			Home About us Contact

Inhibition Function (inhibition + function)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	60%

Selected Abstracts

Measurement of development of cognitive and attention functions in children using continuous performance test

PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 2 2008
Noriko Kanaka ba
Aim:, The development of attention function in children is still not sufficiently clear. Although it is difficult to objectively assess attention function, continuous performance tests (CPT) can be used to objectively assess cognitive function along with attention. The development of cognitive and attention functions was examined in children using a CPT. Methods:, A total of 541 healthy girls aged 5,12 years participated. Ten parameters were calculated: numbers of cancellations for either target stimuli (T-cancel) or non-target stimuli (N-cancel), numbers of omission errors (Omission) and commission errors (Commission), hit rate (Hit), false alarm rate (False), mean reaction time for correct response (RT), coefficient of variance for mean reaction time (CVRT), sensitivity index (d,), and ln,. Results:, The parameters were divided into three types based on pattern of change. T-cancel, False, and Commission, which are related to inhibition of response, N-cancel, Hit, and Omission, which are related to inattention to stimuli, and CVRT, which is related to stability of processing time, exhibited significant change until 5 or 6 years of age. d,, which is related to ability to discriminate between target or non-target, exhibited significant change until 8 years of age. RT, which is related to processing time, exhibited significant change until 11 years of age. ln, exhibited no significant differences among age groups. Conclusions:, These findings indicate that inhibition function, inattention to stimuli, and stability of processing time develop first. Discrimination ability subsequently increases based on these developments, and finally processing time is reduced. [source]

Biokinetic models for representing the complete inhibition of microbial activity at high substrate concentrations

BIOTECHNOLOGY & BIOENGINEERING, Issue 4 2001
Gunaseelan Alagappan
Abstract This paper reintroduces the Wayman and Tseng model for representing substrate inhibition effects on specific growth rate by further documenting its potential predictive capabilities. It also introduces a modification to this model in which an Andrews inhibition function is used in place of the Monod noninhibitory substrate function. This modification better represents the relationship between specific growth rate and substrate concentration for those substrates that show Andrews type inhibition at lower substrate concentrations, rather than the Monod type noninhibitory behavior described in the model of Wayman and Tseng. Results from nonlinear, least squares regression analysis are used to evaluate the ability of these models to empirically represent experimental data (both new and from the literature). The statistical goodness of fit is evaluated by comparing the regression results against those obtained using other empirical models. Finally, possible mechanisms of toxicity responsible for the observed inhibition trends are used to further justify use of these empirical models. The dominant mechanism considered to be relevant for conceptually explaining complete inhibition at high concentrations of solvents is the deterioration of cell membrane integrity. Literature citations are used to support this argument. This work should lead to improvements in the mathematical modeling of contaminant fate and transport in the environment and in the simulation of microbial growth and organic compound biodegradation in engineered systems. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 75: 393,405, 2001. [source]

Efficacy of a protein kinase C inhibitor (tamoxifen) in the treatment of acute mania: a pilot study

BIPOLAR DISORDERS, Issue 6 2007
Carlos A Zarate Jr
Objectives:, Considerable preclinical biochemical and behavioral data suggest that protein kinase C inhibition would bring about antimanic effects. Notably, the structurally highly dissimilar antimanic agents lithium and valproate, when administered in therapeutically relevant paradigms, attenuate protein kinase C inhibition function. There is currently only one relatively selective protein kinase C inhibitor that crosses the blood,brain barrier available for human use , tamoxifen. Our group recently conducted a single-blind study with tamoxifen in acute mania and found that it significantly decreased manic symptoms within a short period of time (3,7 days). In this study, we investigated whether antimanic effects can be achieved with a protein kinase C inhibitor in subjects with mania. Methods:, In a double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 16 subjects with bipolar disorder, manic or mixed, with or without psychotic features, were randomly assigned to receive tamoxifen (20,140 mg/day; n = 8) or placebo (n = 8) for three weeks. Primary efficacy was assessed by the Young Mania Rating Scale. Results:, Subjects on tamoxifen showed significant improvement in mania compared to placebo as early as five days, an effect that remained significant throughout the three-week trial. The effect size for the drug difference was very large (d = 1.08, 95% confidence interval 0.45,1.71) after three weeks (p = 0.001). At study endpoint, response rates were 63% for tamoxifen and 13% for placebo (p = 0.12). Conclusions:, Antimanic effects resulted from a protein kinase C inhibitor; onset occurred within five days. Large, controlled studies with selective protein kinase C inhibitors in acute mania are warranted. [source]

Cognitive enhancement as a pharmacotherapy target for stimulant addiction

ADDICTION, Issue 1 2010
Mehmet Sofuoglu
ABSTRACT Background No medications have been proven to be effective for cocaine and methamphetamine addiction. Attenuation of drug reward has been the main strategy for medications development, but this approach has not led to effective treatments. Thus, there is a need to identify novel treatment targets in addition to the brain reward system. Aim To propose a novel treatment strategy for stimulant addiction that will focus on medications enhancing cognitive function and attenuating drug reward. Methods Pre-clinical and clinical literature on potential use of cognitive enhancers for stimulant addiction pharmacotherapy was reviewed. Results and conclusions Cocaine and methamphetamine users show significant cognitive impairments, especially in attention, working memory and response inhibition functions. The cognitive impairments seem to be predictive of poor treatment retention and outcome. Medications targeting acetylcholine and norepinephrine are particularly well suited for enhancing cognitive function in stimulant users. Many cholinergic and noradrenergic medications are on the market and have a good safety profile and low abuse potential. These include galantamine, donepezil and rivastigmine (cholinesterase inhibitors), varenicline (partial nicotine agonist), guanfacine (alpha2 -adrenergic agonist) and atomoxetine (norepinephrine transporter inhibitor). Future clinical studies designed optimally to measure cognitive function as well as drug use behavior would be needed to test the efficacy of these cognitive enhancers for stimulant addiction. [source]

Development of Executive Control and Language Processing

LINGUISTICS & LANGUAGE COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 1 2009
Reiko Mazuka
Research in executive function development has shown that children have poor control of inhibition functions, including the inhibition of prepotent responses, control of attention, and flexibility at rule-shifting. To date, links between the development of executive function and children's language development have not been investigated explicitly. Yet, recent studies on children's sentence processing report that children tend to perseverate during sentence processing. We argue that such perseveration may be due to immature executive function. [source]