Regulation of intestinal apolipoprotein A-IV synthesis

Abstract Apolipoprotein (apo) A-IV is a protein synthesized, in humans, only by the small intestine. It has a molecular weight of 46 000 Da. This paper summarizes the evidence supporting its role as a satiety factor following the ingestion of fat. This function of apo A-IV is unique and not shared by other apolipoproteins, including apo A-I. The satiety effect of apo A-IV is centrally mediated. The mechanism of how apo A-IV inhibits food intake is not clear but it probably acts by inhibiting both gastric acid secretion as well as gastric motility. Lipid absorption stimulates apo A-IV synthesis and secretion by the jejunum. In addition to lipid feeding, there is evidence that a factor which is released as a result of lipid absorption in the distal small intestine also stimulates the synthesis and release of apo A-IV by the jejunum. This factor is probably PYY.     

Autonomic and Cognitive dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease

Objective To investigate whether there is an association between autonomic failure and cognitive impairment in patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (PD) Methods 40 PD patients and 30 age matched controls were assessed for cognitive and behavioral manifestations using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB), the Blessed scale and Cornell scale for depression. The subjects were also assessed for orthostatic hypotension (OH), postprandial hypotension (PPH), heart rate responses to deep breathing (HR_DB) and autonomic symptoms using the Scale for Outcomes in PD for autonomic symptoms (SCOPA AUT). Results There was a correlation between the severity of motor symptoms and cognitive impairment in our PD patients. Eleven of the 40 PD patients fulfilled the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria of dementia. The presence of OH or PPH did not correlate with the severity of cognitive impairment in our PD cases. However, PD patients with dementia reported more cardiovascular symptoms than PD patients without dementia. There was no correlation between gastrointestinal or urologic symptoms and cognitive impairment in our PD cases. Conclusion The results of this limited study indicate that despite the higher incidence of cardiovascular symptoms in PD patients with dementia than in those without dementia, there is no consistent association between OH or PPH and cognitive deficits in PD. The lack of correlation between OH, gastrointestinal and urinary symptoms with cognitive impairment suggests that cognitive and autonomic involvement progresses independently from each other and variably among PD patients.     

Multiple system atrophy: a disorder targeting the brainstem control of survival

Clinical Autonomic Research -     

A multinational consensus on dysphagia in Parkinson's disease: screening,diagnosis and prognostic value

Journal of Neurology - Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a combination of motor and non-motor dysfunction. Dysphagia is a common symptom in PD, though...     

Effect of delayed blood processing on the yield of factor VIII in cryoprecipitate and factor VIII concentrate

Current standards for the preparation of factor VIII (FVIII) concentrates from human plasma recommend separation of plasma from red cells (RBCs) within 6 hours of blood donation, thereby reducing the volume of plasma from donated whole blood available for processing to FVIII concentrate. The decay of FVIII clotting activity (FVIII:C) in whole blood and plasma stored at 22 and 4 degrees C and the recovery of FVIII:C in cryoprecipitate and FVIII concentrate prepared from plasma separated from whole blood stored overnight at 4 degrees C were investigated. In whole blood stored at 22 degrees C and plasma stored at either 4 or 22 degrees C, 90 percent of the original FVIII:C was present at 6 hours, 80 percent at 12 hours, and 65 to 70 percent at 18 hours. At these times lower levels of FVIII:C were recovered from whole blood stored at 4 degrees C, that is, 84, 68, and 56 percent, respectively. In cryoprecipitates prepared from plasma separated from RBCs after 18 hours' storage at 4 degrees C (18-hour plasma), 43 percent of FVIII:C activity was recovered, as compared with 61 percent recovered from standard plasma separated within 6 hours of donation (6-hour plasma), p less than 0.05. With large-scale preparation of FVIII concentrates, however, the yield of FVIII:C was similar whether 18- or 6-hour plasma was used. Thus FVIII concentrates--but not cryoprecipitates--can be prepared from plasma separated from whole blood stored at 4 degrees C for up to 18 hours without undue loss of potency.