Decreased circulating dipeptidyl peptidase-4 enzyme activity is prognostic for severe outcomes in COVID-19 inpatients.

To investigate the serum circulating DPP4 activity in patients with COVID-19 disease. Serum samples from 102 hospitalized COVID-19 patients and 43 post-COVID-19 plasma donors and 39 SARS-CoV-2 naive controls and their medical data were used. Circulating DPP4 activities according to different COVID-19 disease peak severity (WHO) groups at sampling and at peak were assessed.

Beneficial Services of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi - From Ecology to Application.

Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) is the most common symbiotic association of plants with microbes. AM fungi occur in the majority of natural habitats and they provide a range of important ecological services, in particular by improving plant nutrition, stress resistance and tolerance, soil structure and fertility. AM fungi also interact with most crop plants including cereals, vegetables, and fruit trees, therefore, they receive increasing attention for their potential use in sustainable agriculture.

Digit length pattern in schizophrenia suggests disturbed prenatal hemispheric lateralization.

The differentiation of the human brain is triggered by sexual steroid hormones in the fetus. The development of both the urogenital system and the appendicular skeleton are under common control by the HOX genes. Generally men have longer ring fingers than index fingers, whereas in women these fingers are close to equal.

Lifetime patterns of depressive symptoms in the community and among primary care attenders: an application of grade of membership analysis.

The objective of this study was to describe empirical and natural lifetime patterns of depressive and anxiety symptoms reported by community respondents and primary care attenders. The Grade of Membership model was used to analyze data collected from 716 subjects between 18 and 64 years of age with a lifetime diagnosis of DIS/DSM-III-R Major Depressive Episode. Symptoms of depression, mania, and anxiety (GAD, panic attack, and phobias) were processed.

Sertraline versus imipramine treatment of comorbid panic disorder and major depressive disorder.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of sertraline and imipramine in patients with comorbid panic disorder and major depressive disorder.

Method: Outpatients meeting a DSM-IV diagnosis of panic disorder and concurrent major depressive disorder were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to 26 weeks of double-blind treatment with either sertraline, in daily doses of 50 to 100 mg, or imipramine, in daily doses of 100 to 200 mg. Primary outcome measures were panic attack frequency (derived from patient diaries) and the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS).