Chronic administration of ethanol (2-5 g/kg p.o.) on days 1 to 6 and its withdrawal produced anxiogenic reaction in mice and rats as assessed on the elevated plus-maze. Daily administration of Mentat (100-mg/kg) prior to ethanol intoxication for 6 days prevented withdrawal-induced anxiety in both rats and mice. However, the acute administration of a single dose of Mentat to animals withdrawn fr...

INTRODUCTION Previous studies have indicated a possible role of histidine triad nucleotide-binding protein 1 (HINT1) on sustaining the regulatory crosstalk of N-methyl-D-aspartate acid glutamate receptors (NMDARs) and G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) such as the μ-opioid receptor (MOR). Both receptors are present in the midbrain periaqueductal gray neurons, an area that plays a central role ...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of COX inhibitors on pain threshold and spinal N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor subunit 2B (NR2B) expression in a rat model of neuropathic pain. METHODS Thirty-six male SD rats were randomly divided into sham-operated group, chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the sciatic nerve group, indomethacin+CCI group, and parecoxib+CCI group with corresponding t...

The purpose was to determine if heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) responses would reflect anaerobic threshold (AT) using a discontinuous, incremental, cycle test. AT was determined by ventilatory threshold (VT). Cyclists (30.6±5.9y; 7 males, 8 females) completed a discontinuous cycle test consisting of 7 stages (6 min each with 3 min of rest between). Three stages were performed ...

BACKGROUND We evaluated the epidural administration of tezampanel, a non-N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor antagonist, in a rat model for postoperative pain. We sought to determine if this drug affects nociception when administered epidurally by testing its effects on responses to heat in normal rats. The effects of epidural tezampanel on pain-related behaviors in rats that underwent plantar incisi...

In selective withdrawal, the interface between two liquid layers is deformed by an imposed withdrawal flow. A shape transition occurs at a threshold flow rate that changes the topology of the interface from a steady-state hump to an entrained spout. Near the transition a very sharp hump tip occurs, with the minimum tip radius far smaller than the characteristic lateral length-scale. Previous me...

BACKGROUND Protein kinase C (PKC) in the spinal cord appears to mediate chronic injury-induced pain, but not acute nociceptive pain. Muscle insult results in increased release of glutamate spinally, and hyperalgesia that is reversed by spinal blockade of NMDA and non-NMDA glutamate receptors. Therefore, we hypothesized that spinal activation of PKC 1) mediates the late phase of hyperalgesia 1 w...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the involvement of opioid receptors in antinociception induced by different aerobic exercise protocols in rats. METHODS This experimental study, conducted in the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil from November 2011 to May 2012, included 60 female Wistar rats, divided into 10 groups of 6 animals per group. The rats were subjected to different a...

Behavioral models of cold responses are important tools for exploring the molecular mechanisms of cold sensation. To complement the currently cold behavioral assays and allow further studies of these mechanisms, we have developed a new technique to measure the cold response threshold, the cold plantar assay. In this assay, animals are acclimated on a glass plate and a cold stimulus is applied t...