Effects of sports participation on psychiatric symptoms and brain activations during sports observation in schizophrenia.

Weight gain has been identified as being responsible for increased morbidity and mortality rates of schizophrenia patients. For the management of weight gain, exercise is one of the most acknowledged interventions. At the same time, exercise and sports have been recognized for their positive impact on psychiatric symptoms of schizophrenia. However, the neurobiological basis for this remains poorly understood. We aimed to examine the effect of sports participation on weight gain, psychiatric symptoms and brain activation during sports observation in schizophrenia patients. Thirteen schizophrenia patients who participated in a 3-month program, including sports participation and 10 control schizophrenia patients were studied. In both groups, body mass index (BMI), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and brain activation during observation of sports-related actions measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging were accessed before and after a 3-month interval. BMI and general psychopathology scale of PANSS were significantly reduced in the program group but not in the control group after a 3-month interval. Compared with baseline, activation of the body-selective extrastriate body area (EBA) in the posterior temporal-occipital cortex during observation of sports-related actions was increased in the program group. In this group, increase in EBA activation was associated with improvement in the general psychopathology scale of PANSS. Sports participation had a positive effect not only on weight gain but also on psychiatric symptoms in schizophrenia. EBA might mediate these beneficial effects of sports participation. Our findings merit further investigation of neurobiological mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effect of sports for schizophrenia.

Neural responses to human voice and hemisphere dominance for lexical-semantic processing--an fMRI study.

OBJECTIVES: In our previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we determined that there was distinct left hemispheric dominance for lexical-semantic processing without the influence of human voice perception in right-handed healthy subjects. However, the degree of right-handedness in the right-handed subjects ranged from 52 to 100 according to the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) score. In the present study, we aimed to clarify the correlation between the degree of right-handedness and language dominance in the fronto-temporo-parietal cortices by examining cerebral activation for lexical-semantic processing. METHODS: Twenty-seven normal right-handed healthy subjects were scanned by fMRI while listening to sentences (SEN), reverse sentences (rSEN), and identifiable non-vocal sounds (SND). Fronto-temporo-parietal activation was observed in the left hemisphere under the SEN - rSEN contrast, which included lexical-semantic processing without the influence of human voice perception. Laterality Index was calculated as LI = (L - R)/(L + R) x 100, L: left, R: right. RESULTS: Laterality Index in the fronto-temporo-parietal cortices did not correlate with the degree of right-handedness in EHI score. CONCLUSIONS: The present study indicated that the degree of right-handedness from 52 to 100 in EHI score had no effect on the degree of left hemispheric dominance for lexical-semantic processing in right-handed healthy subjects.

A functional MRI study: cerebral laterality for lexical-semantic processing and human voice perception.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Language dominance research using functional neuroimaging has made important contributions to clinical applications. Nevertheless, although recent neuroimaging studies demonstrated right-lateralized activation by human voice perception, the influence of voice perception in terms of language dominance has not been adequately studied. We aimed to accurately clarify language dominance for lexical-semantic processing in the temporal cortices by focusing on human voice perception. METHODS: Thirty normal right-handed subjects were scanned by functional MR imaging while listening to sentences (SEN), reverse sentences (rSEN), and identifiable nonvocal sounds (SND). We investigated cerebral activation and the distribution of individual Laterality Index under 3 contrasts: rSEN-SND, SEN-SND, and SEN-rSEN. RESULTS: The rSEN-SND contrast, including human voice perception, revealed right-lateralized activation in the anterior temporal cortices. Both SEN-SND and SEN-rSEN contrasts, including lexical-semantic processing, showed left-lateralized activation in the inferior and middle frontal gyrus and middle temporal gyrus. The SEN-rSEN contrast, without the influence of human voice perception, showed no temporal activation in the right hemisphere. Symmetrical or right-lateralized activation was observed in 22 of 27 subjects (81.4%) under the rSEN-SND contrast in the temporal cortices. Although 9 of 27 subjects (33.3%) showed symmetrical or right-lateralized activation under the SEN-SND contrast in the temporal cortices, all subjects showed left-lateralized activation under the SEN-rSEN contrast. CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrated that right-lateralized activation by human voice perception could mask left-lateralized activation by lexical-semantic processing. This finding suggests that the influence of human voice perception should be adequately taken into account when language dominance is determined.

Vasoactive effects of cimicifugic acids C and D, and fukinolic acid in cimicifuga rhizome.

Vasoactive effects of cimicifugic acids A-E, fukinolic acid and fukiic acid isolated from Cimicifuga plants were investigated using rat aortic strips. Cimicifugic acid D and fukinolic acid at 3x10(-4) M caused a sustained, slowly developing relaxation of aortic strips precontracted with norepinephrine (NE) in preparations with or without endothelium. Cimicifugic acid C inversely caused a weak contraction. Cimicifugic acids A, B and E and fukiic acid showed no vasoactivity at 3x10(-4) M. Cimicifugic acids A-E and fukinolic acid are esters between cinnamic acids and the hydroxyl group of benzyltartaric acids. For the manifestation of vasoactivity in the rat aorta, it is concluded that in the cinnamic acid moiety, a caffeoyl group might be necessary for the relaxation activity, and the p-coumaroyl group causes contraction. Concentration response curves for the Ca2+-induced contracture of depolarized aortic strips with isotonic high K+ were not affected by cimicifugic acid D or fukinolic acid. The Ca2+-induced contraction of aortic strips, preincubated with 10(-6) M NE in the presence of 10(-6) M nicardipine and 0.01 mM EGTA in Ca2+-free solution, were inhibited by cimicifugic acid D and fukinolic acid. These results indicated that the inhibition by cimicifugic acid D and fukinolic acid of the NE-induced contraction of rat aorta are attributable to the suppression of Ca2+ influx from the extracellular space enhanced by NE.

