The neurophysiology of biological motion perception in schizophrenia.

Introduction: The ability to recognize human biological motion is a fundamental aspect of social cognition that is impaired in people with schizophrenia. However, little is known about the neural substrates of impaired biological motion perception in schizophrenia. In the current study, we assessed event-related potentials (ERPs) to human and nonhuman movement in schizophrenia.

Outcomes of salvage surgery for cure in patients with locally recurrent disease after local excision of rectal cancer.

Background: Local excision for early rectal cancer has gained widespread interest. Currently available imaging modalities have low sensitivity to detect locoregional disease, which may result in understaging and a high risk of recurrence after local excision.

Objective: The purpose of this work was to study the morbidity, mortality, and long-term oncologic outcomes in a select cohort of patients undergoing salvage surgery for local recurrence after local excision of early rectal cancer.

New developments in colorectal surgery.

Purpose Of Review: Surgical management of diseases of the colon and rectum continues to evolve. This review examines the recent publications that have led to or may lead to changes in practice in this field.

Recent Findings: We identified and reviewed the recent publications in the areas of colon, rectal, and anal cancers; inflammatory bowel disease; incontinence; diverticulitis; hemorrhoids; fistulas; and quality improvement initiatives.

Social cognition and functional outcome in schizophrenia: The moderating role of cardiac vagal tone.

Individuals with schizophrenia face significant challenges in daily functioning, and although social cognition predicts how well patients respond to these challenges, associated physiological mechanisms remain unspecified. The present study draws from polyvagal theory and tested the hypothesis that respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), an established indicator of the capacity to self-regulate and adapt to environmental demands, combines with social cognition to predict functional outcome. Using data from 41 schizophrenia patients and 36 healthy comparison subjects, we replicated group differences in RSA and social cognition and also demonstrated that RSA and social cognition interact to predict how effectively patients manage work and independent living activities.

Partial carpal arthrodesis using a medially applied mini-plate in three cats with carpometacarpal hyperextension injury.

Hyperextension injury to the feline carpus usually results in disruption of the palmar ligament support at the level of the carpometacarpal joint. Treatment options include pancarpal or partial carpal arthrodesis. Partial carpal arthrodesis preserves range of motion of the antebrachiocarpal joint, and pronation and supination of the forearm.

Preventing autoimmunity protects against the development of hypertension and renal injury.

Several studies suggest a link between autoimmunity and essential hypertension in humans. However, whether autoimmunity can drive the development of hypertension remains unclear. The autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus is characterized by autoantibody production, and the prevalence of hypertension is increased markedly in this patient population compared with normal healthy women.

Descriptions of two new species of Myrmedonota Cameron (Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae) from Mexico with comments on the genus taxonomy and behavior.

Two new species of Myrmedonota, M. shimmerale n. sp.

Neoplasia in the ileoanal pouch following colectomy in patients with ulcerative colitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis.

Background & Aims: Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is typically associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), particularly ulcerative colitis (UC). PSC-IBD patients are at an increased risk for colorectal neoplasia. The ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) is a treatment option for patients with medically refractory UC or neoplasia.

Holistic processing improves change detection but impairs change identification.

It has been just over a century since Gestalt psychologists described the factors that contribute to the holistic processing of visually presented stimuli. Recent research indicates that holistic processing may come at a cost; specifically, the perception of holistic forms may reduce the visibility of constituent parts. In the present experiment, we examined change detection and change identification accuracy with Kanizsa rectangle patterns that were arranged to either form a Gestalt whole or not.

Autoimmunity: an underlying factor in the pathogenesis of hypertension.

One in every three adults in the United States has hypertension, and the underlying cause of most of these cases is unknown. Therefore, it is imperative to continue the study of mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of hypertension. Decades ago, studies speculated that elements of an autoimmune response were associated with the development of hypertension based, in part, on the presence of circulating autoantibodies in hypertensive patients.

17β-Estradiol protects against the progression of hypertension during adulthood in a mouse model of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder with a high prevalence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Because SLE predominantly affects women, estrogen is commonly implicated as a contributor to SLE disease progression. Using an established mouse model of SLE (female NZBWF1), we tested whether estrogen has a causal role in the development of hypertension in adulthood.

Extended sacropelvic resection for locally recurrent rectal cancer: can it be done safely and with good oncologic outcomes?

Background: A multimodality approach to patients with locally recurrent rectal cancer that includes surgery is associated with a significant survival advantage when tumor-free margins are achieved. Patients with advanced tumors will require extended sacropelvic resection to optimize oncologic outcomes.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the safety, feasibility, and oncologic outcomes of extended sacropelvic resection for locally recurrent rectal cancer at our institution.

Controversies in laparoscopy for colon and rectal cancer.

