Neurofeedback Intervention in Fibromyalgia Syndrome; a Randomized,Controlled, Rater Blind Clinical Trial

We designed a randomized, rater blind study to assess the efficacy of EEG Biofeedback (Neurofeedback-NFB) in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). Eighteen patients received twenty sessions of NFB-sensory motor rhythm (SMR) treatment (NFB group) during 4 weeks, and eighteen patients were given 10 mg per day escitalopram treatment (control group) for 8 weeks. Visual Analog Scales for pain and fatigue, Hamilton and Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventory Scales, Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire and Short Form 36 were used as outcome measures which were applied at baseline and 2nd, 4th, 8th, 16th, 24th weeks. Mean amplitudes of EEG rhythms (delta, theta, alpha, SMR, beta1 and beta2) and theta/SMR ratio were also measured in NFB group. All post-treatment measurements showed significant improvements in both of the groups (for all parameters p < 0.05). NFB group displayed greater benefits than controls (for all parameters p < 0.05). Therapeutic efficacy of NFB was found to begin at 2nd week and reached to a maximum effect at 4th week. On the other hand, the improvements in SSRI treatment were also detected to begin at 2nd week but reached to a maximum effect at 8th week. No statistically significant changes were noted regarding mean amplitudes of EEG rhythms (p > 0.05 for all). However, theta/SMR ratio showed a significant decrease at 4th week compared to baseline in the NFB group (p < 0.05). These data support the efficacy of NFB as a treatment for pain, psychological symptoms and impaired quality of life associated with fibromyalgia.     

Identification of guinea pig eosinophil chemotactic factor of anaphylaxis as leukotriene B4 and 8(S),15(S)-dihydroxy-5,9,11,13(Z,E,Z,E)-eicosatetraenoic acid.

We have purified and characterized the guinea pig eosinophil chemotactic factor of anaphylaxis (ECF-A), an activity previously described in diffusates from sensitized lung challenged with specific Ag that appeared to selectively attract eosinophils from mixed leukocyte populations. Time course studies showed that the release of ECF-A from challenged presensitized guinea pig lung fragments closely paralleled the release of immunoreactive leukotriene B4 (iLTB4) and histamine. However, the majority of ECF-A (greater than 80%) and iLTB4 (greater than 79%) was extractable with the lipid fraction from the methanol wash of Sep-Pak-extracted diffusate, whereas histamine remained in the aqueous phase. A comparable neutrophil chemotactic activity was also found in the methanol extracts of the anaphylactic diffusates. By using a combination of HPLC and specific RIA, greater than 60% of ECF-A was attributable to LTB4. A second eosinophil chemotactic activity was also identified and coeluted (on both reverse phase and straight phase HPLC) with the synthetic standard 8(S),15(S)-dihydroxy-5,9,11,13(Z,E,Z,E)eicosatetraenoic acid (8(S),15(S)-diHETE). This was confirmed as 8(S),15(S)-diHETE by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Platelet-activating factor and histamine had negligible activity for guinea pig eosinophils, compared with synthetic LTB4 (p less than 0.05, 10(-9) and 10(-8) M; p less than 0.01, 10(-7) to 5 x 10(-6) M). In addition, synthetic 8(S),15(S)-diHETE had 3 times less activity than LTB4 at optimal chemotactic concentrations (10(-6) and 10(-7) M, respectively). Thus, guinea pig ECF-A appears to be largely attributable to lipoxygenase products of arachidonic acid, namely LTB4 and 8(S),15(S)-diHETE. Because guinea pig ECF-A was equally active on neutrophils (greater than 96% purity), it can no longer be considered a selective eosinophil chemoattractant.     

Clinical Use of a New Mitral Disc Valve

A disc valve of new design was used successfully for the replacement of the mitral valve in patients with rheumatic mitral valve disease. This valve would appear to have the following advantages over the mitral ball valve prosthesis:• Lower left atrial pressure after replacement.• Elimination of the hazard of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction with mitral valve replacement.• Decreased incidence of thromboembolization.• Abolition of possibility of ventricular septal irritation.Despite the better outlook for this valve compared with the ball valve for mitral valve substitution, the mitral valve should always be repaired whenever feasible. Repair is possible in the majority of patients.     

Pollen in packrat middens

Fossil packrat middens are used to reconstruct late Quaternary environments in the arid Western U.S.A. Airborne pollen is contributed to middens both directly from the air, and through adherence to plant macrofossils. I examined the filtration of atmospheric pollen by Larrea tridentata leaves (resinous, with sparse recumbent hairs), Cercidium microphyllum twigs (glabrous with recumbent hairs) and Sphaeralcea ambigua leaves (covered with stellate hairs) and evaluated the potential biases of scavenged pollen on the interpretation of pollen records from middens. Pollen grains collected from the surfaces of the plants were most numerous during the spring when (airborne) pollen concentrations were high. Of the species investigated, the Sphaeralcea leaves filtered the greatest number of spring pollen grains from the air (3419 grains cm^?2); captured pollen was very low during other seasons. Sticky Larrea leaves continuously captured airborne pollen ( = 246 grains cm^?2). Pollen captured by smooth Cercidium was consistently low ( = 31 grains cm^?2). Only the spring pollen was filtered in sufficient numbers to obtain minimum pollen counts of 200 grains by all 3 taxa. The plants frequently captured greater proportions of their own pollen. Pollen content of packrat middens will reflect the season of plant macrofossil collection and the species composition of the plants incorporated.     

