FILELB: A data file structure for the analysis of physiological systems

FILELB is a comprehensive library of subroutines for the storage, retrieval, location, inspection and entry of sequences of experimental and analytical data. The general purpose, highly organised data file structure implemented by FILELB is the core of our interactive computer package for the analysis of physiological systems.     

Evidence for genetic correlation of hypnotic effects and cerebellar Purkinje neuron depression in response to ethanol in mice

In the present study, we compared phenotypic differences in behavioral and neurophysiological responses to acute ethanol administration among eight inbred strains of mice. Genetic variation for behavioral sedation, as measured by loss of the righting reflex (sleep time) after a hypnotic dose of ethanol, was shown to be present among the inbred strain population. In addition, a large genetic component of variation in the depressant action of ethanol on the spontaneous discharge of cerebellar Purkinje neurons was found. Results from an analysis of covariance of the behavioral and electophysiological trophysiological phenotypes, measured on each mouse among the inbred strains, provided strong evidence for a high genetic correlation between sleep time and inhibition of cerebellar Purkinje neuron discharge in response to acute ethanol administration. Taken together with our previously reported data on ethanol-induced electrophysiological changes in selectively bred lines, the results described here strongly support the hypothesis that the cerebellar Purkinje neuron is one important locus for the acute soporific effects of alcohol.     

多巴胺D4受体基因与精神分裂症质量性状和数量性状的关联分析

目的探讨多巴胺D4受体(DRD4)基因第3外显子48 bp可变重复序列(VNTR)多态性与精神分裂症疾病表型的质量性状和数量性状的关系.方法应用聚合酶链反应(PCR)、变性聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳结合银染技术检测162例精神分裂症患者(患者组)及162名正常人(对照组)的DRD4基因48 bp VNTR多态性;利用阳性与阴性症状量表(PANSS)来评定精神分裂症疾病表型的数量性状.用χ2检验和单因素方差分析(one way-ANOVA)分析DRD4基因与精神分裂症疾病表型的质量性状和数量性状的关系.结果 (1)患者组与对照组间DRD4基因的基因型及等位基因的频率分布的差异无统计学意义 (P＞0.05).按性别比较,3/5基因型在女性患者(47%)中的频率明显高于男性患者(29%)和女性对照者(32%),差异有统计学意义(P<0.05).(2)患者组DRD4基因3种基因型间PANSS总分及其分量表分差异无统计学意义(P＞0.05);但患者组长片段基因型"思维障碍"的因子分明显高于中片段基因型者,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);女性患者长片段基因型者概念紊乱条目分明显高于中片段基因型者(P=0.01)和短片段基因型者,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05).结论 (1)DRD4基因48 bp VNTR与精神分裂症疾病表型的质量性状和数量性状可能无关联;(2)DRD4基因48 bp VNTR与精神分裂症疾病表型中的"思维障碍"和"概念紊乱"的数量性状可能存在关联,长片段基因型患者的症状可能较严重.     

Event-related potential correlates selectively reflect cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenics

Summary. Schizophrenics show event-related potential (ERP) and particularly P3 abnormalities. To study the more detailed relationships between these ERP alterations and cognitive dysfunction we recorded and analyzed ERPs using a particular experimental approach. In 34 schizophrenics and 25 controls ERPs were obtained by a visual Go/Nogo task requiring response inhibition and were decomposed into temporally independent topographical components using Independent Component Analysis (ICA). ICA disentangled different subcomponents of P3. Subcomponent P3b with a parietal maximum amplitude was significantly reduced in the schizophrenics, probably reflecting their attentional deficits. Subcomponent P3ng with a frontal maximum amplitude and enhanced during Nogo condition appeared as an electrophysiological index of response inhibition. A significantly reduced P3ng enhancement, found in schizophrenics, probably reflects their impaired response control. Conclusions: ICA can successfully identify ERP subcomponents with distinct scalp topographies representing significant differential indices of normal and abnormal cognitive processing. Involvement of frontal brain areas in disturbed executive control in schizophrenics is supported by our ICA findings.     

Expression of cGMP-dependent protein kinases (I and II) and neuronal nitric oxide synthase in the developing rat cerebellum

The expression of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) and the cGMP-dependent protein kinases cGKI and cGKII in rat cerebellum was evaluated at different developmental stages by quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting. mRNAs coding for these proteins were detected in the cerebella of rats aged 7, 14 and 21 days. Expression levels, nevertheless, varied significantly at each of these developmental stages. While nNOS and cGKI mRNA levels steadily increased during development, cGKII mRNA showed a different behaviour pattern, with similar levels observed on postnatal days 7 and 14 and increased levels noted on postnatal day 21. Moreover, protein expression profiles for nNOS and cGKI showed similar patterns to the mRNAs encoding these proteins. Our results reveal the developmental regulation of the expression of these proteins in the cerebellum, giving rise to higher levels as the cerebellum matures.     

