Estrogens were found to exert a biphasic effect on the density of serotonin receptors in the female rat brain: an acute reduction in serotonin receptor density throughout the brain is followed 48 to 72 hr later by a selective increase in those brain regions known to contain estrogen receptors--hypothalamus, preoptic area, and amygdala. The acute reduction in serotonin receptor density can be mi...

The entorhinal cortex (EC) is considered as the gate to control the flow of information into and out of the hippocampus. The EC is important for numerous physiological functions such as emotional control, learning and memory and pathological disorders including Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and temporal lobe epilepsy. Serotonin is a classical neurotransmitter which may modify these physiol...

Introduction: A close interaction exists between the brain opioid and serotonin (5-HT) neurotransmitter systems. Brain neurotransmitter 5-HT plays an important role in the regulation of reward-related processing. However, a few studies have investigated the potential role of 5-HT2A receptors in this behavior. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to assess the influence of...

Curcumin exhibits both cancer- preventive activity and growth inhibitory effects on several neoplastic cells including human colon cancer. Serotonin and its receptors have also been implicated in tumor development. This study investigated the effect of ritanserin, a selective serotonin 5HT2A receptor antagonist, alone and in combination with curcumin on colorectal cancer cell lines. Result...

The neurotransmitter serotonin plays a modulatory role in the regulation of various cognitive and behavioral functions such as sleep, mood, pain, depression, anxiety, and learning by binding to a number of serotonin receptors present upon the cell surface. The spectroscopic properties of serotonin and their modulation with ionization state have been studied. Results show that serotonin fluoresc...

Serotonin receptors play central roles in neuromodulation and are critical drug targets for psychiatric disorders. Optical control of serotonin receptor subtypes has the potential to greatly enhance our understanding spatiotemporal dynamics function. While other neuromodulatory have been successfully rendered photoswitchable, reversible photocontrol not achieved, representing a major gap GPCR p...

In addition to ascending, descending, and lateral auditory projections, inputs extrinsic to the auditory system also influence neural processing in the inferior colliculus (IC). These types of inputs often have an important role in signaling salient factors such as behavioral context or internal state. One route for such extrinsic information is through centralized neuromodulatory networks like...

A correlation between high plasma serotonin levels and total pulmonary resistance was reported in more than 80% of pulmonary hypertensive patients. When submitted to chronic hypoxia (10% O(2) for more than 3 weeks), wild-type mice develop lung vascular remodeling and pulmonary hypertension. We previously reported that, in contrast, the development of these hypoxia-dependent alterations is total...