Delusional idea disorders are a group of syndromes whose main or unique characteristic is the presence of consolidated delusional ideas that usually have a chronic character and do not fit into other diagnoses such as schizophrenia, affective disorder or other organic diseases. On the other hand, Charles Bonnet syndrome is an organ hallucinosis in whose context visual hallucinations may appear in patients with a visual deficit. Historically, it has been considered that the presence of another psychiatric condition is an exclusion criterion for the diagnosis of Charles Bonnet syndrome, although the presence of similar etiological and maintenance factors means that this situation of dignous exclusion must be reconsidered.

The objective of the present communication is to study the current state of the topics “delusional disorder” and “Charles Bonnet syndrome”. Another objective is to reconsider that the presence of previous or concurrent psychiatric pathology is an exclusion criterion for the diagnosis of Charles Bonnet syndrome..

A bibliographic review on “delusional ideas disorder” and “Charles Bonnet syndrome” has been carried out, as well as a discussion on the diagnostic and exclusion criteria, based on the etiopathogenic and maintenance factors.

Both in “delusional ideas disorder” and in “charles bonnet syndrome” advanced age, social isolation and deficiencies in sense organs constitute etiological factors that facilitate the appearance of these syndromes and make their treatment difficult.

Due to this, we consider that the appearance of another previous or present psychiatric illness should not be an exclusion criterion, both can appear in the same patient.

No significant relationships.

Cannabis is among the most widely used substances in the world. it is associated with several mental health problems.

To assess self-esteem among a group of young Tunisian users of cannabis.

The total study sample was composed of 137 participants, who took part of a transversal descriptive study during two months (January and February 2020).

In our study population, the cannabis consumers were young adults aged between 18 and 35 years old, with a male predominance of 71%. Among those users, 65.9% were single and 29.7% dropped out of school or experienced academic failure. On a socio-economic level, we concluded to a rate of 5.8% (lower class), 60.9% (middle class) and 33.3% (upper class). Besides, 40.8% were employed. In total, 23.2% had a psychiatric history. Furthermore, the use of other substances was also prominent and frequent as follows: alcohol 72.5%, tobacco 74.6%, ecstasy 41.3% and 25.4% cocaine. The use of cannabis was considered as a means of indulgence and pleasure for 66.7%, as an anxiolytic for 26.8% and as a sedative for 23.9%. Self-esteem, among those cannabis users, was very low in 20% of cases, low in 38% of cases, medium in 15% of cases and high in 25% of cases.

These results lead us to question the relation between cannabis and self-esteem. The question that is evolved about the use of cannabis is the following: Is it used as a remedy or is it the cause of self-esteem deficiency?

No significant relationships.

COVID-19 is a multifaceted disease establishing differences in terms of its occurrence, manner of clinical presentation and disease predilection. While mental health becomes one of the less analyzed aspects, addressing anxiety and depression allows clinicians to provide more patient-centered care in this pandemic era.

This study determined the prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms among patients admitted for at least 14 days at COVID wards of East Avenue Medical using the validated Filipino version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-P), and described the socioeconomic, psychosocial, clinical factors affecting its development among COVID-19 patients.

232 patients admitted at COVID ward of East Avenue Medical Center for at least 14 days were included in the study. Participants were interviewed using the validated Filipino version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Score (HADS-P) questionnaire. STATA 13.1 was used for data analysis at 95% confidence interval

Anxiety was significantly correlated with hypertension (p= 0.044), diabetes (p= 0.008), employment status (p= 0.038), and with patients who had family members with COVID- 19 (p= 0.033). Depressive symptoms occurred more likely in Chronic Kidney Disease and in COVID-19 suspects. Most participants had a normal HADS-P anxiety (6) and depression (4) median scores. Mild symptoms of anxiety (n=55) and depression (n=30) were noted among participants. The severity of COVID-19 classification was a statistically significant variable for developing anxiety symptoms.

Identifying predictors of developing anxiety and depressive symptoms enables us to develop better strategies in addressing mental health as one of the important aspects of patient management during this pandemic.

