scholarly journals INTEGRATION OF COMPLEMENTARY BIOMARKERS IN PATIENTS WITH FIRST EPISODE PSYCHOSIS: RESEARCH PROTOCOL OF A PROSPECTIVE FOLLOW UP STUDY

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra ◽  
Martina Rojnic Kuzman ◽  
Porin Makaric ◽  
Dina Bosnjak Kuharic ◽  
Ivana Kekin ◽  
...  

In this project, we recruited a sample of 150 patients with first episode of psychosis with schizophrenia features (FEP) and 100 healthy controls. We assessed the differences between these two groups, as well as the changes between the acute phase of illness and subsequent remission among patients over 18-month longitudinal follow-up. The assessments were divided into four work packages (WP): WP1- psychopathological status, neurocognitive functioning and emotional recognition; WP2- stress response measured by saliva cortisol during a stress paradigm; cerebral blood perfusion in the resting state (with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and during activation paradigm (with Transcranial Ultrasonography Doppler (TCD); WP3-post mortem analysis in histologically prepared human cortical tissue of post mortem samples of subjects with schizophrenia in the region that synaptic alteration was suggested by WP1 and WP2; WP4- pharmacogenetic analysis (single gene polymorphisms and genome wide association study (GWAS). We expect that the analysis of these data will identify a set of markers that differentiate healthy controls from patients with FEP, and serve as an additional diagnostic tool in the first episode of psychosis, and prediction tool which can be then used to help tailoring individualized treatment options. In this paper, we describe the project protocol including aims and methods and provide a brief description of planned post mortem studies and pharmacogenetic analysis.

Medicina ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 57 (10) ◽  
pp. 1047
Author(s):  
Fabien Huet ◽  
Quentin Delbaere ◽  
Sylvain Aguilhon ◽  
Valentin Dupasquier ◽  
Delphine Delseny ◽  
...  

Inflammatory processes are deeply involved in ischemia-reperfusion injuries (IRI) and ventricular remodelling (VR) after a ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). They are associated with clinical adverse events (heart failure and cardiovascular death) adding damage to the myocardium after reperfusion. Moreover, acute myocardial infarction (AMI) induces a local sympathetic denervation leading to electrical instability and arrythmia. Colchicine, a well-known alkaloid with direct anti-inflammatory effects, was shown to reduce the myocardial necrosis size and limit the VR. In a recent proof of concept study, colchicine appears to prevent sympathetic denervation in a mice model of ischemia/reperfusion, but not in the necrosis or in the border zone areas. The Colchicine to Prevent Sympathetic Denervation after an AMI study (COLD-MI) is an ongoing, confirmative, prospective, monocentre, randomized, open-label trial. The COLD-MI trial aims to evaluate the intensity of sympathetic denervation after AMI and its potential modulation due to low dose colchicine. Sympathetic denervation will be noninvasively evaluated using single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). After a first episode of STEMI (Initial TIMI flow ≤1) and primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI), patients will be randomized (n = 56) in a 1:1 ratio to either receive colchicine or not for 30 days. The primary end point will be the percentage of myocardial denervation measured by 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (123I-MIBG) SPECT at a 6-month follow-up. The main secondary end points will be basic ECG parameters (QRS duration, corrected QT) and HRV parameters from a 24 hour-recording Holter at 1- and 6-months follow-up. Results from this study will contribute to a better understanding of the cardioprotective effect of colchicine after AMI. The present study describes the rationale, design, and methods of the trial.


Circulation ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 112 (9_supplement) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariann Gyöngyösi ◽  
Aliasghar Khorsand ◽  
Sholeh Zamini ◽  
Wolfgang Sperker ◽  
Christoph Strehblow ◽  
...  

Background— The aim of this substudy of the EUROINJECT-ONE double-blind randomized trial was to analyze changes in myocardial perfusion in NOGA-defined regions with intramyocardial injections of plasmid encoding plasmid human (ph)VEGF-A 165 using an elaborated transformation algorithm. Methods and Results— After randomization, 80 no-option patients received either active, phVEGF-A 165 (n=40), or placebo plasmid (n=40) percutaneously via NOGA-Myostar injections. The injected area (region of interest, ROI) was delineated as a best polygon by connecting of the injection points marked on NOGA polar maps. The ROI was projected onto the baseline and follow-up rest and stress polar maps of the 99m-Tc-sestamibi/tetrofosmin single-photon emission computed tomography scintigraphy calculating the extent and severity (expressed as the mean normalized tracer uptake) of the ROI automatically. The extents of the ROI were similar in the VEGF and placebo groups (19.4±4.2% versus 21.5±5.4% of entire myocardium). No differences were found between VEGF and placebo groups at baseline with regard to the perfusion defect severity (rest: 69±11.7% versus 68.7±13.3%; stress: 63±13.3% versus 62.6±13.6%; and reversibility: 6.0±7.7% versus 6.7±9.0%). At follow-up, a trend toward improvement in perfusion defect severity at stress was observed in VEGF group as compared with placebo (68.5±11.9% versus 62.5±13.5%, P =0.072) without reaching normal values. The reversibility of the ROI decreased significantly at follow-up in VEGF group as compared with the placebo group (1.2±9.0% versus 7.1±9.0%, P =0.016). Twenty-one patients in VEGF and 8 patients in placebo group ( P <0.01) exhibited an improvement in tracer uptake during stress, defined as a ≥5% increase in the normalized tracer uptake of the ROI. Conclusions— Projection of the NOGA-guided injection area onto the single-photon emission computed tomography polar maps permits quantitative evaluation of myocardial perfusion in regions treated with angiogenic substances. Injections of phVEGF A 165 plasmid improve, but do not normalize, the stress-induced perfusion abnormalities.


