Preterm rat survival is enhanced by gestational environmental enrichment.

Throughout the last decade, the estimated global human preterm birth rate was 10.6 %, with higher rates in Asia, South America, and Africa. Preterm individuals, even in adulthood, are more likely to develop cardiorespiratory, renal, and metabolic disorders. On the other hand, when experimental animals are housed in an enriched environment during gestation, the development of the progeny in utero is accelerated, compared to standard housing conditions. By terminating gestation one and a half days before parturition, we investigated whether environmental enrichment restricted to gestation may have an impact on progeny survival. Our results demonstrate that the gestational enriched environment tripled the rat´s offspring survival, which was associated with decreased expression of anxiety-like behaviors in the pregnant mother. Sex of the offspring was not a factor in determining survival. We discuss the effect of increased secretion of various trophic factors and hormones induced by the enriched environment on progeny survival.

Effect of a Hedonic Stimulus on the Sleep Architecture of Male Wistar Rats.

Objective Nocturnal animals forage and eat during the night and sleep during the day. When food is available only for a short period during the day, animals develop a catabolic state and exhibit locomotor behavior before accessing food, termed food anticipatory activity . Consequently, there is a disruption in the sleep pattern. The present study aimed to explore how anticipatory arousal emerges under circadian exposure to a palatable meal (PM) and disrupts sleep architecture. Materials and Methods Adult male Wistar rats were implanted with electrodes for continuous sleep recording and housed under a light/dark 12/12-hour cycle with free access to food and water. After basal recordings, the rats had access to a PM during the light period for eight days. Results The anticipatory arousal started on the third day. On the eighth day, we found an increase in wake time and a decrease in the non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREMS) and rapid eye movement sleep (REMS) times 45 minutes before the PM compared with the basal recordings. The REMS transitions (events from NREMS to REMS) showed a significant reduction during the light period of the eighth day of PM. In contrast, the number of NREMS transitions (events from wakefulness to NREMS) remained unchanged. Conclusion The results suggest that palatable food induces a motivational timing that leads the rat to wake by altering the sleep quota.

Neurobiology of Maternal Behavior in Nonhuman Mammals: Acceptance, Recognition, Motivation, and Rejection.

Among the different species of mammals, the expression of maternal behavior varies considerably, although the end points of nurturance and protection are the same. Females may display passive or active responses of acceptance, recognition, rejection/fear, or motivation to care for the offspring. Each type of response may indicate different levels of neural activation. Different natural stimuli can trigger the expression of maternal and paternal behavior in both pregnant or virgin females and males, such as hormone priming during pregnancy, vagino-cervical stimulation during parturition, mating, exposure to pups, previous experience, or environmental enrichment. Herein, we discuss how the olfactory pathways and the interconnections of the medial preoptic area (mPOA) with structures such as nucleus accumbens, ventral tegmental area, amygdala, and bed nucleus of stria terminalis mediate maternal behavior. We also discuss how the triggering stimuli activate oxytocin, vasopressin, dopamine, galanin, and opioids in neurocircuitries that mediate acceptance, recognition, maternal motivation, and rejection/fear.

Maternal Separation Modifies the Activity of Social Processing Brain Nuclei Upon Social Novelty Exposure.

