Neuroimaging and Jury Decision Making: In Defense of The Defense?

Neurobiological evidence in the form of brain scans (MRI images, PET images, etc.) is being introduced with increasing frequency in the courtroom as potentially mitigating evidence in criminal cases as part of an attempt to show regions of neurological abnormality affecting a defendant’s decision-making or emotional control. Empirical studies have shown two biases associated with the presentation of such evidence. One of these biases resides in that laypeople’s interpretation of such evidence may be weighted too heavily towards scientific fact – as is DNA evidence – rather than an association between a specific crime, and a brain region and its associated function. The second of these biases resides in jury members’ skepticism of expert neutrality, thus discrediting the presented evidence and prohibiting it from being factored into the decision process, as it should. In lieu of previous studies, this review will outline relevant findings that lead to the proposal of a novel delivery of neuroimaging in the courtroom to decrease the layman’s perceived bias

Examining receptivity to peer support and the use of an adult pre-diabetic online program for healthy behavior adaptations and maintenance in overweight or obese adolescents.

By NHANES-2012, \u3c1% of American youth meet nutritional guidelines and 2/3 are sedentary, even as the prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance and associated comorbid conditions rise. It is estimated that close to 50% of this health burden could be lifted with improved evidence-based lifestyle habits. Effective motivation of meaningful behavioral change needs to include not only what to do, but why and how – and this takes time. Technology has an emerging role in both the lives of adolescents and in the healthcare system, offering new venues that can increase the exposure time to healthy messaging. We present a small exploratory 16-week study of six adolescents, aged 15-18, recruited from the weight management Clinic at Children\u27s National Health System. Participants were enrolled in a validated adult online pre-diabetes behavior modification program (ALIVE-PD) previously shown to change behavior and cardiometabolic outcomes favorably. Enrollees participated in group weekly moderated video-chat sessions. The aim was to evaluate program effectiveness in this age group while also studying putative connections between online interactions, peer support, behavior change, and weight management. Receptivity to the messaging was universally positive. All six participants appreciated the freedom to interact with content regularly and when most convenient for their own schedules. All felt that ALIVE-PD programmatic support for behavior modification via goal setting and activity and nutrition tracking contributed positively to maintaining their own healthy lifestyle behaviors. Of the five participants who completed the study, all found that peer support received through weekly video-chat sessions, such as sharing of successes and tribulations, was valuable. The most prominent feedback provided to assist in the development of an adolescent version of ALIVE-PD (100%) was to increase program interactivity by creating a fully-functional mobile application and by including hyperlinks to supplemental material, such as videos and recipes, within the educational content of the program. Other suggestions included increased incentivization and allowing for enhanced personalization of weekly participant goals. Overall, all participants reported this program helped them build a foundation for healthier lifestyle decisions and/or increased their motivation to continue leading healthy lives. Future directions include program conversion to a smartphone-compatible application and exploration of expansion of group membership, such as inclusion of family members, for increased healthy lifestyle support. Exponential growth in smartphone ownership makes m-health interventions both timely and feasible, and this small project contributes to the evidence as to what makes them most effective

A nationwide database analysis of demographics and outcomes related to Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) in congenital diaphragmatic hernia.

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to understand the use of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) in congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and its outcomes. METHODS: The 2016 Kid\u27s Inpatient Database (KID) obtained from the national Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) was used to obtain CDH birth, demographic, and outcome data associated with ECMO use. Categorical variables were analyzed and odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) are reported for variables found to have significance (p \u3c 0.05). Appropriate regressions were used for comparing categorical and continuous data using SPSS 25 for Macintosh. RESULTS: The database contained 1189 cases of CDH, of which 133 (11.2%) received ECMO. The overall mortality of neonates with CDH was 18.9% (225/1189). Newborns with CDH on ECMO had a survival of 46% (61/133) compared to 85.5% without ECMO (903/1056) (OR 6.966, p \u3c 0.001, 95% CI 4.756-10.204). ECMO increased length of stay from 24.6 to 69.8 days (OR 2.834, p \u3c 0.001, 95% CI 2.768-2.903) and average cost from $375,002.20 to$1641,586.83 (OR 4.378, p \u3c 0.001, 95% CI 3.341-5.735). CONCLUSIONS: Increased length of stay, costs, and outcomes with ECMO use in CDH should prompt an examination of criteria necessitating ECMO

