The CB1 receptor antagonist AM251 impairs reconsolidation of pavlovian fear memory in the rat basolateral amygdala

We have investigated the requirement for signaling at CB1 receptors in the reconsolidation of a previously consolidated auditory fear memory, by infusing the CB1 receptor antagonist AM251, or the FAAH inhibitor URB597, directly into the basolateral amygdala (BLA) in conjunction with memory reactivation. AM251 disrupted memory restabilization, but only when administered after reactivation. URB597 produced a small, transient enhancement of memory restabilization when administered after reactivation. The amnestic effect of AM251 was rescued by coadministration of the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline at reactivation, indicating that the disruption of reconsolidation was mediated by altered GABAergic transmission in the BLA. These data show that the endocannabinoid system in the BLA is an important modulator of fear memory reconsolidation and that its effects on memory are mediated by an interaction with the GABAergic system. Thus, targeting the endocannabinoid system may have therapeutic potential to reduce the impact of maladaptive memories in neuropsychiatric disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder.This work was conducted within the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, a joint initiative funded by the Wellcome Trust and the UK Medical Research Council, in the Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge. This work was funded by a UK Medical Research Council programme grant (no. G1002231) awarded to BJE and ALM. PR was supported by a Department of Physiology and Pharmacology Fellowship at the Sapienza University of Rome, and an Italian Society of Pharmacology Fellowship. ALM is the Ferreras-Willetts Fellow in Neuroscience at Downing College, Cambridge. The manuscript was partly prepared while ALM was an Erskine Visiting Cambridge Fellow at the University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand

Between the Vinča and Linearbandkeramik worlds: the diversity of practices and identities in the 54th–53rd centuries cal BC in south-west Hungary and beyond

Szederkény-Kukorica-dűlő is a large settlement in south-east Transdanubia, Hungary, excavated in advance of road construction, which is notable for its combination of pottery styles, variously including Vinča A, Ražište and LBK, and longhouses of a kind otherwise familiar from the LBK world. Formal modelling of its date establishes that the site probably began in the later 54th century cal BC, lasting until the first decades of the 52nd century cal BC. Occupation, featuring longhouses, pits and graves, probably began at the same time on the east and west parts of the settlement, the central part starting a decade or two later; the western part was probably abandoned last. Vinča pottery is predominantly associated with the east and central parts of the site, and Ražište pottery with the west. Formal modelling of the early history and diaspora of longhouses in the LBK world suggests their emergence in the Formative LBK of Transdanubia c. 5500 cal BC and then rapid diaspora in the middle of the 54th century cal BC, associated with the ‘earliest’ (älteste) LBK. The adoption of longhouses at Szederkény thus appears to come a few generations after the start of the diaspora. Rather than explaining the mixture of things, practices and perhaps people at Szederkény by reference to problematic notions such as hybridity, we propose instead a more fluid and varied vocabulary including combination and amalgamation, relationships and performance in the flow of social life, and networks; this makes greater allowance for diversity and interleaving in a context of rapid change

Global Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cerebral Venous Thrombosis and Mortality

Background and purpose: Recent studies suggested an increased incidence of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the volume of CVT hospitalization and in-hospital mortality during the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the preceding year. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of 171 stroke centers from 49 countries. We recorded COVID-19 admission volumes, CVT hospitalization, and CVT in-hospital mortality from January 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. CVT diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease-10 (ICD-10) codes or stroke databases. We additionally sought to compare the same metrics in the first 5 months of 2021 compared to the corresponding months in 2019 and 2020 (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04934020). Results: There were 2,313 CVT admissions across the 1-year pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic year (2020); no differences in CVT volume or CVT mortality were observed. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT volumes compared to 2019 (27.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 24.2 to 32.0; P<0.0001) and 2020 (41.4%; 95% CI, 37.0 to 46.0; P<0.0001). A COVID-19 diagnosis was present in 7.6% (132/1,738) of CVT hospitalizations. CVT was present in 0.04% (103/292,080) of COVID-19 hospitalizations. During the first pandemic year, CVT mortality was higher in patients who were COVID positive compared to COVID negative patients (8/53 [15.0%] vs. 41/910 [4.5%], P=0.004). There was an increase in CVT mortality during the first 5 months of pandemic years 2020 and 2021 compared to the first 5 months of the pre-pandemic year 2019 (2019 vs. 2020: 2.26% vs. 4.74%, P=0.05; 2019 vs. 2021: 2.26% vs. 4.99%, P=0.03). In the first 5 months of 2021, there were 26 cases of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), resulting in six deaths. Conclusions: During the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic, CVT hospitalization volume and CVT in-hospital mortality did not change compared to the prior year. COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with higher CVT in-hospital mortality. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT hospitalization volume and increase in CVT-related mortality, partially attributable to VITT

