Omid Salimi; Aliasghar Mohammadvand; Abbas Ebrahimi Kalan; Mohammad Charkhpour; Javad Mahmoudi; Bohlool Habibi Asl
Volume 22, Issue 4 , 2020
Abstract
Background: Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is one of the leading causes of severe neurological deficits worldwide. The pathophysiology of SCI includes a primary injury followed by a cascade of secondary biochemical and cellular changes. Current pharmacological options are limited for significant recovery ...
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Background: Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is one of the leading causes of severe neurological deficits worldwide. The pathophysiology of SCI includes a primary injury followed by a cascade of secondary biochemical and cellular changes. Current pharmacological options are limited for significant recovery from SCI. The ?-lactam antibiotic ceftriaxone (CEF) and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) have shown to induce neuroprotection in animal models of neurodegenerative disorders.
Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of CEF, NAC, and their combination on the functional recovery and histological damage in experimental SCI.
Methods: Rats were randomly divided into four groups (n = 7): Saline, CEF, NAC, and CEF + NAC. Then, SCI was performed on rats under general anesthesia using the Neurosciences Research Center (NSRC) impactor. Locomotor recovery following SCI was monitored using the locomotor rating scale of Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB). At the end of the study, all rats were sacrificed, and spinal cord cross-sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin for histopathological evaluation.
Results: The CEF and NAC administration, either alone or in combination (CEF + NAC), significantly improved locomotor recovery following SCI in rats when compared to the saline group. The histological analysis showed that the severity of histopathological lesion in the spinal cord of rats was significantly lower in the CEF, NAC, and CEF + NAC groups than in the saline group.
Conclusions: Treatment with CEF and NAC, either separately or in combination, promotes locomotor recovery following SCI, which is associated with the effective reduction of the histopathological lesion.
Hasan Sabouri Moghadam; Mohamad Ali Nazari; Ali Jahan; Javad Mahmoudi; Maryam Moghadam Salimi
Volume 19, Issue 5 , May 2017, , Pages 1-9
Abstract
Background: Transcranial light therapy (TCLT) is a new noninvasive interventional method, which applies red to near infrared spectrum laser or light emitting diode (LED) source on the head, transcranially. This spectrum can penetrate the skull and could improve the brain pathological conditions and cognitive ...
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Background: Transcranial light therapy (TCLT) is a new noninvasive interventional method, which applies red to near infrared spectrum laser or light emitting diode (LED) source on the head, transcranially. This spectrum can penetrate the skull and could improve the brain pathological conditions and cognitive functions. Despite relative advantages of the LED upon laser sources, TCLT research has been limited on the beneficial effects of LED source on human cognitive performances.Objectives: This study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of the TCLT with LED source on brain attentional performance as an important cognitive ability.Methods: This experimental intervention study was conducted in Tabriz, Iran, from September to October 2016. The study samples were selected by the convenience sampling method. Thirty-four healthy individuals (age: 18 to 24; 17 males and 17 females) were randomly assigned to sham (n = 17) or real intervention (n = 17) groups. We applied 850 nm LED with irradiation energy density 60 J/cm2 upon the frontal cortex, the brain region involved in attentional activities. Before and after TCLT, participants completed a cognitive task (Level-1 of parametric Go/No-task), which measures attentional performance.Results: Our results revealed improvement of efficiency score as the main parameter of attentional performance in the real intervention group versus sham-TCLT group. The interaction of group × time was significant (P = 0.004). Mean change of the efficiency score was higher in the real intervention group (mean = 4.6 ± 3) than the sham group (mean = 0.8 ± 3) after TCLT (P = 0.001).Conclusions: Applying the TCLT by LED source over the PFC, promotes attentional performance as an important cognitive function.
