Predicting conversion to dementia of the Alzheimer’s type in a healthy control sample: The power of errors in stroop color naming.

Personality traits are important candidate predictors of suicidal behavior. Several studies have reported an association between personality/temperament traits and suicidal behavior, suggesting personality traits as intermediary phenotypes related to suicidal behavior. Thus, it is possible that suicide attempts can be accounted for by increased familial rates of risk personality traits. The aim of this work was to evaluate personality traits in affective disorder patients with attempted suicide and to compare them with the personality trait scores of their parents. In addition, ITC scores in the two groups were compared with a healthy control sample. The patients evaluated met the DSM-IV criteria for major depression disorder or dysthymia and had a documented history of suicide attempts. Psychiatric diagnoses of patients and parents were done according to the SCID-I and the personality was assessed using the Temperament and Character Inventory. We analyzed 49 suicide attempt subjects and their parents (n=95) and 89 control subjects. We observed that temperament and character dimensions were similar between patients and their parents (P>0.05). In particular, we observed that high HA and low P, SD, and CO were shared among families. Our study is the first to report that the personality traits of affective disorder patients with a history of attempted suicide are shared between patients and their parents.

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Advanced Parental Age: A Risk Factor for Alzheimer's Disease or Depression in the Elderly?

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610200006566 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 445-451 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Ursula Ptok ◽

Andreas Papassotiropoulos ◽

Wolfgang Maier ◽

Reinhard Heun

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Risk Factor ◽

Control Sample ◽

The Elderly ◽

Parental Age ◽

Family History Information ◽

Healthy Control ◽

Study Population ◽

Depressive Episodes

Background: Advanced parental age has been suggested as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD) as well as for other psychiatric disorders. In the present investigation, a sample of gerontopsychiatric patients was examined for a possible parental age effect. Study Population and Methods: Eighty-three patients with AD, 154 elderly patients with depressive episodes, and 48 comorbid patients (AD and depressive episode) as well as 107 age-matched healthy control subjects from the general population were included in the investigation. Information on the years of birth of the parents was derived from personal or family history information. Results: The mean maternal and paternal ages at the time of birth of the index subject were not significantly different for the different diagnostic subgroups or for the control sample. Conclusion: There was no evidence in our sample that advanced parental age increases the risk of AD or depression in the elderly.

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Anosognosia in Alzheimer’s disease: The role of impairment levels in assessment of insight across domains

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617710000056 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 16 (3) ◽

pp. 463-473 ◽

Cited By ~ 49

Author(s):

HANNA LEICHT ◽

MARTIN BERWIG ◽

HERMANN-JOSEF GERTZ

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Neuropsychological Tests ◽

Control Sample ◽

Self Assessment ◽

Domain Specific ◽

Clinical Rating ◽

Healthy Control ◽

And Performance

AbstractImpaired insight for deficits (anosognosia) is common in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, it has not yet been determined clearly (a) whether different methods for assessing insight are comparable, and (b) whether anosognosia affects different domains to different degrees (domain-specificity). Impaired insight was investigated in 32 patients with AD, who were each accompanied by a caregiver. Anosognosia was assessed by a global clinical rating, questionnaire discrepancies (patient vs. caregiver) covering different domains, and performance discrepancies (self-assessment vs. performance) based on four neuropsychological tests which were compared with those of a healthy control sample. The results of clinical rating and questionnaire discrepancies were closely correlated, but performance discrepancies showed no association with the other methods. Anosognosia was present in the majority of the sample, and occurred across domains. The domains corresponding to core deficits in AD (recent memory, activities of daily living) appeared especially prone to anosognosia. However, results do not suggest that anosognosia itself is domain-specific. Rather, it appears that insight may be invariant, while differences in patient-caregiver discrepancies arise largely from different degrees of deficit across domains. (JINS, 2010, 16, 463–473.)

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Electrochromic selective filtering of chronodisruptive visible wavelengths

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0241900 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 (11) ◽

pp. e0241900

Author(s):

Maria Angeles Bonmati-Carrion ◽

Javier Padilla ◽

Raquel Arguelles-Prieto ◽

Anna M. Österholm ◽

John R. Reynolds ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Blue Light ◽

