Molecular interactions of the plasma membrane calcium ATPase 2 at pre- and post-synaptic sites in rat cerebellum.

The plasma membrane calcium extrusion mechanism, PMCA (plasma membrane calcium ATPase) isoform 2 is richly expressed in the brain and particularly the cerebellum. Whilst PMCA2 is known to interact with a variety of proteins to participate in important signalling events [Strehler EE, Filoteo AG, Penniston JT, Caride AJ (2007) Plasma-membrane Ca(2+) pumps: structural diversity as the basis for functional versatility. Biochem Soc Trans 35 (Pt 5):919-922], its molecular interactions in brain synapse tissue are not well understood. An initial proteomics screen and a biochemical fractionation approach identified PMCA2 and potential partners at both pre- and post-synaptic sites in synapse-enriched brain tissue from rat. Reciprocal immunoprecipitation and GST pull-down approaches confirmed that PMCA2 interacts with the post-synaptic proteins PSD95 and the NMDA glutamate receptor subunits NR1 and NR2a, via its C-terminal PDZ (PSD95/Dlg/ZO-1) binding domain. Since PSD95 is a well-known partner for the NMDA receptor this raises the exciting possibility that all three interactions occur within the same post-synaptic signalling complex. At the pre-synapse, where PMCA2 was present in the pre-synapse web, reciprocal immunoprecipitation and GST pull-down approaches identified the pre-synaptic membrane protein syntaxin-1A, a member of the SNARE complex, as a potential partner for PMCA2. Both PSD95-PMCA2 and syntaxin-1A-PMCA2 interactions were also detected in the molecular and granule cell layers of rat cerebellar sagittal slices by immunohistochemistry. These specific molecular interactions at cerebellar synapses may allow PMCA2 to closely control local calcium dynamics as part of pre- and post-synaptic signalling complexes

Beyond diagnosis: a mixed method study of youngerage onset dementia: a work in progress

Background\ud While diagnosis of dementias in individuals younger than 65 years is well understood, recognition of the signs appears to be overlooked when the presenting individual is "young". The time lapse to diagnosis is known to be approximately five years, and assistance with daily living of up to four years, slower than for later-age onset.\ud \ud Aim\ud To track the experience of individuals diagnosed with dementia before 65 years of age as well as the observations and experience of caregivers over time and to develop an information guide for General Practitioners and other health professionals to raise awareness and potentially speedier diagnosis. The study also aimed to monitor cognitive changes through assessment at least one year post diagnosis and again one year later.\ud \ud Method\ud Study participants were selected from Memory Clinic files. Dyads were selected for interview in this two part study. Cognitive assessments were conducted on individuals assessed at least one year prior to the study to track change over time, and will be repeated after twelve months.\ud Interviews with the individual diagnosed with dementia and their principal care-giver explored the trajectory from recognition of symptoms to final diagnosis.\ud \ud Findings\ud Reassessment showed all had significantly declined. One person was incommunicative and unable to be reassessed. Early signs in each case included work stress, reliance on colleagues, and stress leave. All had visited GPs due to self and caregiver concerns and told they were too young for dementia thereby delaying early intervention in one case up to 10 years after initial signs were observed. Marital discord or separation had occurred in every dyad.\ud \ud Conclusion\ud This study showed a lack of awareness by GPs of the early signs of dementia thereby delaying early intervention. Increased awareness is likely to contribute to reduced distress for the individual and better outcomes for marital relationships

