Schizophrenia, brain disease and meta-analyses: Integrating the pieces and testing Fusar-Poli`s hypothesis

This paper aims to discuss and test the hypothesis raised by Fusar-Poli [Fusar-Poli P. Can neuroimaging prove that schizophrenia is a brain disease? A radical hypothesis. Medical Hypotheses in press, corrected proof] that ""on the basis of the available imaging literature there is no consistent evidence to reject the radical and provocative hypothesis that schizophrenia is not a brain disease"". To achieve this goal, all meta-analyses on `fMRI and schizophrenia` published during the current decade and indexed in Pubmed were summarized, as much as some other useful information, e.g., meta-analyses on genetic risk factors. Our main conclusion is that the literature fully supports the hypothesis that schizophrenia is a syndrome (not a disease) associated with brain abnormalities, despite the fact that there is no singular and reductionist pathway from the nosographic entity (schizophrenia) to its causes. This irreducibility is due to the fact that the syndrome has more than one dimension (e.g., cognitive, psychotic and negative) and each of them is related to abnormalities in specific neuronal networks. A psychiatric diagnosis is a statistical procedure; these dimensions are not identically represented in each diagnosticated case and this explains the existence of more than one pattern of brain abnormalities related to schizophrenia. For example, chronification is associated with negativism while the first psychotic episode is not; in that sense, the same person living with schizophrenia may reveal different symptoms and fMRI patterns along the course of his life, and this is precisely what defines schizophrenia since the time when it was called Dementia Praecox (first by pick then by Kraepelin). It is notable that 100% of the collected meta-analyses on `fMRI and schizophrenia` reveal positive findings. Moreover, all meta-analyses that found positive associations between schizophrenia and genetic risk factors have to do with genes (SNPs) especially activated in neuronal tissue of the central nervous system (CNS), suggesting that, to the extent these polymorphisms are related to schizophrenia`s etiology, they are also related to abnormal brain activity. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Short-term creatine supplementation decreases reactive oxygen species content with no changes in expression and activity of antioxidant enzymes in skeletal muscle

The effect of short-term creatine (Cr) supplementation upon content of skeletal muscle-derived-reactive oxygen species (ROS) was investigated. Wistar rats were supplemented with Cr (5 g/kg BW) or vehicle, by gavage, for 6 days. Soleus and extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles were removed and incubated for evaluation of ROS content using Amplex-UltraRed reagent. The analysis of expression and activity of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase 1 and 2, catalase and glutathione peroxidase) were performed. Direct scavenger action of Cr on superoxide radical and hydrogen peroxide was also investigated. Short-term Cr supplementation attenuated ROS content in both soleus and EDL muscles (by 41 and 33.7%, respectively). Cr supplementation did not change expression and activity of antioxidant enzymes. Basal TBARS content was not altered by Cr supplementation. In cell-free experiments, Cr showed a scavenger effect on superoxide radical in concentrations of 20 and 40 mM, but not on hydrogen peroxide. These results indicate that Cr supplementation decreases ROS content in skeletal muscle possibly due to a direct action of Cr molecule on superoxide radical.

Prognostic significance of the number of lymph nodes in elective neck dissection for tongue and mouth floor cancers

The presence of metastatic lymph nodes is a relevant aspect in the treatment of head and neck cancer, bringing about a 50% reduction in survival. Objective: To assess the number of lymph nodes removed in the neck dissection and their relationship with the prognosis. Methods: A retrospective study involving 143 patients with tongue and mouth floor epidermoid carcinoma, which histological exam showed no lymph node metastases. Among those, 119 were males and 24 females, with mean age of 54 years. As to the primary tumor site, 65 were in the tongue and 78 in the mouth floor. T stage distribution was of four T1, 84 T2, 36 T3 and 19 T4. We carried out 176 neck dissections, unilateral in 110 cases and bilateral in 33. Of these, 78 were radical and 98 selective. The patients were broken down into three groups, according to the 33 and 66 percentiles of the number of lymph nodes resected. Results: The mean number of resected lymph nodes was 27; 24 in selective dissections and 31 in the complete ones. We did not have statistically significant differences when associated to the T and N stages. Conclusions: The larger number of lymph nodes dissected in the neck dissection identifies the group of better prognoses among pN0 cases.

The white epidemic and the asepsis of refined earthenware in Belle Epoque Sao Paulo

The article examines Brazilian refined earthenwares known as faianca fina (fine faience) and relates ideas about its production to the contextual backdrop of hygienist discourses in the city of Sao Paulo in the early twentieth century. Based on an analysis of glaze components, moisture expansion processes, and technological aspects of the production of earthenware recovered from the Petybon archeological site, it is suggested that the establishment of factories and the production and consumption of white ceramics in the city of Sao Paulo were partially a consequence of the vigorous hygienization policies and modernity projects then advocated by Sao Paulo's elites.