Global Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cerebral Venous Thrombosis and Mortality.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Recent studies suggested an increased incidence of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the volume of CVT hospitalization and in-hospital mortality during the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the preceding year. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of 171 stroke centers from 49 countries. We recorded COVID-19 admission volumes, CVT hospitalization, and CVT in-hospital mortality from January 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. CVT diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease-10 (ICD-10) codes or stroke databases. We additionally sought to compare the same metrics in the first 5 months of 2021 compared to the corresponding months in 2019 and 2020 (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04934020). RESULTS: There were 2,313 CVT admissions across the 1-year pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic year (2020); no differences in CVT volume or CVT mortality were observed. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT volumes compared to 2019 (27.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 24.2 to 32.0; P<0.0001) and 2020 (41.4%; 95% CI, 37.0 to 46.0; P<0.0001). A COVID-19 diagnosis was present in 7.6% (132/1,738) of CVT hospitalizations. CVT was present in 0.04% (103/292,080) of COVID-19 hospitalizations. During the first pandemic year, CVT mortality was higher in patients who were COVID positive compared to COVID negative patients (8/53 [15.0%] vs. 41/910 [4.5%], P=0.004). There was an increase in CVT mortality during the first 5 months of pandemic years 2020 and 2021 compared to the first 5 months of the pre-pandemic year 2019 (2019 vs. 2020: 2.26% vs. 4.74%, P=0.05; 2019 vs. 2021: 2.26% vs. 4.99%, P=0.03). In the first 5 months of 2021, there were 26 cases of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), resulting in six deaths. CONCLUSIONS: During the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic, CVT hospitalization volume and CVT in-hospital mortality did not change compared to the prior year. COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with higher CVT in-hospital mortality. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT hospitalization volume and increase in CVT-related mortality, partially attributable to VITT

The comparison of surface body temperature distribution between men and women by means of thermovision

Utrzymanie stałej temperatury ciała jest warunkowane prawidłowymi funkcjami fizjologicznymi organizmu człowieka. Równowaga cieplna będąca fizyczną wypadkową między ciepłem wytworzonym przez organizm a ciepłem rozproszonym osiągana jest poprzez precyzyjną regulację biologiczną. Przekazywanie ciepła z narządów wewnętrznych do tkanek powierzchniowych, w tym do skóry, a także zjawisko odwrotne angażuje do termoregulacji krążenie skórne. Celem pracy jest analiza zróżnicowania rozkładu temperatury powierzchniowej w różnych obszarach ciała pomiędzy grupą młodych zdrowych kobiet i młodych zdrowych mężczyzn. Badanie objęło 240 zdrowych studentów Akademii Wychowania Fizycznego we Wrocławiu, obojga płci, w wieku 20–25 lat. Przebadanych zostało 154 kobiet w wieku 19,32–25,92 lat (średnia wieku 21,58 š 1,55) oraz 86 mężczyzn w wieku od 19,38 do 25,34 lat (średnia wieku 22,22 š 1,64). Wykonano rejestrację rozkładu temperatur 29 obszarów ciała kamerą termowizyjną Flir Systems ThermoVision A20M. Przeprowadzone badania termowizyjne wykazały duże zróżnicowanie temperatury powierzchniowej w zależności od badanego obszaru ciała. W większości analizowanych rejonów ciała stwierdzono niższe temperatury w grupie badanych kobiet niż mężczyzn.Maintenance of a constant body temperature is determined by the propoer physiological functions of the human organism. The thermal balance, resulting from the heat produced by the organism and the diffusion of the heat, is achieved by the precise biological regulation. The heat flow from the internal parts of the organism towards the superficial body layers and skin and in the opposite direction, requires the activation of the skin circulation. The aim of the study was to compare the temperature distribution within various body regions between healthy young men and women. The examination included 240 young healthy students of the University School of Physical Education in Wroclaw, aged 20-25 years, among them 154 women aged 19,32- 25,92 years (mean age 21,58 š 1,55), as well as men aged 19,38-25,34 years (mean age 22,22 š 1,64). The temperature distribution in 29 regions was recorded by means of thermovision camera Flir Systems ThermoVision A20M. Examination revealed that there are significant differences in the temperature, depending on the examined body region. Prevalently, the lower temperatures were noticed in women than in men

Diversity of body surface temperature due to various stimuli in thermovision research

Nie ma bezspornych dowodów naukowych wykazujących wpływ skrajnie niskich temperatur na organizm człowieka. Nadal pozostaje wiele niewyjaśnionych zagadnień w zakresie badań podstawowych. Celem pracy jest zbadanie, zgodnie z zasadami EBM (Evidence Based Medicine – medycyna oparta na faktach), wpływu różnych bodźców na zróżnicowanie temperatury powierzchniowej ciała. Grupę badawczą stanowiło 90 studentów AWF we Wrocławiu, w wieku 20-25 lat (średnio 22,47š1,22). Grupa „placebo” to 30 studentów, którzy przebywali w komorze kriogenicznej, poruszając się spokojnym marszem po okręgu w czasie do 3 minut i nie byli poddawani działaniu niskiej temperatury. Grupa kontrolna „sono” to 30 studentów, którzy w tym samym pomieszczeniu poddani zostali działaniu czynnika stresującego, jakim był bodziec dźwiękowy o dawce bezpiecznej dla ludzkiego ucha. Grupa eksperymentalna „krio” to 30 osób, które poddane zostały działaniom skrajnie niskich temperatur w komorze kriogenicznej, przebywając w przedsionku komory w temperaturze -60 °C przez 1 minutę, a następnie w komorze właściwej w temperaturze -100 °C przez 3 minuty. Rejestracja rozkładu temperatury powierzchniowej ciała w pozycji stojącej w ujęciu od przodu i od tyłu wykonana została kamerą termowizyjną ThermoVision A20M. Badania przeprowadzono dwukrotnie: przed wejściem do kriokomory i bezpośrednio po wyjściu z kriokomory. Wyniki badań potwierdziły w sposób obiektywny istotny wpływ skrajnie niskich temperatur na zmianę temperatury powierzchniowej ciała. Zmian takich nie zaobserwowano w grupie placebo, ani w grupie poddanej działaniu innego bodźca stresującego.There are still many facts related to the exposure of human body to cryogenic temperatures, that remain unexplained. The aim of the present work is to examine in accordance to EBM (Evidence-based medicine) principles, the changes of body surface temperature due to various stimuli. The research group comprised of 90 students of the University School of Physical Education in Wroclaw, aged 20-25 (22,47š1,22). Group “placebo” consisted of 30 students who spent 3 minutes in a cryogenic chamber marching slowly in circles not exposed to any external stimulus. Control grup “sono”, which was in the same chamber, was subjected to a stress factor – sound stimulus, volume safe for human hearing. Group experimental “krio” comprised 30 people subjected to extremely low temperatures in the cryogenic chamber. They spent 1 minute in the antechamber in the temperature of -60 °C and next, 3 minutes in the proper chamber, where the temperature reached -100 °C. The subjects’ surface body temperature was registered in the standing position, both from the front and from dorsal plane by a thermovision camera ThermoVision A20M. The examinations were repeated twice; before entering the cryogenic chamber and directly after leaving the chamber, Results of the examination objectively proved that there is a considerable influence of extremely low temperatures on the change of the surface body temperature. Such changes were not observed in neither the placebo group nor in the group subjected to another stress factor