Developmental malformation of the corpus callosum: a review of typical callosal development and examples of developmental disorders with callosal involvement

This review provides an overview of the involvement of the corpus callosum (CC) in a variety of developmental disorders that are currently defined exclusively by genetics, developmental insult, and/or behavior. I begin with a general review of CC development, connectivity, and function, followed by discussion of the research methods typically utilized to study the callosum. The bulk of the review concentrates on specific developmental disorders, beginning with agenesis of the corpus callosum (AgCC)—the only condition diagnosed exclusively by callosal anatomy. This is followed by a review of several genetic disorders that commonly result in social impairments and/or psychopathology similar to AgCC (neurofibromatosis-1, Turner syndrome, 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, Williams yndrome, and fragile X) and two forms of prenatal injury (premature birth, fetal alcohol syndrome) known to impact callosal development. Finally, I examine callosal involvement in several common developmental disorders defined exclusively by behavioral patterns (developmental language delay, dyslexia, attention-deficit hyperactive disorder, autism spectrum disorders, and Tourette syndrome)

Ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid in first-episode psychosis. A 1H-MRS study

Ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid (E-EPA) is an omega-3 fatty acid that has been used in a range of neuropsychiatric conditions with some benefits. However, its mechanism of action is unknown. Here, we investigate its effects on in vivo brain metabolism in first-episode psychosis (FEP). Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy at 3 T was performed in the temporal lobes of 24 FEP patients before and after 12 weeks of treatment in the context of a larger double-blind, placebo-controlled E-EPA augmentation study. Treatment group effects for glutathione (F1,12=6.1, p=0.03), and a hemisphere-by-group interaction for glutamine/glutamate (F1,20=4.4, p=0.049) were found. Glutathione increased bilaterally and glutamate/glutamine increased in the left hemisphere following E-EPA administration. Improvement in negative symptoms correlated with metabolic brain changes, particularly glutathione (r=-0.57). These results suggest that E-EPA augmentation alters glutathione availability and modulates the glutamine/glutamate cycle in early psychosis, with some of the metabolic brain changes being correlated with negative symptom improvement. Larger confirmatory studies of these postulated metabolic brain effects of E-EPA are warranted

Electrochemical properties of ionic conjugated polymer with azobenzene moieties

The electrochemical and electrooptical properties of an ionic conjugated polymer, poly[2-ethynyl-N-(p-cyanophenylazophenyl)oxyhexylpyridinium bromide] (PCEPB) were studied. The cyclovoltamograms of this polymer exhibited the irreversible electrochemical behaviors between the doping and undoping peaks. The oxidation current density of PEPB versus the scan rate is approximately linear relationship in the range of 30mV/sec similar to 120mV/sec. The exponent of scan rate, x value of PEPB, is found to be 0.6. The absorption spectrum starts around 800nm and shows a strong absorption band at visible region due to the pi ->pi(*)interband transition of the polymer backbone, which is a characteristic peak of the conjugated polyene backbone system. The photoluminescence spectrum showed that the PL peak is located at 542nm corresponding to the photon energy of 2.29 eV

Auxetic Behavior of Cementitious Cellular Composites Under Uniaxial Compression and Cyclic Loading

Mechanical behavior of cementitious cellular composites (CCC) with auxetic behavior was investigated under uniaxial compression and cyclic loading. Three cellular structures with different geometrical parameters are designed and prepared by 3D printing technique. Meanwhile, plain mortar and fiber reinforced mortar are used as constituent material, respectively. Ductility of the constituent materials is evaluated by four-point bending tests. Uniaxial compression and cyclic loading tests are performed on the CCCs. Experiments show that with proper structure and constituent material, CCCs can exhibit auxetic behavior. For the tested CCCs (P25 and P50), negative Poisson’s ratio is obtained: as a result, strain hardening behavior can be identified in the stress-strain curve under uniaxial compression. In addition, large reversible deformation under cyclic loading is obtained on P25 under cyclic loading. Hysteretic behavior in the stress-strain curve can be identified in a single cycle, which means that CCCs dissipates energy in each cycle. After 3000 cycles, the maximum load and energy dissipation of each cycle increased owing to the slip hardening behavior of the PVA fibers in the constituent material. Owing to the excellent energy dissipation property, these auxetic CCCs may be used for vibration resistance structures in the engineering practice in the future.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Materials and Environmen

Optimization of Fabrication Technique to Prepare Acacia Wood Reinforced Bio-Composites

This chapter discuss the preparation and optimization of wood polymer composites based on the impregnation by polymer and nanoclay. Wood impregnation is one of the basic and most frequently used techniques to enhance the wood properties. This fabrication technique offers a wide range of applications depending on type of impregnants applied. Impregnation could make the wood less flammable, more dimensionally stable, more resistant to decay, harder, stronger, and more stable against UV rays. Softwood (Acacia) was impregnated with acrylonitrile, poly(vinyl) alcohol and organically nanoclay. The specimen preparation was carried out using the vacuum-chamber in a laboratory scale. The physical and mechanical properties of the modified wood were analyzed through Tensile and Flexural tests, SEM, FTIR, TGA and DSC. Mechanical test results shown that Tensile and Flexural strength have improvements with the addition of the nanofillers. The FTIR test shown that the chemical bonding between PVA into the wood cell would certainly enhance the matrix adhesion and contribute to its property enhancement. SEM illustrate the samples surface morphology which confirm the impregnation of the specimen. TGA results shown the additives impregnate into the wood component increase the thermal stability compared to the raw wood. DSC results indicate the impregnate wood has a higher melting temperature compared to the raw wood, due to existing of the polymer and nanoclay interfacial bonding among cell wall of the wood. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the conditions for the preparation of wood composites. The design experiment was carried out using Design Expert 11