The neurocircuitries that constitute the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuit provide a framework for bridging gaps between neuroscience and executive function in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but it has been difficult to identify the mechanisms for regulating emotional problems from the understanding of ADHD comorbidity with disruptive behavior disorders (DBD). Research based on "cool" and "hot" executive functional theory and the dual pathway models, which are thought of as applied response inhibition and delay aversion, respectively, within the neuropsychological view of ADHD, has shed light on emotional responding before and after decontextualized stimuli, while CSTC circuit-related domains have been suggested to explain the different emotional symptoms of ADHD with or without comorbid DBD. This review discusses the role of abnormal connections in each CSTC circuit, especially in the emotion circuit, which may be responsible for targeted executive dysfunction at the neuroscience level. Thus, the two major domains - abstract thinking (cool) and emotional trait (hot) - trigger the mechanism of onset of ADHD.
Animals ; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; complications ; pathology ; psychology ; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders ; complications ; pathology ; psychology ; Brain ; physiopathology ; Cerebral Cortex ; physiopathology ; Corpus Striatum ; physiopathology ; Emotions ; Humans ; Inhibition (Psychology) ; Neuropsychological Tests ; Thalamus ; physiopathology

OBJECTIVETo explore the morphometric abnormalities of brain gray matter (GM) in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP).

METHODSThirty patients with CLBP and 30 healthy individuals were enrolled and examined with a 3.0 T magnetic resonance (MR) scanner. High-resolution T1 structural MR data were acquired and data analysis was performed using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) in FMRIB Software Library. The morphological differences were compared between the two groups.

RESULTSs Compared with the healthy control subjects, patients with CLBP showed decreased GM volumes in several brain cortical areas including the bilateral superior frontal gyrus, right frontal pole, left insular cortex, left middle and left inferior temporal gyrus (P<0.05, after TFCE correction). Increased GM volumes were found in the patients in the subcortical structures including the left thalamus, bilateral putamen, bilateral nucleus accumben and right caudate nucleus (P<0.05, after TFCE correction).

CONCLUSIONPatients with CLBP have different patterns of GM abnormalities in different brain regions, characterized by reduced GM volume in cerebral cortical regions and increased GM volume in the subcortical nuclei. Such changes might be associated with the maladaptation of the brain in chronic pain state.

Cerebral Cortex ; Frontal Lobe ; Gray Matter ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Humans ; Low Back Pain ; physiopathology ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Temporal Lobe ; Thalamus

As a widely recognized public health problem as well as prevalent and challenging to modern society, chronic insomnia is involved in wide brain areas (such as prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, amygdala, hippocampus, and thalamus) and emotion-cognition neuro-circuit. It is closely related to the conditioned hyperarousal and the increased information process and/or the impaired inhibitory ability to withdraw from awaking state. Thus, some specific abnormal mode may exist in the emotion-cognition circuit, which is associated with abnormal cognition load, such as repeated retrieval/intrusion of aversive memories during night. Studies through the combination of multiple techniques including psychology, electrophysiology and neuroimaging methods are needed to further enhance the understanding of chronic insomnia.
Brain ; physiopathology ; Electrophysiology ; Gyrus Cinguli ; Hippocampus ; Humans ; Neuroimaging ; Prefrontal Cortex ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders ; pathology ; Thalamus

BACKGROUNDReports on mood regulating circuit (MRC) indicated different activities between depressed patients and healthy controls. The functional networks based on MRC have not been described in major depression disorder (MDD). Both the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and thalamus are all the key regions of MRC. This study was to investigate the two functional networks related to ACC and thalamus in MDD.

METHODSSixteen patients with MDD on first episode which never got any medication and sixteen matched health controls were scanned by 3.0 T functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during resting-state. The pregenual anterior cingulate cortex (pgACC) was used as seed region to construct the functional network by cortex section. The thalamus was used as seed region to construct the functional network by limbic section. Paired-t tests between-groups were performed for the seed-target correlations based on the individual fisher z-transformed correlation maps by SPM2.

RESULTSDepressed subjects exhibited significantly great functional connectivity (FC) between pgACC and the parahippocampus gyrus in one cluster (size 923) including left parahippocampus gyrus (-21, -49, 7), left parietal lobe (-3, -46, 52) and left frontal lobe (-27, -46, 28). The one cluster (size 962) of increased FC on thalamus network overlapped the precuneus near to right parietal lobe (9, -52, 46) and right cingulate gyrus (15, -43, 43) in health controls.