Coffee Extract and Caffeine Enhance the Heat Shock Response and Promote Proteostasis in an HSF-1-dependent Manner in \u3cem\u3eCaenorhabditis elegans\u3c/em\u3e

As the population ages, there is a critical need to uncover strategies to combat diseases of aging. Studies in the soil-dwelling nematode Caenorhabditis elegans have demonstrated the protective effects of coffee extract and caffeine in promoting the induction of conserved longevity pathways including the insulin-like signaling pathway and the oxidative stress response. We were interested in determining the effects of coffee and caffeine treatment on the regulation of the heat shock response. The heat shock response is a highly conserved cellular response that functions as a cytoprotective mechanism during stress, mediated by the heat shock transcription factor HSF-1. In the worm, HSF-1 not only promotes protection against stress but is also essential for development and longevity. Induction of the heat shock response has been suggested to be beneficial for diseases of protein conformation by preventing protein misfolding and aggregation, and as such has been proposed as a therapeutic target for age-associated neurodegenerative disorders. In this study, we demonstrate that coffee is a potent, dose-dependent, inducer of the heat shock response. Treatment with a moderate dose of pure caffeine was also able to induce the heat shock response, indicating caffeine as an important component within coffee for producing this response. The effects that we observe with both coffee and pure caffeine on the heat shock response are both dependent on HSF-1. In a C. elegans Huntington’s disease model, worms treated with caffeine were protected from polyglutamine aggregates and toxicity, an effect that was also HSF-1-dependent. In conclusion, these results demonstrate caffeinated coffee, and pure caffeine, as protective substances that promote proteostasis through induction of the heat shock response

Integrated target prediction analysis uncovers miRNA/mRNA interaction networks regulated by HSF-1 independently of HS.

<p>The miRNAs (rectangles) that we determined to be regulated by HSF-1 independently of HS were used for target prediction analysis carried out by mirWIP or TargetScan. The mRNA targets (circles) were consolidated by comparing the predicted mRNAs to those determined by mRNA-sequencing, performed in parallel to miRNA sequencing, to be regulated by HSF-1 independently of HS. Interactions were predicted using the Agilent literature search tool, and network generation was done with Cytoscape. Transcripts that are not colored were not affected in our dataset, but are neighbors shared by at least two transcripts that were affected. The color of each miRNA or mRNA corresponds to the degree of HSF-1 regulation, where red represents induction and blue represents suppression. Bold connecting lines represent connections between upregulated and downregulated clusters.</p

miRNAs normally regulated by HSF-1 upon HS.

<p>miRNAs normally regulated by HSF-1 upon HS.</p

Networks and biological processes impacted by HSF-1-regulated miRNAs during HS.

<p>(<b>A</b>) Schematic depicting integrated miRNA/mRNA network generation. The miRNAs determined via miRNA-seq to be regulated by HSF-1 during HS were run through the target prediction tools mirWIP or TargetScan to uncover predicted mRNA targets. Due to the inhibitory nature of miRNAs, predicted mRNA targets were inversely correlated to mRNAs found to be regulated by HSF-1 during HS via mRNA-seq performed in parallel to this study [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0183445#pone.0183445.ref007" target="_blank">7</a>]. (<b>B</b>) Predicted network suppressed by HSF-1-regulated miRNAs upon HS. The miRNAs that we found to normally be induced by HSF-1 during HS via miRNA-seq (rectangles) were compared to mRNAs previously determined to normally be suppressed by HSF-1 during HS via mRNA-seq (circles). (<b>C</b>) Biological processes predicted to be suppressed by HSF-1-regulated miRNAs during HS. DAVID was used to uncover biological processes predicted to be suppressed by HSF-1 upon HS using the network in (B). (<b>D</b>) Predicted network induced by HSF-1-regulated miRNAs upon HS. The miRNAs that we found to normally be suppressed by HSF-1 during HS via miRNA-seq (rectangles) were compared to mRNAs previously determined to normally be induced by HSF-1 via mRNA-seq (circles). (<b>E</b>) Biological processes predicted to be induced by HSF-1-regulated miRNAs during HS. DAVID was used to uncover biological processes predicted to be induced by HSF-1 upon HS using the network in (D).</p