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Im Rahmen des FRANZ-Projektes wurde nach einer Ionenquelle verlangt welche in der Lage ist einen intensiven hochbrillanten Protonenstrahl von 200 mA bei 120 keV im Dauerstrichbetrieb zur Verfügung zu stellen, bei gleichzeitig niedriger Strahlemittanz. Der recht hohe Protonenstrom von 200 mA stellt dabei eine Herausforderung an den Experimentator dar.
Die grundsätzliche Problematik bei der Entwicklung einer solchen Ionenquelle besteht im Wesentlichen darin, ein geeignetes Extraktionssystem zu designen, welches in der Lage ist den geforderten hohen Protonenstrom zu extrahieren und transportieren. In diesem Zusammenhang wurden Abschätzungen bezüglich des notwendigen Emissionsradius, der elektrischen Feldstärke im Extraktionsspalt sowie des Protonenanteils für den verlangten Protonenstrom von 200 mA durchgeführt. Für die praktische Umsetzung wurden Lösungsstrategien erarbeitet. Ziel war es die elektrische Feldstärke im Gap so hoch wie möglich und den Radius der Emissionsöffnung so klein wie möglich zu wählen, bei gleichzeitig möglichst hohem Protonenanteil. Basierend auf diesen Erkenntnissen wurde ein Prototyp der Bogenentladungs-Volumenionenquelle entwickelt und erfolgreich in Betrieb genommen.
Zur Steigerung des Protonenanteils im Wasserstoffplasma wurden diverse Parameter der Ionenquelle optimiert wie bspw. Bogenleistung, Gasdruck sowie insbesondere die Feldverteilung und die magnetische Flussdichte des magnetischen Filters. Diese Ergebnisse wurden mit dem verbesserten theoretischen Modell zur Erzeugung von atomaren Wasserstoffionenstrahlen verglichen. Um die elektrische Feldstärke im Extraktionsspalt zu steigern wurden die Elektroden aus einem thermisch belastbaren Material hergestellt und einer speziellen Oberflächenbehandlung unterzogen. Des Weiteren wurden theoretische und experimentelle Untersuchungen bezüglich der Emissionsstromdichte und der Strahlqualität durchgeführt. Weiterhin wurde die Emittanz des Ionenstrahls berechnet sowie mit einer eigens am Institut für Angewandte Physik entwickelten Pepperpot-Emittanzmessanlage experimentell bestimmt. Die vorliegende Dissertation präsentiert die Ergebnisse der Entwicklung dieser hocheffizienten Bogenentladungs-Volumenionenquelle.
Der Bundesgerichtshof hat mit Urteil vom 28. Januar 2015 entschieden, dass Kinder, die durch künstliche Befruchtung im Wege einer Samenspende gezeugt worden sind, gegen Reproduktionsmediziner und -kliniken einen Anspruch auf Auskunft über die Identität des Samenspenders haben können. Die Geltendmachung des Auskunftsanspruchs setzte kein bestimmtes Mindestalter der „Spenderkinder“ voraus. Der nachfolgende Beitrag analysiert die Konstruktion dieses Anspruchs vor dem Hintergrund eines durch neue Reproduktionstechnologien und gewandelte gesellschaftliche Vorstellungen veränderten Abstammungsrechts. Nach Methodenkritik und Rekonstruktion aus einer gesellschaftlich-institutionellen Perspektive eröffnen sich weitere Aussichten auf zukünftige Formen von Vaterschaft und ein entsprechend zu verwirklichendes Recht auf Kenntnis der eigenen Abstammung.
Device-related infections in recipients of left ventricular assist devices (LVAD) have been recognized as a major source of morbidity and mortality. They require a high level of diagnostic effort as part of the overall burden resulting from infectious complications in LVAD recipients. We present a multi-allergic patient who was treated for persistent sterile intrathoracic abscess formation and pericardial empyema following minimally invasive LVAD implantation including use of a sheet of e-polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) membrane to restore pericardial integrity. Sterile abscess formation and pericardial empyema recurred after surgical removal until the ePTFE membrane was removed, suggesting that in disposed patients, ePTFE may be related to sterile abscess formation or sterile empyema.
