Effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation on cocaine addiction: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE: While pharmacological strategies appear to be ineffective in treating long-term addiction, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is emerging as a promising new tool for the attenuation of craving among multiple substance dependent populations. METHOD: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted on the efficacy and tolerability of rTMS in treating cocaine use disorder (CUD). Relevant papers published in English through November 30th 2022 were identified, searching the electronic databases MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO and the Cochrane Library. RESULTS: Eight studies matched inclusion criteria. The best findings were reported by the RCTs conducted at high-frequency (≥5 Hz) multiple sessions of rTMS delivered over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC): a significant decrease in self-reported cue-induced cocaine craving and lower cocaine craving scores and a considerable amelioration in the tendency to act rashly under extreme negative emotions (impulsivity) were found in the active group compared to controls. CONCLUSION: Although still scant and heterogeneous, the strongest evidence so far on the use of rTMS on individuals with CUD support the high frequency stimulation over the left DLPFC as a well tolerated treatment of cocaine craving and impulsivity.

High genetic correlation for milk yield across Manech and Latxa dairy sheep from France and Spain.

Spanish Latxa and French Manech are dairy sheep breeds that split into Blond (Latxa Cara Rubia, LCR; Manech Tête Rousse, MTR) and Black (Latxa Cara Negra of Navarre, LCN; Manech Tête Noire, MTN) strains. Exchange of genetic material (artificial insemination doses) is becoming more and more frequent across these breeds, within color, to boost both genomic precision using a larger reference population and genetic progress using a larger selection base. This exchange leads to some rams having descendance across both countries. However, additional gains can only be achieved if the selected traits are genetically similar across countries. The objective of this work was to estimate the genetic correlation across breeds for milk yield. We combine across-country, within-color records, pedigree, and marker information. The number of animals with records oscillates from 65,000 (LCN) to 544,000 (MTR), whereas the number of connecting artificial insemination rams (with more than 10 daughters in the other country) is 381 MTR rams in LCR and 58 MTN rams in LCN. Blond strains had a stronger and more extended-in-time connection. The number of genotyped rams goes from 328 (LCN) to 4,901 (MTR). The relatedness of populations was assessed by principal component analysis and Fst coefficients. The genetic correlation was estimated using 2 (one per color) 2-trait models (each country a trait), including all available data (records, pedigree and genotypes), by maximum profile likelihood while fixing other variance components to within-population estimates. Results showed a closer genetic relationship of Blond strains than of Black strains (Fst: 0.01 vs. 0.05, respectively). Genetic correlation estimates for milk yield were 0.70 in both cases. Based on Fst distances, we expected a lower correlation for Black strains than for Blond ones if dominance or epistasis are important. Thus, we attribute the value of this correlation not being close to 1 mostly to genotype-by-environment interaction, including on-farm management and trait modeling. Regardless, the correlation of 0.7 across populations is encouraging for future joint work of Latxa and Manech breeders, including joint genetic evaluations.

Beyond genomic selection: The animal model strikes back (one generation)!

Genome inheritance is by segments of DNA rather than by independent loci. We introduce the ancestral regression (AR) as a recursive system of simultaneous equations, with grandparental path coefficients as novel parameters. The information given by the pedigree in the AR is complementary with that provided by a dense set of genomic markers, such that the resulting linear function of grandparental BV is uncorrelated to the average of parental BV in the absence of inbreeding. AR is then connected to segmental inheritance by a causal multivariate Gaussian density for BV. The resulting covariance structure (Σ) is Markovian, meaning that conditional on the BV of parents and grandparents, the BV of the animal is independent of everything else. Thus, an algorithm is presented to invert the resulting covariance structure, with a computing effort that is linear in the number of animals as in the case of the inverse additive relationship matrix.

Estimates of the actual relationship between half-sibs in a pig population.

Genomic relationships based on markers capture the actual instead of the expected (based on pedigree) proportion of genome shared identical by descent (IBD). Several methods exist to estimate genomic relationships. In this research, we compare four such methods that were tested looking at the empirical distribution of the estimated relationships across 6704 pairs of half-sibs from a cross-bred pig population. The first method based on multiple marker linkage analysis displayed a mean and standard deviation (SD) in close agreement with the expected ones and was robust to changes in the minor allele frequencies (MAF). A single marker method that accounts for linkage disequilibrium (LD) and inbreeding came second, showing more sensitivity to changes in the MAF. Another single marker method that considers neither inbreeding nor LD showed the smallest empirical SD and was the most sensible to changes in MAF. A higher mean and SD were displayed by VanRaden's method, which was not sensitive to changes in MAF. Therefore, the method based on multiple marker linkage analysis and the single marker method that considers LD and inbreeding performed closer to theoretical values and were consistent with the estimates reported in literature for human half-sibs.

[Definition and biomarkers of acute renal damage: new perspectives]. / Definición y biomarcadores de daño renal agudo: nuevas perspectivas.

The RIFLE and AKIN criteria have definitely help out to draw attention to the relationship between a deterioration of renal function that produces a small increase in serum creatinine and a worse outcome. However, the specific clinical utility of using these criteria remains to be well-defined. It is believed that the main use of these criteria is for the design of epidemiological studies and clinical trials to define inclusion criteria and objectives of an intervention. AKI adopting term, re-summoning former ARF terminology, it is appropriate to describe the clinical condition characterized by damage to kidney, in the same way as the term is used to describe acute lung damage where the lung injury situation still has not increased to a situation of organ failure (dysfunction). The serum and urine biomarkers (creatinine, urea, and diuresis) currently in use are not sensitive or specific for detecting kidney damage, limiting treatment options and potentially compromising the outcome. New biomarkers are being studied in order to diagnose an earlier and more specific AKI, with the potential to change the definition criteria of AKI with different stages, currently based in diuresis and serum creatinine.