Cognitive Function in Individuals with Chronic Hypoparathyroidism - A Prospective Observational Study.

Objective: "Brain fog" is a frequently reported, distressing experience among individuals with chronic hypoparathyroidism, characterized by reduced concentration and reduced ability to perform day-to-day tasks. However, evidence linking chronic hypoparathyroidism to cognitive impairment is limited and inconsistent. This study aimed to explore cognitive function in these patients using a validated neurocognitive test battery, compare results with a matched healthy control group, and analyze the frequency of cognitive impairment based on normative data.

Patient-centered discharge summaries to support safety and individual health literacy: a double-blind randomized controlled trial in Austria.

Background: To ensure a safe patient discharge from hospital it is necessary to transfer all relevant information in a discharge summary (DS). The aim of this study was to evaluate a bundle of measures to improve the DS for physicians, nurses and patients.

Methods: In a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, four different versions of DS (2 original, 2 revised) were tested with physicians, nurses and patients.

Impact of 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin inclusion complex formation on dopamine receptor-ligand interaction - A case study.

The octanol-water distribution coefficient (logP), used as a measure of lipophilicity, plays a major role in the drug design and discovery processes. While average logP values remain unchanged in approved oral drugs since 1983, current medicinal chemistry trends towards increasingly lipophilic compounds that require adapted analytical workflows and drug delivery systems. Solubility enhancers like cyclodextrins (CDs), especially 2-hydroxypropyl-β-CD (2-HP-β-CD), have been studied in vitro and in vivo investigating their ADMET (adsorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and toxicity)-related properties.

Mutational scanning pinpoints distinct binding sites of key ATGL regulators in lipolysis.

ATGL is a key enzyme in intracellular lipolysis and plays an important role in metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. ATGL is tightly regulated by a known set of protein-protein interaction partners with activating or inhibiting functions in the control of lipolysis. Here, we use deep mutational protein interaction perturbation scanning and generate comprehensive profiles of single amino acid variants that affect the interactions of ATGL with its regulatory partners: CGI-58, G0S2, PLIN1, PLIN5 and CIDEC.

Gut Microbiome Composition and Its Association with Sleep in Major Psychiatric Disorders.

Introduction: Sleep disturbances are highly prevalent across most major psychiatric disorders. Alterations in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, neuroimmune mechanisms, and circadian rhythm disturbances partially explain this connection. The gut microbiome is also suspected to play a role in sleep regulation, and recent studies suggest that certain probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and fecal microbiome transplantation can improve sleep quality.

Combination of and Screening to Identify Novel Glutamate Carboxypeptidase II Inhibitors.

Glutamate carboxypeptidase II (GCPII) is a metalloprotease implicated in neurological diseases and prostate oncology. While several classes of potent GCPII-specific inhibitors exist, the development of novel active scaffolds with different pharmacological profiles remains a challenge. Virtual screening followed by testing is an effective means for the discovery of novel active compounds.

Responses Toward Injustice Shaped by Justice Sensitivity - Evidence From Germany.

Anger, indignation, guilt, rumination, victim compensation, and perpetrator punishment are considered primary responses associated with justice sensitivity (JS). However, injustice and high JS may predispose to further responses. We had = 293 adults rate their JS, 17 potential responses toward 12 unjust scenarios from the victim's, observer's, beneficiary's, and perpetrator's perspectives, and several control variables.

Do increases in deep grey matter volumes after electroconvulsive therapy persist in patients with major depression? A longitudinal MRI-study.

Background: Previous MRI studies reported deep grey matter volume increases after electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). However, the clinical correlates of these changes are still unclear. It remains debated whether such volume changes are transient, and if they correlate with affective changes over time.

Fundamentally altered global- and microstate EEG characteristics in Huntington's disease.

Objective: Huntington's disease (HD) is characterized by psychiatric, cognitive, and motor disturbances. The study aimed to determine electroencephalography (EEG) global state and microstate changes in HD and their relationship with cognitive and behavioral impairments.

Methods: EEGs from 20 unmedicated HD patients and 20 controls were compared using global state properties (connectivity and dimensionality) and microstate properties (EEG microstate analysis).

Correction to: Probiotics and the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis: Focus on Psychiatry.

The original version of this article unfortunately contained mistake. The sure name "Cyran" of the author John F Cyran (J. F.

Probiotics and the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis: Focus on Psychiatry.

Purpose Of Review: Probiotics are living bacteria, which when ingested in adequate amounts, confer health benefits. Gut microbes are suggested to play a role in many psychiatric disorders and could be a potential therapeutic target. Between the gut and the brain, there is a bi-directional communication pathway called the microbiota-gut-brain axis.

Reduced Brain Electric Activity and Functional Connectivity in Bipolar Euthymia: An sLORETA Source Localization Study.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a chronic illness with a relapsing and remitting time course. Relapses are manic or depressive in nature and intermitted by euthymic states. During euthymic states, patients lack the criteria for a manic or depressive diagnosis, but still suffer from impaired cognitive functioning as indicated by difficulties in executive and language-related processing.

The Role of Nutrition and the Gut-Brain Axis in Psychiatry: A Review of the Literature.

Introduction: Individuals suffering from psychiatric disorders experience high levels of illness burden and a significantly reduced quality of life. Despite targeted psychopharmacological strategies and complementary psychotherapeutic procedures only moderate effects are obtained, and the risk of relapse is high in many patients. Worldwide, psychiatric diseases such as depression are continuously increasing, challenging the personal life of the affected as well as their families, but also whole societies by increasing disability, early retirement and hospitalization.

Prioritizing information topics for relatives of critically ill patients : Cross-sectional survey among intensive care unit relatives and professionals.

