Untimed Design Fluency in Aging and Alzheimer's Disease: Psychometrics and Normative Data.

Design fluency tests, commonly used in both clinical and research contexts to evaluate nonverbal concept generation, have the potential to offer useful information in the differentiation of healthy versus pathological aging. Although normative data for older adults (OAs) are available for multiple timed versions of this test, similar data have been unavailable for a previously published untimed test, the Graphic Pattern Generation Test (GPG). Time constraints common to almost all of the available design fluency tests may cloud interpretation of higher-level executive abilities-for example, in individuals with slow processing speed.

Development of new muscle contraction sensor to replace sEMG for using in muscles analysis fields.

Nowadays, the technologies for detecting, processing and interpreting bioelectrical signals have improved tremendously. In particular, surface electromyography (sEMG) has gained momentum in a wide range of applications in various fields. However, sEMG sensing has several shortcomings, the most important being: measurements are heavily sensible to individual differences, sensors are difficult to position and very expensive.

Use and cost of hospitalization in dementia: longitudinal results from a community-based study.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to examine the relative contribution of functional impairment and cognitive deficits on risk of hospitalization and costs.

Methods: A prospective cohort of Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 and older who participated in the Washington Heights-Inwood Columbia Aging Project (WHICAP) were followed approximately every 18 months for over 10 years (1805 never diagnosed with dementia during study period, 221 diagnosed with dementia at enrollment). Hospitalization and Medicare expenditures data (1999-2010) were obtained from Medicare claims.

Common genetic variants on 6q24 associated with exceptional episodic memory performance in the elderly.

Importance: There are genetic influences on memory ability as we age, but no specific genes have been identified.

Objective: To use a cognitive endophenotype, exceptional episodic memory (EEM) performance, derived from nondemented offspring from the Long Life Family Study (LLFS) to identify genetic variants that may be responsible for the high cognitive performance of LLFS participants and further replicate these variants using an additional 4006 nondemented individuals from 4 independent elderly cohorts.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A total of 467 LLFS participants from 18 families with 2 or more offspring that exhibited exceptional memory performance were used for genome-wide linkage analysis.

A model that predicts the binaural advantage to speech intelligibility from the mixed target and interferer signals.

A model is presented that predicts the binaural advantage to speech intelligibility by analyzing the right and left recordings at the two ears containing mixed target and interferer signals. This auditory-inspired model implements an equalization-cancellation stage to predict the binaural unmasking (BU) component, in conjunction with a modulation-frequency estimation block to estimate the "better ear" effect (BE) component of the binaural advantage. The model's performance was compared to experimental data obtained under anechoic and reverberant conditions using a single speech-shaped noise interferer paradigm.

Preliminary evaluation of probiotic properties of Lactobacillus strains isolated from Sardinian dairy products.

Twenty-three Lactobacillus strains of dairy origin were evaluated for some functional properties relevant to their use as probiotics. A preliminary subtractive screening based on the abilities to inhibit the growth of microbial pathogens and hydrolyze conjugated bile salts was applied, and six strains were selected for further characterization including survival under gastrointestinal environmental conditions, adhesion to gut epithelial tissue, enzymatic activity, and some safety properties. All selected strains maintained elevated cell numbers under conditions simulating passage through the human gastrointestinal tract, well comparable to the values obtained for the probiotic strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, and were able to adhere to Caco-2 cells to various extents (from 3 to 20%).

Expression of dual nucleotides/cysteinyl-leukotrienes receptor GPR17 in early trafficking of cardiac stromal cells after myocardial infarction.

GPR17 is a G(i) -coupled dual receptor activated by uracil-nucleotides and cysteinyl-leukotrienes. These mediators are massively released into hypoxic tissues. In the normal heart, GPR17 expression has been reported.

Subjective word-finding difficulty reduces engagement in social leisure activities in Alzheimer's disease.

Objectives: To assess the influence of subjective word-finding difficulty on degree of engagement in social leisure activities among individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Design: Analysis of data collected from the second cohort of the Multicenter Study of Predictors of Disease Course in Alzheimer's disease.

