rudyvdbrink/CitationDatabase huggingface dataset:
Dissociable effects of advanced age on prefrontal cortical and medial temporal lobe ensemble activity.
Neurobiology of aging, 2018

The link between age-related cellular changes within brain regions and larger scale neuronal ensemble dynamics critical for cognition has not been fully elucidated. The present study measured neuron activity within medial prefrontal cortex (PFC), perirhinal cortex (PER), and hippocampal subregion CA1 of young and aged rats by labeling expression of the immediate-early gene Arc. The proportion of cells expressing Arc was quantified at baseline and after a behavior that requires these regions. In addition, PER and CA1 projection neurons to PFC were identified with retrograde labeling. Within CA1, no age-related differences in neuronal activity were observed in the entire neuron population or within CA1 pyramidal cells that project to PFC. Although behavior was comparable across age groups, behaviorally driven Arc expression was higher in the deep layers of both PER and PFC and lower in the superficial layers of these regions. Moreover, age-related changes in activity levels were most evident within PER cells that project to PFC. These data suggest that the PER-PFC circuit is particularly vulnerable in advanced age.
Sulfurous-arsenical-ferruginous balneotherapy for osteoarthritis of the hand: results from a retrospective observational study.
International journal of biometeorology, 2020

Balneotherapy (BT) is a complementary therapy widely used in several rheumatic conditions, however, the evidence in hand osteoarthritis (HOA) is still scarce. The aim of this preliminary study is to retrospectively evaluate the symptomatic effects of a cycle of mud-bath therapy in HOA patients. Two hundred twelve outpatients with primary bilateral HOA treated with 12 daily local mud packs and generalized thermal baths with a sulfurous-arsenical-ferruginous mineral water added to usual treatment were included in the study. Each patient was examined at baseline and at the end of thermal therapy (2 weeks). Primary outcome measures were global spontaneous hand pain on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the Functional Index for Hand Osteoarthritis (FIHOA) score; secondary outcomes were handgrip strength, duration of morning stiffness, Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), Short Form Health Survey (SF-12), tolerability and patients' and physicians' global impression of treatment efficacy and tolerability. Our results demonstrated that the efficacy of mud-bath therapy was significant in all the assessed parameters at the end of therapy, except for the physical component score of SF-12. The thermal treatment was well tolerated. The patient's and the physician's global assessments showed a high level of satisfaction in terms of efficacy and safety. In conclusion, our results may suggest a short-term effectiveness of mud-bath therapy in controlling pain and improving functionality in HOA patients, supporting the role of this treatment as a complementary strategy in the management of HOA; however, further randomized controlled trials with a long-term follow-up are needed.
Detection and Predictors of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation in Acute Ischemic Stroke and Transient Ischemic Attack Patients in Singapore.
Journal of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases : the official journal of National Stroke Association, 2015

Detection of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (pAF) is important for optimal secondary stroke prevention. Data are limited from Asia regarding inpatient occurrence and predictors of pAF to optimize electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring despite it having nearly two thirds of the world's population and different subtypes of stroke from the West.
Quantitative measurement of reactive oxygen species in 
STAR protocols, 2021

Evaluating redox homeostasis involves gauging the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) directly in tissues and cells. The brain is especially metabolically active and is particularly vulnerable to excessive ROS and RNS. Here, we describe a methodology to quantitatively measure ROS in
Phospholipase A2 reduction ameliorates cognitive deficits in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.
Nature neuroscience, 2008

