Diet and lupus: what do the patients think?

OBJECTIVES: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Therefore, using diet to control blood lipid levels and modify cardiovascular disease risk could be a promising therapeutic strategy to control disease symptoms. The primary objective of this study was to learn about systemic lupus erythematosus patient experiences with diet, including their opinion on considering diet as a therapeutic option. The secondary objective was to obtain this information in a cost- and time-effective manner. METHODS: A lay summary and a 15-question diet-based online survey were publicly available for 3 weeks. Social media was used to promote the survey through relevant charities, hospitals and research groups. RESULTS: A total of 300 responses were received, 284 from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Patients reported that there was a lack of clinical counselling regarding diet, with only 24% stating their doctor had spoken to them about diet. Despite this, 100% of patients stated they would change their diet if they knew it would help their symptoms and 83% would take part in a future diet-based clinical trial. Text analysis of patient research suggestions identified a particular interest in using diet to treat fatigue and manage disease flares. CONCLUSIONS: This project successfully gathered patient information regarding diet and systemic lupus erythematosus over a short timeframe using an anonymous social media platform. The survey provided evidence that patients support further research and potential diet intervention studies investigating the effect of diet on the symptoms of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Executive functioning in schizophrenia: Unique and shared variance with measures of fluid intelligence.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with schizophrenia often display deficits on tasks thought to measure "executive" processes. Recently, it has been suggested that reductions in fluid intelligence test performance entirely explain deficits reported for patients with focal frontal lesions on classical executive tasks. For patients with schizophrenia, it is unclear whether deficits on executive tasks are entirely accountable by fluid intelligence and representative of a common general process or best accounted for by distinct contributions to the cognitive profile of schizophrenia. METHOD: In the current study, 50 patients with schizophrenia and 50 age, sex and premorbid intelligence matched controls were assessed using a broad neuropsychological battery, including tasks considered sensitive to executive abilities, namely the Hayling Sentence Completion Test (HSCT), word fluency, Stroop test, digit-span backwards, and spatial working memory. Fluid intelligence was measured using both the Matrix reasoning subtest from the Weschler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) and a composite score derived from a number of cognitive tests. RESULTS: Patients with schizophrenia were impaired on all cognitive measures compared with controls, except smell identification and the optimal betting and risk-taking measures from the Cambridge Gambling Task. After introducing fluid intelligence as a covariate, significant differences remained for HSCT suppression errors, and classical executive function tests such as the Stroop test and semantic/phonemic word fluency, regardless of which fluid intelligence measure was included. CONCLUSIONS: Fluid intelligence does not entirely explain impaired performance on all tests considered as reflecting "executive" processes. For schizophrenia, these measures should remain part of a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment alongside a measure of fluid intelligence.

The impact and recovery of asteroid 2008 TC(3).

In the absence of a firm link between individual meteorites and their asteroidal parent bodies, asteroids are typically characterized only by their light reflection properties, and grouped accordingly into classes. On 6 October 2008, a small asteroid was discovered with a flat reflectance spectrum in the 554-995 nm wavelength range, and designated 2008 TC(3) (refs 4-6). It subsequently hit the Earth. Because it exploded at 37 km altitude, no macroscopic fragments were expected to survive. Here we report that a dedicated search along the approach trajectory recovered 47 meteorites, fragments of a single body named Almahata Sitta, with a total mass of 3.95 kg. Analysis of one of these meteorites shows it to be an achondrite, a polymict ureilite, anomalous in its class: ultra-fine-grained and porous, with large carbonaceous grains. The combined asteroid and meteorite reflectance spectra identify the asteroid as F class, now firmly linked to dark carbon-rich anomalous ureilites, a material so fragile it was not previously represented in meteorite collections.

Can an online battery match in-person cognitive testing in providing information about age-related cortical morphology?

Clinical identification of early neurodegenerative changes requires an accurate and accessible characterization of brain and cognition in healthy aging. We assessed whether a brief online cognitive assessment can provide insights into brain morphology comparable to a comprehensive neuropsychological battery. In 141 healthy mid-life and older adults, we compared Creyos, a relatively brief online cognitive battery, to a comprehensive in person cognitive assessment. We used a multivariate technique to study the ability of each test to inform brain morphology as indexed by cortical sulcal width extracted from structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI).We found that the online test demonstrated comparable strength of association with cortical sulcal width compared to the comprehensive in-person assessment.These findings suggest that in our at-risk sample online assessments are comparable to the in-person assay in their association with brain morphology. With their cost effectiveness, online cognitive testing could lead to more equitable early detection and intervention for neurodegenerative diseases.

Social Inference from Middle to Older Adulthood.

