Panorama des bibliothèques roumaines

Le réseau des bibliothèques roumaines créé à l\u27époque du royaume pour satisfaire un souci éducatif et les besoins des élites, mis ensuite au service de la propagande pendant la période communiste, découvre aujourd\u27hui les exigences de la démocratie dans le contexte tumultueux que connaissent toutes les bibliothèques du monde

Stress management and the role of Rhodiola rosea: a review

Objective: Stress describes the physiological reaction to threat or pressure, which manifests as physical symptoms of exhaustion or energy loss and psychological symptoms, including irritability or tension. If untreated, chronic stress or burnout may develop, both are areas of unmet medical need. Evidence-based treatment and prevention measures are needed. Methods: Prevention strategies and existing treatment options for stress-related symptoms were evaluated to establish criteria for an adequate pharmacological approach to stress. The authors reviewed the literature to reach a clinically meaningful strategy for prevention and treatment of persistent stress symptoms and their consequences, including burnout and secondary diseases. Results: Current medication reveals a treatment gap. Most drugs target only psychological or physical stress symptoms. Furthermore, psychotropic medications sometimes prescribed for stress often have unacceptable side effects and bear a risk of overtreatment. Ideally pharmacological therapy should afford comprehensive treatment of all stress symptoms with a favourable safety profile. Conclusions: Rhodiola rosea extract (RRE) fulfils important requirements. It is the main adaptogen approved by the HMPC/EMA for the indication 'stress' and influences the release of stress hormones while boosting energy metabolism as revealed in animal literature. RRE offers comprehensive treatment of stress symptoms and can prevent chronic stress and stress-related complications

CHILDHOOD MALTREATMENT AND ADULT PROINFLAMMATORY STATUS IN PATIENTS WITH MAJOR DEPRESSION

Background: An increasing body of research considers the immunological effects of major depression. It remains an open question, whether depression itself acts in an immunomodulatory fashion or whether other factors related to depression result in these immunological effects. Regardless, major depression is often the result of early life stress, the implications of which are not satisfactorily understood. Subjects and methods: Early life stress was retrospectively evaluated in 25 depressed inpatients via the CTQ (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire). Its impact on immunological biomarkers (fibrinogen, SAA, CRP, adiponectin, TNF-α, resistin, and sEselectin) in adulthood was assessed via multiple regression analyses. Parental bonding was assessed via the PBI (Parental bonding questionnaire), severity of depression with the HDRS-17 (Hamilton-Depression-Rating Scale). Results: Nearly all patients had experienced a parental style of affectionless control. Physical neglect significantly predicted fibrinogen levels (R2=0.42, adjusted R2=0.27, ß=0.56, p=0.04). Severity of depression was not associated with immune markers. Conclusion: Childhood maltreatment was linked to fibrinogen levels in our sample. Thus, inflammation may be an important mechanism mediating the adverse effects of early life stress on adult health in patients with major depression

PATHWAYS LINKING EARLY LIFE STRESS, METABOLIC SYNDROME, AND THE INFLAMMATORY MARKER FIBRINOGEN IN DEPRESSED INPATIENTS

Background: Previous research has shown that metabolic syndrome as well as early life stress can account for immunoactivation (e.g. in the form of altered fibrinogen levels) in patients with major depression. This study aims at assessing the relationship between components of metabolic syndrome, early life stress and fibrinogen levels, taking the severity of depression into consideration. Subjects and methods: Measures of early life stress and signs of metabolic syndrome were collected in 58 adult inpatients diagnosed with depression. The relationships between the factors were assessed by means of path analyses. Two main models were tested: the first model with metabolic syndrome mediating between early life stress and fibrinogen levels and the second model without the mediating effect of metabolic syndrome. Results: The first model was not supported by our data (χ²=7.02, df=1, p=0.008, CFI=0.00, NNFI=-9.44, RMSEA=0.50). The second model however provided an excellent fit for the data (χ²=0.02, df=1, p=0.90, CFI=1.00, NNFI=2.71, RMSEA=0.00). Extending the models by introducing severity of depression into them did not yield good indices of fit. Conclusions: The developmental trajectory between early life stress and inflammation appears not to be mediated by metabolic syndrome associated factors in our sample. Possible reasons including severity and type of early life stress, as well as potential epigenetic influences are discussed