A critical and descriptive approach to interictal behavior with the Neurobehavior Inventory (NBI)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to test the psychometric properties of the Neurobehavior Inventory (NBI) in a group of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) patients from a tertiary care center, correlating its scores with the presence of psychiatric symptoms. Methods: Clinical and sociodemographic data from ninety-six TLE outpatients were collected, and a neuropsychiatric evaluation was performed with the following instruments: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), structured psychiatric interview (MINI-PLUS), Neurobehavior Inventory (NBI), and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D). Results: Some traits evaluated by the NBI showed adequate internal consistency (mean inter-item correlation between 0.2 and 0.4) and were frequent, such as religiosity (74%) and repetitiveness (60.4%). Principal component analysis showed three factors, named here as emotions (Factor 1), hyposexuality (Factor 2), and unusual ideas (Factor 3). Depressive symptoms on HAM-D showed a strong association with emotions and hyposexuality factors. When patients with left TLE and right TLE were compared, the former exhibited more sadness (p=0.017), and the latter, a greater tendency toward sense of personal destiny (p=0.028). Conclusion: Depression influences NBI scoring, mainly emotionality and hyposexuality traits. Neurobehavior Inventory subscales can be better interpreted with an appropriate evaluation of comorbid mood and anxiety disorders. Compromise in left temporal mesial structures is associated with increased tendency toward sad affect, whereas right temporal pathology is associated with increased beliefs in personal destiny. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Structure and peroxidase activity of ferric Streptomyces clavuligerus orf10-encoded protein P450CLA: UV-visible, CD, MCD and EPR spectroscopic characterization

The present study reports the spectroscopic characterization by UV-visible absorption spectroscopy, magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) of the recombinant orf10-encoded P450-camphor like protein (P450CLA)of Streptomyces clavuligerus expressed in Escherichia coli Rosetta in the native form and associated to external ligands containing the β-lactam, oxazole and alkylamine-derived (alcohol) moieties of the clavulamic acid. Considering the diversity of potential applications for the enzyme, the reactivity with tert-butylhydroperoxide (tert-BuOOH) was also characterized. P450CLA presents a covalently bound heme group and exhibited the UV-visible, CD and MCD spectral features of P450CAM including the fingerprint Soret band at 450 nm generated by the ferrous CO-complex. P450CLA was converted to high valence species by tert-BuOOH and promoted homolytic scission of the O-O bond. The radical profile of the reaction was tert-butyloxyl as primary and methyl and butylperoxyl as secondary radicals. The secondary methyl and butylperoxyl radicals resulted respectively from the β-scission of the alkoxyl radical and from the reaction of methyl radical with molecular oxygen.

Uma história de conceitos na saúde pública: integralidade, coordenação, descentralização, regionalização e universalidade

O Sistema Único de Saúde conferiu visibilidade a uma série de conceitos próprios da organização de sistemas de saúde. Entre eles a integralidade, que delimita fronteiras comuns com quase todos os demais princípios do Sistema, tem sido objeto de ampla literatura no Brasil. Com base em extensa revisão de fontes primárias e secundárias, este artigo apresenta uma recuperação histórica dos conceitos de integralidade, descentralização, regionalização e universalidade - ideias e conceitos que em grande parte se conformam e se interligam no ideário da organização dos serviços sanitários pelo modelo dos Centros de Saúde distritais.

Comparison of eating attitudes among university students from the five Brazilian regions

Eating attitudes can be defined as beliefs, thoughts, feelings, behavior and relationship with food. They can influence people's food choices and health status. The scope of this paper is to compare eating attitudes of university students from different regions of Brazil and investigate possible associations and correlations with nutritional status, age, individual income and parental education. 2489 female university students in the area of health answered the Eating Attitude Scale - evaluated by total score and 5 sub-scores. The eating attitudes were compared by means of an analysis of covariance. A logistic regression was conducted to evaluate which variables were associated to the scale score. The Northeast presented more restrictive and compensatory practices and the North and Northeast presented less positive feelings about food and worse ideas about normal eating. The score on the scale did not present strong correlation with any of the variables studied, but nutritional status and age were associated with the total score. The profile of university students was similar among regions with the worst response in the North and Northeast regions. It is believed that these data could help to elucidate dietary patterns and nutritional differences among groups.

White paper sobre Open Source, Open Access, open Standards e o futuro da catalogação

The discussions on the future of cataloging has received increased attention in the last ten years, mainly due to the impact of rapid development of information and communication technologies in the same period, which has provided access to the Web anytime, anywhere. These discussions revolve around the need for a new bibliographic framework to meet the demand of this new reality in the digital environment, ie how libraries can process, store, deliver, share and integrate their collections (physical, digital or scanned), in current post-PC era? Faced with this question, Open Access, Open Source and Open Standards are three concepts that need to receive greater attention in the field of Library and Information Science, as it is believed to be fundamental elements for the change of paradigm of descriptive representation, currently based conceptually on physical item rather than intellectual work. This paper aims to raise and discuss such issues and instigate information professionals, especially librarians, to think, discuss and propose initiatives for such problems, contributing and sharing ideas and possible solutions, in multidisciplinary teams. At the end is suggested the effective creation of multidisciplinary and inter-institutional study groups on the future of cataloging and its impact on national collections, in order to contribute to the area of descriptive representation in national and international level