2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (11) ◽  
pp. 986-995
Author(s):  
Weijia He ◽  
Jia-Chi Wang ◽  
Po-Yi Tsai

Background. Evidence remains mixed as to the effectiveness of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in treating mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Objective. In this study, we examined the short- and long-term effects of patterned rTMS. Methods. We randomly assigned 35 patients with PD with MCI to two groups. One group received intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS; n = 20), and the other received its sham counterpart (n = 15). The stimulations were applied over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for 10 consecutive weekdays. Measurements based on the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) were conducted at three time points: at baseline, immediately after the last intervention and at 3-month follow-up. Each patient received a 99mTc-TRODAT-1 single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) brain scan at baseline. Results. The iTBS group exhibited significantly greater improvement than the sham group did in total RBANS and MoCA scores ( p < .001 for both) immediately after intervention and at the 3-month follow-up. Radiotracer uptake in the bilateral basal ganglion in baseline SPECT was positively correlated with response to iTBS conditioning with respect to improvements in MoCA scores ( p = .021). Conclusion. This randomised controlled trial provides evidence that a consecutive iTBS protocol can achieve a persistent and wide-ranging therapeutic effect in patients with PD with MCI.


Open Medicine ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 279-285
Author(s):  
Bugra Harmandar ◽  
Turkan Tansel ◽  
Ertan Onursal ◽  
Nuray Gurses ◽  
Sevgi Besisik ◽  
...  

AbstractBone marrow-derived stem cells (BMSC) may be an alternative for the treatment of patients with severe coronary artery disease ineligible for either percutaneous or surgical revascularization. This case report presents a 65-year-old male patient with untreatable angina pectoris (Canadian Cardiovascular Society Class III) and severe coronary artery disease. A mixture of BMSC containing approximately 3×106 CD34+ cells was directly injected into preoperatively determined ischemic regions of the myocardium by median sternotomy. At baseline, at 3 months, and at 1 year of follow-up, echocardiography (demonstrating wall motions of 16 segments), single-photon emission computed tomography, and coronary angiography (at baseline and at 1 year) were performed to assess myocardial perfusion, left ventricular (LV) function and coronary anatomy. The patient reached Canadian Cardiovascular Society Class I after 6 months of cell implantation. The ejection fraction increased from 34% to 37% at the third month and 40% at 1 year of follow-up. At 1 year of follow-up, preoperatively akinetic mid-base septum and anteroseptal regions progressed to mild hipokinesia and severe hypokinetic mid-base-apical anterior regions and apical lateral-inferior regions became normokinesia. Single-photon emission computed tomography revealed a visible improvement in anterior and lateral segments at 1 year of follow-up. Coronary angiography showed newly developed collateral arteries at 1 year of follow-up. BMSC transplantation in a patient with severe coronary artery disease resulted in increase of LV ejection fraction, an increase of the perfusion of ischemic myocardial regions, and improvement in wall motion defects without any adverse events.


2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (7) ◽  
pp. 665-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Chun Tai ◽  
Mei Hung Chi ◽  
Ching-Lin Chu ◽  
Nan Tsing Chiu ◽  
Wei Jen Yao ◽  
...  

Objective: ADHD is the most prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder. It is highly heritable and multifactorial, but the definitive causes remain unknown. Abnormal dopamine transporter (DAT) availability has been reported, but the data are inconsistent. The aim of this study was to examine whether DAT availability differs between healthy parents with and without ADHD offspring. Method: Eleven healthy parents with ADHD offspring and 11 age- and sex-matched healthy controls without ADHD offspring were recruited. The availability of DAT was approximated using single-photon emission computed tomography, with [99mTc] TRODAT-1 as the ligand. Results: DAT availability in the basal ganglia, caudate nucleus, and putamen was significantly lower in the parents with ADHD offspring than in the healthy controls without ADHD offspring. Conclusion: The results suggest that ADHD could be heritable via abnormal DAT activities.


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