Experimentally Induced Reductions in Alcohol Consumption and Brain, Cognitive, and Clinical Outcomes in Older Persons With and Those Without HIV Infection (30-Day Challenge Study): Protocol for a Nonrandomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Both alcohol consumption and HIV infection are associated with worse brain, cognitive, and clinical outcomes in older adults. However, the extent to which brain and cognitive dysfunction is reversible with reduction or cessation of drinking is unknown.

Objective: The 30-Day Challenge study was designed to determine whether reduction or cessation of drinking would be associated with improvements in cognition, reduction of systemic and brain inflammation, and improvement in HIV-related outcomes in adults with heavy drinking.

Sex differences in cognitive function among people with HIV-1 clade C infection in Northern India.

Human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) clade C is the most prevalent form of HIV-1 comprising nearly 46% of global infections and is the dominant subtype in India. Despite its predominance, the impact of HIV-1 clade C infection on cognitive function has been understudied in comparison with other subtypes, notably clade B, which is primarily found in Europe and North America. Few studies have assessed cognitive impairment in antiretroviral therapy (ART) naïve men and women with HIV-1 clade C infection.

Brain MRI segmentation of Zika-Exposed normocephalic infants shows smaller amygdala volumes.

Background: Infants with congenital Zika syndrome (CZS) are known to exhibit characteristic brain abnormalities. However, the brain anatomy of Zika virus (ZIKV)-exposed infants, born to ZIKV-positive pregnant mothers, who have normal-appearing head characteristics at birth, has not been evaluated in detail. The aim of this prospective study is, therefore, to compare the cortical and subcortical brain structural volume measures of ZIKV-exposed normocephalic infants to age-matched healthy controls.

Resting state connectivity in people living with HIV before and after stopping heavy drinking.

Background: Heavy alcohol use in people living with HIV (PLWH) has widespread negative effects on neural functioning. It remains unclear whether experimentally-induced reduction in alcohol use could reverse these effects. We sought to determine the effects of 30-days drinking cessation/reduction on resting state functional connectivity in people with and without HIV.

Neurometabolite alterations in traumatic brain injury and associations with chronic pain.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can lead to a variety of comorbidities, including chronic pain. Although brain tissue metabolite alterations have been extensively examined in several chronic pain populations, it has received less attention in people with TBI. Thus, the primary aim of this study was to compare brain tissue metabolite levels in people with TBI and chronic pain ( = 16), TBI without chronic pain ( = 17), and pain-free healthy controls ( = 31).

Multidimensional pain phenotypes after Traumatic Brain Injury.

More than 50% of individuals develop chronic pain following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Research suggests that a significant portion of post-TBI chronic pain conditions is neuropathic in nature, yet the relationship between neuropathic pain, psychological distress, and somatosensory function following TBI is not fully understood. This study evaluated neuropathic pain symptoms, psychological and somatosensory function, and psychosocial factors in individuals with TBI (TBI, = 38).

Age-Associated Gut Dysbiosis, Marked by Loss of Butyrogenic Potential, Correlates With Altered Plasma Tryptophan Metabolites in Older People Living With HIV.

Background: Imbalance in tryptophan (TRP) metabolism and its neuroactive metabolites, serotonin and kynurenine (KYN), is a known pathogenic mechanism underlying neurocognitive impairment. Gut microbiota plays an important role in TRP metabolism, and the production of these neuroactive molecules affects neurocognitive function. Although both HIV infection and normal aging independently induce gut dysbiosis and influence TRP metabolism, their interactive effects on compositional/functional changes in gut microbiota and consequent alterations in TRP metabolites remain largely undetermined.

Antiviral properties of copper and its alloys to inactivate covid-19 virus: a review.

Copper (Cu) and its alloys are prospective materials in fighting covid-19 virus and several microbial pandemics, due to its excellent antiviral as well as antimicrobial properties. Even though many studies have proved that copper and its alloys exhibit antiviral properties, this research arena requires further research attention. Several studies conducted on copper and its alloys have proven that copper-based alloys possess excellent potential in controlling the spread of infectious diseases.

Comparative Evaluation of Diffusion Kurtosis Imaging and Diffusion Tensor Imaging in Detecting Cerebral Microstructural Changes in Alzheimer Disease.

Objective: Comparative evaluation of diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) using a whole-brain atlas to comprehensively evaluate microstructural changes in the brain of Alzheimer disease (AzD) patients.

Methods: Twenty-seven AzD patients and 25 age-matched controls were included. MRI data was analyzed using a whole-brain atlas with inclusion of 98 region of interests.

Exploring Pain-Related Anxiety and Depression in Female Patients With Provoked Vulvodynia With Associated Overactive Pelvic Floor Muscle Dysfunction.

Introduction: Vulvodynia is a chronic pain condition with potential associated factors, including musculoskeletal and psychosocial components.

Aim: This study explores the prevalence of pain-related anxiety and depression in women with provoked vestibulodynia with associated overactive pelvic floor muscle dysfunction (PVD-PFD).

