Insights into an indolicidin-derived low-toxic anti-microbial peptide's efficacy against bacterial cells while preserving eukaryotic cell viability.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are a current solution to combat antibiotic resistance, but they have limitations, including their expensive production process and the induction of cytotoxic effects. We have developed novel AMP candidate (peptide 3.1) based on indolicidin, among the shortest naturally occurring AMP.

Antibacterial Immunonegative Coating with Biocompatible Materials on a Nanostructured Titanium Plate for Orthopedic Bone Fracture Surgery.

Periprosthetic infections resulting from bacterial biofilm formation following surgical bone fracture fixation present important clinical challenges. Conventional orthopedic implant materials, such as titanium, are prone to biofilm formation. This study introduces a novel surface for orthopedic titanium plates, optimized for clinical application in human bone fractures.

Serotonin Transporter and COMT Polymorphisms as Independent Predictors of Health-related Quality of Life in Patients with Panic Disorder.

There is growing evidence of poor health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with panic disorder (PD). However, little is known about the factors affecting HRQOL in patients with PD. The authors examined whether 5-HTTLPR tri-allelic approach and Cathechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) Val(158)Met polymorphism can predict HRQOL in patients with PD controlling for sociodemographic factors and disorder-related symptom levels.

Panic disorder and health-related quality of life: the predictive roles of anxiety sensitivity and trait anxiety.

Panic disorder (PD) is a very common anxiety disorder and is often a chronic disabling condition. However, little is known about the factors that predict health-related quality of life (HRQOL) other than sociodemographic factors and illness-related symptomatology that explain HRQOL in only small to modest degrees. This study explored whether anxiety-related individual traits including anxiety sensitivity and trait anxiety can predict independently HRQOL in panic patients.

Long-term Escitalopram Treatment in Korean Patients with Panic Disorder: A Prospective, Naturalistic, Open-label, Multicenter Trial.

Objective: Panic disorder is characterized by recurrent panic attacks, persistent concerns about additional attacks, and worry about the implications of the attack or significant changes in behavior related to the attacks. We examined the efficacy of 24-week naturalistic, open-label escitalopram treatment in terms of the response and remission rates and functional disability in 119 adult Korean patients with panic disorder from 6 clinical centers in South Korea.

Methods: Clinical severity and functional impairment were assessed at baseline and at 4, 12, and 24 weeks after the treatment using the Panic Disorder Severity Scale and Sheehan Disability Scale.

Impact of early-life stress and resilience on patients with major depressive disorder.

Purpose: Early-life stress (ELS) has a long-lasting effect on affective function and may entail an increased risk for major depressive disorder (MDD). However, resilience can play a protective role against developing psychopathology. In this study, we investigated the relationships of depressive symptoms with ELS and resilience in MDD.

The Korean version of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale: an extended validation.

The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) is a brief self-rating questionnaire for measuring resilience. The aims of the present study were to describe the development of a Korean version of the CD-RISC (K-CD-RISC) and to more firmly establish its psychometric properties in terms of reliability and validity. The participants consisted of a general population sample (n=194) and psychiatric outpatients (n=127) with non-psychotic mood or anxiety disorders.

Regional brain metabolism and treatment response in panic disorder patients: an [18F]FDG-PET study.

Background: Panic disorder (PD) is a common and often chronic psychiatric condition that can lead to considerable disability in daily life. Using [(18)F]fluorodeoxyglucose-PET, we examined brain baseline glucose metabolism in PD patients in comparison with normal controls and the changes in glucose metabolism after 12 weeks of escitalopram treatment.

Methods: Fifteen patients with PD were compared to 20 normal controls using [(18)F]FDG-PET at baseline and brain metabolism after 12 weeks of escitalopram treatment was compared to pretreatment in the patient group using voxel-based statistical analysis and post hoc region-of-interest analysis.

Psychological characteristics of early remitters in patients with panic disorder.

We aimed to examine whether anxiety sensitivity and agoraphobic fear could affect the time taken to remission after 24 weeks of open-label escitalopram treatment of patients with panic disorder (PD). We recruited 158 patients, and 101 patients completed the study. Clinical severity and psychological characteristics were assessed at baseline and 4, 12, and 24 weeks after the treatment, using the Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S), the Hamilton Rating Scales for Anxiety and Depression, the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-Revised (ASI-R), the Albany Panic and Phobia Questionnaire (APPQ), and the Panic Disorder Severity Scale (PDSS).

Relationship between Personality and Insomnia in Panic Disorder Patients.

Objective: Panic disorder (PD) is frequently comorbid with insomnia, which could exacerbate panic symptoms and contribute to PD relapse. Research has suggested that characteristics are implicated in both PD and insomnia. However, there are no reports examining whether temperament and character affect insomnia in PD.

