Neurological markers may identify risk for psychotic disorders

Researchers have found neurological markers in the human brain that can be used to detect the presence of psychotic disorder.

People, who may hear and see things that are not there, could have symptoms of psychosis, better known as psychotic disorders.

 

Researchers  have found neurological markers in the human brain that can be used to detect people at risk for developing psychotic disorders and to understand when this risk has been successfully treated.

 

“Psychotic disorders like schizophrenia are often lifelong and disabling for individuals,” said a professor of psychology.

Researchers said psychotic disorders are associated with increased levels of dopamine a chemical released by nerve cells in a subregion of the brain called the striatum. This area is wired to process positive versus negative feedback for learning, often resulting in a person’s thoughts and actions based on what they’ve experienced in the past.

Therefore, researchers suggest that psychotic disorders involve faulty feedback in learning that then drives a person’s faulty beliefs and perceptions.

However, measuring levels of dopamine in people is costly, invasive and not feasible in everyday clinical practice. In this new study, researchers used an MRI at MU’s Brain Imaging Center and found that people at risk for psychotic disorders exhibit evidence of dysfunction in the striatum.

“This dysfunction is most evident when performing tasks where people need to learn from positive and negative feedback,” said the Dr.

“For instance, we have found that the risk for psychotic disorders involves increased activation in the striatum for positive feedback, and negative feedback involves decreased activation in the same subregion of the brain,” he added.

Researchers believe this pattern of activation could explain symptoms of psychotic disorders.

For example, activation resulting from increased positive feedback could make a person’s assumption seem truer than it really is, meanwhile activation from decreased negative feedback could make someone less likely to discard negative ideas.

The team will conduct future research to examine how well an MRI can predict the risk of psychotic disorders and whether prevention treatments can ‘normalise’ MRI scans. They hope that their research will help prevent psychotic disorders, improve the lives of millions of people and greatly reduce public health costs.

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High doses of vitamin D can lead to kidney failure

A 54-year-old man, after returning from a trip to Southeast Asia where he spent much of his holiday sunbathing, showed increased levels of creatinine, suggesting kidney damage or malfunction. After referral to a kidney specialist and further testing, it was discovered that he had been prescribed high doses of vitamin D by a naturopath, who recommended a dose of 8 drops every day. 

Over 2 ½ years, the patient, who did not have a history of bone loss or vitamin D deficiency, took 8-12 drops of vitamin D daily, totalling 8000-12 000 IU. As a result, he had very high levels of calcium in the blood, which left him with significant kidney damage.

 

"Although vitamin D toxicity is rare owing to a large therapeutic range, its widespread availability in various over-the-counter formulations may pose a substantial risk to uninformed patients," writes a Dr.

 

The recommended daily allowance is 400-1000 IU, with 800-2000 IU recommended for adults at high-risk of osteoporosis and for older adults.

 

"Our experience informs us that patients and clinicians should be better informed about the risks regarding the unfettered use of vitamin D. Given new findings from the US Preventive Services Task Force, current Canadian guidelines regarding its use in low-risk individuals should be revisited," the authors suggest.

 

"Use of vitamin D drops leading to kidney failure in a 54-year-old man" is published in an article recently.

 

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Hormone that protects women from liver cancer

Researchers have discovered that a hormone -- present at higher levels in women -- can keep them away from liver cancer, suggesting the disease is more common in men.

The study showed that a potential contributor to this gender disparity is adiponectin, a hormone secreted by fat cells that helps control the body's metabolism.

The hormone activates two proteins inside liver cells, known as p38 and AMPK, that block cell proliferation and impair tumour growth, said the study.

"Circulating adiponectin levels have been reported to be higher in women than in men," said some researchers in Spain.

Similar to humans, male mice are more also prone to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) -- the most common form of liver cancer -- than females, as the increased levels of adiponectin in female mice protect them from HCC, the study said.

Inhibiting testosterone production in male rodents increased their adiponectin levels and reduced tumour growth.

Importantly, the study suggested that adiponectin and metformin -- a common anti-diabetic drug -- could be used as novel treatments for liver cancer.

He said that adiponectin's role in HCC is controversial and needed further investigation.

Liver cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. 

 

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Elevated calcium levels raise heart attack risk

Higher calcium levels in the bloodstream determine a person's increased risk of developing coronary artery disease and heart attack, a new study suggests.

