ROLE OF THE LOCUS CERULEUS IN SENSORIMOTOR CORTEX INJURY

目前提案的长期目标旨在提供合理的 现有康复治疗中使用的药物治疗 促进丧失的行为能力恢复的程序。 最近 有证据表明，儿茶酚胺的激动剂和拮抗剂， 特别是去甲肾上腺素，在加速， 延缓或逆转皮质损伤后的功能恢复。 然而，直接测试去甲肾上腺素能神经元的参与程度， 系统，即，蓝斑缺乏。 现时的建议 通过将NE局部输注到不同的脑中来解决这个问题 单侧感觉运动皮层损伤后的终末区域 蓝斑的视野投射部位。 为了进一步证实 蓝斑的作用，6-OHOA损伤的这一核将被诱导 在感觉运动皮层损伤和随后的局部微量输注之前 的NE。 这些治疗的效果将与程度相关 行为功能的恢复。

The long term objectives of the current proposal aim at providing rational pharmacological therapies to be used within existing rehabilitation procedures to promote recovery of lost behavioral capacity. Recent evidence has indicated that agonists and antagonists of catecholamines, in particular norepinephrine, pay an important role in accelerating, retarding, or reversing recovery of function following cortical injury. However, a direct test of the extent of involvement of the noradrenergic system, i.e., the locus ceruleus, is lacking. The present proposal addresses this problem by localized infusions of NE into various brain areas following a unilateral sensorimotor cortex injury that are terminal field projection sites of the locus ceruleus. To further substantiate the role of the locus ceruleus, 6-OHOA lesions of this nucleus will be induced prior to sensorimotor cortex injury and subsequent localized microinfusions of NE. The effect of these treatments will be correlated with the extent of recovery of behavioral function.