• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.211-219
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• 2005

Trigeminovascular system plays an important role for the cerebral memodynamics. The aim of this study was to investigate the alterations in cerebrovascular reactivity by trigeminovascular system injury in rats. Trigeminovascular system of male Sprague-Dawley rats was injured by either denervation of nasocilliary nerve or neonatal capsaicin treatment. Trigeminovascular system was stimulated by controlled hemorrhagic hypotension or somatosensory (whisker) stimulation. Changes in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and pial arterial diameter were continuously measured by laser-Doppler flowmetry and videomicroscopy, respectively. Nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity in cerebral cortex was determined by measuring the conversion of $L-^3H-arginine\;to\;L-^3H-citrulline$. Cyclic GMP levels in cerebral cortex and pial artery were determined using the cyclic GMP $^{125}I$ scintillation proximity assay system. rCBF autoregulation was impaired or almost abolished by trigeminovascular system injury. rCBF response to whisker stimulation was significantly attenuated by trigeminovascular system injury. NOS activity as well as cyclic GMP level in cerebral cortex and pial artery were significantly reduced in the group of trigeminovascular system injury. These results suggest that trigeminovascular system injury causes prominent alterations in cerebrovascular reactivity, and that NO, which is generated by neuronal NOS in the trigeminovascular system, is implicated in the regulation of rCBF.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.37 no.4 s.147
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• pp.272-277
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• 2006

This study was undertaken to determine whether Juglandis Semen (JAS) extract exerts protective effect against oxidant-induced inhibition of $Na^+-pump$ activity in cerebral cortex. $Na^+-pump$ activity was estimated by measuring ouabain-sensitive oxygen consumption. The oxygen consumption significantly inhibited by 1mM t-butylhydroperoxide (tBHP), which was prevented by addition of 2% JAS extract. The oxygen consumption was increased by an increase in $Na^+$ concentration from 5 to 100 mM, $K^+$ concentration from 0.5 to 10 mM, and $Mg^{2+}$ concentration from 0.2 to 5 mM. These changes in ion concentrations did not affect the inhibitory effect of tBHP and protective action of JAS on oxygen consumption. tBHP (l mM) produced a significant increase in lipid peroxidation in cerebral cortex, which was prevented by 2% JAS extraction. These results suggest that JAS exerts protective effect against tBHP-induced inhibition of $Na^+-pump$ activity in the cerebral cortex, probably through action as antioxidant.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.13-18
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• 2005

This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of electroacupuncture(EA) on Choksamni(ST36), a well-known acupuncture site, on nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase(NADPH-d), neuropeptide Y(NPY) and vasoactive intestinal peptide(VIP) in the cerebral cortex of spontaneously hypertensive rats(SHR). EA on Choksamni was applied using 2Hz electrical biphasic pulses of 10min, 3 times a week for a total of 10 sessions. Thereafter we evaluated changes in NADPH-d-positive neurons histochemically and changes in NPY and VIP-positive neurons immunohistochemically. The optical density of NADPH-d-positive neurons in the Choksamni group was significantly lower in all areas of the cerebral cortex than in the control group. However, the optical density of NPY-positive neurons in the Choksamni group was similar to that of the controls in most areas of the cerebral cortex, with the exception of the primary motor and visual cortices. The optical density of VIP-positive neurons in the Choksamni group was significantly decreased as compared to the control group in most areas of the cerebral cortex, with the exception of the cingulate cortex. The present results demonstrated that EA on Choksamni changes the activity of the NO system, and that stimulation at the same level, causes selective changes within the peptidergic system in the cerebral cortex of SHR.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.199-206
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• 2006

