Hands only illusion: multisensory integration elicits sense of ownership for body parts but not for non-corporeal objects

The experience of body ownership can be successfully manipulated during the rubber hand illusion using synchronous multisensory stimulation. The hypothesis that multisensory integration is both a necessary and sufficient condition for body ownership is debated. We systematically varied the appearance of the object that was stimulated in synchrony or asynchrony with the participant’s hand. A viewed object that was transformed in three stages from a plain wooden block to a wooden hand was compared to a realistic rubber hand. Introspective and behavioural results show that participants experience a sense of ownership only for the realistic prosthetic hand, suggesting that not all objects can be experienced as part of one’s body. Instead, the viewed object must fit with a reference model of the body that contains important structural information about body parts. This body model can distinguish between corporeal and non-corporeal objects, and it therefore plays a critical role in maintaining a coherent sense of one’s body.     

Management of acute agitation in patients with bipolar disorder: efficacy and safety of intramuscular aripiprazole

To investigate the efficacy and safety of intramuscular (IM) aripiprazole for the treatment of agitation in patients with bipolar I disorder, manic or mixed episodes. In total, 301 patients experiencing acute agitation were randomized to IM aripiprazole 9.75 mg per injection (n = 78), IM aripiprazole 15 mg per injection (n = 78), IM lorazepam 2 mg per injection (n = 70), or IM placebo (n = 75) in this double-blind multicenter study. Patients could receive up to 3 injections over 24 hours. Primary efficacy measure was mean change in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale Excited Component score from baseline at 2 hours after first injection. Mean improvements in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale Excited Component score at 2 hours were significantly greater with IM aripiprazole (9.75 mg, -8.7; 15 mg, -8.7) and IM lorazepam (-9.6) versus IM placebo (-5.8; P 相似文献   

Depletion of type IA regulatory subunit (RIalpha) of protein kinase A (PKA) in mammalian cells and tissues activates mTOR and causes autophagic deficiency

The human PRKAR1A gene encodes the regulatory subunit 1-alpha (RIalpha) of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA) holoenzyme. Regulation of the catalytic activity of PKA is the only well-studied function of RIalpha. Inactivating PRKAR1A mutations cause primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease (PPNAD) or Carney complex (CNC), an inherited syndrome associated with abnormal skin pigmentation and multiple neoplasias, including PPNAD. Histochemistry of tissues from CNC patients is indicative of autophagic deficiency and this led us to investigate the relationship between RIalpha and mammalian autophagy. We found that fluorescently tagged RIalpha associates with late endosomes and autophagosomes in cultured cells. The number of autophagosomes in prkar1a-/- mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) was reduced compared with wild-type MEFs. RIalpha co-immunoprecipitated with mTOR kinase, a major regulator of autophagy. Phosphorylated-mTOR levels and mTOR activity were dramatically increased in prkar1a-/- mouse cells, and in HEK 293 cells with RIalpha levels reduced by siRNA. Finally, phosphorylated-mTOR levels and mTOR activity were increased in CNC cells and in PPNAD tissues. These data suggest that RIalpha deficiency decreases autophagy by the activation of mTOR, providing a molecular basis to autophagic deficiency in PPNAD.     

Neural signatures of body ownership: a sensory network for bodily self-consciousness

Body ownership refers to the special perceptual status of one's own body, which makes bodily sensations seem unique to oneself. We studied the neural correlates of body ownership by controlling whether an external object was accepted as part of the body or not. In the rubber hand illusion (RHI), correlated visuotactile stimulation causes a fake hand to be perceived as part of one's own body. In the present study, we distinguished between the causes (i.e., multisensory stimulation) and the effect (i.e., the feeling of ownership) of the RHI. Participants watched a right or a left rubber hand being touched either synchronously or asynchronously with respect to their own unseen right hand. A quantifiable correlate of the RHI is a shift in the perceived position of the subject's hand toward the rubber hand. We used positron emission tomography to identify brain areas whose activity correlated with this proprioceptive measure of body ownership. Body ownership was related to activity in the right posterior insula and the right frontal operculum. Conversely, when the rubber hand was not attributed to the self, activity was observed in the contralateral parietal cortex, particularly the somatosensory cortex. These structures form a network that plays a fundamental role in linking current sensory stimuli to one's own body and thus also in self-consciousness.     

Role of a Multidisciplinary Clinic in the Management of Patients with Pancreatic Cysts: A Single-Center Cohort Study

Background

Incidental pancreatic cysts are common, a small number of which are premalignant or malignant. Multidisciplinary care has been shown to alter management and improve outcomes in many types of cancers, but its role has not been examined in patients with pancreatic cysts. We assessed the effect of a multidisciplinary pancreatic cyst clinic (MPCC) on the diagnosis and management of patients with pancreatic cysts.

Methods

The referring institution and MPCC diagnosis and management plan were recorded. Patient were placed into one of five categories—no, low, intermediate, or high risk of malignancy within the cyst, and malignant cyst—on the basis of their diagnosis. Patients were assigned one of four management options: surveillance, surgical resection, further evaluation, or discharge with no further follow-up required. The MPCC was deemed to have altered patient care if the patient was assigned a different risk or management category after the MPCC review.

Results

Referring institution records were available for 262 patients (198 women; mean age 62.7 years), with data on risk category available in 138 patients and management category in 225. The most common diagnosis was branch duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm. MPCC review altered the risk category in 11 (8.0%) of 138 patients. The management category was altered in 68 (30.2%) of 225 patients. Management was increased in 52 patients, including 22 patients who were recommended surgical resection. Management was decreased in 16 patients, including 10 who had their recommendation changed from surgery to surveillance.

Conclusions

MPCC is helpful and alters the management over 30% of patients.     

Detection of gonadotropin-releasing hormone and its analogues in equine and canine urine by high-resolution data-independent acquisition

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and its synthetic analogues are considered banned substances by the racing industry. GnRH is used as a pharmaceutical to regulate the female oestrous cycle, but the hormone is also thought to increase the production of testosterone in male animals. Using liquid chromatography in conjunction with high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC–HRMS) and data-independent acquisition (DIA), a method is presented for the detection of intact and truncated peptides of GnRH and its analogues down to the low picogram level in equine urine. The study of the catabolism of GnRH and analogues in plasma, combined with the analysis of urine from administration studies, reveals a common pattern of peptide catabolites that can be used to guide the design of MS-based screens for this class of drugs. This culminated in the successful detection of the peptide in two out-of-competition canine urine samples.