Deficits on self ordered tasks associated with hyperostosis frontalis interna

A 74 year old patient, EW, with dorsolateral frontal cortical compression due to hyperostosis frontalis interna, in the absence of the Morgagni or Stewart-Morel syndromes, is described. In addition to conventional neuropsychological measures EW was administered one nonspatial and two spatial self ordered working memory tasks, as well as a standard measure of fluid intelligence or g. She showed impaired performance on all three self ordered working memory tasks compared with a normal control group of 10 subjects matched for age, education, sex, and IQ. By contrast, her performance on the fluid intelligence test was comparable with that of the controls. It is concluded that the compression of dorsolateral frontal cortex accompanying hyperostosis frontalis interna may produce selective cognitive impairment.

Down-regulation of the amyloid protein precursor of Alzheimer's disease by antisense oligonucleotides reduces neuronal adhesion to specific substrata

The hallmark of Alzheimer's disease is the cerebral deposition of amyloid which is derived from the amyloid precursor protein (APP). The function of APP is unknown but there is increasing evidence for the role of APP in cell-cell and/or cell-matrix interactions. Primary cultures of murine neurons were treated with antisense oligonucleotides to down-regulate APP. This paper presents evidence that APP mediates a substrate-specific interaction between neurons and extracellular matrix components collagen type I, laminin and heparan sulphate proteoglycan but not fibronectin or poly-L-lysine. It remains to be determined whether this effect is the direct result of APP-matrix interactions, or whether an intermediary pathway is involved. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.

The generation of H-1-NMR-detectable mobile lipid in stimulated lymphocytes: Relationship ts cellular activation, the cell cycle, and phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C

Mobile Lipids detected using H-1-NMR in stimulated lymphocytes were correlated with cell cycle phase, expression of the interleukin-2 receptor alpha and proliferation to assess the activation status of the lymphocytes. Mobile lipid levels, IL-2R alpha expression and proliferation increased after treatment with PMA and ionomycin. PMA or ionomycin stimulation alone induced increased IL-2R alpha expressiom but not proliferation, PMA- but not ionomycin-stimulation generated mobile lipid, Treatment with anti-CD3 antibody did not increase IL-2R alpha expression or proliferation but did generate increased amounts of mobile lipid, The cell cycle status of thymocytes treated with anti-CD3, PMA or ionomycin alone indicated an. accumulation of the cells in the G(1) phase of the cell cycle, The generation of mobile lipid was abrogated in anti-CD3 antibody-stimulated thymic lymphocytes but not in splenic lymphocytes, using a phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C (PC-PLC) inhibitor which blocked cells in the G(1)/S phase of the cell cycle, This suggests that the H-1-NMR-detectable mobile Lipid may be generated in anti-CD3 antibody-stimulated thymic lymphocytes by the action of PC-PLC activity via the catabolism of PC, in the absence of classical signs of activation. (C) 1997 Academic Press.

Long-Term Effects of Specific Stabilizing Exercises for First-Episode Low Back Pain

Study Design. A randomized clinical trial with 1-year and 3-year telephone questionnaire follow-ups. Objective. To report a specific exercise intervention’s long-term effects on recurrence rates in acute, first-episode low back pain patients. Summary of Background Data. The pain and disability associated with an initial episode of acute low back pain (LBP) is known to resolve spontaneously in the short-term in the majority of cases. However, the recurrence rate is high, and recurrent disabling episodes remain one of the most costly problems in LBP. A deficit in the multifidus muscle has been identified in acute LBP patients, and does not resolve spontaneously on resolution of painful symptoms and resumption of normal activity. Any relation between this deficit and recurrence rate was investigated in the long-term. Methods. Thirty-nine patients with acute, first-episode LBP were medically managed and randomly allocated to either a control group or specific exercise group. Medical management included advice and use of medications. Intervention consisted of exercises aimed at rehabilitating the multifidus in cocontraction with the transversus abdominis muscle. One year and three years after treatment, telephone questionnaires were conducted with patients. Results. Questionnaire results revealed that patients from the specific exercise group experienced fewer recurrences of LBP than patients from the control group. One year after treatment, specific exercise group recurrence was 30%, and control group recurrence was 84% (P , 0.001). Two to three years after treatment, specific exercise group recurrence was 35%, and control group recurrence was 75% (P , 0.01). Conclusion. Long-term results suggest that specific exercise therapy in addition to medical management and resumption of normal activity may be more effective in reducing low back pain recurrences than medical management and normal activity alone. [Key Words: multifidus, low back pain, rehabilitation]

Tissue-specific induction of SOCS gene expression by PRL

The mechanisms whereby tissue sensitivity to PRL is controlled are not well understood. Here we report that expression of mRNA and protein for members of the SOCS/CIS/JAB family of cytokine signaling inhibitors is increased by PRL administration in ovary and adrenal gland of the lactating rat deprived of circulating PRL and pups for 24 h but not in mammary gland. Moreover, suckling increases SOCS mRNA in the ovary but not in the mammary gland of pup-deprived rats. Deprivation of PRL and pups for 48 h allows the mammary gland to induce SOCS genes in response to PRL administration, and this is associated with a decrease in basal SOCS-3 mRNA and protein expression to the level seen in other tissues, suggesting that SOCS-3 induced refractoriness related to filling of the gland. In reporter assays, SOCS-1, SOCS-3, and CIS, but not SOCS-2, are able to inhibit transactivation of the STAT 5-responsive beta -lactoglobulin promoter in transient transfection assays. Moreover, suckling results in loss of ovarian and adrenal responsiveness to PRL administered 2 h after commencement of suckling, as determined by STAT 5 gel shift assay. Immunohistochemistry was used to localize the cellular sites of SOCS-3 and CIS protein expression in the ovary and adrenal gland. We propose that induced SOCS-1, SOCS-3, and CIS are actively involved in the cellular inhibitory feedback response to physiological PRL surges in the corpus luteum and adrenal cortex during lactation, but after pup withdrawal, the mammary gland is rendered unresponsive to PRL by increased levels of SOCS-3.

Specific manipulative therapy treatment for chronic lateral epicondylalgia produces uniquely characteristic hypoalgesia

The treatment of lateral epicondylalgia, a widely-used model of musculoskeletal pain in the evaluation of many physical therapy treatments, remains somewhat of an enigma. The protagonists of a new treatment technique for lateral epicondylalgia report that it produces substantial and rapid pain relief, despite a lack of experimental evidence. A randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled repeated-measures study evaluated the initial effect of this new treatment in 24 patients with unilateral, chronic lateral epicondylalgia. Pain-free grip strength was assessed as an outcome measure before, during and after the application of the treatment, placebo and control conditions. Pressure-pain thresholds were also measured before and after the application of treatment, placebo and control conditions. The results demonstrated a significant and substantial increase in pain-free grip strength of 58% (of the order of 60 N) during treatment but not during placebo and control. In contrast, the 10% change in pressure-pain threshold after treatment, although significantly greater than placebo and control, was substantially smaller than the change demonstrated for pain-free grip strength. This effect was only present in the affected limb. The selective and specific effect of this treatment technique provides a valuable insight into the physical modulation of musculoskeletal pain and requires further investigation. (C) 2001 Harcourt Publishers Ltd.