Setting: Four study sites in the United States and France.

Cognitive correlates of metamemory in Alzheimer's disease.

Objective: Metamemory, or knowledge of one's memory abilities, is often impaired in individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD), although the basis of this metacognitive deficit has not been fully articulated. Behavioral and imaging studies have produced conflicting evidence regarding the extent to which specific cognitive domains (i.e.

Multiple system atrophy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in a family with hexanucleotide repeat expansions in C9orf72.

Importance: Here we report a family with coexistence of multiple system atrophy (MSA) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) with hexanucleotide repeat expansions in C9orf72.

Observations: A 65-year-old woman had a 2-year history of ataxia with autonomic dysfunction but without motor neuron signs. She was diagnosed as having MSA based on her clinical history and the hot cross bun sign on brain magnetic resonance imaging.

Social cognition in Alzheimer's disease: a separate construct contributing to dependence.

The extent to which social cognitive changes reflect a discrete constellation of symptoms dissociable from general cognitive changes in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is unclear. Moreover, whether social cognitive symptoms contribute to disease severity and progression is unknown. The current multicenter study investigated cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between social cognition measured with six items from the Blessed Dementia Rating Scale, general cognition, and dependence in 517 participants with probable AD.

Benchmarking of methods for genomic taxonomy.

One of the first issues that emerges when a prokaryotic organism of interest is encountered is the question of what it is--that is, which species it is. The 16S rRNA gene formed the basis of the first method for sequence-based taxonomy and has had a tremendous impact on the field of microbiology. Nevertheless, the method has been found to have a number of shortcomings.

Predictive and prognostic value of early response assessment using 18FDG-PET in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with erlotinib.

Background: [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-PET is being evaluated as a tool for the early detection of response to various targeted agents in solid tumors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive value of PET response after 2 days of erlotinib in unselected pretreated patients with stage IV NSCLC.

Patients And Methods: FDG-PET/CT scans were conducted at baseline and after 2 days of erlotinib, with a CT evaluation performed at baseline and after 45-60 days of therapy.

Change in body mass index before and after Alzheimer's disease onset.

Objectives: A high body mass index (BMI) in middle-age or a decrease in BMI at late-age has been considered a predictor for the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, little is known about the BMI change close to or after AD onset.

Methods: BMI of participants from three cohorts, the Washington Heights and Inwood Columbia Aging Project (WHICAP; population-based) and the Predictors Study (clinic-based), and National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (NACC; clinic-based) were analyzed longitudinally.

The cognitive side of essential tremor: what are the therapeutic implications?

While essential tremor (ET) has traditionally been categorized as a pure motor disease, cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of cognition in ET have demonstrated that these patients may have cognitive dysfunction. Recent epidemiological studies demonstrate an association between ET (particularly with onset after age 65) and increased risk for cognitive impairment and dementia. Although existing studies have generally conceptualized cognitive changes in ET as consistent with a 'frontosubcortical' or 'corticocerebellar' profile, results from these same studies suggest that cognitive impairment in ET may in fact be heterogeneous.

PathogenFinder--distinguishing friend from foe using bacterial whole genome sequence data.

Although the majority of bacteria are harmless or even beneficial to their host, others are highly virulent and can cause serious diseases, and even death. Due to the constantly decreasing cost of high-throughput sequencing there are now many completely sequenced genomes available from both human pathogenic and innocuous strains. The data can be used to identify gene families that correlate with pathogenicity and to develop tools to predict the pathogenicity of newly sequenced strains, investigations that previously were mainly done by means of more expensive and time consuming experimental approaches.

Use of PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis for identification of yeast species isolated from bovine intramammary infection.

This study reports a rapid PCR-based technique using a one-enzyme RFLP for discrimination of yeasts isolated from bovine clinical and subclinical mastitis milk samples. We analyzed a total of 1,486 milk samples collected over 1 yr in south Sardinia and northern Italy, and 142 yeast strains were preliminarily grouped based on their cultural morphology and physiological characteristics. Assimilation tests were conducted using the identification kit API ID 32C and APILAB Plus software (bioMérieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France).

