In Vitro Models of Spinal Cord Injury

Living organisms are extremely complex functional systems. At present, there are many in vivo models of spinal cord injury (SCI) that allow the modeling of any type of central nervous system (CNS) injury, however, with some disadvantages. The production of injury models can be a highly invasive and time‐consuming process and requires high technical requirements, and costly financial issues should also be taken into account. Of course, a large number of animals have been used to obtain the relevant data of statistical significance. All of these aspects can be reduced by carrying out experiments in in vitro conditions. The primary advantage of in vitro method is that it simplifies the system under study. There are two major groups of in vitro model in use: cell culture and organotypic slice (OTS) culture. OTS is an intermediate system of the screening of in vitro cell culture and animal models and represents the in vitro system preserving the basic tissue architecture that able to closely mimic the cellular and physiological characteristics in vivo. In vitro models are the preferred methods for the study of acute or subacute pathophysiology after a trauma stimulus, enabling precise control on the extracellular environment, easy and repeatable access to the cells

The impact of the intensity of fear on patient’s delay regarding health care seeking behavior: a systematic review

This systematic review focuses on the role of the intensity of fear in patient's delay in cancer and in myocardial infarction. In a search of literature published between 1990 and June 2009, 161 articles were found. After the use of inclusion and exclusion criteria, 11 articles in cancer and 4 articles in myocardial infarction remained. High levels of fear are associated with earlier help-seeking in both diseases; for low levels of fear, the picture is unclear. The level of fear is an important factor, which should be taken into account when facilitating help-seeking by patients

The Biological Role of Hyaluronan-Rich Oocyte-Cumulus Extracellular Matrix in Female Reproduction

Fertilization of the mammalian oocyte requires interactions between spermatozoa and expanded cumulus extracellular matrix (ECM) that surrounds the oocyte. This review focuses on key molecules that play an important role in the formation of the cumulus ECM, generated by the oocyte-cumulus complex. In particular, the specific inhibitors (AG1478, lapatinib, indomethacin and MG132) and progesterone receptor antagonist (RU486) exerting their effects through the remodeling of the ECM of the cumulus cells surrounding the oocyte have been described. After gonadotropin stimulus, cumulus cells expand and form hyaluronan (HA)-rich cumulus ECM. In pigs, the proper structure of the cumulus ECM depends on the interaction between HA and serum-derived proteins of the inter-alpha-trypsin inhibitor (IαI) protein family. We have demonstrated the synthesis of HA by cumulus cells, and the presence of the IαI, tumor necrosis factor-alpha-induced protein 6 and pentraxin 3 in expanding oocyte-cumulus complexes (OCC). We have evaluated the covalent linkage of heavy chains of IαI proteins to HA, as the principal component of the expanded HA-rich cumulus ECM, in porcine OCC cultured in medium with specific inhibitors: AG1478 and lapatinib (both inhibitors of epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase activity); MG132 (a specific proteasomal inhibitor), indomethacin (cyclooxygenase inhibitor); and progesterone receptor antagonist (RU486). We have found that both RU486 and indomethacin does not disrupt the formation of the covalent linkage between the heavy chains of IαI to HA in the expanded OCC. In contrast, the inhibitors AG1478 and lapatinib prevent gonadotropin-induced cumulus expansion. Finally, the formation of oocyte-cumulus ECM relying on the covalent transfer of heavy chains of IαI molecules to HA has been inhibited in the presence of MG132

The impact of sleep and mood disorders on quality of life in Parkinson's disease patients

Item does not contain fulltextSleep disturbances are common and often severe in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and their symptoms can be present at any time of day. The purpose of our study was to examine how excessive daytime sleepiness or poor nocturnal sleep quality and mood disorders influence the quality of life (QoL) in PD patients. Ninety-three PD patients from eastern Slovakia were recruited (49.5% males, mean age 68.0 +/- 9.5 years, mean disease duration 6.1 +/- 5.9 years). Sleep disturbances were measured using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI); QoL with the Parkinson's Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire (PDQ-39); depression and anxiety with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and disease severity with the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS). chi (2) test, bivariate correlations and multiple linear regressions were performed. PSQI and ESS had significant correlations with worse QoL (p < 0.01, p < 0.05, respectively). HADS-D (p < 0.01), HADS-A (p < 0.01), UPDRS (p < 0.01) and disease duration (p < 0.05) were also significantly related to worse QoL. In the linear regression analysis, however, only PSQI (p < 0.01), anxiety (p < 0.001) and UPDRS (p < 0.001) remained significant. The model with PSQI explained 74% of the variance, and the model with ESS explained 63% of the variance in PDQ-39 when analyses were performed separately. In an overall model, however, only PSQI remained significant, accounting for 82% of the variance in PDQ-39. Nighttime poor sleep and anxiety are important contributors leading to a worse QoL. As these are treatable conditions, they should be recognized by clinicians and managed properly.1 december 201

Influence of Disease Severity on Fatigue in Patients with Parkinson's Disease Is Mainly Mediated by Symptoms of Depression

<p>Purpose: Fatigue is a frequent non-motor complaint of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Despite increasing knowledge on fatigue, the factors leading to its development are still not recognised. The aim of this investigation was to test, using structural equation modelling, the hypothesis that the influence of disease severity on fatigue is mediated by symptoms of depression in patients with PD. Method: The sample consisted of 190 PD patients (93 men, 48.9%, mean age 68.2 +/- 9.3 years, mean disease duration 6.4 +/- 4.7 years) recruited from hospitals and outpatient clinics in the East Slovakia region. The Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale were used. LISREL was used to analyse the data. Results: Disease severity was directly associated with symptoms of depression (beta = 0.26) and directly affected fatigue in terms of increased levels of general fatigue (beta = 0.35), physical fatigue (beta = 0.22), reduced activity (beta = 0.31) and mental fatigue (beta= 0.29), but did not directly influence reduced motivation. Symptoms of depression mediated the impact of disease severity on general fatigue (beta = 0.25), on reduced activity (beta = 0.31) and on mental fatigue (beta = 0.28), but not on physical fatigue. Reduced motivation was not mediated, but directly influenced by more symptoms of depression (beta = 0.82). Discussion: Since increased symptoms of depression mediate the impact of disease severity on three domains of fatigue in PD patients, disease management should focus on the treatment of PD and symptoms of depression. Copyright (C) 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel</p>