Tag: 2/6/23

Categories : Immune System Neurodegenerative DiseasesTags : Leave a comment

Scientists Strengthen Evidence Linking Autoimmunity and Schizophrenia

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Links have been reported between schizophrenia and autoimmunity. In a study published in Brain Behavior and Immunity, Japanese researchers identified autoantibodies that target a ‘synaptic adhesion protein’, neurexin 1α, in a subset of patients with schizophrenia. When injected into mice, the autoantibodies caused many schizophrenia-related changes.

What is a synaptic protein, and why might it be linked to schizophrenia? Synaptic adhesion proteins are specialised proteins that bind to create physical connections between brain cells. These connections, called synapses, allow the cells to communicate by passing molecules back and forth. Both synapses and autoimmunity are known to be associated with schizophrenia, so the research team from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) decided to investigate autoantibodies that target synaptic proteins in patients with schizophrenia.

“In around 2% of our patient population, we identified autoantibodies against the synaptic protein neurexin 1α, which is expressed by one cell in the synapse and binds to proteins known as neuroligins on the other cell in the synapse,” says lead author of the study Hiroki Shiwaku. “Once we had identified these autoantibodies, we wanted to see if they were able to cause schizophrenia-related changes.”

To do this, the researchers isolated autoantibodies from some of the patients with schizophrenia and injected them into the cerebrospinal fluid of mice, so that the autoantibodies would travel into the brain. In these mice, the autoantibodies blocked neurexin 1α and neuroligin binding and altered some related synaptic properties. The administration of these autoantibodies also resulted in fewer synapses in the brains of mice and schizophrenia-related behaviours, such as reduced social behaviour toward unfamiliar mice and reduced cognitive function.

“Together, our results strongly suggest that autoantibodies against neurexin 1α can cause schizophrenia-related changes, at least in mice,” explains Hiroki Shiwaku. “These autoantibodies may therefore represent a therapeutic target for a subset of patients with schizophrenia.”

Schizophrenia has a wide variety of both symptoms and treatment responses, and many patients have symptoms that are resistant to currently available treatment options. Therefore, the identification of possible disease-causing autoantibodies is important for improving symptom control in patients with schizophrenia. It is hoped that the results of this investigation will allow patients with autoantibodies that target neurexin 1α – all of whom were resistant to antipsychotic treatment in the present study — to better control their symptoms in the future.

Source: Tokyo Medical and Dental University

Categories : COVID General InterestTags : Leave a comment

New Podcast Series Reflects on Childhood in South Africa Through and Beyond COVID-19

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Hush Naidoo Jade Photography on Unsplash

The ‘Phezulu: Looking Up’ podcast series launched today by UNICEF South Africa (https://www.UNICEF.org/SouthAfrica/) tells the stories of the impact of the COVID-19 years on children and young people and how, with the right support and opportunities, children and young people are determined to build a safer, fairer and better post pandemic South Africa.  

The eight-part series delves into issues such as mental wellbeing, disrupted education and access to child healthcare; including routine childhood immunisations, through the voices of children and young people and experts working to mitigate the impact.

“Children and adolescents were affected by every aspect of the COVID-19 pandemic and this podcast series tells their stories of resilience,” said Muriel Mafico, UNICEF South Africa Deputy Representative. “Importantly, the episodes also reflect on the response to share learnings, including how the roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccine saved countless lives and re-opened our world,”

The podcast series features expert analysis and voices, including contributions from academics, all of whom continue to play a critical role in the ongoing recovery for every child. The series not only highlights the indirect impact of COVID-19 on children and youth, but also how COVID-19 vaccinations changed the trajectory of the crisis by enabling children and adolescents to resume their childhoods.

The series will be available on a weekly basis, on all major podcast platforms from 23rd May 2023. Listeners can now subscribe and join the conversation. This production was made possible thanks to the generous support of the German Federal Foreign Office and other partners.

For more information, please see the following links:
https://www.UNICEF.org/southafrica/
https://apo-opa.info/42dIxHD

Categories : Metabolic Disorders PaediatricsTags : Leave a comment

Cholesterol may Explain The Link Between Childhood Obesity and Early Puberty

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

As childhood obesity increases the world, children are entering puberty earlier and earlier – particularly girls. According to a survey, the onset of puberty occurs on average three months earlier for girls in every decade since 1977. Early, or precocious, puberty can leave children with psychological and social problems, as well leading to shorter adult heights. Studies also suggest that early puberty can increase the risk of developing cancer, diabetes, depression and cardiovascular disease later on in life.

While a scientific explanation has been lacking, the link between childhood obesity and early puberty has long been apparent. The more body fat a child has, the greater their likelihood of beginning puberty at an earlier age. Now, researchers have found what may be part of the answer in Drosphila fruit flies, publishing their results in Current Biology.

“Cholesterol is a fat. So, if you’re overweight, your body fat harbours more cholesterol. And it turns out that higher cholesterol is a key to earlier maturation in the fruit fly, our model organism. Our results demonstrate that the amount of cholesterol in adipose tissue and in certain support cells in the brain affects the growth of fruit flies and controls when they reach maturity,” explains Professor Kim Rewitz, a lead author of the study.

He adds, “And because the systems in fruit flies and humans are remarkably similar, we believe that the same may apply to humans – ie, that cholesterol in adipose tissue may help explain the connection between childhood obesity and early puberty.”

Puberty at ‘critical weight’

Professor Rewitz and the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Biology research team tested their hypothesis by putting fruit fly larvae on a “fatty diet” of cholesterol-packed foods. The development of these larvae was compared with larvae on a normal diet.

“We observed that larvae on the cholesterol diet consistently grew faster and entered ‘puberty’ sooner. It turned out that the increase of cholesterol stored in the fruit flies’ body fat and support cells in the brain increases the release of growth hormones that cause the animals to grow faster. Growth and size is a signal to the body for when to trigger puberty,” says Kim Rewitz. 

The professor explains that in fruit flies, the signal to undergo maturation is when their weight and amount of body fat reach a certain point during development:

“In one way or another, animals need to know when they’re large enough to reach sexual maturity and be able to reproduce. Organisms have a checkpoint in their development that they must pass to enter puberty known as ‘Critical Weight’. This checkpoint is found in fruit flies and most likely in humans too. This means that both fruit fly larvae and children probably need to reach a certain body size and have a certain amount of fat stored to enter puberty. What we’ve found is that the amount of cholesterol stored in body fat plays an important role in this process.

“We see that fruit flies have a mechanism that senses how much cholesterol is stored in their body fat and support cells in the brain. At a certain point, the system then sends a signal to the brain centres that triggers maturation by producing steroid hormones. In humans, these correspond to testosterone and oestrogen.”

However, it also means that if the amount of stored cholesterol increases, the organism can actually fail to estimate its overall size accurately, so that it hits the critical weight checkpoint earlier than it normally would:

“Because overweight children have more body fat, they will probably also have stored more cholesterol at an earlier point in their development. So, if our assumption that the same mechanism exists in humans holds true, it could help to explain early puberty in obese children,” says the researcher.

Cholesterol may influence cancer as well

Professor Rewitz concludes that with part of the puzzle in hand, scientists can search for more clues and treatment. In the meantime, lifestyle changes remain the best solution for childhood obesity.

Professor Rewitz and his research colleagues have now started to look deeper into the significance of the cholesterol mechanism for cancer development. Their research also shows that, via the same mechanism, cholesterol can activate cell growth that leads to cancer.

Source: University of Copenhagen