Nanopasta: electrospinning nanofibers of white flour.

White flour may be directly electrospun, providing a starch nanofiber alternative which avoids unnecessary industrial extraction and purification. By dissolving 17 wt% flour in warm formic acid and cooling, a dope can be created which can be electrospun into porous mats of 372 nm fibers of pasta.

Encephalitis lethargica: clinical features and aetiology.

Encephalitis lethargica, an epidemic neurological illness, typically involved a severe sleep disorder and progressive parkinsonism. A century later, our understanding relies on seminal descriptions, more recent historical research and the study of small numbers of possible sporadic cases. Theories around infection, environmental toxins, catatonia and autoimmune encephalitis have been proposed.

Cost-utility analysis of transdiagnostic cognitive behavioural therapy for people with persistent physical symptoms in contact with specialist services evaluated in the PRINCE secondary trial.

Objective: To compare the cost-utility of transdiagnostic cognitive behavioural therapy (TDT-CBT) plus standardised medical care (SMC) to SMC alone to support people with persistent physical symptoms in contact with specialist services.

Methods: This study compared the cost-utility of TDT-CBT. A two-arm randomised controlled trial was conducted in secondary care settings.

Molecular and micro-architectural mapping of gray matter alterations in psychosis.

The psychosis spectrum encompasses a heterogeneous range of clinical conditions associated with abnormal brain development. Detecting patterns of atypical neuroanatomical maturation across psychiatric disorders requires an interpretable metric standardized by age-, sex- and site-effect. The molecular and micro-architectural attributes that account for these deviations in brain structure from typical neurodevelopment are still unknown.

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Depersonalisation Derealisation Disorder (CBT-f-DDD): Study protocol for a randomised controlled feasibility trial.

Background: Depersonalisation-Derealisation Disorder (DDD) is a distressing mental health condition which causes individuals to have a sense of 'unreality' or detachment about themselves and/or the world around them. DDD is chronically under-researched, and as a result, under-diagnosed, with a population prevalence of about 1%. In systematic reviews, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) has been found to be the only intervention with significant clinical impact on alleviating the symptoms of DDD.

Mental capacity assessment in the multi-professional real world: a qualitative study of six areas of uncertainty.

Background: The Mental Capacity Act 2005 of England and Wales is a ground-breaking piece of legislation with reach into healthcare, social care and legal settings. Professionals have needed to develop skills to assess mental capacity and handle malign influence, but it is unclear how assessments are implemented in real world settings. Our previously reported survey found professionals juggling competing resources in complex systems, often struggling to stay up to date with law.

Investigating psychobiological causes and mechanisms in functional seizures and functional motor symptoms: Study protocol.

Introduction: Advances have been made in understanding the aetiology of functional neurological disorder (FND); however, its pathophysiological mechanisms have not been definitively demonstrated. Evidence suggests interacting roles for altered emotional processing and interoception, elevated autonomic arousal, and dissociation, but there is limited evidence demonstrating their causal influence on specific FND symptoms. Our superordinate aim is to elucidate potentially shared and distinct aetiological factors and mechanisms in two common FND subtypes, functional seizures (FS) and functional motor symptoms (FMS).

Climate change and disorders of the nervous system.

Anthropogenic climate change is affecting people's health, including those with neurological and psychiatric diseases. Currently, making inferences about the effect of climate change on neurological and psychiatric diseases is challenging because of an overall sparsity of data, differing study methods, paucity of detail regarding disease subtypes, little consideration of the effect of individual and population genetics, and widely differing geographical locations with the potential for regional influences. However, evidence suggests that the incidence, prevalence, and severity of many nervous system conditions (eg, stroke, neurological infections, and some mental health disorders) can be affected by climate change.

The Genetic Origin of the Indo-Europeans.

The Yamnaya archaeological complex appeared around 3300BCE across the steppes north of the Black and Caspian Seas, and by 3000BCE reached its maximal extent from Hungary in the west to Kazakhstan in the east. To localize the ancestral and geographical origins of the Yamnaya among the diverse Eneolithic people that preceded them, we studied ancient DNA data from 428 individuals of which 299 are reported for the first time, demonstrating three previously unknown Eneolithic genetic clines. First, a "Caucasus-Lower Volga" (CLV) Cline suffused with Caucasus hunter-gatherer (CHG) ancestry extended between a Caucasus Neolithic southern end in Neolithic Armenia, and a steppe northern end in Berezhnovka in the Lower Volga.

Anxiety Disorders: The Relationship between Insight and Metacognition.

Background: The exploration of metacognition in relation to anxiety has received considerable attention in recent decades. Research indicates that it plays a role in the development and maintenance of anxiety disorders while also providing benefits, including the ability to assess situations, modify behaviors, and make informed decisions.

Summary: We propose that having an awareness of a disorder, also known as insight, is related to metacognition in anxiety.

Etiological Factors and Symptom Triggers in Functional Motor Symptoms and Functional Seizures: A Pilot Investigation.

Objective: This study examined etiological factors and symptom triggers of functional motor symptoms (FMS) or functional seizures (FS) and assessed potential relationships with relevant clinical features (i.e., functional symptoms, quality of life, and general functioning).

Decision making capacity for treatment in psychiatric inpatients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Decision-making capacity (DMC) among psychiatric inpatients is a pivotal clinical concern. A review by Okai et al. (2007) suggested that most psychiatric inpatients have DMC for treatment, and its assessment is reliable.

Cognitive domains affected post-COVID-19; a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background And Purpose: This review aims to characterize the pattern of post-COVID-19 cognitive impairment, allowing better prediction of impact on daily function to inform clinical management and rehabilitation.

Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis of neurocognitive sequelae following COVID-19 was conducted, following PRISMA-S guidelines. Studies were included if they reported domain-specific cognitive assessment in patients with COVID-19 at >4 weeks post-infection.

The impact of cumulative obstetric complications and childhood trauma on brain volume in young people with psychotic experiences.

Psychotic experiences (PEs) occur in 5-10% of the general population and are associated with exposure to childhood trauma and obstetric complications. However, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying these associations are unclear. Using the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), we studied 138 young people aged 20 with PEs (n = 49 suspected, n = 53 definite, n = 36 psychotic disorder) and 275 controls.

Predictors of Burden in Carers of Patients with Impulse Control Behaviors in Parkinson's Disease.

Background: Impulse control behaviors (ICBs) are problematic, reward-based behaviors, affecting 15% to 35% of patients with Parkinson's disease. Evidence exists of increased carer burden as a result of these behaviors; however, little is known about the variables mediating this effect and their management.

Objective: To identify factors predictive of carer burden in a cohort of patients with Parkinson's disease with ICBs to enable the development of targeted therapeutic interventions for carers.