Brain structural connectivity and neuroticism in healthy adults

Understanding the neural correlates of the neurotic brain is important because neuroticism is a risk factor for the development of psychopathology. We examined the correlation between brain structural networks and neuroticism based on NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) scores. Fifty-one healthy participants (female, n = 18; male, n = 33; mean age, 38.5 ± 11.7 years) underwent the NEO-FFI test and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including diffusion tensor imaging and 3D T1WI. Using MRI data, for each participant, we constructed whole-brain interregional connectivity matrices by deterministic tractography and calculated the graph theoretical network measures, including the characteristic path length, global clustering coefficient, small-worldness, and betweenness centrality (BET) in 83 brain regions from the Desikan-Killiany atlas with subcortical segmentation using FreeSurfer. In relation to the BET, neuroticism score had a negative correlation in the left isthmus cingulate cortex, left superior parietal, left superior temporal, right caudal middle frontal, and right entorhinal cortices, and a positive correlation in the bilateral frontal pole, left caudal anterior cingulate cortex, and left fusiform gyrus. No other measurements showed significant correlations. Our results imply that the brain regions related to neuroticism exist in various regions, and that the neuroticism trait is likely formed as a result of interactions among these regions. This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas (Comprehensive Brain Science Network) from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan

The Changes in Feeling of Being Supported, Skills, and Skills in Their Classes of Victimized Relationship-Improved Group

The Purpose of the present study was to examine which scale appears the difference between those who victimized-Relationship improved and those who not, in aspect of teachers' support, friends' support, and pro-social mood in the class. Participants in this study, 1165 Elementary pupils and Junior High School Students completed ASSESS; Adaptation Scale for School Environments on Six Spheres. The present results suggest that teachers' support and friends' support Improved Victimized Relationship, in Elementary school. Further study must be needed to scale more specific skills in a class. Also, this article is focusing on the factor of Improving Victimized Relationship, but in the future, another level of study in aspect of Preventative and Developmental and its way to evaluation must be considered

DanceDanceThumb: Tablet App for Rehabilitation for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Part 8: Poster and Interactive SessionInternational audienceWe propose a tablet app that aids in rehabilitation for carpal tunnel syndrome. Patients play a game on a tablet PC in which they catch animal characters displayed on the screen with their thumb. In addition, we developed a system that records patient rehabilitation logs from the tablet and sends them to the cloud, where doctors can observe a patient’s condition remotely

Distal renal tubular acidosis and lethargy associated with zonisamide treatment in a dog with idiopathic epilepsy

Abstract A 3‐year‐old neutered male golden retriever administered zonisamide for the treatment of seizures showed lethargy and had normal anion gap metabolic acidosis with hypokalaemia, hyperchloremia, and alkaline urine. The serum zonisamide concentration was close to the upper limit, which raised a suspicion of adverse effects of zonisamide. This is the first report showing that the fractional excretion of bicarbonate after compensation for the plasma bicarbonate concentration by a sodium bicarbonate infusion was approximately 5%, indicating distal renal tubular acidosis (RTA). The serum zonisamide concentration decreased, and adverse effects were abated by reducing the zonisamide dosage. Diagnostic therapy with bicarbonate served as a means of compensating for bicarbonate deficiency and contributed to the clinical diagnosis of the condition in zonisamide‐associated RTA in dogs

Variation in Diffusion Tensor Imaging Parameters in the Cervical and Thoracic Spinal Cord (C1-C5 and C6-T2) Segments of Normal Beagle Dogs

This study aimed to determine the characteristics and reference values of each vertebra in the cervicothoracic region by performing diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) scans and analyzing DTI parameters in normal Beagle dogs. In five adult Beagles under anesthetic maintenance, DTI was performed using a 1.5-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. Axial DTI was performed using three overlapping slabs to cover the cervical and thoracic spinal cords. After post-processing, DTI parameters were calculated along the entire spinal cord. Among DTI parameters, fractional anisotropy, relative anisotropy, and axonal diffusivity significantly decreased in the caudal direction. However, the apparent diffusion coefficient, radial diffusivity, and mean diffusivity values were not significantly correlated with vertebral levels. We provide evidence for the existence of segment-dependent DTI parameters in the canine cervical spinal cord. Therefore, comparisons of DTI parameters between lesions at different vertebral levels should be avoided unless normative data are available. Furthermore, the DTI data obtained in this study may contribute to the development of a clinical reference for spinal cord evaluation in dogs using DTI parameters

Novel TPO receptor agonist TA-316 contributes to platelet biogenesis from human iPS cells

Signaling by thrombopoietin (TPO) in complex with its receptor, c-MPL, is critical for hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) homeostasis and platelet generation. Here we show that TA-316, a novel chemically synthesized c-MPL agonist (CMA), is useful for ex vivo platelet generation from human-induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell–derived immortalized megakaryocyte progenitor cell lines (imMKCLs). Moreover, the generation is clinically applicable, because self-renewal expansion and platelet release is tightly controllable. TA-316 but not eltrombopag, another CMA, promoted both the self-renewal and maturation of imMKCLs, leading to more than a twofold higher platelet production than that achieved with recombinant human TPO (rhTPO). Interestingly, TA-316 seemed to favor MK-biased differentiation from bone marrow CD34+ HSC/progenitors and imMKCLs through the upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor A and fibroblast growth factor 2. This result suggests TA-316 could facilitate the development of an efficient and useful system to expand platelets from imMKCLs