Coronary artery disease (CAD), which often results in a heart attack, is the most common cause of death on a global level. According to the doctors, approximately 735,000 people have a heart attack every year in the United States.

The main factors for heart disease identified so far include smoking, high levels of cholesterol, diabetes, and alcohol consumption.

A new study  points to a genetic predisposition to higher calcium levels as a possible factor for CAD and heart attack.

Genetic variants may hold key
In their article, the researchers highlight the importance of calcium to the system, mentioning its role in blood clotting, blood pressure regulation, and muscle contraction. They also explain that their study was spurred by previous research that suggested a correlation between calcium levels and CAD.

However, they note that the observational nature of former studies meant that their results were inconclusive, and a causal link between high calcium content in the blood and CAD or heart attack could not be proven.

The team opted for a different approach. They used a technique called mendelian randomization, a method using genetic variants - that is, genetic differences that allow us to tell how susceptible we are to particular conditions and diseases - to test for causal links between calcium levels and CAD or heart attack.

The study was conducted on publicly available data collected from 184,305 individuals. Of these, 60,801 had been diagnosed with CAD, 70 percent of whom had also experienced a heart attack, and 124,504 were deemed free from heart disease.

In the analysis, the researchers took into account six genetic variants related to calcium levels in the system.

As expected, they found that a higher risk of CAD and heart attack was linked to a genetic predisposition to a higher calcium concentration in the blood.

The researchers also took an interest in the effect of calcium supplements on individuals already predisposed to higher levels of calcium.
 
However, they were unable to confirm whether a supplement intake would also impact the risk of CAD or heart attack in these cases. The researchers highlight the need for further investigation on this count.

"Whether the risk of CAD associated with lifelong genetic exposure to increased serum calcium levels can be translated to a risk associated with short-term to medium-term calcium supplementation is unknown."

The team also acknowledge some limitations to their study, with the main factor relating to the analysis of genetic variants, citing the prominence of the genetic variant for the calcium-sensing receptor, a protein involved in keeping calcium levels stable in the system.

Among other shortcomings, the researchers also mentioned the occasional lack of information on the biological sex and age of the individuals who provided the data. Both of these characteristics have the potential to influence the results.

Despite these drawbacks, the study is crucial in solidifying the findings of previous research, adding a key element to the list of CAD and heart attack risk factors.

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Scientists link bacterial imbalances to breast cancer

Scientists have discovered for the first time that bacterial composition of tissues in women with breast cancer differ from those of healthy people, a finding which could offer a new perspective in the battle against the deadly disease.

Researchers found that breast tissues of healthy women contain more of a bacterial species Methylobacterium. Bacteria that live in the body, known as the microbiome, influence many diseases. Most research has been done on the "gut" microbiome, or bacteria in the digestive tract.

It has been long suspected that a "microbiome" exists within breast tissue and plays a role in breast cancer but it has not yet been characterised. Research took the first step towards understanding the composition of the bacteria in breast cancer by uncovering distinct microbial differences in healthy and cancerous breast tissue.

"To my knowledge, this is the first study to examine both breast tissue and distant sites of the body for bacterial differences in breast cancer," said a researcher.

"Our hope is to find a biomarker that would help us diagnose breast cancer quickly and easily," said a Dr. "In our wildest dreams, we hope we can use microbiomics right before breast cancer forms and then prevent cancer with probiotics or antibiotics," he said.

The study examined the tissues of 78 patients who underwent mastectomy for invasive carcinoma or elective cosmetic breast surgery. In addition, they examined oral rinse and urine to determine the bacterial composition of these distant sites in the body.

In addition to the Methylobacterium finding, the team discovered that cancer patients urine samples had increased levels of gram-positive bacteria, including Staphylococcus and Actinomyces. Further studies are needed to determine the role these organisms may play in breast cancer.

"If we can target specific pro-cancer bacteria, we may be able to make the environment less hospitable to cancer and enhance existing treatments, said a Dr. "Larger studies are needed but this work is a solid first step in better understanding the significant role of bacterial imbalances in breast cancer," said another Dr.

The study provides proof-of-principle evidence to support further research into the creation and utilisation of loaded nanoparticles targeting these pro-cancer bacteria.

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