An immunohistochemical analysis of peptidergic neurons apparently associated with reproduction and growth in Biomphalaria alexandrina.

Peptide hormones and neurotransmitters involved in reproduction and growth have been studied extensively in certain gastropod molluscs, such as Lymnaea stagnalis and Aplysia californica. The present study employs antisera that have been used to study peptidergic neurons in those species to probe the central nervous system of another gastropod, Biomphalaria alexandrina, an intermediate host of the parasitic trematode that causes schistosomiasis in humans. Whole mount preparations of central ganglia were stained immunohistochemically, and several populations of neurons appeared to be homologous to those forming the neuroendocrine axis that has been previously described in L. stagnalis. These cells include the caudodorsal cells and the light green and canopy cells, which produce hormones that regulate ovulation and growth, respectively. Other populations of cells containing APGWamide, FMRFamide and/or related peptides are consistent with ones that innervate the penis in L. stagnalis and other gastropods. Identification of neurons that might be responsible for the control of reproduction and growth in Biomphalaria provides an important initial step toward the development of novel methods of disease control and pest management directed toward reducing snail populations.

Living through distress: a skills training group for reducing deliberate self-harm.

BACKGROUND: Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based treatment effective in reducing deliberate self-harm. However, DBT is resource and time intensive, and few services are able to sustain a programme faithful to all aspects. Thus, modified or adapted versions of DBT have been developed, particularly for delivery in inpatient hospital settings. AIMS: This study presents a description of the "Living Through Distress" (LTD) Group, which is based on the group skills training component of DBT. METHOD: Participants (n = 114) were patients of a psychiatric hospital who attended the LTD group. The main inclusion criterion for the LTD group was a history of deliberate self-harm. The outcome measures were frequency of incidents of deliberate self-harm, levels of distress tolerance, and mean numbers of bed days per year. RESULTS: Upon completion of the group, there were significant reductions in participants' reports of deliberate self-harm and significant increases in their distress tolerance levels, which were maintained at 3-month follow-up. There was also a reduction in participants' mean number of inpatient days at 1-year and 2-year follow-up. Over 50% of participants had no admissions in the year subsequent to completing the group. CONCLUSIONS: As this study was not a randomized controlled trial, results must be interpreted with caution. However, the findings presented here are promising, and suggest that a briefer, less resource intense version of the group skills training component of DBT may be effective in reducing deliberate self-harm.

A Critical Review of Zebrafish Models of Parkinson's Disease.

A wide variety of human diseases have been modelled in zebrafish, including various types of cancer, cardiovascular diseases and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Recent reviews have summarized the currently available zebrafish models of Parkinson's Disease, which include gene-based, chemically induced and chemogenetic ablation models. The present review updates the literature, critically evaluates each of the available models of Parkinson's Disease in zebrafish and compares them with similar models in invertebrates and mammals to determine their advantages and disadvantages. We examine gene-based models, including ones linked to Early-Onset Parkinson's Disease: PARKIN, PINK1, DJ-1, and SNCA; but we also examine LRRK2, which is linked to Late-Onset Parkinson's Disease. We evaluate chemically induced models like MPTP, 6-OHDA, rotenone and paraquat, as well as chemogenetic ablation models like metronidazole-nitroreductase. The article also reviews the unique advantages of zebrafish, including the abundance of behavioural assays available to researchers and the efficiency of high-throughput screens. This offers a rare opportunity for assessing the potential therapeutic efficacy of pharmacological interventions. Zebrafish also are very amenable to genetic manipulation using a wide variety of techniques, which can be combined with an array of advanced microscopic imaging methods to enable in vivo visualization of cells and tissue. Taken together, these factors place zebrafish on the forefront of research as a versatile model for investigating disease states. The end goal of this review is to determine the benefits of using zebrafish in comparison to utilising other animals and to consider the limitations of zebrafish for investigating human disease.

Health-related quality of life and quality of care in pregnant and postnatal women during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic: A cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and the delivery of high-quality care are ongoing concerns when caring for pregnant women during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We compared self-reported HRQoL and hospital quality of care among perinatal women with and without COVID-19. METHODS: This is a prospective cohort study of perinatal women attending a tertiary maternity unit during the pandemic. Eighteen women who tested positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and 20 SARS-CoV-2-negative women were recruited. Participants completed the Short Form Health Survey (SF-12), Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation-Outcome Measure, and Quality from the Patient's Perspective questionnaires. Mean scores were compared. RESULTS: Of the Non-COVID-19 cohort, 95% (n = 19) were Caucasian, whereas 67% (n = 12) of the COVID-19 cohort were not Caucasian (χ2  = 16.01, P < 0.001). The mean SF-12 for physical health in the COVID-19 cohort had significantly lower scores (P < 0.002). There was no difference in mental health and well-being between cohorts. The quality of care experienced was notably similar and very positive. CONCLUSION: There was a significantly greater burden on physical health among pregnant women with COVID-19. Mental health and psychological status were similar in both groups. High quality of care during a pandemic is possible to deliver in a maternity setting, irrespective of COVID-19 status.

A simple automated system for appetitive conditioning of zebrafish in their home tanks.

We describe here an automated apparatus that permits rapid conditioning paradigms for zebrafish. Arduino microprocessors were used to control the delivery of auditory or visual stimuli to groups of adult or juvenile zebrafish in their home tanks in a conventional zebrafish facility. An automatic feeder dispensed precise amounts of food immediately after the conditioned stimuli, or at variable delays for controls. Responses were recorded using inexpensive cameras, with the video sequences analysed with ImageJ or Matlab. Fish showed significant conditioned responses in as few as 5 trials, learning that the conditioned stimulus was a predictor of food presentation at the water surface and at the end of the tank where the food was dispensed. Memories of these conditioned associations persisted for at least 2days after training when fish were tested either as groups or as individuals. Control fish, for which the auditory or visual stimuli were specifically unpaired with food, showed no comparable responses. This simple, low-cost, automated system permits scalable conditioning of zebrafish with minimal human intervention, greatly reducing both variability and labour-intensiveness. It will be useful for studies of the neural basis of learning and memory, and for high-throughput screening of compounds modifying those processes.

Data on horizontal and vertical movements of zebrafish during appetitive conditioning.

This article provides supporting data for the research article "A simple automated system for appetitive conditioning of zebrafish in their home tanks" (J.M. Doyle, N. Merovitch, R.C. Wyeth, M.R. Stoyek, M. Schmidt, F. Wilfart, A. Fine, R.P. Croll, 2016) [1]. In that article, we described overall movements of zebrafish toward a food source as a response to auditory or visual cues as conditioned stimuli in a novel learning paradigm. Here, we describe separate analyses of the vertical and horizontal components of the learned response. These data provide evidence that the conditioning might result from both classical conditioning of an innate response of zebrafish to move to the surface in response to food cues and secondary conditioning of the fish to associate a food presentation with a specific location in the tank. Movement data from the twenty trial acquisition period and probe trials from 2-32 days post conditioning are included.