Impact of depression on work productivity and its improvement after outpatient treatment with antidepressants.

Objective: Depressive disorders influence socioeconomic burden at both the individual and organizational levels. This study estimates the lost productive time (LPT) and its resulting cost among workers with major depressive disorder (MDD) compared with a comparison group. It also estimates the change in productivity after 8 weeks of outpatient psychiatric treatment with antidepressants.

The genetic basis of panic disorder.

Panic disorder is one of the chronic and disabling anxiety disorders. There has been evidence for either genetic heterogeneity or complex inheritance, with environmental factor interactions and multiple single genes, in panic disorder's etiology. Linkage studies have implicated several chromosomal regions, but no research has replicated evidence for major genes involved in panic disorder.

Changes in Cerebral Cortex and Limbic Brain Functions after Short-Term Paroxetine Treatment in Panic Disorder: An [F]FDG-PET Pilot Study.

Objective: Panic disorder (PD) is a common and often chronic psychiatric illness, and serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the drugs of choice for the treatment of PD. Previous studies suggested the cerebral cortex and limbic brain structures played a major role in the development of PD, but the therapeutic effect of SSRIs on specific brain structures remains unclear in PD. We examined the changes in PD patients' glucose metabolism using the [(18)F] Fluorodeoxy-glucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) before and after 12 weeks of paroxetine treatment.

Platelet serotonin transporter function and heart rate variability in patients with panic disorder.

Many studies showed abnormal serotonin transporter (5-HTT) function and heart rate variability (HRV) in panic disorder patients. The present study investigated the relationship between HRV power spectral analysis findings and platelet serotonin uptake in panic disorder patients. Short-term HRV over 5 min and platelet serotonin transporter uptake parameters (V(max) and K(m)) were measured both in 45 patients with panic disorder and in 30 age-matched normal healthy control subjects.

Platelet serotonin transporter function after short-term paroxetine treatment in patients with panic disorder.

Dysfunctions in serotonin neurotransmission have been implicated in some psychiatric disorders, and in particular, altered serotonin transporter function has been noted in panic disorder. In this study, the authors compared platelet [(3)H]serotonin uptake parameters, including maximum velocities (V(max)) and affinity constants (K(m)), in patients with panic disorder not undergoing treatment (n=21) and in healthy subjects (n=20). V(max) and K(m) values were re-examined after 12 weeks of paroxetine treatment.

Sympathetic nervous function and the effect of the catechol-O-methyltransferase Val(158)Met polymorphism in patients with panic disorder.

Background: Sympathetic nervous function abnormalities have long been suggested to be a possible etiology of panic disorder (PD). Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) affects sympathetic activities, and the COMT Val(158)Met polymorphism has been suggested to be related to PD. The authors examined the relationship between sympathetic nervous function and the COMT Val(158)Met polymorphism in PD patients.

Mirtazapine versus venlafaxine for the treatment of somatic symptoms associated with major depressive disorder: a randomized, open-labeled trial.

Somatic symptoms are often important in the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). The aim of this open-labeled trial was to examine the efficacy of mirtazapine for the treatment of MDD with clinically significant somatic symptoms, as compared with venlafaxine. A total of 126 patients with MDD (score >/=18 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression-17) were included in both the intent-to-treat (n=73 in the mirtazapine group and n=53 in the venlafaxine group) and completer analysis (n=51 and n=37, respectively).

beta-adrenoceptor affinity as a biological predictor of treatment response to paroxetine in patients with acute panic disorder.

Background: Few studies have reported on the functional differences of the beta-adrenoceptor between treatment responders and non-responders in panic disorder (PD). The aim of this study was to compare the nature of the beta-adrenoceptor function and clinical variables between treatment responders and non-responders to paroxetine treatment in acute PD patients.

Method: Paroxetine was administered to all of the panic patients for 12 weeks.

Mood states, sympathetic activity, and in vivo beta-adrenergic receptor function in a normal population.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between mood states and beta-adrenergic receptor function in a normal population. We also examined if sympathetic nervous system activity is related to mood states or beta-adrenergic receptor function. Sixty-two participants aged 25-50 years were enrolled in this study.

Anxiety and beta-adrenergic receptor function in a normal population.

Many studies have shown a close relationship between anxiety and beta-adrenergic receptor function in patients with anxiety disorders. This study examined the relationship between beta-adrenergic receptor function and anxiety levels in a normal population. Subjects for this study included 36 men and 44 women between the ages of 20 and 40 years whose Body Mass Index (BMI) was between 18 and 26.