Design and manufacture of an ultra-compact, 1.5 T class, controlled-contact resistance, REBCO, brain imaging MRI magnet.

Brain imaging MRI comprises a significant proportion of MRI scans, but the requirement for including the shoulders in the magnet bore means there is not a significant size reduction in the magnet compared to whole-body magnets. Here we present a new design approach for brain imaging MRI magnets targeting ±20 kHz variation over the imaging volume rather than the more usual ±200 Hz making use of novel high-bandwidth MRI pulse sequences and distortion correction. Using this design approach, we designed and manufactured a 1.

A superconducting transformer system for high current cable testing.

This article describes the development of a direct-current (dc) superconducting transformer system for the high current test of superconducting cables. The transformer consists of a core-free 10,464 turn primary solenoid which is enclosed by a 6.5 turn secondary.

Personality traits predict treatment outcome in alcohol-dependent patients.

Personality traits are important individual characteristics modifying responses to therapy in various diseases. The aim of this study was to identify personality traits that may predict treatment outcome in alcohol-dependent patients. The present analysis was based on a total of 146 alcohol-dependent patients (109 male, 37 female) after detoxification.

Manifestations of early brain recovery associated with abstinence from alcoholism.

Chronic alcohol abuse results in morphological, metabolic, and functional brain damage which may, to some extent, be reversible with early effects upon abstinence. Although morphometric, spectroscopic, and neuropsychological indicators of cerebral regeneration have been described previously, the overall amount and spatial preference of early brain recovery attained by abstinence and its associations with other indicators of regeneration are not well established. We investigated global and local brain volume changes in a longitudinal two-timepoint study with T1-weighted MRI at admission and after short-term (6-7 weeks) sobriety follow-up in 15 uncomplicated, recently detoxified alcoholics.

Social factors but not stress-coping styles predict relapse in detoxified alcoholics.

Alcohol-dependent patients face a substantial risk of relapse after detoxification. Though psychosocial stress and coping strategies are regarded as major contributing factors in returning to drinking, the direct effects of coping styles on relapse are not clear. In this treatment outcome study, a mixed gender sample of 130 detoxified and well-characterized alcohol-dependent patients (37 women) was followed up over a period of 12 months after 6 weeks of inpatient treatment.

Controlled study on the combined effect of alcohol and tobacco smoking on testosterone in alcohol-dependent men.

Aims: The present study examined the association between pre-treatment drinking and smoking parameters and plasma testosterone levels before and after alcohol withdrawal.

Methods: A total of 51 alcohol-dependent men and 43 age-matched healthy men were investigated. In alcoholics, free testosterone in plasma was measured on the day of admission, after detoxification and after 6 weeks of sobriety.

Cortisol concentrations, stress-coping styles after withdrawal and long-term abstinence in alcohol dependence.

Alcohol-dependent patients face a substantial risk of relapse after detoxification. A major risk factor for relapse is stress which is reflected biologically by various physiological changes that include an activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and release of glucocorticoids. The prospective study examined cortisol concentrations and stress-coping styles in relation to abstinence 1 year following discharge from treatment.

A functional polymorphism in the promoter region of the monoamine oxidase A gene is associated with the cigarette smoking quantity in alcohol-dependent heavy smokers.

Tobacco smoking represents a leading cause of morbidity and mortality with a strong dose-response relation between the amount of smoking and the risks of tobacco-related diseases and death. The quantity that is smoked is determined predominantly by genetic factors. The present study examined whether there is an association between the quantity of cigarettes smoked and length variation of a functional 30-bp repeat polymorphism in the promoter region of the monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) gene.

A three-axes approach of subtyping the alcohol dependence syndrome.

Subtyping of alcoholics according to specific characteristics has a long tradition in alcoholism research with a number of different typologies that emerged in the literature. The goal of the present study was to test a multidimensional approach of subtyping with characteristics from different axes. Therefore, male inpatients meeting ICD-10 criteria for alcohol dependence were rated on three axes by assessing their degree of sensation seeking (personality axis), age of alcoholism onset (clinical axis) and level of dopamine activity (neurobiological axis).

Cu, Zn- and Mn-superoxide dismutase levels in brains of patients with schizophrenic psychosis.

Impaired oxidative stress defense has been reported in blood of both drug-naïve and antipsychotic-treated patients suffering from schizophrenic psychosis, indicating the involvement of free radical metabolism in the pathogenetic processes of schizophrenia. In this study, the concentrations of two isoenzymes of superoxide dismutase (SOD), Cu, Zn- and MnSOD, were determined with ELISA in various cortical (frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital cortex) and subcortical areas (putamen, caudate nucleus, thalamus, and substantia innominata) of post-mortem brain tissue from patients diagnosed with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder and compared with those of controls. Post-mortem brain tissue from individuals without neuropsychiatric disorders served for control.

Serotonin transporter gene polymorphism and personality traits in primary alcohol dependence.

We tested the hypothesis of an association between the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) gene regulatory region polymorphism and the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) personality dimension of Harm Avoidance. For the study, 124 subjects seeking inpatient treatment for primary alcohol dependence were grouped by their 5-HTT genotype and assessed with the TCI. Genotypes differed statistically significantly in Harm Avoidance but not in any other personality trait.

Gender-related differences in pharmacological relapse prevention with flupenthixol decanoate in detoxified alcoholics.

A study recently finished by our research group elucidated the effectiveness of flupenthixol decanoate (FLX) in maintaining abstinence in detoxified alcoholics. Flupenthixol decanoate is an established antipsychotic drug, which is well known for its mild antidepressant and anxiolytic activity as well as for its minimal sedation at low doses. It blocks dopamine binding at a number of receptor subtypes, primarily at D-1, D-2, D-3 and with less affinity at D4-receptors.