Characteristic changes of motor unit activity in hip joint flexor muscles during voluntary isometric contraction during water immersion.

The effect of whole body water immersion on the recruitment order of hip flexor motor units was investigated in 11 male subjects. Intramuscular spike potentials were recorded, with fine bipolar wire electrodes, from the iliopsoas, the sartorius, the rectus femoris and the tensor fasciae latae during voluntary isometric contraction while the subjects were standing erect with the hip on the test side flexed to 60 degrees and the knee flexed to 120 degrees . Data were analysed by measuring the recruitment threshold in slow ramp contraction and by a computer-aided amplitude-frequency histogram of the spike potentials during short sustained contraction. The motor units were classified as low-amplitude units if they delivered spike potentials of less than 0.5 mV and high-amplitude units if the spike potentials exceeded 0.5 mV. In the ramp experiments, exposure to water immersion gave rise to a sudden increase in the recruitment thresholds of the low-amplitude units in all muscles, while in the recruitment thresholds of the high-amplitude units, the alterations differed among the muscles. The thresholds in the rectus femoris and tensor fasciae latae increased in the same direction as those of the low-amplitude units, while those in the iliopsoas and sartorius decreased in the opposite direction. The amplitude-frequency histograms clearly indicated that these different alterations occurred in all subjects, without exception. We concluded that unloading induced by water immersion changed the recruitment order of motor units during isometric contraction in the iliopsoas and sartorius, facilitating the recruitment of their larger motor units.

Studies on the Chinese crude drug "shoma." IX. Three novel cyclolanostanol xylosides, cimicifugosides H-1, H-2 and H-5, from cimicifuga rhizome.

Three new cyclolanostanol xylosides were isolated from a batch of commercial Cimicifuga Rhizome, cimicifugoside H-1 (1), C35H52O9, mp 260-262 degrees C, [alpha]D -43.5 degrees, cimicifugoside H-2 (2), C35H54O10, mp 227-229 degrees C, [alpha]D -38.8 degrees, and cimicifugoside H-5 (3), C35H52O10, mp 262-264 degrees C, [alpha]D -22.9 degrees, together with known glycosides, actein and 27-deoxyactein. Their structures were determined on the basis of chemical and spectrometric evidence including an X-ray crystallographic analysis. The structure of cimicifugoside H-1 (1) was established as (20R,24R)-24,25-epoxy-11 beta-hydroxy-3-beta-(beta-D- xylopyranosyloxy)-9,19-cyclolanost-7-ene-16,23-dione. Cimicifugoside H-5 (3) is the 15-hydroxylated derivative of 1. Since 1 changed into cimicifugoside H-2 (2) on treatment with p-toluenesulfonic acid, 2 has a 24R,25-diol structure derived from 1 by opening its epoxy ring.

Studies on the Chinese crude drug "Shoma." VIII. Two new triterpenol bisdesmosides, 3-arabinosyl-24-O-acetylhydroshengmanol 15-glucoside and 3-xylosyl-24-O-acetylhydroshengmanol 15-glucoside, from Cimicifuga dahurica.

Two new triterpenol glycosides were isolated from the rhizomes of Cimicifuga dahurica (Ranunculaceae): 3-arabinosyl-24-O-acetylhydroshengmanol 15-glucoside (1), C43H70O16, mp 222-223 degrees C, [alpha]D +21.0 degrees and 3-xylosyl-24-O-acetylhydroshengmanol 15-glucoside (2), C43H70O16, mp 208-210 degrees C, [alpha]D +9.5 degrees. On acidic hydrolysis, 1 afforded cimigenol (3) as an aglycone, and glucose and arabinose as sugars. On enzymatic hydrolysis with molsin, 1 afforded 24-O-acetylhydroshengmanol 15-O-glucoside (4). On the basis of chemical and spectral data, the structure of 1 was proposed to be (23R,24S)-24-acetoxy-3-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyloxy-16,23-e poxy-9,19- 15-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside. The other glycoside (2) showed, in its 13C-NMR spectrum, a pattern of chemical shifts very similar to that of 1. On acidic hydrolysis, 2 afforded cimigenol (3), xylose and glucose. On enzymatic hydrolysis with molsin, 2 afforded 4. From these results, the structure of 2 was proposed to be (23R,24S)-24-acetoxy-3-O-beta-D-xylopyranosyloxy-16,23-epoxy -9,19-cyclolanostane-15 alpha,16 xi,25-triol 15-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside.