Quantifying loss of CD34+ cells collected by apheresis after processing for freezing and post-thaw.

Introduction: CD34(+) cells collected for autologous bone marrow transplantation (BMT) are usually quantified in the apheresis product after collection, but the necessity to repeat these measures post-thaw is controversial.

Methods: We examined the loss of CD34(+) cells after collection, preparation for freezing and post-thaw in apheresis products collected for BMT.

Results: Median number of CD34(+) cells collected per unit was 1.

Decision-making impairment in obsessive-compulsive disorder as measured by the Iowa Gambling Task.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the process of decision-making in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) using the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). In addition, we intend to expand the understanding of clinical and demographic characteristics that influence decision-making.

Method: Our sample consisted of 214 subjects (107 diagnosed with OCD and 107 healthy controls) who were evaluated on their clinical, demographic and neuropsychological features.

Associations between polymorphic variants of the tryptophan hydroxylase 2 gene and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Objective: A substantial body of evidence suggests that obsessive-compulsive disorder has a genetic component, and substantial candidate genes for the disorder have been investigated through association analyses. A particular emphasis has been placed on genes related to the serotonergic system, which is likely to play an important role in the pathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder. The gene for tryptophan hydroxylase 2, which is a rate limiting enzyme in serotonin synthesis, is considered an important candidate gene associated with psychiatric disorders.

Is circadian rhythm disruption important in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)? A case of successful augmentation with agomelatine for the treatment of OCD.

The main augmentation strategy in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is the addition of low-dose dopamine antagonists, such as risperidone. However, the development of additional pharmacological therapeutics is necessary because some patients remain refractory to these strategies. In the present report, we describe an adult male patient with clomipramine treatment-resistant OCD who did not respond to augmentation with risperidone and aripiprazole but who showed clinical improvement with agomelatine.

[Cognitive dysfunction in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism].

Objective: Evaluate neuropsychological changes in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism (SH).

Subjects And Methods: Cross-sectional study comparing the results of the neuropsychological evaluation of 89 SH patients and 178 individuals without thyroid disease. The participants underwent the following neuropsychological assessment: Conner's Continuous Performance Test (CPT-II), Iowa Gambling Task, Stroop Test, Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), Verbal Fluency Test (semantic and phonologic categories) and Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test.

Decision-making impairment is related to serotonin transporter promoter polymorphism in a sample of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Objective: Decision-making impairment is an important feature of some psychiatric disorders, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and substance-use disorders, and is associated with dysfunction of the fronto-subcortical circuit, mainly the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). Several data reports support significant correlations between decision-making impairment and the serotonin system. Thus, this neurotransmission system may be a major step in some cognitive features, particularly in OCD because serotonin is associated with this disorder.

The role of 5-HTTLPR polymorphism in antidepressant-associated mania in bipolar disorder.

Background: The occurrence of mania during antidepressant treatment is a key issue in the clinical management of bipolar disorder (BD). The serotonin transporter gene is a candidate to be associated with antidepressant-associated mania (AAM) in some patients. This gene has a polymorphism within the promoter region (5-HTTLPR) with two allelic forms, the long (L) and the short (S) variants.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder and immunology: a review.

Interest in the possibility of an immune-mediated pathophysiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder and related disorders has increased. In the late 1980s, the National Institute of Mental Health reported an increase in obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) in patients with Sydenham chorea (SC). Subsequently, a precipitating streptococcal infection in children with sudden onset of OCS but no chorea led to the coining of PANDAS (Pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infection).

Borderline personality features possibly related to cingulate and orbitofrontal cortices dysfunction due to schizencephaly.

Prefrontal cortex dysfunction has been associated with a series of behavioral symptoms, such as impulsivity and affective instability, which are the defining features of several personality disorders, notably, borderline personality disorder. We report on a 27-year-old patient with schizencephaly in the right frontal lobe (cingulate cortex lesion and secondary orbitofrontal cortex dysfunction) presenting with prominent borderline features and compromise of executive functions, decision-making and attention. We hypothesize that the personality disorder of our patient could be related to cingulate cortex lesion and secondary orbitofrontal cortex dysfunction associated with schizencephaly.