Background: Markers of inflammation and cannabis exposure are associated with an increased risk of mental disorders. In the current study, we investigated associations between cannabis use and biomarkers of inflammation.
Methods: Utilizing a sample of 914 participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, we investigated whether interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), C-reactive protein (CRP), and soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) measured at age 24 were associated with past year daily cannabis use, less frequent cannabis use, and no past year cannabis use.
Background: Converging evidence supports the role of Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMPs) in psychiatric disorders. Originally identified as regulators of the extracellular matrix (ECM), MMPs' functions span multiple processes, including inflammation, synaptic plasticity, neuronal migration, and blood-brain barrier maintenance. Tissue Inhibitors of Metalloproteinases (TIMPs) are major regulators of MMPs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFColorectal cancer (CRC) is the third leading cause of cancer mortality in the United States. Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is a hereditary syndrome that raises the risk of developing CRC, with total colectomy as the only effective prevention. Even though FAP is rare (0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Patients with skin lesions suspicious for skin cancer or atypical melanocytic nevi of uncertain malignant potential often present to dermatologists, who may have variable dermoscopy triage clinical experience.
Objective: To evaluate the clinical utility of a digital dermoscopy image-based artificial intelligence algorithm (DDI-AI device) on the diagnosis and management of skin cancers by dermatologists.
Methods: Thirty-six United States board-certified dermatologists evaluated 50 clinical images and 50 digital dermoscopy images of the same skin lesions (25 malignant and 25 benign), first without and then with knowledge of the DDI-AI device output.
Background: Outdoor air pollution is associated with an increased risk for psychopathology. Although the neural mechanisms remain unclear, air pollutants may impact mental health by altering limbic brain regions, such as the amygdala. Here, we examine the association between ambient air pollution exposure and amygdala subregion volumes in 9-10-year-olds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAtlantic salmon Salmo salar typically enter fresh water several months prior to spawning and just as pools can provide areas of refuge in river systems, lakes may also provide important refuge habitat during the spawning migration. Using acoustic telemetry we examined the spatial and temporal movements of wild and a ranched strain of Atlantic salmon in a freshwater lake where the main spawning areas were located upstream of the lake. Over the study period (2011-2014), returning adult wild salmon spent an average of 228 days in fresh water and 90% of that time in the lake.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Air pollutants are known neurotoxicants. In this updated systematic review, we evaluate new evidence since our 2019 systematic review on the effect of outdoor air pollution exposure on childhood and adolescent brain structure and function as measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Methods: Using PubMed and Web of Science, we conducted an updated literature search and systematic review of articles published through March 2024, using key terms for air pollution and functional and/or structural MRI.
Objectives: This study provides data on the prevalence of mental health problems among adolescents in Ireland in 2021, toward the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. The importance of having recent, large-scale, mental health data for adolescents has been heightened by COVID-19, the increased demand for child and adolescent mental health services, and the rapidly changing adolescent environment.
Methods: As part of the Planet Youth study, a cross-sectional survey of adolescents ( = 4,404), mostly aged 15-16, was conducted between September and December 2021.
Climate change is no longer a problem for future generations and the impact is already taking a toll in many parts of the world. Climate change has already caused substantial, and increasingly irreversible, damage to ecosystems. All these issues combined will inevitably lead to an increase in human suffering and forced displacement.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSubjective cognitive concerns (SCC) are common even in cognitively normal older adults who lack objectively-detectable deficits on standard neuropsychological evaluation. The clinical relevance of these concerns, particularly considering the nature of concerns (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThere is some evidence that the river migration success of Atlantic salmon smolts, on their first migration to sea, varies both spatially and temporally. However, we have only a poor understanding of what may be driving this variation. In this study, we used acoustic telemetry to quantify the spatial and temporal variations in river migration success in Atlantic salmon smolts on their first migration to sea.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Air pollution is ubiquitous, yet questions remain regarding its impact on the developing brain. Large changes occur in white matter microstructure across adolescence, with notable differences by sex.
Methods: We investigate sex-stratified effects of annual exposure to fine particulate matter (PM), nitrogen dioxide (NO), and ozone (O) at ages 9-10 years on longitudinal patterns of white matter microstructure over a 2-year period.
Exposure to outdoor air pollution has been linked to adverse health effects, including potential widespread impacts on the CNS. Ongoing brain development may render children and adolescents especially vulnerable to neurotoxic effects of air pollution. While mechanisms remain unclear, promising advances in human neuroimaging can help elucidate both sensitive periods and neurobiological consequences of exposure to air pollution.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Ambient air pollution is a neurotoxicant with hypothesized immune-related mechanisms. Adolescent brain structural and functional connectivity may be especially vulnerable to ambient pollution due to the refinement of large-scale brain networks during this period, which vary by sex and have important implications for cognitive, behavioral, and emotional functioning. In the current study we explored associations between air pollutants, immune markers, and structural and functional connectivity in early adolescence by leveraging cross-sectional sex-stratified data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development℠ Study®.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: There is some evidence of an association between inflammation in the pathogenesis of mental disorders. Soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is a biomarker of chronic inflammation, which provides a more stable index of systemic inflammation than more widely used biomarkers. This review aims to synthesise studies that measured suPAR concentrations in individuals with a psychiatric disorder, to determine if these concentrations are altered in comparison to healthy participants.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDespite the profound impacts of scientific research, few scientists have received the necessary training to productively discuss the ethical and societal implications of their work. To address this critical gap, we-a group of predominantly human genetics trainees-developed a course on genetics, ethics, and society. We intend for this course to serve as a template for other institutions and scientific disciplines.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe migratory behavior of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) post-smolts in coastal waters is poorly understood. In this collaborative study, 1914 smolts, from 25 rivers, in four countries were tagged with acoustic transmitters during a single seasonal migration. In total, 1105 post-smolts entered the marine study areas and 438 (39.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Evidence supports associations between polyunsaturated fatty acids such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and psychosis. However, polyunsaturated fatty acid trajectories in the general population have not been characterized, and associations with psychosis spectrum outcomes in early adulthood are unknown.
Methods: Plasma omega-6 to omega-3 ratio and DHA (expressed as percentage of total fatty acids) were measured by nuclear magnetic spectroscopy at 7, 15, 17, and 24 years of age in participants of ALSPAC (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children).
Introduction: Negative symptoms impact the quality of life of individuals with psychosis and current treatment options for negative symptoms have limited effectiveness. Previous studies have demonstrated that complement and coagulation pathway protein levels are related to later psychotic experiences, psychotic disorder, and functioning. However, the prognostic relationship between complement and coagulation proteins and negative symptoms is poorly characterised.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis article describes the rationale, aims, and methodology of the Accelerating Medicines Partnership® Schizophrenia (AMP® SCZ). This is the largest international collaboration to date that will develop algorithms to predict trajectories and outcomes of individuals at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis and to advance the development and use of novel pharmacological interventions for CHR individuals. We present a description of the participating research networks and the data processing analysis and coordination center, their processes for data harmonization across 43 sites from 13 participating countries (recruitment across North America, Australia, Europe, Asia, and South America), data flow and quality assessment processes, data analyses, and the transfer of data to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Data Archive (NDA) for use by the research community.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImportance: Patients with kidney failure have an increased risk of diabetes-related foot complications. The benefit of regular foot and ankle care in this at-risk population is unknown.
Objective: To investigate foot and ankle care by podiatrists and the outcomes of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) in patients with kidney failure.
Introduction: Patients with classical congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency exhibit an increased prevalence of obesity from childhood including central adiposity and inflammation. There is also an emerging affected brain phenotype in CAH, with decreased cortico-limbic gray matter volumes and white matter abnormalities. We aimed to study the relationship between brain structure, obesity, and inflammation in children and adolescents with CAH compared to controls.
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