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J Neurol Surg A Cent Eur Neurosurg 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Neurosurgery, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, Seocho Gu, Seoul, Korea, Republic of.

Chiari malformation type 1 (CM-1) is an ectopia of the cerebellar tonsils below the foramen magnum that causes severe disability due to its neurologic symptoms. The treatment of choice for CM-1 is decompression of the craniovertebral junction (CVJ). In some patients only an extradural decompression by removing the atlanto-occipital ligament may be sufficient. Read More

J Neurol Surg A Cent Eur Neurosurg 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Neurosurgery, Universitätsklinikum Ulm, Ulm, Germany.

Objective:  The aim of the study was to compare two techniques for external ventricular drainage (EVD) placement with respect to their complication rates.

Methods:  A retrospective descriptive study was performed to analyze all patients who had undergone EVD implantation for acute hydrocephalus between January 2010 and December 2013 with a focus on surgical technique and rate of complications. The burr hole technique (BHT) was used in one group and the twist-drill technique (TDT) in the other. Read More

Folia Phoniatr Logop 2019 Apr 24:1-10. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Institute of Linguistics, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan,

Mismatch negativity (MMN) is an event-related potential component used to index automatic auditory change detection. Thus, MMN provides an excellent tool to assess the speech sensitivity of infants and children. Although MMN is well established in adults, the polarity and latency of mismatch responses (MMRs) in infants are highly inconsistent across studies. Read More

Anaesth Crit Care Pain Med 2019 Apr 21. Epub 2019 Apr 21.

Department of Neonatology and Paediatric Intensive Care, Charles Nicolle University Hospital, 1, rue de Germont, F-76031 Rouen Cedex. France.

Free Radic Biol Med 2019 Apr 21. Epub 2019 Apr 21.

Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, Rion 26504, Greece. Electronic address:

Multiple thioredoxin isoforms exist in all living cells. To explore the possible functions of mammalian mitochondrial thioredoxin 2 (Trx2), an interactome of mouse Trx2 was initially created using (i) a monothiol mouse Trx2 species for capturing protein partners from different organs and (ii) yeast two hybrid screens on human liver and rat brain cDNA libraries. The resulting interactome consisted of 195 proteins (Trx2 included) plus the mitochondrial 16S RNA. Read More

Neuroimage 2019 Apr 21. Epub 2019 Apr 21.

Department of Psychology, Harvard University, William James Hall, 33 Kirkland Street, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA. Electronic address:

Previous research suggests that default-mode network (DMN) and dorsal attention network (DAN) are involved in internally- and externally-directed attention, respectively, through interactions with salience network (SN) and frontoparietal network (FPCN). Performing a task requiring external attention is often accompanied by a down-regulation of attention to internal thoughts, and vice-versa. In contrast, we often divide our attention between the external environment and internal thoughts to pursue distinct goals, yet virtually no prior research has examined how brain networks support this functionally critical neurocognitive process. Read More

Neurochem Int 2019 Apr 21. Epub 2019 Apr 21.

Department of Physiology and Pain Research Center, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, PR China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, Guangzhou, Guangdong, PR China. Electronic address:

It has been reported that skin/muscle incision and retraction (SMIR) in the thigh, produces mechanical allodynia in the hind paw, far from the site of incision/retraction. The mechanical allodynia lasts about 22 days, indicating chronic post-operative pain develops. The precise mechanisms, however, are largely unclear. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1307-1318.e3

Kizil Lab, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Dresden, Helmholtz Association, Tatzberg 41, 01307 Dresden, Germany; Kizil Lab, Technische Universität Dresden, Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD), Fetscherstr. 105, 01307 Dresden, Germany. Electronic address:

The neural stem cell (NSC) reservoir can be harnessed for stem cell-based regenerative therapies. Zebrafish remarkably regenerate their brain by inducing NSC plasticity in a Amyloid-β-42 (Aβ42)-induced experimental Alzheimer's disease (AD) model. Interleukin-4 (IL-4) is also critical for AD-induced NSC proliferation. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1293-1306.e6

VIB Centre for Brain Disease Research, Leuven, Belgium; University of Leuven, Department of Neurosciences and Leuven Brain Institute, Leuven, Belgium; UK Dementia Research Institute, University College London, London, UK. Electronic address:

