Neurobiology of performance anxiety:A new approach

The aim of this study is to investigate the neurobiology of stress/emotionality, creating a multidisciplinary assessment model, which can help to provide psychological and physiological responses depending on the genetic background related to sport performances, social closeness and performance anxiety management in team sports. We enrolled 20 female volleyball players aged 13 \ub1 1 years old played in two different teams during a regional championship final. Saliva collection was carried out before and after the match. In order to evaluate the neuroendocrine effectors involved in stress and performance, we analyzed cortisol and progesterone levels through Elisa standard kit as well as HSP70 and amylase activity as stress-induced markers. As concern the psychometric assesment, we administrated he CSAI-2 test, Closeness Generating Procedure and STAI test. Genomic DNA was isolated from saliva cells using a QIAamp saliva kit according to the manufacturer\u2019s protocols. The SNP of the 5-HTTLPR, BDNF, DRD4 were analyzed. The results of the T-test performed on the total results showed a statistically significant relationship (p < 0.05) in cortisol levels pre and post match, as well between amylase and HP70 according to the genetic background. The analysis performed using just post match samples show a negative correlation between social closeness, cortisol and progesterone levels, with p < 0.010 for progesterone vs social closeness and p < 0.012 for cortisol vs social closeness. About the winner teams and the looser teams, there is a negative correlation between pre match cortisol levels and performance anxiety (p < 0.042)

Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) activation in the rat hippocampus

Recently we found that acute treatment with Oxotremorine (Oxo), a non-selective mAChRs agonist, up-regulates heat shock proteins and activates their transcription factor heat shock factor 1 in the rat hippocampus. Here we aimed to investigate: a) if acute treatment with Oxo may regulate pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress in the rat hippocampus; b) if chronic restraint stress (CRS) induces inflammatory or oxidative alterations in the hippocampus and whether such alterations may be affected by chronic treatment with Oxo. In the acute experiment, rats were injected with single dose of Oxo (0.4 mg/kg) and sacrificed at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h. In the CRS experiment, the rats were exposed for 21 days to the CRS and then were treated with Oxo (0.2 mg/kg) for further 10 days. The acute Oxo treatment showed an ability to significantly reduce reactive oxygen species (ROS), singlet oxygen (1O2), pro-inflammatory cytokines levels (IL-1β and IL-6) and phosphorylated NF-κB-p65. Acute Oxo treatment also increased superoxide dismutase (SOD)-2 protein levels and stimulated SOD activity. No differences were detected in the anti-inflammatory cytokine levels, including IL-10 and TGF-β1. In the group of rats exposed to the CRS were found increased hippocampal IL-1β and IL-6 levels, together with a reduction of SOD activity level. These changes produced by CRS were counteracted by chronic Oxo treatment. In contrast, the upregulation of ROS and 1O2 levels in the CRS group was not counteracted by chronic Oxo treatment. The results revealed a hippocampal anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effect of Oxo treatment in both basal conditions and anti-inflammatory in the CRS rat model

NAFLD and Atherosclerosis Are Prevented by a Natural Dietary Supplement Containing Curcumin, Silymarin, Guggul, Chlorogenic Acid and Inulin in Mice Fed a High-Fat Diet

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) confers an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. NAFDL is associated with atherogenic dyslipidemia, inflammation and renin-angiotensin system (RAS) imbalance, which in turn lead to atherosclerotic lesions. In the present study, the impact of a natural dietary supplement (NDS) containing Curcuma longa, silymarin, guggul, chlorogenic acid and inulin on NAFLD and atherosclerosis was evaluated, and the mechanism of action was examined. C57BL/6 mice were fed an HFD for 16 weeks; half of the mice were simultaneously treated with a daily oral administration (os) of the NDS. NAFLD and atherogenic lesions in aorta and carotid artery (histological analysis), hepatic expression of genes involved in the NAFLD (PCR array), hepatic angiotensinogen (AGT) and AT1R mRNA expression (real-time PCR) and plasma angiotensin (ANG)-II levels (ELISA) were evaluated. In the NDS group, steatosis, aortic lesions or carotid artery thickening was not observed. PCR array showed upregulation of some genes involved in lipid metabolism and anti-inflammatory activity (Cpt2, Ifng) and downregulation of some genes involved in pro-inflammatory response and in free fatty acid up-take (Fabp5, Socs3). Hepatic AGT, AT1R mRNA and ANG II plasma levels were significantly lower with respect to the untreated-group. Furthermore, NDS inhibited the dyslipidemia observed in the untreated animals. Altogether, these results suggest that NDS prevents NAFLD and atherogenesis by modulating the expression of different genes involved in NAFLD and avoiding RAS imbalance

