Oxidative damage and metabolic dysfunction in experimental Huntington's disease: selective vulnerability of the striatum and hippocampus

The etiology of neuronal death in neurodegenerative diseases, including Huntington's disease (HD), is still unknown. There could be a complex interplay between altered energy metabolism, excitotoxicity and oxidative stress. Unilateral administration of quinilonic acid (QA), NMDA agonist, in rat striatum in a single dose of 150 nM was used as a model of HD. The other two groups of animals were pretreated immediately before QA application with nerve growth factor (NGF) and fibroblast growth factor (FGF), respectively. Control group was treated with 0.9% NaCl in the same manner. Content of total glutathione was not altered in the striatum and hippocampus of QA-treated animals, as well as in the groups pretreated with neurotrophic factors (NF), compared to controls. Content of reduced glutathione, a key antioxidant, was mutually depleted in the striatum and hippocampus of each experimental group. The reduced/total glutathione ratio was decreased in the QA-treated animals, but nearby or over the controls in each structure of the NF-treated groups. These results support the hypothesis that oxygen-free radicals contribute to the excitotoxic neuronal injury, and also that NF could be the potential neuroprotective agents in HD. Moreover, activity of cytochrome c oxidase, the last component in the mitochondrial respiratory chain, was mutually increased in each structure of QA-treated animals. This increase was less pronounced in the NF-treated groups. Striatal lesions led to the loss of tonic inhibitory inputs to the globus pallidus with consequent increase in the activity of GABAergic efferent pallidal neurons, suggesting that NF could functionally repair the altered striopallidal pathway.     

Renin,Water drinking,salt preference and blood pressure in alcohol preferring and alcohol avoiding rats

Mechanisms controlling fluid volume were studied in alcohol preferring AA (Alko, Alcohol) and alcohol avoiding ANA (Alko, Non-Alcohol) rats. Hypertonic sodium chloride solution (5%) given orally caused a higher dipsogenic response in AA rats than in the ANA's. One hour after ethanol loading (4.8 g/kg, by stomach tube), plasma renin activity of AA rats was four times as high as in ANA rats. ANA rats had higher degree of sodium chloride (0.9%) preference and higher blood pressure. The strain differences in voluntary salt intake and salt metabolism may modulate the consumption of calories and water as well as blood pressure and different reactivity of the renin system in AA and ANA rats.     

'I never faced up to being gay': sexual, religious and ethnic identities among British Indian and British Pakistani gay men

This paper presents the findings from a comparative qualitative study of British Indian and British Pakistani gay men, all of whom self-identified as members of their religious communities. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and identity process theory. Results suggest that the intersection between sexuality and religion is more relevant to British Pakistani participants, while the intersection between sexuality and ethnicity is more relevant to British Indian participants. For British Indian participants in particular, homosexuality seems to be socially problematic, posing potential obstacles for interpersonal and intergroup relations. Conversely, for British Pakistanis, homosexuality is both socially and psychologically problematic, affecting intrapsychic as well as interpersonal levels of human interdependence. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

A ‘morning-after’ pill for HIV? Social representations of post-exposure prophylaxis for HIV in the British print media

Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) is a biomedical approach to HIV prevention that is administered after a potential exposure to the virus. Although it was originally approved in the UK for occupational exposure to HIV among healthcare workers, PEP has remained a controversial method of preventing HIV infection following sexual exposure. To examine emerging social representations of PEP, we undertook a qualitative thematic analysis of 72 articles published in UK newspapers between 1997 and 2015. We focused on print media, as they still reflect broader societal debates, set the agenda for wider discussions in other media and contribute to shaping public perceptions and policy priorities. Our findings show that there were two major social representations of the use of PEP for HIV prevention amongst gay and bisexual men: a positive social representation of PEP as a relatively straightforward solution, where PEP is metaphorically framed as the ‘morning-after pill’, and a more negative social representation of PEP as posing risks and yielding uncertain outcomes. We also found a third social representation for the use of PEP amongst public health care workers, where PEP is represented as needed and deserved. The positive representation generally consisted of anecdotal statements, while the negative representation was substantiated by ‘expert’ and layperson voices, rendering the latter more akin to a hegemonic representation of PEP. We generally found a lack of technical information in all newspapers, and an information gap that might inhibit informed discussion and lead to entrenching polarised social representations and to the stigmatisation of some users of PEP.     

Brain aldehyde dehydrogenase activity in rat strains with high and low ethanol preferences

The activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase in subcellular fractions of whole brain homogenates from the AA and ANA rat strains developed respectively for high and low ethanol preferences has been studied. No significant strain or sex differences between naive AA and ANA rats were found. In ethanol-experienced rats some strain and sex differences were found, the most consistent being higher enzyme activity in AA females than in males both with aliphatic and aromatic aldehyde substrates. However, contrary to previous findings no relation between brain aldehyde dehydrogenase activity and drinking behavior was found in the AA and ANA rat strains.     

螺旋CT对女性盆腔囊性病变的鉴别诊断

目的：提高螺旋CT诊断女性盆腔囊性肿块的正确性。方法：收集明确诊断的女性盆腔囊性肿块15例．所有病例行螺旋CT平扫、增强扫描,并对其CT表现作回顾性分析。结果：15例,良性13例,恶性2例。CT诊断定位正确14例（93．3％）,定性正确10例（66．7％）。其中卵巢囊性畸胎瘤2例;卵巢囊腺瘤3例;卵巢囊腺癌1例;卵巢转移瘤1例;卵巢内膜异位囊肿2例;卵巢囊肿3例;盆腔囊性感染性包块3例;结论：螺旋CT对女性盆腔囊性肿块定位及定性诊断具有较高价值。     

Caregiver burden in Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that imposes an important burden upon the patient's caregiver. This study aims at assessing caregiver burden (CB) and analyzing its relationship with sociodemographic, emotional, and functional factors, as well as health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The following measures were applied to 80 patients with PD: the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS); the EuroQoL (for HRQoL); and PD-specific measures (Hoehn and Yahr staging and SCOPA-Motor ADL subscale). Patients' main caregivers completed the HADS, SF-36, EuroQoL, and Zarit CB Inventory (ZCBI). The ZCBI was found to be a valid and reliable measure in the context of PD. There was a significant association between CB and caregivers' HRQoL (r = -0.29 to -0.64). Mental aspects of caregivers' HRQoL and burden were affected by disability and disease severity. The presence of caregivers' depression had a significant negative effect on both CB and HRQoL. The main predictors of CB were caregivers' psychological well-being, patients' mood and clinical aspects of PD (disability and severity), and HRQoL of patients and caregivers. This study underscores the need to consider the impact of PD on caregivers' well-being.     

Acute pericarditis with effusion as a form of presentation of psittacosis]

Psittacosis is an uncommon cause of acute pericarditis and pericardial effusion. However, some isolated cases have been reported. We present a case which the first clinical feature of psittacosis was acute pericarditis. Severe pericardial effusion associated with a pulmonary infiltrate and an epidemiologic history of contact with avian species suggested the diagnosis of psittacosis, confirmed by serological test.