Neuronal expression of familial Alzheimer's disease-mutant human amyloid precursor protein (hAPP) and hAPP-derived amyloid-beta (Abeta) peptides causes synaptic dysfunction, inflammation and abnormal cerebrovascular tone in transgenic mice. Fatty acids may be involved in these processes, but their contribution to Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis is uncertain. We used a lipidomics approach to generate a broad profile of fatty acids in brain tissues of hAPP-expressing mice and found an increase in arachidonic acid and its metabolites, suggesting increased activity of the group IV isoform of phospholipase A(2) (GIVA-PLA(2)). The levels of activated GIVA-PLA(2) in the hippocampus were increased in individuals with Alzheimer's disease and in hAPP mice. Abeta caused a dose-dependent increase in GIVA-PLA(2) phosphorylation in neuronal cultures. Inhibition of GIVA-PLA(2) diminished Abeta-induced neurotoxicity. Genetic ablation or reduction of GIVA-PLA(2) protected hAPP mice against Abeta-dependent deficits in learning and memory, behavioral alterations and premature mortality. Inhibition of GIVA-PLA(2) may be beneficial in the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's disease.
Predictors of relapse in patients with medication overuse headache in Shanghai: A retrospective study with a 6-month follow-up.
Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia, 2019

Medication overuse headache (MOH) has a high relapse rate and disease heterogeneity. This study aimed to determine the predictors of MOH relapse in patients through a 6-month follow-up in Shanghai. In this retrospective study, patients diagnosed with MOH from June 2016 to June 2017 were recruited and followed up for 6 months after withdrawal treatment in Renji Hospital in Shanghai. Patients' information was obtained using headache questionnaires. Follow-up was conducted via telephone interview. Patients were divided into relapse group and no-relapse group according to the outcomes after 6 months. This study enrolled 124 outpatients with MOH at baseline. 102 patients completed the follow up and were analysis finally. Demographics and clinical characteristics were compared between the relapse (n = 39, 38.24%) and no-relapse (n = 63, 61.76%) group. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed, and two variables emerged as significant predictors of relapse before withdrawal; the headache frequency (day/month) was higher in the relapse group than in the no-relapse group [odds ratio (OR) 1.107, p = 0.008]. Furthermore, patients administered analgesics of ≥ 2 units per headache day had a higher risk of relapse [odds ratio (OR) 2.791, p = 0.038]. Headache frequency and analgesics units per headache day before withdrawal may be independent predictors of MOH relapse. Therefore, early identification of high-risk groups and enhancing patients' management could contribute to improving the prognosis of MOH.
The anti-inflammatory effect of melatonin on methamphetamine-induced proinflammatory mediators in human neuroblastoma dopamine SH-SY5Y cell lines.
Neurotoxicity research, 2013

Methamphetamine (METH) is a highly addictive drug that is commonly abused worldwide. This psychostimulant drug causes the disturbances in the dopaminergic and serotonergic neurons of several brain areas. Exposure to METH has been shown to induce oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species, and neuroinflammation. However, the mechanism underlying METH-induced inflammation in neurons is still unclear. In this study, we investigated whether METH caused inflammatory effects in human dopaminergic neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells and whether this effect involved the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) transcription factor pathway. The present results showed that METH significantly increased inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression in a concentration-dependent manner and significantly increased the levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α mRNA and phosphorylated NF-κB, which is translocated into the nucleus. Moreover, our results also show that METH downregulated another transcription factor, the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2), a transcription factor implicated in the expression of several antioxidant/detoxificant enzymes. Furthermore, we also examined the anti-inflammatory effect of melatonin against these METH-induced neuroinflammatory functions. The results show that melatonin significantly decreases the iNOS protein expression and TNF-α mRNA levels caused by METH. The activation and the level of pNF-κB were decreased while Nrf2 expression was increased when cells were pre-incubated with 100 nM of melatonin. In order to show the relationship between cell death and the increase of iNOS, 100 μM of L-NAME, an iNOS inhibitor pretreatment significantly prevented cell death caused by METH. These results demonstrate, for the first time, that METH directly induces inflammation in neurons via an NF-κB-dependent pathway and that the anti-neuroinflammatory effects of melatonin result from the inhibition of activated NF-κB in parallel with potentiated antioxidant/detoxificant defense by activated Nrf2 pathway.
Nanoformulated Antiretroviral Therapy Attenuates Brain Metabolic Oxidative Stress.
Molecular neurobiology, 2019