Social closeness,salivary hormones and physical exercise

Introduction: Saliva collection and analysis is quickly becoming a useful and non-invasive tool for the evaluation of sport biomarkers. The aim of this study is to create a multidisciplinary assessment model, which can help to provide psychological and physiological responses, related to sport performances, social closeness and performance anxiety management in team sports. Materials and methods: We enrolled in our research 26 female volleyball players aged 13 ± 1 years old of three different teams (T1: 12 players; T2: 9 players; T3: 5 players). Saliva collection was carried out before and after the match for every team. Then we analyzed cortisol and progesterone concentrations through Elisa standard kits. Results: The results of the T-test performed on the total results showed a statistically significant relationship (p < 0.05) in cortisol levels pre and post match: in fact, it has been shown a statistical significant decrease (p < 0.001). The analysis performed using just samples post match shows a negative correlation between social closeness, cortisol and progesterone levels, with p < 0.010 for progesterone vs social closeness and p < 0.012 for cortisol vs social closeness, which indicates that increasing of one of the two hormones reduces relationship. About the winner teams and the looser teams, there is a negative correlation between pre match cortisol levels and performance anxiety (p < 0.042)

Inflammatory mediators as biomarkers in brain disorders.

Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer, Parkinson, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Huntington are incurable and debilitating conditions that result in progressive death of the neurons. The definite diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disorder is disadvantaged by the difficulty in obtaining biopsies and thereby to validate the clinical diagnosis with pathological results. Biomarkers are valuable indicators for detecting different phases of a disease such as prevention, early onset, treatment, progression, and monitoring the effect of pharmacological responses to a therapeutic intervention. Inflammation occurs in neurodegenerative diseases, and identification and validation of molecules involved in this process could be a strategy for finding new biomarkers. The ideal inflammatory biomarker needs to be easily measurable, must be reproducible, not subject to wide variation in the population, and unaffected by external factors. Our review summarizes the most important inflammation biomarkers currently available, whose specificity could be utilized for identifying and monitoring distinctive phases of different neurodegenerative diseases

Metformin increases APP expression and processing via oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction and NF-κB activation: Use of insulin to attenuate metformin's effect

Clinical and experimental biomedical studies have shown Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) to be a risk factor for the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study demonstrates the effect of metformin, a therapeutic biguanide administered for T2DM therapy, on β-amyloid precursor protein (APP) metabolism in in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo models. Furthermore, the protective role of insulin against metformin is also demonstrated. In LAN5 neuroblastoma cells, metformin increases APP and presenilin levels, proteins involved in AD. Overexpression of APP and presenilin 1 (Pres 1) increases APP cleavage and intracellular accumulation of β-amyloid peptide (Aβ), which, in turn, promotes aggregation of Aβ. In the experimental conditions utilized the drug causes oxidative stress, mitochondrial damage, decrease of Hexokinase-II levels and cytochrome C release, all of which lead to cell death. Several changes in oxidative stress-related genes following metformin treatment were detected by PCR arrays specific for the oxidative stress pathway. These effects of metformin were found to be antagonized by the addition of insulin, which reduced Aβ levels, oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death. Similarly, antioxidant molecules, such as ferulic acid and curcumin, are able to revert metformin's effect. Comparable results were obtained using peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Finally, the involvement of NF-κB transcription factor in regulating APP and Pres 1 expression was investigated. Upon metformin treatment, NF-κB is activated and translocates from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, where it induces increased APP and Pres 1 transcription. The use of Bay11-7085 inhibitor suppressed the effect of metformin on APP and Pres 1 expression

How to improve educational behaviors for caregivers and patients having Central Venous Access Device (CVAD). a scoping review

Objective: Central venous access devices (CVADs) are essential to the modern management of patients with hematological malignancies and solid tumors. Educational programs play a crucial role in promoting appropriate patient actions to support patient safety during hospitalization and homecare. This review aimed to identify literature concerning educational interventions to promote patients’ actions to overcome CVAD-related problems and improve self-monitoring and self-management. Materials and Methods: Documentary evaluation of international databases, such as PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus and Cochrane. Searching for data on population, context and concept regarding CVAD self-management. The extracted data was subject to thematic analysis. The following scoping reviews were developed using the five-stage framework outlined by Arksey and O’Malley, and advanced by Levac and colleagues. Results: Of the 2802 articles identified, 19 research articles were selected in this review. Educational programs have been shown to improve CVAD self management, to decrease stress and anxiety related to their use, and to reduce the onset of complications. In addition, nurses have proven to be the professional reference figure for educational interventions. Conclusions: The results of the study lead to the conclusion that programs aimed at improving selfcare and reducing the onset of complications in patients living with chronic and debilitating diseases should be made available to a larger portion of individuals. Both generic and specific programs are needed, in the different contexts of home and hospital, for the short and long term, in order to ameliorate participants’ abilities. The results of this study should, therefore, encourage health professionals to plan, carry out, and evaluate the establishment of educational programs with patient participation