The relationship between interpersonal dependency and anxiety in older adults

Baltes (1997) theory of the incomplete architecture of human ontogeny suggested that there are fewer resources in the later stage of life to manage personality challenges. This would then suggest that personality traits that have more of an association with anxiety could increase the likelihood of anxiety in ageing. Interpersonal dependency is a personality trait, or style, that influences how an individual interacts with others. It is characterised by an increase in the need for guidance, support and approval from others, the perception of oneself as powerless and ineffectual compared to others, a tendency towards\ud anxiousness and fearfulness, and a tendency to seek help, support and guidance from others (Bomstein, 1993). Physical health, loneliness and depression have all been previously found to be associated with anxiety in older adults. The aim of this study was to examine the contribution interpersonal dependency has in the relationship with these variables and anxiety. A sample of older adults from both rural and regional locations in Australia volunteered to take part in a self-report survey using valid measures. The\ud results of this study not only contribute to extending our knowledge of anxiety in older adults but highlight the need for further research in this area so that appropriate early intervention strategies could be developed in the future

NIR Spectroscopy of Selected Iron (II) and Iron (III) Sulphates

A problem exists when closely related minerals are found in paragenetic relationships. The identification of such minerals cannot be undertaken by normal techniques such as X-ray diffraction. Vibrational spectroscopic techniques may be applicable especially when microtechniques or fibre-optic techniques are used. NIR spectroscopy is one technique which can be used for the identification of these paragenetically related minerals and has been applied to the study of selected iron(II) and iron(III) sulphates. The Near–IR spectral regions may be conveniently divided into four regions (a) the high wavenumber region > 7500 cm-1 (b) the high wavenumber region between 6400 and 7400 cm-1 attributed to the first overtone of the fundamental hydroxyl stretching mode (c) the 5500-6300 cm-1 region attributed to water combination modes of the hydroxyl fundamentals of water, and (d) the 4000-5500 cm-1 region attributed to the combination of the stretching and deformation modes of the iron(II) and iron(III) sulphates. The minerals containing iron(II) show a strong, broad band with splitting, around 11000-8000 cm-1 attributed to 5T2g --> 5Eg transition. This shows the ferrous ion has distorted octahedral coordination in some of these sulphate minerals. For each of these regions, the minerals show distinctive spectra which enable their identification and characterisation. NIR spectroscopy is a less used technique which has great application for the study of minerals, particularly minerals which have hydrogen in the structure either as hydroxyl units or as water bonded to the cation as is the case for iron(II) and iron(III) sulphates. The study of minerals on planets is topical and NIR spectroscopy provides a rapid technique for the distinction and identification of iron(II) and iron(III) sulphates minerals

Identifying the ultra-high risk (prodromal) population: Evaluation of training workshops with mental health services

Objective: Recent years have witnessed widespread interest in the early phase of psychotic disorders. The most widely used approach to identify individuals in the prodromal phase is the ultra-high risk (UHR) approach, which combines known trait and state risk factors for psychotic disorder. The Personal Assessment and Crisis Evaluvation Clinic introduced the Comprehensive Assessment of At Risk Mental States (CAARMS) in order to assess UHR status. A training DVD and manual in the use of the CAARMS was recently developed in order to assist with UHR identification. The current paper reports the outcome of a series of training workshops with mental health professionals based around this DVD. The research aim was to investigate whether the training workshops assisted mental health professionals in their confidence and ability to accurately identify UHR cases and distinguish these from non-UHR and first-episode psychosis (FEP) cases. Method: A total of 137 mental health workers participated in the training sessions across eight training sites. The training sessions consisted of four modules: theoretical background; rating written vignettes for UHR, non-UHR or FEP status; viewing and discussing the CAARMS Training DVD; and re-rating matched written vignettes for UHR, non-UHR or FEP status. Results: Participants’ confidence in identifying UHR cases and in using the CAARMS increased as a result of the workshop. Participants’ ability to correctly identify UHR-positive cases did not improve as a result of the workshop. This may have been the result of a ceiling effect due to the baseline ability to identify UHR-positive cases being high. But there was a trend for participants’ ability to correctly identify UHR-negative cases to improve as a result of the workshop. Conclusions: UHR training workshops are a valuable means of increasing mental health workers’ confidence in identifying UHR patients. Future UHR training programmes with experienced mental health professionals should pay particular attention to the correct identification of UHR-negative cases. </jats:p