Background: Lithium has proven suicide preventing effects in the long-term treatment of patients with affective disorders. Clinical evidence from case reports indicate that this effect may occur early on at the beginning of lithium treatment. The impact of lithium treatment on acute suicidal thoughts and/or behavior has not been systematically studied in a controlled trial. The primary objective of this confirmatory study is to determine the association between lithium therapy and acute suicidal ideation and/or suicidal behavior in inpatients with a major depressive episode (MDE, unipolar and bipolar disorder according to DSM IV criteria). The specific aim is to test the hypothesis that lithium plus treatment as usual (TAU), compared to placebo plus TAU, results in a significantly greater decrease in suicidal ideation and/or behavior over 5 weeks in inpatients with MDE.
Methods/Design: We initiated a randomized, placebo-controlled multicenter trial. Patients with the diagnosis of a moderate to severe depressive episode and suicidal thoughts and/or suicidal behavior measured with the Sheehan-Suicidality-Tracking Scale (S-STS) will be randomly allocated to add lithium or placebo to their treatment as usual. Change in the clinician administered S-STS from the initial to the final visit will be the primary outcome.
Discussion: There is an urgent need to identify treatments that will acutely decrease suicidal ideation and/or suicidal behavior. The results of this study will demonstrate whether lithium reduces suicidal ideation and behavior within the first 5 weeks of treatment.
Background: The introduction of modern troponin assays has facilitated diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction due to improved sensitivity with corresponding loss of specificity. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with elevated levels of troponin. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of troponin I in patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome and chronic AF.
Methods: Contemporary sensitive troponin I was assayed in a derivation cohort of 90 patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome and chronic AF to establish diagnostic cut-offs. These thresholds were validated in an independent cohort of 314 patients with suspected myocardial infarction and AF upon presentation. Additionally, changes in troponin I concentration within 3 hours were used.
Results: In the derivation cohort, optimized thresholds with respect to a rule-out strategy with high sensitivity and a rule-in strategy with high specificity were established. In the validation cohort, application of the rule-out cut-off led to a negative predictive value of 97 %. The rule-in cut-off was associated with a positive predictive value of 88 % compared with 71 % if using the 99th percentile cut-off. In patients with troponin I levels above the specificity-optimized threshold, additional use of the 3-hour change in absolute/relative concentration resulted in a further improved positive predictive value of 96 %/100 %.
Conclusions: Troponin I concentration and the 3-hour change in its concentration provide valid diagnostic information in patients with suspected myocardial infarction and chronic AF. With regard to AF-associated elevation of troponin levels, application of diagnostic cut-offs other than the 99th percentile might be beneficial.
Background: Inflammation, angiogenesis and oxidative stress have been implicated in the pathogenesis of various vascular diseases. Recent evidence suggests that dimethylfumarate (DMF), an antiposriatic and anti-multiple sclerosis agent, possesses anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and anti-angiogenic properties. Here, we analyze the influence of DMF on TNF-α-induced expression of the important pro-inflammatory and pro-atherogenic chemokine MCP-1 and investigate the underlying mechanisms of this expression.
Findings: We analyzed constitutive and TNF-α-induced expression of MCP-1 in human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVEC) +/− DMF treatment via enzyme-linkes immunosorbent assay (ELISA). DMF significantly inhibited the protein expression levels in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, MCP-1 mRNA expression was also reduced in response to DMF, as demonstrated by RT-PCR. Thus, the regulation occurs at the transcriptional level. Interestingly, DMF prolonged the TNF-α-induced p38 and JNK phosphorylation in HUVEC, as demonstrated by Western blot analysis; however, the p38 and JNK inhibitor SB203580 did not affect the DMF-conveyed suppression of TNF-α-induced MCP-1 expression. DMF suppressed the TNF-α-induced nuclear translocation and phosphorylation (Serine 536) of p65 in these cells. These results were additionally approved by p65 luciferase promoter assays. Furthermore, we found that DMF slightly inhibited the early degradation of IκBα. In addition, we verified our results using other important inflammatory cytokines such as CCL-5, PDGF-BB, GM-CSF and IL-6.
