Altered hippocampal function in major depression despite intact structure and resting perfusion

Background: Hippocampal volume reductions in major depression have been frequently reported. However, evidence for functional abnormalities in the same region in depression has been less clear. We investigated hippocampal function in depression using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and neuropsychological tasks tapping spatial memory function, with complementing measures of hippocampal volume and resting blood flow to aid interpretation. Method: A total of 20 patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and a matched group of 20 healthy individuals participated. Participants underwent multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): fMRI during a spatial memory task, and structural MRI and resting blood flow measurements of the hippocampal region using arterial spin labelling. An offline battery of neuropsychological tests, including several measures of spatial memory, was also completed. Results: The fMRI analysis showed significant group differences in bilateral anterior regions of the hippocampus. While control participants showed task-dependent differences in blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signal, depressed patients did not. No group differences were detected with regard to hippocampal volume or resting blood flow. Patients showed reduced performance in several offline neuropsychological measures. All group differences were independent of differences in hippocampal volume and hippocampal blood flow. Conclusions: Functional abnormalities of the hippocampus can be observed in patients with MDD even when the volume and resting perfusion in the same region appear normal. This suggests that changes in hippocampal function can be observed independently of structural abnormalities of the hippocampus in depression

Transport and elastic scattering times as probes of the nature of impurity scattering in single and bilayer graphene

Both transport $\tau_{tr}$ and elastic scattering times $\tau_{e}$ are experimentally determined from the carrier density dependence of the magnetoconductance of monolayer and bilayer graphene. Both times and their dependences in carrier density are found to be very different in the monolayer and the bilayer. However their ratio $\tau_{tr}/\tau_{e}$is found to be of the order of $1.5$ in both systems and independent of the carrier density. These measurements give insight on the nature (neutral or charged) and spatial extent of the scattering centers. Comparison with theoretical predictions yields that the main scattering mechanism in our graphene samples could be due to strong scatterers of short range, inducing resonant scattering, a likely candidate being vacancies

Strain-gradient position mapping of semiconductor quantum dots

COORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPESWe introduce a nondestructive method to determine the position of randomly distributed semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) integrated in a solid photonic structure. By setting the structure in an oscillating motion, we generate a large stress gradient across the QDs plane. We then exploit the fact that the QDs emission frequency is highly sensitive to the local material stress to map the position of QDs deeply embedded in a photonic wire antenna with an accuracy ranging from +/- 35 nm down to +/- 1 nm. In the context of fast developing quantum technologies, this technique can be generalized to different photonic nanostructures embedding any stress-sensitive quantum emitters.1181116COORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPESCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES88887.059630/2014-00The authors wish to thank E. Gautier for the FIB cut and images. Sample fabrication was carried out in the Upstream Nanofabrication Facility (PTA) and CEA LETI MINATEC/DOPT clean rooms. P.-L. de Assis was financially supported by Agence Nationale de la Recherche (Project No. ANR-11-BS10-011) and CAPES Young Talents Fellowship Grant No. 88887.059630/2014-00, and D. Tumanov by a doctoral scholarship from the Rhône-Alpes Region

Dispersively detected Pauli Spin-Blockade in a Silicon Nanowire Field-Effect Transistor

We report the dispersive readout of the spin state of a double quantum dot formed at the corner states of a silicon nanowire field-effect transistor. Two face-to-face top-gate electrodes allow us to independently tune the charge occupation of the quantum dot system down to the few-electron limit. We measure the charge stability of the double quantum dot in DC transport as well as dispersively via in-situ gate-based radio frequency reflectometry, where one top-gate electrode is connected to a resonator. The latter removes the need for external charge sensors in quantum computing architectures and provides a compact way to readout the dispersive shift caused by changes in the quantum capacitance during interdot charge transitions. Here, we observe Pauli spin-blockade in the high-frequency response of the circuit at finite magnetic fields between singlet and triplet states. The blockade is lifted at higher magnetic fields when intra-dot triplet states become the ground state configuration. A lineshape analysis of the dispersive phase shift reveals furthermore an intradot valley-orbit splitting $\Delta_{vo}$ of 145 $\mu$eV. Our results open up the possibility to operate compact CMOS technology as a singlet-triplet qubit and make split-gate silicon nanowire architectures an ideal candidate for the study of spin dynamics

Varespladib and cardiovascular events in patients with an acute coronary syndrome: the VISTA-16 randomized clinical trial

IMPORTANCE: Secretory phospholipase A2(sPLA2) generates bioactive phospholipid products implicated in atherosclerosis. The sPLA2inhibitor varespladib has favorable effects on lipid and inflammatory markers; however, its effect on cardiovascular outcomes is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of sPLA2inhibition with varespladib on cardiovascular outcomes. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A double-blind, randomized, multicenter trial at 362 academic and community hospitals in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, India, and North America of 5145 patients randomized within 96 hours of presentation of an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) to either varespladib (n = 2572) or placebo (n = 2573) with enrollment between June 1, 2010, and March 7, 2012 (study termination on March 9, 2012). INTERVENTIONS: Participants were randomized to receive varespladib (500 mg) or placebo daily for 16 weeks, in addition to atorvastatin and other established therapies. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary efficacy measurewas a composite of cardiovascular mortality, nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI), nonfatal stroke, or unstable angina with evidence of ischemia requiring hospitalization at 16 weeks. Six-month survival status was also evaluated. RESULTS: At a prespecified interim analysis, including 212 primary end point events, the independent data and safety monitoring board recommended termination of the trial for futility and possible harm. The primary end point occurred in 136 patients (6.1%) treated with varespladib compared with 109 patients (5.1%) treated with placebo (hazard ratio [HR], 1.25; 95%CI, 0.97-1.61; log-rank P = .08). Varespladib was associated with a greater risk of MI (78 [3.4%] vs 47 [2.2%]; HR, 1.66; 95%CI, 1.16-2.39; log-rank P = .005). The composite secondary end point of cardiovascular mortality, MI, and stroke was observed in 107 patients (4.6%) in the varespladib group and 79 patients (3.8%) in the placebo group (HR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.02-1.82; P = .04). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In patients with recent ACS, varespladib did not reduce the risk of recurrent cardiovascular events and significantly increased the risk of MI. The sPLA2inhibition with varespladib may be harmful and is not a useful strategy to reduce adverse cardiovascular outcomes after ACS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01130246. Copyright 2014 American Medical Association. All rights reserved

Of the importance of a leaf: the ethnobotany of sarma in Turkey and the Balkans

BACKGROUND: Sarma - cooked leaves rolled around a filling made from rice and/or minced meat, possibly vegetables and seasoning plants - represents one of the most widespread feasting dishes of the Middle Eastern and South-Eastern European cuisines. Although cabbage and grape vine sarma is well-known worldwide, the use of alternative plant leaves remains largely unexplored. The aim of this research was to document all of the botanical taxa whose leaves are used for preparing sarma in the folk cuisines of Turkey and the Balkans. Methods: Field studies were conducted during broader ethnobotanical surveys, as well as during ad-hoc investigations between the years 2011 and 2014 that included diverse rural communities in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey. Primary ethnobotanical and folkloric literatures in each country were also considered. Results: Eighty-seven botanical taxa, mainly wild, belonging to 50 genera and 27 families, were found to represent the bio-cultural heritage of sarma in Turkey and the Balkans. The greatest plant biodiversity in sarma was found in Turkey and, to less extent, in Bulgaria and Romania. The most commonly used leaves for preparing sarma were those of cabbage (both fresh and lacto-fermented), grape vine, beet, dock, sorrel, horseradish, lime tree, bean, and spinach. In a few cases, the leaves of endemic species (Centaurea haradjianii, Rumex gracilescens, and R. olympicus in Turkey) were recorded. Other uncommon sarma preparations were based on lightly toxic taxa, such as potato leaves in NE Albania, leaves of Arum, Convolvulus, and Smilax species in Turkey, of Phytolacca americana in Macedonia, and of Tussilago farfara in diverse countries. Moreover, the use of leaves of the introduced species Reynoutria japonica in Romania, Colocasia esculenta in Turkey, and Phytolacca americana in Macedonia shows the dynamic nature of folk cuisines. Conclusion: The rich ethnobotanical diversity of sarma confirms the urgent need to record folk culinary plant knowledge. The results presented here can be implemented into initiatives aimed at re-evaluating folk cuisines and niche food markets based on local neglected ingredients, and possibly also to foster trajectories of the avant-garde cuisines inspired by ethnobotanical knowledge

Politische Dimensionen von Militärübungen und Manövern – ein Projektbericht

Die virtuellen Kriege und Operationen, die in Militärübungen gespielt und geprobt werden, können entweder der Abschreckung dienen oder aber Angriffe vorbereiten bzw. zur Maskierung tatsächlicher Angriffe dienen. Für Beobachter ist es vielfach nicht offensichtlich, um welche Art von Militärübung es sich handelt. Die Ergebnisse eines vierjährigen internationalen Projektes zu politischen Dimensionen von Militärübungen richten das Schlaglicht insbesondere auf Missverständnisse und deren ungewollte politische Auswirkungen, die im Extremfall unbeabsichtigt zum Krieg führen können

Neurocognitive and Neuroimaging Predictors of Clinical Outcome in Bipolar Disorder

Historically, bipolar disorder has been conceptualized as a disease involving episodic rather than chronic dysfunction. However, increasing evidence indicates that bipolar disorder is associated with substantial inter-episode psychosocial and vocational impairment. Here we review the contributions of neurocognitive deficits and structural and functional neuroanatomic alterations to the observed functional impairments. In particular, compelling evidence now suggests that neurocognitive impairments, particularly in the areas of attention, processing speed, and memory, are associated with functional outcome. Although investigation of the neural correlates of functional disability in bipolar disorder is only in its nascent stages, preliminary evidence suggests that white matter abnormalities may be predictive of poor outcome. A better understanding of the relationship between neurocognitive and neuroimaging assays and functional outcome has the potential to improve current treatment options and provide targets for new treatment strategies in bipolar disorder