Improvement in Lactose Tolerance in Hypolactasic Subjects Consuming Ice Creams with High or Low Concentrations of 900791.

Although expresses lactase activity, no clinical trials have determined its impact on lactose-intolerant subjects. This study evaluated whether acute and chronic ingestion of ice creams containing 900791 at high (10 CFU/g) or low (10 CFU/g) concentrations improved lactose tolerance in hypolactasic subjects. Fifty subjects were selected based on a positive lactose (20 g) hydrogen breath test (HBT0) and the presence of digestive symptoms.

Online Sexual Abuse and Symptomatology in Chilean Adolescents: The Role of Peer Support.

Several authors are studying sexual abuse via the Internet and its consequences. However, the available studies have not sufficiently detected factors that could help reduce the symptoms that victims may experience. Given the importance of peers during adolescence, especially in the online world, the objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between online sexual abuse, perceived peer support, and internalizing and externalizing symptomatology.

Carboxymethyl cellulose coated magnetic nanoparticles transport across a human lung microvascular endothelial cell model of the blood-brain barrier.

Sustained and safe delivery of therapeutic agents across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is one of the major challenges for the treatment of neurological disorders as this barrier limits the ability of most drug molecules to reach the brain. Targeted delivery of the drugs used to treat these disorders could potentially offer a considerable reduction of the common side effects of their treatment. The preparation and characterization of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) coated magnetic nanoparticles (FeO@CMC) is reported as an alternative that meets the need for novel therapies capable of crossing the BBB.

The Antiepileptic Drug Levetiracetam Protects Against Quinolinic Acid-Induced Toxicity in the Rat Striatum.

Levetiracetam (LVT) is a relatively novel antiepileptic drug (AED) known to act through binding with the synaptic vesicular 2A (SV2A) protein, thus modulating the presynaptic neurotransmitter release. The tryptophan metabolite quinolinic acid (QUIN) acts as an excitotoxin when its brain concentrations reach toxic levels under pathological conditions. Since increased neuronal excitability induced by QUIN recruits degenerative events in the brain, and novel AED is also expected to exert neuroprotective effects in their pharmacological profiles, in this work the effect of LVT (54 mg/kg, i.

Redox Signaling, Neuroinflammation, and Neurodegeneration.

Production of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines is part of the defense system that mostly microglia and macrophages display to induce normal signaling to counteract the deleterious actions of invading pathogens in the brain. Also, redox activity in the central nervous system (CNS) constitutes an integral part of the metabolic processes needed by cells to exert their normal molecular and biochemical functions. Under normal conditions, the formation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, and the following oxidative activity encounter a healthy balance with immunological responses to preserve cell functions in the brain.

Neuroprotective effect of WIN55,212-2 against 3-nitropropionic acid-induced toxicity in the rat brain: involvement of CB1 and NMDA receptors.

The endocannabinoid system (ECS), and agonists acting on cannabinoid receptors (CBr), are known to regulate several physiological events in the brain, including modulatory actions on excitatory events probably through N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAr) activity. Actually, CBr agonists can be neuroprotective. The synthetic CBr agonist WIN55,212-2 acts mainly on CB1 receptor.

Cannabinoids: Glutamatergic Transmission and Kynurenines.

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) comprises a complex of receptors, enzymes, and endogenous agonists that are widely distributed in the central nervous system of mammals and participates in a considerable number of neuromodulatory functions, including neurotransmission, immunological control, and cell signaling. In turn, the kynurenine pathway (KP) is the most relevant metabolic route for tryptophan degradation to form the metabolic precursor NAD(+). Recent studies demonstrate that the control exerted by the pharmacological manipulation of the ECS on the glutamatergic system in the brain may offer key information not only on the development of psychiatric disorders like psychosis and schizophrenia-like symptoms, but it also may constitute a solid basis for the development of therapeutic strategies to combat excitotoxic events occurring in neurological disorders like Huntington's disease (HD).

On the Relationship Between the Light/Dark Cycle, Melatonin and Oxidative Stress.

The adaptation of species to the environment in which they live is accomplished by so-called "clocks" that allow the biological, physiological, metabolic and behavioral system to correct any development during the day. The alteration of those 'clocks' (circadian rhythms) shows a strong relationship with organic disorders such as neurodegenerative diseases. Many studies show that oxidative stress combined with pro-inflammatory mechanisms, play a key role in the development of neurodegenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders.

Viral aetiology influenza like illnesses in Santa Cruz, Bolivia (2010-2012).

Background: Acute respiratory infections represent a serious public health issue worldwide but virological aetiologies of Influenza Like Illnesses (ILIs) remain largely unknown in developing countries. This study represents the first attempt to characterise viral aetiologies of ILIs in Bolivia.

Methods: It was performed in Santa Cruz city from January 2010 to September 2012, based on 564 naso-pharyngeal swabs collected in a National Reference Laboratory and real-time PCR techniques, viral cultures and phylogenetic analyses.