Conclusion: DMF suppresses various TNF-α-induced pro-inflammatory and pro-atherogenic cytokines/chemokines in human endothelial cells. This action is regulated by reduced p65 activity and nuclear translocation, which can be explained in part by the reduced early degradation of IκBα and more important the reduced phosphorylation of p65 at Serine 536. These effects were independent of the p38, PI3K and p42/44 signaling pathways. As a result, DMF might be suitable for treating patients with vascular diseases.
In honeybees, reproductive females usually mate early in their life with more than 10 males in free flight, often within 10 minutes, and then store male gametes for up to five years. Because of the extreme polyandry and mating in free flight special adaptations in males are most likely. We present here the results of an investigation of the protein content of four types of male reproductive glands from the Western honeybee (Apis mellifera) drone, namely seminal vesicles (secretion in ejaculate), as well as bulbus, cornua and mucus glands (secretions for the mating plug). Using high resolution and accuracy mass spectrometry and a combination of database searching and de novo sequencing techniques it was possible to identify 50 different proteins in total, inside all mentioned glands, except in the mucus gland. Most of the proteins are unique for a specific gland type, only one of them (H9KEY1/ATP synthase subunit O) was found in three glands, and 7 proteins were found in two types of glands. The identified proteins represent a wide variety of biological functions and can be assigned to several physiological classes, such as protection, energy generation, maintaining optimal conditions, associated mainly with vesicula seminalis; signaling, cuticle proteins, icarpin and apolipoproteins located mainly in the bulbus and cornua glands; and some other classes. Most of the discovered proteins were not found earlier during investigation of semen, seminal fluid and tissue of reproductive glands of the bee drone. Moreover, we provide here the origin of each protein. Thus, the presented data might shed light on the role of each reproductive gland.
Sparse coding is a popular approach to model natural images but has faced two main challenges: modelling low-level image components (such as edge-like structures and their occlusions) and modelling varying pixel intensities. Traditionally, images are modelled as a sparse linear superposition of dictionary elements, where the probabilistic view of this problem is that the coefficients follow a Laplace or Cauchy prior distribution. We propose a novel model that instead uses a spike-and-slab prior and nonlinear combination of components. With the prior, our model can easily represent exact zeros for e.g. the absence of an image component, such as an edge, and a distribution over non-zero pixel intensities. With the nonlinearity (the nonlinear max combination rule), the idea is to target occlusions; dictionary elements correspond to image components that can occlude each other. There are major consequences of the model assumptions made by both (non)linear approaches, thus the main goal of this paper is to isolate and highlight differences between them. Parameter optimization is analytically and computationally intractable in our model, thus as a main contribution we design an exact Gibbs sampler for efficient inference which we can apply to higher dimensional data using latent variable preselection. Results on natural and artificial occlusion-rich data with controlled forms of sparse structure show that our model can extract a sparse set of edge-like components that closely match the generating process, which we refer to as interpretable components. Furthermore, the sparseness of the solution closely follows the ground-truth number of components/edges in the images. The linear model did not learn such edge-like components with any level of sparsity. This suggests that our model can adaptively well-approximate and characterize the meaningful generation process.
Background: It is assumed that different pain phenotypes are based on varying molecular pathomechanisms. Distinct ion channels seem to be associated with the perception of cold pain, in particular TRPM8 and TRPA1 have been highlighted previously. The present study analyzed the distribution of cold pain thresholds with focus at describing the multimodality based on the hypothesis that it reflects a contribution of distinct ion channels.
Methods: Cold pain thresholds (CPT) were available from 329 healthy volunteers (aged 18 - 37 years; 159 men) enrolled in previous studies. The distribution of the pooled and log-transformed threshold data was described using a kernel density estimation (Pareto Density Estimation (PDE)) and subsequently, the log data was modeled as a mixture of Gaussian distributions using the expectation maximization (EM) algorithm to optimize the fit.
Results: CPTs were clearly multi-modally distributed. Fitting a Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) to the log-transformed threshold data revealed that the best fit is obtained when applying a three-model distribution pattern. The modes of the identified three Gaussian distributions, retransformed from the log domain to the mean stimulation temperatures at which the subjects had indicated pain thresholds, were obtained at 23.7 °C, 13.2 °C and 1.5 °C for Gaussian #1, #2 and #3, respectively.
Conclusions: The localization of the first and second Gaussians was interpreted as reflecting the contribution of two different cold sensors. From the calculated localization of the modes of the first two Gaussians, the hypothesis of an involvement of TRPM8, sensing temperatures from 25 - 24 °C, and TRPA1, sensing cold from 17 °C can be derived. In that case, subjects belonging to either Gaussian would possess a dominance of the one or the other receptor at the skin area where the cold stimuli had been applied. The findings therefore support a suitability of complex analytical approaches to detect mechanistically determined patterns from pain phenotype data.
The assignment of functions to genes in the carotenoid biosynthesis pathway is necessary to understand how the pathway is regulated and to obtain the basic information required for metabolic engineering. Few carotenoid ε-hydroxylases have been functionally characterized in plants although this would provide insight into the hydroxylation steps in the pathway. We therefore isolated mRNA from the endosperm of maize (Zea mays L., inbred line B73) and cloned a full-length cDNA encoding CYP97C19, a putative heme-containing carotenoid ε hydroxylase and member of the cytochrome P450 family. The corresponding CYP97C19 genomic locus on chromosome 1 was found to comprise a single-copy gene with nine introns. We expressed CYP97C19 cDNA under the control of the constitutive CaMV 35S promoter in the Arabidopsis thaliana lut1 knockout mutant, which lacks a functional CYP97C1 (LUT1) gene. The analysis of carotenoid levels and composition showed that lutein accumulated to high levels in the rosette leaves of the transgenic lines but not in the untransformed lut1 mutants. These results allowed the unambiguous functional annotation of maize CYP97C19 as an enzyme with strong zeinoxanthin ε-ring hydroxylation activity.
Disorder-relevant but task-unrelated stimuli impair cognitive performance in social anxiety disorder (SAD); however, time course and neural correlates of emotional interference are unknown. The present study investigated time course and neural basis of emotional interference in SAD using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Patients with SAD and healthy controls performed an emotional stroop task which allowed examining interference effects on the current and the succeeding trial. Reaction time data showed an emotional interference effect in the current trial, but not the succeeding trial, specifically in SAD. FMRI data showed greater activation in the left amygdala, bilateral insula, medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and left opercular part of the inferior frontal gyrus during emotional interference of the current trial in SAD patients. Furthermore, we found a positive correlation between patients’ interference scores and activation in the mPFC, dorsal ACC and left angular/supramarginal gyrus. Taken together, results indicate a network of brain regions comprising amygdala, insula, mPFC, ACC, and areas strongly involved in language processing during the processing of task-unrelated threat in SAD. However, specifically the activation in mPFC, dorsal ACC, and left angular/supramarginal gyrus is associated with the strength of the interference effect, suggesting a cognitive network model of attentional bias in SAD. This probably comprises exceeded allocation of attentional resources to disorder-related information of the presented stimuli and increased self-referential and semantic processing of threat words in SAD.
