Inflammatory Markers and Brain Volume in Patients with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.

Objective: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by increased inflammatory processing and altered brain volume. In this study, we investigated the relationship between inflammatory markers and brain volume in patients with PTSD.

Methods: Forty-five patients with PTSD, and 70 healthy controls (HC) completed clinical assessments and self-reported psychopathology scales.

Treatment efficacy of tDCS and predictors of treatment response in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Background: Although transcranial direct stimulation (tDCS) has been proposed as an alternative treatment option for various psychiatric disorders, there is inconsistent information regarding the treatment effects of tDCS for patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study aimed to investigate the tDCS efficacy and identify predictors of treatment response to tDCS in patients with PTSD.

Method: Fifty-one patients received 10 sessions of tDCS involving the position of the anode over the F3 area and cathode over the F4 as a condition of 2.

Does spiked tibial cement spacer reduce spacer-related problems in two-stage revision total knee arthroplasty for infection?

Purpose: Articulating cement spacers are frequently used in staged approaches for infected total knee arthroplasty (TKA). This study investigated whether a tibial cement spacer (TCS) with spikes could reduce spacer-related problems in two-stage revision TKA (R-TKA).

Methods: A total of 27 patients (27 knees; 10 men and 17 women) who underwent two-stage R-TKA for infected TKA were retrospectively analyzed.

Associations between biomarkers and histological assessment in individual animals in a destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) model of osteoarthritis (OA).

To date, the use of biomarkers for assessing individual severity of osteoarthritis (OA) is limited, and the correlation of histological scores with biomarkers for individual animals in the destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) model of OA has not been well investigated. Accordingly, this study investigated how well representative biomarkers in the DMM model reflected specific changes in individual animals. Rats were randomly divided into the OA group and the sham group.

State-Anxiety in Geriatric Patients Undergoing Surgical Treatment for Femoral Neck or Intertrochanteric Fractures.

Introduction: Geriatric patients with hip fractures often experience unexpected falls and they may have unfamiliar and unpleasant experiences within a brief period. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and levels of preoperative anxiety in patients undergoing surgical treatment for hip fractures, and to determine the anxiety-related characteristics experienced by patients during the period before and after surgery.

Materials And Methods: We recruited a total of 75 geriatric patients who underwent surgical treatment for hip fractures and returned complete questionnaires.

Comparative analysis of default mode networks in major psychiatric disorders using resting-state EEG.

Default mode network (DMN) is a set of functional brain structures coherently activated when individuals are in resting-state. In this study, we constructed multi-frequency band resting-state EEG-based DMN functional network models for major psychiatric disorders to easily compare their pathophysiological characteristics. Phase-locking values (PLVs) were evaluated to quantify functional connectivity; global and nodal clustering coefficients (CCs) were evaluated to quantify global and local connectivity patterns of DMN nodes, respectively.

A predictive model with radiographic signs can be a useful supplementary diagnostic tool for complete discoid lateral meniscus in adults.

Purpose: To investigate the diagnostic accuracy of radiographic signs for complete discoid lateral meniscus and whether a predictive model combining the radiographic signs can improve its diagnostic accuracy in adults.

Methods: A total of adult 119 knees with complete discoid lateral meniscus confirmed by arthroscopy and 119 age- and sex-matched knees with normal meniscus were included. The radiographic signs of lateral joint space, fibular head height, lateral tibial spine height, lateral tibial plateau obliquity, lateral femoral condyle squaring, lateral tibial plateau cupping, lateral femoral condyle notching, and the condylar cut-off sign were evaluated.

Next-generation sequencing enables the discovery of more diverse positive clones from a phage-displayed antibody library.

Phage display technology provides a powerful tool to screen a library for a binding molecule via an enrichment process. It has been adopted as a critical technology in the development of therapeutic antibodies. However, a major drawback of phage display technology is that because the degree of the enrichment cannot be controlled during the bio-panning process, it frequently results in a limited number of clones.

A phosphorylation pattern-recognizing antibody specifically reacts to RNA polymerase II bound to exons.

The C-terminal domain of RNA polymerase II is an unusual series of repeated residues appended to the C-terminus of the largest subunit and serves as a flexible binding scaffold for numerous nuclear factors. The binding of these factors is determined by the phosphorylation patterns on the repeats in the domain. In this study, we generated a synthetic antibody library by replacing the third heavy chain complementarity-determining region of an anti-HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2) antibody (trastuzumab) with artificial sequences of 7-18 amino-acid residues.

Antibodies to the DNA-directed RNA polymerase II subunit RPB1 occur with highest frequency in centenarians.

Background: Recently, phage display technology has made it possible to define the circulating repertoire of humoral immunity. This study was designed to define the circulating antibodies specific to centenarians.

Results: We used a phage-displayed combinatorial peptide library to screen for peptides (YSATLRY and YSPTLFY) that preferentially react with the IgG fraction of centenarians aged 100-105 years.

AKT phosphorylates H3-threonine 45 to facilitate termination of gene transcription in response to DNA damage.

Post-translational modifications of core histones affect various cellular processes, primarily through transcription. However, their relationship with the termination of transcription has remained largely unknown. In this study, we show that DNA damage-activated AKT phosphorylates threonine 45 of core histone H3 (H3-T45).

Porcine aortic endothelial cell genes responsive to selected inflammatory stimulators.

Use of porcine tissues has been suggested as a promising solution for severe shortage of transplantable human organs. The immediate hurdle for xenotransplantation is acute immune/inflammatory vascular rejection of the transplant. Because endothelial cells play a key role in the initiation and the amplification of inflammation, alteration of gene expression in human endothelial cells, by various inflammatory stimulators has been studied extensively.

The immunocytochemical localization of connexin 36 at rod and cone gap junctions in the guinea pig retina.

Connexin 36 (Cx36) is a channel-forming protein found in the membranes of apposed cells, forming the hexameric hemichannels of intercellular gap junction channels. It localizes to certain neurons in various regions of the brain including the retina. We characterized the expression pattern of neuronal Cx36 in the guinea pig retina by immunocytochemistry using specific antisera against Cx36 and green/red cone opsin or recoverin.