A meta-analytic review of the effects of exercise on brain-derived neurotrophic factor.

Consistent evidence indicates that exercise improves cognition and mood, with preliminary evidence suggesting that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) may mediate these effects. The aim of the current meta-analysis was to provide an estimate of the strength of the association between exercise and increased BDNF levels in humans across multiple exercise paradigms. We conducted a meta-analysis of 29 studies (N = 1111 participants) examining the effect of exercise on BDNF levels in three exercise paradigms: (1) a single session of exercise, (2) a session of exercise following a program of regular exercise, and (3) resting BDNF levels following a program of regular exercise.

D-cycloserine augmentation of cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety disorders: an update.

Although cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a generally effective treatment for treating anxiety disorders, there is clearly still room for further improvements. Recent advances in neuroscience of extinction learning led to novel clinical strategies to augment exposure-based treatments with d-cycloserine (DCS), a partial agonist at the glycine recognition site of the glutamatergic N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor. This review provides an update on the current knowledge of DCS as an augmentation strategy of CBT for anxiety disorders.

A randomized, controlled trial of the efficacy of an interoceptive exposure-based CBT for treatment-refractory outpatients with opioid dependence.

Many patients diagnosed with opioid dependence do not adequately respond to pharmacologic, psychosocial, or combination treatment, highlighting the importance of novel treatment strategies for this population. The current study examined the efficacy of a novel behavioral treatment focusing on internal cues for drug use (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Interoceptive Cues; CBT-IC) relative to an active comparison condition, Individual Drug Counseling (IDC), when added to methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) among those who had not responded to MMT. Participants (N=78) were randomly assigned to receive 15 sessions of CBT-IC or IDC as an adjunct to ongoing MMT and counseling.

Innate immunity. A Spaetzle-like role for nerve growth factor β in vertebrate immunity to Staphylococcus aureus.

Many key components of innate immunity to infection are shared between Drosophila and humans. However, the fly Toll ligand Spaetzle is not thought to have a vertebrate equivalent. We have found that the structurally related cystine-knot protein, nerve growth factor β (NGFβ), plays an unexpected Spaetzle-like role in immunity to Staphylococcus aureus infection in chordates.

Effect of biofilms on recalcitrance of staphylococcal joint infection to antibiotic treatment.

The pathogenesis of joint infections is not well understood. In particular, we do not know why these infections respond poorly to antibiotic treatment. Here we show that methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a major cause of joint infections, forms exceptionally strong biofilmlike aggregates in human synovial fluid (SF), to an extent significantly exceeding biofilm formation observed in growth medium or serum.

Physical stress and bacterial colonization.

Bacterial surface colonizers are subject to a variety of physical stresses. During the colonization of human epithelia such as on the skin or the intestinal mucosa, bacteria mainly have to withstand the mechanical stress of being removed by fluid flow, scraping, or epithelial turnover. To that end, they express a series of molecules to establish firm attachment to the epithelial surface, such as fibrillar protrusions (pili) and surface-anchored proteins that bind to human matrix proteins.

Molecular and structural basis for the roles of hepatitis C virus polymerase NS5B amino acids 15, 223, and 321 in viral replication and drug resistance.

Resistance to the 2'-F-2'-C-methylguanosine monophosphate nucleotide hepatitis C virus (HCV) inhibitors PSI-352938 and PSI-353661 was associated with a combination of amino acid changes (changes of S to G at position 15 [S15G], C223H, and V321I) within the genotype 2a nonstructural protein 5B (NS5B), an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. To understand the role of these residues in viral replication, we examined the effects of single and multiple point mutations on replication fitness and inhibition by a series of nucleotide analog inhibitors. An acidic residue at position 15 reduced replicon fitness, consistent with its proximity to the RNA template.

Gender moderates the effect of exercise on anxiety sensitivity.

A moderate to vigorous intensity exercise program is emerging as a promising strategy for reducing anxiety sensitivity (AS). Initial evidence suggests that the effects of exercise on mental health outcomes may vary as a function of gender, with men benefitting more than women. Building upon this evidence, the present study tested the hypothesis that the effect of exercise on AS would vary as a function of gender, such that the effect would be stronger for men than for women.

The Development of a Novel Measure to Assess Motives for Compensatory Eating in Response to Exercise: The CEMQ.

Compensatory eating in response to exercise may be an obstacle to achieving weight-loss and fitness goals. In this study we develop and conduct a preliminary examination of the psychometric properties of the Compensatory Eating Motives Questionnaire (CEMQ), a self-report questionnaire of motives for compensatory eating. Development and testing of the CEMQ was conducted in two student samples.

Production of an attenuated phenol-soluble modulin variant unique to the MRSA clonal complex 30 increases severity of bloodstream infection.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a leading cause of morbidity and death. Phenol-soluble modulins (PSMs) are recently-discovered toxins with a key impact on the development of Staphylococcus aureus infections. Allelic variants of PSMs and their potential impact on pathogen success during infection have not yet been described.

Basis of virulence in a Panton-Valentine leukocidin-negative community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strain.

Community-associated (CA) infections with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are on a global rise. However, analysis of virulence characteristics has been limited almost exclusively to the US endemic strain USA300. CA-MRSA strains that do not produce Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) have not been investigated on a molecular level.

De novo fear conditioning across diagnostic groups in the affective disorders: evidence for learning impairments.

