-
Pharmaceutical Biology Dec 2019γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter and it is well established that activation of GABA receptors favours sleep. l-Theanine, a naturally...
CONTEXT
γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter and it is well established that activation of GABA receptors favours sleep. l-Theanine, a naturally occurring amino acid first discovered in green tea, is a well-known anti-anxiety supplement with proven relaxation benefits.
OBJECTIVE
This study investigated the potential synergistic sleep enhancement effect of GABA/l-theanine mixture.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Pentobarbital-induced sleep test was applied to find proper concentration for sleep-promoting effect in ICR mice. Electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis was performed to investigate total sleeping time and sleep quality in normal SD rats and caffeine-induced awareness model. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was applied to investigate whether the sleep-promoting mechanism of GABA/l-theanine mixture involved transcriptional processes.
RESULTS
GABA/l-theanine mixture (100/20 mg/kg) showed a decrease in sleep latency (20.7 and 14.9%) and an increase in sleep duration (87.3 and 26.8%) compared to GABA or theanine alone. GABA/l-theanine mixture led to a significant increase in rapid eye movement (REM) (99.6%) and non-REM (NREM) (20.6%) compared to controls. The use of GABA/l-theanine mixture rather than GABA or l-theanine alone restored to normal levels sleep time and quality in the arousal animal model. The administration of GABA/l-theanine led to increased expression of GABA and the glutamate GluN1 receptor subunit.
CONCLUSIONS
GABA/l-theanine mixture has a positive synergistic effect on sleep quality and duration as compared to the GABA or l-theanine alone. The increase in GABA receptor and GluN1 expression is attributed to the potential neuromodulatory properties of GABA/l-theanine combination, which seems to affect sleep behaviour.
Topics: Animals; Drug Synergism; Drug Therapy, Combination; Glutamates; Mice; Mice, Inbred ICR; Random Allocation; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Receptors, Glutamate; Sleep Latency; Sleep, Slow-Wave; gamma-Aminobutyric Acid
PubMed: 30707852
DOI: 10.1080/13880209.2018.1557698 -
Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology :... May 2022Anesthetic agents have been widely used in the treatment of refractory status epilepticus and the medical management of increased intracranial pressure whenever the goal... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
PURPOSE
Anesthetic agents have been widely used in the treatment of refractory status epilepticus and the medical management of increased intracranial pressure whenever the goal is therapeutic burst suppression. Periodic patterns typically consisting of generalized periodic discharges (GPDs) following emergence from anesthesia have been described in several case reports. However, their clinical significance and in particular whether these patterns are epileptiform remains unclear.
METHODS
This is a single-center, retrospective, observational study examining EEG patterns following emergence from pharmacologically induced burst suppression. Clinical and EEG data were collected. Patients who developed GPDs following anesthetic wean were compared with those who did not.
RESULTS
Over 4.5 years, 14 patients developed GPDs related to anesthetic withdrawal. The GPDs had a frequency between 0.5 and 2.5 Hz. Generalized periodic discharges related to anesthetic withdrawal were transient, with a median duration of 40 hours (interquartile range, 24-48 hours). Notably, in all patients, the pattern was stimulus dependent. When compared with a control group of 19 consecutive patients who did not develop a generalized periodic pattern in the context of the anesthetic wean, there was no significant difference in the status epilepticus relapse between the two groups (29% vs. 44%; P = 0.63). Patients in the GPD group were more likely to be on pentobarbital (93% vs. 58%; P = 0.05) and were more likely to have concomitant systemic infection treated with antibiotics compared with the control group (86% vs. 42%; P = 0.02).
CONCLUSIONS
Generalized periodic patterns are common following the wean of intravenous anesthetics (particularly pentobarbital) and likely represent a transitional encephalopathic state in a subset of patients. Their morphology is distinct and can be differentiated from the reemergence of status epilepticus (if the latter was the indication for anesthetic treatment). Failure to recognize this pattern may lead to prolonged unnecessary treatments if it is mistaken for the emergence of seizure activity. The presence of concomitant systemic infection and associated antibiotic treatment may be risk factors for the development of this pattern.