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) restricts human immunodeficiency virus type one (HIV-1) replication and by so doing, improves the quality and longevity of life for infected people. Nonetheless, treatment can also lead to adverse clinical outcomes such as drug resistance and systemic adverse events. Both could be affected by long-acting slow effective release ART. Indeed, maintenance of sustained plasma drug levels, for weeks or months, after a single high-level dosing, could improve regimen adherence but, at the same time, affect systemic toxicities. Of these, the most troubling are those that affect the central nervous system (CNS). To address this, dolutegravir (Tivicay, DTG), a potent and durable HIV integrase inhibitor used effectively in combination ART was tested. Rodents were administered parenteral 45-mg/kg doses. DTG-associated changes in CNS homeostasis were assessed by measuring brain metabolic activities. After antiretroviral treatment, brain subregions were dissected and screened by mass spectrometry-based metabolomics. Metabolic drug-related dysregulation of energy and oxidative stress were readily observed within the cerebellum and frontal cortex following native drug administrations. Each was associated with alterations in neural homeostasis and depleted canonical oxidation protection pools that included glutathione and ascorbic acid. Surprisingly, the oxidative stress-related metabolites were completely attenuated when DTG was administered as nanoformulations. These data demonstrate the importance of formulation design in control of DTG or perhaps other antiretroviral drug-associated CNS events.
Appropriateness of clinical criteria for the use of SYmptomatic Slow-Acting Drug for OsteoArthritis (SYSADOA). A Delphi Method Consensus initiative among experts in Italy.
European journal of physical and rehabilitation medicine, 2019

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a theme currently representing an emerging topic for its increasing incidence. It is well known that it is a chronic disease that could lead to important long-lasting disability; this generates increasing costs for the health care system. OA treatment options vary: localization, etiology, grading and symptomatology should be considered before choosing the most adequate therapy. Currently, a modern approach to managing OA involves SYmptomatic Slow-Acting Drug for OsteoArthritis (SYSADOAs). However, while all preparations may claim to deliver a therapeutic level of glucosamine or chondroitin, not all of them are supported by clinical evidence. Recently the European Society for Clinical and Economic aspects of Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and musculoskeletal diseases (ESCEO), produced an evidenced based document providing practitioners with the latest clinical and economic information, thereby allowing them to optimize the management of knee OA. According to this report, only crystalline glucosamine sulphate and the pharmaceutical-grade chondroitin sulphate are considered as effective in the first line approach to treating knee OA as an alternative drug to acetaminophen. However, some OA guidelines do not agree are not concordant in recommending the use of SYSADOA, perhaps because they are generally considered as a class and distinctions among formulations are not made.
Complicated spastic paraplegia in patients with AP5Z1 mutations (SPG48).
Neurology. Genetics, 2016

Biallelic mutations in the AP5Z1 gene encoding the AP-5 ζ subunit have been described in a small number of patients with hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) (SPG48); we sought to define genotype-phenotype correlations in patients with homozygous or compound heterozygous sequence variants predicted to be deleterious.
Single dose efficacy evaluation of two partial benzodiazepine receptor agonists in photosensitive epilepsy patients: A placebo-controlled pilot study.
Epilepsy research, 2016

