Allergen cross reactions: a problem greater than ever thought?

Cross reactions are an often observed phenomenon in patients with allergy. Sensitization against some allergens may cause reactions against other seemingly unrelated allergens. Today, cross reactions are being investigated on a per-case basis, analyzing blood serum specific IgE (sIgE) levels and clinical features of patients suffering from cross reactions. In this study, we evaluated the level of sIgE compared to patients' total IgE assuming epitope specificity is a consequence of sequence similarity.

Core networks for visual-concrete and abstract thought content: a brain electric microstate analysis

Commonality of activation of spontaneously forming and stimulus-induced mental representations is an often made but rarely tested assumption in neuroscience. In a conjunction analysis of two earlier studies, brain electric activity during visual-concrete and abstract thoughts was studied. The conditions were: in study 1, spontaneous stimulus-independent thinking (post-hoc, visual imagery or abstract thought were identified); in study 2, reading of single nouns ranking high or low on a visual imagery scale. In both studies, subjects' tasks were similar: when prompted, they had to recall the last thought (study 1) or the last word (study 2). In both studies, subjects had no instruction to classify or to visually imagine their thoughts, and accordingly were not aware of the studies' aim. Brain electric data were analyzed into functional topographic brain images (using LORETA) of the last microstate before the prompt (study 1) and of the word-type discriminating event-related microstate after word onset (study 2). Conjunction analysis across the two studies yielded commonality of activation of core networks for abstract thought content in left anterior superior regions, and for visual-concrete thought content in right temporal-posterior inferior regions. The results suggest that two different core networks are automatedly activated when abstract or visual-concrete information, respectively, enters working memory, without a subject task or instruction about the two classes of information, and regardless of internal or external origin, and of input modality. These core machineries of working memory thus are invariant to source or modality of input when treating the two types of information.

Parameters of Reform and Unification in Modern Japanese Buddhist Thought: Murakami Senshō and Critical Buddhism

Reform is a word that, one might easily say, characterizes more than any other the history and development of Buddhism. Yet, it must also be said that reform movements in East Asian Buddhism have often taken on another goal—harmony or unification; that is, a desire not only to reconstruct a more worthy form of Buddhism, but to simultaneously bring together all existing forms under a single banner, in theory if not in practice. This paper explores some of the tensions between the desire for reform and the quest for harmony in modern Japanese Buddhism thought, by comparing two developments: the late 19th century movement towards ‘New Buddhism’ (shin Bukkyō) as exemplified by Murakami Senshō 村上専精 (1851–1929), and the late 20th century movement known as ‘Critical Buddhism’ (hihan Bukkyō), as found in the works of Matsumoto Shirō 松本史朗 and Hakamaya Noriaki 袴谷憲昭. In all that has been written about Critical Buddhism, in both Japanese and English, very little attention has been paid to the place of the movement within the larger traditions of Japanese Buddhist reform. Here I reconsider Critical Buddhism in relation to the concerns of the previous, much larger trends towards Buddhist reform that emerged almost exactly 100 years previous—the so-called shin Bukkyō or New Buddhism of the late-Meiji era. Shin Bukkyō is a catch-all term that includes the various writings and activities of Inoue Enryō, Shaku Sōen, and Kiyozawa Manshi, as well as the so-called Daijō-hibussetsuron, a broad term used (often critically) to describe Buddhist writers who suggested that Mahāyāna Buddhism is not, in fact, the Buddhism taught by the ‘historical’ Buddha Śākyamuni. Of these, I will make a few general remarks about Daijō-hibusseturon, before turning attention more specifically to the work of Murakami Senshō, in order to flesh out some of the similarities and differences between his attempt to construct a ‘unified Buddhism’ and the work of his late-20th century avatars, the Critical Buddhists. Though a number of their aims and ideas overlap, I argue that there remain fundamental differences with respect to the ultimate purposes of Buddhist reform. This issue hinges on the implications of key terms such as ‘unity’ and ‘harmony’ as well as the way doctrinal history is categorized and understood, but it also relates to issues of ideology and the use and abuse of Buddhist doctrines in 20th-century politics.

