Inflammation,hippocampal volume,and cognition in schizophrenia: results from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966

European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience - Increased blood interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels are a replicated abnormality in schizophrenia, and may be associated with smaller hippocampal...     

Flupentixol

Our aim was to study factors associated with long-term non-recovery from major depression. A total of 109 patients with major depression were followed prospectively for 2 years. A diagnosis of major depression based on SCID interviews at follow-up indicated non-recovery. The effect of several established risk factors was assessed. A third (30%) of the patients did not recover. Severity of initial depression were associated with poor outcome according to univariate analysis. Nevertheless, personality disorder and rural area of residence were associated with non-recovery in final multivariate analysis. Major depression in patients with personality disorder should be treated as effectively as possible. Moreover, service planning in rural areas needs attention.     

Mental Health and Social Isolation Among Survivors Ten Years After a Suicide in the Family: A Case-Control Study

The aim of this study was to investigate mental health and social isolation in surviving family members (n=56) 10 years after a suicide as compared to sex and age matched general population controls. Minor mental disorders were more common among suicide survivors than among general population controls (30% vs. 16%), especially in surviving spouses (39% vs. 11%). Suicide survivors had fewer close friends than their controls. According to multivariate logistic regression analyses adjusted for several socioeconomic factors and the number of close friends, surviving spouses, but not relatives by blood, had a significantly increased risk of having minor mental disorder as compared to general population controls. Our conclusion is that suicide may be associated with mental symptoms and lack of social relationships in surviving spouses even 10 years later.     

Incidence and Prognosis of Ischemic Heart Disease with Respect to Geographical Area

ABSTRACT. Ischemic heart disease is more common in East Finland than in West Finland, but systematic comparison and follow-up of incidence figures have not been possible. In 1972 the personal identification number became included in the hospital discharge records, which made it possible to link death certificate data with hospital records from the whole country. The results of this study suggest that high mortality from IHD in some regions is more closely associated with high incidence than a high fatality rate. The proportion of deaths outside hospitals showed large variation by province but this had rather little effect on the total one-year survival rates.     

Nomenclature and structural biology of allergens

Purified allergens are named using the systematic nomenclature of the Allergen Nomenclature Sub-Committee of the World Health Organization and International Union of Immunological Societies. The system uses abbreviated Linnean genus and species names and an Arabic number to indicate the chronology of allergen purification. Most major allergens from mites, animal dander, pollens, insects, and foods have been cloned, and more than 40 three-dimensional allergen structures are in the Protein Database. Allergens are derived from proteins with a variety of biologic functions, including proteases, ligand-binding proteins, structural proteins, pathogenesis-related proteins, lipid transfer proteins, profilins, and calcium-binding proteins. Biologic function, such as the proteolytic enzyme allergens of dust mites, might directly influence the development of IgE responses and might initiate inflammatory responses in the lung that are associated with asthma. Intrinsic structural or biologic properties might also influence the extent to which allergens persist in indoor and outdoor environments or retain their allergenicity in the digestive tract. Analyses of the protein family database suggest that the universe of allergens comprises more than 120 distinct protein families. Structural biology and proteomics define recombinant allergen targets for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes and identify motifs, patterns, and structures of immunologic significance.