Ganglion Cells ◽

Light Exposure ◽

Control Sample ◽

Color Naming ◽

Internal Clock ◽

Light Sources ◽

Melatonin Suppression ◽

Pupil Constriction ◽

Visible Wavelengths

We present evidence of pupil response modification, as well as differential theoretical melatonin suppression through selective and dynamic electrochromic filtering of visible light in the 400–500 nm range to minimize chronodisruptive nocturnal blue light exposure. A lower activation of intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs), the first step for light to reach a human’s internal clock, is related to melatonin secretion therefore avoiding detrimental effects of excessive blue light exposure. Pupillary Light Reflex and Color Naming were experimentally assessed under light filtered by two different coloration states (transmissive and absorptive) of these novel dynamic filters, plus an uncoated test device, in 16 volunteers. Also, different commercial light sources at illuminances ranging from 1 to 1000 lux were differentially filtered and compared in terms of theoretical melatonin suppression. Representative parameters of the pupil responses reflected lower pupil constriction when the electrochromic filters (ECFs) were switched on (absorptive state, blue light is absorbed by the filter) compared to uncoated filters (control sample), but failed to do so under transmissive state (blue light passes through the filter) indicating less activation of ipRGCs under absorptive state (although no significant differences between states was found). Out of eight colors tested, just one showed significant differences in naming between both filter states. Thus, the ECF would have some protecting effect on ipRGC activation with very limited changes in color perception. While there are some limitations of the theoretical model used, the absorptive state yielded significantly lower theoretical melatonin suppression in all those light sources containing blue wavelengths across the illuminance range tested. This would open the way for further research on biological applications of electrochromic devices.

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GENETIC POLYMORPHISMS OF IL-17A IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE RISK OF PULMONARY TUBERCULOSIS IN IRAQI PATIENTS

Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research ◽

10.22159/ajpcr.2018.v11i10.26008 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 11 (10) ◽

pp. 428

Author(s):

Nada Yas Ameen ◽

Mohammed Qais Abed ◽

Nawal Mohammed Utba ◽

Ahmed Asmar Mankhi

Keyword(s):

Infectious Disease ◽

Mycobacterium Tuberculosis ◽

Serum Level ◽

Pulmonary Tuberculosis ◽

Control Sample ◽

Control Group ◽

Case Group ◽

Pulmonary Tb ◽

Genotype Frequencies ◽

Healthy Control

Objectives: Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that usually affects the lungs caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, TB is the second biggest killer, globally. The aim of this study was to examine the association between IL-17A rs2275913 SNP and pulmonary TB susceptibility in Iraqi population.Methods: From January 2017 to April 2017, 80 pulmonary TB patients were selected as the case group, another 40 healthy control were enrolled as the control group. The genotype frequencies of IL-17A rs2275913 was detected using amplification refractory mutation system.Results: The results of IL-17A serum level demonstrated that there were significant differences (p<0.05) between patients groups. The result showed that A allele have a higher frequency (55% vs. 50%) in TB patients than the control sample with OR value of 1.22 and EF value 0.1 and G have lower frequency (45% vs. 50%) in TB patients than control sample with OR value of 0.82 with PF value of 0.09, but this difference was not statistically significant (p>0.05).Conclusion: There were no significant associations between IL-17A rs2275913 polymorphism and risk of TB in Iraqi population.

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Validation of the Attention, Memory, and Frontal Abilities Screening Test (AMFAST)

Assessment ◽

10.1177/1073191118822734 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 27 (7) ◽

pp. 1502-1514

Author(s):

Bryan M. Freilich ◽

Nicole Feirsen ◽

Elise I. Welton ◽

Wenzhu B. Mowrey ◽

Tamar B. Rubinstein

Keyword(s):

Executive Functioning ◽

Processing Speed ◽

Screening Test ◽

Clinical Sample ◽

Control Sample ◽

Cutoff Score ◽

Healthy Control ◽

English Speaking ◽

Attention Memory ◽

Executive Functioning Deficits

The aim of this study is to validate the Attention, Memory, and Frontal Abilities Screening Test (AMFAST), a novel, 10-minute, paper-and-pencil measure developed to identify attention, processing speed, memory, and executive functioning deficits in children and adults with various conditions characterized by frontal-subcortical dysfunction. We administered the AMFAST to 186 English-speaking healthy control participants (aged 8-88 years) without reported cognitive impairment. The AMFAST was also administered to a mixed clinical sample that included 114 English-speaking individuals (aged 8-84 years) who also received comprehensive neuropsychological testing. Results indicated that total AMFAST scores in the healthy control sample were not significantly affected by education or gender. There was, however, a significant effect of age, as the 8- to 10-year-old group scored significantly lower than other age groups. Thus, only participants 11+ years were included in further analyses. The AMFAST demonstrated high test–retest and interrater reliabilities, good construct validity, and the identified optimal cutoff score of 70 had excellent sensitivity and specificity for differentiating between cognitively intact and cognitively impaired individuals. These findings demonstrate that the AMFAST is a highly effective screening test that can be used to identify attention, memory, processing speed, and executive functioning deficits in individuals from middle childhood through older adulthood.

