Exploring how people with chronic pain understand their pain: A qualitative study

A fundamental principle of pain management is educating patients on their pain using current neuroscience. However, current pain neurophysiology education (PNE) interventions show variable success in improving pain outcomes, and may be difficult to integrate with existing understanding of pain. This study aimed to investigate how people with chronic pain understand their pain, using qualitative exploration of their conceptualisations of pain, and how this understanding accommodated, or resisted, the messages of PNE. Twelve UK adults with chronic pain were recruited through advertisements on online pain networks. Semi-structured interviews were conducted remotely, with responses elicited using the Grid Elaboration Method (GEM) and then a PNE article. Participants' grid elaborations and responses to PNE were analysed using thematic analysis (TA). Three main themes were extracted from participants' grid elaborations: communicating pain, explaining pain and living with pain. These themes incorporated varied, inconsistent sub-themes: of pain as simultaneously experiential and conceptual; in the body and in the mind; diagnosable and inexplicable; manageable and insuperable. Generalised, meta-level agreement was identified in participants' PNE responses, but with doubts about its practical value. This study shows that people understand pain through inconsistent experiential models that may resist attempts at conceptual integration. Participants' elaborations showed diverse and dissonant conceptualisations, with experiential themes of restricted living; assault on the self; pursuit of understanding pain and abandonment of that pursuit. Responses, although unexpectedly compatible with PNE, suggested that PNE was perceived as intellectually engaging but practically inadequate. Experiential disconfirmation may be required for behavioural change inhibited by embedded fears and aversive experiences. UCL REC# 17833/003

Genetic inhibition of neurotransmission reveals role of glutamatergic input to dopamine neurons in high-effort behavior

Midbrain dopamine neurons are crucial for many behavioral and cognitive functions. As the major excitatory input, glutamatergic afferents are important for control of the activity and plasticity of dopamine neurons. However, the role of glutamatergic input as a whole onto dopamine neurons remains unclear. Here we developed a mouse line in which glutamatergic inputs onto dopamine neurons are specifically impaired, and utilized this genetic model to directly test the role of glutamatergic inputs in dopamine-related functions. We found that while motor coordination and reward learning were largely unchanged, these animals showed prominent deficits in effort-related behavioral tasks. These results provide genetic evidence that glutamatergic transmission onto dopaminergic neurons underlies incentive motivation, a willingness to exert high levels of effort to obtain reinforcers, and have important implications for understanding the normal function of the midbrain dopamine system.Fil: Hutchison, M. A.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Gu, X.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Adrover, Martín Federico. National Institutes of Health; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Lee, M. R.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Hnasko, T. S.. University of California at San Diego; Estados UnidosFil: Alvarez, V. A.. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Lu, W.. National Institutes of Health; Estados Unido

Natural Products Extracts: Terpenes and Phenolics

The dependence of mankind upon the plant kingdom goes far beyond the production of food crops. A great number of plant species produce secondary metabolites that possess valuable properties, many of which have been studied and applied mainly to the pharmaceutical and food industries. Secondary metabolites such as terpenes and phenolic acid compounds have become very important due to their chemical and biological properties and play a major role in plant and human health. Terpenes are the primary constituents of the essential oils of many types of plants and flowers, and have been extensively used as natural flavor additives for food, as fragrances in perfumery, and in traditional and alternative medicines. On the other hand, phenolic acid compounds are plant metabolites widely distributed throughout the plant kingdom, which have a potential use as natural antioxidants in processed foods. The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of the current knowledge on these metabolites regarding their biosynthesis, main sources and methods for their obtaining and use.All rights reserved-© 2012 Bentham Science Publishers. All rights reserved

Climate of the Seasonal Cycle in the North Pacific and the North Atlantic Oceans

The dependence of mankind upon the plant kingdom goes far beyond the production of food crops. A great number of plant species produce secondary metabolites that possess valuable properties, many of which have been studied and applied mainly to the pharmaceutical and food industries. Secondary metabolites such as terpenes and phenolic acid compounds have become very important due to their chemical and biological properties and play a major role in plant and human health. Terpenes are the primary constituents of the essential oils of many types of plants and flowers, and have been extensively used as natural flavor additives for food, as fragrances in perfumery, and in traditional and alternative medicines. On the other hand, phenolic acid compounds are plant metabolites widely distributed throughout the plant kingdom, which have a potential use as natural antioxidants in processed foods. The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of the current knowledge on these metabolites regarding their biosynthesis, main sources and methods for their obtaining and use.All rights reserved-" 2012 Bentham Science Publishers. All rights reserved.",,,,,,"10.2174/978160805114411201010021",,,"http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12104/43041","http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84882893387&partnerID=40&md5=fba094490ffbd57e86b23db7a1220d39",,,,,,,,"Biotechnological Production of Plant Secondary Metabolites",,"2