Maternal separation has been shown to disrupt proper brain development and maturation, having profound consequences on the neuroendocrine systems in charge of the stress response, and has been shown to induce behavioral and cognitive abnormalities. At the behavioral level, maternal separation has been shown to increase offensive play-fighting in juvenile individuals and reduce social interest in adulthood. Since most of the studies that have evaluated the consequences of maternal separation on social behavior have focused on behavioral analysis, there is a need for a further understanding of the neuronal mechanisms underlying the changes in social behavior induced by maternal separation. Therefore, the aim of the present research was to assess the long-term effects of maternal separation on social interaction behavior and to assess the activity of several brain regions involved in the processing of social cues and reward upon social novelty exposure, using c-Fos immunohistochemistry as a marker of neuronal activity. Male Wistar rats were subjected to 4 h maternal separation during the neonatal period, 9:00 h-13:00 h from postnatal day 1 to 21, and exposed to social novelty during adulthood. After social novelty exposure, brains were fixed and coronal sections of the medial amygdala, lateral septum (LS), paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, nucleus accumbens, and medial prefrontal cortex were obtained for c-Fos immunohistochemistry. Maternally separated rats spent less time investigating the novel peer, suggesting that maternal separation reduces social approach motivation. Furthermore, maternal separation reduced the number of c-Fos positive cells of the medial amygdala, paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, LS, nucleus accumbens, and medial prefrontal cortex upon social novelty exposure. These findings suggest that maternal separation can reduce the plastic capacity of several brain nuclei, which constitute a physiological basis for the emergence of behavioral disorders presented later in life reported to be linked to early life adversity.

Combined Effects of Methoprene and Metformin on Reproduction, Longevity, and Stress Resistance in Anastrepha ludens (Diptera: Tephritidae): Implications for the Sterile Insect Technique.

Survival and mating success are traits of quality in mass-reared sterile males. Thus, studying the trade-offs between these traits may help to improve process in the sterile insect technique (SIT). Here, we tested the hypothesis that modifying individual metabolism, especially of energetic reserves, may reduce the negative impact of an early reproduction on the survival of Anastrepha ludens flies. Appling metformin (a drug used to treat type II diabetes) that improves insects' survival, through dietary restriction mimicry, and methoprene (a juvenile hormone analogue) that accelerates the age to reproduction in insects, we explore the dynamic of this trade-off. We fed A. ludens flies with metformin, methoprene, or a mixture of metformin-methoprene for five consecutive days. We determined the effect of these treatments on the fecundity and fertility (number of eggs and percentage of hatching) of females, on sexual maturation and mating success of males, and on the survival of both sexes. The results showed that the acceleration in sexual maturation by the action of methoprene significantly reduced survival in both sexes of two different fly strains. However, adding metformin to the diet buffered this negative effect, without reducing the mating propensity compared with the males treated only with methoprene. The response to metformin was sex-specific since females responded to high doses of the substance, whereas males responded better to low doses. These results suggest that trade-offs between survival and reproduction do not necessarily depend on energy reserves but they are intrinsically related to metabolic regulation and hormonal control.

Maternal behavior, novelty confrontation, and subcortical c-Fos expression during lactation period are shaped by gestational environment.

The environmental context during gestation may modulate the postpartum variations in maternal behaviors observed within different animal species. Most of our experimental knowledge on this phenomenon and its physiological effects have been gained by confronting the pregnant mother with stressful situations, with the consensual results indicating a reduced maternal behavior and a hyper reactivity of stress-related neural paths. Here, in contrast, by exposing nulliparous rats strictly during pregnancy to a standard laboratory environment (STD) or a highly stimulating sensory and social environment (EE), we investigated the hypothesis that subjects frequently exposed to social stimuli and novel situations during pregnancy will show postpartum changes in subcortical brain areas' activity related to the processing of social stimuli and novelty, such that there will be modifications in maternal behavior. We found that EE mothers doubled the levels of licking and grooming, and active hovering over pups during the first postpartum week than STD dams, without a difference in the time of contact with the pups. Associated with these behaviors, EE dams showed increased c-Fos immunoreaction in hypothalamic nuclei and distinct responses in amygdalar nuclei, than STD dams. In the maternal defensive test, EE dams tripled the levels of aggressive behaviors of the STD rats. Additionally, in two different tests, EE mothers showed lower levels of postpartum anxiety-like behaviors when confronted with novel situations. Our results demonstrate that the activity of brain areas related to social behavior is adaptable by environmental circumstances experienced during gestation, presumably to prepare the progeny for these particular conditions.

Daily changes in GFAP expression in radial glia of the olfactory bulb in rabbit pups entrained to circadian feeding.