Benzodiazepines (BZDs) are highly effective to suppress various types of seizures; however, their clinical use is limited due to adverse effects and tolerance and dependence liability. Drugs that act only as partial agonists at the BZD recognition site (initially termed "BZD receptor") of the GABAA receptor chloride ionophore complex or exhibit a GABAA receptor subtype-selectivity are thought to have advantages vs. full agonists such as diazepam and most other clinically used BZDs in that such compounds have less adverse effects and reduced or absent tolerance and dependence liability. One of such compounds, abecarnil, has been clinically evaluated as a novel anxiolytic drug, but, despite its potent preclinical anti-seizure activity, it has not yet been evaluated in patients with epilepsy. In the present proof-of-concept study, we performed a within-subject placebo-controlled, single oral dose study of abecarnil in patients with photosensitive epilepsy. Flumazenil, which is generally considered a BZD receptor antagonist, but has slight partial agonistic properties, was used for comparison. In total, 12 patients were enrolled in this study. Abecarnil, 5 or 10mg, completely abolished the photo-paroxysmal EEG response, while flumazenil, 30, 60 or 100mg, was less effective. The anti-epileptic effect of abecarnil was significantly different from both placebo and flumazenil. Sedative adverse effects were observed after abecarnil but not flumazenil. The study substantiates previous pre-clinical experiments that abecarnil exerts pronounced anti-seizure activity. Epilepsy is often associated with anxiety, so that the anxiolytic activity of abecarnil would be an added advantage when using this compound in epilepsy patients.
Enrichment and differential targeting of complexins 3 and 4 in ribbon-containing sensory neurons during zebrafish development.
Neural development, 2010

In sensory systems with broad bandwidths, polarized receptor cells utilize highly specialized organelles in their apical and basolateral compartments to transduce and ultimately transmit signals to the rest of the nervous system. While progress has been made in elucidating the assembly of the transduction apparatus, the development of synaptic ribbon-containing terminals remains poorly understood. To begin to delineate the targeting of the exocytotic machinery specifically in ribbon-containing neurons, we have examined the expression of complexins 3 and 4 in the zebrafish visual and acousticolateral systems during the first week of development.
Nanosized titanium dioxide enhanced inflammatory responses in the septic brain of mouse.
Neuroscience, 2010

Nanosized titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) is used widely in various everyday products and can be applied to the medical field for diagnostic or therapeutic tools. However, its neurobiological responses have not been defined completely in the brain. To evaluate the acute inflammatory response to TiO(2) particles of two different sizes in normal and septic brains, male C57BL/6 mice were given intraperitoneal injections of fine (<1 microm) or ultrafine (21 nm) TiO(2), 30 min after vehicle or lipopolysaccaride (LPS). In the normal brain, neither fine nor ultrafine TiO(2) induced inflammation. However, in the brains of LPS-exposed mice, ultrafine TiO(2) significantly elevated proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) mRNAs, and IL-1beta protein levels. Also ultrafine TiO(2) increased the levels of reactive oxygen species and activated microglia 24 h after LPS challenge. In BV2 microglial cells stimulated with LPS, ultrafine TiO(2) enhanced TNF-alpha production and augmented nuclear factor-kB binding activity. These findings suggest that nanosized TiO(2) promotes an exaggerated neuroinflammatory responses by enhancing microglial activation in the pre-inflamed brain, in part.
Subthalamic synchronized oscillatory activity correlates with motor impairment in patients with Parkinson's disease.
Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society, 2016

Beta band oscillations in the subthalamic nucleus (STN) have been proposed as a pathophysiological signature in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The aim of this study was to investigate the potential association between oscillatory activity in the STN and symptom severity in PD.
The Human Thalamus Is an Integrative Hub for Functional Brain Networks.
The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 2017

The thalamus is globally connected with distributed cortical regions, yet the functional significance of this extensive thalamocortical connectivity remains largely unknown. By performing graph-theoretic analyses on thalamocortical functional connectivity data collected from human participants, we found that most thalamic subdivisions display network properties that are capable of integrating multimodal information across diverse cortical functional networks. From a meta-analysis of a large dataset of functional brain-imaging experiments, we further found that the thalamus is involved in multiple cognitive functions. Finally, we found that focal thalamic lesions in humans have widespread distal effects, disrupting the modular organization of cortical functional networks. This converging evidence suggests that the human thalamus is a critical hub region that could integrate diverse information being processed throughout the cerebral cortex as well as maintain the modular structure of cortical functional networks.
Spectral Encoding of Seen and Attended Object Categories in the Human Brain.
The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 2020

