Variation in the μ-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) moderates the influence of early maternal care on fearful attachment

There is evidence that both early experience and genetic variation play a role in influencing sensitivity to social rejection. In this study, we aimed at ascertaining if the A118G polymorphism of the k-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) moderates the impact of early maternal care on fearful attachment, a personality trait strongly related to rejection sensitivity. In 112 psychiatric patients, early maternal care and fearful attachment were measured using the Parental Bonding Inventory and the Relationship Questionnaire (RQ), respectively. The pattern emerging from the RQ data was a crossover interaction between genotype and maternal caregiving. Participants expressing the minor 118 G allele had similar and relatively high scores on fearful attachment regardless of the quality of maternal care. By contrast, early experience made a major difference for participants carrying the A/A genotype. Those who recalled higher levels of maternal care reported the lowest levels of fearful attachment whereas those who recalled lower levels of maternal care scored highest on fearful attachment. Our data fit well with the differential susceptibility model which stipulates that plasticity genes would make some individuals more responsive than others to the negative consequences of adversity and to the benefits of environmental support and enrichment

Correlatos de la terapia EMDR en la neuroimagen funcional y estructural: Un resumen cr?tico de los hallazgos recientes

Neuroimaging investigations of the effects of psychotherapies treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), have reported findings consistent with modifications in cerebral blood flow (CBF; single photon emission computed tomography [SPECT]), in neuronal volume and density (magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]), and more recently in brain electric signal (electroencephalography [EEG]). Additionally in the recent past, EMDR- related neurobiological changes were monitored by EEG during therapy itself and showed a shift of the maximal activation from emotional limbic to cortical cognitive brain regions. This was the first time in which neurobiological changes occurring during any psychotherapy session have been reported, making EMDR the first psychotherapy with a proven neurobiological effect. The purpose of this article was to review the results of functional and structural changes taking place at PTSD treatment and presented during the period of 1999-2012 by various research groups. The reported pathophysiological changes are presented by neuropsychological technique and implemented methodology and critically analyzed.Las investigaciones con neuroimagen sobre los efectos de las psicoterapias que tratan el trastorno de estr?s postraum?tico (TEPT), incluyendo la terapia de desensibilizaci?n y reprocesamiento por movimientos oculares (EMDR), han mostrado hallazgos conformes con modificaciones en el flujo sangu?neo cerebral (FSC; tomograf?a computerizada de emisi?n monofot?nica [SPECT]), en el volumen y la densidad neuronal (im?genes por resonancia magn?tica [MRI]) y, m?s recientemente, en las se?ales el?ctricas del cerebro (electroencefalograf?a [EEG]). Adem?s, en el pasado reciente, se han monitorizado, por medio de EEG, cambios neurobiol?gicos relacionados con EMDR durante la misma terapia y han mostrado un cambio en la activaci?n m?xima desde las regiones l?mbicas emocionales a las regiones cognitivas corticales del cerebro. Esta ha sido la primera vez que se han se?alado los cambios neurobiol?gicos que tienen lugar durante una sesi?n de psicoterapia, lo que ha hecho que EMDR sea la primera psicoterapia con un efecto neurobiol?gico probado. El prop?sito de este art?culo ha sido analizar los resultados de los cambios funcionales y estructurales que han tenido lugar durante el tratamiento del TEPT y que han sido presentados por diversos grupos de investigaci?n durante el per?odo entre 1999 y 2012. Los cambios fisiopatol?gicos referidos se presentan en funci?n de las t?cnicas neuropsicol?gicas y la metodolog?a implementadas y son analizados de manera cr?tica

Positive and psycho-pathological aspects between shame and shamelessness

Interpersonal relationships represent an essential aspect of mental wellbeing and social functioning. If all the symptoms contain a relational meaning, shame represents the relational affect par excellence both in terms of its origin and its purpose. This paper aims to highlight the role of shame as an affect inherent in the rhythmic nature of the encounter with the other, as well as the pathological elements of this aspect in both its conscious and unconscious dimensions. There is a heterogeneous quantitative and qualitative declination of shame, or of the defenses against this affect, among the various pathologies. We consider the fundamental needs of belonging and acceptance and the parallel abandonment anguish from various psychoanalytic and philosophical theoretical perspectives and then analyze the link between their dissatisfaction and the origin of shame. We also touch on the different interpretaions of shame based on eastern and western cultural norms. These hypotheses are closely intertwined with the beliefs of classical psychopathology. The role of the body in the encounter with the other and in the experience of shame is also examined. In particular, we study the role of this affect in schizophrenia, depression, eating disorders, and personality disorders