When food is restricted daily to a fixed time, animals show uncoupled molecular, physiological and behavioral circadian rhythms from those entrained by light and controlled by the suprachiasmatic nucleus. The loci of the food-entrainable oscillator and the mechanisms by which rhythms emerge are unclear. Using animals entrained to the light-dark cycle, recent studies indicate that astrocytes in the suprachiasmatic nucleus play a key role in the regulation of circadian rhythms. However, it is unknown whether astrocytic cells can be synchronized by circadian restricted feeding. Studying the olfactory bulb (OB) of rabbit pups entrained to daily feeding, we hypothesized that the expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and the morphology of GFAP-immunopositive cells change in synchrony with timing of feeding. By using pups fed at 1000 h or 2200 h, we found that GFAP protein expression in the OB changes with a nadir at feeding time and a peak 16 h after feeding. We also found that length of radial glia processes, the most abundant GFAP+ cell in the rabbit pup OB, shows a daily change also coupled to feeding time. These temporal changes of GFAP were expressed in anti-phase to the rhythms of locomotor activity and c-Fos immunoreactivity. The results indicate that GFAP expression and elongation-retraction of radial glia processes are coupled by feeding time and suggest that glia cells may play an important functional role in food entraining of the OB circadian oscillator.

Dietary tryptophan restriction in rats triggers astrocyte cytoskeletal hypertrophy in hippocampus and amygdala.

We have previously reported that dietary tryptophan (TRP) restriction in a rat crucial postnatal developmental stage induces depression-like behavior and alters dendritic spine density in CA1 pyramidal neurons and granule cells of the hippocampus. Due to astrocyte involvement in critical brain mechanisms, it seems worth to investigate possible adaptive changes in the glial population with TRP restriction. Experimental rats were fed with low TRP diet (20% of TRP level of the laboratory rat chow) from postnatal days 30-60. Antibody against glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), a principal intermediate filament in astrocytes, was used to evaluate cytoskeletal hypertrophy and glial proliferation. Our results showed an increase in size and branching of GFAP-immunoreactive (IR) cells in the dorsal hippocampus and amygdala, characteristics of an astrocytic activation. No significant differences were found regarding the number of GFAP-IR cells in both regions. These results indicate that dietary TRP restriction can induce astrocytic activation, hence, provide further evidences supporting the hypothesis that serotonin may also modulate glial morphology.

Metabolic activation of amygdala, lateral septum and accumbens circuits during food anticipatory behavior.

When food is restricted to a brief fixed period every day, animals show an increase in temperature, corticosterone concentration and locomotor activity for 2-3h before feeding time, termed food anticipatory activity. Mechanisms and neuroanatomical circuits responsible for food anticipatory activity remain unclear, and may involve both oscillators and networks related to temporal conditioning. Rabbit pups are nursed once-a-day so they represent a natural model of circadian food anticipatory activity. Food anticipatory behavior in pups may be associated with neural circuits that temporally anticipate feeding, while the nursing event may produce consummatory effects. Therefore, we used New Zealand white rabbit pups entrained to circadian feeding to investigate the hypothesis that structures related to reward expectation and conditioned emotional responses would show a metabolic rhythm anticipatory of the nursing event, different from that shown by structures related to reward delivery. Quantitative cytochrome oxidase histochemistry was used to measure regional brain metabolic activity at eight different times during the day. We found that neural metabolism peaked before nursing, during food anticipatory behavior, in nuclei of the extended amygdala (basolateral, medial and central nuclei, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis), lateral septum and accumbens core. After pups were fed, however, maximal metabolic activity was expressed in the accumbens shell, caudate, putamen and cortical amygdala. Neural and behavioral activation persisted when animals were fasted by two cycles, at the time of expected nursing. These findings suggest that metabolic activation of amygdala-septal-accumbens circuits involved in temporal conditioning may contribute to food anticipatory activity.

Rats subjected to extended L-tryptophan restriction during early postnatal stage exhibit anxious-depressive features and structural changes.