Methods: A retrospective chart review of 352 women presenting to 2 urban vulvovaginal specialty clinics over the course of a year was conducted.

Evaluation of cerebral microstructural changes in adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea by MR diffusion kurtosis imaging using a whole-brain atlas.

Purpose: The association between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and cognitive impairment is well-recognized, but little is known about neural derangements that underlie this phenomenon. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) using a whole-brain atlas to comprehensively assess microstructural tissue changes in the brain of patients with OSA.

Methods: This prospective study was conducted in 20 patients with moderate-to-severe OSA and 20 age- and gender-matched controls.

Spironolactone May be a Cause of Hormonally Associated Vestibulodynia and Female Sexual Arousal Disorder.

Background: Although spironolactone is an effective treatment for androgen-mediated cutaneous disorders, the potential sexual side-effects are poorly documented in current literature.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to provide clinical evidence that spironolactone may be a cause of hormonally associated vestibulodynia and female sexual arousal disorder.

Methods: A database search of a vulvar disorders clinic revealed 7 cases in which spironolactone may have caused or contributed to dyspareunia and decreased arousal.

Prospective cohort study examining cervical cancer screening methods in HIV-positive and HIV-negative Cambodian Women: a comparison of human papilloma virus testing, visualization with acetic acid and digital colposcopy.

Objectives: Logistical and economic issues make traditional cytology-based cervical cancer screening challenging in developing countries. Alternative, cost-effective, screening strategies must be developed to screen millions of women in resource-poor countries such as Cambodia.

Design: A prospective cohort study during which all women underwent four cervical cancer screening methods: (1) self-sampled human papilloma virus (HPV) testing (careHPV system), (2) clinician-collected HPV testing, (3) visualization with acetic acid (VIA) and (4) digital colposcopy (DC) with the Enhanced Visual Assessment System (EVA).

Established method of chondroitin sulphate extraction from buffalo () cartilages and its identification by FTIR.

A study was conducted for extraction of chondroitin sulphate (CS) from buffalo tracheal, nasal and joint cartilages. CS was extracted from cartilages using 0.25% papain digestion, dialyzed, precipitated with 10% TCA and finally lyophilized to dry powder.

Longitudinal MR Spectroscopy Shows Altered Metabolism in Traumatic Brain Injury.

Background And Purpose: Brain trauma is known to result in heterogeneous patterns of tissue damage and altered neuronal and glial metabolism that evolve over time following injury; however, little is known on the longitudinal evolution of these changes. In this study, magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) was used to map the distributions of altered metabolism in a single subject at five time points over a period of 28 months following injury.

Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging and volumetric MRSI data were acquired in a subject that had experienced a moderate traumatic brain injury (Glasgow Coma Scale 13) at five time points, from 7 weeks to 28 months after injury.

Glutathione Conformations and Its Implications for in vivo Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy.

Glutathione (GSH) is a major antioxidant in humans that is involved in the detoxification of reactive radicals and peroxides. The molecular structural conformations of GSH depend on the surrounding micro-environment, and it has been experimentally evaluated using NMR and Raman spectroscopic techniques as well as by molecular dynamics simulation studies. The converging report indicates that GSH exists mainly in two major conformations, i.

Fructose-driven glycolysis supports anoxia resistance in the naked mole-rat.

The African naked mole-rat's () social and subterranean lifestyle generates a hypoxic niche. Under experimental conditions, naked mole-rats tolerate hours of extreme hypoxia and survive 18 minutes of total oxygen deprivation (anoxia) without apparent injury. During anoxia, the naked mole-rat switches to anaerobic metabolism fueled by fructose, which is actively accumulated and metabolized to lactate in the brain.

Young adults perinatally infected with HIV perform more poorly on measures of executive functioning and motor speed than ethnically matched healthy controls.

Perinatal HIV is associated with significant neurocognitive morbidities, but few studies have examined cognitive impact of early HIV infection on patients surviving to adulthood. The purpose of this study was to evaluate neurocognitive outcomes among a cohort of perinatally infected young adults. Individuals between the ages of 18 and 24 with perinatal infection were recruited for this cross-sectional study along with similarly aged healthy controls.

A large-scale multicentre cerebral diffusion tensor imaging study in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Objective: Damage to the cerebral tissue structural connectivity associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which extends beyond the motor pathways, can be visualised by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The effective translation of DTI metrics as biomarker requires its application across multiple MRI scanners and patient cohorts. A multicentre study was undertaken to assess structural connectivity in ALS within a large sample size.

Subacute Pain after Traumatic Brain Injury Is Associated with Lower Insular N-Acetylaspartate Concentrations.

Persistent pain is experienced by more than 50% of persons who sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI), and more than 30% experience significant pain as early as 6 weeks after injury. Although neuropathic pain is a common consequence after CNS injuries, little attention has been given to neuropathic pain symptoms after TBI. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) studies in subjects with TBI show decreased brain concentrations of N-acetylaspartate (NAA), a marker of neuronal density and viability.