A patient's admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) has a significant impact on family members and other relatives. In order for them to be able to cope with such a stressful situation, the availability of appropriate understandable and accessible information is crucial. The information asymmetry between relatives and medical professionals may adversely affect satisfaction of relatives and their risk of subsequent anxiety, depression and stress symptoms.

A step ahead: Exploring the gut microbiota in inpatients with bipolar disorder during a depressive episode.

Objectives: There is evidence that the gut microbiota plays a major role in the pathogenesis of diseases of the central nervous system through the gut-brain axis. The aim of the present study was to analyze gut microbiota composition in bipolar disorder (BD) and its relation to inflammation, serum lipids, oxidative stress, tryptophan (TRP)/kynurenine (KYN) levels, anthropometric measurements and parameters of metabolic syndrome. Further, microbial community differences of individuals with BD compared with healthy controls (HC) were explored.

[Pilot study: Gut microbiome and intestinal barrier in anorexia nervosa].

Introduction: Recent research has shown changes of the intestinal flora in anorexia nervosa (AN) patients. Alpha diversity (AD) represents the number of different bacterial species in the gut. Reduced AD and a leaky gut (zonulin) lead to inflammation and changes in nutrient absorption.

Longitudinal Links between Executive Function, Anger, and Aggression in Middle Childhood.

Previous research has indicated that executive function (EF) is negatively associated with aggressive behavior in childhood. However, there is a lack of longitudinal studies that have examined the effect of deficits in EF on aggression over time and taken into account different forms and functions of aggression at the same time. Furthermore, only few studies have analyzed the role of underlying variables that may explain the association between EF and aggression.

Gut microbiota and body composition in anorexia nervosa inpatients in comparison to athletes, overweight, obese, and normal weight controls.

Objectives: Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a heterogeneous eating disorder associated with alterations of body structure and the gut microbiome. We aimed to investigate the gut microbiota composition of a large female cohort including different BMI groups and activity levels along with body composition parameters.

Method: 106 female participants were included in this cross-sectional study: AN patients (n = 18), athletes (n = 20), normal weight (n = 26), overweight (n = 22), and obese women (n = 20).

[The power plants of the cell: Treatment of psychiatric symptoms in patients with mitochondriopathy].

Mitochondriopathies are pathologies of cell organelles, which are essential for the formation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is responsible for cellular energy stock. When mitochondrial mutations occur, symptoms arise frequently in those organs that rely on a continuous energy supply, such as the nervous system. Although psychiatric illness is increasingly prevalent in patients with mitochondrial disease, less attention has been paid to its psychiatric presentations.

Venous thromboembolism during treatment with antipsychotics: Results of a drug surveillance programme.

Objectives: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) can be a life-threatening medical condition that may lead to leg swelling, respiratory distress and death.

Methods: The AMSP (Arzneimittelsicherheit in der Psychiatrie) is a continuous multicentre drug surveillance programme that assesses severe adverse drug reactions during treatment of psychiatric inpatients. We report on a total of 264,422 inpatients who were treated with antipsychotics (APs) and monitored from 1993 to 2011 in 99 psychiatric hospitals.

The role of dopamine in positive and negative prediction error utilization during incidental learning - Insights from Positron Emission Tomography, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease.

Incidental learning of appropriate stimulus-response associations is crucial for optimal functioning within our complex environment. Positive and negative prediction errors (PEs) serve as neural teaching signals within distinct ('direct'/'indirect') dopaminergic pathways to update associations and optimize subsequent behavior. Using a computational reinforcement learning model, we assessed learning from positive and negative PEs on a probabilistic task (Weather Prediction Task - WPT) in three populations that allow different inferences on the role of dopamine (DA) signals: (1) Healthy volunteers that repeatedly underwent [C]raclopride Positron Emission Tomography (PET), allowing for assessment of striatal DA release during learning, (2) Parkinson's disease (PD) patients tested both on and off L-DOPA medication, (3) early Huntington's disease (HD) patients, a disease that is associated with hyper-activation of the 'direct' pathway.

Problem solving, impulse control and planning in patients with early- and late-stage Huntington's disease.

Sub-domains of executive functions, including problems with planning, accuracy, impulsivity, and inhibition, are core features of Huntington's disease. It is known that the decline of cognitive function in Huntington's disease is related to the anatomical progression of pathology in the basal ganglia. However, it remains to be determined whether the severity of executive dysfunction depends on the stage of the disease.

Depression-Burnout Overlap in Physicians.

Background: Whether burnout is a distinct phenomenon rather than a type of depression and whether it is a syndrome, limited to three "core" components (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and low personal accomplishment) are subjects of current debate. We investigated the depression-burnout overlap, and the pertinence of these three components in a large, representative sample of physicians.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study, all Austrian physicians were invited to answer a questionnaire that included the Major Depression Inventory (MDI), the Hamburg Burnout Inventory (HBI), as well as demographic and job-related parameters.

Pharmacotherapy of anxiety disorders in German-speaking countries: current status and changes between 1994 and 2011.

Over the past years, international treatment guidelines have been established for the treatment of anxiety disorders. Nevertheless, little is known as to whether the actual inpatient treatment follows these guidelines. The main goal of this study was to answer the question whether patients with anxiety disorder are treated according to treatment guidelines.

Brain electrical source imaging in manic and depressive episodes of bipolar disorder.

Objective: Bipolar disorder (BD) electroencephalographic (EEG) studies have reported varying results. The present study compared EEG in BD during manic and depressive episodes, using brain electrical source imaging [standardized low-resolution electromagnetic tomography (sLORETA)] to assess the cortical spatial distribution of the sources of EEG oscillation frequencies.

Methods: Two independent datasets (a total of 95 patients with bipolar I disorder, of whom 59 were female) were analyzed.