Gene expression profiles of more than 10,000 individual microglial cells isolated from cortex and hippocampus of male and female App mice over time demonstrate that progressive amyloid-β accumulation accelerates two main activated microglia states that are also present during normal aging. Activated response microglia (ARMs) are composed of specialized subgroups overexpressing MHC type II and putative tissue repair genes (Dkk2, Gpnmb, and Spp1) and are strongly enriched with Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk genes. Microglia from female mice progress faster in this activation trajectory. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1277-1292.e7

Department of Pathology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA; Department of Medicine (Medical Oncology), Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA; Yale Cancer Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA. Electronic address:

The brain is a major site of relapse for several cancers, yet deciphering the mechanisms of brain metastasis remains a challenge because of the complexity of the brain tumor microenvironment (TME). To define the molecular landscape of brain metastasis from intact tissue in vivo, we employ an RNA-sequencing-based approach, which leverages the transcriptome of xenografts and distinguishes tumor cell and stromal gene expression with improved sensitivity and accuracy. Our data reveal shifts in epithelial and neuronal-like lineage programs in malignant cells as they adapt to the brain TME and the reciprocal neuroinflammatory response of the stroma. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1119-1132.e7

Neural Coding Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy; Optical Approaches to Brain Function Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy. Electronic address:

The awake cortex exhibits diverse non-rhythmic network states. However, how these states emerge and how each state impacts network function is unclear. Here, we demonstrate that model networks of spiking neurons with moderate recurrent interactions display a spectrum of non-rhythmic asynchronous dynamics based on the level of afferent excitation, from afferent input-dominated (AD) regimes, characterized by unbalanced synaptic currents and sparse firing, to recurrent input-dominated (RD) regimes, characterized by balanced synaptic currents and dense firing. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1073-1089.e5

Department of Pathology, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama 930-0194, Japan. Electronic address:

Oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) are widely distributed cells of ramified morphology in adult brain that express PDGFRα and NG2. They retain mitotic activities in adulthood and contribute to oligodendrogenesis and myelin turnover; however, the regulatory mechanisms of their cell dynamics in adult brain largely remain unknown. Here, we found that global Pdgfra inactivation in adult mice rapidly led to elimination of OPCs due to synchronous maturation toward oligodendrocytes. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1062-1072.e5

Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA; Department of Molecular Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA; Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA. Electronic address:

Gap-junction-mediated cell-cell communication enables tumor cells to synchronize complex processes. We previously found that glioblastoma cancer stem cells (CSCs) express higher levels of the gap junction protein Cx46 compared to non-stem tumor cells (non-CSCs) and that this was necessary and sufficient for CSC maintenance. To understand the mechanism underlying this requirement, we use point mutants to disrupt specific functions of Cx46 and find that Cx46-mediated gap-junction coupling is critical for CSCs. Read More

Cell Rep 2019 Apr;27(4):1018-1026.e4

The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, Edinburgh EH25 9RG, UK; Euan MacDonald Centre, Chancellor's Building, University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK; Centre for Dementia Prevention, University of Edinburgh, 9A Bioquarter, 9 Little France Road, Edinburgh EH16 4UX, UK. Electronic address:

Normal mammalian brain aging is characterized by the selective loss of discrete populations of dendritic spines and synapses, particularly affecting neuroanatomical regions such as the hippocampus. Although previous investigations have quantified this morphologically, the molecular pathways orchestrating preferential synaptic vulnerability remain to be elucidated. Using quantitative proteomics and healthy rhesus macaque and human patient brain regional tissues, we have comprehensively profiled the temporal expression of the synaptic proteome throughout the adult lifespan in differentially vulnerable brain regions. Read More

Annu Rev Nutr 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Integrative Medical Sciences, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, Ohio 44272; email:

Bile acids facilitate nutrient absorption and are endogenous ligands for nuclear receptors that regulate lipid and energy metabolism. The brain-gut-liver axis plays an essential role in maintaining overall glucose, bile, and immune homeostasis. Fasting and feeding transitions alter nutrient content in the gut, which influences bile acid composition and pool size. Read More

Psychol Sci 2019 Apr 24:956797619841813. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Villanova University.