No significant relationships.

The prevalence of depressive disorders in patients with schizophrenia is estimated at 25%. Nevertheless, depressive symptoms occurring during the acute decompensation of schizophrenia have rarely been studied.

The aim of our study was to assess depressive symptoms in hospitalized patients suffering from schizophrenia.

We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study, including 30 schizophrenic patients, hospitalized in the psychiatry B “department of the Hedi Chaker university hospital in Sfax. The assessment of clinical severity of schizophrenia was performed by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), that of depressive symptoms by the “Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia” (CDSS).

The mean age of patients was 41.2. Most of patients were male (86.7%) and unemployed (83.3%). Only 13.3% of them were married. Patients were hospitalized 8.83 times in average. A personal history of suicide attempts was found in 16.70% of cases. The mean score in the CDSS scale was 5.12. According to the CDSS score, a depressive state was diagnosed in 36.7% % of patients. Depression was associated with significantly more frequent history of suicide attempts (p=0.028), as well as significantly higher scores in the positive dimension of the PANSS (p=0.03).

Our results show that depressive symptoms are common during the acute decompensation phase of schizophrenia. They are associated with impaired functioning of patients, as well as a higher risk of suicide. Screening for depressive symptoms in patients hospitalized for schizophrenia is therefore essential in order to ensure better management.

No significant relationships.

Studies regarding environmental contributions on callous-unemotional (CU) traits in children have informed about the protective role of positive parenting. However, it has not been explored whether findings from these studies -mostly conducted in High-Income Countries- can be generalised to Low-Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). Exposure to community violence is common in LMICs and is associated with emotional and behavioural problems in children. Therefore, it may represent an environmental risk factor for CU traits.

This prospective study explores whether positive parenting has a protective role in relation to CU traits in young Colombian children whose families have been exposed to community violence.

We assessed 235 families with children at age 3.5 years, from three contrasting regions of Colombia, using observations of mother-child interactions and maternal reports of community violence at ages 3.5 and 5.0 years.

Hierarchical multiple linear regression models indicated that maternal positivity at 3.5 years was associated with lower CU traits at age 5.0 years only in children of families exposed to community violence (interaction term p= .001). In the exposed group maternal positivity explained 10% of the variance (β= -.34, p= .001) with low positivity associated with elevated CU traits and high positivity with low CU traits. Maternal praise was not associated with CU traits. However, maternal negativity during play was associated with elevated CU traits as a main effect.

Based on these findings, whether or not exposure to community violence is associated with elevated CU traits depends on maternal positivity, with low positivity creating vulnerability, and high positivity, resilience.

No significant relationships.

Although antipsychotics are first-line treatments for schizophrenia, benzodiazepines (BZDs) are often used as concomitant medications in acutely exacerbated patients due to their anxiolytic and sedative effects. Cariprazine (CAR), a D3-preferring dopamine D2/D3 partial agonist antipsychotic, has been examined in many clinical studies for the treatment of acute schizophrenia, with and without benzodiazepines.

To delineate the effects of benzodiazepine-use during cariprazine treatment in acute schizophrenia.

Pooled data of cariprazine-treated (1.5-6mg/day) and placebo-treated patients from four short-term, randomised, double-blind trials (NCT00404573, NCT01104766, NCT01104779, NCT00694707) were analysed. Baseline characteristics (age, duration of illness) and efficacy outcome parameters (Total and Hostility Factor Score of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale [PANSS]) were compared in patients receiving benzodiazepines (for more ≥3 consecutive days) and not receiving benzodiazepines (<3 consecutive days).

Altogether, 36.7% and 40.7% of the CAR-treated and PBO-treated patients required BZDs. BZD-taking was associated with a higher age in both the CAR-treated (p=0.0002) and PBO-treated (p<0.0001) patients, and with longer illness-duration in both treatment groups (p<0.0001). PANSS Total Score at baseline was similar for BZD users and non-users (CAR: LS Mean=96.36 and 96.27; PBO: LS Mean=95.55 and 96.66). Change from baseline in the PANSS Total Score was greater for patients who did not use BZD vs those who did (CAR: LS Mean= -23.8 vs LS Mean 17.2, p<0.0001; PBO: LS Mean= -14.0 vs LS Mean 12.9, p=0.5776).