Objectives : The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of various electroacupuncture stimulation on neuronal nitric oxide synthase(nNOS) in cerebral cortex, brain stem, cerebellum of spontaneously hypertensive rats. Methods : We evaluated the changes of nNOS-positive neurons using a immunohistochemical method. The staining intensity of nNOS positive neurons was assessed in a quantitative fashion using a microdensitometrical method based on optical density by means of an image analyzer. Results : The average optical density of nNOS-positive neurons of 100 Hz (bipolar square wave 0.2 ms duration and 100 Hz frequency) electroacupuncture treatment group significantly decreased in most cortical areas comparison between the manual acupuncture and 2 Hz (bipolar square wave 0.2 ms duration and 2 Hz frequency) electroacupuncture groups. In the brain stem, the optical density of nNOS-positive neuron at superficial gray layer of the superior colliculus area, dorsolateral periaqueductal gray area and paralemniscal nucleus were same as cerebral cortex. Conclusion : We conclude that the morphological evidence for nNOS-positive neurons may be have regional change in cerebral cortex brain stem and cerebellum according to various electroacupuncture stimulations.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.2 no.1 s.2
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• pp.13-25
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• 1999

This study was undertaken to determine whether Juglandis Semen (JAS) extraction exerts protective effect against oxidant-induced inhibition of $Na^+$-pump activity in cerebral cortex. $Na^+$-pump activity was estimated by measuring ouabain-sensitive oxygen consumption. The oxygen consumption significantly inhibited by 1 mM t-butylhydroperoxide (tBHP), which was prevented by addition of 2% JAS extraction. The oxygen consumption was increased by an increase in $Na^+$ concentration from 5 to 100mM, $K^+$ concentration from 0.5 to 10 mM, and $Mg^{++}$ concentration from 0.2 to 5 mM. These changes in ion concentrations did not affect the inhibitory effct of tBHP and protective action of JAS on oxygen consumption. tBHP(1mM) produced a significant increase in lipid peroxidation in cerebral cortex, which was prevented by 2% JAS extraction. These result suggest that JAS exerts protective effect against tBHP-induced inhibition of $Na^+$-pump activity in the cerebral cortex, this effect may be due to by an antioxidant action.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.295-345
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• 2003

This study investigated activation of cerebral cortex in patients with hemiplegia that was caused by neural damage. Key-point control movement therapy of Bobath was performed for 9 weeks in 3 subjects with hemiplegia and fMRI was used to compare and analyze activated degree of cerebral cortex in these subjects. fMRI was conducted using the blood oxygen level-dependent(BOLD) technique at 3.0T MR scanner with a standard head coil. The motor activation task consisted of finger flexion-extension exercise in six cycles(one half-cycles = 8 scans = $3\;sec{\times}\;8\;=\;24\;sec$). Subjects performed this task according to visual stimulus that sign of right hand or left hand twinkled(500ms on, 500ms off). After mapping activation of cerebral motor cortex on hand motor function, below results were obtained. 1. Activation decreased in primary motor area, whereas it increased in supplementary motor area and visual association area(p<.001). 2. Activation was observed in bilateral medial frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus of left cerebrum, inferior frontal gyrus, inter-hemispheric, fusiform gyrus of right cerebrum, superior parietal lobule of parietal lobe and precuneus in subjedt 1, parahippocampal gyrus of limbic lobe and cingulate gyrus in subject 2, and inferior frontal gyrus of right frontal lobe, middle frontal gyrus, and inferior parietal lobule of left cerebrum in subject 3 (p<.001). 3. Activation cluster extended in declive of right cellebellum posterior lobe in subject 1, culmen of anterior lobe and declive of posterior lobe in subject 2, and dentate gyrus of anterior lobe, culmen and tuber of posterior lobe in subject 3 (p<.001). In conclusion, these data showed that Key-point control movement therapy of Bobath after stroke affect cerebral cortex activation by increasing efficiency of cortical networks. Therefore mapping of brain neural network activation is useful for plasticity and reorganization of cerebral cortex and cortico-spinal tract of motor recovery mechanisms after stroke.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.1 no.6
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• pp.665-672
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• 1997

This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of cerebroprotection of platelet-activating factor(PAF) antagonists in transient cerebral ischemia of rat. Right middle cerebral artery(MCA) of Sprague-Dawley rat was occluded for 2 hours using an intraluminal filament technique. After 22 hours of reperfusion, morphometrically detectable infarct was developed in the cortex and striatum identical to the territory of MCA. The infarct size was significantly reduced by PAF antagonists, BN 52021 and CV-6209, as well as an inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS) inhibitor aminoguanidine(1 mg/kg, i.p., respectively) administered 5 min after MCA occlusion. PAF antagonists significantly inhibited the enzymatic activities of both myeloperoxidase and iNOS in the cerebral hemisphere ipsilateral to ischemia, whereas aminoguanidine did not inhibit myeloperoxidase activity but significantly inhibited the iNOS activity. These results suggest that PAF antagonists exert a cerebroprotective effect against ischemic brain damage through inhibition of leukocyte infiltration and iNOS activity in the postischemic brain.

• Journal of Gifted/Talented Education
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.637-648
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• 2013

The relationship between the cerebral cortex and human intelligence has been studied using various methods, and related brain areas involved in intellectual manifestation have been discovered individually. Such studies have also shown the cerebellum is closely involved in various cognitive functions such as language, memory, and information processing. However, studies showing an activity difference between the cerebral cortex and cerebellum when performing specific tasks are hard to find. This study searched and analyzed the active regions of the cerebral cortex and cerebellum seen while performing the inference of geometrical figures. A WAIS intelligence test was conducted using 81 healthy boys (16.3 years of age on average), and five categories were classified. While performing the inference of shapes, their brain images were taken using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). As a result, the activity in 12 brain regions was observed, including in the cerebral cortex, the bilateral inferior parietal, the visual cortex, bilateral superior parietal, frontal-Inf-Tri-R, and bilateral caudate, while activities in 5 discrete areas were seen in the cerebellum. In particular, the higher the intelligence (IQ) of the subject, the stronger their activity. Among those with the most superior intelligence, subjects with an IQ of 140-147 showed significantly higher activity compared to the other groups. Such results seem to represent a very high utilization of intelligence in a highly gifted group, and we can expect to use this to determine the super gifted.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.262-267
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• 2012

Purpose: This study was designed to analyze the differences in cerebral cortex activity of the elderly after extracting the movement related cortical potentials (MRCPs) from electroencephalogram (EEG) during a concentric and eccentric contraction of the elbow joint flexors, and entering them into the brain-mapping program to make the images. Methods: Right-dominant normal elderly people were divided into an eccentric contraction group and a concentric contraction group. Then, their MRCPs were measured using EEG and sEMG, during an eccentric and concentric contraction. Then, they were converted into images using the brain-mapping program. Results: Eccentric contraction group's $C_3$ and Cz showed statistically higher mean values of MRCP positive potential than the concentric contraction group. Conclusion: Researching a cerebral cortex activity, using MRCP, would provide basic data for clinical neuro-physiological researches on aging or neural plasticity of patients with a central nervous system injury.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.173-180
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• 2004

Over the last decade, EMDR(Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) has emerged as a promising new treatment for trauma and other anxiety-based disorders. However, neurobiological mechanism of EMDR has not been well understood. Authors report SPECT findings of two patients of PTSD before and after EMDR. Brain 99mTc-ECD-SPECT was performed before and after EMDR treatment. To evaluate the significance of changes in the regional cerebral perfusion, t-test was conducted on the resulting images using SPM99. In addition, clinical scales(CAPS, CGI, STAI) were employed to asses the changes in the clinical symptoms of the patients. After EMDR treatment, each showed significant improvement in clinical symptoms. The cerebral perfusion increased in bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and decreased in the temporal association cortex. The differences in the cerebral perfusion between patients after treatment and normal controls decreased. These changes appeared mainly in the limbic area the and the prefrontal cortex. These results suggest that EMDR may show the therapeutic effect through 1) improvement in the emotional control by increased activity in the prefrontal cortex, 2) inhibited hyperstimuli on amygdala by deactivation of the association cortex, 3) inhibition on past trauma related memory, and 4) keeping the functional balance between the limbic area and the prefrontal cortex. This case report needs further replication from studies with larger sample.