Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
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Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. · Jan 2010
ReviewREM sleep behavior disorder: Updated review of the core features, the REM sleep behavior disorder-neurodegenerative disease association, evolving concepts, controversies, and future directions.
Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is a parasomnia manifested by vivid, often frightening dreams associated with simple or complex motor behavior during REM sleep. The polysomnographic features of RBD include increased electromyographic tone +/- dream enactment behavior during REM sleep. Management with counseling and pharmacologic measures is usually straightforward and effective. ⋯ The literature and our institutional experience on RBD are next discussed, with an emphasis on the RBD-neurodegenerative disease association and particularly the RBD-synucleinopathy association. Several issues relating to evolving concepts, controversies, and future directions are then reviewed, with an emphasis on idiopathic RBD representing an early feature of a neurodegenerative disease and particularly an evolving synucleinopathy. Planning for future therapies that impact patients with idiopathic RBD is reviewed in detail.
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Brain and heart development occur simultaneously in the human fetus. Given the depth and complexity of these shared morphogenetic programs, it is perhaps not surprising that disruption of organogenesis in one organ will impact the development of the other. ⋯ These abnormalities in brain development identified with MRI in newborns with congenital heart disease might reflect abnormalities in cerebral blood flow while in utero. A complete understanding of the mechanisms of white matter injury in the term newborn with congenital heart disease will require further investigation of the timing, extent, and causes of delayed fetal brain development in the presence of congenital heart disease.
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Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. · Oct 2009
AddNeuroMed--the European collaboration for the discovery of novel biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease.
There is an urgent need for Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers-especially in the context of clinical trials. Biomarkers for early diagnosis, disease progression, and prediction are most critical, and disease-modification therapy development may depend on the discovery and validation of such markers. AddNeuroMed is a cross European, public/private consortium developed for AD biomarker discovery. ⋯ Second, design is paramount and combining modalities, such as imaging and proteomics, may be informative. Third, animal models are valuable in biomarker research. Most importantly, we have learned that plasma markers are feasible.
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Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. · Sep 2009
Clinical TrialAn open-label study adding creatine monohydrate to ongoing medical regimens in patients with the fibromyalgia syndrome.
Fibromyalgia is an ill-defined condition that causes pain and disability but still lacks effective treatment. The aim of this open-label study was to assess the efficacy of administering a food supplement, creatine monohydrate, in an "add on" to existing therapies in patients with fibromyalgia. ⋯ These results deteriorated 4 weeks after stopping creatine therapy. The findings of this study are preliminary and limited due to the small sample and relatively high rate of dropouts.
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Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. · Aug 2009
Involvement of both extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways in apoptosis induced by genistein in human cervical cancer cells.
Genistein, a naturally occurring isoflavonoid abundant in soy products, has anticancer activity in multiple tumor cells. In this study, we evaluated the apoptotic effect of genistein on cervical cancer cells and its mechanism of apoptosis. Genistein inhibited the proliferation of cervical cancer cells (HeLa, CaSki, and C33A). ⋯ Interestingly, inhibition of caspase-8 resulted in remarkable reduction of genistein-induced apoptosis. Bax expression was increased and total bid decreased, whereas bcl-2 level was not changed by genistein. Taken together, these results suggest that genistein could induce apoptosis through both extrinsic and intrinsic pathways in human cervical cancer cells.