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PubMed1995

Muscimol induces state-dependent learning in Morris water maze task in rats.

Effects of muscimol on the place learning in Morris water maze task were investigated in rats. Rats were given 4 training trials per day with the submerged platform at a fixed location in the maze for 4 days. On day 4, rats were required to swim in the pool without the platform after 4 training trials (probe test). Compared to the saline-treated rats, the rats treated with muscimol on day 1-4 showed no modifications of place learning in the training trials and the probe test. However, in the rats treated with muscimol on day 1-3 and treated with saline on day 4, there was increased latency to reach the platform and reduced duration in the quadrant where the platform had been located on day 4. The increased latency in the training trials and reduced duration in the probe test on day 4 was blocked by bicuculline, when bicuculline and muscimol were co-administered on day 1-3, and saline was injected on day 4. Moreover, in the rats treated with muscimol on day 1-3, co-administration of bicuculline and muscimol on day 4 blocked place learning: increased latency in the training trials and reduced duration in the probe test was observed. These results suggest that muscimol induces state-dependent learning (SDL) in Morris water maze task, and that muscimol-induced SDL is mediated by GABAA receptors.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Spatial learning ability of rats following acute exposure to alcohol during early postnatal life.

Previous research has indicated that the developing brain is vulnerable to the effects of alcohol exposure. Most of this research has used an experimental design in which animals where chronically subjected to alcohol for a lengthy period of time during gestation and/or the preweaning period. Recent evidence has indicated that the morphology of the brain and the subsequent behaviour of the animal may also be susceptible to alcohol administered for a short duration during specified periods of development. Wistar rats were exposed to 7.5 g/kg body weight of ethanol administered as a 10% solution via an intragastric cannula over an 8 h period either on the 5th (PND5) or the 10th (PND10) postnatal day of age. Gastrostomy controls received a 5% sucrose solution substituted isocalorically for the ethanol. Another set of pups raised by their mother were used as 'suckle controls'. All surgical procedures were carried out under halothane vapour anaesthesia. After the artificial feeding regimes all pups were returned to lactating dams and weaned at 21 days of age. The spatial learning ability of these rats was tested in the Morris water maze when they were between 41-54 days of age. This task requires the rats to swim in a pool containing water made opaque and locate and climb onto a submerged platform. The time taken to accomplish this is known as the "escape latency." Each rat was subjected to 24 trials over three days and a further trial on each of days 4 and 11 of the test period. Statistical analysis of the escape latency data revealed that both the PND5 and PND10 ethanol treated groups had significant deficits in their spatial learning ability compared with the control groups. However, there was no significant difference in the degree of impairment between the PND5 and PND10 rats. It is concluded that even short periods of alcohol exposure during brain development can cause lasting impairment of spatial learning behaviour in rats.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Cotton-tip applicators as a leading cause of otitis externa.

OBJECTIVE: Otitis externa (OE), also known as "swimmer's ear", is an inflammation or infection of the external auditory canal. Many risk factors have been identified, mainly excessive moisture in the canal from swimming. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS: To study the leading risk factors of otitis externa. Eighty-seven children aged 3.5-12 years (mean 68+/-6.5 months) who were diagnosed with otitis externa from December 1999 to March 2001 were studied for age, sex, cerumen cleaning habits, signs and symptoms. Findings were compared to an age-matched control group of 90 children without otitis externa. RESULTS: Sixty-one children (70.1%) in the study group had their ears cleaned with a cotton-tip applicator (Q-tip) during the 10 days preceding the diagnosis of otitis externa. In the control group, only 31 (34%) used applicators routinely during the 10 days prior to diagnosis (P<0.001). Other risk factors for otitis externa were swimming in a pool (34%), wax removal (5.8%) and ventilation tubes (1.1%). CONCLUSIONS: Use of a cotton-tip applicator to clean the ear seems to be the leading cause of otitis externa in children and should be avoided.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed1997

The GABA(B) receptor antagonist CGP36742 attenuates the baclofen- and scopolamine-induced deficit in Morris water maze task in rats.