An unresolved issue in speech perception concerns whether top-down linguistic information influences perceptual responses. We addressed this issue using the event-related-potential technique in two experiments that measured cross-modal sequential-semantic priming effects on the auditory N1, an index of acoustic-cue encoding. Participants heard auditory targets (e. Read More

Annu Rev Neurosci 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Champalimaud Research, Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown, 1400-038 Lisbon, Portugal.

Deciding what to do and when to move is vital to our survival. Clinical and fundamental studies have identified basal ganglia circuits as critical for this process. The main input nucleus of the basal ganglia, the striatum, receives inputs from frontal, sensory, and motor cortices and interconnected thalamic areas that provide information about potential goals, context, and actions and directly or indirectly modulates basal ganglia outputs. Read More

Mol Pharm 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

This study focused on formulating conjugate vaccines targeting oxycodone and heroin for technology transfer, Good Manufacturing Process (GMP), and clinical evaluation. Lead vaccines used the highly immunogenic carrier protein keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH), which poses formulation problems because of its size. To address this barrier to translation, an oxycodone-based hapten conjugated to GMP-grade subunit KLH (OXY-sKLH) and adsorbed on alum adjuvant was studied with regard to carbodiimide coupling reaction time, buffer composition, purification methods for conjugates, conjugate size, state of aggregation, and protein:alum ratio. Read More

Small 2019 Apr 24:e1900966. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Functional Materials and Microsystems Research Group and the Micro Nano Research Facility, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3001, Australia.

The translation of biological synapses onto a hardware platform is an important step toward the realization of brain-inspired electronics. However, to mimic biological synapses, devices till-date continue to rely on the need for simultaneously altering the polarity of an applied electric field or the output of these devices is photonic instead of an electrical synapse. As the next big step toward practical realization of optogenetics inspired circuits that exhibit fidelity and flexibility of biological synapses, optically-stimulated synaptic devices without a need to apply polarity-altering electric field are needed. Read More

PLoS One 2019 24;14(4):e0215400. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Philips Health Tech Asia Pacific, Minato-ku Tokyo, Japan.

Objective: To assess the inter-technique agreement of relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV) measurements obtained using T1- and T2*-perfusion MRI on 3T scanner in glioma patients.

Methods: A total of 49 adult patients with gliomas underwent both on T1- and T2*-perfusion in the same scanning session, and rCBV maps were estimated using both methods. For the quantitative analysis; Two independent observers recorded the rCBV values from the tumor as well as contralateral brain tissue from both T1- and T2*-perfusion. Read More

PLoS One 2019 24;14(4):e0215151. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

McMaster Brain-Body Institute, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Background: Stress causes severe dysmotility in the mammalian gut. Almost all research done to date has concentrated on prevention of stress-induced altered gut motility but not on treatment. We had previously shown that intraluminal 2'FL could acutely moderate propulsive motility in isolated mouse colonic segments. Read More

PLoS One 2019 24;14(4):e0202063. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

VCU Alcohol Research Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, United States of America.

Genome-wide association studies on alcohol dependence, by themselves, have yet to account for the estimated heritability of the disorder and provide incomplete mechanistic understanding of this complex trait. Integrating brain ethanol-responsive gene expression networks from model organisms with human genetic data on alcohol dependence could aid in identifying dependence-associated genes and functional networks in which they are involved. This study used a modification of the Edge-Weighted Dense Module Searching for genome-wide association studies (EW-dmGWAS) approach to co-analyze whole-genome gene expression data from ethanol-exposed mouse brain tissue, human protein-protein interaction databases and alcohol dependence-related genome-wide association studies. Read More

PLoS Comput Biol 2019 Apr 24;15(4):e1006975. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Institute of Biophysics, National Research Council, Palermo, Italy.

Across the mammalian nervous system, neurotrophins control synaptic plasticity, neuromodulation, and neuronal growth. The neurotrophin Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) is known to promote structural and functional synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus, the cerebral cortex, and many other brain areas. In recent years, a wealth of data has been accumulated revealing the paramount importance of BDNF for neuronal function. Read More

J Registry Manag 2018 ;45(3):109-116

Background: Concern has been raised regarding the underreporting of nonmalignant central nervous system tumors. This study addressed this issue with 2 objectives: (1) evaluate the impact of linkage with hospital discharges, as recorded in the Discharge Abstract Database (DAD), on supplementing case ascertainment for brain tumors, and (2) identify potential barriers for initial registration of brain tumors in the Alberta Cancer Registry.

