Task-related modulation of anterior theta and posterior alpha EEG reflects top-down preparation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Prestimulus EEG alpha activity in humans has been considered to reflect ongoing top-down preparation for the performance of subsequent tasks. Since theta oscillations may be related to poststimulus top-down processing, we investigated whether prestimulus EEG theta activity also reflects top-down cognitive preparation for a stimulus.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We recorded EEG data from 15 healthy controls performing a color and shape discrimination task, and used the wavelet transformation to investigate the time course and power of oscillatory activity in the signals. We observed a relationship between both anterior theta and posterior alpha power in the prestimulus period and the type of subsequent task.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Since task-differences were reflected in both theta and alpha activities prior to stimulus onset, both prestimulus theta (particularly around the anterior region) and prestimulus alpha (particularly around the posterior region) activities may reflect prestimulus top-down preparation for the performance of subsequent tasks.</p

Hypometabolism as a therapeutic target in Alzheimer's disease

The pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by cerebral atrophy in frontal, temporal, and parietal regions, with senile plaques, dystrophic neurites, and neurofibrillar tangles within defined areas of the brain. Another characteristic of AD is regional hypometabolism in the brain. This decline in cerebral glucose metabolism occurs before pathology and symptoms manifest, continues as symptoms progress, and is more severe than that of normal aging. Ketone bodies are an efficient alternative fuel for cells that are unable to metabolize glucose or are 'starved' of glucose. AC-1202 is designed to elevate serum ketone levels safely. We previously showed that treatment with AC-1202 in patients with mild-to-moderate AD improves memory and cognition. Treatment outcomes were influenced by apolipoprotein E genotype status. These data suggest that AC-1202 may be an effective treatment for cognitive dysfunction by providing an alternative substrate for use by glucose-compromised neurons

The potential production of the bioactive compound pinene using whey permeate

Pinene is a secondary plant metabolite that has functional properties as a flavor additive as well as potential cognitive health benefits. Although pinene is present in low concentrations in several plants, it is possible to engineer microorganisms to produce pinene. However, feedstock cost is currently limiting the industrial scale-up of microbial pinene production. One potential solution is to leverage waste streams such as whey permeate as an alternative to expensive feedstocks. Whey permeate is a sterile-filtered dairy effluent that contains 4.5% weight/weight lactose, and it must be processed or disposed of due its high biochemical oxygen demand, often at significant cost to the producer. Approximately 180 million m3 of whey is produced annually in the U.S., and only half of this quantity receives additional processing for the recovery of lactose. Given that organisms such as recombinant Escherichia coli grow on untreated whey permeate, there is an opportunity for dairy producers to microbially produce pinene and reduce the biological oxygen demand of whey permeate via microbial lactose consumption. The process would convert a waste stream into a valuable coproduct. This review examines the current approaches for microbial pinene production, and the suitability of whey permeate as a medium for microbial pinene production

Diagnóstico de enfermagem Eliminação urinária prejudicada em pessoas com Diabetes Mellitus

Estudo exploratório descritivo com o objetivo de descrever os diagnósticos de enfermagem em pessoas com diabetes mellitus que apresentaram diagnóstico de enfermagem Eliminação urinária prejudicada. Os dados foram obtidos através do exame físico e a técnica de entrevista dirigida. Após a coleta de dados, procedeu-se a identificação dos diagnósticos de enfermagem nomeados de acordo com a Taxonomia II da NANDA, utilizando o processo de raciocínio diagnóstico de Risner. Das 31 pessoas entrevistadas, identificou-se 10 (32%) sujeitos que apresentaram o diagnóstico de enfermagem eliminação urinária prejudicada. Conhecer os fatores relacionados e as caracteristicas definidoras desse diagnóstico possibilita que o enfermeiro trace intervenções de enfermagem que preservem a função renal, e consequentemente a nefropatia diabética