Actes du Symposium International - Le livre, la Roumanie, l’Europe / Proceedings of the International Symposium Books, Romania, Europe - 5ème édition 24-26 septembre 2012

Tome 2 des actes du Symposium International "Le livre, la Roumanie, L\u27Europe" qui s\u27est tenu les 24, 25 et 26 septembre 2012 à Mamaia, Roumanie, organisé par la Bibliothèque Métropolitaine de Bucarest. / Tome 2 of the Proceedings of the International Symposium "Books, Romania, Europe" held on 24, 25 and 26 September 2012 in Mamaia, Romania, organized by the Bucharest Metropolitan Library. Textes réunis et présentés par : Réjean Savard Chantal Stanescu Hermina G.B. Anghelescu Cristina Io

A genome-wide association study of the longitudinal course of executive functions

Executive functions are metacognitive capabilities that control and coordinate mental processes. In the transdiagnostic PsyCourse Study, comprising patients of the affective-to-psychotic spectrum and controls, we investigated the genetic basis of the time course of two core executive subfunctions: set-shifting (Trail Making Test, part B (TMT-B)) and updating (Verbal Digit Span backwards) in 1338 genotyped individuals. Time course was assessed with four measurement points, each 6 months apart. Compared to the initial assessment, executive performance improved across diagnostic groups. We performed a genome-wide association study to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with performance change over time by testing for SNP-by-time interactions using linear mixed models. We identified nine genome-wide significant SNPs for TMT-B in strong linkage disequilibrium with each other on chromosome 5. These were associated with decreased performance on the continuous TMT-B score across time. Variant rs150547358 had the lowest P value = 7.2 × 10(−10) with effect estimate beta = 1.16 (95% c.i.: 1.11, 1.22). Implementing data of the FOR2107 consortium (1795 individuals), we replicated these findings for the SNP rs150547358 (P value = 0.015), analyzing the difference of the two available measurement points two years apart. In the replication study, rs150547358 exhibited a similar effect estimate beta = 0.85 (95% c.i.: 0.74, 0.97). Our study demonstrates that longitudinally measured phenotypes have the potential to unmask novel associations, adding time as a dimension to the effects of genomics

HDAC1 links early life stress to schizophrenia-like phenotypes.

Significance Early life stress (ELS) is an important risk factor for schizophrenia. Our study shows that ELS in mice increases the levels of histone-deacetylase (HDAC) 1 in brain and blood. Although altered Hdac1 expression in response to ELS is widespread, increased Hdac1 levels in the prefrontal cortex are responsible for the development of schizophrenia-like phenotypes. In turn, administration of an HDAC inhibitor ameliorates ELS-induced schizophrenia-like phenotypes. We also show that Hdac1 levels are increased in the brains of patients with schizophrenia and in blood from patients who suffered from ELS, suggesting that the analysis of Hdac1 expression in blood could be used for patient stratification and individualized therapy. </jats:p

