Role of calcium binding proteins in the control of cerebellar granule cell neuronal excitability: experimental and modeling studies.

Calcium binding proteins, such as calretinin, are abundantly expressed in distinctive patterns in the central nervous system but their physiological function remains poorly understood. Calretinin is expressed in cerebellar granule cells which provide the major excitatory input to Purkinje cells through parallel fibers. Calretinin deficient mice exhibit dramatic alterations in motor coordination and in Purkinje cell firing recorded in vivo through unknown mechanisms.

Fast oscillation in the cerebellar cortex of calcium binding protein-deficient mice: a new sensorimotor arrest rhythm.

Fast oscillations (>100 Hz) may serve physiological roles when regulated properly. They may also appear in pathological conditions. In cerebellum, 160 Hz oscillation emerge in mice lacking calbindin and/or calretinin, two proteins devoted to calcium buffering in Purkinje and granule cells, respectively.

From electrophysiology to chromatin: a bottom-up approach to Angelman syndrome.

Angelman syndrome is one of the most studied human diseases related to a gene that is expressed on the maternal chromosome only in at least some brain cells. It is caused by inactivation of the UBE3A gene in the brain due to various abnormalities of the 15q11-q13 chromosome inherited from the mother. It is characterized by severe developmental delay, seizures, virtual absence of speech, motor impairment, and a particular behavioral phenotype.

[Evaluation of typical psychopathic traits with juvenile offenders].

Unlabelled: The concept of psychopathy has received many definitions for the first days of psychiatry. Recently, the Hare's Psychopathy Check List Revised has been created. This scale has the advantage to investigate the classically characteristic traits of the syndrome (need of stimulation, lack of culpability, superficial activity, lack of empathy, impassivity) and to point out the early development of behavior disturbances.

Fast cerebellar oscillation associated with ataxia in a mouse model of Angelman syndrome.

Ataxia may result from various cerebellar cortex dysfunctions. It is included in the diagnostic criteria of Angelman syndrome, a human neurogenetic condition. In order to better understand the cerebellar dysfunction in this condition, we recorded in vivo cerebellar activity in a mouse model of Angelman syndrome produced by null mutation of the maternal Ube3a gene.

Sterilisation of intellectually disabled women.

Objective: To point out the proportion of intellectually disabled women (IDW) who are sterilised, and the medical and social factors associated with an increased probability to be sterilised.

Study Design: A population-based study among 97% of IDW aged 18-46, attending government-accredited institutions in the region of Brussels-Capital and the province of Walloon Brabant (Belgium).

Results: Among the IDW included in this study, 22.

Psychosis, migration and social environment: an age--and--gender controlled study.

Purpose: Adverse social experiences are frequently invoked to explain the higher rate of psychosis among migrant groups. The aim of the present study was to establish the socio-environmental factors distinguishing migrant psychotic patients from autochthonous patients.

Subjects And Method: We conducted a cross-sectional survey involving 341 migrant psychotic patients matched for age and gender with 341 autochthonous psychotic patients.

Effect of simple spike firing mode on complex spike firing rate and waveform in cerebellar Purkinje cells in non-anesthetized mice.

Cerebellar Purkinje cells receive two different excitatory inputs from parallel and climbing fibers, causing simple and complex spikes, respectively. Purkinje cells present three modes of simple spike firing, namely tonic, silent and bursting. The influence of complex spike firing on simple spike firing has been extensively studied.

Family approach with grandchildren of Holocaust survivors.

Although the transgenerational transmission of Holocaust trauma is now well documented, this subject remains a source of considerable controversy. Moreover, the literature regarding the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors (GHSs, the third generation) is much sparser. We present here several clinical observations, that we made during therapy sessions with certain families of Holocaust survivors (HSs).

Inactivation of calcium-binding protein genes induces 160 Hz oscillations in the cerebellar cortex of alert mice.

Oscillations in neuronal populations may either be imposed by intrinsically oscillating pacemakers neurons or emerge from specific attributes of a distributed network of connected neurons. Calretinin and calbindin are two calcium-binding proteins involved in the shaping of intraneuronal Ca2+ fluxes. However, although their physiological function has been studied extensively at the level of a single neuron, little is known about their role at the network level.

[Chronic subdural hematoma and extramedullary erythropoiesis in an infant].

We report the case of a six-month old child with bilateral chronic subdural hematoma of unknown origin containing erythroblasts, metamyelocytes and blast-like cells. No such cells were found in venous blood. No primary neoplastic disorder was found.

Psychiatric disorders and social characteristics among second-generation Moroccan migrants in Belgium: an age-and gender-controlled study conducted in a psychiatric emergency department.

Purpose: Clinically, one of the most consistent clinical findings among migrant patients is an increase in the rate of psychosis. The aim of the present study was to confirm this finding in Belgium by comparing second-generation Moroccan migrant patients with Belgian patients, matched for the variables of age and gender.

Subjects And Method: We conducted a cross-sectional survey on 272 patients admitted in a psychiatric emergency unit during the year 1998.

Contraception of women with intellectual disability: prevalence and determinants.

The contraception of women with intellectual disability (ID) is a major concern for caregivers. However, the prevalence of contraception and the frequency of use of different methods (e.g.

Anterior spinal artery syndrome after aortic surgery in a child.

Anterior spinal artery syndrome is rare in children. In adults, where it is observed most frequently after resection of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms, spinal magnetic resonance imaging is considered the first-line investigation to confirm the clinical diagnosis. A 3-year-old male who presented with this syndrome after palliative cardiac surgery for a complex cardiac malformation associated with aortic coarctation is presented.

Factors influencing the determination of arousal thresholds in infants - a review.

Objective: To review the major confounding factors that influence the determination of arousal thresholds in infants.Review of confounding factors: The determination of arousal thresholds in infants measures their arousability from sleep. The evaluation is influenced by various conditions.