The use of 3D video games in memory rehabilitation has been explored very little. A virtual navigation task allows participants to encode the spatial layout of the virtual environment and activate areas involved in memory processing. We describe the rehabilitation of a 24-year-old man with traumatic brain injury presenting memory ...

Migrating focal seizures in infancy are an unusual and often overlooked epilepsy syndrome, with onset before age 6 months, in which nearly continuous seizures involve multiple, independent areas of both hemispheres with an arrest of psychomotor development. We describe a patient with migrating focal seizures in infancy whose seizures began ...

Seckel syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive disorder, and its characteristic features include prenatal and postnatal growth retardation, microcephaly, and "bird-like" face with prominent, beak-like nose and micrognathia. Additional abnormalities were described in the cardiovascular, hematopoietic, endocrine, and central nervous systems. We present the magnetic resonance imaging findings of a ...

On the cover: The image for the cover of this issue displays results from application of a nucleus segmentation algorithm (see Figure 2 in this issue's accompanying article by Ram et al.) Cover design by Bärbel Beran [www.beran-design.de].

Background/Aims: Evaluation of preoperative hepatic reserve is critical to avoid a fatal clinical course such as liver failure. We retrospectively evaluated 158 consecutive hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients who underwent initial hepatectomy. The aim of this study was to determine the correlations of multiple indicators for assessment of liver function before ...

Salmonella is one of the major pathogenic bacteria that cause food poisoning. To elucidate the host infection mechanism of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium-targeting phages, the bacteriophage SPN3UB was isolated from a chicken fecal sample. This phage belongs morphologically to the Siphoviridae family and infects the host via the O antigen ...

We describe a 7-year-old boy with Alice in Wonderland syndrome associated with Lyme disease. He presented with metamorphopsia and auditory hallucinations in the absence of previous tick bites or other signs of Lyme disease. The boy never developed clinical seizures, and electroencephalograms during these spells indicated no epileptic activity. There ...

The genome of higher eukaryotes exhibits a patchwork of inactive and active genes. The nuclear protein CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) when bound to insulator sequences can prevent undesirable crosstalk between active and inactive genomic regions, and it can also shield particular genes from enhancer function, a role that has many applications ...

Duck tembusu virus (DTMUV) is an emerging agent that causes a severe disease in ducks. We report herein the first complete genome sequences of duck tembusu virus strains YY5, ZJ-407, and GH-2, isolated from Shaoxing ducks, breeder ducks, and geese, respectively, in China. The genomes of YY5, ZJ-407, and GH-2 ...

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension is a headache syndrome characterized by elevated intracranial pressure with normal cerebrospinal fluid content, normal cranial imaging, and elevated appearance of the optic disc. We report on a 6.5-year-old boy with complaints of headache and right esotropia causing diplopia. A lumbar puncture indicated an opening cerebrospinal fluid ...

Background/Aims: Hypercalcemia is a paraneoplastic syndrome that is a serious condition requiring urgent treatment. We administered alendronate to hypercalcemia patients with advanced cancer with metastasized liver tumors or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and then evaluated the mechanism and anticancer function of this compound. Methodology: We retrospectively studied 17 patients with hypercalcemia ...

One characteristic abnormality of lesional skin in psoriasis is the excessive production of antimicrobial peptides and proteins (AMPs). AMPs typically are small (12-50 amino acids), have positive charge and amphipathic structure, and are found in all living organisms including mammals, insects, plants and invertebrates. These peptides are best known for ...

Rett syndrome is a severe neurodevelopmental disease with a prevalence of 0.88 per 10,000 girls aged 5-18 years, and is often caused by mutations in methyl-cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG)-binding protein 2. Disorder of respiratory control is a prominent feature of Rett syndrome. Brainstem serotoninergic neurons are known to play an important role ...

Objectives: The current study investigates whether children with and without ADHD differ in their implementation of emotion-regulation strategies. In addition, it explores whether the regulation patterns of ADHD children are related to co-occurring behavioral and emotional problems. Methods: A group of 21 children with ADHD and a group of 20 ...

The Family with sequence similarity 5 member C (FAM5C) has been suggested to contribute in aggressive periodontitis. However, there is no data regarding its role in chronic periodontitis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the FAM5C expression in chronic periodontitis and to study association of FAM5C with key ...

Little research has explored changes in workers' psychosocial hazard exposures, work-related stress and stress-related absence associated with the onset of unprecedented severe economic recession. Knowledge of these could inform psychosocial risk management measures appropriate to austere economic times. To examine civil servants' psychosocial hazard exposures, work-related stress and stress-related absence ...

Background/Aims: To assess the surgical safety of synchronous hepatic resection and splenectomy for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and hypersplenism. Methodology: Patients with HCC and hypersplenism who underwent surgical treatment were included in this study. According to the difference of operations, patients were divided into two groups (group A, patients ...

Aims:  The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between inappropriate views on suicide, such as it being a personal choice, inevitable, unpreventable, and permissible, with demographic variables and the feeling of shame in seeking help among the general population. Methods:  A self-administered questionnaire on mental health and ...

Background/Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the pattern of body weight change after gastrectomy for gastric cancer and its association with prognosis. Methodology: From February 2001 to June 2005, 1554 patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric cancer were included. The pattern of body weight change according to ...

Abstract To describe the pathology of the reproductive tract of red deer stags with active Brucella ovis infection and in stags in which B. ovis infection had resolved. Twenty-three red deer stags of varying history were slaughtered and their epididymides and accessory sex glands examined grossly and by histopathology. At ...

Pregnancy and childbirth bring many changes to the health and well-being of new mothers. Postpartum sexual health is a common concern that is often not discussed during prenatal or postpartum care and has received little attention from either clinicians or researchers. In this article, we review current theories of female ...

Abstract To monitor the consequences of withdrawing mineral Cu supplements from two dairy herds with initially high concentrations of Cu in liver. Two herds were selected from dairy farms in the Waikato region of New Zealand that participated in an earlier survey of Cu supplementation practices and Cu status of ...

Background/Aims: To examine whether intestinal bacterial translocation occurs early in acute mild and severe pancreatitis and whether the intestinal expression of tight junction proteins (claudins-2, -3, -4, -5, -7), apoptosis or proliferation would explain the possible translocation. Methodology: Fifteen pigs were randomized to controls (n=5) or to develop mild edematous ...

The patient was a 57-year-old Japanese woman who had been identified as having anemia and hypoproteinemia by a local group medical check-up. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed an elevated lesion of 35mm in diameter on the posterior wall of the gastric antrum, surrounded by multiple polyps. The elevated lesion was diagnosed as an ...

Motor deficits associated with developmental coordination disorder are not attributable to macrostructural brain abnormalities, but differences in brain microstructure may exist. Using diffusion tensor imaging, we explored the integrity of motor, sensory, and cerebellar pathways in children with and without developmental coordination disorder. In seven children with the disorder and ...

Aims:  Low-frequency right prefrontal repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is effective in treating depression, and its antidepressant effects have proven to correlate with decreases in cerebral blood flow (CBF) in the orbitofrontal cortex and subgenual cingulate cortex. However, a predictor of treatment response to low-frequency right prefrontal rTMS in depression ...

: Older adults in the VA Healthcare System may have an increased risk for depression than those in the general population. These factors may also be associated with the likelihood of receiving depression treatment. This study examined the associations between sociodemographic characteristics, psychiatric comorbidities, and medical comorbidities and the receipt ...

To estimate the effects of gestational age and other maternal factors on immunologic responses to influenza vaccination. Antepartum and postpartum women receiving influenza vaccination as part of routine clinical care were enrolled through four consecutive vaccination seasons (starting October 2006 through January 2010). Immunologic responses to trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine ...

Abstract To investigate the perceived adverse effects of a particular batch of ketamine during induction of anaesthesia in sheep and to assess if any adverse effects would make intubation more difficult for the veterinary students. Thirty adult sheep (mean bodyweight 74.5 (SD 9.4) kg) were randomly assigned to one of ...

: Theoretical models of cognitive aging are increasingly recognizing the importance of anxiety and depressive symptoms in predicting age-related cognitive changes and early dementia. This study examined the association between mild worry and depressive symptoms, and cognitive function in healthy, community-dwelling older adults. : A total of 263 healthy older ...

Background/Aims: The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility and technical aspects of a new endoluminal surgical procedure: transvaginal laparoscopically assisted endoscopic cholecystectomy. Methodology: Three female patients underwent transvaginal laparoscopically assisted endoscopic cholecystectomy (aged 40, 61 and 33 years). Pneumoperitoneum was created through a 5mm supraumbilical incision. Through ...

Walters, PH, Jezequel, JJ, and Grove, MB. Case study: bone mineral density of two elite senior female powerlifters. J Strength Cond Res 26(3): 867-872, 2012-The purpose of this case study was to examine the bone mineral density (BMD) of 2 women, aged 48 and 54 years, who had engaged in ...

A review of 13 years of research into antecedents of university students' grade point average (GPA) scores generated the following: a comprehensive, conceptual map of known correlates of tertiary GPA; assessment of the magnitude of average, weighted correlations with GPA; and tests of multivariate models of GPA correlates within and ...

Anesthesia given to immature rodents causes cognitive decline, raising the possibility that the same might be true for millions of children undergoing surgical procedures under general anesthesia each year. We tested the hypothesis that anesthesia-induced cognitive decline in rats is treatable. We also tested if anesthesia-induced cognitive decline is aggravated ...