Validation of surrogate estimates of insulin sensitivity and insulin secretion in children and adolescents

OBJECTIVES: To compare insulin sensitivity and pancreatic beta-cell function measured by the euglycemic and the hyperglycemic clamp, with simple estimates of insulin sensitivity and pancreatic beta-cell function in youth.Study design We measured insulin sensitivity with a euglycemic clamp and first- and second-phase insulin secretion with a hyperglycemic clamp in 156 AA and white youths. Estimates of insulin sensitivity (fasting insulin level [I(F)], the ratio of fasting glucose [G(F)] to I(F) [G(F)/I(F)], homeostasis model assessment estimate of insulin sensitivity [HOMA IS], and quantitative insulin sensitivity check index [QUICKI]) and estimates of pancreatic beta-cell function (I(F), the ratio of I(F) to G(F) [I(F)/G(F)], and homeostasis model assessment estimate of pancreatic beta-cell function [HOMA %B]) were derived from fasting measurements. RESULTS: In the total group, IS(Eu) correlated strongly with I(F) (r=-0.92), G(F)/I(F) (r=0.92), HOMA IS (r=0.91), and QUICKI (r=0.91) (P<.01). First-phase and second-phase insulin secretion correlated with I(F), I(F)/G(F), and HOMA %B (first-phase insulin secretion: r=0.76, 0.79, 0.82; second-phase insulin secretion: r=0.83, 0.86, 0.86, respectively; P<.01). CONCLUSIONS: Simple estimates of insulin sensitivity and pancreatic beta-cell function using fasting insulin and glucose levels serve as surrogate measures of insulin sensitivity and secretion in nondiabetic youths. The validity of these conclusions in children with impaired glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes mellitus remains to be determined.     

Development of a screening method for the most commonly abused anticholinergic drugs in Jordan; trihexyphenidyl, procyclidine and biperiden

A sensitive and rapid method for the simultaneous determination of three commonly abused anticholinergic drugs in Jordan; trihexyphenidyl, procyclidine, and biperiden in plasma and urine has been developed using solid phase extraction and GC-MS. Linearity was established from therapeutic to fatal concentrations of the three drugs; 5-300 ng/ml in plasma, with correlation coefficient r(2) > or = 0.9978 and 10-800 ng/ml in urine r(2) > or = 0.9993. Recoveries were in the range of 86-92% and intra-day and inter-day relative standard deviations (n = 6) were in the range of 6.6-10.3% for the three drugs at three different concentrations in plasma and urine. The base peak m/z 98 for trihexyphenidyl, m/z 84 for procyclidine, and m/z 98 and 218 for biperiden, and m/z 339 for papaverine (internal standard) were monitored at selective ion monitoring; their retention times were 8.10, 8.67 and 8.92 min, respectively, and 14.79 min for the internal standard with analysis time of 16.75 min. The limit of detection of 0.5 ng/ml was attained for trihexyphenidyl and procyclidine, while for biperiden 2.0 and 1.0 ng/ml in spiked plasma and urine, respectively. This method has been applied to forensic and authentic samples taken from abuser and patients using these drugs. The method will offer the clinicians and the legal authority the right diagnosis regarding the anticholinergic involved in any case of abuse with less than 1 h per sample (plasma or urine) from the time of receiving.     

Estimating the input function non-invasively for FDG-PET quantification with multiple linear regression analysis: simulation and verification with in vivo data

A novel statistical method, namely Regression-Estimated Input Function (REIF), is proposed in this study for the purpose of non-invasive estimation of the input function for fluorine-18 2-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) quantitative analysis. We collected 44 patients who had undergone a blood sampling procedure during their FDG-PET scans. First, we generated tissue time-activity curves of the grey matter and the whole brain with a segmentation technique for every subject. Summations of different intervals of these two curves were used as a feature vector, which also included the net injection dose. Multiple linear regression analysis was then applied to find the correlation between the input function and the feature vector. After a simulation study with in vivo data, the data of 29 patients were applied to calculate the regression coefficients, which were then used to estimate the input functions of the other 15 subjects. Comparing the estimated input functions with the corresponding real input functions, the averaged error percentages of the area under the curve and the cerebral metabolic rate of glucose (CMRGlc) were 12.13±8.85 and 16.60±9.61, respectively. Regression analysis of the CMRGlc values derived from the real and estimated input functions revealed a high correlation (r=0.91). No significant difference was found between the real CMRGlc and that derived from our regression-estimated input function (Students t test, P>0.05). The proposed REIF method demonstrated good abilities for input function and CMRGlc estimation, and represents a reliable replacement for the blood sampling procedures in FDG-PET quantification.     

Quantification of myocardial perfusion defects using three different software packages

Software packages are widely used for quantification of myocardial perfusion defects. The quantification is used to assist the physician in his/her interpretation of the study. The purpose of this study was to compare the quantification of reversible perfusion defects by three different commercially available software packages. We included 50 consecutive patients who underwent myocardial perfusion single-photon emission tomography (SPET) with a 2-day technetium-99m tetrofosmin protocol. Two experienced technologists processed the studies using the following three software packages: Cedars Quantitative Perfusion SPECT, Emory Cardiac Toolbox and 4D-MSPECT. The same sets of short axis slices were used as input to all three software packages. Myocardial uptake was scored in 20 segments for both the rest and the stress studies. The summed difference score (SDS) was calculated for each patient and the SDS values were classified into: normal (<4), mildly abnormal (4–8), moderately abnormal (9–13), and severely abnormal (>13). All three software packages were in agreement that 21 patients had a normal SDS, four patients had a mildly abnormal SDS and one patient had a severely abnormal SDS. In the remaining 24 patients (48%) there was disagreement between the software packages regarding SDS classification. A difference in classification of more than one step between the highest and lowest scores, for example from normal to moderately abnormal or from mildly to severely abnormal, was found in six of these 24 patients. Widely used software packages commonly differ in their quantification of myocardial perfusion defects. The interpreting physician should be aware of these differences when using scoring systems.