Biomechanical evaluation of the phases during simulated endotracheal intubation (ETI): pilot study on the effect of different laryngoscopes.

Endotracheal Intubation (ETI) is a common airway procedure used to connect the larynx and the lungs through a windpipe in patients under emergency situations. The process is carried out by a laryngoscope inserted into the mouth, used to help doctors in visualizing the glottis and inserting the tube. Currently, very few studies on objective evaluation of the biomechanics of the doctors during the procedure have been done.

Use of an ultra-miniaturized IMU-based motion capture system for objective evaluation and assessment of walking skills.

The increasing age of the world population is posing new challenges to our society, such as how to keep this aging population healthy and active despite of the age. In recent years, there has been a lot of interest for gait analysis for rehabilitation purposes as well as for performance assessment of this aging population. While current systems work well, they still have several limitations.

Diagnostic consideration for sinonasal Wegener's granulomatosis clinically mistaken for carcinoma.

We report a case of Wegener's granulomatosis clinically mistaken for carcinoma in a 21-year-old girl presenting with an ulcerated mass of the nasopharynx associated with enlarged laterocervical nodes. The lesion was clinically suspected as malignant on the basis of clinical and radiological findings (namely, computed tomography scan and positron emission tomography). However, multiple biopsies were not conclusive for malignancy showing histological change suggestive of Wegener's granulomatosis.

Objective speech intelligibility measurement for cochlear implant users in complex listening environments.

Objective intelligibility measurement allows for reliable, low-cost, and repeatable assessment of innovative speech processing technologies, thus dispensing costly and time-consuming subjective tests. To date, existing objective measures have focused on normal hearing model, and limited use has been found for restorative hearing instruments such as cochlear implants (CIs). In this paper, we have evaluated the performance of five existing objective measures, as well as proposed two refinements to one particular measure to better emulate CI hearing, under complex listening conditions involving noise-only, reverberation-only, and noise-plus-reverberation.

Dysexecutive versus amnestic Alzheimer disease subgroups: analysis of demographic, genetic, and vascular factors.

The objective of this study was to compare the demographic and vascular characteristics and APOE genotypes of a dysexecutive subgroup of Alzheimer disease (AD) with an amnestic subgroup of AD early in the disease course. A total of 2224 participants from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center database who carried a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (n=1188) or mild AD (clinical dementia rating ≤1) (n=1036) were included in this study. A subset of the mild cognitive impairment (n=61) and mild AD (n=79) participants underwent an autopsy.

Late presentation of HIV infection: predictors of delayed diagnosis and survival in Eastern Sicily.

Objectives: Across Europe, more than one third of patients are diagnosed with HIV infection late. Late presentation for care has been associated with higher risk of clinical progression and mortality. In the present study, we evaluated the prevalence, epidemiological characteristics and survival probability of patients with late and very late presentation, newly diagnosed with HIV infection in Catania, Italy, from 1985 to 2010.

LPS and HIV gp120 modulate monocyte/macrophage CYP27B1 and CYP24A1 expression leading to vitamin D consumption and hypovitaminosis D in HIV-infected individuals.

Aim: Vitamin D deficiency is very common among HIV-infected subjects. We cross-sectionally evaluated the prevalence and risk factors for hypovitaminosis D in 91 HIV-infected Italian patients.

Patients And Methods: We studied in a cohort of 91 HIV-infected Italian patients the metabolism of Vitamin D by evaluating the in vitro expression of CYP27B1, CYP24A1 and vitamin D receptor (VDR) by monocytes and macrophages stimulated with the viral envelope protein gp120 or lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

Longitudinal relationships between Alzheimer disease progression and psychosis, depressed mood, and agitation/aggression.

Objectives: Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are prevalent in Alzheimer disease (AD) and are related to poor outcomes such as nursing home placement. No study has examined the impact of individual BPSD on dependence, a clinically important feature that reflects changing patient needs and their effect on caregivers. The current study characterized independent cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between three BPSD (psychosis, depressed mood, and agitation/aggression), cognition, and dependence to better understand the interplay between these symptoms over time.