Memory inception and preservation in slime moulds: the quest for a common mechanism.

Learning and memory are indisputably key features of animal success. Using information about past experiences is critical for optimal decision-making in a fluctuating environment. Those abilities are usually believed to be limited to organisms with a nervous system, precluding their existence in non-neural organisms. However, recent studies showed that the slime mould Physarum polycephalum, despite being unicellular, displays habituation, a simple form of learning. In this paper, we studied the possible substrate of both short- and long-term habituation in slime moulds. We habituated slime moulds to sodium, a known repellent, using a 6 day training and turned them into a dormant state named sclerotia. Those slime moulds were then revived and tested for habituation. We showed that information acquired during the training was preserved through the dormant stage as slime moulds still showed habituation after a one-month dormancy period. Chemical analyses indicated a continuous uptake of sodium during the process of habituation and showed that sodium was retained throughout the dormant stage. Lastly, we showed that memory inception via constrained absorption of sodium for 2 h elicited habituation. Our results suggest that slime moulds absorbed the repellent and used it as a 'circulating memory'. This article is part of the theme issue 'Liquid brains, solid brains: How distributed cognitive architectures process information'.

An unusual case of palmoplantar keratoderma.

A 55-year-old woman with palmoplantar keratoderma presented an associated hyperhidrosis with distinct odour and maceration. She had had the lesions for about 20 years and this seemed to be an isolated case in her family. This case appeared very unusual because there were no signs of acanthokeratolysis in the biopsies. Two months of treatment with acitretin (Neotigason; 25 mg daily), produced a spectacular result: clearance of all the lesions on both hands and a strong diminution of the lesions on the soles. The Unna-Thost variant of palmoplantar keratoderma usually appears in the first few months of life, and it rarely appears in the third decade. The condition is inherited as an autosomal dominant with high penetrance and expressivity. Our subject appeared to be an exception to these two facts.

[Orf in urban surroundings and religious practices: a study over a 3-year period]. / Orf en milieu urbain et coutumes religieuses.

BACKGROUND: Orf is a sheep disease, due to a parapox virus. Men in close contact with these animals may be contaminated. This generally occurs during professional activities. In our clinic, located in the heart of Brussels, we were surprised by the number of orf cases encountered each year, grouped during a short three-week period. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We decided to set up a prospective study of three years. Forty-four cases (14 to 64 years of age) were observed: 14 in 1998, 18 in 1999 and 12 in 2000. There were 29 men and 15 women. RESULTS: Only one patient had professional contact with sheep; 42 were muslims. Forty-two lesions out of 44 developed in the same time span, 10 days earlier each year. Complications observed were: erythema multiforme (7 cases), lymphangitis (3 cases), axillary adenitis (3 cases), eyelid edema (2 cases), generalized maculopapular eruption (2 cases) and contact dermatitis to the cream applied (1 case). DISCUSSION: This peculiar epidemiology can easily be explained: patients are contaminated during a religious feast, Aid el Kebir (the Feast of Sacrifice). On this occasion, they slaughter sheep, which they manipulate with bare hands. Small trauma often occur at that time. We conclude that orf is not only a professional disease but particuliar habits may cause epidemic-type contamination.

The use of itraconazole to treat cutaneous fungal infections in children.

