The purpose of this column is to provide an overview of social cognition in schizophrenia. The column begins with a short introduction to social cognition. Then, we describe the application of social ...cognition to the study of schizophrenia, with an emphasis on key domains (i.e., emotion perception, Theory of Mind, and attributional style). We conclude the column by discussing the relationship of social cognition to neurocognition, negative symptoms, and functioning, with an eye toward strategies for improving social cognition in schizophrenia.
Previous studies have observed evoked response latency as well as gamma band superior temporal gyrus (STG) auditory abnormalities in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). A limitation of ...these studies is that associations between these two abnormalities, as well as the full extent of oscillatory phenomena in ASD in terms of frequency and time, have not been examined. Subjects were presented pure tones at 200, 300, 500, and 1,000 Hz while magnetoencephalography assessed activity in STG auditory areas in a sample of 105 children with ASD and 36 typically developing controls (TD). Findings revealed a profile such that auditory STG processes in ASD were characterized by pre-stimulus abnormalities across multiple frequencies, then early high-frequency abnormalities followed by low-frequency abnormalities. Increased pre-stimulus activity was a ‘core’ abnormality, with pre-stimulus activity predicting post-stimulus neural abnormalities, group membership, and clinical symptoms (CELF-4 Core Language Index). Deficits in synaptic integration in the auditory cortex are associated with oscillatory abnormalities in ASD as well as patient symptoms. Increased pre-stimulus activity in ASD likely demonstrates a fundamental signal-to-noise deficit in individuals with ASD, with elevations in oscillatory activity suggesting an inability to maintain an appropriate ‘neural tone’ and an inability to rapidly return to a resting state prior to the next stimulus.
Overwhelming evidence indicates that diets rich in fruits and vegetables are protective against common chronic diseases, such as cancer, obesity and cardiovascular disease. Leafy green vegetables, in ...particular, are recognized as having substantial health-promoting activities that are attributed to the functional properties of their nutrients and non-essential chemical compounds. Spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) is widely regarded as a functional food due to its diverse nutritional composition, which includes vitamins and minerals, and to its phytochemicals and bioactives that promote health beyond basic nutrition. Spinach-derived phytochemicals and bioactives are able to (i) scavenge reactive oxygen species and prevent macromolecular oxidative damage, (ii) modulate expression and activity of genes involved in metabolism, proliferation, inflammation, and antioxidant defence, and (iii) curb food intake by inducing secretion of satiety hormones. These biological activities contribute to the anti-cancer, anti-obesity, hypoglycemic, and hypolipidemic properties of spinach. Despite these valuable attributes, spinach consumption remains low in comparison to other leafy green vegetables. This review examines the functional properties of spinach in cell culture, animals and humans with a focus on the molecular mechanisms by which spinach-derived non-essential phytochemicals and bioactives, such as glycolipids and thylakoids, impart their health benefits.
Background:
Medication adherence is a prerequisite to achieving beneficial treatment outcomes. In major depressive disorder, many patients fail to complete medication regimens, raising concern for ...poor treatment outcomes. It is usual to experience adverse drug reactions (ADRs) while taking antidepressants, and relative discomfort is reported by patients.
Aims:
The present review focuses on the presence of antidepressant-related side effects and the subsequent relationship with medication non-adherence.
Methods:
The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. Following the preliminary research, the research question and eligibility criteria were created based on the PICO framework. All articles retrieved from the selected databases were exported to Covidence, a Systematic Review managing software tool. Two reviewers assessed the papers to identify the risk of bias using the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tool for cross-sectional studies. Seven studies with a low–moderate risk of bias fulfilled the eligibility criteria and were conducted from 2013 to 2020 in Europe, Africa and Asia.
Results:
The results demonstrated high levels of suboptimal adherence ranging from 46% to 83% amongst the studied population. A variety of side effects were reported by a significant number of participants predominantly with moderate severity. A correlation between the presence of ADRs and suboptimal rates of adherence to antidepressants was found. Somnolence and headaches among other unspecified ADRs were found to increase the dropout rates for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.
Conclusions:
The present study elucidates the need for effective interventions to facilitate antidepressant adherence and enhance doctor–patient communication, benefiting both the individuals and the healthcare system and leading to better clinical outcomes and reduction of relapse-related costs.
The goal was to reduce adverse pulmonary adverse outcomes, oxidative stress, and inflammation in neonates of 24 to 28 weeks of gestation initially resuscitated with fractions of inspired oxygen of ...30% or 90%.
Randomized assignment to receive 30% (N = 37) or 90% (N = 41) oxygen was performed. Targeted oxygen saturation values were 75% at 5 minutes and 85% at 10 minutes. Blood oxidized glutathione (GSSG)/reduced glutathione ratio and urinary o-tyrosine, 8-oxo-dihydroxyguanosine, and isoprostane levels, isofuran elimination, and plasma interleukin 8 and tumor necrosis factor alpha levels were determined.
The low-oxygen group needed fewer days of oxygen supplementation (6 vs 22 days; P < .01) and fewer days of mechanical ventilation (13 vs 27 days; P < .01) and had a lower incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia at discharge (15.4% vs 31.7%; P < .05). GSSG/reduced glutathione x 100 ratios at day 1 and 3 were significantly higher in the high-oxygen group (day 1: high-oxygen group: 13.36 +/- 5.25; low-oxygen group: 8.46 +/- 3.87; P < .01; day 3: high-oxygen group: 8.87 +/- 4.40; low-oxygen group: 6.97 +/- 3.11; P < .05). Urinary markers of oxidative stress were increased significantly in the high-oxygen group, compared with the low-oxygen group, in the first week after birth. GSSG levels on day 3 and urinary isofuran, o-tyrosine, and 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine levels on day 7 were correlated significantly with development of chronic lung disease.
