Anatomy, biology, physiology and basic pathology of the nail organ

The nail is the largest skin appendage. It grows continuously through life in a non-cyclical manner; its growth is not hormone-dependent. The nail of the middle finger of the dominant hand grows fastest with approximately 0.1 mm/day, whereas the big toe nail grows only 0.03-0.05 mm/d. The nails' size and shape vary characteristically from finger to finger and from toe to toe, for which the size and shape of the bone of the terminal phalanx is responsible. The nail apparatus consists of both epithelial and connective tissue components. The matrix epithelium is responsible for the production of the nail plate whereas the nail bed epithelium mediates firm attachment. The hyponychium is a specialized structure sealing the subungual space and allowing the nail plate to physiologically detach from the nail bed. The proximal nail fold covers most of the matrix. Its free end forms the cuticle which seals the nail pocket or cul-de-sac. The dermis of the matrix and nail bed is specialized with a morphogenetic potency. The proximal and lateral nail folds form a frame on three sides giving the nail stability and allowing it to grow out. The nail protects the distal phalanx, is an extremely versatile tool for defense and dexterity and increases the sensitivity of the tip of the finger. Nail apparatus, finger tip, tendons and ligaments of the distal interphalangeal joint form a functional unit and cannot be seen independently. The nail organ has only a certain number of reaction patterns that differ in many respects from hairy and palmoplantar skin.

Induction of the autophagy-associated gene MAP1S via PU.1 supports APL differentiation

The PU.1 transcription factor is essential for myeloid development. We investigated if the microtubule-associated protein 1S (MAP1S) is a novel PU.1 target with a link to autophagy, a cellular recycling pathway. Comparable to PU.1, MAP1S expression was significantly repressed in primary AML blasts as compared to mature neutrophils. Accordingly, MAP1S expression was induced during neutrophil differentiation of CD34(+) progenitor and APL cells. Moreover, PU.1 bound to the MAP1S promoter and induced MAP1S expression during APL differentiation. Inhibiting MAP1S resulted in aberrant neutrophil differentiation and autophagy. Taken together, our findings implicate the PU.1-regulated MAP1S gene in neutrophil differentiation and autophagy control.

Implicit motives and basic need satisfaction in extreme endurance sports.

Previous research has shown that the effects of basic psychological needs on the flow experience in sports are moderated by implicit motives. However, so far, only leisure and health-oriented sports have been analyzed. In a pilot study and a main study (N = 29, 93), we tested whether the implicit achievement and affiliation motives interact with the need for competence and the need for social relatedness satisfaction, respectively, to predict flow experience and well-being in extreme endurance athletes. Results showed that highly achievement-motivated individuals benefited more from the need for competence satisfaction in terms of flow than individuals with a low achievement motive did. In addition, highly affiliation-motivated individuals whose need for social relatedness is satisfied reported higher positive affect and lower exercise addiction scores than athletes with a low motive. We discuss the differential effects of the interplay between the achievement and affiliation motives and basic needs on different outcome variables.

ESAPP Project Report: Basic mandate and regional coordination Ethiopia & Eritrea

Annual project report. Project description, budget, impact, achievement of objectives and outputs, and appraisal by Management Team.

Proposals for Specific Activities of the Basic Mandate and Priority Action Projects, 2nd round 2005: Documentation for the ESAPP Advisory Board Meeting of June 15th, 2005

Budget frame-figures for 2nd half 2005; priority listing of proposals for PAP 2nd round 2005; evaluation sheets of approved, revised and rejected proposals for Specific Activities of the BM and PAP.

Annual Planning for the Basic Mandate and Proposals for Priority Action Projects, 1st round 2005

Budget frame-figures for 2005; annual planning for the BM 2005; priority listing of proposals for PAP 2005; evaluation sheets of approved, postponed and rejected proposals for the BM and PAP.

A new measure for party coherence: Applying a physics-based concept to the Swiss party system

The paper revives a theoretical definition of party coherence as being composed of two basic elements, cohesion and factionalism, to propose and apply a novel empirical measure based on spin physics. The simultaneous analysis of both components using a single measurement concept is applied to data representing the political beliefs of candidates in the Swiss general elections of 2003 and 2007, proposing a connection between the coherence of the beliefs party members hold and the assessment of parties being at risk of splitting. We also compare our measure with established polarization measures and demonstrate its advantage with respect to multi-dimensional data that lack clear structure. Furthermore, we outline how our analysis supports the distinction between bottom-up and top-down mechanisms of party splitting. In this way, we are able to turn the intuition of coherence into a defined quantitative concept that, additionally, offers a methodological basis for comparative research of party coherence. Our work serves as an example of how a complex systems approach allows to get a new perspective on a long-standing issue in political science.

The role of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 in the pathogenesis of mood disorders and addiction: combining preclinical evidence with human Positron Emission Tomography (PET) studies.

In the present review, we deliver an overview of the involvement of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) activity and density in pathological anxiety, mood disorders and addiction. Specifically, we will describe mGluR5 studies in humans that employed Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and combined the findings with preclinical animal research. This combined view of different methodological approaches-from basic neurobiological approaches to human studies-might give a more comprehensive and clinically relevant view of mGluR5 function in mental health than the view on preclinical data alone. We will also review the current research data on mGluR5 along the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC). Firstly, we found evidence of abnormal glutamate activity related to the positive and negative valence systems, which would suggest that antagonistic mGluR5 intervention has prominent anti-addictive, anti-depressive and anxiolytic effects. Secondly, there is evidence that mGluR5 plays an important role in systems for social functioning and the response to social stress. Finally, mGluR5's important role in sleep homeostasis suggests that this glutamate receptor may play an important role in RDoC's arousal and modulatory systems domain. Glutamate was previously mostly investigated in non-human studies, however initial human clinical PET research now also supports the hypothesis that, by mediating brain excitability, neuroplasticity and social cognition, abnormal metabotropic glutamate activity might predispose individuals to a broad range of psychiatric problems.