These findings may suggest that requiring benzodiazepines is a potential indicator of longer illness duration and poorer response in acute schizophrenia.

I am an employee of Gedeon Richter Plc.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a psychiatric condition in which children suffer from inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and or impulsivity. ADHD patients frequently present comorbid psychiatric disorders: in adults, the most common are depression, substance-related disorders, anxiety, and eating disorders. Children and adolescents present conduct disorders, learning disorders, anxiety and depression. Since ADHD and its psychiatric comorbidities share similarities, a partial overlap of their pathophysiological mechanisms has been suggested. ADHD, can be treated with lisdexamfetamine (LDX), a prodrug indicated by the FDA as treatment for binge eating disorder (BED) and ADHD.

To evaluate, through a systems biology-based in silico method, the efficacy of LDX as first-line ADHD treatment to improve ADHD psychiatric comorbidities. Furthermore, we explored the molecular mechanisms behind LDX’s action.

We used the systems biology- and artificial intelligence-based Therapeutic Performance Mapping System (TPMS) technology to characterise and model ADHD comorbidities. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) algorithms were used to identify specific relationships between protein sets. Finally, we modelled the mechanisms of LDX for the most relevant comorbidities by using sampling methods and comorbidity-specific virtual patients in each case.

This study predicts a strong relationship between LDX’s targets and proteins involved in BED and depression (Fig 1). Our results could be explained not only by LDX role in neurotransmitter regulation, but also by modulation of neuroplasticity (BDNF/NTRK2, GSK3), neuroinflammation (interleukins, inflammasome), oxidative stress (NOS2, SOD), and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis (CRH, CRHR1).

These findings could be used in pre-clinical and clinical future investigations to assess optimal treatment for ADHD patients with psychiatric comorbidities.

JRGC: speaker for Takeda and Shire, research funding from Shire and Lumbeck, collaborations with Laboratoires Servier JQ: speaker or scientific advisor for Takeda, Janssen, Rubio. Investigation funding: Instituto de Salud Carlos III. PR, CM, TPR: full-ti

We present the case of a 65-year-old woman who was prescribed levodopa by the Neurology department due to motor symptoms that were not clearly suggestive of a diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Before that, the patient had never showed any hallucinations or delusions. After years of increasing doses of levodopa, the diagnosis of PD was withdrawn. However, during the treatment the patient developed severe psychosis with severe impairment of social functioning. Levodopa is the most effective treatment for motor symptoms in PD. However, it might involve difficulties in dose-control and may present with deletereous complications and adverse effects.

To analyse the incidence of pharmacological psychotic symptoms after levodopa treatment.

A case report is presented alongside a review of the available literature regarding psychotic symptoms in patients treated with levodopa.

Hallucinations and delusions are prevalent symptoms of PD. Nonetheless, they could also be potential side-effects of levodopa treatment. When psychotic symptoms occur, they are commonly attributed to the natural course of the disease. Available evidence does not provide with clear guidelines to distinguish the iatrogenic syndrome from the one caused by the disease itself. Our patient, whose PD diagnosis was dismissed, presented extreme psychotic symptoms which disappeared after the discontinuation of levodopa treatment.

Levodopa is an effective treatment with important risks which must not be overlooked. Adverse effects of the drug could have been minimized by making an accurate differential diagnosis of PD. Individualized benefit-risk balance previous to prescription and a close follow-up should be standardized.

No significant relationships.

We present the case of a 54-year-old man diagnosed with mixed histrionic / obssesive personality disorder admitted in a long-stay hospital. Symptoms began at 40 years of age, predominantly anxiety and agoraphobia alongside somatic complaints. During his admission, the symptoms markedly fluctuated. The patient alternated periods in which he presented confusion with others of irritability, disinhibition, and stereotyped movements. Moreover the patient spent long periods of time in bed with little or no communication with other patients or staff.

