Assessing brain function in stressed healthy individuals following the use of a combination of green tea, Rhodiola, magnesium, and B vitamins: an fMRI study

IntroductionThis randomized, controlled, single-blinded trial assessed the effect of magnesium (Mg)-Teadiola (Mg, vitamins B6, B9, B12, Rhodiola, and green tea/L-theanine) versus placebo on the brain response to stressful thermal stimulus in chronically stressed, but otherwise healthy subjects. Impacts on stress-related quality-of-life parameters (depression, anxiety, sleep, and perception of pain) were also explored.MethodsThe study recruited a total of 40 adults (20 per group), suffering from stress for more than 1 month and scaling ≥14 points on the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS)-42 questionnaire at the time of inclusion. Individuals received oral Mg-Teadiola or placebo for 28 days (D). fMRI analysis was used to visualize the interplay between stress and pain cerebral matrices, using thermal stress model, at baseline (D0) and after D28.ResultsBased on blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signal variations during the stress stimulation (before pain perception), a significantly increased activation between D0 and D28 was observed for left and right frontal area (p = 0.001 and p = 0.002, respectively), left and right anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) (p = 0.035 and p = 0.04, respectively), and left and right insula (p = 0.034 and p = 0.0402, respectively) in Mg-Teadiola versus placebo group. During thermal pain stimulation, a significantly diminished activation of the pain matrix was observed between D0 and D28, for left and right prefrontal area (both p = 0.001), left and right insula (p = 0.008 and p = 0.019, respectively), and left and right ventral striatum (both p = 0.001) was observed in Mg-Teadiola versus placebo group. These results reinforce the clinical observations, showing a perceived benefit of Mg-Teadiola on several parameters. After 1 month of treatment, DASS-42 stress score significantly decreased in Mg-Teadiola group [effect size (ES) −0.46 (−0.91; −0.01), p = 0.048]. Similar reductions were observed on D14 (p = 0.011) and D56 (p = 0.008). Sensitivity to cold also improved from D0 to D28 for Mg-Teadiola versus placebo [ES 0.47 (0.02; 0.92) p = 0.042].ConclusionSupplementation with Mg-Teadiola reduced stress on D28 in chronically stressed but otherwise healthy individuals and modulated the stress and pain cerebral matrices during stressful thermal stimulus

Distinct Changes in cAMP and Extracellular Signal-Regulated Protein Kinase Signalling in L-DOPA-Induced Dyskinesia

Background: In rodents, the development of dyskinesia produced by L-DOPA in the dopamine-depleted striatum occurs in response to increased dopamine D1 receptor-mediated activation of the cAMP- protein kinase A and of the Rasextracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signalling pathways. However, very little is known, in non-human primates, about the regulation of these signalling cascades and their association with the induction, manifestation and/or maintenance of dyskinesia. Methodology/Results: We here studied, in the gold-standard non-human primate model of Parkinson’s disease, the changes in PKA-dependent phosphorylation of DARPP-32 and GluR1 AMPA receptor, as well as in ERK and ribosomal protein S6 (S6) phosphorylation, associated to acute and chronic administration of L-DOPA. Increased phosphorylation of DARPP-32 and GluR1 was observed in both L-DOPA first-ever exposed and chronically-treated dyskinetic parkinsonian monkeys. In contrast, phosphorylation of ERK and S6 was enhanced preferentially after acute L-DOPA administration and decreased during the course of chronic treatment. Conclusion: Dysregulation of cAMP signalling is maintained during the course of chronic L-DOPA administration, while abnormal ERK signalling peaks during the initial phase of L-DOPA treatment and decreases following prolonged exposure

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics' resources: focus on curated databases

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (www.isb-sib.ch) provides world-class bioinformatics databases, software tools, services and training to the international life science community in academia and industry. These solutions allow life scientists to turn the exponentially growing amount of data into knowledge. Here, we provide an overview of SIB's resources and competence areas, with a strong focus on curated databases and SIB's most popular and widely used resources. In particular, SIB's Bioinformatics resource portal ExPASy features over 150 resources, including UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot, ENZYME, PROSITE, neXtProt, STRING, UniCarbKB, SugarBindDB, SwissRegulon, EPD, arrayMap, Bgee, SWISS-MODEL Repository, OMA, OrthoDB and other databases, which are briefly described in this article

Feedback between melt percolation and deformation in an exhumed lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary

13 page(s

Impact of anterior cruciate ligament surgery on the development of knee osteoarthritis: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis comparing non-surgical and surgical treatments

Introduction: Context: The development of knee osteoarthritis (OA) after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is now widely recognized. The impact of surgical or non-surgical management on the development of post-traumatic osteoarthritis is still debated in the medical community.Here, we present a meta-analysis comparing the impact of surgical or non-surgical management of ACL injuries on the development of knee OA. Method: A systematic literature review was conducted using data from the PubMed, EMBASE, Medline, and Cochrane libraries from February to May 2019. Only randomized clinical trials published between 2005 and 2019 with a non-surgical group and a surgical group were included to explore the onset or progression of knee OA after ACL injury. Trials had to have at least one radiographic endpoint (Kellgren—Lawrence scoring system). Heterogeneity was assessed using the Cochrane's Q and I2 statistical methods. Results: Only three randomized controlled trials met the inclusion criteria and were selected for meta-analysis. Of the 343 injured knees included in the studies, 180 underwent ACL reconstruction and 163 underwent non-surgical treatment. The relative risk of knee osteoarthritis was higher after surgery than after non-surgical treatment (RR 1.72, CI 95% [1.18–2.53], I2 ​= ​0%). Conclusion: The results of this meta-analysis suggest a predisposition to knee osteoarthritis after ACL reconstruction surgery compared with non-surgical management. Due to the small number of good quality studies available, further well-conducted randomised studies are needed to confirm these findings

Phenolic composition of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) pericarp and mechanisms of browning

National audienc

Size separation of condensed tannins by normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

International audienc