Risk-taking in free-living spotted hyenas is associated with anthropogenic disturbance,predicts survivorship,and is consistent across experimental contexts

Anthropogenic disturbance can have important influences on the fitness and behaviors of wild animals, including their boldness when exposed to risky conditions. We presented spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) from two populations, each exposed to a different level of human activity, with a life-size model hyena representing an intruder from another clan. The high-disturbance population lived adjacent to human settlements, and the low-disturbance population inhabited a relatively undisturbed part of the same national park in Kenya. The mock intruder was presented to individual hyenas to assess their reactions to an alien hyena, and to determine whether their reactions varied with their exposure to anthropogenic activity. We found that human disturbance was indeed associated with hyena risk-taking behavior in response to the model intruder. Hyenas tested in the low-disturbance area exhibited more risk-taking behaviors by approaching the mock intruder more closely, and spending more time near it, than did their counterparts living in high-disturbance areas. Hyenas that spent less time in close proximity to the model had greater survivorship than those that spent more time in close proximity to it, regardless of disturbance level. Furthermore, the individual differences in risk-taking measured here were consistent with those obtained previously from the same animals using a different set of experimental manipulations. However, the experimentally induced behaviors were not consistent with naturally occurring risk-taking behaviors in proximity to lions; this suggests that risk-taking behaviors are consistent within individuals across experimental contexts, but that exposure to lions elicits different responses. Although our results are consistent with those from earlier tests of anthropogenic disturbance and boldness in spotted hyenas and other predators, they differ from results obtained from birds and small mammals, which are generally found to be bolder in areas characterized by human disturbance.     

Genetic variability and demographic history of Anguilla mossambica (Peters, 1852) from continental Africa and Madagascar

In this study, population genetic and demographic parameters were inferred using sequence data from 151 individuals of Anguilla mossambica originating from continental south and south-east Africa and Madagascar. The analyses were based on a 532 bp segment of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. The absence of genetic structuring was observed thereby supporting the hypothesis of panmixia for the endemic A. mossambica. The overall nucleotide diversity π = 0.002 and the haplotype diversity reached h = 0.691. Significant negative values from several tests of neutrality and mismatch analysis pointed to fluctuating historical population sizes. Bayesian averaging resulted in higher support for population growth models vs. a constant population-size model. Population decline and subsequent growth most likely predated the last glacial and were probably related to extended periods of extreme drought followed by wetter and more stable hydroclimate between 150 and 75,000 years before present (kBP). According to this scenario the female effective population size has increased since 110 kBP by c. two orders of magnitude to a recent level of about 650,000 (219,317–2,292,000).     

Amino Acid Pool Formation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

The accumulation and behavior of various amino acids in the pool of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 9027) were investigated. Patterns of pool formation and maintenance varied with different amino acids tested and were dependent, to a considerable extent, upon the ability of the organism to catabolize the particular amino acid. The establishment of steady-state amino acid pool levels depended upon the activity of the amino acid permease involved and upon the rate of protein synthesis. The presence of a relatively large specific amino acid pool did not affect the formation of a pool of a structurally different amino acid, and a preformed steady-state pool was not displaced by structurally unrelated amino acids. Steady-state amino acid pools decreased rapidly in the presence of inhibitors of energy metabolism and at 0 C. Steady-state internal amino acid pools were found to be in equilibrium with the corresponding external amino acid, present at low levels. A multiplicity of proline pools was demonstrated.     

Comparison of material properties in fascicle-bone units from human patellar tendon and knee ligaments

The fascicle material properties in bone-fascicle-bone units were determined for the anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments (ACL, PCL), the lateral collateral ligament (LCL) and the patellar tendon (PT) from three young human donor knees. Groups of fascicles from each tissue were isolated with intact bone ends and failed at a high strain rate in a saline bath at 37 degrees C. In each knee tested the load related material properties (linear modulus, maximum stress and energy density to maximum stress) for the patellar tendon were significantly larger than corresponding values for the cruciate and collateral ligaments. Bundles from different ligaments in the same knee were similar to each other in their mechanical behavior. In addition, no significant differences were present in the maximum strains recorded for any of the four tissue types examined. The results presented have implications in studies of ligament injury. They are also important in the design and use of synthetic and biological ligament replacements and in tissue and whole knee modeling.     

Overview of thermostable DNA polymerases for classical PCR applications: from molecular and biochemical fundamentals to commercial systems

During the genomics era, the use of thermostable DNA polymerases increased greatly. Many were identified and described—mainly of the genera Thermus, Thermococcus and Pyrococcus. Each polymerase has different features, resulting from origin and genetic modification. However, the rational choice of the adequate polymerase depends on the application itself. This review gives an overview of the most commonly used DNA polymerases used for PCR application: KOD, Pab (Isis?), Pfu, Pst (Deep Vent?), Pwo, Taq, Tbr, Tca, Tfi, Tfl, Tfu, Tgo, Tli (Vent?), Tma (UITma?), Tne, Tth and others.