OBJECTIVE: Inferring the emotional state or the true meaning of another person's utterance is a key aspect of social cognition and critical for successful social interactions. In this study, we assess age-related differences in emotion recognition and sincere and sarcastic social exchanges in the context of cognitive and demographic factors. METHOD: One hundred and eighty-seven adults ranging from middle to older adulthood completed the Mini-SEA Emotion Recognition test and Part B of The Awareness of Social Inference Test - Short Form (TASIT-S). Fluid intelligence and executive abilities were also assessed. Sex differences and the relationship with education level were also investigated. Regression models were used to assess age-related differences controlling for baseline cognitive and demographic factors. RESULTS: Age was negatively associated with accuracy for inferring sincere social exchanges. No differences were identified for accuracy for inferring sarcastic exchanges. Likewise, no age differences were identified for emotion recognition (Mini-SEA). Fluid intelligence was associated with accuracy for inferring sincere exchanges, but this was independent of age-related effects. A female advantage was identified for emotion recognition. CONCLUSION: Age is associated with difficulty in inferring sincere exchanges, which is not explained by fluid intelligence, verbal abstract reasoning, or auditory verbal attention. A female advantage in emotion recognition is consistent with findings reported in younger adults. Both age and sex should be considered in clinical assessments using the Mini-SEA and the TASIT-S.

Response initiation and inhibition and the relationship with fluid intelligence across the adult lifespan.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive processes associated with frontal lobe functioning are often termed "executive functions." Two such processes are initiation and inhibition or the starting and stopping of responses. It has recently been claimed dysfunction of executive abilities can be explained by a single measure of fluid intelligence. Here, we test this claim, specifically for the executive abilities of response initiation and inhibition, across the healthy lifespan. METHOD: In a cohort of 336 healthy adults (18-89 years), initiation and inhibition were assessed with the Hayling test, Stroop test, and phonemic and semantic verbal fluency. All participants also completed a measure of fluid intelligence. The relationship between fluid intelligence and executive measures was explored across the lifespan using a continuous approach. Mediation models were computed to assess whether age-related decline across the four initiation/inhibition tasks could be fully explained by a single measure of fluid intelligence. RESULTS: Age was negatively correlated with response initiation/inhibition and fluid intelligence. The mediation analyses identified only partial mediation of fluid intelligence for age and Hayling performance. By contrast, fluid intelligence did not mediate performance on the Stroop test or phonemic and semantic verbal fluency. CONCLUSIONS: Response initiation/inhibition are not able to be explained by fluid intelligence. The results support a multifactorial theory of executive functions and provide evidence for the inclusion of multiple specific executive measures in a thorough neuropsychological assessment of age-related cognitive decline.

Gene structure and amino acid sequences of alcohol dehydrogenases of Bacillus stearothermophilus.

Partial amino acid sequences of the two alcohol dehydrogenases of Bacillus stearothermophilus and the oligonucleotide sequence of a cloned fragment containing the gene for ADH 2334 were determined and compared with the known, derived ADH 1503 amino acid sequence. The two proteins are identical at 244 of 349 positions. ADH 2334 is encoded in a transcription unit containing an aldehyde dehydrogenase.

lambda RNA internal standards quantify sensitivity and amplification efficiency of mammalian gene expression profiling.

There is an increasing interest in being able to document simultaneous levels of multiple mRNAs from limited amounts of mammalian tissue. The combination of amplified antisense RNA (aRNA) and reverse Northern blot analysis is one technology that allows the measurement of relative levels of multiple mRNAs. However, potential problems exist with this approach, such as (i) unknown amplification efficiencies and sensitivity of detection, (ii) an inherent 3' bias of amplified products and (iii) cross-hybridization of homologous mRNAs with the gene targets. Each of these potential problems was addressed experimentally by the use of poly(A) RNA internal standards synthesized from lambda phage (lambda) DNA. The results showed detection levels of as few as 10 copies of the poly(A) RNA internal standards. The internal standards aid in the optimization of reaction conditions and also reduce dependence on traditional "housekeeping" genes whose mRNA levels might or might not change. The overall results of these experiments highlight and extend the general usefulness of amplified antisense aRNA and reverse Northern blot analysis to study mRNA expression profiles.

Rate of thyroxine secretion by male and laying Japanese quail: identification of the radioactive thyroxine degradation component of the multiphasic 131-I curve.