Computed ABC analysis for rational selection of most informative variables in multivariate data
(2015)
Objective: Multivariate data sets often differ in several factors or derived statistical parameters, which have to be selected for a valid interpretation. Basing this selection on traditional statistical limits leads occasionally to the perception of losing information from a data set. This paper proposes a novel method for calculating precise limits for the selection of parameter sets.
Methods: The algorithm is based on an ABC analysis and calculates these limits on the basis of the mathematical properties of the distribution of the analyzed items. The limits implement the aim of any ABC analysis, i.e., comparing the increase in yield to the required additional effort. In particular, the limit for set A, the "important few", is optimized in a way that both, the effort and the yield for the other sets (B and C), are minimized and the additional gain is optimized.
Results: As a typical example from biomedical research, the feasibility of the ABC analysis as an objective replacement for classical subjective limits to select highly relevant variance components of pain thresholds is presented. The proposed method improved the biological interpretation of the results and increased the fraction of valid information that was obtained from the experimental data.
Conclusions: The method is applicable to many further biomedical problems including the creation of diagnostic complex biomarkers or short screening tests from comprehensive test batteries. Thus, the ABC analysis can be proposed as a mathematically valid replacement for traditional limits to maximize the information obtained from multivariate research data.
Introduction: By producing H2O2, the NADPH oxidase Nox4 is involved in differentiation of mesenchymal cells. Exercise alters the composition of slow and fast twitch fibres in skeletal. Here we hypothesized that Nox4 contributes to exercise-induced adaptation such as changes in muscle metabolism or muscle fibre specification and studied this in wildtype and Nox4-/- mice.
Results: Exercise, as induced by voluntary running in a running wheel or forced running on a treadmill induced a switch from fast twitch to intermediate fibres. However the induced muscle fibre switch was similar between Nox4-/- and wildtype mice. The same held true for exercise-induced expression of PGC1α or AMPK activation. Both are increased in response to exercise, but with no difference was observed between wildtype and Nox4-/- mice.
Conclusion: Thus, exercise-induced muscle fibre switch is Nox4-independent.
Background: The pathomechanisms of atherosclerosis and vascular remodelling are under intense research. Only a few in vivo tools to study these processes longitudinally in animal experiments are available. Here, we evaluated the potential of micro-CT technology.
Methods: Lumen areas of the common carotid arteries (CCA) in the ApoE-/- partial carotid artery ligation mouse model were compared between in vivo and ex vivo micro-CT technique and serial histology in a total of 28 animals. AuroVist-15 nm nanoparticles were used as in vivo blood pool contrast agent in a Skyscan 1176 micro-CT at resolution of 18 μmeter voxel size and a mean x-ray dose of 0.5 Gy. For ex vivo imaging, animals were perfused with MicroFil and imaged at 9 μmeter voxel size. Lumen area was evaluated at postoperative days 7, 14, and 28 first by micro-CT followed by histology.
Results: In vivo micro-CT and histology revealed lumen loss starting at day 14. The lumen profile highly correlated (r = 0.79, P<0.0001) between this two methods but absolute lumen values obtained by histology were lower than those obtained by micro-CT. Comparison of in vivo and ex vivo micro-CT imaging revealed excellent correlation (r = 0.83, P<0.01). Post mortem micro-CT yielded a higher resolution than in vivo micro-CT but there was no statistical difference of lumen measurements in the partial carotid artery ligation model.
Conclusion: These data demonstrate that in vivo micro-CT is a feasible and accurate technique with low animal stress to image remodeling processes in the murine carotid artery.
