Effects of 92% oxygen administration on cognitive performance and physiological changes of intellectually and developmentally disabled people

Background: The present study addressed how 92% oxygen administration affects cognitive performance, blood oxygen saturation (SpO(2)), and heart rate (HR) of intellectually and developmentally disabled people. Methods: Seven males (28.9 +/- 1.8 years) and seven females (34.4 +/- 8.3 years) with intellectual and developmental disabilities (disabled level 2.1 +/- 0.5) completed an experiment consisting a 0-back task with normal air (21% oxygen) administered in one run and hyperoxic air (92% oxygen) administered in the other run. The experimental sequence in each run consisted of a 1-min adaptation phase, 2-min control phase, and 2-min 0-back task phase, where SpO(2) and HR were gauged for each phase. Results: The administration of 92% oxygen increased 0-back task performance of intellectually and developmentally disabled people, in association with increased SpO(2) and decreased HR. Our results demonstrate that sufficient oxygen supply subserving cognitive functions, even as a short-term effect, could increase cognitive ability for the intellectually and developmentally disabled people. Conclusions: It is concluded that enriched oxygen can positively affect, at least in the short-term, the working memory of those with intellectual and developmental disabilityopen0

Galaxy Zoo: Passive Red Spirals

We study the spectroscopic properties and environments of red spiral galaxies found by the Galaxy Zoo project. By carefully selecting face-on, disk dominated spirals we construct a sample of truly passive disks (not dust reddened, nor dominated by old stellar populations in a bulge). As such, our red spirals represent an interesting set of possible transition objects between normal blue spirals and red early types. We use SDSS data to investigate the physical processes which could have turned these objects red without disturbing their morphology. Red spirals prefer intermediate density regimes, however there are no obvious correlations between red spiral properties and environment - environment alone is not sufficient to determine if a spiral will become red. Red spirals are a small fraction of spirals at low masses, but are a significant fraction at large stellar masses - massive galaxies are red independent of morphology. We confirm that red spirals have older stellar popns and less recent star formation than the main spiral population. While the presence of spiral arms suggests that major star formation cannot have ceased long ago, we show that these are not recent post-starbursts, so star formation must have ceased gradually. Intriguingly, red spirals are ~4 times more likely than normal spirals to host optically identified Seyfert or LINER, with most of the difference coming from LINERs. We find a curiously large bar fraction in the red spirals suggesting that the cessation of star formation and bar instabilities are strongly correlated. We conclude by discussing the possible origins. We suggest they may represent the very oldest spiral galaxies which have already used up their reserves of gas - probably aided by strangulation, and perhaps bar instabilities moving material around in the disk.Comment: MNRAS in press, 20 pages, 15 figures (v3

The Outcomes of Using Colistin for Treating Multidrug Resistant Acinetobacter Species Bloodstream Infections

Despite the identification of Acinetobacter baumannii isolates that demonstrate susceptibility to only colistin, this antimicrobial agent was not available in Korea until 2006. The present study examined the outcomes of patients with multidrug resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter species bloodstream infection and who were treated with or without colistin as part of their regimen. The colistin group was given colistin as part of therapy once colistin became available in 2006. The non-colistin group was derived from the patients who were treated with other antimicrobial regimens before 2006. Mortality within 30 days of the onset of bacteremia occurred for 11 of 31 patients in the colistin group and for 15 of 39 patients in the non-colistin group (35.5% vs 38.5%, respectively, P = 0.80). Renal dysfunction developed in 50.0% of the 20 evaluable patients in the colistin group, but in 28.6% of the 35 evaluable patients in the non-colistin group (P = 0.11). On multivariate analysis, only an Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation II score ≥ 21 was associated with mortality at 30 days. This result suggests that administering colistin, although it is the sole microbiologically appropriate agent, does not influence the 30 day mortality of patients with a MDR Acinetobacter spp. bloodstream infection

Analysis of Nociceptive Information Encoded in the Temporal Discharge Patterns of Cutaneous C-Fibers

The generation of pain signals from primary afferent neurons is explained by a labeled-line code. However, this notion cannot apply in a simple way to cutaneous C-fibers, which carry signals from a variety of receptors that respond to various stimuli including agonist chemicals. To represent the discharge patterns of C-fibers according to different agonist chemicals, we have developed a quantitative approach using three consecutive spikes. By using this method, the generation of pain in response to chemical stimuli is shown to be dependent on the temporal aspect of the spike trains. Furthermore, under pathological conditions, gamma-aminobutyric acid resulted in pain behavior without change of spike number but with an altered discharge pattern. Our results suggest that information about the agonist chemicals may be encoded in specific temporal patterns of signals in C-fibers, and nociceptive sensation may be influenced by the extent of temporal summation originating from the temporal patterns.open0

Modified cardiovascular SOFA score in sepsis: development and internal and external validation

