rudyvdbrink/CitationDatabase huggingface dataset:
The HLA Variant rs6903608 Is Associated with Disease Onset and Relapse of Immune-Mediated Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura in Caucasians.
Journal of clinical medicine, 2020

Immune-mediated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) is a rare, life-threatening thrombotic microangiopathy caused by severe ADAMTS13 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 13) deficiency, recurring in 30-50% of patients. The common human leukocyte antigen (HLA) variant rs6903608 was found to be associated with prevalent iTTP, but whether this variant is associated with disease relapse is unknown. To estimate the impact of rs6903608 on iTTP onset and relapse, we performed a case-control and cohort study in 161 Italian patients with a first iTTP episode between 2002 and 2018, and in 456 Italian controls. Variation in rs6903608 was strongly associated with iTTP onset (homozygotes odds ratio (OR) 4.68 (95% confidence interval (CI) 2.67 to 8.23); heterozygotes OR 1.64 (95%CI 0.95 to 2.83)), which occurred over three years earlier for each extra risk allele (β -3.34, 95%CI -6.69 to 0.02). Of 153 survivors (median follow-up 4.9 years (95%CI 3.7 to 6.1)), 44 (29%) relapsed. The risk allele homozygotes had a 46% (95%CI 36 to 57%) absolute risk of relapse by year 6, which was significantly higher than both heterozygotes (22% (95%CI 16 to 29%)) and reference allele homozygotes (30% (95%CI 23 to 39%)). In conclusion, HLA variant rs6903608 is a risk factor for both iTTP onset and relapse. This newly identified biomarker may help with recognizing patients at high risk of relapse, who would benefit from close monitoring or intensified immunosuppressive therapy.
CD36 - A novel molecular target in the neurovascular unit.
The European journal of neuroscience, 2021

CD36 is an integral membrane protein primarily known for its function as a fatty acid transporter, yet also playing other biological roles from lipid metabolism to inflammation modulation. These pleiotropic effects are explained by the existence of multiple different ligands and the extensive distribution in numerous cell types. Moreover, the receptor is related to various pathologies and it may prove to be a good target for prospective therapeutic strategies. In the neurovascular unit (NVU), CD36 is expressed in cells like microglia, microvascular endothelial cells, astrocytes and neurons. In the normal brain, CD36 was proven to be involved in phagocytosis of apoptotic cells, oro-sensory detection of dietary lipids, and fatty acid transport across the blood brain barrier (BBB). CD36 was also acknowledged as a potentially important player in central nervous system (CNS) disorders, such as Alzheimer Disease-associated vascular dysfunction and oxidative stress and the neuroinflammatory response in stroke. Despite continuous efforts, the therapeutic arsenal for such diseases is still scarce and there is an increasing interest in discovering new molecular targets for more specific therapeutic approaches. In this review, we summarize the role of CD36 in the normal function of the NVU and in several CNS disorders, focusing on the dysregulation of the NVU and the potential therapeutic modulation.
Increased processing of SINE B2 ncRNAs unveils a novel type of transcriptome deregulation in amyloid beta neuropathology.
eLife, 2020

The functional importance of many non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) generated by repetitive elements and their connection with pathologic processes remains elusive. B2 RNAs, a class of ncRNAs of the B2 family of SINE repeats, mediate through their processing the transcriptional activation of various genes in response to stress. Here, we show that this response is dysfunctional during amyloid beta toxicity and pathology in the mouse hippocampus due to increased levels of B2 RNA processing, leading to constitutively elevated B2 RNA target gene expression and high
Methodological considerations for a better somatosensory gating paradigm: The impact of the inter-stimulus interval.
NeuroImage, 2020

