Nightside condensation of iron in an ultrahot giant exoplanet.

Ultrahot giant exoplanets receive thousands of times Earth's insolation. Their high-temperature atmospheres (greater than 2,000 kelvin) are ideal laboratories for studying extreme planetary climates and chemistry. Daysides are predicted to be cloud-free, dominated by atomic species and much hotter than nightsides.

Broadband observations of the naked-eye gamma-ray burst GRB 080319B.

Long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) release copious amounts of energy across the entire electromagnetic spectrum, and so provide a window into the process of black hole formation from the collapse of massive stars. Previous early optical observations of even the most exceptional GRBs (990123 and 030329) lacked both the temporal resolution to probe the optical flash in detail and the accuracy needed to trace the transition from the prompt emission within the outflow to external shocks caused by interaction with the progenitor environment. Here we report observations of the extraordinarily bright prompt optical and gamma-ray emission of GRB 080319B that provide diagnostics within seconds of its formation, followed by broadband observations of the afterglow decay that continued for weeks.

SOD1 activity and protective factors in familial ALS patients with L84F SOD1 mutation.

Method: The activity and amount of SOD1 in erythrocyte lysates and the plasma amino acid content were evaluated in four familial ALS patients bearing the L84F SOD1 mutation (fALS), in an asymptomatic family member with the mutation (L84F(5)), in sporadic ALS patients (sALS) and controls. Three of the fALS patients and the L84F(5) subject were tested once a year for three consecutive years.

Results: At the first evaluation SOD1 activity was similar in controls, sALS and fALS; the amount of SOD1 protein was lower (P < 0.

The influence of alprazolam on the monoaminergic neurotransmitter systems in dysthymic patients. Relationship to clinical response.

The effects of alprazolam (1.5 mg/die) on the levels of the monoaminergic neurotransmitter metabolites, on the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and on clinical outcome in subjects with primary late-onset dysthymia were investigated. Drug treatment significantly decreased plasma and urinary cortisol levels, serotonin platelet-bound and urinary 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol concentrations, while it increased plasma homovanillic acid (HVA) concentrations.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: oxidative energy metabolism and calcium homeostasis in peripheral blood lymphocytes.

There is evidence of oxidative injury in postmortem brain, spinal cord, and CSF of patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (SALS patients). We investigated the oxidative metabolism and calcium homeostasis in peripheral blood lymphocytes from such patients and did not find statistical differences in the basal oxygen consumption rate (QO2), cytochrome c oxidase activity, catalase activity, and lactate production. However the increase in QO2, induced by an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation, was depressed and the basal (resting) level of free cytosolic calcium ([Ca2+]in) was higher in lymphocytes from SALS patients (p < 0.

Catecholaminergic, neuroendocrine and anxiety responses to acute psychological stress in healthy subjects: influence of alprazolam administration.

We studied the effect of alprazolam (APZ) in 12 healthy volunteers on the psychological stress-induced activation of emotion and on the pituitary-adrenal, adrenomedullary and sympathoneuronal systems. After 3 days of placebo or APZ (1 mg/day orally) administration, we examined plasma levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone, cortisol, L-3,4 dihydroxyphenylalanine, dopamine, norepinephrine (NE), epinephrine, metanephrine, normetanephrine, homovanillic acid, vanillylmandelic acid, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy phenyglycol, urinary levels of cortisol and catecholamines, circulatory responses and state anxiety levels in subjects undergoing psychological stress based on viewing horror, violence, danger and war film clips. Film viewing produced modest rises of state anxiety levels, of plasma NE concentration and of diastolic blood pressure in both the placebo and drug groups.

PHA-stimulated cellular immune function and T-lymphocyte subsets in major depressive disorders.

We measured some immunological parameters in 20 hospitalized patients with major depression and 20 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Both enumeration of immune cells, including T-lymphocyte subpopulations, and assay of T-cell function were studied. White blood cells were evaluated with an automated cell counter, T-cell subsets with an immunobead technique, and T-cell function with a phytohemagglutinin-induced proliferation in vitro assay.

Effects of pyridostigmine, corticotropin-releasing hormone and growth hormone-releasing hormone on the pituitary-adrenal axis and on growth hormone secretion in dementia.

Alterations of neuroendocrinological indices determined by the impaired regulating effects of cholinergic neurotransmission have been described in primary dementia. In this study we have evaluated the effects of acetylcholinesterase inhibition by pyridostigmine on growth hormone (GH), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol secretion and on their responses to GH-releasing hormone (GHRH) and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) in 7 patients with primary degenerative dementia and in 8 sex- and age-matched controls. Demented subjects showed higher cortisol basal levels and lower ACTH levels than controls.

Glutamate and GABA levels in CSF from patients affected by dementia and olivo-ponto-cerebellar atrophy.

The modifications in the CSF content of glutamate and GABA in patients afflicted with primary degenerative dementia (PDD) and olivo-ponto-cerebellar atrophy (OPCA) have been evaluated. Control subjects (with disk herniation) were also included in the study. The amino-acids assays were carried out utilizing enzymatic-bioluminescence technique.

Aspects of amitriptyline and nortriptyline plasma levels monitoring in depression.

Fifty-nine depressed female inpatients were treated with 100 mg amitriptyline (AMT) IM for 4 weeks. Depression ratings and determinations of the parent drug and nortriptyline (NT) were performed weekly. No direct relationship between plasma AMT + NT concentrations and therapeutic response was apparent, but beneficial therapeutic responses and significantly lower side-effect scores were more frequently noted in subjects with concentrations in the 100-200 ng/ml range.

Cholinergic modulation of growth hormone-releasing hormone effects on growth hormone secretion in dementia.

An impairment of cholinergic and somatostatinergic neurotransmission have been reported in dementia. Both acetylcholine and somatostatin are involved in the regulation of growth hormone (GH) secretion. The effects of GH-releasing hormone (GHRH) 1-44 on GH release have been studied before and after the pretreatment with pyridostigmine or pirenzepine in subjects with senile dementia of the Alzheimer type, multi-infarct dementia and mixed dementia.

Noradrenergic output and clinical response in depressed women during amitriptyline therapy.

The measurement of the urinary excretion of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) in 59 unipolar depressed women before and during administration of 100 mg amitriptyline (AMT) i.m. daily for four weeks showed that the patients could be divided into high or low MHPG excretors.

[Depression and home environment].

The Authors consider the higher frequency of depressive disorders in women and examine the correlations between psychopathological expressions of depression and women's social and cultural roles. The condition of life at home, that is peculiar to housewife, sometimes can be a psychopathological risk factor or psychosocial stressor, as well as other work conditions (whether the woman is employed or not), that have to be examined in relation to each person, according to the individual's biological, psychosocial and cultural features.

Thyrotropin and prolactin responses to different doses of thyrotropin-releasing hormone in depression.

The effects of low doses of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH, 50 and 200 micrograms) on thyrotropin (TSH) and prolactin levels have been studied in depressed women and compared with the depressive condition and with the results of the dexamethasone suppression test (DST). TRH administration elicited blunted hormonal responses that were not correlated either with the age of the patients or with DST results. Different effects were observed in subgroups of depressive patients classified according to DSM III and ICD.

Clinical and biochemical responses to therapy in Alzheimer's disease and multi-infarct dementia.

Memory performance, central monoaminergic function and sympathetic nerve activity were studied in patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) or with multi-infarct dementia before and after 4 weeks with single or combined drug therapy (choline-piracetam). Analysis of the levels of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG), 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid (HVA) and 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and also in urine (plus 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy mandelic acid) showed that the basal values of HVA in the CSF and urine were lower in the more severely demented compared with the mildly demented subjects in both groups. The combined drug treatment resulted in a statistically significant increase in the MHPG level in the CSF of mildly demented subjects of the DAT group, while it seemed not to influence the other monoamine metabolites.

Chemiluminescent determination of choline in cerebrospinal fluid and red blood cells.

The concentration of choline in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients affected by primary dementia and in red blood cells (RBC) of depressed patients before and after treatment with lithium salts was determined using a chemiluminescent assay. The mean CSF concentration of choline was found to be 60 pmoles/ml (SD = 20 pmoles/ml) and this was lower than values obtained previously by spectrophotometric-colorimetric methods. Mean RBC choline concentrations before and after therapy with lithium salts were 20 nmoles/ml (SD = 16 nmoles/ml and 328 nmoles/ml (SD = 206 nmoles/l) respectively and these are similar to those reported previously (obtained by chemiluminescent and non-chemiluminescent methods).

Amitriptyline action on sympathetic neuronal function in depressed women.

1. Noradrenaline plasma levels and cardiovascular function modifications with orthostatic challenge during therapy were studied in 59 female depressed inpatients treated with 100 mg amitriptyline daily by intramuscular route for 4 weeks. 2.

P300 and CT scan in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Twenty chronic male schizophrenic subjects aged 30-50 years were examined by an auditory event-related potential procedure for the evaluation of the P300 component, a CT scan and a neuropsychological test battery. The P300 latency was increased and its amplitude was reduced. CT scan measures showed lateral and third ventricle enlargement, and there was a global neuropsychological impairment.

[Female alcoholism and household conditions].

Alcoholism in women, above all in housekeepers, tends to destroy both families and society. This kind of alcoholism is frequently based on neurosis and depression. Alcoholism in women is supposed to be caused by: genetic factors, psychological factors and social factors.

Mirror speaking after neurosurgery. A case history.

The case is reported of a 23 year old patient, who at the age of nine underwent neurosurgery for an angiomatous meningioma of the right temporal lobe, and immediately afterwards realized he was able to speak backwards nearly as well as normally. Presently, the patient still retains this ability which is associated with analogous mirror reading and writing. Neurological examination and EEG, CT data as well as the scores of some neuropsychological tests are added.

Computed tomography and pattern reversal visual evoked potentials in chronic schizophrenic patients.

Eighteen chronic schizophrenic subjects treated with a uniform dosage (4-6 mg/day p.o.) of haloperidol were submitted to computed tomography (CT) and to pattern reversal visual evoked potentials (VEPs).