The different pharmacological approaches which were carried out and their consequences are analyzed.

It is a common practice to increase the number of prescribed drugs or their doses when symptoms worsen. The result is polymedication and higher doses above maximum levels in the technical sheet. Reducing medication is rarely considered as a strategy.

A case report is presented alongside a review of the relevant literature regarding different long-term pharmacological treatments and their side effects.

The suspension of the antipsychotic treatment which had been administered for years represented a significant improvement. Withdrawal of Olanzapine resulted in a significant improvement.

It is important to review the prescription of each medication in time, as well as to consider their possible side effects.

No significant relationships.

Autism is a lifelong complex neurodevelopmental condition that affects brain development and behaviour with significant consequences for everyday life (WHO, 2018). Despite its personal, familial and societal impact, there is still a European-wide lack of harmonised guidelines about the support needed from early stages, the most sensitive time to gain positive future outcomes (Berajamo-Martin et al, 2019).

The objectives were: 1. To analyse autistic children care pathway and patient/carer journey in three European countries: Italy, Spain and U.K. 2. To propose policy recommendations on how to improve this pathway.

To identify major barriers and treatment gaps, we conducted a rapid literature review of the care pathway in Europe and a survey aimed at parents or carers of autistic children ages 0 to 18 living in the three countries. The survey gathered information on screening, diagnosis, accessibility and support received before, during and after diagnosis. Members of the working group met to discuss results and propose policy recommendations.

1. Current care pathway analysis showed the following treatment gaps: Long waiting time from first concerns until screening visit and confirmed diagnosis. Delayed or no access to intervention once diagnosis has been confirmed. Overall limited information about autism and how to access early detection services. Overall deficient support to families. 2. Please see Box 1 for our proposed policy recommendations.

Box 1. Policy recommendations

Our findings and recommendations will inform policy harmonisation in Europe to shorten long waiting times, diagnosis process and intervention, and therefore, improve autistic people and their families’ journey experience and quality of life.

No significant relationships.

Traditional cultural healers -- their methods and their results -- are often invisible to conventional medical practitioners. When confronted with a result that does not make sense, we often ignore it.

We wanted to understand the process that happened between people and traditional cultural healers when these people experienced substantial improvement in mental health without psychiatric treatment.

We collected 56 case stories from people who consulted traditional cultural healers instead of conventional medical practitioners for serious mental health problems. We confirmed the stories with family members and interviewed the healers as well. We used constructivist grounded theory to explore commonalities in the stories from the clients’ points of view and from the healers’ perspectives. The context is indigenous people in North America.

Patients had a range of diagnoses, including psychotic disorders (12), bipolar disorder (28), and evere unipolar depression (16). Co-morbid anxiety disorders were common (22). Improvement in mental health was associated with participation in ceremonies within a community, building relationships with members of that community, engaging in prescribed daily practices endorsed by that community, with a resulting report of feeling increases in social and spiritual connectedness. The healers believed strongly that the embeddedness in community contributed to the results and that spirit beings played important roles in helping people feel better. The use of psychiatric medications was minimal.

Psychiatry can acknowledge that people can have substantial improvements in mental health when working with traditional cultural healers outside of conventional settings. Studying these settings and results can improve conventional practice.

No significant relationships.

Suicide-loss survivors (SLSs) are recognized as an at-risk population for several psychiatric complications, including complicated grief (CG) and suicide ideation (SI). However, limited data are available concerning the contribution of CG to SI among suicide survivors. Moreover, knowledge about possible psychological processes which may increase SI levels following CG is rare.

In this study, we aim to examine the role of two important emotion regulation variables––mentalization deficits and entrapment––as possible moderators of the association between CG and SI in the aftermath of suicide loss.

