Biology posts
- February 10, 2017
- 03:27 AM
- 158 views
A few-foods diet for ADHD: a systematic review of meta-analyses of double-blind, placebo-controlled trials
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"... the effect sizes of a few-foods diet are medium to large, justifying implementation of a diagnostic FFD [few-foods diet] in subgroups of children with ADHD [attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder], thus offering innovative treatment opportunities for ADHD."So said the "Systematic Review of Meta-Analyses of Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Trials" published by Lidy Pelsser and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) looking at various dietary interventions that have ........ Read more »
Pelsser LM, Frankena K, Toorman J, & Rodrigues Pereira R. (2017) Diet and ADHD, Reviewing the Evidence: A Systematic Review of Meta-Analyses of Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Trials Evaluating the Efficacy of Diet Interventions on the Behavior of Children with ADHD. PloS one, 12(1). PMID: 28121994
- February 9, 2017
- 03:01 AM
- 182 views
On dietary and nutritional therapies for ME/CFS
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
ME/CFS in case you don't already know refers to Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and, according to the findings reported by Nadia Campagnolo and colleagues [1], is in need of quite a bit more scientific investigation when it comes to the application of dietary changes and nutritional supplements to potentially alter the course of the condition(s).Surveying the peer-reviewed literature "from 1994 to May 2016" the authors looked for peer-reviewed studies where "CFS/ME........ Read more »
Campagnolo N, Johnston S, Collatz A, Staines D, & Marshall-Gradisnik S. (2017) Dietary and nutrition interventions for the therapeutic treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis: a systematic review. Journal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association. PMID: 28111818
- February 8, 2017
- 05:36 AM
- 175 views
Sex, alcohol, and structural variants in fission yeast
by Christophe Dessimoz in Open Reading Frame
Our latest study just came out (Jeffares et al., Nature Comm 2017). In it, we carefully catalogued high-confidence structural variants among all known strains of the fission yeast population, and assessed their impact on spore viability, winemaking and other traits. This post gives a summary and the story behind the paper.
Structural variants (SVs) measure genetic variation beyond single nucleotide changes …
Next generation sequencing is enabling the study of genomic diversity on unprec........ Read more »
Jeffares, D., Jolly, C., Hoti, M., Speed, D., Shaw, L., Rallis, C., Balloux, F., Dessimoz, C., Bähler, J., & Sedlazeck, F. (2017) Transient structural variations have strong effects on quantitative traits and reproductive isolation in fission yeast. Nature Communications, 14061. DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14061
Carr AM, MacNeill SA, Hayles J, & Nurse P. (1989) Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of mutant alleles of the fission yeast cdc2 protein kinase gene: implications for cdc2 protein structure and function. Molecular , 218(1), 41-9. PMID: 2674650
Jeffares, D., Rallis, C., Rieux, A., Speed, D., Převorovský, M., Mourier, T., Marsellach, F., Iqbal, Z., Lau, W., Cheng, T.... (2015) The genomic and phenotypic diversity of Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Nature Genetics, 47(3), 235-241. DOI: 10.1038/ng.3215
Benito, A., Jeffares, D., Palomero, F., Calderón, F., Bai, F., Bähler, J., & Benito, S. (2016) Selected Schizosaccharomyces pombe Strains Have Characteristics That Are Beneficial for Winemaking. PLOS ONE, 11(3). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0151102
- February 8, 2017
- 04:33 AM
- 202 views
On atopic disease and ADHD: 'strong evidence' for an association
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"This current systematic review provides strong evidence that ADHD [attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder] is associated with atopic diseases and that individuals have a 30% to 50% greater chance of developing ADHD compared to controls."So said the results of the systematic review and meta-analysis published by Jurjen van der Schans and colleagues [1] looking at the collected peer-reviewed science literature on how conditions such as asthma, eczema and rhinitis might increase t........ Read more »
Schans JV, Çiçek R, de Vries TW, Hak E, & Hoekstra PJ. (2017) Association of atopic diseases and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: A systematic review and meta-analyses. Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews. PMID: 28111269
- February 7, 2017
- 04:35 AM
- 225 views
Psychiatric disorders among male juvenile detainees in South Korea
