Serum Total Antioxidant Capacity of Epileptic Children before and after Monotherapy with Sodium Valproate, Carbamazepine,

Background: Brain is highly vulnerable to free radical damage due to a large quantity of mitochondria, a considerable amount of oxidizable polyunsaturated fatty acids, a ratio of high oxygen consumption, and less antioxidant capacity. The experimental and clinical data suggest a putative role of oxidative stress in the pathophysiology of seizures and epileptic syndromes.Objectives: A case-control study was carried out to compare serum total antioxidant capacity in the newly diagnosed children with epilepsy and that of a control group of healthy children at the same age.Patients and Methods: A total of 130 participants (65 in each group) aged between 1 and 17 years participated in this study. Serum total antioxidant capacity was compared between two groups before drug administration. The effect of antiepileptic therapy on the serum total antioxidant capacity also was studied in children with epilepsy before and 3 months after antiepileptic drug administration. Serum total antioxidant capacity values were measured based on Erel's method using an automated commercial kit. This method is based on the bleaching of the characteristic color of a more stable 2,2’‑azinobis‑(3‑ethylbenzothiazoline‑6‑sulfonic acid) radical cation by antioxidants. The results were expressed in mmol Trolox equivalent/lResults: Serum total antioxidant capacity values was significantly lower in the patients group before drug administration [mean (SD): 1.31 (0.19) mmol/L] than that of the control group [mean (SD): 1.46 (0.21) mmol/L] (P < 0.001). In the patients group, no differences were found in the serum total antioxidant capacity before and 3 months after anticonvulsant monotherapy.Conclusion: Reduced serum total antioxidant capacity, and an increased vulnerability to oxidative stress should be considered in the children with epilepsy

No horizontal numerical mapping in a culture with mixed-reading habits

Reading habits are thought to play an important role in the emergence of cultural differences in visuo-spatial and numerical tasks. Left-to-right readers show a slight visuo-spatial bias to the left side of space, and automatically associate small numbers to the left and larger numbers to the right side of space, respectively. A paradigm that demonstrated an automatic spatial-numerical association involved the generation of random numbers while participants performed lateral head turns. That is, Westerners have been shown to produce more small numbers when the head was turned to the left compared to the right side. We here employed the head turning/random number generation (RNG) paradigm and a line bisection (LB) task with a group of 34 Iranians in their home country. In the participants' native language (Farsi) text is read from right-to-left, but numbers are read from left-to-right. If the reading direction for text determines the layout of spatial-numerical mappings we expected to find more small numbers after right than left head turns. Yet, the generation of small or large numbers was not modulated by lateral head turns and the Iranians showed therefore no association of numbers with space. There was, however, a significant rightward shift in the LB task. Thus, while the current results are congruent with the idea that text reading habits play an important role in the cultural differences observed in visuo-spatial tasks, our data also imply that these habits on their own are not strong enough to induce significant horizontal spatial-numerical associations. In agreement with previous suggestions, we assume that for the emergence of horizontal numerical mappings a congruency between reading habits for words and numbers is required

Brain-cognition relationships in late-life depression: a systematic review of structural magnetic resonance imaging studies

Abstract Background Most patients with late-life depression (LLD) have cognitive impairment, and at least one-third meet diagnostic criteria for mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a prodrome to Alzheimer’s dementia (AD) and other neurodegenerative diseases. However, the mechanisms linking LLD and MCI, and brain alterations underlying impaired cognition in LLD and LLD + MCI remain poorly understood. Methods To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a systematic review of studies of brain-cognition relationships in LLD or LLD + MCI to identify circuits underlying impaired cognition in LLD or LLD + MCI. We searched MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases from inception through February 13, 2023. We included studies that assessed cognition in patients with LLD or LLD + MCI and acquired: (1) T1-weighted imaging (T1) measuring gray matter volumes or thickness; or (2) diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) assessing white matter integrity. Due to the heterogeneity in studies, we only conducted a descriptive synthesis. Results Our search identified 51 articles, resulting in 33 T1 studies, 17 DWI studies, and 1 study analyzing both T1 and DWI. Despite limitations, reviewed studies suggest that lower thickness or volume in the frontal and temporal regions and widespread lower white matter integrity are associated with impaired cognition in LLD. Lower white matter integrity in the posterior cingulate region (precuneus and corpus callosum sub-regions) was more associated with impairment executive function and processing speed than with memory. Conclusion Future studies should analyze larger samples of participants with various degrees of cognitive impairment and go beyond univariate statistical models to assess reliable brain-cognition relationships in LLD