Cannabis use influences disorganized symptoms severity but not transition in a cohort of non-help-seeking individuals at-risk for psychosis from São Paulo, Brazil.

Background: Cannabis use is associated with an increased risk of developing a psychotic disorder. However, in individuals with at-risk mental states for psychosis (ARMS) this association is not clear, as well as the impact of cannabis use on symptom severity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of cannabis use patterns and ARMS risk status, transition to psychotic and psychiatric disorders, and psychopathology.

Plasma levels of neurotrophin 4/5, NGF and pro-BDNF influence transition to mental disorders in a sample of individuals at ultra-high risk for psychosis.

Background: Neurotrophins (NTs) and their precursors (pro-NTs) are polypeptides with important roles in neuronal development, differentiation, growth, survival and plasticity, as well as apoptosis and neuronal death. Imbalance in NT levels were observed in schizophrenia spectrum disorders, but evidence in ultra-high risk for psychosis (UHR) samples is scarce.

Methods: A naturalistic sample of 87 non-help-seeking UHR subjects and 55 healthy controls was drawn from the general population.

Detecting at-risk mental states for psychosis (ARMS) using machine learning ensembles and facial features.

Aims: Our study aimed to develop a machine learning ensemble to distinguish "at-risk mental states for psychosis" (ARMS) subjects from control individuals from the general population based on facial data extracted from video-recordings.

Methods: 58 non-help-seeking medication-naïve ARMS and 70 healthy subjects were screened from a general population sample. At-risk status was assessed with the Structured Interview for Prodromal Syndromes (SIPS), and "Subject's Overview" section was filmed (5-10 min).

Gesticulation in individuals with at risk mental states for psychosis.

Nonverbal communication (NVC) is a complex behavior that involves different modalities that are impaired in the schizophrenia spectrum, including gesticulation. However, there are few studies that evaluate it in individuals with at-risk mental states (ARMS) for psychosis, mostly in developed countries. Given our prior findings of reduced movement during speech seen in Brazilian individuals with ARMS, we now aim to determine if this can be accounted for by reduced gesticulation behavior.

A dopamine receptor D2 genetic polymorphism associated with transition to mental disorders in a cohort of individuals with at-risk mental state for psychosis.

Objectives: To test the association of 45 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with transition to psychiatric disorders in a cohort of individuals at ultrahigh risk (UHR) mental state for psychosis.

Methods: Through general population screening, 88 non-help-seeking UHR subjects and 130 healthy control individuals were genotyped for 45 SNPs related to psychosis. They were followed for a mean of 2.

Motion energy analysis during speech tasks in medication-naïve individuals with at-risk mental states for psychosis.

Movement abnormalities are commonly observed in schizophrenia and at-risk mental states (ARMS) for psychosis. They are usually detected with clinical interviews, such that automated analysis would enhance assessment. Our aim was to use motion energy analysis (MEA) to assess movement during free-speech videos in ARMS and control individuals, and to investigate associations between movement metrics and negative and positive symptoms.

Use of a Bayesian Network Model to predict psychiatric illness in individuals with 'at risk mental states' from a general population cohort.

The 'at risk mental state' (ARMS) paradigm has been introduced in psychiatry to study prodromal phases of schizophrenia. With time it was seen that the ARMS state can also precede mental disorders other than schizophrenia, such as depression and anxiety. However, several problems hamper the paradigm's use in preventative medicine, such as varying transition rates across studies, the use of non-naturalistic samples, and the multifactorial nature of psychiatric disorders.

Cognitive Patterns and Conversion in a Representative Sample of Individuals at Risk for Psychosis.

Clinical high-risk (CHR) individuals belong to a heterogeneous group, of which only a few will cross the threshold for a clinical diagnosis. Cognitive disturbances are present in CHR subjects and may be indicative of transition. Our study aims to identify such deficits in a representative CHR for psychosis sample.

Relationship Between Symptomatic Dimensions and Global Functioning of Non-Help-Seeking Individuals at Risk for Psychosis.

This study aims to analyze the relationship between the symptomatic dimensions of psychosis and functioning of individuals at risk for psychosis (ultrahigh risk [UHR]) in a non-help-seeking UHR sample from the general population. The sample is the same as the one used in the Brazilian Subclinical Symptoms and Prodromal Psychosis cohort study. We applied questionnaires of functioning (Global Assessment of Functioning Scale) and symptomatic dimensions (Scale of Prodromal Symptoms).

Influence of migration on the thought process of individuals at ultra-high risk for psychosis.

Objective: To assess the influence of migration on the psychopathological presentation of individuals at ultra-high risk for psychosis (UHR) in São Paulo, Brazil.

Methods: This study is part of the Subclinical Symptoms and Prodromal Psychosis (SSAPP) project, a cohort study in São Paulo, Brazil, designed to follow individuals at UHR. After screening with the Prodromal Questionnaire (PQ) and a clinical interview, the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) was administered, a neuropsychological assessment was performed, sociodemographic and migration data were obtained.

Childhood maltreatment in individuals at risk of psychosis: Results from the Brazilian SSAPP cohort.

Background: Childhood maltreatment is a known risk factor for the development of mental disorders, such as psychotic symptoms. An extensive body of literature about childhood maltreatment and mental health has been developed in wealthy countries, but information about this connection is lacking in developing countries.

Aims: To explore a possible relationship between childhood maltreatment and ultra-high risk of psychosis in a non-help-seeking population in a low- and middle-income country.

Hearing spirits? Religiosity in individuals at risk for psychosis-Results from the Brazilian SSAPP cohort.

In the last decades, biological and environmental factors related to psychosis were investigated in individuals at ultra-risk for psychosis (UHR) to predict conversion. Although religion relates to psychosis in a variety of ways, it is understudied in subclinical samples. Therefore, we assessed the interplay between religion and prodromal symptoms in 79 UHR and 110 control individuals.

Poverty, low education, and the expression of psychotic-like experiences in the general population of São Paulo, Brazil.

The aim of our study was to assess psychotic-like experiences in the general population aged 18-30 years old of the city of São Paulo, Brazil. A household survey was conducted with 1950 young-adults randomly drawn from the city's general population. The validated 92-item Portuguese version of the Prodromal Questionnaire (PQ) was used for face-to-face interviews.

Expression profiles of sugarcane under drought conditions: Variation in gene regulation.

Drought is a major factor in decreased sugarcane productivity because of the resulting morphophysiological effects that it causes. Gene expression studies that have examined the influence of water stress in sugarcane have yielded divergent results, indicating the absence of a fixed pattern of changes in gene expression. In this work, we investigated the expression profiles of 12 genes in the leaves of a drought-tolerant genotype (RB72910) of sugarcane and compared the results with those of other studies.

[Differences in HIV-risk behavior of bisexual men in their relationships with men and women].

Objective: To describe bisexual men's behavior in terms of sexual identity, condom use, frequency of sexual intercourse and types of partners and to determine rates of inconsistent condom according to partner's gender.

Methods: Cross-sectional study nested in a cohort of HIV-negative homosexual and bisexual men in the city of Belo Horizonte, Southeastern Brazil, followed up since 1994 (Horizonte Project). Of 1,025 subjects enrolled between 1994 and 2005, 195 volunteers who reported at admission having sexual relations with men and women during the previous six months were selected.