Gender and personality in alcoholism.

The topic gender and personality in alcoholism is discussed on the background of a research project on clinical aspects of alcoholism at the University of Würzburg, Germany. The data of this study are presented in the context of two questions: Which personality differences are there between women and men dependent on alcohol, and is there a connection between these personality differences and features of the alcohol dependence? Additionally, we take a look at gender-related differences in the development of alcoholism. In a first step, gender differences in the development and the course of alcoholism are investigated.

The candidate gene approach in alcoholism: are there gender-specific differences?

It is well established that genetic factors play a major role in the development of alcoholism in both sexes. Several twin studies demonstrated a nearly equally high magnitude of genetic influence for men and women. However, the genetic sources of vulnerability are supposed to only partially overlap in men and women.

Dopamine D2 (DAD2) and dopamine D3 (DAD3) receptor gene polymorphisms and treatment outcome in alcohol dependence.

The dopaminergic system is critically involved in reward mechanisms mediating the reinforcing effects of alcohol. The intention of this study was to investigate the genotypic frequencies of the -141C Ins/Del polymorphism of the DAD2 receptor gene as well as the Bal I polymorphism of the DAD3 receptor and their potential association with treatment outcome in alcoholism. Therefore, individuals suffering from primary alcohol dependence were clinically and genetically characterized and followed prospectively over a period of one year after inpatient treatment.

[Wender Utah rating scale. The short-version for the assessment of the attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults].

This work presents a statistical analysis of the German version of the Wender Utah rating scale (WURS) for the retrospective diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults. Data were obtained from 703 subjects. Item selection according to item-total correlation scores, frequency, and plausibility led to a short version of the scale that includes 21 items with item-total correlations from 0.

Electrophysiological indication for a link between serotonergic neurotransmission and personality in alcoholism.

The serotonergic neurotransmission seems to be involved in the neuropsychobiology of alcoholism. The intensity dependence of the N1/P2 component of auditory-evoked potentials is discussed as an indicator of the central serotonergic neurotransmission in healthy subjects. The aim of this study was to verify this correlation between intensity dependence and serotonergic neurotransmission, as indicated by the personality trait "harm avoidance" (HA) within the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) in alcohol-dependent patients.

Sequential MR imaging and proton MR spectroscopy in patients who underwent recent detoxification for chronic alcoholism: correlation with clinical and neuropsychological data.

Background And Purpose: Chronic alcohol abuse may cause neuropsychological disorders and result in brain atrophy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the metabolic, morphologic, and functional cerebral changes in the early stage of abstinence from chronic alcoholism.

Methods: Seventeen alcohol-dependent patients underwent MR imaging and MR spectroscopy on days 1 through 3 and days 36 through 39 of abstinence.

Neuroendocrine responses to fenfluramine and its relationship to personality in alcoholism.

This study investigates the relationship between personality and serotonergic reactivity in alcohol dependence. Personality characteristics were assessed according to the Temperament and Character model of Cloninger, the five-factor model of McCrae and Costa, Zuckerman's Sensation Seeking as well as Eysenck's impulsiveness/venturesomeness. Placebo-controlled prolactin response to the serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitor/releaser fenfluramine served as an indicator for the reactivity of serotonergic neurotransmission.

Alcohol cue-reactivity in heavy and light social drinkers as revealed by event-related potentials.

An elevated cue-reactivity evoked by alcohol-related stimuli (cues) in alcohol-dependent patients has been described for different physiological variables, including electrophysiological measures, such as event-related potentials (ERPs). Cue-reactivity has, however, also been reported for social drinkers. The aim of this study is to assess the effect of the drinking behaviours of social drinkers on cue-reactivity as measured with ERPs.

Flupenthixol decanoate and relapse prevention in alcoholics: results from a placebo-controlled study.

Flupenthixol, with its broad receptor profile, interacts with a variety of dopamine and serotonin binding sites which are important in the neurobiology of alcohol dependence. Its pharmacology, together with encouraging results from both animal studies and clinical trials with cocaine users, led us to postulate that flupenthixol would significantly prevent relapse in detoxified alcohol-dependent individuals. We conducted a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-centre trial with two parallel groups and appropriate statistical evaluation.

Genome polymorphism and alcoholism.

Different gene variants have been identified as risk or protective factors in alcoholism. The genes coding for dopamine receptors, serotonin transporters, and dehydrogenases represent susceptibility loci for addictive behaviour. However, alcoholism represents a complex psychiatric symptomatology which is caused by multiple factors, both genetic and environmental.

Event-related potentials and cue-reactivity in alcoholism.

Background: Relapse is a major problem in the treatment of addictive behaviors. Conditioning models of alcohol addiction suggest that stimuli associated with previous drug use (cues) may initiate relapse in a definite group of alcoholics. Event-related potentials (ERPs) might be useful to reveal the brain functional substrates of cue-reactivity.

The effects of ritanserin on mood, sleep, vigilance, clinical impression, and social functioning in alcohol-dependent individuals. Ritanserin in Alcoholism Work Group.

In an international double-blind placebo-controlled trial with 493 detoxified alcohol-dependent individuals, ritanserin, a specific 5-hydroxytryptamine, antagonist, was tested in three different dosages (2.5, 5, and 10 mg/day) against placebo over a period of 6 months. Data on changes in mood state, sleep quality, morning vigilance, clinical impression, and social functioning were analysed.