objective: management and rehabilitation of disabilities relevant to fine motor skills in spastic cerebral palsied patients is often complex and challenging, therefore exploiting an easy and effective method similar to music therapy for completing the rehabilitation process can be very essential. the aim of the present study was to investigate the mentioned hypothesis that is the effect of pers...

Although language functions are, in general, attributed to the left hemisphere, it is still a matter of debate to what extent the cognitive functions underlying the processing of music are lateralized in the human brain. To investigate hemispheric specialization we evaluated the effect of different overt musical and linguistic tasks on the excitability of both left and right hand motor cortices...

Stroke causes life long disabilities where few therapeutic options are available. Using electrical and magnetic stimulation of the brain and physical rehabilitation, recovery of brain function can be enhanced even late after stroke. Animal models support this notion, and housing rodents in an enriched environment (EE) several days after experimental stroke stimulates lost brain function by mult...

BACKGROUND Music-supported therapy has been shown to be an effective tool for rehabilitation of motor deficits after stroke. A unique feature of music performance is that it is inherently social: music can be played together in synchrony. AIM The present study explored the potential of synchronized music playing during therapy, asking whether synchronized playing could improve fine motor reha...

As the main interhemispheric fiber tract, the corpus callosum (CC) is of particular importance for musicians who simultaneously engage parts of both hemispheres to process and play music. Professional musicians who began music training before the age of 7 years have larger anterior CC areas than do nonmusicians, which suggests that plasticity due to music training may occur in the CC during ear...

Environmental enrichment is usually applied immediately after weaning or in adulthood, with strong effects on CNS anatomy and behavior. To examine the hypothesis that a pre-reproductive environmental enrichment of females could affect the motor development of their offspring, female rats were reared in an enriched environment from weaning to sexual maturity, while other female rats used as cont...

Among human activities, motor vehicles play the most important role in air pollution. Air pollution has negative impacts on people and on the environment. In this paper the effect of oxygen-enriched air (20.8%, 21.8%, 22.8%, 23.8% and 24.8%) and different bioethanol-gasoline blends (zero, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25%) in different engine speeds (1000 rpm, 2000 rpm and 3000 rpm) on the amount o...

Objective: Argemone mexicana is a Papaveracea plant; some reports have shown their antibacterial, anti-cancer, sedative and probably anti-anxiety properties. From their aerial parts, flavonoids and alkaloids have been isolated, which are intrinsically related to some actions on the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anxiolytic-like effects of the plant, using its ...

Neurorehabilitation programs are commonly employed with the goal to help restore functionality in patients. However, many of these therapies report only having a small impact. In response to the need for more effective and innovative approaches, rehabilitative methods that take advantage of the neuroplastic properties of the brain have been used to aid with both physical and cognitive impairmen...