Effects of CGP36742 (3-aminopropyl-n-butylphosphinic acid), an orally active GABA(B) receptor antagonist, on the baclofen- and scopolamine-induced deficit of place learning in the Morris water maze task were examined in rats. Rats were given four training trials per day with the submerged platform at a fixed location in the maze for 4 days. On day 4, the rats were required to swim in the pool without the platform after the fourth training trial (probe test). Intraperitoneal injection of baclofen (4 mg/kg) or scopolamine (0.3 mg/kg) significantly increased the escape latency to reach the platform and decreased the duration in the quadrant where the platform had been originally located. Increased latency in the training trials and decreased duration in the probe test induced by baclofen or scopolamine were significantly attenuated by oral administration of CGP36742 at doses of 10 and 30 mg/kg. In the rotarod test, CGP36742 at a dose of 100 mg/kg but not at doses of 10 or 30 mg/kg antagonized the baclofen-induced motor incoordination. Thus, there was dissociation between the effective doses of CGP36742 in the learning task and those in the sensory motor test. These results suggest the possible involvement of cholinergic systems as well as GABA(B) receptor systems in the CGP36742 action.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Spatial learning ability of rats following differing levels of exposure to alcohol during early postnatal life.

Rats exposed to a relatively high dose (7.5 g/kg body weight) of alcohol on either the fifth or tenth postnatal day of age have been reported to have long-lasting deficits in spatial learning ability as tested on the Morris water maze task. The question arises concerning the level of alcohol required to achieve this effect. Wistar rats were exposed to either 2, 4 or 6 g/kg body weight of ethanol administered as a 10% solution. This ethanol was given over an 8-h period on the fifth postnatal day of age by means of an intragastric cannula. Gastrostomy controls received a 5% sucrose solution substituted isocalorically for the ethanol. Another set of pups raised by their mother were used as suckle controls. All surgical procedures were carried out under halothane vapour anaesthesia. After the artificial feeding regimes all pups were returned to lactating dams and weaned at 21 days of age. The spatial learning ability of these rats was tested in the Morris water maze when they were between 61-64 days of age. This task requires the rats to swim in a pool containing water made opaque and locate and climb onto a submerged platform. The time taken to accomplish this is known as the escape latency. Each rat was subjected to 24 trials over 3 days of the test period. Statistical analysis of the escape latency data revealed that the rats given 6 g/kg body weight of ethanol had significant deficits in their spatial learning ability compared with their control groups. However, there was no significant difference in spatial learning ability for the rats given either 2 or 4 g/kg body weight of ethanol compared with their respective gastrostomy or suckle control animals. We concluded that ethanol exposure greater than 4 g/kg over an 8-h period to 5-day-old rats is required for them to develop long-term deficits in spatial learning behaviour.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Severe cognitive and motor coordination deficits in tenascin-R-deficient mice.

The extracellular matrix molecule tenascin-R (TN-R), predominantly expressed in the central nervous system, has been implied in a variety of functions, e.g. during myelination, cerebellar neurite fasciculation and hippocampal long-term potentiation. In this study, we investigated in detail the impact of TN-R deficiency on the living animal by analyzing the behavior of TN-R-deficient mice. The general state, gross sensory functions, reflexes and motoric capabilities appeared normal. In contrast, motor coordination on the rota-rod was compromised in these mice, indicating a deficit in cerebellar functions. In the open field and the hole board, the mutants interact differently with their environment, probably due to differences in their exploratory behavior. TN-R-deficient mice were able to learn a reference memory task in the Morris water maze. In contrast to wild-type mice, the mutants displayed an alternative strategy; swimming around the pool using a stereotypical circling pattern, crossing all possible platform positions after relocation of the escape platform (reversal). These results, confirmed by relocating the platform in the center of the pool, suggest that TN-R-deficient mice may be impaired in constructing a goal-independent representation of space. In addition, a two-way active avoidance test (shuttle box) revealed a severe deficit in associative learning in TN-R-deficient mice. Our results support important functions of TN-R in vivo in the central nervous system, in particular in the cerebellum and the hippocampus.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Benign hot bath-related headache.

We describe three cases of women with hot bath-related headache who reported that their severe paroxysmal headache could be provoked by pouring hot water over themselves or by soaking in a hot bath. In one patient, the headache was also brought on by exposure to cold wind. Another patient had headaches after she dived into a pool and started swimming. Neurological examination, routine laboratory tests, electroencephalography, and brain imaging showed no abnormality in any of the patients. Hot bath-related headache is a benign headache unassociated with a structural lesion.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2003

Free residual chlorine in bathing water reduces the water-holding capacity of the stratum corneum in atopic skin.

