Nutritional Intervention in Concussion Treatment and Analysis Using MRI and EEG

Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) occur in over one million Americans annually, leading to thousands of deaths, hospitalizations, and individuals with long term disability. The most common causes of TBI which result in hospitalization primarily affect middle-aged to older adults and contribute to the annual economic burden of billions of dollars. The goal of this study is to determine if baseline EEG scans predict responsiveness to supplemental treatment in TBI patients experiencing chronic symptoms, which could improve their care. Subjects recruited from the greater Philadelphia area were randomly separated into 3 groups—Control, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), or Nutrition—and either received standard treatment for TBI alone, with NAC supplementation, or while maintaining an anti-inflammatory diet. Initial evaluation of the subjects before beginning treatment included fMRI, QEEG, and a concussion symptom questionnaire. At 3 months after the initial evaluation, there was an identical follow-up evaluation. Data analysis involved reviewing the subjects’ initial EEG data and initial and follow-up questionnaire responses, to determine if certain EEG patterns predicted who would respond to each treatment. Preliminary data indicates Nutrition group responders are predicted by lower delta-wave relative power compared to non-responders, while NAC group responders are predicted by higher delta- and theta-wave coherence. The literature shows chronic TBI patients present with varying EEG patterns, so these results may help providers decide the most effective treatment plan. The next steps include continuing analysis within treatment groups to evaluate if the responsiveness pattern stays consistent, and comparing the levels of responsiveness between treatment groups

Status and Breeding Requirements for Sorghum Utilization in Beverages in Nigeria

Sorghum /Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] grain has traditionally been used in Nigeria for malting and brewing opaque beers such as pito and burukutu on a domestic scale, while the beverage industries depended completely On imported barley malt. Since the imposition of a ban on imported barley and other cereals in 1988, beverage industries have successfully substituted barley malt with sorghum grain as1 malt and adjunct in the production of lager beer and non-alcoholic malt drinks. Industrial use of sorghum as adjunct requires cultivars with uniform grain size and shape (round or oval), hard endosperm, higher extract and soluble proteins, lower polyphenol or tannin and fat contents, and low gelatinization temperatures. Grains required by the malting industry should possessfast water uptake and high germinability, higher malt extract and enzyme (]3-amylasej activities, soft endosperm, low polyphenol/tannin content, and less mold and rootlet activity during germination. Choice of appropriate cultivars, locations, and growing conditions could improve the quality of industrial raw material. Increased collaboration between research and industry is required

SET domain-mediated lysine methylation in lower organisms regulates growth and transcription in hosts

Su(var)3-9, Enhancer-of-zeste, Trithorax (SET) domain–mediated lysine methylation, one of the major epigenetic marks, has been found to regulate chromatin-mediated gene transcription. Published studies have established further that methylation is not restricted to nuclear proteins but is involved in many cellular processes, including growth, differentiation, immune regulation, and cancer progression. The biological complexity of lysine methylation emerges from its capacity to cause gene activation or gene repression owing to the specific position of methylated-lysine moieties on the chromatin. Accumulating evidence suggests that despite the absence of chromatin, viruses and prokaryotes also express SET proteins, although their functional roles remain relatively less investigated. One possibility could be that SET proteins in lower organisms have more than one biological function, for example, in regulating growth or in manipulating host transcription machinery in order to establish infection. Thus, elucidating the role of an SET protein in host–pathogen interactions requires a thorough understanding of their functions. This review discusses the biological role of lysine methylation in prokaryotes and lower eukaryotes, as well as the underlying structural complexity and functional diversity of SET proteins

STUDIES ON RESISTANCE TO HELMINTHOSPORIUM TURCICUM. I. SOURCES AND INTERACTIONS OF VARIOUS RESISTANCE GENES. II. RELATION OF CYCLIC HYDROXAMATE TO RESISTANCE.

Abstract not availabl

The Intended and Unintended Effects of Civil Gang Injunctions in California

The state of California has one of the largest and most violent gang populations in the United States. Although there have been a variety of anti-gang measures and policies enacted by local and state governments, none have been more effective than the Civil Gang Injunction (CGI). This civil action prohibits certain street gangs, and their members, from participating in activities that would otherwise be considered lawful. In order to obtain an injunction a prosecutor must demonstrate to the court that the gang is engaged in ongoing criminal conduct and represents a public nuisance to a geographically defined area. When a neighborhood is under an injunction, not only is police presence in the area increased but officers are also given more freedom to investigate and apprehend gang members who are suspected to be in violation of the terms. As this thesis will argue, injunctions, when used correctly, have proven to be an effective weapon in diminishing the influence of territorial street gangs on community well-being. When used incorrectly, however, they often only provide a temporary fix to a long-lasting problem. They also have been known to contribute to an increase in crime in neighboring areas, an increased number of wrongful arrests, and in some cases they have promoted criminality amongst young people. To explore the efficacy of injunctions, this thesis will focus on three empirical studies that cover a period from 1993 to 2003, when the rates of gang-related violence were at an all-time high and injunctions became the primary tool for City and District Attorneys to combat the nuisance. Two of these studies argue that injunctions have a positive impact on violent crime statistics, whereas the third concludes that they do not. By comparing these conflicting pieces of quantitative evidence, this thesis aims to gauge the actual effect of injunctions on crime rates and weigh the perceived benefits of this measure against its unintended negative effects

Activatable Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Scavenge Reactive Oxygen Species in Macrophages and Endothelial Cells

This study centers around diagnostic medicine, and severity staging of inflammatory diseases. Previously, we showed that complexation of PEG and Poly(gallol) on superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles turn OFF the MRI contrasting ability of the nanoparticle. However, in the presence of reactive oxygen species, the contrast agent will turn ON. In this article, for the first time, we provide evidence that our MRI contrast agent is sensitive to physiologically relevant ROS and induces antioxidant activity on immune and endothelial cells. This study provides initial evidence of IPC-SPIOs cellular ROS sensitivity and potential activatable properties in biological conditions.</p