Participants were 152 suicide-loss survivors, aged 18-70, who completed questionnaires tapping CG, SI, mentalization deficits, and entrapment.

The findings revealed SI to have high and positive associations with CG, entrapment, and metallization deficits. Regression analysis showed mentalization deficits and entrapment contributing to SI beyond the contribution of CG. Notably, a significant interaction was found, indicating that CG and SI became more strongly associated at higher levels of mentalization deficits.

The study’s findings highlight the critical link between complicated grief and suicide ideation among SLSs and the role of metallization deficits as a possible facilitator of this link. Practical implications relating to suicide risk among SLSs are discussed, as well as focused clinical recommendations. The importance of mentalization-based interventions for decreasing SI levels in the aftermath of suicide loss is highlighted.

No significant relationships.

People with schizophrenia could be more substantially influenced by the emotional stress brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in relapses or worsening of an already existing mental health condition because of the high susceptibility to stress.

This study aimed to assess the presence of relapse and its risk factors among patients with schizophrenia during the era of COVID 19 pandemic.

This study included 90 adults who met DSM-5 criteria for schizophrenia and were diagnosed by (SCID-I) Arabic version and who are following up at the outpatient psychiatric clinic, Zagazig University Hospital, Egypt, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) measuring severity of symptoms, Compliance Rating Scale (CRS) and World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0). scales were conducted on those patients before COVID-19 pandemic from January to April 2019 and repeated on September to November 2020 during COVID 19 pandemic to compare clinical parameters between those two periods as to detect any deterioration in their clinical state.

The mean score of compliance rating scale (CRS) was decreased after COVID-19 pandemic compared to before COVID 19 (P<0.001).The mean score of PANSS scale positive subscale (P) had increased after COVID-19 pandemic compared to before COVID 19 (P<0.001).

There was a deterioration of the clinical state of schizophrenic patients during COVID-19 pandemic especially the positive symptoms and following up the news about COVID-19 regularly, decreased level of family support, lower level of compliance with treatment, and having a family member with COVID-19 infection or death were the risk factors for relapse.

No significant relationships.

Eating disorders (EDs) constitute serious mental illnesses with high morbidity, lifetime mortality and associated stigma due to the label of mental illness. The sparse research assessing adolescents’ knowledge of and attitudes towards EDs highlights their low understanding of these conditions.

The proposed study aims to bridge this gap by investigating adolescents’ knowledge of and attitudes towards EDs as this will inform young people’s engagement with ED services.

Participants aged 12-18 will be randomly assigned a vignette depicting either a male or female 15-year-old displaying symptoms of anorexia nervosa (AN) or binge eating disorder (BED). They will be asked to select what they believe the condition described in the vignette is from a pre-determined list. They will then be informed of the correct diagnosis before completing a series of scales designed to assess their attitudes towards EDs. Participants’ own potentially disordered eating behaviours will be assessed using the ED risk composite (EDRC) subscale from the EDI-3.

It is expected that BED will be less likely to be correctly identified compared to AN, eliciting more stigma and male vignette subjects will be seen more negatively than female vignette subjects. Also, it is expected that participants with higher EDRC scores will have more knowledge of and less negative attitudes towards EDs than those with lower EDRC scores.

This study will highlight the need for education around EDs targeted at adolescents to increase their knowledge and awareness, providing them with factual information ought to reduce stigma and negative attitudes and beliefs about EDs.

No significant relationships.

Many internationally studies, in the last two decades, found problematic internet use associated with a variety of psychosocial problems, but in Portugal this is a recent research question specially in adults.

To explore the relationship between problematic Internet use, emotional regulation and self-esteem.

138 Portuguese subjects (77.5% females), with a mean age of 27.76 years old (SD = 8.98, range: 18-58) filled in the Portuguese versions of the Generalized Problematic Internet Use Scale-2, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale.