Some patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) develop dry skin or exacerbated cutaneous inflammations with frequent swimming in public pools or after bathing. We examined the effects of residual chlorine in bathing water on the function of the stratum corneum (SC) in patients with AD and determined the lowest chlorine concentration showing an effect. In addition, we investigated the relationship between the free residual chlorine concentration in bathing water and the water-holding capacity of the SC in patients with AD. Twenty patients with AD and 10 normal control (NC) subjects were included in this study. The hydration status of the SC on the flexor surface of the forearm was measured with a corneometer before and after the subject's arms were immersed in tubs filled with comfortably hot water (40 degrees C) containing residual chlorine at concentrations of 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mg/L for 10 minutes in a room maintained at normal temperature (24 degrees C) and relative humidity (55%). The water-holding capacity of the SC after immersion was calculated by integration of the hydration status determined every 30 seconds over a period of 10 minutes. In the patients with AD, the average SC hydration status after immersion in comfortably hot water containing residual chlorine at 1.0 and 2.0 mg/L was significantly lower than that following immersion in water containing a negligible concentration of residual chlorine (i.e., less than 0.03 mg/L) (p<0.05). In the NC subjects, significant differences were observed only between the 2.0 mg/L and the negligible residual chlorine groups (p<0.05). The water-holding capacity of the SC was significantly decreased with a residual chlorine concentration of 0.5 mg/L or higher in the patients with AD (p<0.01). However, in the NC subjects, a significant decrease in water-holding capacity was observed only at a residual chlorine concentration of 2 mg/L (p<0.01). These results indicate, first, that the water-holding capacity of the SC in patients with AD is more sensitive to free residual chlorine exposure than that in NC subjects without AD. Second, these results suggest that free residual chlorine exposure in patients with AD may play a role in the development or exacerbation of AD.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Cold stimulation test and histamine release in primary acquired cold urticaria.

The patient was a 10-year-old boy who complained of urticaria upon exposure to cold air and after swimming in the pool. He also had seasonal asthma and wheezing after strenuous activities. To determine whether he had primary acquired cold urticaria, we performed a cold stimulation test twice. We likewise wanted to know whether a difference in response with regard to histamine release existed between blood samples taken from the challenged and the unchallenged sites. We obtained blood samples for histamine release initially at the site opposite the challenged forearm, and then on the same side on two separate occasions. We noted the appearance of constitutional signs and symptoms and correlated the time of their appearance with the result of histamine levels. The patient complained of pruritus and wheals appeared at the 5 minute in both tests. Results of plasma histamine release in the two measurements showed the highest releasability at 15 min. Our findings revealed that histamine is released systemically in response to cold stimulation regardless of the site where the blood sample was obtained.

Asthma↗
PubMed2004

Effect of circadian phase on performance of rats in the Morris water maze task.

The authors examined spatial working memory in the Morris water maze during the activity and rest periods of Wistar rats. Wheel-running activity was measured continuously as a marker of circadian phase. To minimize possible masking effects on performance, animals were placed in constant dim light the day before testing and tested in similar light conditions. Three experiments were run, each of them using animals varying in their previous experience in the water maze. Half of the animals of each experiment were tested 2 to 3 h after activity onset (active group), and the other half were tested 14 to 15 h after activity onset (inactive group). In the three experiments, a significant phase effect was observed in the animals' performance in the water maze; animals tested in the active phase showed steeper acquisition curves. These phase effects on performance are due to the animals' search pattern and not to a better acquisition and maintenance of spatial information; rats tested in the inactive phase found the platform faster on the first trial of the test, when the information on the location of the platform had not been presented to the animals. This effect vanished as the amount of training in the pool increased. Finally, swimming speed also showed a temporal effect, suggesting the existence of a phase effect for motivation to escape from the water; rats tested during their inactive phase tended to swim faster. All together, the data suggest a modulating effect of the biological clock on performance in the water maze, particularly when the animals are less experienced.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Balneotherapy in the treatment of subjective symptoms of lumbar syndrome].