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Juvenile detainees evidence high rates of psychiatric disorders and comorbidities. Assessment of and intervention in psychiatric disorders, especially alcohol use disorder and comorbid alcohol use disorder with disruptive behavior disorders, may help prevent further offenses."So concluded Johanna Inhyang Kim and colleagues [1] (open-access) following their investigation into the prevalence of DSM-IV psychiatric criteria in a sample of 173 male juvenile detainees aged between 15-19 years ol........ Read more »
Kim JI, Kim B, Kim BN, Hong SB, Lee DW, Chung JY, Choi JY, Choi BS, Oh YR, & Youn M. (2017) Prevalence of psychiatric disorders, comorbidity patterns, and repeat offending among male juvenile detainees in South Korea: a cross-sectional study. Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health, 6. PMID: 28115987
- February 6, 2017
- 04:41 AM
- 216 views
Natural course of "chronic disabling fatigue" in adolescents
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"We use the term 'chronic disabling fatigue' (CDF) because CFS/ME [chronic fatigue syndrome / myalgic encephalomyelitis] was not verified by clinical diagnosis."That was one of the important details included in the findings reported by Tom Norris and colleagues [1] (open-access) who "aimed to describe the epidemiology and natural course of CFS/ME in adolescents aged 13–18 years." Relying on data derived from The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) (so........ Read more »
Norris T, Collin SM, Tilling K, Nuevo R, Stansfeld SA, Sterne JA, Heron J, & Crawley E. (2017) Natural course of chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis in adolescents. Archives of disease in childhood. PMID: 28104625
- February 4, 2017
- 04:27 AM
- 246 views
ADHD, obesity and bariatric surgery?
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"The findings suggest that a considerable number of patients before and after bariatric surgery screened positive for ADHD [attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder]. It can be hypothesized that some core ADHD symptoms improve after surgery."Bariatric surgery, where several surgical options are available to aid weight loss in those who present with 'dangerous' obesity, was the topic of the paper by Nielsen and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) who set out to compare "pre- and........ Read more »
Nielsen F, Georgiadou E, Bartsch M, Langenberg S, Müller A, & de Zwaan M. (2017) Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Prevalence and Correlates Pre- and Post-Bariatric Surgery: A Comparative Cross-Sectional Study. Obesity facts, 10(1), 1-11. PMID: 28103594
- February 3, 2017
- 08:00 AM
- 252 views
American Alligator
by Jason Organ in Eatlemania!
The Eatles are munching on several juvenile American alligator skulls... Read more »
George, I., & Holliday, C. (2013) Trigeminal Nerve Morphology in and Its Significance for Crocodyliform Facial Sensation and Evolution . The Anatomical Record, 296(4), 670-680. DOI: 10.1002/ar.22666
Holliday, C., & Witmer, L. (2007) Archosaur adductor chamber evolution: Integration of musculoskeletal and topological criteria in jaw muscle homology. Journal of Morphology, 268(6), 457-484. DOI: 10.1002/jmor.10524
- February 3, 2017
- 05:00 AM
- 264 views
Friday Fellow: Northern Plaited Radiolarian
by Piter Boll in Earthling Nature
by Piter Kehoma Boll Some weeks ago I introduced a diatom here and mentioned that, despite the fact that they are a very abundant group, little information on species is available. Today our species is a radiolarian and, just as … Continue reading →... Read more »
Dolven, J., & Bjørklund, K. (2001) An early Holocene peak occurrence and recent distribution of Rhizoplegma boreale (Radiolaria): a biomarker in the Norwegian Sea. Marine Micropaleontology, 42(1-2), 25-44. DOI: 10.1016/S0377-8398(01)00011-1
Dumitrica, P. (2013) Cleveiplegma nov. gen., a new generic name for the radiolarian species Rhizoplegma boreale (Cleve, 1899). Revue de Micropaléontologie, 56(1), 21-25. DOI: 10.1016/j.revmic.2013.01.001
- February 3, 2017
- 03:03 AM
- 250 views
"Schizophrenia confers a high endogenous risk for diabetes"
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Schizophrenia confers a high endogenous risk for diabetes, and the risk is further increased by both first-generation and second-generation antipsychotics."So concluded Anto Rajkumar and colleagues [1] who relied on participant data in the thousands derived from several of those very helpful Scandinavian population registries (this time in Denmark) to add some further science to the idea that psychiatric diagnoses like schizophrenia seem to carry an elevated risk for all-manner of somatic ........ Read more »
Rajkumar AP, Horsdal HT, Wimberley T, Cohen D, Mors O, Børglum AD, & Gasse C. (2017) Endogenous and Antipsychotic-Related Risks for Diabetes Mellitus in Young People With Schizophrenia: A Danish Population-Based Cohort Study. The American journal of psychiatry. PMID: 28103712
- February 2, 2017
- 03:25 AM
- 487 views
