Programs of Resarch Report. 

Fernanda Cechetti earned her PhD in Biological Sciences (Neuroscience) in 2011 from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. She is currently an adjunct professor in Physical Therapy. She has her own research lab, which focuses on applied clinical research and animal experimentation, with a focus on rehabilitation strategies for neurological diseases, specifically rehabilitation through aquatic physiotherapy. 

Papers:

Cechetti, Fernanda, et al. “Forced treadmill exercise prevents oxidative stress and memory deficits following chronic cerebral hypoperfusion in the rat.” Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, vol. 97, no. 1, 2012, pp. 90–96, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nlm.2011.09.008.

Summary: A study was conducted with rats to see if continual exercise impacted both reference and working memory in rats with cerebral hypoperfusion. Both hypoperfusion and oxidative stress have been known to contribute to the development and progression of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia both of which have an effect on learning and memory. This study was done in rats, in which both carotid arteries were separated from the vagus nerve and occluded with a 5-0 silk suture to induce hypoperfusion. There were three exercise groups (preop, postop and pre+post op) as well as one group that did not exercise (left on a treadmill for 5 mins w/o running stimulus). Rats that exercised, ran for 20 mins, 3 times a week, the speeds progressively each week (for a total of 12 weeks). Three months post-op, rats were tested on memory both reference and working. For reference memory, rats were placed in a pool, facing the wall, and had to find the platform. Then the platform was removed and they had to find the spot where the platform should have been. For working memory, the same technique was used, however the platform remained in the pool but moved for each trial. It was found that forced treadmill running protects from spatial learning and memory deficits in 2VO rats when applied to either post- and pre + - post ischemia. Lipid peroxidation was significantly increased after chronic cerebral hypoperfusion Exercise did not alter the levels of basal free radicals in the hippocampus but increased the levels of antioxidants such as thiols and TBARS. On the other hand, there are also studies where swimming and treadmill training did not affect brain antioxidant defenses. It is proposed that exercise, through its continuous free radical-generating effect, induces the adaptation of the cellular antioxidant system. 

Cechetti, F., Worm, P. V., Lovatel, G., Moysés, F., Siqueira, I. R., & Netto, C. A. (2012). Environmental enrichment prevents behavioral deficits and oxidative stress caused by chronic cerebral hypoperfusion in the rat. Life Sciences, 91(1-2), 29–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lfs.2012.05.013

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