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The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging Apr 2024Iron is important for neurogenesis, synaptic development, and neurotransmitter synthesis. Serum ferritin (SF) is a reliable marker for assessing iron stores. Therefore,... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
OBJECTIVES
Iron is important for neurogenesis, synaptic development, and neurotransmitter synthesis. Serum ferritin (SF) is a reliable marker for assessing iron stores. Therefore, we evaluated the cognitive function associated with SF levels. We also assessed brain iron content using R2* Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and its association with SF levels.
DESIGN
Data from three cross-sectional observational studies were used. Aging Imageomics (n = 1030) was conducted on aged subjects. Health Imageomics (n = 971) and IR0NMET (n = 175) were conducted in middle-aged subjects.
SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS
Participants were enrolled at Dr. Josep Trueta University Hospital facilities. The three cohorts included a total of 2176 subjects (mean age, 52 years; 48% men).
MEASUREMENTS
SF levels were measured by standard laboratory methods. Total Digits Span (TDS), and Phonemic Verbal Fluency (PVF) were used to assess executive function. Language function was assessed by semantic verbal fluency (SVF), attention by the Symbol Digit Modalities Test, and memory by the Memory Binding Tests - Total Free Recall and Total Delayed Free Recall. MRI was used to assess the iron content of the brain by R2*.
RESULTS
In subjects aged 65 years or older, SF levels were associated with increased TDS (β = 0.003, p = 0.02), PVF (β = 0.004, p = 0.01), and SVF (β = 0.004, p = 0.002) scores. After stratification by sex, these findings were significant only in men, where SF was associated with increased TDS (β = 0.003, p = 0.01), PVF (β = 0.004, p = 0.03), and SVF (β = 0.004, p = 0.009) scores. In middle-aged subjects, SF was also associated with increased SVF scores (β = 0.005, p = 0.011). Lastly, in men, SF levels were negatively associated with R2*, a surrogate marker of brain iron content, in both the left frontal inferior opercular area (r = -0.41, p = 0.005) and the right frontal inferior opercular area (r = -0.44, p = 0.002).
CONCLUSIONS
SF is significantly and positively associated with cognition. In older people with low SF levels, iron supplementation may be a promising therapy to improve cognition.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Ferritins; Cross-Sectional Studies; Middle Aged; Cognition; Aging; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Aged; Brain; Cognitive Dysfunction; Iron; Biomarkers; Executive Function; Neuropsychological Tests
PubMed: 38368845
DOI: 10.1016/j.jnha.2024.100190 -
International Journal of Clinical... 2023To evaluate the association between severe early childhood caries (S-ECC), dietary preferences, and 2nd digit-4th digit (2D:4D) ratio. The objective is to contrast the...
BACKGROUND AND AIM
To evaluate the association between severe early childhood caries (S-ECC), dietary preferences, and 2nd digit-4th digit (2D:4D) ratio. The objective is to contrast the detection and prevalence of dental caries in children with different sensitivity levels to the bitter taste of 6--propylthiouracil (PROP) and its association with 2D:4D.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 300 children below 71 months of age were assigned to two study groups-group I (caries-free) and group II (caries). PROP sensitivity test was carried out to determine the inherent genetic ability to taste a bitter or sweet substance. Evaluation of dietary preferences was carried out using a food preference questionnaire, which was completed by the parents of the children to know the child's dietary habits and their sweet, sour, and strong taste preferences. The length of the index (2D) and ring (4D) finger was measured with the help of digital vernier caliper to record the 2D:4D ratio. The data obtained was subjected to statistical analysis using Pearson's Chi-squared test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA).
RESULTS
The results suggested a positive association between S-ECC and dietary preferences but could not establish a straightforward 1:1 relation between 2D:4D ratio and S-ECC.
CONCLUSION
An individual considered as nontaster by PROP test was a sweet liker with low 2D:4D ratio having high caries index. The association between 2D:4D ratio and S-ECC should further be explored by taking other influencing factors into consideration before arriving at a definitive conclusion.
HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE
Srivastava SK, Garg N, Pathivada L, Association between Severe Early Childhood Caries, Dietary Preferences, and 2nd Digit-4th Digit (2D:4D) Ratio. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2023;16(5):740-744.
PubMed: 38162242
DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10005-2681 -
Balkan Medical Journal Sep 2023Although human leukocyte antigen (HLA) data for the Turkish population has been reported, there are no statistics on the HLA-DPB1 locus, which has recently received...
BACKGROUND
Although human leukocyte antigen (HLA) data for the Turkish population has been reported, there are no statistics on the HLA-DPB1 locus, which has recently received significant attention, particularly in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In addition, there is no study that has reported the 2-6 loci HLA haplotype distribution, 8-digit HLA allele frequency, and genotype frequency in the Turkish population.
AIMS
To evaluate the low and high resolution (2-4-8 digits) HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1, -DQB1, -DPB1 allele data using the data of 6100 healthy individuals from the Central Anatolian region of Turkey.
STUDY DESIGN
Retrospective cross-sectional study.
METHODS
All tests were performed using molecular HLA techniques: low-resolution DNA-based sequence-specific oligonucleotides, low/high-resolution DNA-based sequence-specific primer, and high-resolution next generation sequencing. A total of 6100 healthy donors with a minimum of 3 loci (HLA-A, -B, -DRB1) were analyzed for their HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1, -DQB1, and -DPB1 data. Pypop and HLA-net GENE[RATE] were used to analyze the data.
RESULTS
Among the HLA class I alleles, the following were the most frequently observed alleles: for HLA-A, , and ; for HLA-B, , and ; and for HLA-C, , and . Among the HLA class II alleles, the following alelles were the most frequently observed: for HLA-DRB1, , and ; for HLA-DQB1, , and ; and for HLA- DPB1, , and . The most common alleles among HLA-DPB1 in the 4-digit evaluation were DPB1*04:01, DPB1*02:01, and DPB1*04:02. Among the HLA classes I and II, the following were the most frequently observed 8-digit alleles in HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1, -DQB1 and -DPB1 were , and , respectively. The most common 6 loci haplotype was (2.71%).
CONCLUSION
In this study, low and high resolution HLA-DPB1 allele frequency, 6 locus haplotype frequency and genotype frequency were reported for the first time in Turkish population. These new data can be used to map HLA in our country and may provide ideas for potential future studies.
Topics: Humans; Haplotypes; Turkey; Alleles; Gene Frequency; Retrospective Studies; Cross-Sectional Studies; Genotype; Histocompatibility Antigens Class I; HLA-DRB1 Chains; HLA-A Antigens; DNA
PubMed: 37584525
DOI: 10.4274/balkanmedj.galenos.2023.2023-4-55 -
PloS One 2023Studies that examined the effect of amphetamine or caffeine on spatial working memory (SWM) and verbal working memory (VWM) have used various tasks. However, there are... (Randomized Controlled Trial)
Randomized Controlled Trial
UNLABELLED
Studies that examined the effect of amphetamine or caffeine on spatial working memory (SWM) and verbal working memory (VWM) have used various tasks. However, there are no studies that have used spatial span tasks (SSTs) to assess the SWM effect of amphetamine and caffeine, although some studies have used digit span tasks (DST) to assess VWM. Previous reports also showed that increasing dopamine increases psychosis-like experiences (PLE, or schizotypy) scores which are in turn negatively associated with WM performance in people with high schizotypy and people with schizophrenia. Therefore, the present study aimed to examine the influence of d-amphetamine (0.45 mg/kg, PO), a dopamine releasing stimulant, on SST, DST, and on PLE in healthy volunteers. In a separate study, we examined the effect of caffeine, a nonspecific adenosine receptor antagonist with stimulant properties, on similar tasks.
METHODS
Healthy participants (N = 40) took part in two randomized, double-blind, counter-balanced placebo-controlled cross-over pilot studies: The first group (N = 20) with d-amphetamine (0.45 mg/kg, PO) and the second group (N = 20) with caffeine (200 mg, PO). Spatial span and digit span were examined under four delay conditions (0, 2, 4, 8 s). PLE were assessed using several scales measuring various aspects of psychosis and schizotypy.
