Dipolar cortico-muscular electrical stimulation: a novel method that enhances motor function in both - normal and spinal cord injured mice

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Electrical stimulation of the central and peripheral nervous systems is a common tool that is used to improve functional recovery after neuronal injury.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Here we described a new configuration of electrical stimulation as it was tested in anesthetized control and spinal cord injury (SCI) mice. Constant voltage output was delivered through two electrodes. While the negative voltage output (ranging from -1.8 to -2.6 V) was delivered to the muscle via transverse wire electrodes (diameter, 500 μm) located at opposite ends of the muscle, the positive output (ranging from + 2.4 to +3.2 V) was delivered to the primary motor cortex (M1) (electrode tip, 100 μm). The configuration was named dipolar cortico-muscular stimulation (dCMS) and consisted of 100 pulses (1 ms pulse duration, 1 Hz frequency).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In SCI animals, after dCMS, cortically-elicited muscle contraction improved markedly at the contralateral (456%) and ipsilateral (457%) gastrocnemius muscles. The improvement persisted for the duration of the experiment (60 min). The enhancement of cortically-elicited muscle contraction was accompanied by the reduction of M1 maximal threshold and the potentiation of spinal motoneuronal evoked responses at the contralateral (313%) and ipsilateral (292%) sides of the spinal cord. Moreover, spontaneous activity recorded from single spinal motoneurons was substantially increased contralaterally (121%) and ipsilaterally (54%). Interestingly, spinal motoneuronal responses and muscle twitches evoked by the test stimulation of non-treated M1 (received no dCMS) were significantly enhanced as well. Similar results obtained from normal animals albeit the changes were relatively smaller.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These findings demonstrated that dCMS could improve functionality of corticomotoneuronal pathway and thus it may have therapeutic potential.</p

Estimates of genomic heritability and genome-wide association study for fatty acids profile in Santa Inês sheep

Background: Despite the health concerns and nutritional importance of fatty acids, there is a relative paucity of studies in the literature that report genetic or genomic parameters, especially in the case of sheep populations. To investigate the genetic architecture of fatty acid composition of sheep, we conducted genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and estimated genomic heritabilities for fatty acid profile in Longissimus dorsi muscle of 216 male sheep. Results: Genomic heritability estimates for fatty acid content ranged from 0.25 to 0.46, indicating that substantial genetic variation exists for the evaluated traits. Therefore, it is possible to alter fatty acid profiles through selection. Twenty-seven genomic regions of 10 adjacent SNPs associated with fatty acids composition were identified on chromosomes 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18, each explaining ≥0.30% of the additive genetic variance. Twenty-three genes supporting the understanding of genetic mechanisms of fat composition in sheep were identified in these regions, such as DGAT2, TRHDE, TPH2, ME1, C6, C7, UBE3D, PARP14, and MRPS30. Conclusions: Estimates of genomic heritabilities and elucidating important genomic regions can contribute to a better understanding of the genetic control of fatty acid deposition and improve the selection strategies to enhance meat quality and health attributes

Clinical Outcomes With a Repositionable Self-Expanding Transcatheter Aortic Valve Prosthesis: The International FORWARD Study

Background Clinical outcomes in large patient populations from real-world clinical practice with a next-generation self-expanding transcatheter aortic valve are lacking. Objectives This study sought to document the clinical and device performance outcomes of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) with a next-generation, self-expanding transcatheter heart valve (THV) system in patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis (AS) in routine clinical practice. Methods The FORWARD (CoreValve Evolut R FORWARD) study is a prospective, single-arm, multinational, multicenter, observational study. An independent clinical events committee adjudicated safety endpoints based on Valve Academic Research Consortium-2 definitions. An independent echocardiographic core laboratory evaluated all echocardiograms. From January 2016 to December 2016, TAVR with the next-generation self-expanding THV was attempted in 1,038 patients with symptomatic, severe AS at 53 centers on 4 continents. Results Mean age was 81.8 ± 6.2 years, 64.9% were women, the mean Society of Thoracic Surgeons Predicted Risk of Mortality was 5.5 ± 4.5%, and 33.9% of patients were deemed frail. The repositioning feature of the THV was applied in 25.8% of patients. A single valve was implanted in the proper anatomic location in 98.9% of patients. The mean aortic valve gradient was 8.5 ± 5.6 mm Hg, and moderate or severe aortic regurgitation was 1.9% at discharge. All-cause mortality was 1.9%, and disabling stroke occurred in 1.8% at 30 days. The expected-to-observed early surgical mortality ratio was 0.35. A pacemaker was implanted in 17.5% of patients. Conclusions TAVR using the next-generation THV is clinically safe and effective for treating older patients with severe AS at increased operative risk. (CoreValve Evolut R FORWARD Study [FORWARD]; NCT02592369

Mechanisms and therapeutic applications of electromagnetic therapy in Parkinson's disease

© 2015 Vadalà et al. Electromagnetic therapy is a non-invasive and safe approach for the management of several pathological conditions including neurodegenerative diseases. Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative pathology caused by abnormal degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra pars compacta in the midbrain resulting in damage to the basal ganglia. Electromagnetic therapy has been extensively used in the clinical setting in the form of transcranial magnetic stimulation, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation, high-frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation and pulsed electromagnetic field therapy which can also be used in the domestic setting. In this review, we discuss the mechanisms and therapeutic applications of electromagnetic therapy to alleviate motor and non-motor deficits that characterize Parkinson's disease