Beta Burst-Driven Adaptive Deep Brain Stimulation Improves Gait Impairment and Freezing of Gait in Parkinson's Disease.

Background: Freezing of gait (FOG) is a debilitating symptom of Parkinson's disease (PD) that is often refractory to medication. Pathological prolonged beta bursts within the subthalamic nucleus (STN) are associated with both worse impairment and freezing behavior in PD, which are improved with deep brain stimulation (DBS). The goal of the current study was to investigate the feasibility, safety, and tolerability of beta burst-driven adaptive DBS (aDBS) for FOG in PD. Methods: Seven individuals with PD were implanted with the investigational Summit™ RC+S DBS system (Medtronic, PLC) with leads placed bilaterally in the STN. A PC-in-the-loop architecture was used to adjust stimulation amplitude in real-time based on the observed beta burst durations in the STN. Participants performed either a harnessed stepping-in-place task or a free walking turning and barrier course, as well as clinical motor assessments and instrumented measures of bradykinesia, OFF stimulation, on aDBS, continuous DBS (cDBS), or random intermittent DBS (iDBS). Results: Beta burst driven aDBS was successfully implemented and deemed safe and tolerable in all seven participants. Gait metrics such as overall percent time freezing and mean peak shank angular velocity improved from OFF to aDBS and showed similar efficacy as cDBS. Similar improvements were also seen for overall clinical motor impairment, including tremor, as well as quantitative metrics of bradykinesia. Conclusion: Beta burst driven adaptive DBS was feasible, safe, and tolerable in individuals with PD with gait impairment and FOG.

Synthesis and crystal structures of halogenated oxathiazolones and an unexpected propanamide.

The known 1,3,4-oxathiazol-2-ones with crystal structures reported in the Cambridge Structural Database are limited (13 to date) and this article expands the library to 15. In addition, convenient starting materials for the future exploration of 1,3,4-oxathiazol-2-ones are detailed. An unexpected halogenated propanamide has also been identified as a by-product of one reaction, presumably reacting with HCl generated in situ. The space group of 5-[(E)-2-chloroethenyl]-1,3,4-oxathiazol-2-one, C4H2ClNO2S, (1), is P21, with a high Z' value of 6; the space group of rac-2,3-dibromo-3-chloropropanamide, C3H4Br2ClNO, (2), is P21, with Z' = 4; and the structure of rac-5-(1,2-dibromo-2-phenylethyl)-1,3,4-oxathiazol-2-one, C10H7Br2NO2S, (3), crystallizes in the space group Pca21, with Z' = 1. Both of the structures of compounds 2 and 3 are modeled with two-component disorder and each molecular site hosts both of the enantiomers of the racemic pairs (S,S)/(R,R) and (R,S)/(S,R), respectively.

Synthesis and crystal structure of 3-phenyl-1,4,2-di-thia-zole-5-thione.

In the title compound, C8H5NS3, the dihedral angle between the heterocyclic ring and the phenyl ring is 2.62 (5)°. In the extended structure, aromatic π-π stacking between the 1,4,2-di-thia-zole-5-thione moiety and the phenyl ring is observed [centroid-centroid distances = 3.717 (6) and 3.712 (6) Å]. The almost planar mol-ecules arrange themselves in parallel chains of head-to-tail mol-ecules oriented by a network of weak C-H⋯S contacts close to the sum of their van der Waals radii within the chains. All the hydrogen atoms participate in hydrogen-bonding inter-actions with the sulfur and nitro-gen atoms of adjacent mol-ecules. C=S⋯S contacts between the chains that are significantly shorter than the sum of their van der Waals radii also impact the overall packing.

Risperidone effects on heterochromatin: the role of kinase signaling.

Epigenetic effects of anti-psychotic medications are poorly understood. We have appropriated a model whereby heterochromatin is established through 24- or 48-h lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment, and tested the epigenetic effects of risperidone along the adenylyl cyclase/protein kinase A (AC/PKA) pathway in human liposarcoma cells that express the LPS-sensitive Toll-like receptor (TLR)-4. Human SW872 cells were cultured with LPS and mRNA expression levels and epigenetic modifications of dimethylated lysine 9 of histone 2 (H3K9me2), geterochromatin protein 1γ (HP1γ) and phospho-H3S10 at promoters of interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and IL1ß were measured. Pharmacological manipulation of the AC/PKA pathway was achieved through treatment with a PKA inhibitor (H89), mitogen- and stress-activated kinase 1 (MSK1) inhibitor (SB-747651A) or forskolin. Twenty-four and 48-h LPS treatment establishes heterochromatin at selected promoters, corresponding to decreased mRNA expression. Concurrent risperidone treatment with LPS treatment can both 'block' and 'reverse' heterochromatin formation. Forskolin treatment resulted in a similar disassembling effect on heterochromatin. Conversely, inhibition of PKA by H89 or MSK1 both blocked 'normalizing' effects of risperidone on LPS-induced heterochromatin. Our results demonstrate that risperidone can disassemble heterochromatin, exerting this effect along the G-protein/AC/PKA pathway. This approach can also be utilized to investigate functional outcomes of single or combined pharmacological treatments on chromatin assemblies in human cells.