Counting of radioactivity in Japanese quail in vivo showed a rapid loss of 131-I from the body 12-24 h after the i.v. injection of [131-I]thyroxine (T4), followed by a period of slow decrease in counting rates to 96 h. From comparison of these [131-I]T4 curves with curves for 131-iodide-injected birds and from counts on serum and other tissues in vitro it was concluded that, for Japanese quail, the T4 secretion rate should be calculated using serum samples taken during the first 12 h. Using this time period, the parameters measured were: T4 distribution space, laying hens 45-7 and mature cocks 26-7 and mature cocks 26-3 ml/100 g body weight; fractional degradation rate for T4, hens 5-73 and cocks 3-12/day; serum T4 concentration (Tetrasorb-125 method), hens 1-20 plus or minus 0-07 and cocks 1-34 plus or minus 0-05 (S.E.M.) mug/100 ml (n= 16); T4 secretion rate, hens 3-14 and cocks 1-10 mug/100 g/day.

Axotomy-induced regulation of c-Jun expression in regenerating rat retinal ganglion cells.

Antibodies to c-Jun, JunD, JunB, c-Fos, FosB and Krox-24 proteins were used to examine the expression of these transcription factors in identified adult rat retinal ganglion cells with regenerating axons in a peripheral nerve graft. First, expression in ganglion cells 1 month after graft placement was compared to expression in these neurons 5 to 6 months after grafting. Whereas strong c-Jun expression was seen in most ganglion cells one month after grafting, most 5- to 6-month ganglion cells showed only basal expression. The maintained nucleolar expression of FosB in both ganglion cell groups was the only other transcription factor seen. Second, transcription factor expression was examined in these short- and long-term regenerating neurons after a second axotomy caused by graft transection and compared to the effects of a single axotomy on expression in non-regenerating ganglion cells. Only c-Jun was re-expressed in the regenerating ganglion cells after re-axotomy.

Immediate early gene expression in axotomized and regenerating retinal ganglion cells of the adult rat.

To determine if axotomy-induced immediate early gene (IEG) expression accompanies regenerative efforts in central nervous system (CNS) neurons, immunohistochemistry using antibodies to c-Jun, JunD, JunB, c-Fos, FosB and Krox-24 proteins was used to examine gene expression in identified adult rat retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) under two conditions: (1) after axotomy alone, and (2) 1 month after replacement of the optic nerve with an autologous peripheral nerve graft to allow axonal regrowth. Strong RGC c-Jun expression was induced 1 day, but not 3 h, after axotomy in most RGCs and was maintained in surviving cells throughout the 3-week study period. Axotomy also induced a limited number of RGCs to express Krox-24, but only transiently. c-Fos expression was also seen in a limited number of control RGCs, however, it was not induced by axotomy. Nucleolar FosB immunoreactivity in axotomized RGCs persisted 1 day after axotomy, but was subsequently lost. One month after axotomy and peripheral nerve graft placement, identified RGCs with regrown axons showed only nuclear c-Jun and nucleolar FosB expression. These findings support a role for IEG expression in the regeneration process of CNS neurons.

Changes in the expression of transcription factors ATF-2 and Fra-2 after axotomy and during regeneration in rat retinal ganglion cells.

The expression of one member of the bZip superfamily of transcription factors, c-Jun, is known to be induced by axotomy in retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) and is associated with axonal regrowth. This study used immunohistochemistry combined with retrograde labeling to examine the expression of two additional bZip transcription factors (ATF-2 and Fra-2) in identified adult rat RGCs under favorable and unfavorable conditions for axonal regrowth. For unfavorable regrowth conditions, ganlgion cell axons within the optic nerve were cut close to the eye. For favorable conditions, the optic nerve was replaced with an autologous peripheral nerve graft to allow axonal regrowth. At regular intervals, after axotomy alone or in conjunction with graft placement, the expression of these transcription factors was examined in retinal wholemounts using protein-specific antibodies. The strong cytoplasmic expression of Fra-2 seen in unaxotomized RGCs was reduced beginning 24 h after axotomy. Similarly, the strong nuclear expression of ATF-2 seen prior to axotomy was also reduced after axotomy. These reduction persisted in surviving ganglion cells throughout the 3 week study period. One to 6 months after axotomy and peripheral nerve graft placement, identified RGCs with regrown axons showed strong ATF-2 and Fra-2 expression, suggesting a return to basal conditions. These findings support roles for ATF-2 and Fra-2 in the survival and regeneration process of these central nervous system neurons after axotomy.

The role of free fatty acids in the regulation of lipolysis by human adipose tissue cells.

The effect of added fatty acid on lipolysis and cyclic AMP concentration of human adipose tissue cells was studied. The addition of sodium oleate decreased the lipolytic response of adipocytes to 10(-7) M isoproterenol. Inhibition was detectable with the lowest quantity of oleate added, 0.2 mM, and was progressively greater with increasing quantities of added fatty acid. Palmitic and linoleic acids were as effective as oleic acid in suppressing isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis. Suppression of cyclic AMP formation was detectable within one minute after the addition of oleate. Cyclic AMP formation, suppressed by accumulated fatty acids, could not be stimulated by the addition of fresh isoproterenol. However, after the accumulated fatty acids were removed by buffer change, cyclic AMP formation was stimulated by fresh isoproterenol. These findings are consistent with the view that fatty acids are physiologically significant regulators of lipolysis.

