'A lightbulb moment': carers' experiences of behavioural symptoms in motor neurone disease before and after MiNDToolkit.

Background: To explore carers' experiences of behavioural symptoms in Motor Neurone Disease (MND), before and after using the MiNDToolkit, a novel internet-based psychoeducational intervention to support management of behavioural symptoms (BehSymp) in MND. The study also investigated carers' views and acceptability of MiNDToolkit.

Methods: A qualitative process evaluation of carers engagement with, and acceptability of, the MiNDToolkit conducted using semi-structured interviews with carers (n = 11).

An online intervention for carers to manage behavioral symptoms in motor neuron disease (MiNDToolkit): a randomized parallel multi-center feasibility trial.

Background: Evidence on management of behavioral symptoms in motor neuron disease (MND) is lacking. The MiNDToolkit, an online psychoeducational platform, supports carers dealing with behavioral symptoms (BehSymp). The study objectives were to ascertain recruitment and retention rates, carer and healthcare professional (HCP) use of the platform, and completion of online assessments, to inform a full-scale trial.

Glycated albumin modulates the contact system with implications for the kallikrein-kinin and intrinsic coagulation systems.

Background: Human serum albumin (HSA) is the most abundant plasma protein and is sensitive to glycation in vivo. The chronic hyperglycemic conditions in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) induce a nonenzymatic Maillard reaction that denatures plasma proteins and forms advanced glycation end products (AGEs). HSA-AGE is a prevalent misfolded protein in patients with DM and is associated with factor XII activation and downstream proinflammatory kallikrein-kinin system activity without any associated procoagulant activity of the intrinsic pathway.

Novel interaction of properdin and coagulation factor XI: Crosstalk between complement and coagulation.

Background: Evidence of crosstalk between the complement and coagulation cascades exists, and dysregulation of either pathway can lead to serious thromboinflammatory events. Both the intrinsic pathway of coagulation and the alternative pathway of complement interact with anionic surfaces, such as glycosaminoglycans. Hitherto, there is no evidence for a direct interaction of properdin (factor P [FP]), the only known positive regulator of complement, with coagulation factor XI (FXI) or activated FXI (FXIa).

Kallikrein directly interacts with and activates Factor IX, resulting in thrombin generation and fibrin formation independent of Factor XI.

Kallikrein (PKa), generated by activation of its precursor prekallikrein (PK), plays a role in the contact activation phase of coagulation and functions in the kallikrein-kinin system to generate bradykinin. The general dogma has been that the contribution of PKa to the coagulation cascade is dependent on its action on FXII. Recently this dogma has been challenged by studies in human plasma showing thrombin generation due to PKa activity on FIX and also by murine studies showing formation of FIXa-antithrombin complexes in FXI deficient mice.

Differentiation-dependent inhibition of proteolysis by norepinephrine in brown adipocytes.

The objective was to evaluate whether norepinephrine (NE) and other hormonal factors have direct effects on protein degradation in brown fat cells. NE inhibited proteolysis by 35-45% in mouse brown adipocytes differentiated in culture. Insulin also inhibited protein degradation but significantly less than NE, whereas glucagon and leptin had no effect.

Unipolar sensing in contemporary pacemakers: using myopotential testing to define optimal sensitivity settings.

Bipolar lead use has increased due to oversensing concerns with older unipolar systems. Data on contemporary unipolar devices with improved hardware design and greater programming flexibility is lacking. Using a randomized crossover design, unipolar and bipolar sensing characteristics of 22 atrial and 16 ventricular leads were compared in 34 patients who had pulse generators of programmable polarity.

A 4-year follow-up study of the effects of calcium supplementation on bone density in elderly postmenopausal women.

To determine the long-term effect of calcium supplementation on bone density, 84 elderly women (54-74 years) more than 10 years past the menopause were studied for 4 years as part of a follow-up study of a randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled trial. The placebo group who did not take calcium supplements at all during the 4-year study (control group, n = 21) served as a comparison with the treated group who took calcium supplements for 4 years (calcium supplement group, n = 14). We also studied subjects who were treated for 2 years with calcium supplements and then ceased taking them (non-compliant group, n = 49).

The effect of estrogen deficiency on bone mineral density, renal calcium and phosphorus handling and calcitropic hormones in the rat.

The oophorectomized (OOX) rat has been proposed as a good model of postmenopausal osteoporosis in women. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of OOX in 6-month-old rats to the effects of menopause in women with respect to bone mass, the renal handling of calcium and phosphorus, and calcitropic hormones. To more closely replicate the human situation the rats were pair fed a 0.

Soybean lectin stimulates pancreatic exocrine secretion via CCK-A receptors in rats.

Rats fed raw soy flour (RSF) show pancreatic growth due to excessive cholecystokinin (CCK) release. Soybean trypsin inhibitors are implicated, but rats fed soybean lectin also showed pancreatic growth. Therefore, we studied the effect of soybean lectin on pancreatic protein secretion in anesthetized rats.