Sensory gating (SG) is a neurophysiological phenomenon whereby the response to the second stimulus in a repetitive pair is attenuated. This filtering of irrelevant or redundant information is thought to preserve neural resources for more behaviorally-relevant stimuli and thereby reflect the functional inhibition of sensory input. Developing a SG paradigm in which optimal suppression of sensory input is achieved requires investigators to consider numerous parameters such as stimulus intensity, time between stimulus pairs, and the inter-stimulus interval (ISI) within each pair. While these factors have been well defined for the interrogation of auditory gating, the precise parameters for eliciting optimal gating in the somatosensory domain are far less understood. To address this, we investigated the impact of varying the ISI within each identical pair of stimuli on gating using magnetoencephalography (MEG). Specifically, 25 healthy young adults underwent paired-pulse electrical stimulation of the median nerve with increasing ISIs between 100 and 1000 ​ms (in 100 ​ms increments). Importantly, for correspondence with previous studies of somatosensory gating, both time-domain and oscillatory neural responses to somatosensory stimulation were evaluated. Our results indicated that gating of somatosensory input was optimal (i.e., best suppression) for trials with an ISI of 200-220 ​ms, as evidenced by the smallest gating ratios and through statistical modeling estimations of optimal suppression. Importantly, this was true irrespective of whether oscillatory or evoked neural activity was used to calculate SG. Interestingly, oscillatory metrics of gating calculated using peak gamma (30-75 ​Hz) power and frequency revealed more robust gating (i.e., smaller ratios) than those calculated using time-domain neural responses, suggesting that high frequency oscillations may provide a more sensitive measure of SG. These findings have important implications for the development of optimal protocols and analysis pipelines to interrogate SG and inhibitory processing with a higher degree of sensitivity and accuracy.
Deep Learning on Conventional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Improves the Diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis Mimics.
Investigative radiology, 2021

The aims of this study were to present a deep learning approach for the automated classification of multiple sclerosis and its mimics and compare model performance with that of 2 expert neuroradiologists.
Bestiality Among Sexually Violent Predators.
The journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 2020

Bestiality, or sexual contact between humans and nonhuman animals, is a poorly understood aspect of sexual behavior. There is a dearth of scientific research on the prevalence of bestiality, the motivations for individuals to engage in the behavior, and the risk that such individuals pose for interpersonal sexual and nonsexual violence. This study is a descriptive analysis of bestiality in all individuals found to be sexually violent predators (SVPs) in the state of Virginia between the years 2003 and 2017. Of 1,248 SVPs, 33 (2.6%) had a history of engaging in bestiality. SVPs with a history of bestiality were significantly more likely to be victims of childhood sexual abuse (
Investigation of the "central vein sign" in infratentorial multiple sclerosis lesions.
Multiple sclerosis and related disorders, 2020

Recently there has been an increasing interest in the "central vein sign" (CVS) in multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions. Infratentorial brain regions represent typical predilection sites for MS lesion development and are part of the current McDonald criteria to demonstrate dissemination in space, but only a few studies investigated the presence of the CVS in infratentorial MS lesions. The aim of this study was to investigate the CVS in infratentorial MS lesions.
Codes are for messages, not for neurons.
The Behavioral and brain sciences, 2019

My commentary draws on extensive arguments against "coding in the brain" developed by my neuroscience mentor, the late Eugene Sachs, who summarized them as follows: "[T]he energy in the signal is the only code there is for information…. The code is the same for each cell, but each cell's location is different, and location is the only basis for significance" (p. 13).
Bodily self-consciousness, and the primacy of self related signals such as the 1(st) person perspective and self-location.
Cognitive neuroscience, 2011

Abstract G&K provide a new and interesting perspective on consciousness, by arguing that consciousness is a product of social perception. Based on the overlap between the neural mechanisms underlying spatial awareness of other people and oneself, out-of-body experiences (OBEs), and social perception the authors argue that consciousness is based on the brain signals that represent other people and their spatial awareness. Although we generally welcome the authors efforts, we (1) would like to emphasize that consciousness has two distinct spatial aspects, namely self-location and first-person perspective, (2) cite evidence about distinct developmental and brain mechanisms concerning first- versus third-person perceptions and cogitations and (3) argue for a primacy of multisensory own body perception over social perception and awareness as a neurobiological foundation of consciousness.
Risk Factor Control and Cardiovascular Event Risk in People With Type 2 Diabetes in Primary and Secondary Prevention Settings.
Circulation, 2020