Behavior of motor units in human biceps brachii during a submaximal fatiguing contraction.

The activity of 50 single motor units was recorded in the biceps brachii muscle of human subjects while they performed submaximal isometric elbow flexion contractions that were sustained to induce fatigue. The purposes of this study were to examine the influence of fatigue on motor unit threshold force and to determine the relationship between the threshold force of recruitment and the initial interimpulse interval on the discharge rates of single motor units during a fatiguing contraction. The discharge rate of most motor units that were active from the beginning of the contraction declined during the fatiguing contraction, whereas the discharge rates of most newly recruited units were either constant or increased slightly. The absolute threshold forces of recruitment and derecruitment decreased, and the variability of interimpulse intervals increased after the fatigue task. The change in motor unit discharge rate during the fatigue task was related to the initial rate, but the direction of the change in discharge rate could not be predicted from the threshold force of recruitment or the variability in the interimpulse intervals. The discharge rate of most motor units declined despite an increase in the excitatory drive to the motoneuron pool during the fatigue task.

Optical immunosensing systems--meeting the market needs.

Optical immunosensors and sensing systems are biosensors which produce a quantitative measure of the amount of antibody, antigen or hapten present in a complex sample such as serum or whole blood. The market needs for such devices and their associated instrumentation are reviewed. A brief history of the development of optical immunosensors is presented and the performance of the most well-developed optical immunosensors for meeting these market needs is reviewed. One device, the fluorescent capillary fill device (FCFD) is reviewed in detail with respect to it fulfilling the market needs for an optical immunosensor. Areas for the future development of such sensing systems are also discussed.

Sensitivity enhancement of optical immunosensors by the use of a surface plasmon resonance fluoroimmunoassay.

Optical immunosensors employing evanescent wave techniques have the potential to address the requirements of the 'alternative site' market; however, this potential has yet to be realised. The development of 'direct' sensors, such as those using surface plasmon resonance (SPR), has been hampered by problems of non-specific binding and poor sensitivity to small molecules. 'Indirect' sensors (for example, those employing a fluorescently labelled reagent) overcome many of the problems of direct sensors but require more sophisticated instrumentation because of the low light levels detected. In an attempt to combine the best features of the two techniques, an indirect SPR fluoroimmunoassay (SPRF) technique has been investigated. The surface field intensity enhancement produced by SPR is used to boost the emission from a fluorescently labelled immunoassay complex at a metal surface. The potential of the method is demonstrated by assaying for human Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG) in serum. Enhanced sensitivity over conventional total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) and SPR techniques was achieved.

An assay for human chorionic gonadotrophin using the capillary fill immunosensor.

Recently there has been much research effort directed towards the development of immunosensors. Optical technologies are currently proving very attractive for the construction of such sensors. The fluorescence capillary fill device (FCFD) has been designed to fulfil these needs. The development of an assay for human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) in the FCFD for a variety of body fluids (whole blood, serum, urine and saliva) demonstrates the versatility and assay performance of the device.

Detection of rubella antibody using an optical immunosensor.

Since the first biosensor was reported in 1962 different sensors have been developed in different areas; their attraction being that they hold out the possibility of a rapid test which can specifically detect the analyte, without the necessity for additional reagents. Immunosensors make use of antibodies and can be extremely specific if the appropriate monoclonal antibodies are used. We report on the development of an optical immunosensor used for the detection of rubella antibody in serum, plasma and whole blood. The assay time is less than 10 min and requires no accurate measurement of the sample or any additional reagents. The sensitivity is in the region of 30 IU/ml; with a correlation of 94% with conventional assays.

Interfering with inhibition may improve motor function.

Motor behavior not seen in newborn cats can be revealed by spinal transection and is therefore normally suppressed. Motor performance of these spinal kittens after reaching adulthood surpasses that of chronic adult-operated spinal cats but the latter display a significant improvement when GABAergic inhibition is blocked pharmacologically. Thus, inhibitory processes influence normal motor development as well as recovery of function after neurological damage.

Warfarin and cataract extraction.

Ten cataract extractions were performed on eight patients for whom warfarin was not discontinued prior to surgery. Three were complicated by hyphaema. No retrobulbar haemorrhages occurred in the four cases given a local anaesthetic. Cataract surgery can be performed successfully without discontinuing warfarin.