Bidirectional Barbed Suture for Bladder Neck Reconstruction, Posterior Reconstruction and Vesicourethral Anastomosis During Robot Assisted Radical Prostatectomy

Background: The urethrovesical anastomosis is a particular challenging step of robot assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP). Failure to achieve a watertight anastomosis is associated with postoperative urinary leak and its consequences, which include paralytic ileus, prolonged catheterization, urinary peritonitis and possibly re-intervention. The bidirectional barbed suture is a new technology that may lead to improve the quality of the urethrovesical anastomosis. Objective: To present our surgical technique of urethrovesical anastomosis, bladder neck reconstruction and posterior reconstruction, using a bidirectional barbed suture. Material and methods: The bladder neck reconstruction, posterior reconstruction and vesicourethral anastomosis were performed using a 2-0 synthetic absorbable bidirectional monofilament barbed suture Results: All cases were finished successfully without major complication or conversion to laparoscopic or open surgery. Conclusion: The authors successfully modified their RARP technique to take advantage of the properties of the bidirectional barbed suture. Comparative studies that evaluate objective outcomes such as leakage rates and operative time are needed to definitely establish the benefits of this device in comparison to the traditional absorbable monofilament. (C) 2011 AEU. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L. All rights reserved.

Impact of the Manaus urban plume on trace gas mixing ratios near the surface in the Amazon Basin: Implications for the NO-NO2-O-3 photostationary state and peroxy radical levels

We measured the mixing ratios of NO, NO2, O-3, and volatile organic carbon as well as the aerosol light-scattering coefficient on a boat platform cruising on rivers downwind of the city of Manaus (Amazonas State, Brazil) in July 2001 (Large-Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia-Cooperative LBA Airborne Regional Experiment-2001). The dispersion and impact of the Manaus plume was investigated by a combined analysis of ground-based (boat platform) and airborne trace gas and aerosol measurements as well as by meteorological measurements complemented by dispersion calculations (Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model). For the cases with the least anthropogenic influence (including a location in a so far unexplored region similar to 150 km west of Manaus on the Rio Manacapuru), the aerosol scattering coefficient, sigma(s), was below 11 Mm(-1), NOx mixing ratios remained below 0.6 ppb, daytime O-3 mixing ratios were mostly below 20 ppb and maximal isoprene mixing ratios were about 3 ppb in the afternoon. The photostationary state (PSS) was not established for these cases, as indicated by values of the Leighton ratio, Phi, well above unity. Due to the influence of river breeze systems and other thermally driven mesoscale circulations, a change of the synoptic wind direction from east-northeast to south-southeast in the afternoon often caused a substantial increase of ss and trace gas mixing ratios (about threefold for sigma(s), fivefold for NOx, and twofold for O-3), which was associated with the arrival of the Manaus pollution plume at the boat location. The ratio F reached unity within its uncertainty range at NOx mixing ratios of about 3 ppb, indicating "steady-state" conditions in cases when radiation variations, dry deposition, emissions, and reactions mostly involving peroxy radicals (XO2) played a minor role. The median midday/afternoon XO2 mixing ratios estimated using the PSS method range from 90 to 120 parts per trillion (ppt) for the remote cases (sigma(s) < 11 Mm(-1) and NOx < 0.6 ppb), while for the polluted cases our estimates are 15 to 60 ppt. These values are within the range of XO2 estimated by an atmospheric chemistry box model (Chemistry As A Box model Application-Module Efficiently Calculating the Chemistry of the Atmosphere (CAABA/MECCA)-3.0).

Analysis of Passion Fruit rinds (Passiflora edulis): Isoorientin quantification by hptlc and evaluation of antioxidant (radical scavenging) capacity

The content of isoorientin in passion fruit rinds (Passiflora Mulls fo. flavicarpa O. Degener) was determined by HPTLC (high performance thin layer chromatography) with densitometric analysis. The results revealed a higher amount of isoorientin in healthy rinds of P edulis (92.275 +/- 0.610 mg L-1) than in rinds with typical symptoms of PWV (Passion fruit Woodiness Virus) infection (28.931 +/- 0.346 mg L-1). The HPTLC data, allied to assays of radical scavenging activity, suggest the potential of P Mulls rinds as a natural source of flavonoids or as a possible functional food.

Analysis of passion fruit rinds (Passiflora edulis): isoorientin quantification by HPTLC and evaluation of antioxidant (radical scavenging) capacity

The content of isoorientin in passion fruit rinds (Passiflora edulis fo. flavicarpa O. Degener) was determined by HPTLC (high performance thin layer chromatography) with densitometric analysis. The results revealed a higher amount of isoorientin in healthy rinds of P. edulis (92.275 ± 0.610 mg L-1) than in rinds with typical symptoms of PWV (Passion fruit Woodiness Virus) infection (28.931 ± 0.346 mg L-1). The HPTLC data, allied to assays of radical scavenging activity, suggest the potential of P. edulis rinds as a natural source of flavonoids or as a possible functional food.