Serotonin transmission dysfunction has been suggested to play an important role in depression and anxiety. This study reports the results of a series of experiments in which rats were subjected to extended maize-based tortilla diets during early postnatal stages. This diet contains only approximately 20% of the L-tryptophan in normal diets of laboratory rodents. Compared with controls, experimental rats displayed a significant increase of immobility counts in the forced swimming test and exhibited anxiety-like behavior in the elevated plus maze test after 1 month of diet treatment. Low levels of serotonin contents were found in prefrontal cortex, striatum, hippocampus, and brainstem using high-performance liquid chromatography. Immunocytochemical reactions against 5-Bromo-2'-deoxyuridine revealed a significant decrease in the proliferation rate for the subgranular zone of dentate gyrus. c-Fos expression after the forced swimming test was found reduced in prefrontal cortex, dentate gyrus, CA1, and hilus of hippocampus and amygdala. Moreover, dendrite arbor atrophy and decreased spine density were evident in Golgi-Cox-impregnated CA1 pyramidal neurons. Abnormal dendrite swelling in dentate gyrus granule cells was also observed. These findings indicate an involvement of hyposerotoninergia in emotional disturbance produced by L-tryptophan restriction during critical developmental stages and suggest that neuroplasticity changes might underlie these changes.

Conditioned same-sex partner preference in male rats is facilitated by oxytocin and dopamine: effect on sexually dimorphic brain nuclei.

Conditioned same-sex partner preference can develop in male rats that undergo cohabitation under the effects of quinpirole (QNP, D2 agonist). Herein, we assessed the development of conditioned same-sex social/sexual preference in males that received either nothing, saline, QNP, oxytocin (OT), or QNP+OT during cohabitation with another male (+) or single-caged (-). This resulted in the following groups: (1) Intact-, (2) Saline+, (3) QNP-, (4) OT-, (5) QNP+, (6) OT+ and (7) QNP/OT+. Cohabitation occurred during 24h in a clean cage with a male partner that bore almond scent on the back as conditioned stimulus. This was repeated every 4 days for a total of three trials. Social and sexual preference were assessed four days after the last conditioning trial in a drug-free test in which experimental males chose between the scented familiar male and a novel sexually receptive female. Results showed that males from groups Intact-, Saline+, QNP- and OT- displayed a clear preference for the female (opposite-sex), whereas groups QNP+, OT+ and QNP/OT+ displayed socio/sexual preference for the male partner (same-sex). In Experiment 2, the brains were processed for Nissl dye and the area size of two sexually dimorphic nuclei (SDN-POA and SON) was compared between groups. Males from groups OT-, OT+ and QNP/OT+ expressed a smaller SDN-POA and groups QNP+ and QNP/OT+ expressed a larger SON. Accordingly, conditioned same-sex social/sexual partner preference can develop during cohabitation under enhanced D2 or OT activity but such preference does not depend on the area size of those sexually dimorphic nuclei.

Enriched environment restricted to gestation accelerates the development of sensory and motor circuits in the rat pup.

The effects of stimulating environments on the neural plasticity of the adult brain have been well explored; however, how an enriched environment (EE) affects the mother-fetus interaction is poorly understood. We hypothesized that an enriched environment restricted to pregnancy will succeed in accelerating the development of sensory and motor circuits in the offspring. Pregnant Wistar rats were maintained either under a standard condition - two animals per standard cage- or an enriched environment - eight subjects in larger cages with different physical configurations-. After birth, litters from both groups (n=16 per group) were cross-fostered with mothers that were simultaneously maintained under standard environment during pregnancy. Sensory and motor development were studied in the pups of both groups with a battery of reflex and physical tests. Auditory and gait reflexes appeared two days earlier in the offspring of EE rats as compared to control subjects (p<0.05). In addition, EE pups displayed a better performance in righting reflex, inclined board and geotaxis tests (p<0.05). Differences were found even three weeks after birth. We conclude that EE limited to the phase of pregnancy stimulates the development of pups inutero so that they are born with a higher grade of development.