Methods: All patients with a brain tumor diagnosed and residing in Alberta from 2010 to 2015 were extracted, after the DAD review, from the Alberta Cancer Registry (ACR). Read More

Am J Case Rep 2019 Apr 24;20:587-591. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Piedmont Transplant Institute, Piedmont Hospital, Atlanta, GA, USA.

BACKGROUND Post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis (PSGN) is a well-known cause of renal injury. This disease is caused by a prior infection with specific nephritogenic strains of group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus resulting in formation of immune complexes in the glomeruli. Clinical presentation can range from asymptomatic, microscopic hematuria to the nephritic syndrome which is defined by red to brown urine, nephrotic range proteinuria, edema, hypertension, and acute kidney injury. Read More

J Basic Clin Physiol Pharmacol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Pharmacognosy and Drug Development, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.

Background Adansonia digitata L. (Malvaceae) is used locally in the management of depressive illnesses, and its antidepressant-like effect has been previously reported. The present study was aimed at determining the effect of the methanol extract of the stem bark of A. Read More

J Basic Clin Physiol Pharmacol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey.

Background The objective of this investigation was to examine the impact of silymarin supplementation on locomotion, anxiety-related behavior, learning, and memory via several behavioral tests, such as open field, elevated plus maze, and Morris water maze tests in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Methods The rats were divided into the control, diabetes, silymarin, and diabetes plus silymarin groups. On the 30th-35th days of the study, several behavioral tests were performed and blood and brain tissue samples were taken and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) levels were analyzed. Read More

J Neurophysiol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Stanford, United States.

Microelectrode recordings were performed during awake deep brain stimulation surgery for obsessive-compulsive disorder, revealing robust brain oscillations that were plainly visible throughout the ventral striatum. There was an elegant topological correspondence between each oscillation and the underlying brain anatomy, most prominently a ~35Hz gamma-oscillation specific to the nucleus accumbens. Direct provocation of the patient's contamination obsession modulated both firing rate and gamma-oscillation amplitude within the nucleus accumbens. Read More

J Neurophysiol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Bioengineering and Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, United States.

If the brain abstractly represents probability distributions as knowledge, then the modality of a decision, e.g. movement vs. Read More

J Neurophysiol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Mechanical Engineering and Brain & Cognitive Sci., MIT, United States.

Humans have an astonishing ability to extract hidden information from the movements of others. For example, even with only limited kinematic information, humans can distinguish between biological and non-biological motion, identify the age and gender of a human demonstrator, and recognize what action a human demonstrator is performing. It is unknown, however, whether they can also estimate hidden mechanical properties of another's limbs simply by observing their motions. Read More

J Neurophysiol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Donders institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Netherlands.

In daily life, we frequently reach to objects while our body is in motion. We have recently shown that body accelerations influence the decision which hand to use for the reach, possibly by modulating the body-centered computations of the expected reach costs. However, head orientation relative to the body was not manipulated, hence it remains unclear whether vestibular signals contribute in their head-based sensory frame or in a transformed body-centered reference frame to these cost calculations. Read More

Psychol Sci 2019 Apr 24:956797619842251. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Centre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Toulouse III-Paul Sabatier.

Human observers readily detect targets in stimuli presented briefly and in rapid succession. Here, we show that even without predefined targets, humans can spot repetitions in streams of thousands of images. We presented sequences of natural images reoccurring a number of times interleaved with either one or two distractors, and we asked participants to detect the repetitions and to identify the repeated images after a delay that could last for minutes. Read More

Perspect Psychol Sci 2019 Apr 24:1745691619827011. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University.

Common-sense intuitions can be useful guides in everyday life and problem solving. However, they can also impede formal science learning and provide the basis for robust scientific misconceptions. Addressing such misconceptions has generally been viewed as the province of secondary schooling. Read More

Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, United States.

The availability of oxygen to the fetus is limited by the route taken by oxygen from atmosphere to fetal tissues, aided or diminished by pregnancy-associated changes in maternal physiology, and ultimately a function of atmospheric pressure and composition of the mother's inspired gas. Much of our understanding of the fetal physiological response to hypoxia comes from experiments designed to elucidate the cardiovascular and endocrine responses to transient hypoxia. Complementing this work is equally impactful research into the origins of intrauterine growth restriction, using animal models designed to restrict the transfer of oxygen from maternal to fetal circulation. Read More

Prenat Diagn 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Mount Sinai Hospital and University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of introduction of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) on the uptake of invasive testing in pregnancies complicated by fetal central nervous system (CNS) anomalies.

