dysfunction. We investigated the effects of subcutaneous apomorphine administration (0.4 mg/kg rat) on sexual behavior and mating-induced Fos-expression following acute (day 1) or chronic apomorphine treatment (days 8 and 15) in sexually experienced male rats. Consistent facilitatory effects of apomorphine were observed in the reduced numbers of mounts and intromissions over time and an increased ejaculation frequency on day 1. The first post-ejaculatory interval, however, was lengthened, while other behavioral parameters were unaffected. Fos-immunoreactivity induced by acute apomorphine administration (barrel cortex, paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus, central amygdala and locus coeruleus) was strongly reduced after chronic administration. After mating, induction of Fos-immunoreactivity was observed in well-known areas like medial preoptic nucleus and the posterodorsal medial amygdaloid area. Apomorphine, however, reduced mating-induced Fos-immunoreactivity in the nucleus accumbens shell and prevented its occurrence in its core area. This remarkable apomorphine effect was not observed in any other brain area. We conclude that the behavioral (pro-erectile) effects of apomorphine are consistent over time, and that the diminished accumbens-Fos-immunoreactivity and the elongated post-ejaculatory interval may reflect a decreased response to remote cues from the estrus female.
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Spencer SJ, Ebner K, Day TA. Differential involvement of rat medial prefrontal cortex dopamine receptors in modulation of hypothalamic- pituitary-adrenal axis responses to different stressors. Eur J Neurosci 2004; 20:1008-16. [PMID: 15305869 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2004.03569.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Recent investigations have implicated the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) in modulation of subcortical pathways that contribute to the generation of behavioural, autonomic and endocrine responses to stress. However, little is known of the mechanisms involved. One of the key neurotransmitters involved in mPFC function is dopamine, and we therefore aimed, in this investigation, to examine the role of mPFC dopamine in response to stress in Wistar rats. In this regard, we infused dopamine antagonists SCH23390 or sulpiride into the mPFC via retrodialysis. We then examined changes in numbers of cells expressing the c-fos immediate-early gene protein product, Fos, in subcortical neuronal populations associated with regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis stress responses in response to either of two stressors; systemic injection of interleukin-1 beta, or air puff. The D1 antagonist, SCH23390, and the D2 antagonist, sulpiride, both attenuated expression of Fos in the medial parvocellular hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (mpPVN) corticotropin-releasing factor cells at the apex of the HPA axis, as well as in most extra-hypothalamic brain regions examined in response to interleukin-1 beta. By contrast, SCH23390 failed to affect Fos expression in response to air puff in any brain region examined, while sulpiride resulted in an attenuation of the air puff-induced response in only the mpPVN and the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. These results indicate that the mPFC differentially processes the response to different stressors and that the two types of dopamine receptor may have different roles.
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Affiliation(s)
- S J Spencer
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia.
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Crane JW, Ebner K, Day TA. Medial prefrontal cortex suppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to a physical stressor, systemic delivery of interleukin-1beta. Eur J Neurosci 2003; 17:1473-81. [PMID: 12713650 DOI: 10.1046/j.1460-9568.2003.02568.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that the medial prefrontal cortex can suppress the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to stress. However, this effect appears to vary with the type of stressor. Furthermore, the absence of direct projections between the medial prefrontal cortex and corticotropin-releasing factor cells at the apex of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis suggest that other brain regions must act as a relay when this inhibitory mechanism is activated. In the present study, we first established that electrolytic lesions involving the prelimbic and infralimbic medial prefrontal cortex increased plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone levels seen in response to a physical stressor, the systemic delivery of interleukin-1beta. However, medial prefrontal cortex lesions did not alter plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone levels seen in response to a psychological stressor, noise. To identify brain regions that might mediate the effect of medial prefrontal cortex lesions on hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responses to systemic interleukin-1beta, we next mapped the effects of similar lesions on interleukin-1beta-induced Fos expression in regions previously shown to regulate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to this stressor. It was found that medial prefrontal cortex lesions reduced the number of Fos-positive cells in the ventral aspect of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. However, the final experiment, which involved combining retrograde tracing with Fos immunolabelling, revealed that bed nucleus of the stria terminalis-projecting medial prefrontal cortex neurons were largely separate from medial prefrontal cortex neurons recruited by systemic interleukin-1beta, an outcome that is difficult to reconcile with a simple medial prefrontal cortex-bed nucleus of the stria terminalis-corticotropin-releasing factor cell control circuit.
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Affiliation(s)
- J W Crane
- School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Qld, Australia 4072
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