Elemental spatial and temporal association formation in left temporal lobe epilepsy

The mesial temporal lobe (MTL) is typically understood as a memory structure in clinical settings, with the sine qua non of MTL damage in epilepsy being memory impairment. Recent models, however, understand memory as one of a number of higher cognitive functions that recruit the MTL through their reliance on more fundamental processes, such as “self-projection” or “association formation”. We examined how damage to the left MTL influences these fundamental processes through the encoding of elemental spatial and temporal associations. We used a novel fMRI task to image the encoding of simple visual stimuli, either rich or impoverished, in spatial or spatial plus temporal information. Participants included 14 typical adults (36.4 years, sd. 10.5 years) and 14 patients with left mesial temporal lobe damage as evidenced by a clinical diagnosis of left temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and left MTL impairment on imaging (34.3 years, sd. 6.6 years). In-scanner behavioral performance was equivalent across groups. In the typical group whole-brain analysis revealed highly significant bilateral parahippocampal activation (right > left) during spatial associative processing and left hippocampal/parahippocampal deactivation in joint spatial-temporal associative processing. In the left TLE group identical analyses indicated patients used MTL structures contralateral to the seizure focus differently and relied on extra-MTL regions to a greater extent. These results are consistent with the notion that epileptogenic MTL damage is followed by reorganization of networks underlying elemental associative processes. In addition, they provide further evidence that task-related fMRI deactivation can meaningfully index brain function. The implications of these findings for clinical and cognitive neuropsychological models of MTL function in TLE are discussed

Physics with charm particles produced in neutrino interactions. A historical recollection

Results obtained in neutrino unteractions on charm particles are presented

De Novo Mutations in SLC1A2 and CACNA1A Are Important Causes of Epileptic Encephalopathies

Epileptic encephalopathies (EEs) are the most clinically important group of severe early-onset epilepsies. Next-generation sequencing has highlighted the crucial contribution of de novo mutations to the genetic architecture of EEs as well as to their underlying genetic heterogeneity. Our previous whole-exome sequencing study of 264 parent-child trios revealed more than 290 candidate genes in which only a single individual had a de novo variant. We sought to identify additional pathogenic variants in a subset (n = 27) of these genes via targeted sequencing in an unsolved cohort of 531 individuals with a diverse range of EEs. We report 17 individuals with pathogenic variants in seven of the 27 genes, defining a genetic etiology in 3.2% of this unsolved cohort. Our results provide definitive evidence that de novo mutations in SLC1A2 and CACNA1A cause specific EEs and expand the compendium of clinically relevant genotypes for GABRB3. We also identified EEs caused by genetic variants in ALG13, DNM1, and GNAO1 and report a mutation in IQSEC2. Notably, recurrent mutations accounted for 7/17 of the pathogenic variants identified. As a result of high-depth coverage, parental mosaicism was identified in two out of 14 cases tested with mutant allelic fractions of 5%–6% in the unaffected parents, carrying significant reproductive counseling implications. These results confirm that dysregulation in diverse cellular neuronal pathways causes EEs, and they will inform the diagnosis and management of individuals with these devastating disorders

Packages of Care for Epilepsy in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

In the second in a series of six articles on packages of care for mental health disorders in low- and middle-income countries, Caroline Mbuba and Charles Newton discuss treatment for epilepsy

Synthesis and X-ray Crystal Structure of 2 and 4-Trifluoromethyl Substituted Phenyl Semicarbazone and Thiosemicarbazone

Abstract: NMR and single crystal X-ray structure data for four structurally similar semicarbazones and thiosemicarbazones were compared. In solution, proton NMR showed considerable variation in their chemical shift values especially for the NH protons. In the case of the semicarbazones this peak appeared as a broad singlet with an integration ratio of two while for the thiosemicarbazones the amino group showed two distinct singlets with marked chemical shift differences. This is attributed to the differences in the canonical forms of the thiosemicarbazone amino group and the semicarbazone analogue. Additionally, we provide evidence that the 2-trifluoromethyl phenyl substituted semicarbazone (2) formed an intermolecular hydrogen bond with one of the hydrogens of the NH group while this was totally absent in the thiosemicarbazone. We explain this by the restricted rotation of the CN bond in the thiosemicarbazone due to its double bond character compared to the less restricted rotation in semicarbazone compound. Graphical Abstract: NMR and single crystal X-ray structure data for four structurally similar semicarbazones and thiosemicarbazones were compared for their hydrogen bonding characteristics.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

Synthesis and x-ray crystal structure of 1- and 2-cinnamoyaloxy acetonaphthones

The synthesis of titled compounds were achieved in one step using hydroxyl naphthones and substituted cinnamic acids in the presence of a catalytic amount of phosphorus oxychloride. X-ray crystal studies were undertaken for three compounds and the results are presented. Compounds 1 (C(22)H(15)F(3)O(3)) and 3 (C(21)H(15)BrO(3)) formed a monoclinic crystals while compound 2 (C(22)H(15)F(3)O(3)) formed a triclinic crystals. The observed space group of these compounds is P2(1)/c and PT respectively. The 2-substituted compounds showed identical space group and showed a perpendicular arrangements of each of the sub stituents to the plane of the naphthyl ring. On the contrary, the 1-substituted cinnamoyal compound showed an orthogonal arrangement to naphthyl ring but the acetyl group was almost planar relative to the naphthyl moiety. The characterization of the structures of the compounds was also accomplished using high-resolution NMR spectroscopic techniques

Heteronuclear NMR spectroscopic investigations of hydrogen bonding in 2-(benzo[d]thiazole-2'-yl)-N-alkylanilines

The 2-(benzo[d]thiazole-2′-yl)-N-alkylanilines have previously revealed the presence of a strong intramolecular hydrogen bond. This in turn gives rise to a more complicated multiplet for the protons attached to the carbon adjacent to the amino group. This intramolecular hydrogen bond was investigated by a deuterium exchange experiment using heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy (H, C, N and H). We observed changes in the multiplet structure and chemical shifts providing further evidence that the deuterium replaces the hydrogen in the intramolecular hydrogen bond. A time course study of the DO exchange confirmed the presence of a strong hydrogen bond. The comparison of the structures obtained by X-ray crystallography showed a very small difference in planarity between the two-substituted and four-substituted amino compounds. In both the cases, the phenyl ring is not absolutely coplanar with the thiazole unit. The existence of this intramolecular hydrogen bond in 2-(benzo[d]thiazole-2′-yl)-N-alkylanilines was further confirmed by single crystal X-ray crystallography