The crystal structures of two isomers of 5-(phenyl-iso-thia-zol-yl)-1,3,4-oxa-thia-zol-2-one.

The syntheses and crystal structures of two isomers of phenyl iso-thia-zolyl oxa-thia-zolone, C11H6N2O2S2, are described [systematic names: 5-(3-phenyl-iso-thia-zol-5-yl)-1,3,4-oxa-thia-zol-2-one, (I), and 5-(3-phenyl-iso-thia-zol-4-yl)-1,3,4-oxa-thia-zol-2-one, (II)]. There are two almost planar (r.m.s. deviations = 0.032 and 0.063 Å) mol-ecules of isomer (I) in the asymmetric unit, which form centrosymmetric tetra-mers linked by strong S⋯N [3.072 (2) Å] and S⋯O contacts [3.089 (1) Å]. The tetra-mers are π-stacked parallel to the a-axis direction. The single mol-ecule in the asymmetric unit of isomer (II) is twisted into a non-planar conformation by steric repulsion [dihedral angles between the central iso-thia-zolyl ring and the pendant oxa-thia-zolone and phenyl rings are 13.27 (6) and 61.18 (7)°, respectively], which disrupts the π-conjugation between the heteroaromatic iso-thia-zoloyl ring and the non-aromatic oxa-thia-zolone heterocycle. In the crystal of isomer (II), the strong S⋯O [3.020 (1) Å] and S⋯C contacts [3.299 (2) Å] and the non-planar structure of the mol-ecule lead to a form of π-stacking not observed in isomer (I) or other oxa-thia-zolone derivatives.

Crystal structure determination as part of an ongoing undergraduate organic laboratory project: 5-[(E)-styr-yl]-1,3,4-oxa-thia-zol-2-one.

The title compound, C10H7NO2S, provides the first structure of an α-alkenyl oxa-thia-zolone ring. The phenyl ring and the oxa-thia-zolone groups make dihedral angles of 0.3 (3) and -2.8 (3)°, respectively, with the plane of the central alkene group; the dihedral angle between the rings is 2.68 (8)°. A careful consideration of bond lengths provides insight into the electronic structure and reactivity of the title compound. In the crystal, extended π-stacking is observed parallel to the a-axis direction, consisting of cofacial head-to-tail dimeric units [centroid-centroid distance of 3.6191 (11) Å]. These dimeric units are separated by a slightly longer centroid-centroid distance of 3.8383 (12) Å, generating infinite stacks of mol-ecules.

Absorption of SO2(g) by TDAE[O2SSO2](s) to Give TDAE[O2SS(O)2SO2](s): Related Reactions of [NR4]2[O2SSO2](s) (R = CH3, C2H5).

One mole equivalent of gaseous SO2 is absorbed by purple TDAE[O2SSO2](s), producing red, essentially spectroscopically pure TDAE[O2SS(O)2SO2](s); under prolonged evacuation, the product loses SO2(g), regenerating TDAE[O2SSO2](s). Similarly, [NR4]2[O2SS(O)2SO2](s) (R = Et, Me) can be prepared, albeit at lower purity, from the corresponding tetraalkylammonium dithionites (prepared by a modification of the known [NEt4]2[O2SSO2](s) preparation). While the [NEt4](+) salt is stable at rt; the [NMe4](+) salt has only limited stability at -78 °C. Vibrational spectra assignments for the anion in these salts were distinctly different from those for the anion in salts containing the long-known [O3SSSO3](2-) dianion, the most thermodynamically stable form of [S3O6](2-) (we prepared TDAE[O3SSSO3]·H2O(s) and obtained its structure by X-ray diffraction and vibrational analyses). The best fit between the calculated ((B3PW91/6-311+G(3df) and PBE0/6-311G(d)) and experimental vibrational spectra were obtained with the dianion having the [O2SS(O)2SO2](2-) structure. Vibrational analyses of the three [O2SS(O)2SO2](2-) salts prepared in this work showed that the corresponding [O3SSO2](2-) salts were present as a ubiquitous decomposition product. The formation of these new [O2SS(O)2SO2](2-) dianion salts was predicted to be favorable for [NMe4](+) and larger cations using a combination of theoretical calculations (B3PW91/6-311+G(3df)) and volume based thermodynamics (VBT). Similar methods accounted for the greater stabilities of the TDAE(2+) and [NEt4](+) salts of [O2SS(O)2SO2](2-) compared to [NMe4]2[O2SS(O)2SO2](s) toward irreversible decomposition to the corresponding [O3SSO2](2-) salts. These salts represent the first known examples of a new class of poly(sulfur dioxide) dianion, [SO2]n(2-) in which n > 2.

