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BackgroundIdiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) is a slowly progressive syndrome caused by the excessive accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid and is typically characterized by the triad of cognitive, gait, and urinary disturbances and ventricular dilation. In addition to this triad of symptoms, apathy is frequently observed in iNPH and worsens the cognitive impairment and gait disturbance. Although apathy is an important symptom in iNPH, its neurological basis remains unknown.ObjectivesThis study aimed to analyze and elucidate the brain regions associated with apathy in iNPH using statistical imaging analysis and to investigate regional cerebral blood flow and regional gray matter volume, which indicates gray matter compression, in a whole-brain study.MethodsTwenty seven patients with iNPH were assigned to two groups based on their scores on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory items related with apathy; 18 patients were assigned to the group with apathy (iNPH + APA) and 9 to the group without apathy (iNPH - APA). The magnetic resonance images and cerebral blood flow single-photon emission computed tomography data of the two groups were compared using statistical parametric mapping 12. ResultsThe regional gray matter volume of the right precuneus was significantly larger in the iNPH + APA group than in the iNPH − APA group, but the and regional cerebral blood flow in any region of the brain was not significantly different between the two groups.ConclusionThese results suggested that compression of the precuneus might be involved in apathy in iNPH and the importance of brain compression in iNPH symptoms. In addition, this study also shows that VBM is useful for indicating the degree of brain compression.

原文掲載:Journal of psychiatry & neuroscience. v.39, n.2, 2014 p.118-126, 2013

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) sheet was treated in an atmospheric pressure plasma using a series of feed gases (Water, Methanol, Ethanol, and Acetone) and the resulting surface modifications were evaluated by water contact angle measurements and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). We found that all plasma treatments gave rise to the breakage of some C-F bond, resulting in defluorination and the formation of oxygen containing functional groups onto the PTFE surface. Electroless plating of copper (Cu) could be carried out effectively on the modified PTFE surface. The use of ethanol plasma caused unexpected improvement in the T-peel adhesion strength of the electrically deposited Cu layer on the treated PTFE substrate with approximately three-fold improvement over that for conventionally adopted sodium treatments.

Background: Assessment of the musical ability of people with schizophrenia has attracted little interest despite the diverse and substantive findings of impairments in sound perception and processing and the therapeutic effect of music in people with the illness. The present study investigated the musical ability of people with schizophrenia and the association with psychiatric symptoms and cognition. Methods: We re cruited patients with chronic schizophrenia and healthy controls for participation in our study. To measure musical ability and cognitive func tion, we used the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA) and the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS). We carried out a mediation analysis to investigate a possible pathway to a deficit in musical ability. Results: We enrolled 50 patients and 58 controls in the study. The MBEA global score in patients with schizophrenia was significantly lower than that in controls ( p < 0.001), and was strongly associated with both the composite cognitive function score ( r = 0.645, p < 0.001) and the negative symptom score (r = ‐0.504, p < 0.001). Further analyses revealed direct and indirect effects of negative symptoms on musical ability. The indirect effects were mediated through cognitive impairment. Limitations: The relatively small sample size did not permit full evaluation of the possible effects of age, sex, education, medication and cultural influences on the results. Conclusion: Examining the associations between musical deficits, negative symptoms and cognitive imapirment in patients with schizophrenia may identify shared biological mechanisms.