CONCLUSIONSAbnormal functional networks exist in earlier manifestation of MDD related to MRC by both cortex and limbic sections. The increased functional connectivity of pgACC and decreased functional connectivity of thalamus is mainly involved in bias mood processing and cognition.

Adult ; Depressive Disorder, Major ; physiopathology ; Female ; Gyrus Cinguli ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; methods ; Male ; Thalamus ; physiopathology

OBJECTIVE: To examine the changes of metabolites in the bilateral thalamus of patients with secondarily generalized tonic-clonic seizure (SGTCS) and to explore the mechanism of SGTCS. METHODS: Thirty patients with SGTCS (epilepsy group) and 30 matched healthy controls (control group) were examined by 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS). The levels of N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), choline-containing compounds (Cho), creatine phosphocreatine (Cr-PCr), and myo-inositol (mI) of the bilateral thalamus were measured in both the epilepsy group and the control group. The ratios of NAA/Cr-PCr, NAA/(Cr-PCr+Cho), Cho/Cr-PCr and mI/Cr-PCr were compared and analyzed in the 2 groups. RESULTS: The ratios of NAA/Cr-PCr, and NAA/(Cr-PCr+Cho)(1.7074 ± 0.2214; 0.9333 ± 0.2173) in the left thalamus in the epilepsy group were significantly lower than those in the control group(1.8834 ±0.2093; 1.1243 ±0.2447)(P<0.05). The ratios of NAA/Cr-PCr, and NAA/(Cr- PCr+Cho) (1.7472 ±0.2439; 0.9165 ±0.2462) in the right thalamus in the epilepsy group were also significantly lower than those in the control group(1.8925 ± 0.2004; 1.0941 ± 0.2372)(P<0.05). There were no significant differences in the ratios of NAA/Cr-PCr, NAA/(Cr-PCr+Cho), Cho/Cr- PCr, and mI/Cr-PCr between the bilateral thalamis in the epilepsy group (P>0.05). CONCLUSION There is neuronal dysfunction in the bilateral thalamus in the epilepsy group. Abnormal changes of the bilateral thalamus are involved in the mechanism of SGTCS.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aspartic Acid ; analogs & derivatives ; analysis ; Brain Chemistry ; Case-Control Studies ; Choline ; analysis ; Energy Metabolism ; physiology ; Epilepsy, Generalized ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Epilepsy, Tonic-Clonic ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; methods ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Thalamus ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo compare the clinical effect of acupuncture treatment and western medicine Carbamazepine for thalamic pain.

METHODSCrossover trial design was used, 11 cases diagnosed as thalamic pain were randomly divided into two groups according to the mini-unbalance-index method, group I (with 6 cases received acupuncture first and then western medicine) and group II (with 5 cases received western medicine first and then acupuncture). When the effects were evaluated, the two groups were named as acupuncture group and western medicine group, 11 cases in each group. The method of clearing away the heart fire, regulating the spirit, activating blood and relieving pain was adopted in acupuncture treatment, Ximen (PC 4), Yinxi (HT 6), Xuehai (SP 10) and Zhaohai (KI 6) were selected; the western medicine group was treated with oral administration of Carbamazepine, and one course as well as the eluting period were both 10 days. The effects were evaluated with visual analogue scale (VAS) and evaluation scale of Anderson Cancer Center pain in US (MD Pain Evaluation value) respectively.

RESULTSThe VAS and MD value in two groups were obviously decreased after treatment (both P < 0.05), while there was no significant difference between two groups; the markedly effective rate of pain relieving in acupuncture group was 63.6% (7/11), which was higher than that of 36.4% (4/11) in western medicine group, but there was no significant difference between two groups.

CONCLUSIONAcupuncture treatment of regulating spirit, activating blood and relieving pain has a better therapeutic effect for thalamic pain, and can reach to the same therapeutic effect with western medicine Carbamazepine.

Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Aged ; Blood Circulation ; Carbamazepine ; therapeutic use ; Cross-Over Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Middle Aged ; Pain ; physiopathology ; Pain Management ; Pain Measurement ; Spirituality ; Thalamus ; physiopathology