A one-step route to solubilised, purified or functionalised single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Reductive dissolution is a promising processing route for single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) that avoids the damage caused by ultrasonication and aggressive oxidation whilst simultaneously allowing access to a wealth of SWCNT functionalisation reactions. Here, reductive dissolution has been simplified to a single one-pot reaction through the use of sodium naphthalide in dimethylacetamide allowing direct synthesis of SWCNT Na+ solutions. Gram quantities of SWCNTs can be dissolved at concentrations over 2 mg mL-1. These reduced SWCNT solutions can easily be functionalised through the addition of alkyl halides; reducing steric bulk of the grafting moiety and increasing polarisability of the leaving group increases the extent of functionalisation. An optimised absolute sodium concentration of 25 mM is shown to be more important than carbon to metal ratio in determining the maximum degree of functionalisation. This novel dissolution system can be modified for use as a non-destructive purification route for raw SWCNT powder by adjusting the degree of charging to dissolve carbonaceous impurities, catalyst particles and defective material, before processing the remaining SWCNTs.

Synthesis of (TDAE)(O2SSO2)(s) and discovery of (TDAE)(O2SSSSO2)(s) containing the first polythionite, [O2SSSSO2]2-.

Gaseous SO2 reacts with tetrakis(dimethylamino)ethylene (TDAE) in acetonitrile in a 2:1 stoichiometric ratio to give analytically pure insoluble purple (TDAE)(O2SSO2) (1) in about 80% yield. Crystals of (TDAE)(O2SSSSO2) (2) were obtained from orange solution over the purple solid. The Raman spectrum of [TDAE](2+) was established using (TDAE)(A) salts [A = 2Br(-), 2Br(-)·2H2O (X-ray), 2[Br3](-) (X-ray)]. Vibrational spectroscopy showed that [O2SSO2](2-) in 1 has C2h geometry. The X-ray structure of 2 showed that it contained [O2SSSSO2](2-), the first example of a new class of sulfur oxyanions, the polythionites. The geometry of [O2SSSSO2](2-) consists of S2 with an S-S bond length of 2.003(1) Å connected to two terminal SO2 moieties by much longer S-S bonds of 2.337(1) Å. Calculations (B3PW91/6-311+G(3df)) show that the structural units in [O2SSSSO2](2-) are joined by the interaction of electrons in two mutually perpendicular π* SOMOs of the triplet-state diradical S2 with unpaired electrons in the π*-antibonding orbitals of the two terminal [SO2](•-) and polarized to delocalize the negative charge equally onto the three fragments. Thermodynamic estimates show 2 to be stable with respect to loss of sulfur and formation of 1, in contrast to [O2SSSSO2](2-) salts of small cations that are unstable toward the related dissociation. Reaction of TDAE with an excess of liquid SO2 led to (TDAE)(O3SOSO3)·SO2 (preliminary X-ray, Raman), (TDAE)(O3SSSSO3)·2SO2 (preliminary X-ray, Raman), and (TDAE)(O3SSO2) (Raman).

Thermal hysteresis in dithiadiazolyl and dithiazolyl radicals induced by supercooling of paramagnetic liquids close to room temperature: a study of F3CCNSSN and an interpretation of the behaviour of F3CCSNSCCF3.

The trifluoromethyl-substituted dithiadiazolyl and dithiazolyl radicals, F3CCNSSN (1) and F3CCSNSCCF3 (2) associate through pi*-pi* covalent and electrostatic S delta+...N delta- interactions in the solid state, but melt with a dramatic volume increase to generate paramagnetic liquids; these radicals exhibit thermal hysteresis, which arises through a meta-stable super-cooled liquid state, close to room temperature.

Hepatitis B reservoirs and attack rates in an Australian community. A basis for vaccination and crossinfection policies.

Four different subpopulations in South Australia, which were expected to have high rates of hepatitis B infection (Asians, Aboriginals, homosexual men, and drug addicts) were examined for their contribution to the total reservoir of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) carriers and to the total annual incidence of acute hepatitis B infection in South Australia. Age-specific prevalence data were also examined to assess the ages at which infection is commonly acquired. It was found that the above four groups, which comprise 3% of the State's population, are likely to include about 75% of HBsAg carriers in the State, but contribute a minority of the total new infections each year; they are not likely to present a significant risk of infection to the community at large. Three different age-related patterns of acquisition of infection were recognized--among Southeast Asians and Aboriginals, homosexual men and drug addicts, and the general community, respectively. The above approach, and to some extent the general findings, should be applicable to other similar communities in the formulation of effective policies for the control and prevention of hepatitis B infection.