Topics: Anesthesia; Anesthetics; Electroencephalography; Humans; Patient Discharge; Pentobarbital; Retrospective Studies; Status Epilepticus
PubMed: 33038092
DOI: 10.1097/WNP.0000000000000779 -
International Journal of Physiology,... 2017Hypoxia and reoxygenation, ischemia and reperfusion, catecholamine infusion, ouabain, sodium pentobarbital and caffeine, can all be used experimentally to induce...
Hypoxia and reoxygenation, ischemia and reperfusion, catecholamine infusion, ouabain, sodium pentobarbital and caffeine, can all be used experimentally to induce ventricular arrhythmias. According to the Lambeth Convention guidelines our experimentally-induced ventricular arrhythmias include but are not limited to: ventricular premature beats (VPB), ventricular salvos (VS), ventricular bigeminy (VB), nonsustained ventricular tachycardia (VTn), sustained ventricular tachycardia (VTs) and ventricular fibrillation (VF, or if the heart is not defibrillated, sudden cardiac death). We have studied these arrhythmias in the absence and presence of adenosine deaminase, methyl xanthines, and more recently, acetaminophen. Our laboratory was the first to discover the anti-arrhythmic properties of acetaminophen an analgesic used in Western medicine for more than 100 years before our publication. We have also identified other cardioprotective properties of acetaminophen, and have begun to work out some of the cellular/molecular mechanisms. For example, we know that acetaminophen protects hypoxic/ischemic cardiac mitochondria, in part, by sustaining function of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP, a protein involved in regulating mitochondrial pH). Acetaminophen also attenuates the actions of matrix metalloproteinases that can be harmful to myocardial contractile proteins. Of course, like all science, more work is needed to expand on these and related topics.
PubMed: 29348797
DOI: No ID Found -
MMW Fortschritte Der Medizin Nov 2023
Topics: Humans; Pentobarbital; Physicians; Sodium
PubMed: 37973746
DOI: 10.1007/s15006-023-3155-x -
Revue Medicale Suisse Jun 2023
Topics: Humans; Suicide, Assisted; Pentobarbital; Euthanasia; Prescriptions
PubMed: 37283385
DOI: 10.53738/REVMED.2023.19.830.1146 -
Animals : An Open Access Journal From... Feb 2022In 2021, a shortage in the supply of the euthanasia drug pentobarbital sodium affected animal care professionals around the world, including in the United States and...
In 2021, a shortage in the supply of the euthanasia drug pentobarbital sodium affected animal care professionals around the world, including in the United States and Canada. Pentobarbital sodium is the drug of choice for companion animal euthanasia in both countries. The decreased availability of pentobarbital sodium affected a number of animal care industries, forcing conservation of the drug and the use of alternative methods and other agents to facilitate humane death for all manner of animal species. Veterinary medical groups, laboratory research institutions, and the animal sheltering industry worked together to identify the best path forward to maintain routine euthanasia practices and to protect the welfare of animals. This article aims to explore the reasons behind the shortage and to highlight the necessary responses and adjustments made in order to continue providing euthanasia services in North America. Recommendations for handling future pentobarbital shortages are included.
PubMed: 35158688
DOI: 10.3390/ani12030365 -
Seminars in Neurology Jun 2024Status epilepticus (SE) is a neurological emergency that requires timely pharmacological therapy to cease seizure activity. The treatment approach varies based on the... (Review)
Review
Status epilepticus (SE) is a neurological emergency that requires timely pharmacological therapy to cease seizure activity. The treatment approach varies based on the time and the treatment stage of SE. Benzodiazepines are considered the first-line therapy during the emergent treatment phase of SE. Antiseizure medicines such as phenytoin, valproic acid, and levetiracetam are recommended during the urgent treatment phase. These drugs appear to have a similar safety and efficacy profile, and individualized therapy should be chosen based on patient characteristics. Midazolam, propofol, pentobarbital, and ketamine are continuous intravenous infusions of anesthetic medications utilized in the refractory SE (RSE) period. The most efficacious pharmacotherapeutic treatments for RSE and superrefractory status epilepticus are not clearly defined.
Topics: Status Epilepticus; Humans; Anticonvulsants
PubMed: 38580318
DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-1785503