Genetic association studies in alcohol dependence

Titelblatt und Inhaltsverzeichnis Einleitung - Fragestellung Einleitung - Stand der Literatur Einleitung - Methodik Eigene Arbeiten - Dopaminerges System Eigene Arbeiten - Serotonerges und glutamaterges System bei Alkoholabhängigkeit Diskussion Zusammenfassung Literaturverzeichnis DanksagungAlkoholabhängigkeit als eine multifaktorielle Erkrankung unterliegt unter anderem einem genetischen Einfluss. Verschiedene Neurotransmitter-Systeme wie das dopaminerge, aber auch das serotonerge und glutamaterge System sind daran beteiligt. Allelische Assoziationsstudien bieten die Möglichkeit, Gene geringen bis mittelgradigen Einflusses bei Populationen realistischer Größe zu identifizieren. Bei der Alzheimer-Demenz und der Aufmerksamkeits-Defizit- Störung (ADS) wurden mit diesen Verfahren, die auch als Fall-Kontroll-Studien bekannt sind, Assoziationen gefunden, so zwischen dem Apolipoprotein E-Gen und der Alzheimer-Demenz bzw. zwischen dem DRD4- und DAT1-Gen und der ADS. Bei anderen Erkrankungen jedoch wie der Alkoholabhängigkeit war es hauptsächlich wegen der Heterogenität der Störung, der Unkenntnis der zugrunde liegenden Pathophysiologie und dem Fehlen klarer Linkage-Befunde bislang nicht ohne weiteres möglich, geeignete Kandidatengene zu identifizieren. Die Nachteile von Assoziationsstudien als Fall-Kontroll-Untersuchungen sind zum einen falsch-positive (dann wären Haplotypen-Untersuchungen an Familien informativer), zum anderen falsch-negative Befunde, wenn die Anzahl der untersuchten Personen zu gering ist. Um diese Probleme zu lösen, könnte außer, dass genomweit systematisch nach Assoziationen bei großen Populationen gesucht wird ( high throughput-genetics ) - der zu untersuchende Phänotyp im Sinne eines Endophänotyps genauer definiert werden. Dementsprechend wurden hier zum einen das Erstmanifestationsalter der Alkoholabhängigkeit, zum anderen bestimmte Persönlichkeitsmerkmale bei Alkoholabhängigkeit als Parameter ausgewählt und deren genetische Assoziation mit bekannten Polymorphismen (SNPs) untersucht. In diesem Zusammenhang können stille Mutationen Marker für funktionelle Mutationen, mit denen sie im Kopplungsungleichgewicht stehen, sein. Bei diesen Untersuchungen ergaben sich positive und negative Befunde, die insgesamt den zwar nicht starken, aber wahrscheinlich modulierenden Effekt des DRD2-Gens auf die Entwicklung oder Ausprägung einer Alkoholabhängigkeit nahe legen. Gleichzeitig haben wir anhand eines Provokationstests mit Apomorphin bei entgifteten Alkoholabhängigen versucht, die Funktion des dopaminergen Systems zu überprüfen. Auch hier fanden sich keine eindeutigen Veränderungen des dopaminergen Systems, wenn auch eher unspezifische Parameter wie Cortisol im Serum eine Unterscheidung zwischen Alkoholabhängigen und gesunden Kontrollen ermöglichten. Zusammenfassend kann festgestellt werden, dass Assoziationsstudien als Fall- Kontroll-Studien bezüglich einzelner SNPs nur dann sinnvoll sind, wenn die klinische Zuordnung spezifiziert und die Kontrollbedingungen streng eingehalten werden. Auch dann bleibt jedoch noch ein langer Weg, um von Markern zu involvierten Genen, auf deren Genprodukt und schließlich deren Funktion auf Proteinebene was z.B. mit Provokationstests untersucht werden könnte - zu kommen.Alcohol dependence as a multifactorial disorder is genetically influenced. Different neurotransmitter systems like the dopaminergic, but the serotonergic and glutamatergic are also involved. Allelic association studies give the opportunity to identify genes of low to moderate influence in populations of reasonable size. In Alzheimer´s disease and attention-deficit-hyperactivity- disorder (ADHD) associations were found by this method (known as case-control- studies), namely between the Apolipoprotein E-gene and Alzheimer´s and DRD4- and DAT1-gene and ADHD. In other disorders like alcohol dependence it was much harder to identify candidate genes, because of the heterogenity of the disease, the unknown pathophysiology and the lack of clear linkage-findings. The possible disadvantages of association studies as case-control-studies are false positive findings (then haplotype-studies in families would be better) and false negative findings, if the number of examined individuals is too low. To solve these problems, one could besides the genome wide screening in the sense of high throughput-genetics specify more precisely the phenotype of the studied population. This is what was done in this work, where age of onset of alcohol dependence and several personality traits were chosen as parameters and their possible genetic association with known polymorphisms (SNPs) was investigated. In this context silent mutations could be markers for functional mutations, they are in linkage disequilibrium with. In these studies positive and negative findings occurred, that showed the weak, but still modulating effect of the DRD2-gene in the development or degree of manifestation of alcohol dependence. Simultaneously, we tried by the challenge test with apomorphine in detoxified alcoholics to check the dopaminergic system functionally. Even here, we did not find clear-cut changes in the dopaminergic system, only rather non-specific parameters like serum cortisol made a differentiation between alcoholics and normal controls possible. To sum it up, one might say, that association studies as case- control-studies regarding SNPs are only sensible when a clinical picture is clearly specified and the control conditions are very strict. Even then, there is a long way from markers to involved genes, then to their gene products and finally to their function on protein level, that could be investigated for example by challenge tests