BACKGROUND: Cutaneous mycoses such as tinea capitis, onychomycosis and some cases of tinea corporis/cruris, and tinea pedis/manus require oral antifungal therapy. There is relatively limited data regarding the use of the newer oral antifungal agents, e.g. itraconazole, in the treatment of these mycoses in children. OBJECTIVE: We wished to determine the efficacy and safety of itraconazole continuous therapy in the management of cutaneous fungal infections in children. METHODS: Children with cutaneous mycoses were treated with itraconazole in an open-label manner in 4 studies. For tinea capitis, the treatment regimens using itraconazole continuous therapy were: study 1, 3 mg/kg/day for 4 or 8 weeks; study 2, 5 mg/kg/day for 6 weeks, and study 3, 5 mg/kg/ day for 4 weeks. In a different trial, study 4, itraconazole continuous therapy 5 mg/kg/day was used to treat toenail onychomycosis (duration: 12 weeks), tinea corporis/ cruris (duration: 1 week) and tinea pedis/manus (duration: 2 weeks). RESULTS: The efficacy rates at follow-up 12 weeks from the start of therapy in children with tinea capitis treated using the itraconazole continuous regimen were: clinical cure (CC) and mycological cure (MC) in study 1 (n = 10, Trichophyton violaceum all patients), CC 50%, MC 86%; in study 2 (n = 35, Microsporum canis 22 patients, Trichophyton sp. 12 patients), CC 82.8%, MC 80%, and in study 3 (n = 16, M. canis 11 patients, Trichophyton sp. 5 patients), (CC 66.7%, MC 78.5%. Itraconazole was also effective in the treatment of dermatomycoses in 24 children (study 4). The CC and MC rates at the follow-up 8 weeks from the start of therapy in children with dermatomycoses and 12 months in children treated for onychomycosis were: onychomycosis (n = 1, T. rubrum), CC 100%, MC 100%; tinea corporis (n = 12, M. canis 10 patients), CC 100%, MC 90%; tinea cruris (n = 3, Trichophyton sp. 2 patients), CC 100%, MC 100%; tinea manus (n = 1, T. rubrum), CC 100%, MC 100%, and tinea pedis (n = 7, T. rubrum), CC 100%, MC 100%). Adverse effects consisted of a cutaneous eruption in 1 (1.2%) of the 85 children, with mild, transient, asymptomatic elevation of liver function tests (less than twice the upper limit of normal) in 2 (3.4%) of 58 children in whom monitoring was performed. CONCLUSIONS: Itraconazole is effective and safe in the treatment of tinea capitis and other cutaneous fungal infections in children.

A comparison of the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of fluticasone propionate ointment, 0.005%, and betamethasone-17,21-dipropionate ointment, 0.05%, in the treatment of eczema.

A randomized, double-blind, parallel group study involving thirteen centers compared the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of twice-daily applications of fluticasone propionate ointment, 0.005%, and betamethasone-17, 21-dipropionate ointment, 0.05%, in ninety-two patients with moderate-to-severe eczema. Safety assessments included routine clinical laboratory evaluations, morning plasma cortisol levels, and reporting of adverse events. Efficacy assessments included (1) physician's gross assessment of clinical response of the target lesion, (2) severity of signs and symptoms of eczema, and (3) patients' assessment of treatment effects. Both treatments were well tolerated and showed minimal suppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis as evidenced by morning plasma cortisol concentration determinations. Statistically significant improvement in the severity of each sign/symptom was found as early as two weeks following treatment initiation in both groups. The two treatments were found to be similar following two and four weeks of therapy with regard to almost all efficacy variables.

Nickel allergy in Europe: the new European legislation.

A new directive from the European Union (EU) will restrict the use of nickel from 1996 on. The consequences of this directive in the EU are considered.

Itraconazole in tinea versicolor: a review.

Itraconazole, a new orally active triazole antifungal, has been tested in patients with pityriasis versicolor. A number of studies have shown that itraconazole is effective for this mild fungal skin disease. The total dose required for effective treatment is 1000 mg, and it has been given as 200 mg for 5 days or 7 days. The organisms disappear slowly from the skin, even when dead, and the results should be assessed clinically and mycologically at around 3 to 4 weeks after treatment. Numerous studies have shown that itraconazole is superior to placebo and as effective as selenium sulfide, clotrimazole, and ciclopirox olamine. It is also better tolerated by patients than selenium sulfide.

Itraconazole, a new orally active antifungal, in the treatment of pityriasis versicolor.

Itraconazole, a new orally active triazole antifungal, has been tested in patients with pityriasis versicolor. A comparison of different dose schedules was carried out in 73 patients. A regime of 100 mg itraconazole daily for 15 days gave a 100% response rate; 200 mg daily for 5 days gave an 80% response rate. Two patients, who had received 50 mg itraconazole for 14 days, relapsed within 2 months of finishing treatment. Only two patients reported minor side-effects.

[Molluscum contagiosum disclosing HTLV III infection]. / Mollusca contagiosa multiples révélateurs d'une infection à HTLV III.

We report here a case of cutaneous molluscum contagiosum infection, which led to the diagnosis of HTL V III infection. Profuse mollusca contagiosa are one of the cutaneous lesions indicating the presence of AIDS at any stage.