DCs express intrinsic cellular defense mechanisms to specifically inhibit HIV-1 replication. Thus, DCs are productively infected only at very low levels with HIV-1, and this non-permissiveness of DCs is suggested to go along with viral evasion. We now illustrate that complement-opsonized HIV-1 (HIV-C) efficiently bypasses SAMHD1 restriction and productively infects DCs including BDCA-1 DCs. Efficient DC infection by HIV-C was also observed using single-cycle HIV-C, and correlated with a remarkable elevated SAMHD1 T592 phosphorylation but not SAMHD1 degradation. If SAMHD1 phosphorylation was blocked using a CDK2-inhibitor HIV-C-induced DC infection was also significantly abrogated. Additionally, we found a higher maturation and co-stimulatory potential, aberrant type I interferon expression and signaling as well as a stronger induction of cellular immune responses in HIV-C-treated DCs. Collectively, our data highlight a novel protective mechanism mediated by complement opsonization of HIV to effectively promote DC immune functions, which might be in the future exploited to tackle HIV infection.
Background & aims: Vitamin D, best known to regulate bone mineralization, has numerous additional roles including regulation inflammatory pathways. Recently, an increased incidence of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)D3) deficiency has been found in subjects suffering from liver diseases. We here investigated if low vitamin D levels might be associated with prognosis, inflammation and infectious complications in patients with cirrhosis.
Methods: We performed a prospective cohort study investigating the relation between 25(OH)D3 levels and stages of cirrhosis, mortality and complications of cirrhosis, including infections.
Results: 251 patients with cirrhosis were enrolled into the present prospective cohort study. 25(OH)D3 levels were quantified by radioimmunoassay from serum samples obtained at study inclusion. The mean follow-up time was 411 ± 397 days with a range of 1-1382 days. 30 (12.0%) patients underwent liver transplantation and 85 (33.8%) individuals died within the study. The mean serum 25(OH)D3 concentration was 8.93 ± 7.1 ng/ml with a range of 1.0 to 46.0 ng/ml. 25(OH)D3 levels differed significantly between Child Pugh scores and showed a negative correlation with the model of end stage liver disease (MELD) score. Patients with decompensated cirrhosis and infectious complications, had significantly lower 25(OH)D3 levels compared to subjects without complications. Low 25(OH)D3 was associated with mortality in uni- as well as multivariate Cox regression models.
Conclusions: 25(OH)D3 deficiency is associated with advanced liver disease and low 25(OH)D3 levels are an indicator for a poor outcome and are associated with infectious complications.
Background: Despite its largely mountainous terrain for which this Himalayan country is a popular tourist destination, Nepal is now endemic for five major vector-borne diseases (VBDs), namely malaria, lymphatic filariasis, Japanese encephalitis, visceral leishmaniasis and dengue fever. There is increasing evidence about the impacts of climate change on VBDs especially in tropical highlands and temperate regions. Our aim is to explore whether the observed spatiotemporal distributions of VBDs in Nepal can be related to climate change.
Methodology: A systematic literature search was performed and summarized information on climate change and the spatiotemporal distribution of VBDs in Nepal from the published literature until December 2014 following providing items for systematic review and meta-analysis (PRISMA) guidelines.
Principal findings: We found 12 studies that analysed the trend of climatic data and are relevant for the study of VBDs, 38 studies that dealt with the spatial and temporal distribution of disease vectors and disease transmission. Among 38 studies, only eight studies assessed the association of VBDs with climatic variables. Our review highlights a pronounced warming in the mountains and an expansion of autochthonous cases of VBDs to non-endemic areas including mountain regions (i.e., at least 2,000 m above sea level). Furthermore, significant relationships between climatic variables and VBDs and their vectors are found in short-term studies.
Conclusion: Taking into account the weak health care systems and difficult geographic terrain of Nepal, increasing trade and movements of people, a lack of vector control interventions, observed relationships between climatic variables and VBDs and their vectors and the establishment of relevant disease vectors already at least 2,000 m above sea level, we conclude that climate change can intensify the risk of VBD epidemics in the mountain regions of Nepal if other non-climatic drivers of VBDs remain constant.
