Multivariate Analysis of Relationship between Childhood Trauma and Psychotic Symptoms in Patients with Schizophrenia.

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between childhood trauma and psychotic symptoms in schizophrenic patients after controlling for the possible confounding factors, such as depression and dissociative symptoms. Ninety-eight schizophrenic inpatients participated. Childhood trauma was examined using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaires (CTQ), which consists of physical abuse (PA), sexual abuse (SA), emotional abuse (EA), physical neglect (PN), and emotional neglect (EN). Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Dissociative Experience Scale (DES), and Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI) were also administered. Data were analyzed by partial correlation and general linear model. The total score of CTQ was positively correlated with positive, general, and total scores of PANSS. All five types of childhood trauma were associated with dissociative symptoms. EA and EN were positively correlated with depressive symptoms. Only SA significantly predicted positive symptoms of schizophrenia after controlling for age, sex, BDI, and DES scores, with a dose-response relationship between SA and positive symptoms.

Development of a novel screening system for allatostatin receptor agonists in search of new candidate insect growth regulators.

Allatostatins (ASTs) are insect neuropeptide hormones that regulate diverse physiological functions, including feeding, growth and development, and reproduction. Therefore, regulation of allatostatin receptor (AstR) activity can be an effective tool for controlling insect growth and proliferation. Here, we describe a novel screening system using a mammalian cell line in which AstR is ectopically expressed, combined with fluorescence-based measurements of the membrane potential. HEK293T cells that do not express cognate receptors for AST became responsive to AST upon transfection with AstR. The response of the membrane potential to AST could be reliably detected by measuring the fluorescence of DiBAC4(3), a voltage-sensitive dye. We also discovered that overexpressing GIRK1/2 in this cell line could augment the magnitude of hyperpolarization by AST. Our screening system produces a fast and reliable readout for the efficient screening of AstR agonists.

Combined hyperactive dysfunction syndrome of the cranial nerves.

OBJECTIVE: Combined hyperative dysfunction syndrome (HDS) defined as the combination of HDSs such as trigeminal neuralgia (TN), hemifacial spasm (HFS) and glossopharyngeal neuralgia (GPN), which may or may not occur simultaneously on one or both sides. We reviewed patients with combined HDS and demonstrated their demographic characteristics by comparing them with those of patients with a single HDS. METHODS: Between October 1994 and February 2006, we retrospectively studied a series of 1,720 patients who suffered from HDS and found 51 patients with combined HDSs. We analyzed several independent variables in order to evaluate the prevalence and etiologic factors of combined HDS. RESULTS: The combined HDS group accounted for 51 of 1,720 (2.97%) patients with HDS; 27 cases of bilateral HFS, 10 cases of bilateral TN and 14 cases of HFS with TN. Their mean age was 52.1 years (range, 26-79 years). There were 5 men and 46 women. Seven patients had synchronous and 44 patients metachronous onset of HDSs. By comparison of combined and single HDS groups, we found that age and hypertension were closely associated with the prevalence of combined HDS (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: This study revealed that combined HDS was very rare. Hypertension and age might be the most important causative factors to evoke combined HDS.