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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased awareness of the need for high-quality and timely evidence to support policy- and decision-making in emergency situations., Aims: To describe the experiences of the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR), Islamic Republic of Iran, in adopting evidence-informed policymaking during the COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: During the COVID-19 pandemic, NIHR institutionalized a rapid response system that was backed up by evidence-informed policy- and decision-making. Activities included establishment of a preparedness and response management committee, gathering and providing timely pandemic information to policymakers, establishing a timeline of actions and activities, and a feedback system for policy responses and queries., Results: The COVID-19 rapid response committee addressed the questions of 40 policymakers by synthesizing and analysing evidence and making it available to relevant stakeholders. It developed and disseminated knowledge products to provide relevant information. We identified the need for more timely data and more reliable research evidence for pandemic management., Conclusion: National institutions responding to health emergencies need to take responsibility for establishing and managing a robust rapid response systems that can provide valid and timely evidence to policymakers. Over time, their capacity should be monitored, evaluated and strengthened to adapt and respond appropriately to pandemics, outbreaks and epidemics., (Copyright © Authors 2023; Licensee: World Health Organization. EMHJ is an open access journal. This paper is available under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial ShareAlike 3.0 IGO licence (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/igo).)

Background: Today, gabapentinoids such as Gabapentin (GBP) and pregabalin (PGB) are widely used as painkillers. This may alter the function of the nervous system; hence their results may include a difference in memory and processes that end in memory formation. This study aims to conclude whether gabapentinoids can alter memory or not by reviewing and analyzing clinical and preclinical studies., Material and Methods: A comprehensive search was carried out in databases including PUBMED, EMBASE, SCOPUS, and Web of Science. In the included studies, memory was measured as an outcome variable in clinical or preclinical studies., Result: A total of 21 articles (4 clinical, 17 preclinical) were included in the meta-analysis by STATA Software. The results showed that memory changes under the influence of GBP. Both the administrated dosage and the time of administration are important in the final results and latency time of retention. GBP administration in healthy animals increased latency time, whereas if the administration of GBP took place exactly before training, the latency time increased slightly. Short-term administration of PGB in healthy volunteers is accompanied by transient side effects on the CNS. However, the number and homogeneity of the studies were not such that a meta-analysis could be performed on them., Conclusion: Clinical and preclinical studies showed that PGB administration did not confirm its improving memory effect. GBP administration in healthy animals increased latency time and improved memory. Although it depended on the time of administration., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: Memory deficit is a common cognitive comorbid in patients with neuropathic pain that need better treatment. Recent research revealed that nanocurcumin has an antinociceptive action and a protective effect against memory disorders, suggesting its possible effectiveness for the treatment of neuropathic pain and its comorbidity., Methods: Adult male albino Wistar rats (n = 32) were randomly divided into four experimental groups: CCI+ nanocurcumin, CCI + vehicle, sham + nanocurcumin, and sham + vehicle. Neuropathic pain induced by a chronic constriction injury of the sciatic nerve. Nanocurcumin or vehicle was injected intraperitoneally for 10 days. Behavioral assessment achieved to evaluate pain threshold in the von Frey test and radiant heat test, also spatial learning and memory examined by the Morris water maze (MWM) test. To explore the possible relation, IL-1β, and TNF-α levels of the hippocampus measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)., Results: Our data showed that CCI caused neuropathic pain-related behaviors and spatial learning and memory disorders in rats. Chronic treatment with nanocurcumin significantly increased pain threshold (P < 0.001; F = 27.63, F = 20.58), improved spatial memory (P < 0.01; F = 47.37), and decreased the hippocampal levels of IL-1β (P < 0.001; F = 33.57) and TNF-α (P < 0.01; F = 7.25) in CCI rats., Conclusion: Chronic nanocurcumin can ameliorate pain-related behavior, improve spatial learning and memory deficits, and is associated with the reduction of IL-1β and TNF-α levels in the hippocampus in CCI rats. Nanocurcumin may be potentially providing a therapeutic alternative for the treatment of neuropathic pain and its memory impairment comorbidity.

Objectives: Several clinical and experimental studies reported the anxiety as one of the neuropathic pain comorbidities; however, the mechanisms involved in this comorbidity are incompletely cleared. The current study investigated the consequence of pain induced by peripheral neuropathy on the serotonin (5-HT) level of the CA1 region of the hippocampus, which is known as a potential reason, for anxiety associated with neuropathic pain., Methods: In this manner, 72 male rats were inconstantly subdivided into three experimental groups as follows: control, sham, and chronic constriction injury (CCI). Neuropathic pain was initiated by the CCI of the sciatic nerve, and then, mechanical allodynia, thermal hyperalgesia, and anxiety-like behavior were evaluated using the von Frey filaments, radiant heat, open field test (OFT), and elevated plus maze (EPM) respectively. To investigate the probable mechanisms, the in vivo extracellular levels of 5-HT were assessed by microdialysis and using reverse-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) in the CA1 region of hippocampus on days 16 and 30 post-CCI., Results: Our data suggested that CCI caused anxiety-like behavior in OFT and EPM test. 5-HT concentration in the CA1 region of the hippocampus significantly (F=43.8, p=0.000) reduced in CCI rats, when the pain threshold was minimum. Nevertheless, these alterations reversed while the pain threshold innate increased., Conclusions: Neuropathic pain, initiated by constriction of the sciatic nerve can induce anxiety-like behavior in rats. This effect accompanies the reduction in 5-HT concentration in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. When the pain spontaneously alleviated, 5-HT level increased and anxiety-like behavior relieved., (© 2020 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston.)

Background: Neuropathic pain is a chronic pain condition, which is resistant to therapy. Ascorbate was released because of the activation of glutaminergic neurons. Due to the important role of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in the pathophysiology of neuropathic pain, this study investigated the analgesic efficacy of ascorbic acid (AA) in neuropathic pain condition and the role of NMDA receptors in this effect., Methods: For this purpose, adult male rats were randomly allocated to experimental groups (n=8 in each group). Neuropathic pain was induced by chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the sciatic nerve. During the second week after CCI, animals received a single injection of 1, 3, 5, or 10 mg/kg of AA intraperitoneally and pain threshold was determined 15 and 60 min later. The antinociceptive effect of chronic administration was also evaluated by intraperitoneal injection (IP) of 3 mg/kg AA for 3 weeks. To determine the role of NMDA receptors, separate groups of animals 30 min after single injection of AA (1 mg/kg) animals received i.p. injection of ketamine (5 mg/kg), MK-801 (0.01 mg/kg), or glutamate (1000 nmol) and were tested 20 min afterwards. Data analyzed by ANOVA and Newman-Keuls tests and p<0.05 were considered as significant., Results: IP of 3, 5 and 10 mg/kg increased the pain threshold during the second week after CCI (p<0.05, F=3 in tactile allodynia and p<0.01, F=3.2 in thermal and mechanical hyperalgeisa). Chronic administration of AA also produced antinociceptive effect. Ascorbic acid (1 mg/kg, i.p.) inhibited MK-801 and ketamine-induced antinociception response significantly (p<0.001, F=2). It also prevented the analgesic effect of glutamate administration (p<0.001, F=2)., Conclusions: The results indicated that AA produced a dose-dependent antinociceptive effect that seems to mediate through its interaction with NMDA receptors.