A close connection: Alzheimer’s disease and type 2 diabetes

In the recent years a growing body of evidence links insulin resistance and insulin action to neurodegenerative diseases, especially Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The importance of insulin in ageing as well as its role in cognition and other aspects of normal brain functions are well established. The hippocampus and cerebral cortex-distributed insulin and insulin receptor (IR) have been shown to be involved in brain cognitive functions. Conversely, deterioration of IR signaling is involved in agingrelated brain degeneration such as in AD and cognitive impairment in type 2 diabetes patients. Insulin administration, while maintaining euglycemia, improves memory in both healthy adults and Alzheimer’s disease patients. In the present review, some common links between AD and type 2 diabetes are presented. Furthermore, several biochemical aspects existing in both pathologies are highlighted

Metabolic abnormalities associated with initiation of systemic treatment for psoriasis: evidence from the Italian Psocare Registry.

Objective To evaluate variations in laboratory parameters and diagnoses of selected clinical conditions up to16 weeks after starting a new systemic psoriasis treatment for Psocare Registry enrollees.Design Prospective cohort study.Setting Italian public referral centres for psoriasis treatment.Patients First-time recipients (n = 10,539) of continuous systemic psoriasis treatment for at least 16 weeks.Main outcome measure Mean variations in (weeks 8 and 16) and proportions of patients reaching a clinicallymeaningful increase in serum levels (week 16) of total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, aspartateamino transferase, alanine amino transferase and creatinine, as well as week-16 cumulative incidences of newdiagnoses of diabetes mellitus and arterial hypertension.Results Mean cholesterol and triglyceride levels significantly increased in patients treated with acitretin orcyclosporine. Mean triglyceride levels also increased in efalizumab- and etanercept-treated patients. Meantransaminase values increased in methotrexate-treated patients, and mean aspartate amino transferase levelsincreased in infliximab-treated patients. The average serum creatinine value increased in cyclosporine-treatedpatients. Acitretin and cyclosporine were associated with risk of hypercholesterolaemia (odds ratios 1.51 and 1.34)and acitretin with risk of hypertriglyceridaemia (odds ratio 1.43). Methotrexate and infliximab were associated withrisk of more than doubling the upper normal aspartate amino transferase (odds ratios 2.06 and 1.87) and alanineamino transferase (odds ratios 2.38 and 1.74) values. The relative risk of developing arterial hypertension anddiabetes was increased for patients receiving cyclosporine (odds ratios 3.31 and 2.88).Conclusion Systemic treatments for psoriasis resulted in heterogeneous effects on the parameters analysed.Received: 1 September 2011; Accepted: 12 January 201

Outcome following a short period of adalimumab dose escalation as rescue therapy in psoriatic patients

Background: Advances in biologic treatments have led to a new therapeutic frontier for moderate-to-severe psoriasis. Nevertheless, the efficacy of anti-TNFα decreases with time, requiring adjustments to maintain valuable Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) responses. Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of adalimumab dose escalation (40 mg, subcutaneous, once a week for 24 weeks) in psoriatic adult patients with secondary loss of response (PASI ≥50 to ≤75 or PASI≥75 and DLQI ≥5). Materials and Methods: A multicentre, observational study involving different Italian third-level referral centres for psoriasis enrolled a total of 64 adult patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis who were treated with adalimumab and experienced a secondary loss of response. Primary end-points were PASI&lt; 75 or PASI ≥50 to ≤ 75 with DLQI ≤ 5, and the secondary end-point was the ability to maintain a therapeutic response, resuming adalimumab every other week. Results: At Week 16 and Week 24, 29/64 (45.3%) and 35/64 (54.6%) responded based on PASI, and mean DLQI was 4.9 and 4.09, respectively. At Week 36 and Week 48, 45.3% and 28.1% patients achieved the second end-point, respectively. No adverse events were recorded except for one patient with recurrent tonsillitis. Conclusion: Adalimumab escalation could be considered in cases with loss of response before switching to alternative biologic therapy