INTRODUCTION: Chronic low back pain is a degenerative rheumatic disease and is characterized by various symptoms and clinical signs. BALNEOTHERAPY: Balneotherapy represents a therapy by various hot or warm baths in natural mineral waters of specific physical and chemical characteristics. When used externally, they have mechanical, chemical and thermic effects. Balneotherapy of lumbar syndrome includes: individual baths, swimming in the pool, hydrokinesitherapy, underwater massage, underwater extension, mud therapy, mud baths. The therapy should be closely monitored for optimal efficacy and it is necessary to examine: functional status of the lumbosacral region, general functional status (level of activity), lower extremities, pain measurement, use of non-steroid antirheumatic and analgesic agents. In order to follow-up the effects of therapy and establish the prognosis it is important to perform: detailed anamnesis, anthropometric measurements, socio-epidemiological research, clinical examinations. CONCLUSION: Lumbar syndrome is usually caused by a degenerative disease of the spinal column. More than 25% of people under 45 years of age are unable to work due to chronic low back pain. That is why preventive measures, prompt diagnosis and adequate therapy are of utmost importance.

Balneology↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Cryptosporidiosis: an emerging, highly infectious threat.

Cryptosporidium parvum, a leading cause of persistent diarrhea in developing countries, is a major threat to the U.S. water supply. Able to infect with as few as 30 microscopic oocysts, Cryptosporidium is found in untreated surface water, as well as in swimming and wade pools, day-care centers, and hospitals. The organism can cause illnesses lasting longer than 1 to 2 weeks in previously healthy persons or indefinitely in immunocompromised patients; furthermore, in young children in developing countries, cryptosporidiosis predisposes to substantially increased diarrheal illnesses. Recent increased awareness of the threat of cryptosporidiosis should improve detection in patients with diarrhea. New methods such as those using polymerase chain reaction may help with detection of Cryptosporidium in water supplies or in asymptomatic carriers. Although treatment is very limited, new approaches that may reduce secretion or enhance repair of the damaged intestinal mucosa are under study.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗
PubMed1999

Complex behavioral strategy and reversal learning in the water maze without NMDA receptor-dependent long-term potentiation.

Successful performance of the water maze task requires that rats learn complex behavioral strategies for swimming in a pool of water, searching for and interacting with a hidden platform before its spatial location can be learned. To evaluate whether NMDA receptor-dependent long-term potentiation (NMDA-LTP) is required for learning the required behavioral strategies, rats with NMDA-LTP blocked by systemic pharmacological treatment were trained in the behavioral strategies using simplified and stepwise training methods. Despite the blockade of NMDA-LTP in the dentate gyrus and hippocampal area CA1, rats learned the required behavioral strategies and used them to learn both initial and reversed platform locations. This is the first evaluation of the role of NMDA-LTP specifically in behavioral strategy learning. Although hippocampal NMDA-LTP might contribute to the water maze task, this form of LTP is not essential for learning complex behavioral strategies or multiple hidden platform locations.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Development of virtual environment for treating acrophobia.

Virtual Reality (VR) is a new technology that makes humans communicate with computer. It allows the user to see, hear, feel and interact in a three-dimensional virtual world created graphically. Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT), based on this sophisticated technology, has been recently used in the treatment of subjects diagnosed with acrophobia, a disorder that is characterized by marked anxiety upon exposure to heights, avoidance of heights, and a resulting interference in functioning. Conventional virtual reality system for the treatment of acrophobia has a limitation in scope that it is based on over-costly devices or somewhat unrealistic graphic scene. The goal of this study was to develop a inexpensive and more realistic virtual environment for the exposure therapy of acrophobia. We constructed two types virtual environment. One is constituted a bungee-jump tower in the middle of a city. It includes the open lift surrounded by props beside tower that allowed the patient to feel sense of heights. Another is composed of diving boards which have various heights. It provides a view of a lower diving board and people swimming in the pool to serve the patient stimuli upon exposure to heights.

Altitude↗
PubMed2001

[Two cases of elderly patients with ruptured AVM with contrast medium extravasation during cerebral angiography].

Two cases are reported of elderly patients who experienced intracranial extravasation of contrast medium (CM) during carotid angiography (CAG) for ruptured cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVM). The first patient, an 87-year-old male with no history of hypertension, was admitted immediately following a loss of consciousness after swimming in a pool. CT scan revealed a large intracranial hematoma in the left frontal lobe. CAG performed 1 hour after his arrival revealed a small AVM, fed by the left anterior cerebral artery with concomitant extravasation of CM. The patient's condition subsequently deteriorated and he died the following day. The second patient, a 71-year-old female, was admitted to our hospital in a comatose state after complaining of a severe headache. CT scan revealed a right parietal lobe hemorrhage extending into the ventricles. CAG was performed and demonstrated a small AVM in the right parietal lobe with extravasation of CM. Following emergency removal of the hematoma and AVM, the patient regained consciousness although some motor deficits persisted. A literature review revealed that only 6 cases of CM extravasation with ruptured AVM have been previously reported. The 4 previous cases involved patients 9, 15, 33 and 66-year-old, the younger three of which had a good outcome. The patients reported here were much older, and had a much less favorable outcome. Thus, AVM with CM extravasation may have a better prognosis in younger individuals.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Conserved spatial learning in cooled rats in spite of slowing of dentate field potentials.