Circadian feeding entrains anticipatory metabolic activity in piriform cortex and olfactory tubercle, but not in suprachiasmatic nucleus.

Animals maintained under conditions of food-availability restricted to a specific period of the day show molecular and physiological circadian rhythms and increase their locomotor activity 2-3h prior to the next scheduled feeding, called food anticipatory activity (FAA). Although the anatomical substrates and underlying mechanisms of the food-entrainable oscillator are not well understood, experimental evidence indicates that it involves multiple structures and systems. Using rabbit pups entrained to circadian nursing as a natural model of food restriction, we hypothesized that the anterior piriform cortex (APCx) and the olfactory tubercle (OTu) are activated during nursing-associated FAA. Two groups of litters were entrained to one of two different nursing times. At postnatal day 7, when litters showed clear FAA, pups from each litter were euthanized at nursing time, or 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, 16 or 20h later. Neural metabolic activities of the APCx, OTu, olfactory bulb (OB) and suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) were assessed by cytochrome oxidase histochemistry. Additionally, two fasted groups were nurse-deprived for two cycles before being euthanized at postnatal day 9. In nursed pups, metabolic activity of APCx, OTu and OB increased during FAA and after feeding, independently of the geographical time. Metabolic activity in SCN was not affected by nursing schedule. Given that APCx and OTu are in a key network position to integrate temporal odor signals with body energetic state, brain arousal and reward mechanisms, we suggest that these structures could be an important part of the conditioned oscillatory mechanism that leads to food entrainment.

Enriched environment attenuates nicotine self-administration and induces changes in ΔFosB expression in the rat prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens.

Environment enrichment conditions have important consequences on subsequent vulnerability to drugs of abuse. The present work examined whether exposure to an enriched environment (EE) decreases oral self-consumption of nicotine. Wistar rats were housed either in a standard environment (SE, four rats per standard cage) or in an EE during 60 days after weaning. EE consisted of eight animals housed in larger cages containing a variety of objects such as boxes, toys, and burrowing material that were changed three times a week. After this period, animals were exposed to nicotine for 3 weeks, where animals chose freely between water and a nicotine solution (0.006% in water). Fluid consumption was evaluated on a daily basis. ΔFosB immunohistochemistry in the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens was also performed. Rats of the EE group consumed less nicotine solution (0.25±0.04 mg/kg/day) than SE rats (0.54±0.05 mg/kg/day). EE increased the number of ΔFos-immunoreactive (ΔFos-ir) cells in the nucleus accumbens core and shell and in the prefrontal cortex, compared with animals in the standard condition. However, rats exposed to nicotine in the SE showed higher ΔFos-ir cells in the nucleus accumbens core and shell than nonexposed rats. Nicotine consumption did not modify ΔFos-ir cells in these brain areas in EE animals. These results support the idea of a possible protective effect of the EE on reward sensitivity and the development of an addictive behavior to nicotine.

Dopamine receptor dysregulation in hippocampus of aged rats underlies chronic pulsatile L-Dopa treatment induced cognitive and emotional alterations.

L-Dopa is the major symptomatic therapy for Parkinson's disease, which commonly occurs in elderly patients. However, the effects of chronic use on mood and cognition in old subjects remain elusive. In order to compare the effects of a chronic pulsatile L-Dopa treatment on emotional and cognitive functions in young (3 months) and old (18 months) intact rats, an L-Dopa/carbidopa treatment was administered every 12 h over 4 weeks. Rats were assessed for behavioural despair (repeated forced swimming test, RFST), anhedonia (sucrose preference test, SPT) and spatial learning (Morris water maze, MWM) in the late phase of treatment (T). Neuronal expression of Fos in the hippocampus at the early and late phases of T, as well as after MWM was studied. The density and ratio of dopamine D5r, D3r and D2r receptors were also evaluated in the hippocampus using immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy. Young rats showed similar patterns during behavioural tests, whereas aged treated rats showed increased immobility counts in RFST, diminished sucrose liquid intake in SPT, and spatial learning impairment during MWM. Fos expression was significantly blunted in the aged treated group after MWM. The density of D5r, D3r and D2r was increased in both aged groups. The treatment reduced the ratio of D5r/D3r and D5r/D2r in both groups. Moreover, aged treated subjects had significant lower values of D5r/D3r and higher values of D5r/D2r when compared with young treated subjects. These results indicate that chronic L-Dopa treatment in itself could trigger emotional and cognitive dysfunctions in elderly subjects through dopamine receptor dysregulation.

