Brain cholinergic systems

Giacobini, E. (2006) Cholinesterases in human brain the effect of cholinesterase inhibitors on Alzheimer s disease and related disorders. In The brain cholinergic system in health and disease. Giacobini, E., Pepeu, G. (eds.), Informa Healthcare, Oxon, pp. 235-264. 

McCormick DA Cellular mechanism of cholinergic control of neocortical and thalamic neuronal excitability, in Brain Cholinergic Systems. Edited by Steriade M, Biesold D. New York, Oxford University Press, 1990, pp 236-264... 

Woolf, NJ (1991) Cholinergic systems in mammalian brain and spinal cord. Prog. Neurohiol. 37 475-524. 

Bielarczyk H, Tomsig JL, Suszkiw JB. 1994. Perinatal low-level lead exposure and the hippocampal cholinergic system selective reduction of muscarinic receptor and cholineacetyltransferase in the rat septum. Brain Res 643 211-217. 

Jones, B. (1993). The organization of central cholinergic systems and their functional importance in sleep-waking states. In Cholinergic Function and Dysfunction. Progress in Brain Research, ed. A. Cuello. Amsterdam Elsevier. 

Perry E, Ballard C, Spurden D, Cheng A, Johnson M, McKeith I, Piggott M and Perry R (1998). Cholinergic systems in the human brain Psychopharmacology and psychosis. Alzheimer s Disease Review, 3, 117-124. 

Muscarinic receptors have modulatory effects on numerous other neurotransmitters in the brain (van der Zee and Luiten 1999). Of particular interest are interactions between glutamate and cholinergic systems in learning and memory (Aigner 1995). 

Yamamuro Y, Hori K, Tanaka J, Iwano H, Nomura M. 1995. Septo-hippocampal cholinergic system under the discrimination learning task in the rat a microdialysis study with the dual-probe approach. Brain Res 684(1) 1-7. 

Figure 2. The cholinergic system in the human brain. The two principal pathways projecting from discrete nuclei are shown as basal forebrain (continuous lines) and pedunculopontine/dorsal tegmental (dotted lines).

Muir JL, Dunnett SB, Robbins TW, et al Attentional functions of the forebrain cholinergic systems effects of intraventricular hemichohnium, physostigmine, basal forebrain lesions and intracortical grafts on a multiple-choice serial reaction time task. Exp Brain Res 89 611-622, 1992 Mukherjee S Mechanisms of the antimanic effect of electroconvulsive therapy. Convulsive Therapy 5 227-243, 1989... 

The cholinergic neurons are immediately distal to dopaminergic fibres in the caudate nucleus in brain. They are excitatory and in parkinsonism, there is a degeneration of inhibitory dopaminergic neurons and thus, there is increased cholinergic activity (preponderance of cholinergic system) which results in the symptoms of parkinsonism. 

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