Hyperuricemia present in both medicated and unmedicated kids with autism
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
I was intrigued to read the findings reported by Natchaya Vanwong and colleagues [1] talking about the presence of hyperuricemia - an excess of uric acid in the blood - in their cohort of children and young adults diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Intrigued not only because the authors discuss how the use of the atypical antipsychotic risperidone might *correlate* with elevations of uric acid but also how: "Hyperuricemia was present in 44.70% of risperidone-naïve patients w........ Read more »
Vanwong N, Srisawasdi P, Ngamsamut N, Nuntamool N, Puangpetch A, Chamkrachangpada B, Hongkaew Y, Limsila P, Kittitharaphan W, & Sukasem C. (2017) Hyperuricemia in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder Treated with Risperidone: The Risk Factors for Metabolic Adverse Effects. Frontiers in pharmacology, 527. PMID: 28105014
- February 1, 2017
- 03:21 AM
- 484 views
Autism and a 'clear' reduction of behavioural severity in cases diagnosed
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"This study provides the first clear evidence of a reduction over time in the behavioral severity of individuals diagnosed with Autistic Disorder during a period of stability in diagnostic criteria."So said the study findings reported by Andrew Whitehouse and colleagues [1] (a man not afraid to make waves when it comes to thinking about autism or about approaches to intervention) looking at "whether there were changes over time in the qualitative and quantitative phenotype of individuals wh........ Read more »
Whitehouse AJ, Cooper MN, Bebbington K, Alvares G, Lin A, Wray J, & Glasson EJ. (2017) Evidence of a reduction over time in the behavioral severity of autistic disorder diagnoses. Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research. PMID: 28102641
- January 31, 2017
- 03:18 AM
- 465 views
S100B protein and autism continued
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"Our findings showing an increase in peripheral concentrations of S100B and TNF-α provide limited support to the hypothesis about the roles of altered immune function and S100B in autism spectrum disorder (ASD)."So said the findings reported by Selin Aktan Guloksuz and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) continuing some discussions a few years back on a possible role for S100B in relation to at least some autism (see here).S100B - S100 calcium-binding protein B - is a compound invo........ Read more »
Guloksuz SA, Abali O, Aktas Cetin E, Bilgic Gazioglu S, Deniz G, Yildirim A, Kawikova I, Guloksuz S, & Leckman JF. (2017) Elevated plasma concentrations of S100 calcium-binding protein B and tumor necrosis factor alpha in children with autism spectrum disorders. Revista brasileira de psiquiatria (Sao Paulo, Brazil : 1999). PMID: 28099628
- January 30, 2017
- 03:08 AM
- 494 views
High frequency of (self-reported) ADHD symptoms in eating disorders
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
"There is a high frequency of ADHD [attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder] symptoms in patients with binge eating/purging eating disorders that motivates further studies."That was the conclusion reached in the study by Nils Erik Svedlund and colleagues [1] (open-access) who, among other things, set out to "explore the prevalence and types of self-reported ADHD symptoms in a large, unselected group of ED [eating disorder] patients assessed in a specialized ED clinic." ........ Read more »
Svedlund, N., Norring, C., Ginsberg, Y., & von Hausswolff-Juhlin, Y. (2017) Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) among adult eating disorder patients. BMC Psychiatry, 17(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12888-016-1093-1
- January 28, 2017
- 07:52 PM
- 454 views
A Model for Phage Communication and the Implications for the Human Microbiome
by Geoffrey Hannigan in Prophage
Well we took a bit of a break these past couple of weeks, but we are back for the new year! Welcome to the Prophage blog 2017! The year has actually been off to a good start, with a lot of interesting papers being published this January. This week I want to kick things off by covering a very cool 2017 study by Erez et al that described an new and interesting mechanism by which bacteriophages communicate using...... Read more »
Erez, Z., Steinberger-Levy, I., Shamir, M., Doron, S., Stokar-Avihail, A., Peleg, Y., Melamed, S., Leavitt, A., Savidor, A., Albeck, S.... (2017) Communication between viruses guides lysis–lysogeny decisions. Nature, 541(7638), 488-493. DOI: 10.1038/nature21049
- January 28, 2017
- 08:42 AM
- 514 views
Distortions of Reality
by The Neurocritic in The Neurocritic
President Trump this week repeated an assertion he made shortly after his election: that millions of ballots cast illegally by undocumented immigrants cost him the popular vote. If true, this would suggest the wholesale corruption of American democracy.