Food Security in Acajete, Veracruz / Seguridad alimentaria en Acajete, Veracruz / Segurança alimentar em Acajete, Veracruz / Sécurité alimentaire à Acajete, Veracruz

Abstract Objective: To determine the dietary diversity, the level of food security and its relationship with living conditions in families in Acajete, Veracruz. Materials and methods: Proportional stratified sampling, with 95% confidence, 5% error, and 50% response distribution. Household selection was made randomly, resulting in 211 dwellings as a sample. Results: Marginal food security with 40.3% (n = 85), followed by 32.7% of families with food security (n = 69). Regarding the nutritional status of surveyed people, the mode and median was normal weight (57.7%), overweight and obese 25.5% and underweight 16.8%. 33.6% of the people consume three food groups throughout the day, 27.5% four groups, 15.2% two groups, and the same percentage five food groups. There were significant differences (p=0.039) between the education level of the respondents in relation to their food security status, where 84.2% of the illiterate population has some degree of food insecurity, and 15.8% are in Food security. Conclusions: The housing characteristics considered in this study are not a determinant risk factor for Food Insecurity; no significant differences were found with overcrowding (p=0.239), housing ownership (p=0.987); and an unsafe source of drinking water (p = 0.973). The average scores of the Mexican Food Security Survey (EMSA) were statistically significant, therefore it is observed that lower food diversity results in lower food security. The inhabitants of Acajete who are in low or very low food security, only feed on two food groups: cereals or tubers; and legumes, nuts or seeds. When there is marginal food security add meat or fish.

Resumen Objetivo: Determinar la diversidad alimentaria, el nivel de la seguridad alimentaria y su relación con las condiciones de vida en familias en la localidad de Acajete, Veracruz. Materiales y métodos: Muestreo estratificado proporcional, con una confianza del 95%, un error del 5%, y un 50% de distribución de respuesta. La selección de los hogares se realizó de manera aleatoria, resultando 211 viviendas como muestra. Resultados: Inseguridad alimentaria leve con un 40.3% (n=85), seguido del 32.7% de las familias con seguridad alimentaria (n=69). Respecto al estado nutricio de las personas encuestadas, la moda y mediana fue de normopeso (57.7%), en sobrepeso y obesidad 25.5% y en bajo peso 16.8%. El 33.6% de los encuestados consume tres grupos de alimentos durante todo el día, 27.5% cuatro grupos, 15.2% dos grupos, y con el mismo porcentaje cinco grupos de alimentos. Se encontraron diferencias significativas (p=0.039) entre el nivel de educación de los encuestados en relación con su estado de seguridad alimentaria, donde el 84.2% de la población analfabeta cursa con algún grado de inseguridad alimentaria, y el 15.8% se encuentra en seguridad alimentaria. Conclusiones: Las características de la vivienda que se consideraron en este estudio no son un factor de riesgo determinante para la Inseguridad Alimentaria, no se encontraron diferencias significativas con el hacinamiento (p=0.239), propiedad de la vivienda (p=0.987); y fuente insegura de agua para beber (p=0.973). Los puntajes promedio de la Encuesta Mexicana para la Seguridad Alimentaria resultaron estadísticamente significativos, por consiguiente se observa que una menor diversidad de alimentos resulta en mayor inseguridad alimentaria. Las familias en Inseguridad Alimentaria Moderada o Severa, se alimentan únicamente de dos grupos de alimentos: cereales o tubérculos; y de legumbres. Cuando hay inseguridad alimentaria leve agregan la carne o el pescado.

