“I won,but I'm not getting my hopes up”: Depression moderates the relationship of outcomes and reward anticipation

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) in adolescents is characterized by alterations in positive emotions and reward processing. Recent investigations using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) find depression-related differences in reward anticipation. However, it is unknown whether feedback influences subsequent reward anticipation, which may highlight the context of reward processing. Ten youth with MDD and 16 youth with no history of MDD completed an fMRI assessment using a reward task. Reward anticipation was indexed by blood oxygen level dependent signal change in the striatum following winning, losing, non-winning, and non-losing outcomes. A significant interaction between diagnostic status and outcome condition predicted reward anticipation in the caudate. Decomposition of the interaction indicated that following winning outcomes, depressed youth demonstrated reduced reward anticipation relative to healthy youth. However, no significant differences between depressed and healthy youth were found after other outcomes. Reward anticipation is altered following winning outcomes. This finding has implications for understanding the developmental pathophysiology of MDD and suggests specific contexts where altered motivational system functioning may play a role in maintaining depression.     

Free smoking cessation mobile apps available in Australia: a quality review and content analysis

Objectives : This review aimed to identify free, high‐quality, smoking cessation mobile applications (apps) that adhere to Australian smoking cessation treatment guidelines. Methods : A systematic search of smoking cessation apps was conducted using Google. The technical quality of relevant apps was rated using the Mobile Application Rating Scale. The content of apps identified as high quality was assessed for adherence to smoking cessation treatment guidelines. Results : 112 relevant apps were identified. The majority were of poor technical quality and only six ‘high‐quality’ apps were identified. These apps adhered to Australian treatment guidelines in part. The efficacy of two apps had been previously evaluated. Conclusions : In lieu of more substantial research in this area, it is suggested that the high‐quality apps identified in this review may be more likely than other available apps to encourage smoking cessation. Implications for public health : Smoking cessation apps have the potential to address many barriers that prevent smoking cessation support being provided; however few high‐quality smoking cessation apps are currently available in Australia, very few have been evaluated and the app market is extremely volatile. More research to evaluate smoking cessation apps, and sustained funding for evidence‐based apps, is needed.     

Pancolonic indigo carmine dye spraying for the detection of dysplasia in ulcerative colitis

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Colonoscopic surveillance for cancer in longstanding extensive ulcerative colitis relies heavily on non-targeted mucosal biopsies. Chromoendoscopy can aid detection of subtle mucosal abnormalities. We hypothesised that routine pancolonic indigo carmine dye spraying would improve the macroscopic detection of dysplasia and reduce the dependence on non-targeted biopsies. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred patients with longstanding extensive ulcerative colitis attending for colonoscopic surveillance underwent "back to back" colonoscopies. During the first examination, visible abnormalities were biopsied, and quadrantic non-targeted biopsies were taken every 10 cm. Pancolonic indigo carmine (0.1%) was used during the second colonoscopic examination, and any additional visible abnormalities were biopsied. RESULTS: Median extubation times for the first and second colonoscopies were 11 and 10 minutes, respectively. The non-targeted biopsy protocol detected no dysplasia in 2904 biopsies. Forty three mucosal abnormalities (20 patients) were detected during the pre-dye spray colonoscopy of which two (two patients) were dysplastic: both were considered to be dysplasia associated lesions/masses. A total of 114 additional abnormalities (55 patients) were detected following dye spraying, of which seven (five patients) were dysplastic: all were considered to be adenomas. There was a strong trend towards statistically increased dysplasia detection following dye spraying (p = 0.06, paired exact test). The targeted biopsy protocol detected dysplasia in significantly more patients than the non-targeted protocol (p = 0.02, paired exact test). CONCLUSIONS: No dysplasia was detected in 2904 non-targeted biopsies. In comparison, a targeted biopsy protocol with pancolonic chromoendoscopy required fewer biopsies (157) yet detected nine dysplastic lesions, seven of which were only visible after indigo carmine application. Careful mucosal examination aided by pancolonic chromoendoscopy and targeted biopsies of suspicious lesions may be a more effective surveillance methodology than taking multiple non-targeted biopsies.     

A breaker of advanced glycation end products attenuates diabetes-induced myocardial structural changes

The formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) on extracellular matrix components leads to accelerated increases in collagen cross linking that contributes to myocardial stiffness in diabetes. This study determined the effect of the crosslink breaker, ALT-711 on diabetes-induced cardiac disease. Streptozotocin diabetes was induced in Sprague-Dawley rats for 32 weeks. Treatment with ALT-711 (10 mg/kg) was initiated at week 16. Diabetic hearts were characterized by increased left ventricular (LV) mass and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) expression, decreased LV collagen solubility, and increased collagen III gene and protein expression. Diabetic hearts had significant increases in AGEs and increased expression of the AGE receptors, RAGE and AGE-R3, in association with increases in gene and protein expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). ALT-711 treatment restored LV collagen solubility and cardiac BNP in association with reduced cardiac AGE levels and abrogated the increase in RAGE, AGE-R3, CTGF, and collagen III expression. The present study suggests that AGEs play a central role in many of the alterations observed in the diabetic heart and that cleavage of preformed AGE crosslinks with ALT-711 leads to attenuation of diabetes-associated cardiac abnormalities in rats. This provides a potential new therapeutic approach for cardiovascular disease in human diabetes.