Exposure to lidocaine in early life does not cause negative long-term behavioural changes in mice.

Background: The local anaesthetic lidocaine is widely used in the neonatal intensive unit to treat seizures in premature babies. However, other antiepileptics administered during early development in various animal models have shown negative long-term behavioural effects. Since no long-term behavioural data so far exist regarding lidocaine exposure at an early age, we decided to perform this extended follow-up study using a sensitive behavioural test.

Stabilizing tetragonal ZrO nanocrystallites in solvothermal synthesis.

Phase-pure tetragonal ZrO nanoparticles have been prepared under simple solvothermal synthesis conditions using different types of alcohols as solvents and studied using X-ray scattering. The variation of tetragonal/monoclinic phase ratios within the produced powders was directly correlated with the amount of generated water from solvent dehydration during the syntheses. By controlling the dehydration kinetics, either choosing primary alcohols of varying thermal stability or by changing synthesis temperatures, it is possible to selectively tune this tetragonal/monoclinic phase ratio.

Simulation-based summative assessment in healthcare: an overview of key principles for practice.

Background: Healthcare curricula need summative assessments relevant to and representative of clinical situations to best select and train learners. Simulation provides multiple benefits with a growing literature base proving its utility for training in a formative context. Advancing to the next step, "the use of simulation for summative assessment" requires rigorous and evidence-based development because any summative assessment is high stakes for participants, trainers, and programs.

Fluoride-assisted detection of glutathione by surface Ce/Ce engineered nanoceria.

Nanoceria has evolved as a promising nanomaterial due to its unique enzyme-like properties, including excellent oxidase mimetic activity, which significantly increases in the presence of fluoride ions. However, this significant increase in oxidase activity has never been utilised as a signal enhancer for the detection of biological analytes partly because of the lack of understanding of the mechanism involved in this process. In this study, we show that the surface oxidation state of cerium ions plays a very crucial role in different enzymatic activities, especially the oxidase mimetic activity by engineering nanoceria with three different surface Ce/Ce compositions.

Paracetamol (Acetaminophen) and its Effect on the Developing Mouse Brain.

Paracetamol, or acetaminophen (AAP), is the most commonly used analgesic during pregnancy and early life. While therapeutic doses of AAP are considered harmless during these periods, recent findings in both humans and rodents suggest a link between developmental exposure to AAP and behavioral consequences later in life. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of neonatal exposure to clinically relevant doses of AAP on adult spontaneous behavior, habituation, memory, learning, and cognitive flexibility later in life using a mouse model.

Evaluation of the dentate gyrus in adult mice exposed to acetaminophen (paracetamol) on postnatal day 10.

Acetaminophen (AAP; or paracetamol) is a widely used nonprescription drug with antipyretic and analgesic properties. Alarmingly, there is an increasing body of evidence showing that developmental exposure to AAP is associated with adverse behavioural outcomes later in life. We have previously shown that relevant doses of AAP in 10-day-old mice affected memory, learning and locomotor activity in the adult animals.

A Single δ-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) Dose During Brain Development Affects Markers of Neurotrophy, Oxidative Stress, and Apoptosis.

δ-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is one of the most used drugs during pregnancy and lactation and efficiently crosses the placental and blood-brain barriers. Despite the recent legalization initiatives worldwide, the adverse outcome pathway (AOP) of THC following exposure during brain development is incompletely understood. We have previously reported that a single injection of THC on postnatal day (PND) 10 altered adult spontaneous behavior and habituation rates in adult mice.

Developmental effects of neonatal fractionated co-exposure to low-dose gamma radiation and paraquat on behaviour in adult mice.

Radiological methods for screening, diagnostics and therapy are often used in healthcare; however, it has recently been reported that developmental exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation (IR) causes neurotoxicity. Environmental chemicals also have the potential to affect the developing brain and the concomitant effects caused by IR and chemicals are of high interest today. We therefore aim to investigate if low-dose IR can interact with the known neurotoxicant paraquat to induce neurotoxicity in the neonatal mouse model.

A Cannabinoid Receptor Type 1 (CB1R) Agonist Enhances the Developmental Neurotoxicity of Acetaminophen (Paracetamol).

Acetaminophen (AAP; also known as paracetamol) is the most used and only recommended analgesic and antipyretic among pregnant women and young children. However, recent findings in both humans and rodents suggest a link between developmental exposure to AAP and adverse neurobehavioral effects later in life. We hypothesized that the cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R) may be involved in the developmental neurotoxicity of AAP, owing to its interaction with the endocannabinoid system.

Solvothermal flow synthesis of zinc phosphate pigment.

Synthesis of phase pure hopeite pigment through a solvothermal flow method is reported here for the first time. The products show two-step dehydration behaviour from thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and a higher degree of purity and homogeniety than commercial zinc phosphate pigment. By increasing the reaction temperature stepwise from room temperature to 350 °C it was possible to decrease the size of the individual crystallite sheets and to tune their packing into larger assemblies.

Adult neurobehavioral alterations in male and female mice following developmental exposure to paracetamol (acetaminophen): characterization of a critical period.

Paracetamol (acetaminophen) is a widely used non-prescription drug with analgesic and antipyretic properties. Among pregnant women and young children, paracetamol is one of the most frequently used drugs and is considered the first-choice treatment for pain and/or fever. Recent findings in both human and animal studies have shown associations between paracetamol intake during brain development and adverse behavioral outcomes later in life.

Short-term exposure and long-term consequences of neonatal exposure to Δ(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and ibuprofen in mice.

Both Δ(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and ibuprofen have analgesic properties by interacting with the cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R) and the cyclooxygenase (COX) systems, respectively. Evaluation of these analgesics is important not only clinically, since they are commonly used during pregnancy and lactation, but also to compare them with acetaminophen, with a known interaction with both CB1R and the COX systems. Short-term exposure of neonatal rodents to acetaminophen during the first weeks of postnatal life, which is comparable with a period from the third trimester of pregnancy to the first years of postnatal life in humans, induces long-term behavioral disturbances.

Defect chemistry in ferroelectric perovskites: long standing issues and recent advances.

Accurate control of residual defect density is required for reliable investigation and use of ferroelectric materials. After reviewing the long term endeavor to decrease defect contributions in bulk materials, which reached mass production decades ago, recent challenges are underlined. These mostly result from the continuous trend towards integration which has reached the nanometre range.

Implication of coronin 7 in body weight regulation in humans, mice and flies.

Background: Obesity is a growing global concern with strong associations with cardiovascular disease, cancer and type-2 diabetes. Although various genome-wide association studies have identified more than 40 genes associated with obesity, these genes cannot fully explain the heritability of obesity, suggesting there may be other contributing factors, including epigenetic effects.

Results: We performed genome wide DNA methylation profiling comparing normal-weight and obese 9-13 year old children to investigate possible epigenetic changes correlated with obesity.

Transport of L-glutamine, L-alanine, L-arginine and L-histidine by the neuron-specific Slc38a8 (SNAT8) in CNS.

Glutamine transporters are important for regulating levels of glutamate and GABA in the brain. To date, six members of the SLC38 family (SNATs) have been characterized and functionally subdivided them into System A (SNAT1, SNAT2 and SNAT4) and System N (SNAT3, SNAT5 and SNAT7). Here we present the first functional characterization of SLC38A8, one of the previous orphan transporters from the family, and we suggest that the encoded protein should be named SNAT8 to adhere with the SNAT nomenclature.

CDKAL1-related single nucleotide polymorphisms are associated with insulin resistance in a cross-sectional cohort of Greek children.

Five novel loci recently found to be associated with body mass in two GWAS of East Asian populations were evaluated in two cohorts of Swedish and Greek children and adolescents. These loci are located within, or in the proximity of: CDKAL1, PCSK1, GP2, PAX6 and KLF9. No association with body mass has previously been reported for these loci in GWAS performed on European populations.