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Serum alpha-1-antitrypsin level in Iraqi patients with coronary heart disease

Journal of Biotechnology Research Center ◽

10.24126/jobrc.2011.5.1.147 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 53-60

Author(s):

Asmaa M. Salih

Keyword(s):

Myocardial Infarction ◽

Coronary Heart Disease ◽

Heart Disease ◽

Stable Angina ◽

Control Sample ◽

Significant Elevation ◽

Antitrypsin Deficiency ◽

Healthy Control ◽

Alpha 1 Antitrypsin ◽

The Relationship

This study was designed to estimate the level of serum alpha -1- antitrypsin in patients with coronary heart disease. Patients were clinically subdivided into stable angina 25 patients, unstable angina30 patients and myocardial infarction 50 patients. A control sample of 30 individuals was matched with patient for age and sex.Non-significant elevation of serum alpha one antitrypsin were noted in MI cases compared to healthy control individuals, even some MI patients showed decreasing level of alpha one antitrypsin, which may return to hereditary alpha one antitrypsin deficiency in Iraqi patients.The Stable angina patients group showed non-significant decrease in alpha one antitrypsin level compared to healthy control, while unstable angina patients group showed significant decrease in alpha one antitrypsin level that will may facilitate developing disease towards MI. All present results need additional studies to be carried out on larger samples of Iraqi individuals and alpha one antitrypsin deficient patients, furthermore, highlighting on the relationship between alpha one antitrypsin and risk of coronary heart disease.

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The fMRI signature of acute catatonic state and its response to benzodiazepines

10.1101/2021.03.23.21253765 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Pravesh Parekh ◽

Anirban Gozi ◽

Venkata Senthil Kumar Reddi ◽

Jitender Saini ◽

John P. John

Keyword(s):

Treatment Response ◽

Long Range ◽

Control Sample ◽

Insular Cortex ◽

Precentral Gyrus ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Sensorimotor Network ◽

Healthy Control ◽

The Right ◽

Mri Study

AbstractWe report for the first time, functional MRI markers of the acute retarded catatonic state and its response to benzodiazepines.In this cross-sectional MRI study, we have compared the resting state whole-brain, within-network and seed (left precentral gyrus)-to-voxel connectivity, as well as cortical complexity between a sample of patients in acute retarded catatonic state (n = 15) and a demographically-matched healthy control sample (n = 15). Additionally, we examined whether the above variables were different between responders (n = 9) and non-responders (n = 6) to lorazepam.Acute retarded catatonia was characterized by reduced functional connectivity, most robustly within the sensorimotor network, diffuse long-range hyperconnectivity, and seed (left precentral gyrus)-to-voxel hyperconnectivity in the frontoparietal and cerebellar regions. The lorazepam responders showed long-range as well as seed-to-voxel functional hyperconnectivity in comparison to the non-responders. Seed (left precentral gyrus)-to-voxel connectivity was positively correlated to the catatonia motor ratings. The catatonia sample showed a cluster of reduced vertex-wise cortical complexity in the right insular cortex and contiguous areas.We have identified neuroimaging markers that characterize the acute retarded catatonic state and predict treatment response. We discuss how these novel findings have important translational implications for understanding the pathophysiology of catatonia and for predicting treatment response to benzodiazepines.

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Implicit stereotyping and prejudice and the primed Stroop task

Swiss Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1024//1421-0185.58.4.241 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 58 (4) ◽

pp. 241-250 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Kerry Kawakami ◽

Kenneth L. Dion ◽

John F. Dovidio

Keyword(s):

Stroop Task ◽

Color Naming ◽

Stereotype Activation ◽

Racial Categories ◽

Black And White ◽

Automatic Activation ◽

Black Stereotypes ◽

Implicit Prejudice ◽

Implicit Stereotyping ◽

Naming Latencies

In the present study, automatic stereotype activation related to racial categories was examined utilizing a primed Stroop task. The speed of participants' ink-color naming of stereotypic and nonstereotypic target words following Black and White category primes were compared: slower naming times are presumed to reflect interference from automatic activation. The results provide support for automatic activation of implicit prejudice and stereotypes. With respect to prejudice, naming latencies tended to be slower for positive words following White than Black primes and slower for negative words following Black than White primes. With regard to stereotypes, participants demonstrated slower naming latencies for Black stereotypes, primarily those that were negatively valenced, following Black than White category primes. These findings provide further evidence of the automatic activation of stereotypes and prejudice that occurs without intention.

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