Behaviorally induced brain temperature changes have significant effects on field potentials recorded in the hippocampal formation. All components of the field potential are slowed during cooling. Field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (f-EPSPs) are often reduced, while the population spike is increased in this state. To investigate whether such synaptic alterations affect hippocampus-dependent learning, we have compared the effects of reduced brain temperature on dentate field potentials and spatial learning in a Morris water maze. Rats were implanted with thermistors in the brain. A subset of the rats received electrodes for field potential recording in the perforant path-granule cell synapses of the dentate gyrus. After recovery, the rats were cooled by swimming in a pool of water. This invariably led to a brain temperature reduction of several degrees centigrade and a delay of the extracellular response. In addition, the field potential changed as described above. The effect of these changes on spatial learning in a second pool, the water maze, was determined by first cooling and then reheating each rat to a given level of brain temperature prior to each spatial training session. In spite of marked changes in dentate field potentials, all rats trained at brain temperatures above 30 degrees C learned to find the submerged platform similarly well. The speed of acquisition and the final precision of search behavior were also similar in these rats. Only rats that had been cooled below 30 degrees C failed to locate the hidden target. These animals also showed clear evidence of motor impairment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Action Potentials↗
PubMed2004

Contribution of sex differences in the acute stress response to sex differences in water maze performance in the rat.

Male rats outperform females in spatial tasks, such as the water maze (WM). Female rats are known to have higher basal serum corticosterone (CORT) levels and to manifest a more rapid and stronger CORT response to novel stressors. Sex differences in stress responses to the handling and forced swimming in the WM task might contribute to the sex difference in WM performance. In Experiment 1, naive females were found to be impaired relative to naive males in swimming to a visible platform in a WM pool due to strongly thigmotaxic swimming by females. In Experiment 2, serum CORT, a physiological measure of stress, was highly elevated during and after WM training, with female > male values and strong inverse correlations between CORT and measures of WM performance in females. Familiarization with the WM pool and test procedures by strategies pretraining prior to spatial training reduced or eliminated the sex differences in the stress response and WM performance. In Experiment 3, adrenalectomy to eliminate the stress response eliminated sex differences in WM performance. Taken together, the results suggest that male and female rats may harbor brain circuitry that is equally capable of accurate spatial navigation and memory in the WM but which may be impaired to different degrees by the differential stress responses triggered by WM testing.

Adrenalectomy↗
PubMed2004

[Prevalence and risk factors for otomycosis treated in the hospital setting in Abidjan (Ivory Coast)].

Otomycosis is frequently encountered in tropical and subtropical zones. In Ivory Coast diagnosis of this disease is often based solely on the clinical symptoms. The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence, predisposing factors, and etiologic agents associated with otomycosis at the Treichville University Hospital Center in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Mycological examinations were performed on specimens obtained from 115 patients presenting with external otitis at the d'Oto-Rhino-Laryngology Department. Fungi-positive cultures were obtained in 49 patients for an overall otomycosis prevalence of 42.6 (95% Confidence Interval (CI), 34.4-52.2). Univariate analysis showed that the predisposing factors for otomycosis were frequent swimming in natural or artificial pools (Relative Risk (RR) 3.7; CI 1.7-8.1), daily ear cleaning (RR 3.5; CI 1.8-6.8) and excessive use of eardrops containing antibiotics and corticoids (RR = 9.3; IC95% = 4.3-20.1). The most common etiologic agents were Aspergillus flavus (20.4%), Candida albicans (16.3%), Candida parapsilosis (14.3%), and Aspergillus niger (12.2%). A combination of two agents was found in five cases. These data show that otomycosis is endemic in Ivory Coast. Management of otomycosis must include mycological examination for diagnosis as well as changing behavior patterns leading to infection.

Adolescent↗