Australia has experienced dramatic declines and extinctions of its native rodent species over the last 200 years, particularly in southern Australia. In the tropical savanna of northern Australia significant declines have occurred only in recent decades. The later onset of these declines suggests that the causes may differ from earlier declines in the south. We examine potential regional effects (northern versus southern Australia) on biological and ecological correlates of range decline in Australian rodents. We demonstrate that rodent declines have been greater in the south than in the tropical north, are strongly influenced by phylogeny, and are consistently greater for species inhabiting relatively open or sparsely vegetated habitat. Unlike in marsupials, where some species have much larger body size than rodents, body mass was not an important predictor of decline in rodents. All Australian rodent species are within the prey-size range of cats (throughout the continent) and red foxes (in the south). Contrary to the hypothesis that mammal declines are related directly to ecosystem productivity (annual rainfall), our results are consistent with the hypothesis that disturbances such as fire and grazing, which occur in non-rainforest habitats and remove cover used by rodents for shelter, nesting and foraging, increase predation risk. We agree with calls to introduce conservation management that limits the size and intensity of fires, increases fire patchiness and reduces grazing impacts at ecological scales appropriate for rodents. Controlling feral predators, even creating predator-free reserves in relatively sparsely-vegetated habitats, is urgently required to ensure the survival of rodent species, particularly in northern Australia where declines are not yet as severe as those in the south.
AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) maintains energy homeostasis by suppressing cellular ATP-consuming processes and activating catabolic, ATP-producing pathways such as fatty acid oxidation (FAO). The transcription factor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor δ (PPARδ) also affects fatty acid metabolism, stimulating the expression of genes involved in FAO. To question the interplay of AMPK and PPARδ in human macrophages we transduced primary human macrophages with lentiviral particles encoding for the constitutively active AMPKα1 catalytic subunit, followed by microarray expression analysis after treatment with the PPARδ agonist GW501516. Microarray analysis showed that co-activation of AMPK and PPARδ increased expression of FAO genes, which were validated by quantitative PCR. Induction of these FAO-associated genes was also observed upon infecting macrophages with an adenovirus coding for AMPKγ1 regulatory subunit carrying an activating R70Q mutation. The pharmacological AMPK activator A-769662 increased expression of several FAO genes in a PPARδ- and AMPK-dependent manner. Although GW501516 significantly increased FAO and reduced the triglyceride amount in very low density lipoproteins (VLDL)-loaded foam cells, AMPK activation failed to potentiate this effect, suggesting that increased expression of fatty acid catabolic genes alone may be not sufficient to prevent macrophage lipid overload.
Augmenting LTP-like plasticity in human motor cortex by spaced paired associative stimulation
(2015)
Paired associative stimulation (PASLTP) of the human primary motor cortex (M1) can induce LTP-like plasticity by increasing corticospinal excitability beyond the stimulation period. Previous studies showed that two consecutive PASLTP protocols interact by homeostatic metaplasticity, but animal experiments provided evidence that LTP can be augmented by repeated stimulation protocols spaced by ~30min. Here we tested in twelve healthy selected PASLTP responders the possibility that LTP-like plasticity can be augmented in the human M1 by systematically varying the interval between two consecutive PASLTP protocols. The first PASLTP protocol (PAS1) induced strong LTP-like plasticity lasting for 30-60min. The effect of a second identical PASLTP protocol (PAS2) critically depended on the time between PAS1 and PAS2. At 10min, PAS2 prolonged the PAS1-induced LTP-like plasticity. At 30min, PAS2 augmented the LTP-like plasticity induced by PAS1, by increasing both magnitude and duration. At 60min and 180min, PAS2 had no effect on corticospinal excitability. The cumulative LTP-like plasticity after PAS1 and PAS2 at 30min exceeded significantly the effect of PAS1 alone, and the cumulative PAS1 and PAS2 effects at 60min and 180min. In summary, consecutive PASLTP protocols interact in human M1 in a time-dependent manner. If spaced by 30min, two consecutive PASLTP sessions can augment LTP-like plasticity in human M1. Findings may inspire further research on optimized therapeutic applications of non-invasive brain stimulation in neurological and psychiatric diseases.