Background : The Sepsis-3 criteria introduced the system that uses the Sequential Organ-Failure Assessment (SOFA) score to define sepsis. The cardiovascular SOFA (CV SOFA) scoring system needs modification due to the change in guideline-recommended vasopressors. In this study, we aimed to develop and to validate the modified CV SOFA score. Methods : We developed, internally validated, and externally validated the modified CV SOFA score using the suspected infection cohort, sepsis cohort, and septic shock cohort. The primary outcome was 28-day mortality. The modified CV SOFA score system was constructed with consideration of the recently recommended use of the vasopressor norepinephrine with or without lactate level. The predictive validity of the modified SOFA score was evaluated by the discrimination for the primary outcome. Discrimination was assessed using the area under the receiver operating characteristics curve (AUC). Calibration was assessed using the calibration curve. We compared the prognostic performance of the original CV/total SOFA score and the modified CV/total SOFA score to detect mortality in patients with suspected infection, sepsis, or septic shock. Results : We identified 7,393 patients in the suspected cohort, 4038 patients in the sepsis cohort, and 3,107 patients in the septic shock cohort in seven Korean emergency departments (EDs). The 28-day mortality rates were 7.9%, 21.4%, and 20.5%, respectively, in the suspected infection, sepsis, and septic shock cohorts. The model performance is higher when vasopressor and lactate were used in combination than the vasopressor only used model. The modified CV/total SOFA score was well-developed and internally and externally validated in terms of discrimination and calibration. Predictive validity of the modified CV SOFA was significantly higher than that of the original CV SOFA in the development set (0.682 vs 0.624, p < 0.001), test set (0.716 vs 0.638), and all other cohorts (0.648 vs 0.557, 0.674 vs 0.589). Calibration was modest. In the suspected infection cohort, the modified model classified more patients to sepsis (66.0 vs 62.5%) and identified more patients at risk of septic mortality than the SOFA score (92.6 vs 89.5%). Conclusions : Among ED patients with suspected infection, sepsis, and septic shock, the newly-developed modified CV/total SOFA score had higher predictive validity and identified more patients at risk of septic mortality.National Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (NRF2020R1A2C3004508) to Kyuseok Kim. National Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (NRF2020R1F1A1052908) to Tae Gun Shin

Korean Cardiac Arrest Research Consortium (KoCARC): rationale, development, and implementation

Objective This study aimed to describe the conceptualization, development, and implementation processes of the newly established Korean Cardiac Arrest Resuscitation Consortium (KoCARC) to improve out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) outcomes. Methods The KoCARC was established in 2014 by recruiting hospitals willing to participate voluntarily. To enhance professionalism in research, seven research committees, the Epidemiology and Preventive Research Committee, Community Resuscitation Research Committee, Emergency Medical System Resuscitation Research Committee, Hospital Resuscitation Research Committee, Hypothermia and Postresuscitation Care Research Committee, Cardiac Care Resuscitation Committee, and Pediatric Resuscitation Research Committee, were organized under a steering committee. The KoCARC registry was developed with variables incorporated in the currently existing regional OHCA registries and Utstein templates and were collected via a web-based electronic database system. The KoCARC study population comprises patients visiting the participating hospitals who had been treated by the emergency medical system for OHCA presumed to have a cardiac etiology. Results A total of 62 hospitals volunteered to participate in the KoCARC, which captures 33.0% of the study population in Korea. Web-based data collection started in October 2015, and to date (December 2016), there were 3,187 cases compiled in the registry collected from 32 hospitals. Conclusion The KoCARC is a self-funded, voluntary, hospital-based collaborative research network providing high level evidence in the field of OHCA and resuscitation. This paper will serve as a reference for subsequent KoCARC manuscripts and for data elements collected in the study

Valproic Acid Induces Hair Regeneration in Murine Model and Activates Alkaline Phosphatase Activity in Human Dermal Papilla Cells

Alopecia is the common hair loss problem that can affect many people. However, current therapies for treatment of alopecia are limited by low efficacy and potentially undesirable side effects. We have identified a new function for valproic acid (VPA), a GSK3β inhibitor that activates the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, to promote hair re-growth in vitro and in vivo.Topical application of VPA to male C3H mice critically stimulated hair re-growth and induced terminally differentiated epidermal markers such as filaggrin and loricrin, and the dermal papilla marker alkaline phosphatase (ALP). VPA induced ALP in human dermal papilla cells by up-regulating the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, whereas minoxidil (MNX), a drug commonly used to treat alopecia, did not significantly affect the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. VPA analogs and other GSK3β inhibitors that activate the Wnt/β-catenin pathway such as 4-phenyl butyric acid, LiCl, and BeCl(2) also exhibited hair growth-promoting activities in vivo. Importantly, VPA, but not MNX, successfully stimulate hair growth in the wounds of C3H mice.Our findings indicate that small molecules that activate the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, such as VPA, can potentially be developed as drugs to stimulate hair re-growth