Background/Aims: There have been reports showing the protective role of inducible Heat-shock protein (HSP) 70 in gastric epithelial cells. An A to G transition at the 1267 position HSP70-2 gene has been shown to be associated with a different level of HSP70 mRNA expression. We aimed to clarify the effect ...

The isotope ratios of various sulphur components (total sulphur content in the sediment, sulphate and H(2)S in the pore-water) were measured in a number of cores from recent marine sediments taken from the Kieler Bucht (Kiel Bay) region in the western Baltic Sea. Additionally, the quantitative contents of total sulphur, ...

Whole exome sequencing combined with homozygosity mapping comprises a genetic diagnostic tool to identify genetic defects in families with multiple affected members, compatible with presumed autosomal recessively inherited neurometabolic/neurogenetic disease. These tools were applied to a family with two individuals manifesting ataxia, associated with peripheral sensory neuropathy, athetosis, seizures, deafness, ...

Antibodies against N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) are identified in the form of immune-mediated encephalitis in which typical manifestations include neuropsychiatric symptoms, seizures, abnormal movements, dysautonomia and hypoventilation. The authors report two cases of anti-NMDAR encephalitis with different presentations and patterns of progression. The first patient presented with status epilepticus and later ...

Background/Aims: To detect the feasibility of using synchronous bile duct, left lobe of liver and common hepatic artery resection without reconstruction to improve the therapeutic efficacy of HC. Methodology: A total of 19 patients with hilar cholangiocarcinoma undergoing left-sided hepatectomy, hepatic artery resection and right hepatic duct-jejunum anastomosis from June ...

See article in J. Gastroenterol. Hepatol. 2012; 27: 487-492.

We discovered a novel canine picornavirus in fecal, nasopharyngeal, and urine samples from dogs. The coding potential of its genome (5'-VP4-VP2-VP3-VP1-2A-2B-2C-3A-3B-3C(pro)-3D(pol)-3', where 3C(pro) is 3C protease and 3D(pol) is 3D polymerase) is similar to those of other picornaviruses, with putative P1, P2, and P3 sharing 54% to 58%, 60%, and ...

Neosaxitoxin (NeoSTX) is a potent site-1 sodium-channel blocker being developed as a local anesthetic. Doses of 100 μg have been used by local infiltration in anesthetized adult humans without adverse effect. We hypothesized that similar doses could cause significant respiratory, neuromuscular, and cardiovascular impairment and sought to test this hypothesis ...

Background/Aims: Portal vein ligation (PVL) could multiply the future liver remnant volume (FLRV). Tumor necrosis factor- alpha (TNF-α) is a pleiotropic cytokine that is connected with initial phase of liver regeneration. The aim of this basic pilot study was to accelerate regeneration of liver parenchyma after PVL. The experimental porcine ...

Background/Aims: Von Hippel-Lindau disease is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder characterized by neoplasms developing in multiple organs. Although the pancreas is one of the most frequently involved organs, the frequency of pancreatic cysts, cystadenomas, neuroendocrine tumors and diabetes has not been sufficiently evaluated due to the low prevalence of this ...

: To estimate the rates of pregnancy outcomes of women after bariatric surgery relative to women in a control groups. : The study was a chart review. Presurgery and prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) were calculated for 70 patients who had undergone bariatric surgery and who had a subsequent singleton ...

Background/Aims: To clarify the clinical benefits of the maneuver in right-side hepatectomy. Methodology: Eighty-one patients with liver tumor (54 hepatocellular carcinoma, 17 metastatic liver tumor and 10 other tumors) treated with a right-side hepatectomy were prospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into the following three groups: a conventional approach (group ...

: To compare the diagnostic accuracy and sensitivity of combined gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with each imaging approach alone for detecting small hepatic metastases (≤1.5 cm). : Institutional review board approved this retrospective study and waived informed patient consent. Eighty-six patients with 179 liver ...

The treatment of later-onset Pompe disease with enzyme replacement therapy may not lead to significant improvement in muscle function, probably because of the irreversible muscle destruction caused by glycogen storage. A prospective study was performed to understand early muscle pathology in patients and the response of these pathologic changes to ...

Aims:  Blonanserin is a second-generation antipsychotic that was developed in Japan. We investigated the relationships between plasma concentration, the plasma anti-5-HT(2A) activity/anti-D(2) activity (S/D) ratio and extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS) in blonanserin dosing. Methods:  The subjects were 29 outpatients with schizophrenia. We assessed EPS using the Drug-Induced Extrapyramidal Symptoms Scale (DIEPSS). ...

Background/Aims: To investigate differences in clinicopathological features between proximal and distal pT3 colon cancers and to determine whether the depth of the cancer invasion beyond the muscularis propria (DBM) serves as an objective indicator of the depth of tumor invasion in proximal colon cancer and in distal colon cancer. Methodology: ...