To examine the association between the degree of risk factor control and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in type 2 diabetes and to assess if the presence of cardio-renal disease modifies these relationships.
Behavioral activation and inhibition in compulsive buying and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Annals of clinical psychiatry : official journal of the American Academy of Clinical Psychiatrists, 2021

Compulsive buying (CB) is characterized by intrusive thoughts and behaviors related to the purchase of items, whereas obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) seems to arise from misattributed anxiety to a neutral stimulus resulting in the avoidance of the feared stimuli. Examining the triggers for the behaviors may provide useful information to possible shared etiology.
Oral mucosa and Streptococcus mutans count in the saliva. Does graphene oxide nanoparticle mouthwash have a good effect?
Caspian journal of internal medicine, 2021

This study aimed to assess the effect of graphene oxide (GO) nanoparticles mouthwash on oral mucosa, Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) count in the saliva of rats, and human enamel surface microhardness, in comparison with fluoride mouthwash.
Brainwide Genetic Sparse Cell Labeling to Illuminate the Morphology of Neurons and Glia with Cre-Dependent MORF Mice.
Neuron, 2020

Cajal recognized that the elaborate shape of neurons is fundamental to their function in the brain. However, there are no simple and generalizable genetic methods to study neuronal or glial cell morphology in the mammalian brain. Here, we describe four mouse lines conferring Cre-dependent sparse cell labeling based on mononucleotide repeat frameshift (MORF) as a stochastic translational switch. Notably, the optimized MORF3 mice, with a membrane-bound multivalent immunoreporter, confer Cre-dependent sparse and bright labeling of thousands of neurons, astrocytes, or microglia in each brain, revealing their intricate morphologies. MORF3 mice are compatible with imaging in tissue-cleared thick brain sections and with immuno-EM. An analysis of 151 MORF3-labeled developing retinal horizontal cells reveals novel morphological cell clusters and axonal maturation patterns. Our study demonstrates a conceptually novel, simple, generalizable, and scalable mouse genetic solution to sparsely label and illuminate the morphology of genetically defined neurons and glia in the mammalian brain.
Shenqi Yizhi granules protect hippocampus of AD transgenic mice by modulating on multiple pathological processes.
Journal of ethnopharmacology, 2020

Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) draws more attention to explore effective therapeutic strategy for Alzheimer's disease (AD). CHM usually uses combinations of herbs or herbal ingredients to treat diseases, with the components targeting different disease processes. CHM might improve cognition in AD and MCI patients by optimizing network activity, promoting neural plasticity and repairing damaged neurons. Shenqi Yizhi granules (SQYG), a CHM prescription, are mainly consists of Panax ginseng C.A.Mey, Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge, and Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi and have been used to ameliorate cognitive impairment in mild-to-moderate dementia patients.
Regulation of glycosaminoglycan biogenesis is critical for sensitive-period-dependent vocal ontogeny.
Developmental neurobiology, 2017

In the brain, the extracellular matrix (ECM) plays a central role during neural development and thus modulates critical-period regulated behavioral ontogeny. The major components of the ECM are glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) including chondroitin sulfate (CS). However, the specific roles of GAGs in behavioral development are largely unknown. It has been shown that xylosides affect the biological functions of GAGs through modulating GAG biosynthesis. Particularly, xylosides affect GAG biosynthesis through priming of GAG chains (priming activity), competing with endogenous core proteins that carry GAG initiation sites (decoy activity), or both. Using birdsong as our model, we investigated, for the first time, how xyloside-mediated modulation of GAG biogenesis affects song development. Xylosides infused into motor cortex of juvenile birds alter song development by specifically affecting ontogeny of the stereotyped sequence rather than the acoustic structure of syllables. Further analyses reveal that observed changes can be attributed to the priming activity rather than the decoy activity of xylosides. Collectively, these results suggest that regulation of GAG biogenesis through chemical biology approaches may allow promising therapeutic interventions of critical-period-dependent central nervous system plasticity. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 77: 1401-1412, 2017.
Pathway-specific dysregulation of striatal excitatory synapses by LRRK2 mutations.
eLife, 2020