Local field potentials (LFPs) encode visual information via variations in power at many frequencies. These variations are complex and depend on stimulus and cognitive state in ways that have yet to be fully characterized. Specifically, the frequencies (or combinations of frequencies) that most robustly encode specific types of visual information are not fully known. To address this knowledge gap, we used intracranial EEG to record LFPs at 858 widely distributed recording sites as human subjects (six males, five females) indicated whether briefly presented natural scenes depicted one of three attended object categories. Principal component analysis applied to power spectra of the LFPs near stimulus onset revealed a broadband component (1-100 Hz) and two narrowband components (1-8 and 8-30 Hz, respectively) that encoded information about both seen and attended categories. Interestingly, we found that seen and attended categories were not encoded with the same fidelity by these distinct spectral components. Model-based tuning and decoding analyses revealed that power variations along the broadband component were most sharply tuned and offered more accurate decoding for seen than for attended categories. Power along the narrowband delta-theta (1-8 Hz) component robustly decoded information about both seen and attended categories, while the alpha-beta (8-30 Hz) component was specialized for attention. We conclude that, when viewing natural scenes, information about the seen category is encoded via broadband and sub-gamma (<30 Hz) power variations, while the attended category is most robustly encoded in the sub-gamma range. More generally, these results suggest that power variation along different spectral components can encode qualitatively different kinds of visual information.
Neuroprotective effect of peroxiredoxin 6 against hypoxia-induced retinal ganglion cell damage.
BMC neuroscience, 2010

The ability to respond to changes in the extra-intracellular environment is prerequisite for cell survival. Cellular responses to the environment include elevating defense systems, such as the antioxidant defense system. Hypoxia-evoked reactive oxygen species (ROS)-driven oxidative stress is an underlying mechanism of retinal ganglion cell (RGC) death that leads to blinding disorders. The protein peroxiredoxin 6 (PRDX6) plays a pleiotropic role in negatively regulating death signaling in response to stressors, and thereby stabilizes cellular homeostasis.
Multiple roles of Activin/Nodal, bone morphogenetic protein, fibroblast growth factor and Wnt/β-catenin signalling in the anterior neural patterning of adherent human embryonic stem cell cultures.
Open biology, 2013

Several studies have successfully produced a variety of neural cell types from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), but there has been limited systematic analysis of how different regional identities are established using well-defined differentiation conditions. We have used adherent, chemically defined cultures to analyse the roles of Activin/Nodal, bone morphogenetic protein (BMP), fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and Wnt/β-catenin signalling in neural induction, anteroposterior patterning and eye field specification in hESCs. We show that either BMP inhibition or activation of FGF signalling is required for effective neural induction, but these two pathways have distinct outcomes on rostrocaudal patterning. While BMP inhibition leads to specification of forebrain/midbrain positional identities, FGF-dependent neural induction is associated with strong posteriorization towards hindbrain/spinal cord fates. We also demonstrate that Wnt/β-catenin signalling is activated during neural induction and promotes acquisition of neural fates posterior to forebrain. Therefore, inhibition of this pathway is needed for efficient forebrain specification. Finally, we provide evidence that the levels of Activin/Nodal and BMP signalling have a marked influence on further forebrain patterning and that constitutive inhibition of these pathways represses expression of eye field genes. These results show that the key mechanisms controlling neural patterning in model vertebrate species are preserved in adherent, chemically defined hESC cultures and reveal new insights into the signals regulating eye field specification.
The effectiveness of conservative treatment for patients with cervical radiculopathy: a systematic review.
The Clinical journal of pain, 2013

The aim of this systematic review is to assess the effectiveness of conservative treatments for patients with cervical radiculopathy, a term used to describe neck pain associated with pain radiating into the arm. Little is known about the effectiveness of conservative treatment for patients with cervical radiculopathy.
Hypertonic sodium lactate reverses brain oxygenation and metabolism dysfunction after traumatic brain injury.
British journal of anaesthesia, 2018

The mechanisms by which hypertonic sodium lactate (HSL) solution act in injured brain are unclear. We investigated the effects of HSL on brain metabolism, oxygenation, and perfusion in a rodent model of diffuse traumatic brain injury (TBI).