Not to worry: As far as anyone knows, the president’s assertion is akin to saying that millions of unicorns also voted illegally.
- In a
... Read more »
Preller, K., Herdener, M., Pokorny, T., Planzer, A., Kraehenmann, R., Stämpfli, P., Liechti, M., Seifritz, E., & Vollenweider, F. (2017) The Fabric of Meaning and Subjective Effects in LSD-Induced States Depend on Serotonin 2A Receptor Activation. Current Biology. DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.12.030
Wacker, D., Wang, S., McCorvy, J., Betz, R., Venkatakrishnan, A., Levit, A., Lansu, K., Schools, Z., Che, T., Nichols, D.... (2017) Crystal Structure of an LSD-Bound Human Serotonin Receptor. Cell, 168(3), 377-2147483647. DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.12.033
- January 28, 2017
- 04:15 AM
- 489 views
"Should gluten-free foods be available on prescription?"
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
Continuing the theme of blogging outside of the core material typically included on this site, I couldn't resist a mention of the 'head-to-head' debate talked about in the article by Matthew Kurien and colleagues [1] published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).As per the title of this post, the name of the game was gluten-free products being available on prescription here in Blighty, and in particular, the prescribing of gluten-free products to patients diagnosed with coeliac disease. Th........ Read more »
Kurien M, Sleet S, Sanders DS, & Cave J. (2017) Should gluten-free foods be available on prescription?. BMJ (Clinical research ed.). PMID: 28073799
- January 28, 2017
- 03:28 AM
- 544 views
When You're Drowsy, Is Your Brain Partly Asleep?
by Neuroskeptic in Neuroskeptic_Discover
When we're feeling very tired, we sometimes remark that we're "half-asleep". But is this more than just a figure of speech? A new paper suggests that parts of our brain may actually 'fall asleep' even while we're still awake.
According to researchers Jeremy D. Slater and colleagues of the University of Texas, "local sleep" occurs throughout the human brain, with each brain region passing into and out of a sleep-like state over time. What's more, local sleep becomes more and more common in... Read more »
Slater JD, Chelaru MI, Hansen BJ, Beaman C, Kalamangalam G, Tandon N, & Dragoi V. (2017) Focal Changes to Human Electrocorticography With Drowsiness: A Novel Measure of Local Sleep. The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences. PMID: 28121257
- January 27, 2017
- 12:27 PM
- 386 views
Impairment of neurogenesis in ZIKV infected neuronal cells: strain specific ? Asian/American v. African strains
by thelonevirologist in Virology Tidbits
uring the current Zika Virus (ZIKV) outbreaks in the Americas, an increased number of cognitive malformations including but not limited to microcephaly in foetuses and neonates of mothers who had been infected with ZIKV during pregnancy, lead to the conclusion that ZIKV might be neuroteratogenic, a hypothesis that has been supported by findings that various ZIKV strains –including isolates from Asia such ZIKV SZ 01, ZIKV FSS13025 and H/PF/2013 as well as isolates from the Americas such as........ Read more »
Li H, Saucedo-Cuevas L, Shresta S, & Gleeson JG. (2016) The Neurobiology of Zika Virus. Neuron, 92(5), 949-958. PMID: 27930910
van den Pol AN, Mao G, Yang Y, Ornaghi S, & Davis JN. (2017) Zika virus targeting in the developing brain. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. PMID: 28123079
Li H, Saucedo-Cuevas L, Regla-Nava JA, Chai G, Sheets N, Tang W, Terskikh AV, Shresta S, & Gleeson JG. (2016) Zika Virus Infects Neural Progenitors in the Adult Mouse Brain and Alters Proliferation. Cell stem cell, 19(5), 593-598. PMID: 27545505
