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Background and Hypothesis Structural brain alterations are well-established features of schizophrenia but they do not effectively predict disease/disease risk. Similar to polygenic risk scores in genetics, we integrated multifactorial aspects of brain structure into a summary "Neuroscore" and examined its potential as a marker of disease. Study Design We extracted measures from T1-weighted scans and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) models from three studies with schizophrenia and healthy individuals. We calculated individual-level summary scores (Neuroscores) for T1-weighted and DTI measures and a combined score (Multimodal Neuroscore-MM). We assessed each score's ability to differentiate schizophrenia cases from controls and its relationship to clinical symptomatology, intelligence quotient (IQ), and medication dosage. We assessed Neuroscore specificity by performing all analyses in a more inclusive psychosis sample and by using scores generated from MDD effect sizes. Study Results All Neuroscores significantly differentiated schizophrenia cases from controls (T1 d = 0.56, DTI d = 0.29, MM d = 0.64) to a greater degree than individual brain regions. Higher Neuroscores (ie, increased liability) were associated with lower IQ (T1 β = −0.26, DTI β = −0.15, MM β = −0.30). Higher T1-weighted Neuroscores were associated with higher positive and negative symptom severity (Positive β = 0.21, Negative β = 0.16); Higher Multimodal Neuroscores were associated with higher positive symptom severity (β = 0.30). SZ Neuroscores outperformed MDD Neuroscores in predicting IQ (T1: z = 3.5, q = 0.0007; MM: z = 1.8, q = 0.05). Conclusions Neuroscores are a step toward leveraging widespread structural brain alterations in psychosis to identify robust neurobiological markers of disease. Future studies will assess ways to improve neuroscore calculation, including developing the optimal methods to calculate neuroscores and considering disorder overlap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Children and young people with visible differences can experience psychosocial difficulties, such as anxiety and teasing by others. Interventions targeting difficulties have previously been reviewed by Jenkinson et al. This review aimed to identify and critically assess recent studies evaluating the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions for children and young people with visible differences on psychosocial wellbeing, self-esteem, and social experiences and compare the findings with Jenkinson et al. using a replacement review process. Methods Inclusion criteria are as follows: studies with participants aged 0–18 years with visible differences; investigating a psychosocial intervention; including comparison with an alternative intervention, control group, or pre- and post-intervention; and including a quantitative measure assessed pre- and post-intervention. Exclusion criteria are as follows: participants with body dysmorphic disorder or appearance changes due to eating disorders or obesity and studies not written in English. MEDLINE, AMED, and PsycInfo were searched and grey literature was included. Results were reviewed against eligibility criteria, data were extracted, and studies were evaluated using the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 tool. Results Using Jenkinson et al. as one source of studies, 24 studies were included evaluating a range of interventions such as social interaction skills training, residential social camps, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Risk of bias was high in 20 studies and of some concern in four studies. Conclusion There is some evidence of the effectiveness of hypnotherapy, a relaxation response resiliency program, integrative body-mind-spirit group, and therapeutic patient education, but more rigorous research is needed to confirm their impact on psychosocial outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has been conducted on Mycobacterium smegmatis cell wall assembly. The study of the assembly events has been carried out in vivo via radiolabelling of exponentially growing liquid cultures and the ability of M. smegmatis to take up radioactive N-acetylglucosamine from the culture medium and incorporate it into peptidoglycan has been investigated.

The effect of reconstituting freeze-dried vaccine cultures of Mycoplasma mycoides subsp. mycoides small colony biotype (MmmSC) strain T144 grown in standard vaccine medium using variable quantities of un-buffered solutions of 1 M MgSO4 (the current O.I.E.-recommended procedure) has been investigated. Compared to the culture pH prior to desiccation, a drop of up to 2.2 pH units was observed, dependent upon the volume and pH of 1 M MgSO4 used (1–30× original culture volume, using 1 M MgSO4 in the pH range 5.4–7.6). This pH drop appears to be due to the removal of the HPO42− buffer capacity of the medium by the formation of insoluble Mg3(PO4)2 and the release of free H+ ions. As a result of this lower pH, markedly reduced culture viability was observed over an 8-h period at 37°C for vaccines re-suspended in 1 M MgSO4 (ca. 6 log10 drop in titre) compared to re-suspension in dH2O (ca. 1.5 log10 drop in titre). Re-suspension in 1 M MgSO4 did exhibit a thermoprotective effect at 46°C, but only when the pH was maintained above pH 7.0 by use of HEPES-buffered growth medium (1 log10 drop in titre compared to 6 log10 drop using dH2O over an 8-h period). Since all current O.I.E.-recommended growth media for MmmSC are based upon a phosphate buffer system, it is therefore recommended that the use of 1 M MgSO4 as a reconstitution fluid be discontinued as soon as possible and buffered saline be used instead. The use of this reconstitution procedure with the T144 vaccine strain could be a significant factor in the poor efficacy observed with current freeze-dried vaccines against contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in Africa. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article provides information on study examining the purpose of biomakers as a potential solution for clinical trial failures. According to the study, biomakers provides individual the understanding of drug action, metabolism in the body, efficacy, and safety. Moreover, it can also be applied as research tools on several scientific discipline, including proteomics, genomics, and metabolics

The effect of reconstituting freeze-dried vaccine cultures of Mycoplasma mycoides subsp. mycoides small colony biotype (MmmSC) strain T(1)44 grown in standard vaccine medium using variable quantities of un-buffered solutions of 1 M MgSO(4) (the current O.I.E.-recommended procedure) has been investigated. Compared to the culture pH prior to desiccation, a drop of up to 2.2 pH units was observed, dependent upon the volume and pH of 1 M MgSO(4) used (1-30 x original culture volume, using 1 M MgSO(4) in the pH range 5.4-7.6). This pH drop appears to be due to the removal of the HPO(4)(2-) buffer capacity of the medium by the formation of insoluble Mg(3)(PO(4))(2) and the release of free H(+) ions. As a result of this lower pH, markedly reduced culture viability was observed over an 8-h period at 37 degrees C for vaccines re-suspended in 1 M MgSO(4) (ca. 6 log(10) drop in titre) compared to re-suspension in dH(2)O (ca. 1.5 log(10) drop in titre). Re-suspension in 1 M MgSO(4) did exhibit a thermoprotective effect at 46 degrees C, but only when the pH was maintained above pH 7.0 by use of HEPES-buffered growth medium (1 log(10) drop in titre compared to 6 log(10) drop using dH(2)O over an 8-h period). Since all current O.I.E.-recommended growth media for MmmSC are based upon a phosphate buffer system, it is therefore recommended that the use of 1 M MgSO(4) as a reconstitution fluid be discontinued as soon as possible and buffered saline be used instead. The use of this reconstitution procedure with the T(1)44 vaccine strain could be a significant factor in the poor efficacy observed with current freeze-dried vaccines against contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in Africa.