LRRK2 is a kinase expressed in striatal spiny projection neurons (SPNs), cells which lose dopaminergic input in Parkinson's disease (PD). R1441C and G2019S are the most common pathogenic mutations of LRRK2. How these mutations alter the structure and function of individual synapses on direct and indirect pathway SPNs is unknown and may reveal pre-clinical changes in dopamine-recipient neurons that predispose toward disease. Here, R1441C and G2019S knock-in mice enabled thorough evaluation of dendritic spines and synapses on pathway-identified SPNs. Biochemical synaptic preparations and super-resolution imaging revealed increased levels and altered organization of glutamatergic AMPA receptors in LRRK2 mutants. Relatedly, decreased frequency of miniature excitatory post-synaptic currents accompanied changes in dendritic spine nano-architecture, and single-synapse currents, evaluated using two-photon glutamate uncaging. Overall, LRRK2 mutations reshaped synaptic structure and function, an effect exaggerated in R1441C dSPNs. These data open the possibility of new neuroprotective therapies aimed at SPN synapse function, prior to disease onset.
Multiple levels assessment of the RDoC "system for social process" in Eating Disorders: Biological, emotional and cognitive responses to the Trier Social Stress Test.
Journal of psychiatric research, 2020

Social dysfunction is a putative risk and maintaining factor for Eating Disorders (EDs). We assessed biological, emotional, and cognitive responses to a psychosocial stressor, in order to provide a multilevel investigation of the RDoC social process system in EDs.
Ifit2 deficiency restricts microglial activation and leukocyte migration following murine coronavirus (m-CoV) CNS infection.
PLoS pathogens, 2020

The interferon-induced tetratricopeptide repeat protein (Ifit2) protects mice from lethal neurotropic viruses. Neurotropic coronavirus MHV-RSA59 infection of Ifit2-/- mice caused pronounced morbidity and mortality accompanied by rampant virus replication and spread throughout the brain. In spite of the higher virus load, induction of many cytokines and chemokines in the brains of infected Ifit2-/- mice were similar to that in wild-type mice. In contrast, infected Ifit2-/- mice revealed significantly impaired microglial activation as well as reduced recruitment of NK1.1 T cells and CD4 T cells to the brain, possibly contributing to the lack of viral clearance. These two deficiencies were associated with a lower level of microglial expression of CX3CR1, the receptor of the CX3CL1 (Fractalkine) chemokine, which plays a critical role in both microglial activation and leukocyte recruitment. The above results uncovered a new potential role of an interferon-induced protein in immune protection.
Higher expression of monocyte chemotactic protein 1 in mild COVID-19 patients might be correlated with inhibition of Type I IFN signaling.
Virology journal, 2021

Chemokine levels in severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients have been shown to be markedly elevated. But the role of chemokines in mild COVID-19 has not yet been established. According to the epidemiological statistics, most of the COVID-19 cases in Shiyan City, China, have been mild. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of chemokines in mild COVID-19 patients and explore the correlation between chemokines and host immune response.
Involvement of cAMP-Dependent Protein Kinase in the Nucleus Accumbens in Cocaine Versus Social Interaction Reward.
International journal of molecular sciences, 2020

Evidence suggests that PKA activity in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) plays an essential role in reward-related learning. In this study, we investigated whether PKA is differentially involved in the expression of learning produced by either natural reinforcers or psychostimulants. For that purpose, we inhibited PKA through a bilateral infusion of Rp-cAMPS, a specific PKA inhibitor, directly into the NAc. The effects of PKA inhibition in the NAc on the expression of concurrent conditioned place preference (CPP) for cocaine (drug) and social interaction (natural reward) in rats were evaluated. We found that PKA inhibition increased the expression of cocaine preference. This effect was not due to altered stress levels or decreased social reward. PKA inhibition did not affect the expression of natural reward as intra-NAc Rp-cAMPS infusion did not affect expression of social preference. When rats were trained to express cocaine or social interaction CPP and tested for eventual persisting preference 7 and 14 days after CPP expression, cocaine preference was persistent, but social preference was abolished after the first test. These results suggest that PKA in the NAc is involved in drug reward learning that might lead to addiction and that only drug, but not natural, reward is persistent.
Gamma Knife radiosurgery for acromegaly: Evaluating the role of the biological effective dose associated with endocrine remission in a series of 42 consecutive cases.
Clinical endocrinology, 2021

Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is a valuable treatment option for persistent and/or recurrent acromegaly secondary to growth hormone (GH) secreting pituitary adenoma (PA). Here, we assess the role of biological effective dose (BED) received by PA treated with SRS in relation with endocrine remission.
Cholinergic Coercion of Synaptic States for Motivational Memories.
Neuron, 2016

Acetylcholine is critical for learning, yet the relationship between cholinergic signaling, plasticity, and behavior remains elusive. In this issue of Neuron, Lee et al. (2016) and Jiang et al. (2016) investigate how cholinergic signaling in the amygdala and nucleus accumbens influences synaptic plasticity and learning.
Severe reactive astrocytes precipitate pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease via H
Nature neuroscience, 2020

Although the pathological contributions of reactive astrocytes have been implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD), their in vivo functions remain elusive due to the lack of appropriate experimental models and precise molecular mechanisms. Here, we show the importance of astrocytic reactivity on the pathogenesis of AD using GiD, a newly developed animal model of reactive astrocytes, where the reactivity of astrocytes can be manipulated as mild (GiDm) or severe (GiDs). Mechanistically, excessive hydrogen peroxide (H
A qualitative study of microaggressions against African Americans on predominantly White campuses.
BMC psychology, 2020

Pierce's (The Black seventies: an extending horizon book, 1970) conception of "subtle and stunning" daily racial offenses, or microaggressions, remains salient even 50 years after it was introduced. Microaggressions were defined further by Sue and colleagues (Am Psychol 62:271, 2007), and this construct has found growing utility as the deleterious effects of microaggressions on the health of people of color continues to mount. Microaggressions are common on campuses and contribute to negative social, academic, and mental health outcomes.
Pearls: dizziness.
Seminars in neurology, 2010

Contrary to common belief, making a diagnosis in the patient with dizziness can be relatively straightforward. To do so, the clinician must be aware of the pitfalls in taking a history from the dizzy patient as well as be familiar with specific examination techniques, such as the Hallpike maneuver and the head thrust test. We summarize the important aspects of history taking and examination in the dizzy patient and relate these clinical aspects to the most common diagnoses that cause patients to complain of dizziness.
Provincial Door-to-Needle Improvement Initiative Results in Improved Patient Outcomes Across an Entire Population.
Stroke, 2020

Improving door-to-needle times (DNTs) for thrombolysis of acute ischemic stroke patients improves outcomes, but participation in DNT improvement initiatives has been mostly limited to larger, academic medical centers with an existing interest in stroke quality improvement. It is not known whether quality improvement initiatives can improve DNT at a population level, including smaller community hospitals. This study aims to determine the effect of a provincial improvement collaborative intervention on improvement of DNT and patient outcomes.
Hippocampal neurons: simulating the spatial structure of a complex maze.
Current biology : CB, 2014

Hippocampal place neurons not only represent current location, but fire in sequences that appear to simulate past and future spatial trajectories. A recent study has found that the firing sequences match the structure of a complex maze, suggesting that the structure of the environment is encoded by the place system, perhaps to aid navigational planning.
Plasma vasopressin levels are closely associated with fetal hypotension and neuronal injury after hypoxia-ischemia in near-term fetal sheep.
Pediatric research, 2020

Sensitive biomarkers are needed to rapidly identify high-risk infants after hypoxia-ischemia for neuroprotective treatment. Hypotension is a key determinant of hypoxic-ischemic neural injury, and a potent stimulus of humoral pressors including angiotensin-II and arginine vasopressin. We therefore aimed to quantify the relationship between vasopressin and angiotensin-II levels in the latent phase after hypoxia-ischemia induced by umbilical cord occlusion (UCO) with both the severity of preceding hypotension and subsequent neuronal injury.
Progress and Promise in Neuroaesthetics.
Neuron, 2020

We review progress and highlight open questions in neuroaesthetics. We argue that computational methods can provide mechanistic insight into how aesthetic judgments are formed, while advocating for deeper collaboration between neuroscientists studying aesthetics and those in the arts and humanities.