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of early motor balance and coordination training on functional recovery and brain plasticity in an ischemic rat stroke model, compared with simple locomotor exercise. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats with cortical infarcts were trained under one of four conditions: nontrained control, treadmill training, motor training on the Rota-rod, or both Rota-rod and treadmill training. All types of training were performed from post-operation day 1 to 14. Neurological and behavioral performance was evaluated by Menzies' scale, the prehensile test, and the limb placement test, at post-operation day 1, 7, and 14. Both Rota-rod and treadmill training increased the expression of synaptophysin in subcortical regions of the ischemic hemisphere including the hippocampus, dentate gyrus, and thalamus, but did not affect levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor or tyrosin kinase receptor B. The Rota-rod training also improved Menzies' scale and limb placement test scores, whereas the simple treadmill training did neither. The control group showed significant change only in Menzies' scale score. This study suggests that early motor balance and coordination training may induce plastic changes in subcortical regions of the ischemic hemisphere after stroke accompanied with the recovery of sensorimotor performance.
Animals ; Brain Ischemia/metabolism/physiopathology ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor/metabolism ; Dentate Gyrus/metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; Hippocampus/metabolism ; Immunohistochemistry ; Male ; Motor Activity ; Neuronal Plasticity/physiology ; Physical Conditioning, Animal ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptor, trkB/metabolism ; Stroke/*metabolism/physiopathology ; Synaptophysin/*metabolism ; Thalamus/metabolism ; Time Factors

Acute pain is a warning protective sensation for any impending harm. However, chronic pain syndromes are often resistant diseases that may consume large amount of health care costs. It has been suggested by recent studies that pain perception may be formed in central neural networks via large-scale coding processes, which involves sensory, affective, and cognitive dimensions. Many central areas are involved in these processes, including structures from the spinal cord, the brain stem, the limbic system, to the cortices. Thus, chronic painful diseases may be the result of some abnormal coding within this network. A thorough investigation of coding mechanism of pain within the central neuromatrix will bring us great insight into the mechanisms responsible for the development of chronic pain, hence leading to novel therapeutic interventions for pain management.
Animals ; Cerebral Cortex ; physiology ; Humans ; Nociception ; physiology ; Pain ; physiopathology ; Thalamus ; physiology

BACKGROUNDPrevious brain imaging studies suggested that the brain activity underlying the perception of chronic pain may differ from that underlying acute pain. To investigate the brain regions involved in chronic spontaneous pain due to brachial plexus avulsion (BPA), fluorine-(18)fluorodeoxyglucose ((18)F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) scanning was applied to determine the glucose metabolic changes in patients with pain due to BPA.

METHODSSix right-handed patients with chronic spontaneous pain due to left-BPA and twelve right-handed age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects participated in the (18)F-FDG PET study. The patients were rated by visual analog scale (VAS) during scanning and Hamilton depression scale and Hamilton anxiety scale after scanning. Statistical parametric mapping 2 (SPM2) was applied for data analysis.

RESULTSCompared with healthy subjects, the patients had significant glucose metabolism decreases in the right thalamus and SI (P < 0.001, uncorrected), and significant glucose metabolism increases in the right orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) (BA11), left rostral insula cortex and left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) (BA10/46) (P < 0.001, uncorrected).

CONCLUSIONThese findings suggest that the brain areas involved in emotion, attention and internal modulation of pain may be related to the chronic spontaneous pain due to BPA.

Adult ; Brachial Plexus ; injuries ; Brain ; metabolism ; Chronic Disease ; Female ; Glucose ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pain ; etiology ; physiopathology ; Pain Measurement ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; methods ; Prefrontal Cortex ; metabolism ; Thalamus ; metabolism

OBJECTIVE: To detect the activation pattern of the thalamus in human by the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with the electrical stimulation of different intensities, and to explore the mechanism of this area in pain modulation. METHODS: Ten healthy right-handed volunteers were given different electrical stimulations of 1-, 2-, and 3- times pain threshold respectively. The whole-brain was scanned simultaneously by GE 1.5T magnetic resonance imaging system. The data were postprocessed by analysis of functional neuroimages (AFNI) to establish the regional activity maps of the thalamus. RESULTS: Patterns of functional activity showed a positive linear relationship between the activation signals and stimulation intensity in bilateral thalamus, whereas the BOLD signal of bilateral medial thalamus demonstrated that the curve was similar to the exponential function. Meanwhile, the activation in the contralateral lateral thalamus (cThl), but not the contralateral medial thalamus (cThm), was prominent compared with the corresponding ipsilateral subregions, and only the lateral thalamus displayed a contralateral biased representation while the medial thalamus lacked this property. CONCLUSION Thalamus is one of the vital components in the pain modulation network, which can present spatial segregation activations with unique characteristics of stimulation intensity-response in each subregion. All the results are helpful to understand the crucial role of thalamus in processing the pain information.
Adult ; Electric Stimulation ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Pain ; physiopathology ; Pain Threshold ; Thalamus ; physiology