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BACKGROUND: Characterizing neurocognitive endophenotypes of mental illnesses (MIs) could be useful for identifying at-risk individuals, increasing early diagnosis, improving disease subtyping, and proposing therapeutic strategies to reduce the negative effects of the symptoms, in addition to serving as a scientific basis to unravel the physiopathology of the disease. However, a standardized algorithm to determine cognitive endophenotypes has not yet been developed. The main objective of this study was to present a method for the identification of endophenotypes in MI research. METHODS: For this purpose, a 14-expert working group used a scoping review methodology and designed a method that includes a scoring template with five criteria and indicators, a strategy for their verification, and a decision tree. CONCLUSIONS: This work is ongoing since it is necessary to obtain external validation of the applicability of the method in future research.
Assuntos
Endofenótipos , Transtornos Mentais , Humanos , Transtornos Mentais/diagnóstico , CogniçãoRESUMO
Intraocular/Intravitreal implants constitute a relatively new method to treat eye diseases successfully due to the possibility of releasing drugs in a controlled and prolonged way. This particularity has made this kind of method preferred over other methods such as intravitreal injections or eye drops. However, there are some risks and complications associated with the use of eye implants, the body response being the most important. Therefore, material selection is a crucial factor to be considered for patient care since implant acceptance is closely related to the physical and chemical properties of the material from which the device is made. In this regard, there are two major categories of materials used in the development of eye implants: non-biodegradables and biodegradables. Although non-biodegradable implants are able to work as drug reservoirs, their surgical requirements make them uncomfortable and invasive for the patient and may put the eyeball at risk. Therefore, it would be expected that the human body responds better when treated with biodegradable implants due to their inherent nature and fewer surgical concerns. Thus, this review provides a summary and discussion of the most common non-biodegradable and biodegradable materials employed for the development of experimental and commercially available ocular delivery implants.
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BACKGROUND: Frailty is a common syndrome among older adults and patients with several comorbidities. Grip strength (GS) is a representative parameter of frailty because it is a valid indicator of current and long-term physical conditions in the general population and patients with severe mental illnesses (SMIs). Physical and cognitive capacities of people with SMIs are usually impaired; however, their relationship with frailty or social functioning have not been studied to date. The current study aimed to determine if GS is a valid predictor of changes in cognitive performance and social functioning in patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus and SMIs. METHODS: Assessments of social functioning, cognitive performance, and GS (measured with an electronic dynamometer) were conducted in 30 outpatients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, 35 with major depressive disorder, 42 with bipolar disorder, 30 with schizophrenia, and 28 healthy controls, twice during 1-year, follow-up period. Descriptive analyses were conducted using a one-way analysis of variance for continuous variables and the chi-squared test for categorical variables. Differences between groups for the motor, cognitive, and social variables at T1 and T2 were assessed using a one-way analysis of covariance, with sex and age as co-variates (p < 0.01). To test the predictive capacity of GS at baseline to explain the variance in cognitive performance and social functioning at T2, a linear regression analysis was performed (p < 0.05). RESULTS: Predictive relationships were found among GS when implicated with clinical, cognitive, and social variables. These relationships explained changes in cognitive performance after one year of follow-up; the variability percentage was 67.7%, in patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus and 89.1% in patients with schizophrenia. Baseline GS along with other variables, also predicted changes in social functioning in major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia, with variability percentages of 67.3, 36, and 59%, respectively. CONCLUSION: GS combined with other variables significantly predicted changes in cognitive performance and social functioning in people with SMIs or type-2 diabetes mellitus. Interventions aimed to improve the overall physical conditions of patients who have poor GS could be a therapeutic option that confers positive effects on cognitive performance and social functioning.
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In the frame of a survey of potentially endophytic N2-fixing Burkholderia associated with maize in Mexico, its country of origin, the soil of an indigenous maize field near Oaxaca was studied. Under laboratory conditions, plant seedlings of two ancient maize varieties were used as a trap to select endophyte candidates from the soil sample. Among the N2 fixers isolated from inside plant tissues and able to grow on PCAT medium, the most abundant isolates belonged to genus Burkholderia (API 20NE, rrs sequences). Representative isolates obtained from roots and shoots of different plants appeared identical (rrs and nifH RFLP), showing that they were closely related. In addition, their 16S rDNA sequences differed from described Burkholderia species and, phylogenetically, they constituted a separate deep-branching new lineage in genus Burkholderia. This indicated that these isolates probably constituted a new species. An inoculation experiment confirmed that these N2-fixing Burkholderia isolates could densely colonize the plant tissues of maize. More isolates of this group were subsequently obtained from field-grown maize and teosinte plants. It was hypothesized that strains of this species had developed a sort of primitive symbiosis with one of their host plants, teosinte, which persisted during the domestication of teosinte into maize.