Negative consequences subscale of generalized problematic internet use was positively correlated with all the emotional regulation difficulties subscales and negatively with Self-Esteem, and positively with daily hours of internet usage. A similar result was found for Self-Deficient Regulation subscale, except for Clarity subscale. Mood Regulation was correlated with Strategies, Goals and Self-Esteem. Males showed higher levels of Negative Consequences. Age and age onset of Internet use were negatively correlated with Mood Regulation, Self-Deficient Regulation and Negative Consequences. A statistically significant difference in Mood Regulation, Self-Deficient Regulation and Negative Consequences in marital status levels, and in professional situation, with higher median scores in divorced and single without a relationship and in student subjects; no significant differences were found in educational level.

Generalized problematic Internet use, especially their Negative Consequences, is associated with higher emotional dysregulation, low self-esteem, lower age and lower age of Internet onset, being divorced or single without a relationship and being student, and it is more prevalent in males.

No significant relationships.

Acute Confusional Syndrome (ACS) is the most common neuropsychiatric complication in COVID-19 infection. Its management is still a challenge because the data and recommendations based on the evidence are limited.

To describe the differential characteristics in the management of ACS in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia compared to ACS secondary to other causes.

We present a descriptive study that is has been carried out in 62 patients with ACS (26 of them diagnosed with COVID 19 pneumonia), who have required assessment by the liaison psychiatry service of Hospital del Mar between February and April, 2020. The sample was divided in 2 groups (with and without COVID 19 pneumonia). Chi square and Fisher’s tests were used to comparisons.

Dexmetomidine (26 vs 0) and olanzapine (13 vs 3) were significantly more frequently used in COVID-19 patients (p< 0 001). A greater number of different antipsychotic drugs were used in COVID 19 patients (2.40± 1 323 number of drugs), (p<0.0001). Further neuroimaging tests were requested in COVID 19 patients and they received less family support (4) compared to non COVID-19 (22), (p<0.005).

ACS associated with COVID-19 pneumonia in the patients in our sample is more difficult to manage than ACS associated with other pathologies, similar to which described in other series. It is associated with a longer duration of confusional symptoms and difficulties for control it.

No significant relationships.

Clinical studies demonstrated the efficacy of rTMS treatment in major depressive disorder. However, the results of meta-analyses are contradictory due to the heterogeneity of the included studies.

The aim was to analyse the effectiveness of rTMS for treatment-resistant major depression.

A systematic literature review of English-language articles published in the last 10 years was performed on PubMed and Scopus databases according to PRISMA guideline principles. To assess the effects of rTMS on response and remission rates, random-effects model and inverse variance method were used.

23 randomized double-blind sham-controlled studies met the inclusion criteria for quantitative analysis for response (n= 1020 patients) and 12 studies for remission (n= 846 patients). The relative risk for response and remission were 2.19 (95% CI: 1.68-2,86, p=0.000 n=912) and 2.65 (95% CI: 1.32-5,31, p=0.002, n=603), respectively using rTMS as add on treatment (in patients after two antidepressant treatment failures) compared to standard pharmacotherapy. I2analysis showed no considerable heterogeneity in the combined effect sizes neither for remission studies (I2=23.36%) nor for response studies (I2=0.00%).

Transcranial magnetic stimulation became an evidence-based, effective treatment for treatment-resistant major depressive disorder, either as a monotherapy or as an augmentation of pharmacotherapy. However, because of the lack of standardized protocol, a substantial methodological heterogeneity exists. According to our results, rTMS was significantly more effective than sham rTMS in both response and remission outcomes, which is consistent with previous meta-analyses, but the effect size was a bit smaller than what was reported previously.

No significant relationships.

Nowadays, relapses are typical in patients with schizophrenia and may have serious implications due to most of them are caused by a lack of adherence to treatment.Therefore, numerous long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAI) have been developed as aripiprazole depot who need a proper oral supplementation. Since November 2020, FDA approved a new treatment indication with a double injection start and a single dose of 20mg of oral aripiprazole, with the aim of avoiding oral supplementation during the next 14 days.

The purpose of our study is to expose our experience with the new double injection start with aripiprazole LAI, regarding the rehospitalization rate.