Determinants of sustained viral suppression in HIV-infected patients with self-reported poor adherence to antiretroviral therapy

Background Good adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is critical for successful HIV treatment. However, some patients remain virologically suppressed despite suboptimal adherence. We hypothesized that this could result from host genetic factors influencing drug levels. Methods Eligible individuals were Caucasians treated with efavirenz (EFV) and/or boosted lopinavir (LPV/r) with self-reported poor adherence, defined as missing doses of ART at least weekly for more than 6 months. Participants were genotyped for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in candidate genes previously reported to decrease EFV (rs3745274, rs35303484, rs35979566 in CYP2B6) and LPV/r clearance (rs4149056 in SLCO1B1, rs6945984 in CYP3A, rs717620 in ABCC2). Viral suppression was defined as having HIV-1 RNA <400 copies/ml throughout the study period. Results From January 2003 until May 2009, 37 individuals on EFV (28 suppressed and 9 not suppressed) and 69 on LPV/r (38 suppressed and 31 not suppressed) were eligible. The poor adherence period was a median of 32 weeks with 18.9% of EFV and 20.3% of LPV/r patients reporting missed doses on a daily basis. The tested SNPs were not determinant for viral suppression. Reporting missing >1 dose/week was associated with a lower probability of viral suppression compared to missing 1 dose/week (EFV: odds ratio (OR) 0.11, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.01–0.99; LPV/r: OR 0.29, 95% CI: 0.09–0.94). In both groups, the probability of remaining suppressed increased with the duration of continuous suppression prior to the poor adherence period (EFV: OR 3.40, 95% CI: 0.62–18.75; LPV/r: OR 5.65, 95% CI: 1.82–17.56). Conclusions The investigated genetic variants did not play a significant role in the sustained viral suppression of individuals with suboptimal adherence. Risk of failure decreased with longer duration of viral suppression in this population.

Viral suppression rates in salvage treatment with raltegravir improved with the administration of genotypic partially active or inactive nucleoside/tide reverse transcriptase inhibitors

Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) are often administered in salvage therapy even if genotypic resistance tests (GRTs) indicate high-level resistance, but little is known about the benefit of these additional NRTIs.

MicroRNA-21 suppression impedes medulloblastoma cell migration

Medulloblastoma (MB), the most common malignant brain tumour in children, is characterised by a high risk of leptomeningeal dissemination. But little is known about the molecular mechanisms that promote cancer cell migration in MB. Aberrant expression of miR-21 is recognised to be causatively linked to metastasis in a variety of human neoplasms including brain tumours; however its function in MB is still unknown. In this study we investigated the expression level and the role of miR-21 in MB cell migration. miR-21 was found to be up-regulated, compared to normal cerebellum, in 29/29 MB primary samples and 6/6 MB-derived cell lines. Inverse correlation was observed between miR-21 expression and the metastasis suppressor PDCD4, while miR-21 repression increased the release of PDCD4 protein, suggesting negative regulation of PDCD4 by miR-21 in MB cells. Anti-miR-21 decreased protein expression of the tumour cell invasion mediators MAP4K1 and JNK, which are also known to be negatively regulated by PDCD4, and down-regulated integrin protein that is essential for MB leptomeningeal dissemination. Moreover miR-21 knockdown in MB cells increased the expression of two eminent negative modulators of cancer cell migration, E-Cadherin and TIMP2 proteins that are known to be positively regulated by PDCD4. Finally and importantly, suppression of miR-21 decreased the motility of MB cells and reduced their migration across basement membranes in vitro. Together, these compelling data propose miR-21 pathway as a novel mechanism impacting MB cell dissemination and raises the possibility that curability of selected MB may be improved by pharmaceutical strategies directed towards microRNA-21.

Semantic network disconnection in formal thought disorder

Structural and functional findings in schizophrenic patients with formal thought disorder (FTD) show abnormalities within left-side semantic areas. The present study investigate the network function of the involved brain regions as a function of FTD severity.