Facilitation of brain self-stimulation by central administration of norepinephrine

Rats with electrodes implanted in the medial forebrain bundle stimulated their own brains at sharply reduced rates after systemic administration of disulfiram or intraventricular administration of diethyldithiocarbamate. Both drugs inhibit dopamine-beta-hydroxylase, the enzyme responsible for the final step in the biosynthesis of norepinephrine. The suppressed behavior was reinstated by intraventricular injections of 1-norepinephrine, but not by injection of its biologically inactive isomer, d-norepinephrine. Intraventricular administration of dopamine and serotonin did not restore self-stimulation. The rewarding effect of medial forebrain bundle stimulation may depend on the availability of norepinephrine as a transmitter, but not on dopamine or serotonin.     

Directionality of rewarding impulses within the medial forebrain bundle self-stimulation system of the rat

Self-stimulation performance of rats was tested with conditioning pulses to the anterior preoptic area of the medial forebrain bundle followed at various intervals by test pulses to the contralateral posterior hypothalamic area of this bundle. Alternatively, conditioning pulses were delivered through the posterior electrode and test pulses were sent through the anterior electrode. The animals' performance in these two test sequences was indicative of (i) synaptic facilitation and (ii) a posterior convergence site of "self-stimulation impulses" in the medial forebrain bundle.     

A behavioral measure of homosynaptic and heterosynaptic temporal summation in the self-stimulation system of rats

Bilateral stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle with pulses of varying interpulse intervals elicited a pattern of self-stimulation behavior in the rat indicative of temporal synaptic summation: the shorter the interval the greater the response. In contrast, the effectiveness of unilateral stimulation at very short intervals was limited by neuronal refractory periods. The results support the notion that there is convergence of the medial forebrain bundle self-stimulation system from the two sides of the brain and suggest ways of studying the degree of convergence. They also suggest a technique for behaviorally comparing heterosynaptic and homosynaptic mechanisms of summation.     

Visual pathway mediating pineal response to environmental light

Activity of the melatoninforming enzyme, hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase, in rat pineal is increased when the animal is exposed to continuous darkness, and it is decreased by exposure to continuous light. Response to environmental light is initiated in the retina and transmitted to the pineal by way of the central nervous system and the cervical sympathetics. The central visual pathway essential for mediation of this response is the inferior accessory optic tract. Visual pathways to thalamus and tectum do not participate in this response.     

Relapse to cocaine-seeking after hippocampal theta burst stimulation

Treatment efforts for cocaine addiction are hampered by high relapse rates. To map brain areas underlying relapse, we used electrical brain stimulation and intracranial injection of pharmacological compounds after extinction of cocaine self-administration behavior in rats. Electrical stimulation of the hippocampus containing glutamatergic fibers, but not the medial forebrain bundle containing dopaminergic fibers, elicited cocaine-seeking behavior dependent on glutamate in the ventral tegmental area. This suggests a role for glutamatergic neurotransmission in relapse to cocaine abuse. The medial forebrain bundle electrodes supported intense electrical self-stimulation. These findings suggest a dissociation of neural systems subserving positive reinforcement (self-stimulation) and incentive motivation (relapse).     

Enzymatic synthesis of melatonin in avian pineal body: extraretinal response to light

In the chick pineal body, activity of the melatonin-forming enzyme hydroxyindole-O-methyl transferase is greater in the light than in darkness. Neither bilateral enucleation of the eyes nor sympathetic denervation prevented this light-induced elevation of enzyme activity. This fact indicates that in the bird, in contrast to mammals, neither the retinas nor sympathetic innervation of the pineal body are essential for environmental control of melatonin formation.     

Olfactory input to the hypothalamus: electrophysiological evidence

Electrical stimulation of the rat's olfactory bulb or lateral olfactory tract elicited unit discharges in the region of the medial forebrain bundle of the lateral hypothalamus, with latencies of 4 to 25 milliseconds. Unit responses in this area were driven by odors in preparations that were paralyzed to prevent breathing artifacts.     

