Dissecting the brain's fear system reveals the hypothalamus is critical for responding in subordinate conspecific intruders

Effective defense against natural threats in the environment is essential for the survival of individual animals. Thus, instinctive behavioral responses accompanied by fear have evolved to protect individuals from predators and from opponents of the same species (dominant conspecifics). While it has been suggested that all perceived environmental threats trigger the same set of innately determined defensive responses, we tested the alternate hypothesis that different stimuli may evoke differentiable behaviors supported by distinct neural circuitry. The results of behavioral, neuronal immediate early gene activation, lesion, and neuroanatomical experiments indicate that the hypothalamus is necessary for full expression of defensive behavioral responses in a subordinate conspecific, that lesions of the dorsal premammillary nucleus drastically reduce behavioral measures of fear in these animals, and that essentially separate hypothalamic circuitry supports defensive responses to a predator or a dominant conspecific. It is now clear that differentiable neural circuitry underlies defensive responses to fear conditioning associated with painful stimuli, predators, and dominant conspecifics and that the hypothalamus is an essential component of the circuitry for the latter two stimuli

Neuromodulation Strategies in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: From Preclinical Models to Clinical Applications

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an often debilitating disease with a lifetime prevalence rate between 5⁻8%. In war veterans, these numbers are even higher, reaching approximately 10% to 25%. Although most patients benefit from the use of medications and psychotherapy, approximately 20% to 30% do not have an adequate response to conventional treatments. Neuromodulation strategies have been investigated for various psychiatric disorders with promising results, and may represent an important treatment option for individuals with difficult-to-treat forms of PTSD. We review the relevant neurocircuitry and preclinical stimulation studies in models of fear and anxiety, as well as clinical data on the use of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), and deep brain stimulation (DBS) for the treatment of PTSD

Effect of platelet-rich plasma on the healing of mandibular defects treated with fresh frozen bone allograft: a radiographic study in dogs

The purpose of this study was to radiographically analyze the effect of autologous platelet rich plasma (PRP) on the healing of fresh frozen bone allograft (FFBA) placed in surgically created resection defects in mandibles of dogs. Bilateral resection defects measuring 1.5 cm x 1 cm were surgically created on the inferior border of the mandible in 10 adult male dogs. The defects were randomly divided into three groups: C, FFBA, and FFBA/PRP. In Group C, the defect was filled by blood clot only. In Group FFBA, the defect was filled with particulate fresh frozen bone allograft. In Group FFBA/PRP, it was filled with particulate fresh frozen bone allograft combined with PRP. At 90 days postoperative, standardized radiographs of the mandibles were obtained and results were quantitatively evaluated. Analysis of digitized radiographs indicated that non-PRP grafts were significantly less dense than the PRP grafts. Group FFBA/PRP also presented a statistically greater mineralized tissue area than Groups C and FFBA. Within the limits of this study, it can be concluded that PRP enhanced the healing of FFBA in resection defects in mandibles of dogs.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES