Emotional imagination of negative situations: Functional neuroimaging in anorexia and bulimia.

Aim: The present study aims to extend the knowledge of the neural correlates of emotion processing in first episode subjects affected by anorexia nervosa (AN) or bulimia nervosa (BN). We applied an emotional distress paradigm targeting negative emotions thought to be relevant for interpersonal difficulties and therapeutic resistance mechanisms.

Methods: The current study applied to 44 female participants with newly diagnosed AN or BN and 20 matched controls a neuroimaging paradigm eliciting affective responses.

Neural Bases of Cognitive Impairments in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders: A Mini-Review of Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings.

Introduction: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is often associated with impairments in emotional and cognitive domains. Contrarily to the emotional sphere, neural basis underpinnings to cognitive impairments are still not well known.

Methods: We performed a bibliographic search on PUBMED of all the studies investigating the cognitive impairments in PTSD individuals.

Microstructural white matter alterations in borderline personality disorder: A minireview.

Background: Borderline personality disorder (BPD) affects 1-5% of the population and is characterized by a complex symptomatology and selective functional impairments. Although brain imaging studies have contributed to better characterizing the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying BPD, the white matter (WM) deficits associated with this disorder are still unclear. Therefore, the present review aims at providing an overview of the findings emerged from the available diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies on BPD.

Submental flap practice patterns and perceived outcomes: A survey of 212 AHNS surgeons.

Objectives: To describe American Head and Neck Society (AHNS) surgeon submental flap (SMF) practice patterns and to evaluate variables associated with SMF complications.

Methods: The design is a cross-sectional study. An online survey was distributed to 782 AHNS surgeons between 11/11/16 and 12/31/16.

Can Machine Learning help us in dealing with treatment resistant depression? A review.

Background: About one third of patients treated with antidepressant do not show sufficient symptoms relief and up to 15% of patients remain symptomatic even after multiple trials are applied, configuring a state called treatment resistant depression (TRD). A clear definition of this state and the understanding of underlying mechanisms contributing to chronic disability caused by major depressive disorder is still unknown. Therefore, Machine Learning (ML) techniques emerged in the last years as interesting approaches to deal with such complex problems.

A focus on valproate and cognitive deficits in Bipolar Disorders: A mini-review: Special Section on "Translational and Neuroscience Studies in Affective Disorders" Section Editor, Maria Nobile MD, PhD.

Background: Cognitive deficits represent a core feature of Bipolar Disorder (BD), which seem to characterize this disorder regardless of the mood phase. However, the role of pharmacological treatment in determining cognitive alterations is still not clear. Indeed, although drugs improve cognition by targeting mood symptoms, they could also carry their own cognitive side effects.

Effects of olanzapine during cognitive and emotional processing in schizophrenia: A review of functional magnetic resonance imaging findings.

Objective: Olanzapine is an atypical antipsychotic that is widely used in the treatment of schizophrenia and has shown some degree of efficacy on negative and cognitive symptoms. We aimed to review the effects of olanzapine treatment on brain regions that are directly involved in cognitive and emotional processing.

Methods: We used the PubMed database to perform a bibliographic search on functional magnetic resonance imaging studies that investigated the effects of olanzapine treatment on neural activity in patients with schizophrenia during cognitive and emotional tasks.

Subclinical Agoraphobia Symptoms and Regional Brain Volumes in Non-clinical Subjects: Between Compensation and Resilience?

Symptoms of anxiety are present not only in panic disorder or other anxiety disorders, but are highly prevalent in the general population. Despite increasing biological research on anxiety disorders, there is little research on understanding subclinical or sub-threshold symptoms relating to anxiety in non-clinical community samples, which could give clues to factors relating to resilience or compensatory changes. This study focused on brain structural correlates of subclinical anxiety/agoraphobia symptoms from a multi-center imaging study.

Structural and metabolic cerebral alterations between elderly bipolar disorder and behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia: A combined MRI-PET study.

Background: Elderly bipolar disorder (BD) and behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) may exhibit similar symptoms and both disorders are characterized by selective abnormalities in cortical and subcortical regions that are associated with cognitive and emotional impairments. We aimed to investigate common and distinct neural substrates of BD and bvFTD by coupling, for the first time, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) techniques.

Methods: 3-Tesla MRI and 18 fluorodeoxyglucose-PET scans were acquired for 16 elderly BD patients, 23 bvFTD patients with mild cognitive impairments and 68 healthy controls (48 for PET and 20 for MRI analyses).

The metabolic basis of psychosis in bipolar disorder: A positron emission tomography study.

Objectives: Psychotic symptoms are a common feature in bipolar disorder (BD), especially during manic phases, and are associated with a more severe course of illness. However, not all bipolar subjects experience psychosis during the course of their illness, and this difference often guides assessment and pharmacological treatment. The aim of the present study is to elucidate, for the first time, the FDG uptake dysfunctions associated with psychosis in BD patients with and without a history of past psychotic symptoms, through a positron emission tomography (PET) approach.

Active HHV-6 Infection of Cerebellar Purkinje Cells in Mood Disorders.

Early-life infections and associated neuroinflammation is incriminated in the pathogenesis of various mood disorders. Infection with human roseoloviruses, HHV-6A and HHV-6B, allows viral latency in the central nervous system and other tissues, which can later be activated causing cognitive and behavioral disturbances. Hence, this study was designed to evaluate possible association of HHV-6A and HHV-6B activation with three different groups of psychiatric patients.

Estimated prevalence and associated risk factors of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among medical college students in a Chinese population.

Background: To investigate the prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among medical college students in a Chinese population.

Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to collect demographic data on participants and their symptoms of ADHD, anxiety, and depression. Data were collected through questionnaires filled out on a computer or through WeChat, a widely used social media app.

Associations of serotonin transporter gene promoter polymorphisms and monoamine oxidase A gene polymorphisms with oppositional defiant disorder in a Chinese Han population.

Background: Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) is a behavioral disorder that mainly refers to a recurrent pattern of disobedient, defiant, negativistic and hostile behaviors toward authority figures. Previous studies have showed associations of serotonin transporter (5-HTT) and monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) with behavioral and psychiatric disorders. The purposes of this study were to investigate the potential association of 5-HTT gene promoter polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) and MAOA gene polymorphism with susceptibility to ODD in a Han Chinese school population.

Altered Serum Tumor Necrosis Factor and Interleukin-1β in First-Episode Drug-Naive and Chronic Schizophrenia.

Abnormality of the immune system might play a significant role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. We want to identity whether the serum TNF-α and IL-1β levels were changed in FEDN patients and CP and to investigate the relationship between both cytokines and psychopathological symptoms. We recruited 69 FEDN patients, 87 CP and 61 healthy controls.

Decreased interhemispheric coordination in the posterior default-mode network and visual regions as trait alterations in first-episode, drug-naive major depressive disorder.

Decreased homotopic connectivity has been implicated in the neurophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD) with inconsistent findings. A combination of clinical and methodological variabilities may account for the inconsistency, and thus limiting the reproducibility of the findings. The present study aims to examine voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC) alterations in two independent samples of patients with first-episode, drug-naive MDD.

Direct fluorescence detection of VirE2 secretion by Agrobacterium tumefaciens.

VirE2 is a ssDNA binding protein essential for virulence in Agrobacterium tumefaciens. A tetracysteine mutant (VirE2-TC) was prepared for in vitro and in vivo fluorescence imaging based on the ReAsH reagent. VirE2-TC was found to be biochemically active as it binds both ssDNA and the acidic secretion chaperone VirE1.

Spontaneous Intracranial Hypotension Presenting as a "Pseudo-Chiari 1.

Spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH) is classified as a decrease in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure secondary to a CSF leakage and consequent descent of the brain into the foramen magnum. Diagnosing SIH can be difficult due to its overlapping findings with Arnold-Chiari type 1 Malformation (CM1) where the cerebellar tonsils herniate into the foramen magnum. The similarity of both conditions calls for a more reliable imaging technique to localize the CSF leak which could narrow the differential diagnosis and aid in choosing the correct treatment.

Traumatic Cervical Nerve Root Avulsion with Pseudomeningocele Formation.

Cervical nerve root avulsion is a well-documented result of motor vehicle collision (MVC), especially when occurring at high velocities. These avulsions are commonly traction injuries of nerve roots that may be accompanied by a tear in the meninges through the vertebral foramina with associated collections of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), thereby resulting in a pseudomeningocele. We present a case of a 19-year-old male who experienced an MVC and was brought to the emergency department (ED) with right arm paralysis and other injuries.