MELATONIN SYNTHESIS IN THE PINEAL GLAND: CONTROL BY LIGHT

In rats placed in continuous darkness for 6 days, there is a striking increase in the activity of melatonin-synthesizing-enzyme (hydroxyindole-0-methyl transferase) in the pineal gland, but no change in the activity of monoamine oxidase. Since melatonin appears to have a hormonal role in mammals, and its synthesis is confined to the pineal gland, the inhibition of hydroxyindole-O-methyl transferase by light may constitute a mechanism of neuroendocrine regulation.     

Rapid light-induced decrease in pineal serotonin N-acetyltransferase activity

Light acting by way of the eye causes the dark-induced activity of serotonin N-acetyltransferase in the pineal gland of the rat to decrease with a halving time of about 3 minutes. This effect, which is one of the more rapid physiological changes known to occur in the activity of any enzyme that metabolizes biogenic amines, appears to explain the rapid increase in the concentration of pineal serotonin that is caused by light exposure at night.     

Norepinephrine: reversal of anorexia in rats with lateral hypothalamic damage

Injection of norepinephrine in the lateral ventricles of rats recovering from lateral hypothalamic anorexia caused immediate feeding and, frequently, overeating. Intraventricular administration of the alpha-noradrenergic blocker, phentolamine, suppressed feeding in both normal rats and rats that had recovered from lateral hypothalamic lesions. Feeding is reinforced by ascending medial forebrain bundle fibers that form alpha-noradrenergic synapses in the hypothalamus and forebrain. Damage to these fibers suppresses feeding by reducing noradrenergic transmission and, hence, the rewarding value of food. Recovery of feeding after hypothalamic lesions coincides with the recovery of noradrenergic reward function.     

Neural pathways associated with hypothalamically elicited attach behavior in cats

Small electrolytic lesions were made in cats through electrodes, which, when stimulated, elicited either quiet biting attack or affective paw strike attack upon rats. The Nauta method for impregnating degenerating axoplasm was used to reveal that degeneration resulting from lesions at quiet attack sites followed largely along the course of the medial forebrain bundle, while the degeneration after lesions of affective attack sites was concentrated more heavily in the periventricular system.     

Circadian rhythm in pineal tyrosine hydroxylase

Tyrosine hydroxylase is the rate-limiting enzyme in catecholamine synthesis. The rat pineal gland is richly innervated by sympathetic nerves from the superior cervical ganglia. The activity of tyrosine hydroxylase was measured in rat pineal gland at 4-hour intervals over a daily cycle of 12 hours of light (7 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and 12 hours of darkness. The results indicate a circadian rhythm with the maximum activity, at 11 p.m. to 3 a.m., about triple the low values observed at 3 p.m. The pattern is similar in phase to that previously reported for melatonin and hydroxyindole-O-methyl transferase activity.     

Adenyl cyclase activity in rat pineal gland: effects of chronic denervation and norepinephrine

Adenyl cyclase activity in the pineal gland of rats was determined by measuring the rate of formation of radioactive cyclic 3',5'-adenosine monophosphate from (14)C-labeled adenosine triphosphate. Norepinephrine added in vitro to pineal homogenates enhanced this activity, while denervation of the pineal gland by superior cervical ganglionectomy did not significantly reduce it. The enzyme in these denervated glands was more responsive to the stimulatory effects of norepinephrine.     

Distinct "feeding" and "hunger motivating" systems in the lateral hypothalamus of the rat

Electrodes were implanted in the middle hypothalamus of rats to determine the neural organization of the "feeding" centers. Stimulations of the farand midlateral hypothalamic area produced feeding responses in sated animals, but only the former caused sated animals to cross an electrified grill to press a lever for food. After lesions had been made in the medial forebrain bundle, however, stimulations in the far-lateral hypothalamic area resulted in feeding in sated animals but failure to cross the electrical barrier to press a lever for food. Simultaneous far-lateral and "satiety" center stimulations produced feeding in sated animals but failed to "motivate" grill-crossing behavior.     