RESULTS
We failed to find an effect of d-amphetamine or caffeine on SWM or VWM, relative to placebo. However, d-amphetamine increased a composite score of psychosis-like experiences (p = 0.0005), specifically: Scores on Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, Perceptual Aberrations Scale, and Magical Ideation Scale were increased following d-amphetamine. The degree of change in PLE following d-amphetamine negatively and significantly correlated with changes in SWM, mainly at the longest delay condition of 8 s (r = -0.58, p = 0.006).
CONCLUSION
The present results showed that moderate-high dose of d-amphetamine and moderate dose of caffeine do not directly affect performances on DST or SST. However, the results indicate that d-amphetamine indirectly influences SWM, through its effect on psychosis-like experiences.
CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER
CT-2018-CTN-02561 (Therapeutic Goods Administration Clinical Trial Registry) and ACTRN12618001292268 (The Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry) for caffeine study, and ACTRN12608000610336 for d-amphetamine study.
Topics: Humans; Dextroamphetamine; Caffeine; Healthy Volunteers; Dopamine; Australia; Amphetamine; Double-Blind Method
PubMed: 37440493
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287538 -
The Lancet. Digital Health May 2024
Topics: Humans; Periodicals as Topic; Digital Technology; Telemedicine; Digital Health
PubMed: 38670735
DOI: 10.1016/S2589-7500(24)00073-6 -
The Lancet. Digital Health Apr 2024
PubMed: 38519148
DOI: 10.1016/S2589-7500(24)00049-9 -
Attention, Perception & Psychophysics May 2024The link between various codes of magnitude and their interactions has been studied extensively for many years. In the current study, we examined how the physical and...
The link between various codes of magnitude and their interactions has been studied extensively for many years. In the current study, we examined how the physical and numerical magnitudes of digits are mapped into a combined mental representation. In two psychophysical experiments, participants reported the physically larger digit among two digits. In the identical condition, participants compared digits of an identical value (e.g., "2" and "2"); in the different condition, participants compared digits of distinct numerical values (i.e., "2" and "5"). As anticipated, participants overestimated the physical size of a numerically larger digit and underestimated the physical size of a numerically smaller digit. Our results extend the shared-representation account of physical and numerical magnitudes.
Topics: Humans; Size Perception; Pattern Recognition, Visual; Male; Female; Young Adult; Judgment; Psychophysics; Adult; Attention; Discrimination, Psychological
PubMed: 38639857
DOI: 10.3758/s13414-024-02875-w -
Frontiers in Digital Health 2024
PubMed: 38495378
DOI: 10.3389/fdgth.2024.1368666 -
International Journal of Circumpolar... Dec 2023We performed a scoping review to identify the extent of the literature describing the use of iloprost in the treatment of frostbite. Iloprost is a stable synthetic... (Review)
Review
We performed a scoping review to identify the extent of the literature describing the use of iloprost in the treatment of frostbite. Iloprost is a stable synthetic analog of prostaglandin I. As a potent inhibitor of platelet aggregation and vasodilator, it has been used to address the post-rewarming reperfusion injury in frostbite. The search using iloprost and frostbite as key words and MeSH terms yielded 200 articles. We included in our review the literature examining iloprost for the treatment of frostbite in humans in the form of primary research, conference proceedings and abstracts. Twenty studies published from 1994 to 2022 were selected for analysis. The majority were retrospective case series consisting of a homogeneous population of mountain sport enthusiasts. A total of 254 patients and over 1000 frostbitten digits were included among the 20 studies. The larger case series demonstrated a decrease in amputation rates relative to untreated patients. Primary gaps in the literature include a paucity of randomised trials and relatively limited study populations to date. While the case evidence is promising, a multi-centre collaboration would be crucial to adequately power prospective randomised studies to definitively determine if iloprost has a role in the treatment of frostbite.
Topics: Humans; Iloprost; Prospective Studies; Retrospective Studies; Epoprostenol; Frostbite
PubMed: 36966492
DOI: 10.1080/22423982.2023.2189552