Methods: Retrospective review of all singleton pregnancies complicated by fetal CNS anomalies seen at a single tertiary center between 2010 and 2017. Cases who had undergone invasive testing or NIPT prior to the diagnosis of the CNS anomaly were excluded. Read More

J Med Virol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Molecular Biology Unit, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.

Chandipura virus (CHPV) is a neurotropic virus, known to cause encephalitis in humans. The microRNAs play an important role in the pathogenesis of viral infection. The present study is focused on the role of miRNAs during CHPV (Strain 1653514) infection in human microglial cells. Read More

J Fish Biol 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Key Laboratory of Tropical & Subtropical Fishery Resource Application & Cultivation, Ministry of Agriculture, Pearl River Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Guangzhou 510380, China.

The partial cDNA sequences of eight reference genes (actb, tuba1, gapdh58, gapdh59, eef1a1, RNA 18s, pabpc1, ube2I) were cloned from largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides. The expression levels of these eight genes were compared in the various tissues (eye, spleen, kidney, gill, muscle, brain, liver, heart, gut and gonad) of M. salmoides fed on forage fish. Read More

J Biomech Eng 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Technion|Israel Institute of Technology.

Mechanical stability analysis is instructive in explaining biological processes like morphogenesis, organogenesis, and pathogenesis of soft tissues. Consideration of the layered, residually-stressed structure of tissues, requires accounting for the joint effects of interface conditions and layer incompatibility. This paper is concerned with the influence of imposed rate (incremental) interface conditions (RICs) on critical loads in soft tissues, within the context of linear bifurcation analysis. Read More

Elife 2019 Apr 24;8. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, United States.

Huntington's disease (HD) is initially characterized by an inability to suppress unwanted movements, a deficit attributable to impaired synaptic activation of striatal indirect pathway spiny projection neurons (iSPNs). To better understand the mechanisms underlying this deficit, striatal neurons in ex vivo brain slices from mouse genetic models of HD were studied using electrophysiological, optical and biochemical approaches. Distal dendrites of iSPNs from symptomatic HD mice were hypoexcitable, a change that was attributable to increased association of dendritic Kv4 potassium channels with auxiliary KChIP subunits. Read More

Zebrafish 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

1 Bioscience Institute, São Paulo State University, São Vicente, Brazil.

Peptides represent a large class of cell signaling molecules, and they are mainly produced by the classical secretory pathway or during protein degradation. The peptide profile of (zebrafish) shows a lack of information when compared with other consolidated animal models. The aim of this work was to characterize the peptide profile of zebrafish brain by using triplex reductive methylation of amines labeling and liquid chromatography coupled to electron spray mass spectrometry. Read More

Brain Inj 2019 Apr 24:1-8. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

b Kessler Foundation , East Hanover , NJ , USA.

Background And Objective: Changes in cerebral white matter organization have been documented in acute phases of recovery from traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, little is known about reorganization processes in more chronic stages of recovery. The current study identified changes in white matter organization in chronic cases of TBI, and determined the relationship between structural changes and cognitive functioning. Read More

Biomarkers 2019 Apr 24:1-24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

a Department of Cardiology , Copenhagen University Hospital , Rigshospitalet , Copenhagen , Denmark.

Background: Anoxic brain injury is the primary cause of death after resuscitation from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) and prognostication is challenging. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of two fragments of tau as serum biomarkers for neurological outcome.

Methods: Single-center sub-study of 171 patients included in the Target Temperature Management (TTM) Trial randomly assigned to TTM at 33 °C or TTM at 36 °C for 24 hours after OHCA. Read More

Brain Inj 2019 Apr 24:1-9. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

b Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC) San Antonio VA Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center, South Texas Veterans Healthcare System , San Antonio , Texas , USA.