Resuscitation of preterm neonates with 30% oxygen causes less oxidative stress, inflammation, need for oxygen, and risk of bronchopulmonary dysplasia.
Oxidative stress, characterized by an imbalance between increased exposure to free radicals and antioxidant defenses, is a prominent feature of many acute and chronic diseases and even the normal ...aging process. However, definitive evidence for this association has often been lacking due to recognized shortcomings with methods previously available to assess oxidant stress status in vivo in humans. Several in vitro markers of oxidative stress are available, but most are of limited value in vivo because thay lack sensitivity and/or specificity or require invasive methods. Isoprostanes (IsoPs) are prostaglandin (PG)-like compounds that are produced in vivo independently of cyclooxygenase enzymes, primarily by free radical-induced peroxidation of arachidonic acid. F2-IsoPs are a group of 64 compounds isomeric in structure to cyclooxygenase- derived PGF2α. Other products of the IsoP pathway are also formed in vivo by rearrangement of labile PGH2-like IsoP intermediates including E2- and D2-IsoPs, cyclopentenone-A2- and J2-IsoPs, and highly reactive acyclicketoaldehydes (isoketals). Oxidation of docosahexaenoic acid, an abundant unsaturated fatty acid in the central nervous system, results in the formation of IsoP-like compounds, termed neuroprostanes. Measurement of F2-IsoPs is the most reliable approach to assess oxidative stress status in vivo, providing an important tool to explore the role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of human disease. Moreover, F2-IsoPs and other products of the IsoP pathway exert potent biological actions both via receptor-dependent and independent mechanisms and therefore may be pathophysiological mediators of disease. Measurement of F2-IsoPs may provide a uniquely valuable approach to understanding of the clinical pharmacology of antioxidants.
Abstract
Lipid peroxidation generates reactive dicarbonyls including isolevuglandins (IsoLGs) and malondialdehyde (MDA) that covalently modify proteins. Humans with familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) ...have increased lipoprotein dicarbonyl adducts and dysfunctional HDL. We investigate the impact of the dicarbonyl scavenger, 2-hydroxybenzylamine (2-HOBA) on HDL function and atherosclerosis in
Ldlr
−/−
mice, a model of FH. Compared to hypercholesterolemic
Ldlr
−/−
mice treated with vehicle or 4-HOBA, a nonreactive analogue, 2-HOBA decreases atherosclerosis by 60% in
en face
aortas, without changing plasma cholesterol.
Ldlr
−/−
mice treated with 2-HOBA have reduced MDA-LDL and MDA-HDL levels, and their HDL display increased capacity to reduce macrophage cholesterol. Importantly, 2-HOBA reduces the MDA- and IsoLG-lysyl content in atherosclerotic aortas versus 4-HOBA. Furthermore, 2-HOBA reduces inflammation and plaque apoptotic cells and promotes efferocytosis and features of stable plaques. Dicarbonyl scavenging with 2-HOBA has multiple atheroprotective effects in a murine FH model, supporting its potential as a therapeutic approach for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been declared 'a life sentence' based on evidence that the disorder leads to a host of physical health problems. Some of the strongest empirical research - ...in terms of methodology and findings - has shown that PTSD predicts higher risk of cardiometabolic diseases, specifically cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Despite mounting evidence, PTSD is not currently acknowledged as a risk factor by cardiovascular or endocrinological medicine. This view is unlikely to change absent compelling evidence that PTSD causally contributes to cardiometabolic disease. This review suggests that with developments in methods for epidemiological research and the rapidly expanding knowledge of the behavioral and biological effects of PTSD the field is poised to provide more definitive answers to questions of causality. First, we discuss methods to improve causal inference using the observational data most often used in studies of PTSD and health, with particular reference to issues of temporality and confounding. Second, we consider recent work linking PTSD with specific behaviors and biological processes, and evaluate whether these may plausibly serve as mechanisms by which PTSD leads to cardiometabolic disease. Third, we evaluate how looking more comprehensively into the PTSD phenotype provides insight into whether specific aspects of PTSD phenomenology are particularly relevant to cardiometabolic disease. Finally, we discuss new areas of research that are feasible and could enhance understanding of the PTSD-cardiometabolic relationship, such as testing whether treatment of PTSD can halt or even reverse the cardiometabolic risk factors causally related to CVD and T2D.
Carbon and metal-oxide nanoparticles (NP) are currently synthesized worldwide for various applications in the solar-energy, optical, pharmaceutical, and biomedical industries, among many others. Gas ...phase methods comprise flame synthesis and flame spray pyrolysis (FSP), which provide high efficiency, low cost, and the possibility of large-scale applications. The variation of combustion operation parameters exerts significant effects on the properties of the NPs. An analysis of the latest research results relevant to NP flame synthesis can provide new insight into the optimization of these methods and the development of these techniques for a large scale. This review offers insight into the current status of flame synthesis for carbon and metal-oxide NPs-specifically containing analysis and comparison of the most common carbon and metal-oxide NP production techniques. The burner configurations used at the laboratory scale and large scale are also discussed, followed by the assessment of the influence of combustion parameters on the properties of NPs. Finally, the features of the measurement techniques applied for determining NP properties were described.
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