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Laboratory of neurobiology |
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Laboratory of neurobiology |
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acad. Ivan Pavlov
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phone: (812) 2349937 The Laboratory of neurobiology of the brain integrative functions has been studying individual peculiarities of cognitive functions in ontogenesis, particularly exploratory behavior, and of the factors influencing its manifestations last decade. Our researches showed social isolation in early ontogenesis impairs the emotional-motivation sphere, motor behavior, stereotypy, lateralization also changing animal reactivity to various drugs. The investigation of the dependence of organization of adaptive activity of adult posterity on the character of impaired interactions with the mother in early ontogenesis resulted in a conclusion of a differentiated role of medium characteristics at different terms of postnatal development for the formation of adequate behavior. In the recent years the Laboratory has been engaged in a new direction of investigations at the joint of the physiology of higher nervous activity and neuroimmunophysiology - the investigation of physiological mechanisms of "sickness behavior" - non-specific reaction of the brain arising in response to activation of the immune system in patients with bacterial, viral infection, ischemia, hypoxia, traumas and other pathological conditions.
These data suggest that cytokines which initially were regarded as immunopeptides transmit the signal of immune cell activation into the brain reorganize the perception and behavior of the individual, and subordinate current functions to the strategic task of survival. Future studies include investigations of the molecular-cellular mechanisms of impairments of cognitive functions (memory, exploratory preferences, perception) arising as a result of the elevated level of cytokines in blood in critical periods of early postnatal ontogenesis in experimental animals and in children with a lower level of attention. Modelling the processes of demyelination, such as multiple sclerosis in animals by experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) revealed changes in the level of circulating IL-10 in rats with different severity of the disease, also showing its prognostic role. Differences in the dynamics of expression of mRNA of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in the immune and nervous systems in the process of the development of EAE. The investigations have shown the involvement of glutamate and its receptors in pathogenesis of autoimmune demyelinating diseases that substantiated expedience of using selective blockers Amantadine and Memantine of glutamate for treatment of demyelinating processes in the CNS.
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A detailed description has been made of the
molecular-cellular mechanisms underlying the reduced psychomotor activity,
lowered eating and exploratory motivation accompanying the disease. The
role of immune factors in impairments of the formation of behavior in
early ontogenesis has been proved. The experiments have shown that the
administration of proinflammatory cytokines to animals in critical periods
of early postnatal ontogenesis causes behavioral and neuromediators
changes similar to the syndrome of deficient attention in children - brain
dysfunction widely spread nowadays.
The laboratory uses original models of hierarchical
interrelations in the rodent colony, the situations of psychogenic stress
imitating a motivation conflict really existing in nature, and a model of
acute psychogenic stress in relationships between a predator and its
victim. A combination of ethological investigations with the present-day
methods of molecular biology allows investigations of neurobiological
correlates of polar forms of behavior, coming nearer to insight into the
mechanisms of predisposition to the appearance of a pathology of the
psycho-emotional sphere Investigation of the role of regulatory peptides
has shown that neuropeptide galanin involved in control of the
excitability level in the CNS, reducing reactions in intensive psychogenic
stresses, alleviating their anxiogenic effect.