Primary Objective: To advance knowledge about the value of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies - Depression scale (CES-D) for depression screening in military service members with a history of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

Research Design: Retrospective data from 336 military service members with a history of mTBI were extracted from a TBI Repository at a large military medical center. Participants included in this study screened positive for mTBI in a primary care clinic or soldier readiness processing center and were enrolled in the TBI repository from November 6, 2014 to May 31, 2017. Read More

Eur Heart J Acute Cardiovasc Care 2019 Apr 24:2048872619846506. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

2 Cardiology Department, Hospital de Santa Cruz, Portugal.

Background: Patients with acute pulmonary embolism are at intermediate-high risk in the presence of imaging signs of right ventricular dysfunction plus one or more elevated cardiac biomarker. We hypothesised that intermediate-high risk patients with two elevated cardiac biomarkers and imaging signs of right ventricular dysfunction have a worse prognosis than those with one cardiac biomarker and imaging signs of right ventricular dysfunction.

Methods: We analysed the cumulative presence of cardiac biomarkers and imaging signs of right ventricular dysfunction in 525 patients with intermediate risk pulmonary embolism (intermediate-high risk = 237) presenting at the emergency department in two centres. Read More

Eur Heart J Acute Cardiovasc Care 2019 Apr 24:2048872619846334. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

7 Department of Medical Sciences, Cardiology Uppsala University, Sweden.

Aims: We investigated the dynamics, associations with patient characteristics, other biomarkers, and clinical outcomes of pentraxin 3 in acute coronary syndrome.

Methods And Results: In multivariate analyses, pentraxin 3 measured in 5154 patients randomised in the Platelet Inhibition and Patients Outcomes (PLATO) trial (NCT00391872) was compared with leukocytes, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, cystatin C, N-terminal prohormone brain natriuretic peptide, high-sensitivity troponin T and growth differentiation factor 15 concerning prediction of clinical outcome. Pentraxin 3 peaked earlier than high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and was more strongly correlated with N-terminal prohormone brain natriuretic peptide and high-sensitivity troponin T than with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. Read More

Cell Transplant 2019 Apr 24:963689719835192. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

1 Department of Neurosurgery, Bern University Hospital, Switzerland.

There is growing evidence that stem and progenitor cells exert regenerative actions by means of paracrine factors. In line with these notions, we recently demonstrated that endothelial progenitor cell (EPC)-derived conditioned medium (EPC-CM) substantially increased viability of brain microvascular cells. In the present study, we aimed at investigating whether EPC-CM supports cell survival of cultured striatal progenitor cells. Read More

Br J Radiol 2019 Apr 24:20181025. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

2 Department of Nuclear Medicine, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Road , London , UK.

Objectives: To compare commercially available image analysis tools Hermes BRASS and Siemens with clinical assessment in 18F-Florbetapir PET scans.

Methods: 225 scans were reported by clinicians and quantified using two software packages. Scans were classified into type A (typical features) or non-type A (atypical features) for both positive and negative scans. Read More

Br J Radiol 2019 Apr 24:20181020. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

1 Radiological Sciences Unit, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Road , London , UK.

Objectives: This study investigates the usefulness of quantitative SUVR thresholds on sub types of typical (type A) and atypical (non-type A) positive (Aβ+) and negative (Aβ-) F-florbetapir scans and aims to optimise the thresholds.

Methods: Clinical F-florbetapir scans ( = 100) were categorised by sub type and visual reads were performed independently by three trained readers. Inter reader agreement and reader-to-reference agreement were measured. Read More

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

Ultrasmall iron oxide nanoparticles (USIONPs) (< 4 nm) have recently attracted significant attention because of their potential as positive T1 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent contrary to larger superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (> 6 nm) which act as negative T2 MRI contrast agent. However, studies on the cellular uptake behavior of these nanoparticles are very limited compared to their counterpart, larger sized superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles. In particular, the effects of specific nanoparticle parameters on the cellular uptake behavior of USIONPs by various cancer cells are not available. Read More

ACS Chem Neurosci 2019 Apr 24. Epub 2019 Apr 24.

The tropomyosin receptor kinase TrkA/B/C family is responsible for human neuronal growth, survival and differentiation from early nervous system development stages onward. Downregulation of TrkA/B/C receptors characterizes numerous neurological disorders including Alzheimer disease (AD). Abnormally expressed Trk receptors or chimeric Trk fusion proteins are also well-characterized oncogenic drivers in a variety of neurogenic and non-neurogenic human neoplasms and are currently the focus of intensive clinical research. Read More