Faculty Bibliography

Published 1/16/2002. The representation in multiple media of the expressions of a creative senior citizen with mood and personality disorders is valuable for clinical, research, and teaching purposes. The purpose of this article was to document the occurrence of likely bipolar II and histrionic personality disorders in a creative senior citizen utilizing oral and written testimony and drawings by the subject herself. The author, a close friend of the subject during her final two decades, examined posthumously her memoirs, notes, letters, drawings, photographs, and related materials to produce a psychological record of her life illustrating expressions of sadness, loss, originality, excessive emotionality, and attention seeking. Oral monologues, written notes, and drawings by the subject document the presence of likely bipolar II and histrionic personality disorders in an artistic senior citizen. The occurrence of likely bipolar II and histrionic personality disorders in a senior citizen is confirmed by means of the creative works of the subject in multiple media. This article demonstrates the value of the posthumous synthesis of the extant works of individuals exploiting the technical capabilities of a publication on the Internet to reproduce sounds and images.

The beneficial and adverse effects of pets on people with special mental and physical conditions merit inclusion in psychological evaluations and treatments

OBJECTIVE: Dopaminergic abnormalities in frontal-subcortical circuits have been hypothesized as the underlying pathophysiologic mechanism in Tourette's syndrome. The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that presynaptic dopamine release from the striatum is abnormal in adults with Tourette's syndrome. METHOD: Seven adults with Tourette's syndrome and five age-matched comparison subjects each received two positron emission tomography (PET) scans with high specific activity [11C]raclopride. The first scan followed an intravenous injection of saline; the second followed an intravenous injection of amphetamine. The relative dopamine release was estimated as the percentage difference in binding potential between the postsaline and postamphetamine scans. RESULTS: Binding potential determined after the initial [11C]raclopride scan did not significantly differ between Tourette's syndrome and comparison subjects. After amphetamine challenge, the mean value of intrasynaptic dopamine in the putamen (as determined by true equilibrium bolus estimation) increased by 21% in the subjects with Tourette's syndrome and did not change in the comparison subjects; the mean values increased by 16.9% and decreased by 1.8%, respectively, when measured by the constrained method. Dopamine release in the caudate region was not significantly different in the Tourette's syndrome and comparison subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Greater putamen dopamine release was seen in adults with Tourette's syndrome than in comparison subjects after a pharmacologic challenge with amphetamine. These results suggest that the underlying pathobiology in Tourette's syndrome is a phasic dysfunction of dopamine transmission

Reduction of alpha 4beta 2 nAChRs is implicated in Alzheimer (AD) cognitive decline. Besides their AChE properties, galantamine (GAL) and physostigmine (Phys) bind to nAChR sites distinct from the ACh-binding site and may allosterically potentiate nACh agonist binding (APL).We developed (S)-5 Iodo 1 2 3I-3-(2-azetidinylmethoxy) pyridine (5-IA) and have previously applied it to 10 humans with regional nAChR quantification by math modeling. Gal and Phys effects on 5-IA nAChR binding were examined with chronic dosing in mice. Isotopic 1 1CGal was synthesized (333GBq/mumole yield 10%) following 1 1C methylation, DMS at 80degreeC 5 minutes and studied in mice (5-60 min) and baboons (90 min.). 7 days of GAL (0.25 and 1 mg/kg s.c. per day) showed upregulation of 1 2 5I 5-IA binding in mouse cortex (cx) and hippocampus (p <0.05), and in thalamus (T) and superior colliculus (SC) (trend). 2 week GAL in mice of 0.3, 3 and 5 mg/kg/d sc and Phys, 0.5 mg/kg/d IP were carried out. Sacrifice on day 15, 30 min. pi on day 15 showed significant elevation of binding with 18F A-85380 and 5-IA in the Phys mice in T, occipital, parietal (p<0.05). 1 1CGal mice studies at high (1 mug/kg)/low specific activity (1 mg/kg) showed 15% blockade (T and SC at 30 min). Dynamic baboon PET (0.02 mug/kg) showed high brain uptake of 1 1CGal apprx4% ID/g at 5 min p.i.) and rapid dissociation (T1/2apprx25 min), with frontal >T>striatum>cerebellum. A 1-tissue compartment model was preferred over a 2-tissue one. Distribution volume ranged 3.53-2.51 ml/ml (S>T) cx>pons>T>CB). Imaging of nAChR elucidates mechanism and dosing of APLs for AD treatment