Resumo Objetivo: Determinar a diversidade alimentar, o nivel de segurança alimentar e sua relação com as condições de vida das familias na cidade de Acajete, Veracruz. Materiais e métodos: Amostragem estratificada proporcional, com uma confiaba de 95%, um erro de 5%, e distribuição de resposta de 50%. A selecção dos agregados foi realizada de forma aleatória, resultando invólucro 211, como mostrado. Resultados: Insegurança aliemtar leve, com 40,3% (n = 85), seguido por 32,7% das familias com seguraba alimentar (n = 69). Com relação ao estado nutricional dos entrevistados, moda e mediana foi de peso normal (57,7%) em sobrepeso e obesidade de 25,5% e 16,8% abaixo do peso. 33,6% dos encuestados consumem três grupos de alimentos ao longo do dia, quatro grupos de 27,5%, 15,2% dois grupos, e a mesma percentagem de cinco grupos de alimentos. Diferenças significativas (p = 0,039) entre o nivel de escolaridade dos entrevistados sobre sua situação de segurança alimentar, onde 84,2% da população analfabeta apresenta com algum grau de insegurançã alimentar foram encontrados, e 15,8% estão em segurança alimentar. Conclusões: As características da habitação que foram considerados neste estudo não são um factor determinante para o risco de segurança alimentar, não há diferenças significativas com a superlotação (p = 0,239), a posse (p = 0,987) que foram encontrados; e a fonte de água não potável (p = 0,973). Os escores médios do Inquérito de Segurança Alimentar mexicano foram estatisticamente significativos, portanto, mostra que menos diversidade de alimentos resulta em maior insegurança alimentar. Familias insegura alimentar moderada ou grave, são alimentados apenas dois grupos de alimentos: cereais ou de tubérculos; e leguminosas. Quando há ligeira insegurança alimentar, eles adicionam carne ou peixe.

Résumé Objectif: Déterminer la diversité et le niveau de sécurité alimentaire, ainsi que leur relation avec les conditions de vie de familles résidant a Acajete, Veracruz. Matériaux et méthode: Échantillonnage stratifié proportionnel, avec un intervalle de confiance de 95%, une marge d'erreur de 5% et 50% de distribution des réponses. La sélection des ménages a été faite au hasard et a donné lieu a un échantillon de 211 logements. Résultats: 40.3% des familles (n=85) ont indiqué une insécurité alimentaire légére et 32.7% (n = 69) une sécurité alimentaire. En ce qui concerne l'état nutritionnel, 57% des personnes interrogées ont présenté un poids normal (valeur du mode et la médiane), 25,5% surpoids ou obésité 25,5% et 16,8% une insuffisance pondérale. 33,6% des personnes interrogées consomment trois groupes alimentaires dans la journée, 27,5% quatre groupes, 15,2% deux groupes, et 15,2% également cinq groupes. Des différences significatives (p = 0,039) de niveau d'éducation ont été trouvées en relation au statut de sécurité alimentaire: 84,2% des analphabétes expérimentent un certain degré d'insécurité alimentaire et 15,8% sont en sécurité alimentaire. Conclusions: Les caractéristiques du logement prises en compte dans cette étude ne sont pas un facteur de risque déterminant d'insécurité alimentaire. Aucune différence significative n'a été observée en fonction du surpeuplement (p = 0,239), de la propriété du logement (p = 0,987); et de l'existence d'une source non fiable d'eau pour boire (p = 0,973). Les valeurs moyennes de la Encuesta Mexicana para la Seguridad Alimentaria (EMSA) se sont révélés statistiquement significatifs ; on a ainsi observé qu'une moindre diversité alimentaire entrame une insécurité alimentaire majeure. Les familles en situation d'insécurité alimentaire modérée ou sévére ne se nourrissent que de deux groupes d'aliments: céréales et tubercules, et légumineuses. Dans les cas d'insécurité alimentaire légére, a cela s'ajoute de la viande ou du poisson.