De novo fear conditioning paradigms have served as a model for how clinical anxiety may be acquired and maintained. To further examine variable findings in the acquisition and extinction of fear responses between clinical and nonclinical samples, we assessed de novo fear conditioning outcomes in outpatients with either anxiety disorders or depression and healthy subjects recruited from the community. Overall, we found evidence for attenuated fear conditioning, as measured by skin conductance, among the patient sample, with significantly lower fear acquisition among patients with depression and posttraumatic stress disorder.

Selective chemical inhibition of agr quorum sensing in Staphylococcus aureus promotes host defense with minimal impact on resistance.

Bacterial signaling systems are prime drug targets for combating the global health threat of antibiotic resistant bacterial infections including those caused by Staphylococcus aureus. S. aureus is the primary cause of acute bacterial skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) and the quorum sensing operon agr is causally associated with these.

The psmα locus regulates production of Staphylococcus aureus alpha-toxin during infection.

Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of human bacterial infection, causing a wide spectrum of disease ranging from skin and soft tissue infections to life-threatening pneumonia and sepsis. S. aureus toxins play an essential role in disease pathogenesis, contributing to both immunomodulation and host tissue injury.

The role of anxiety sensitivity in daily physical activity and eating behavior.

Anxiety sensitivity (AS), or the fear of somatic arousal, has been linked to both maladaptive eating behavior as well as exercise avoidance in both self-report and laboratory-based experiments. The current pilot study sought to extend these finding to the naturalistic setting. A sample of 32 adults completed affect and dietary monitoring and wore actigraphs across a three-day monitoring period.

Early risk factors for psychopathology in offspring of parents with bipolar disorder: the role of obstetric complications and maternal comorbid anxiety.

Objective: Offspring of parents with bipolar disorder (BD) are at increased risk for developing a range of psychiatric disorders. Although genetic factors clearly confer risk to offspring, environmental factors also play a role in increasing vulnerability. Such environmental factors may occur at the initial stages of development in the form of obstetric complications (OCs).

The Effects of Computerized Cognitive Control Training on Community Adults with Depressed Mood.

Background: Depression is frequently characterized by patterns of inflexible, maladaptive, and ruminative thinking styles, which are thought to result from a combination of decreased attentional control, decreased executive functioning, and increased negative affect. Cognitive Control Training (CCT) uses computer-based behavioral exercises with the aim of strengthening cognitive and emotional functions. A previous study found that severely depressed participants who received CCT exhibited reduced negative affect and rumination as well as improved concentration.

Whole genome analysis of a community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST59 isolate from a case of human sepsis and severe pneumonia in China.

We report a case of necrotizing pneumonia in a young patient caused by community acquired-methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) in a teaching hospital in the People's Republic of China. The patient had a typical clinical presentation and was successfully treated with antibiotics and intravenous immunoglobulin. A CA-MRSA strain, named SA268, was isolated from the blood of the patient.

Staphylococcus aureus toxins.

Staphylococcus aureus is a dangerous pathogen that causes a variety of severe diseases. The virulence of S. aureus is defined by a large repertoire of virulence factors, among which secreted toxins play a preeminent role.

The human ortholog of acid-sensing ion channel gene ASIC1a is associated with panic disorder and amygdala structure and function.

Background: Individuals with panic disorder (PD) exhibit a hypersensitivity to inhaled carbon dioxide, possibly reflecting a lowered threshold for sensing signals of suffocation. Animal studies have shown that carbon dioxide-mediated fear behavior depends on chemosensing of acidosis in the amygdala via the acid-sensing ion channel ASIC1a. We examined whether the human ortholog of the ASIC1a gene, ACCN2, is associated with the presence of PD and with amygdala structure and function.

Combination prophylactic therapy with rifampin increases efficacy against an experimental Staphylococcus epidermidis subcutaneous implant-related infection.

The incidence of infections related to cardiac devices (such as permanent pacemakers) has been increasing out of proportion to implantation rates. As management of device infections typically requires explantation of the device, optimal prophylactic strategies are needed. Cefazolin and vancomycin are widely used as single agents for surgical prophylaxis against cardiac device-related infections.

Characterization of the staphylococcal cassette chromosome composite island of Staphylococcus haemolyticus SH32, a methicillin-resistant clinical isolate from China.

Staphylococcal cassette chromosome (SCC) elements contribute considerably to virulence and resistance to antibiotic agents in staphylococci. SCC elements in coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) are highly diverse and there is evidence suggesting that they serve as a reservoir for antibiotic resistance genes in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). However, only a small number of SCC elements have been characterized in CoNS and their exact roles in the emergence and evolution of MRSA remain to be demonstrated.

Phenol-soluble modulins.

PSMs are a recently discovered family of short, amphipathic, α-helical peptides in staphylococci. Several PSMs are key virulence determinants, particularly in highly virulent Staphylococcus aureus strains. PSMα peptides of S.

Phenol-soluble modulins--critical determinants of staphylococcal virulence.

Phenol-soluble modulins (PSMs) are a recently discovered family of amphipathic, alpha-helical peptides that have multiple roles in staphylococcal pathogenesis and contribute to a large extent to the pathogenic success of virulent staphylococci, such as Staphylococcus aureus. PSMs may cause lysis of many human cell types including leukocytes and erythrocytes, stimulate inflammatory responses, and contribute to biofilm development. PSMs appear to have an original role in the commensal lifestyle of staphylococci, where they facilitate growth and spreading on epithelial surfaces.