Detection of LDDoS Attacks Based on TCP Connection Parameters

Low-rate application layer distributed denial of service (LDDoS) attacks are both powerful and stealthy. They force vulnerable webservers to open all available connections to the adversary, denying resources to real users. Mitigation advice focuses on solutions that potentially degrade quality of service for legitimate connections. Furthermore, without accurate detection mechanisms, distributed attacks can bypass these defences. A methodology for detection of LDDoS attacks, based on characteristics of malicious TCP flows, is proposed within this paper. Research will be conducted using combinations of two datasets: one generated from a simulated network, the other from the publically available CIC DoS dataset. Both contain the attacks slowread, slowheaders and slowbody, alongside legitimate web browsing. TCP flow features are extracted from all connections. Experimentation was carried out using six supervised AI algorithms to categorise attack from legitimate flows. Decision trees and k-NN accurately classified up to 99.99% of flows, with exceptionally low false positive and false negative rates, demonstrating the potential of AI in LDDoS detection

Evaluation of acute cardiovascular effects of immediate-release methylphenidate in children and adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder is a frequent condition in children and often extends into adulthood. Use of immediate-release methylphenidate (MPH) has raised concerns about potential cardiovascular adverse effects within a few hours after administration. This study was carried out to investigate acute effects of MPH on electrocardiogram (ECG) in a pediatric population. A total of 54 consecutive patients with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (51 males and 3 females; mean age =12.14±2.6 years, range 6–19 years), receiving a new prescription of MPH, underwent a standard ECG 2 hours before and after the administration of MPH 10 mg per os. Basal and posttreatment ECG parameters, including mean QT (QT interval when corrected for heart rate [QTc]), QTc dispersion (QTd) interval duration, T-peak to T-end (TpTe) intervals, and TpTe/QT ratio were compared. Significant modifications of both QTc and QTd values were not found after drug administration. QTd fluctuated slightly from 25.7±9.3 milliseconds to 25.1±8.4 milliseconds; QTc varied from 407.6±12.4 milliseconds to 409.8±12.7 milliseconds. A significant variation in blood pressure (systolic blood pressure 105.4±10.3 vs 109.6±11.5; P<0.05; diastolic blood pressure 59.2±7.1 vs 63.1±7.9; P<0.05) was observed, but all the data were within normal range. Heart rate moved from 80.5±15.5 bpm to 87.7±18.8 bpm. No change in TpTe values was found, but a statistically significant increase in TpTe/QTc intervals was found with respect to basal values (0.207±0.02 milliseconds vs 0.214±0.02 milliseconds; P<0.01). The findings of this study show no significant changes in ECG parameters. TpTe values can be an additional parameter to evaluate borderline cases

PP020—Effects of aripiprazole and risperidone on ventricular repolarization in children and adolescents

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Cystic Echinococcosis: Chronic, Complex, and Still Neglected

Cystic echinococcosis is a most clinically neglected parasitic disease that urgently needs attention. A valuable tool for diagnosing, staging, and following up patients, ultrasound, is readily available. Four management procedures, surgery, percutaneous sterilization techniques, anti-parasitic treatment, and watch & wait, have ‘‘evolved’’ over decades, and been recently summarized, but without adequate comparative evaluation of efficacy, effectiveness, rate of adverse events, relapse rates, and cost. Clinical decision making is on even shakier ground for extrahepatic and extrapulmonary locations, which are rarer and numbers needed to build comparative trials hard to come by. There is an obligation to put at least what we have on an appropriate evidence base by conducting comparative clinical trials at the scale and quality that allow answering these important questions. As one of the expected results, clear criteria for the watch & wait option alone might already save a substantial proportion of patients from unnecessary interventions and save health services money. Difficult chronic diseases clustering in poor rural areas need intelligent, creative approaches, and this one urgently needs operational research incorporating the particularities of resource- poor settings into consideration