There is sufficient level I evidence to support and even recommend laparoscopy as the surgical modality of choice for colon cancer resection. Laparoscopy offers improved short-term outcomes and at least equivalent long-term oncologic outcomes when compared with open resection. Laparoscopic rectal cancer surgery remains investigational.

Quality assurance in colon and rectal cancer surgery.

Surgery remains the cornerstone in the multidisciplinary treatment of colon and rectal cancer. Many diagnostic, technical, and adjuvant therapies are known to impact the immediate and long-term oncologic results. Guidelines for appropriate cancer-specific management of colorectal cancer should be adhered to so as to optimize the oncologic outcomes.

Role of superposition of dislocation avalanches in the statistics of acoustic emission during plastic deformation.

Various dynamical systems with many degrees of freedom display avalanche dynamics, which is characterized by scale invariance reflected in power-law statistics. The superposition of avalanche processes in real systems driven at a finite velocity may influence the experimental determination of the underlying power law. The present paper reports results of an investigation of this effect using the example of acoustic emission (AE) accompanying plastic deformation of crystals.

The physiological roles of apolipoprotein J/clusterin in metabolic and cardiovascular diseases.

Several isoforms of apolipoprotein J/clusterin (CLU) are encoded from a single gene located on chromosome 8 in humans. These isoforms are ubiquitously expressed in the tissues, and have been implicated in aging, neurodegenerative disorders, cancer progression, and metabolic/cardiovascular diseases including dyslipidemia, diabetes, atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction. The conventional secreted form of CLU (sCLU) is thought to be a component of high density lipoprotein-cholesterol.

Risk of neoplastic change in ileal pouches in familial adenomatous polyposis.

Introduction: Neoplastic change in ileal reservoirs after proctocolectomy has been reported in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis. We aim to determine the incidence and progression of neoplastic change in the ileal pouch of familial adenomatous polyposis patients at our institution.

Methods: A retrospective review of all patients who underwent proctocolectomy for familial adenomatous polyposis with construction of an ileal pouch from 1972 to 2007 was performed.

Hypertension in an experimental model of systemic lupus erythematosus occurs independently of the renal nerves.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory disorder with prevalent hypertension and renal injury. In this study, we tested whether the renal nerves contribute to the development of hypertension in an established mouse model of SLE (NZBWF1). Female SLE and control (NZW/LacJ) mice were subjected to either bilateral renal denervation or a sham procedure at 32 wk of age.

Surgery for locally advanced recurrent colorectal cancer involving the aortoiliac axis: can we achieve R0 resection and long-term survival?

Background: Locally advanced, recurrent colorectal cancer involving the aortoiliac axis may be considered a contraindication for curative surgery because of the technical challenges of achieving a negative margin resection and an assumed poor prognosis.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess oncologic outcomes and the ability to achieve an R0 resection in these patients.

Design: A retrospective review of a prospectively maintained colorectal cancer database identified 406 consecutive patients who underwent surgery for locally recurrent colorectal cancer between 1997 and 2007.

Effects of treadmill training on functional recovery following peripheral nerve injury in rats.

Exercise, in the form of moderate daily treadmill training following nerve transection and repair leads to enhanced axon regeneration, but its effect on functional recovery is less well known. Female rats were exercised by walking continuously, at a slow speed (10 m/min), for 1 h/day on a level treadmill, beginning 3 days after unilateral transection and surgical repair of the sciatic nerve, and conducted 5 days/wk for 2 wk. In Trained rats, both direct muscle responses to tibial nerve stimulation and H reflexes in soleus reappeared earlier and increased in amplitude more rapidly over time than in Untrained rats.

Object substitution masking in schizophrenia: an event-related potential analysis.

Schizophrenia patients exhibit deficits on visual processing tasks, including visual backward masking, and these impairments are related to deficits in higher-level processes. In the current study we used electroencephalography techniques to examine successive stages and pathways of visual processing in a specialized masking paradigm, four-dot masking, which involves masking by object substitution. Seventy-six schizophrenia patients and 66 healthy controls had event-related potentials (ERPs) recorded during four-dot masking.

Is curative resection and long-term survival possible for locally re-recurrent colorectal cancer in the pelvis?

Background: A multimodality approach for locally recurrent colorectal cancer in the pelvis provides a significant survival advantage when negative margins are achieved. However, outcomes of surgical resection in patients who have locally re-recurrent disease in the pelvis are not well studied. Our aim was to assess the safety, feasibility of a negative margin resection, and survival outcomes in patients with pelvic locally re-recurrent colorectal cancer.

New developments in colorectal surgery.

Purpose Of Review: The field of colorectal surgery continues to move forward as technical innovations emerge and as surgeons ask critical questions. The results of subsequent investigations often lead to changes in practice. This review examines recent publications that describe these practice changes.