Plant cell and Tissue Culture as a Source of Secondary Metabolites

Plants are an important source of secondary metabolites that have been used throughout history as drugs, pesticides, pigments, flavors and fragrances. However, one of the main constraints to the use of cultivated plants as a source of these metabolites is the ability to ensure the constant and efficient supply of the compounds, since the yields are usually affected by the genetic background, as well as by the geographic location, edaphic and climatic conditions at the site of cultivation, combined with the potential effect of harvest and transport methods. The use of plant tissue culture has been proposed as an alternative to conventional agriculture for the production of secondary metabolites due to the possibility of controlling the quality and quantity of the compound of interest by controlling the factors affecting its synthesis and/or accumulation. Recent advances in the field of plant biotechnology show the potential of using plant cell and tissue cultures as a source for the large-scale production of valuable secondary metabolites instead of using whole plants and subsequent extensive land exploitation. Moreover, the employment of molecular biology techniques has allowed for obtaining novel products from genetically engineered plants.All rights reserved-� 2012 Bentham Science Publishers. All rights reserved

Preliminary study on the potential of arsenic removal by subsurface flow constructed mesocosms

Subsurface flow constructed wetlands (SSFCW) are currently under evaluation as a promising treatment option for removal of As from drinking water. Issues to consider are selection of plant species capable of accumulating As in addition to choosing a substrate for the bed material which demonstrates a strong sorptive capacity for As. In this study, our goal was to evaluate the removal of total As in a subsurface flow constructed wetland mesocosm containing an iron oxide substrate (tezontle) both without plants and containing two plant species, Zantedeschia aethiopica and Anemopsis californica for phytoremediation of As-contaminated groundwater. Local As contaminated groundwater, which averaged 34 11 g/L, was used in this 6 month experiment. Inflow and outflow concentrations of total As, chloride, sulfate, fluoride, pH and TDS, were determined over time. Evapotranspiration (ET) was also measured during the experiment in order to correct for water loss by ET, which tends to concentrate the solute of interest. The total As mass removal efficiencies during the first three months were 57.7 7.1, 75.2 7.1 and 77.8 7.1% in the control (not planted), Z. aetiopica-planted and A. californica-planted cells, respectively. The planted cells had a statistically greater As removal efficiency (p-value = 0.0012) than the substrate only cells. During the 6 months, the concentration of As in the effluent was significantly lower in the planted vs the unplanted cells (p-value = 0.045) at 23, 18 and 18 ?g/L, in the control (not planted), Z. aetiopica-planted and A. californica-planted cells, respectively. These results suggest that the presence of plants (Z. aethiopica and A. californica) increased As removal in a batch-fed subsurface flow constructed wetland system. 2012 Elsevier B.V

In vitro clonal propagation and regeneration of the commercially important plant Mexican oregano (Lippia graveolens)

[No abstract available

Optimization of DNA isolation and PCR protocol for analysis and evaluation of genetic diversity of the medicinal plant, Anemopsis californica using RAPD

Anemopsis californica is a perennial herbaceous plant that has been utilized as a medicinal plant for the treatment of various diseases. The present work was carried out with the objective of optimizing a method of extraction of the genomic DNA of A. californica and a PCR protocol and later to evaluate the existing genetic diversity among the genotypes deriving from different origins. For DNA extraction, we tested four procedures: with the CTA B-2 protocol, we obtained the highest yield (61.5±2.2 μg DNA/g of leaf tissues) and the best quality (A260/280 1.83±0.022). To estimate genetic variability, we utilized the randomly amplified polymorphism DNA (RAPD) technique, employing 20 oligonucleotides, of which only 18 generated reproducible banding patterns, producing 123 polymorphic bands generated, thus obtaining a polymorphism rate of 93.93% among the genotypes analyzed. The Jaccard similarity coefficient generated a variation ranging from 0.325-0.921, indicating a high level of genetic variation among the studied genotypes. An Unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) group analysis indicated six distinct groups. The present optimized method for DNA isolation and RAPD protocol may serve as an efficient tool for further molecular studies. © 2013 Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest

Modulation of antioxidant defense system after long term arsenic exposure in Zantedeschia aethiopica and Anemopsis californica

Zantedeschia aethiopica (calla lily) and Anemopsis californica (yerba mansa) are plant species capable of accumulating arsenic (As) and therefore proposed as phytoremediation for removal of As from drinking water. The effects of a continuous 6 month As exposure (34�11. ?g/L) from local contaminated groundwater on the antioxidant response of Z. aethiopica and A. californica were evaluated in leaves and stems of the plants bimonthly in a subsurface flow constructed wetland. As increased the activities of the antioxidant enzymes ascorbate peroxidase, glutathione reductase and catalase where higher levels were observed in Z. aethiopica than A. californica. No significant differences were detected on lipid peroxidation levels or antioxidant capacity evaluated by ORAC and DPPH assays or total phenol contents in any part of the plant, although in general the leaves of both plants showed the best antioxidant defense against the metal. In conclusion, Z. aethiopica and A. californica were able to cope to As through induction of a more sensitive enzymatic antioxidant response mechanism. � 2013 Elsevier Inc