DEEPAK CYRIL D'SOUZA

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..Collectively, the findings suggest that CB1R systems modulate top-down and bottom-up processing...

..Accordingly, we examined the modulatory effects of brain nAChR systems on NMDAR antagonist-induced effects...

..The purpose of this study was to measure β(2)*-nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in vivo and to relate levels to concurrent behavioral measures of smoking and schizophrenia...

..These findings provide preliminary support for further study of the antipsychotic potential of GlyT1 inhibitors...

..However, novel hypotheses including the role of cannabinoids on neurodevelopmental processes relevant to psychotic disorders are being studied...

..Accordingly, we hypothesized that Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta(9)-THC), the principal active component of cannabis, would alter BDNF levels in humans...

..This study evaluated whether pretreatment with a dopamine receptor antagonist altered the effects of Delta-9-THC in humans...

..These data suggest that frequent users of cannabis are either inherently blunted in their response to, and/or develop tolerance to the psychotomimetic, perceptual altering, amnestic, endocrine, and other effects of cannabinoids...

..The absence of 'beneficial' effects of alcohol does not support a self-medication hypothesis of alcohol use in schizophrenia...

..These data warrant further study of whether brain cannabinoid receptor function contributes to the pathophysiology of psychotic disorders...

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..Recent advances in the neurobiology of cannabinoids have renewed interest in the association between cannabis and psychotic disorders...

..Furthermore, relative to controls, frequent users of cannabis were hypothesized to show altered baseline levels of these hormones and blunted Delta-9-THC-induced changes of these hormones...

..Despite increasing interest in the cannabinoid receptor system, use of intravenous THC as a research tool has been limited by concerns about its abuse liability and psychoactive effects...

..Further work is necessary to identify the factors that underlie individual vulnerability to cannabinoid-related psychosis and to elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying this risk...

..However, these data suggest that at levels of NMDA receptor antagonism associated with heavy drinking, this protective effect of naltrexone on drinking is no longer present...

..The greater vulnerability of schizophrenia patients to the effects of iomazenil relative to controls provides further support for the GABA-deficit hypothesis of schizophrenia...

..Finally, further work is necessary to identify the factors that underlie individual vulnerability to cannabinoid-related psychosis and to elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying this risk...

..However, there is little experimental data on the effects of SA in humans...

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..Adaptations in gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABA(A))-benzodiazepine receptors contribute to the neurobiology of human alcohol dependence and withdrawal...

..Some of the behavioral consequences of deficits in N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptor function are thought to arise from the disinhibition of cortical glutamatergic circuitry...

..Aberrant regulation of GABA(A)-BZR function in vulnerable smokers may explain why some smokers experience subsyndromal anxiety and depression...

..Variations in beta(2)*-nAChR availability during the course of abstinence may be related to the urge to smoke, the extent of nicotine withdrawal, and successful abstinence...

..Greater beta2*-nAChR availability during early abstinence may impact the ability of smokers to maintain abstinence...

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..We examined the availability of nAChR containing the beta(2) subunit in healthy men and women and the influence of menstrual phase among women...

..The purpose of this review is to consider the possibility that agents that attenuate these two components of NMDA receptor antagonist response may play complementary roles in the treatment of schizophrenia...

..While this disorder, of unknown incidence, is not well reported in the U.S., it is worthy of further investigation and clinical attention given its generally favorable prognosis and potentially distinct pathophysiology and treatment...

..Secondary measures include measures of drug liking, movement rating scales and long term follow-up assessment of cannabis use. ..

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..This grant application proposes to use brain imaging to study the nicotine receptor system in schizophrenia. ..

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..These results may reflect indirect evidence of altered CB-1R function in FHP individuals. ..

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..Pilot data (n=12) towards this proposal suggests that glycine reduces ketamine-induced perceptual alterations, negative symptoms and impairments on recall without worsening positive symptoms. ..

..This grant application proposes to use brain imaging to study the nicotine receptor system in schizophrenia. ..