Glial activation in a pilocarpine rat model for epileptogenesis: a morphometric and quantitative analysis.

In this work we examined the correlation between long-term glial resilience and slow epileptogenesis using the pilocarpine-insult rat model. We assessed, quantitatively and morphometrically, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) expression and cell densities in hippocampus in a dose-response manner 2, 4 and 8 weeks after the pilocarpine insult. GFAP changes were correlated with observations on microglial activation. We used a commonly applied epileptogenic pilocarpine dose (380mg/kg) and its fractions of 1/10, 1/4 and 1/2. GFAP expression evaluated at 2 weeks revealed dose-dependent cytoskeletal hypertrophy and loss of GFAP+ cell densities in hippocampus. At 4-week timepoint, recoveries of the above mentioned parameters were observed in all groups, except for the full dose group in which the astrocytic hypertrophy reached the highest level, while its density dropped to the lowest level. Strong and localized microgliosis revealed by CD11b immunoreactivity was observed in hilus in the full dose group at 2- and 4-, persisting at 8-week timepoints. Through changing pattern analysis, we conclude that the loss of astroglial resilience is likely to be a determining factor for spontaneous recurrent seizure onset.

Astrogliosis is temporally correlated with enhanced neurogenesis in adult rat hippocampus following a glucoprivic insult.

2-Deoxy-d-glucose (2-DG) administration causes transient depletion of glucose derivates and ATP. Hence, it can be used in a model system to study the effects of a mild glycoprivic brain insult mimicking transient hypoglycemia, which often occurs when insulin or oral hypoglycemic agents are administered for diabetes control. In the present study, the effect of a single 2-DG application (500mg/kg, a clinically applicable dose) on glial reactivity and neurogenesis in adult rat hippocampus was examined, as well as a possible temporal correlation between these two phenomena. Post-insult (PI) glial reactivity time course was assessed by immunoreaction against glial-fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) during the following 5 consecutive days. A clear increase of GFAP immunoreactivity in hilus was observed from 48 to 96h PI. Moreover, enhanced labeling of long radial processes in the granule cell layer adjacent to hilus was evidenced. On the other hand, a transient increase of progenitor cell proliferation was detected in the subgranular zone, prominently at 48h PI, coinciding with the temporal peak of glial activation. This increase resulted in an augment of neuroblasts double labeled with 5-bromo-deoxyuridine (BrdU) and with double cortin (DCX) at day 7 PI. Around half of these cells survived 28 days showing matured neuronal phenotype double labeled by BrdU and a neuronal specific nuclear protein marker (NeuN). These findings suggest that a transient neuroglycoprivic state exerts a short-term effect on glial activation that possibly triggers a long-term effect on neurogenesis in hippocampus.

Fullerene C60 and ascorbic acid protect cultured chromaffin cells against levodopa toxicity.

Adrenal chromaffin cell (ACC) transplants, alone or combined with levodopa treatment, were used in attempted therapy for Parkinson's disease (PD). In a previous study, we demonstrated that levodopa caused chromaffin cell death either by necrosis or by apoptosis in cell culture. Here we report the beneficial effect of a water-soluble derivative of fullerene C(60) (a novel molecule with potent antioxidant properties) and of ascorbic acid when applied to chromaffin cell cultures exposed to levodopa. Both antioxidants remarkably increase the ACC survival and prevent cell death, including apoptosis. Although ACC transplants are not currently considered as an option for PD treatment, these observations should help in exploring the possibilities of preventing the neurotoxicity generated by levodopa and in envisaging new strategies for PD treatment by combining the clinical use of levodopa and potent antioxidants. Chemical properties of fullerene related to biological uses are discussed.