Pineal N-acetyltransferase activity: effect of sympathetic stimulation

Stimulation of preganglionic sympathetic fibers to the superior cervical ganglia elevates the activity of pineal N-acetyltransferase. After the stimulation-induced rise in enzyme activity, a return toward baseline levels occurs whether or not nerve stimulation is continued. The ability of pineal N-acetyltransferase activity to fall in the presence of stimulation may account for the persistence of its rhythm in blinded animals.     

Circadian clock in culture: N-acetyltransferase activity of chick pineal glands oscillates in vitro

N-Acetyltransferase activity was measured in organ-cultured chick pineal glands. A circadian rhythm of enzyme activity persisted in cultured glands for up to 4 days. The phase of the rhythm in vitro closely approximates its phase in vivo. These observations demonstrate that the pineal gland of chicks contains (or is) a self-sustained circadian oscillator.     

Harderian gland: influence on pineal hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase activity in neonatal rats

A circadian rhythm has been found in hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase activity of the pineal gland of blinded 12-day-old rats. Five additional hours of lighting can partly prevent the nocturnal increase in pineal hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase activity in such rats. Removal of the Harderian gland abolishes this response to light in 12-day-old blinded animals, giving further support to the suggestion that this gland may function as an extraretinal photosensitive organ influencing the pineal gland in blinded suckling rats.     

Pineal function: the biological clock in the sparrow?

The pineal organ of the house sparrow, Passer domesticus, is essential for persistence of the circadian locomotor rhythm in constant conditions. Upon removal of the pineal body, activity becomes arrhythmic. However, pinealectomy does not abolish the rhythm of locomotor activity in birds exposed to light-dark cycles. Pinealectomized birds are entrained by light cycles in much the same manner as are normal birds. Our data demonstrate that the pineal organ is a crucial component of the endogenous time-measuring system of the sparrow.     

猪场废水堆肥化处理过程中微生物及酶活性的变化

利用秸秆为载体与猪场废水联合堆肥,进行不同通风方式(鼓风、翻堆、鼓风 翻堆)及添加猪粪水和猪粪水厌氧消化液的对比试验,对堆肥过程中主要微生物菌群的数量变化作了动态监测,同时分析了堆肥过程中相关降解酶的活性变化及其影响因素,以研究猪场废水堆肥化处理过程中的微生物及酶活性变化。结果表明,堆肥过程中微生物以细菌数量最多,变化幅度最大,霉菌次之,酵母菌较少,而放线菌很少。纤维素酶活性在堆肥初期增加,然后逐渐降低;脲酶活性前期较低,在70d后迅速上升;过氧化氢酶活性初期较高,随后迅速降低,并维持在较低水平。由于堆肥条件及添加原料不同,不同处理的微生物数量和降解酶活性变化趋势表现出一定的差异。堆肥处理过程中微生物数量及变化趋势和降解酶活性变化都与传统堆肥方式有所不同,主要是由于废水的不断添加所带来的原料持续供应和高湿条件。     

两种鲭科以及其他鱼类松果体窗形态结构的比较

为了解鲭科鱼类颅顶松果体窗的结构和其与生活习性、鱼类系统进化的关系、利用光镜、X射线同步辐射技术以及组织石蜡切片技术观察了黄鳍金枪鱼（Thunnus albacares）和日本鲐鱼渊（Pneumatophorus japonicus）松果体窗的组织学结构。此外,通过随机取样分属9目17科的20种鱼类标本,检测松果体窗形态结构,分析松果体窗与鱼类进化发育的关系,并探讨其在鱼体可能发挥的生理功能。研究结果表明,具松果体窗的鱼类大都居于近海或淡水水域的底层,松果体窗的产生与它们的生存环境有一定关系,这种特殊的生理结构可以使鱼类在弱光环境中尽可能多地接受光线,让光线到达大脑并调节生理功能。同时,具有洄游特性的海洋鱼类也具有松果体窗结构,这种结构有利于鱼类通过感知光线的变换来确定洄游路线。