A prospective study (n=17 patients) has been developed between November 2020 and October 2021 with the purpose of studying the rehospitalization and antipsychotic adherence after the new guideline of aripiprazole

After an 11-month-follow-up, it is noticed a 65% non-rehospitalization rate and a 76% proper treatment persistence rate. The 94% did not present any kind of side effects, only one patient had a case report of bullous pemphigoid. Regarding the concomitant use of other antipsychotics, 82% of the patients remained in monotherapia. The average stay time was shortened (11 days) regarding the standard dose (14 days).

The new LAI regimen is well tolerated in our patients obtaining a high treatment persistence after several months of hospital discharge. It was already possible to shorten the time of rehospitalization, not having to add oral aripiprazole for 14 days. Most patients were discharged are on antipsychotic monotherapy and have not been rehospitalized in the short term.

No significant relationships.

Depression is characterized by a pattern of specific changes in the network organization of brain functioning.

We researched a graph structure specificity in a depressive student sample by analyzing resting-state EEG. All possible combinations of graph metrics, frequency bands, and sensors/sources levels of networks were examined.

We recorded resting-state EEG in fourteen participants with high Beck Depression Inventory score (24.4 ± 9.7; 20.4 ± 1.5 y.o.; 14 females; 1 left-handed) and fourteen participants with a low score (6.8 ± 3.7; 21.3 ± 2.0 y.o.; 8 females; 1 left-handed). We applied weighted phase-lag index (wPLI) to construct functional networks at sensors and sources levels and computed characteristic path length (CPL), clustering coefficient (CC), index of modularity (Q), small-world index (SWI) in 4-8, 8-13, 13-30, and 4-30 Hz frequency bands. We used Mann-Whitney U-test (p < 0.05) to investigate between-group differences in the graph metrics.

The depressive sample was characterized by increased CC and Q in the 4-30 Hz band networks and decreased CPL in the beta-band network (sensors-level for CPL and CC, and sources-level for Q).

Elevated CC and Q may relate to an increase of intramodular connectivity, and CPL reduction reflects the global connectivity increasing. We hypothesize that intramodular hyperconnectivity could explain the rise of global functional connectivity in participants with depressive symptoms. Funding: This research has been supported by the Interdisciplinary Scientific and Educational School of Lomonosov Moscow State University ‘Brain, Cognitive Systems, Artificial Intelligence’.

No significant relationships.

Ovocystatin has beneficial properties for cognitive function in young rats and might prevents aging-related cognitive impairment in older animals, as well as reduces memory decline in APP/PS1 mice model.

Our study aimed at assessing the impact of ovocystatin on microglia activation and neurogenesis.

Immunoactivation: Mouse wild type microglia were stimulated with ovocystatin at dose of 100 micrograms/ml. The effect of ovocystatin on nitric oxide production and interleukin 1 beta secretion were determined. Neurogenesis: Primary rat hippocampal neurons of H19-7 cell line was used. The impact of ovocystatin on proliferation, nitric oxide production, and expression of markers of neurogenesis: microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2, isoforms A/B and C/D) and Synapsin 1, were determined.

It was shown that ovocystatin does not stimulate microglial cells to produce inflammatory mediators. Whereas, no toxic effect of ovocystatin (1-100 ug/ml) on H19-7 cells viability, and dose-dependent down-regulation of proliferation were demonstrated. It was also shown that in primary hippocampal neurons of H19-7 cells incubated with ovocystatin (100 micrograms/ml), the expression level of MAP2 C/D (75kDa) - characteristic form of immature neurons is unchanged. However, the increased expression of MAP2 A/B protein (280 kDa) – characteristic for mature neurons was observed after 6 and 24h incubation with ovocystatin. Relatively to MAP2 A/B, increased expression of synapsin 1 was observed.

The ovocystatin might be a potential activator of molecular mechanisms in primary hippocampal neurons, participating in regulation of neurogenesis. Nevertheless, further studies are needed.

No significant relationships.