Tang H, Hammack C, Ogden SC, Wen Z, Qian X, Li Y, Yao B, Shin J, Zhang F, Lee EM.... (2016) Zika Virus Infects Human Cortical Neural Progenitors and Attenuates Their Growth. Cell stem cell, 18(5), 587-90. PMID: 26952870
Garcez PP, Nascimento JM, de Vasconcelos JM, Madeiro da Costa R, Delvecchio R, Trindade P, Loiola EC, Higa LM, Cassoli JS, Vitória G.... (2017) Zika virus disrupts molecular fingerprinting of human neurospheres. Scientific reports, 40780. PMID: 28112162
Gabriel, E., Ramani, A., Karow, U., Gottardo, M., Natarajan, K., Gooi, L., Goranci-Buzhala, G., Krut, O., Peters, F., Nikolic, M.... (2017) Recent Zika Virus Isolates Induce Premature Differentiation of Neural Progenitors in Human Brain Organoids. Cell Stem Cell. DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2016.12.005
Ghouzzi VE, Bianchi FT, Molineris I, Mounce BC, Berto GE, Rak M, Lebon S, Aubry L, Tocco C, Gai M.... (2017) ZIKA virus elicits P53 activation and genotoxic stress in human neural progenitors similar to mutations involved in severe forms of genetic microcephaly and p53. Cell death , 8(1). PMID: 28102842
Caldon CE, & Musgrove EA. (2010) Distinct and redundant functions of cyclin E1 and cyclin E2 in development and cancer. Cell division, 2. PMID: 20180967
Gromley A, Jurczyk A, Sillibourne J, Halilovic E, Mogensen M, Groisman I, Blomberg M, & Doxsey S. (2003) A novel human protein of the maternal centriole is required for the final stages of cytokinesis and entry into S phase. The Journal of cell biology, 161(3), 535-45. PMID: 12732615
Shimada M, Matsuzaki F, Kato A, Kobayashi J, Matsumoto T, & Komatsu K. (2016) Induction of Excess Centrosomes in Neural Progenitor Cells during the Development of Radiation-Induced Microcephaly. PloS one, 11(7). PMID: 27367050
Meitinger F, Anzola JV, Kaulich M, Richardson A, Stender JD, Benner C, Glass CK, Dowdy SF, Desai A, Shiau AK.... (2016) 53BP1 and USP28 mediate p53 activation and G1 arrest after centrosome loss or extended mitotic duration. The Journal of cell biology, 214(2), 155-66. PMID: 27432897
Liu H, Gong M, French BA, Liao G, Li J, Tillman B, & French SW. (2015) Aberrant modulation of the BRCA1 and G1/S cell cycle pathways in alcoholic hepatitis patients with Mallory Denk Bodies revealed by RNA sequencing. Oncotarget, 6(40), 42491-503. PMID: 26623723
Souza BS, Sampaio GL, Pereira CS, Campos GS, Sardi SI, Freitas LA, Figueira CP, Paredes BD, Nonaka CK, Azevedo CM.... (2016) Zika virus infection induces mitosis abnormalities and apoptotic cell death of human neural progenitor cells. Scientific reports, 39775. PMID: 28008958
- January 27, 2017
- 05:13 AM
- 421 views
TSC1 expression is affected by VHL alterations and HIF-1α production in clear-cell RCC
by Joana Guedes in BHD Research Blog
VHL genetic alterations do not affect the production of HIF-α in clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). However, their effects on tuberous sclerosis proteins (TSC1/2) and heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) expression are currently unknown. In a recent study, Damjanovic et al. (2016) evaluated the impact of VHL genetic alterations and HIF-α production on the expression of TSC proteins and Hsp90 in 47 sporadic ccRCCs and corresponding normal tissues.... Read more »
Damjanovic SS, Ilic BB, Beleslin Cokic BB, Antic JA, Bankovic JZ, Milicevic IT, Rodic GS, Ilic DS, Todorovic VN, Puskas N.... (2016) Tuberous sclerosis complex protein 1 expression is affected by VHL Gene alterations and HIF-1α production in sporadic clear-cell renal cell carcinoma. Experimental and molecular pathology, 101(3), 323-331. PMID: 27845047
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