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Biomedical subjects

J Laugharne

Publications and source records attributed to J Laugharne.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Retinal function as a marker for cell membrane omega-3 fatty acid depletion in schizophrenia: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND: There is a growing body of evidence that abnormalities of the cell membrane, particularly depletion of n-3 essential fatty acids (EFA), are found in patients suffering from schizophrenia. These fatty acids particularly Docosohexaenoic acid (DHA) are found in particularly high concentrations in the photoreceptor cells of the retina and abnormalities of light sensitivity have been reported in patients with schizophrenia. Animal studies have demonstrated that reduced EFA levels are associated with changes in the electrophysiological response of the retina to light as measured by the electroretinogram (ERG). METHODS: We measured the ERG of 9 patients with schizophrenia and 9 age and sex matched control subjects. All but one of the patients was medicated. RESULTS: Schizophrenic subjects had significantly reduced a-wave amplitudes on the ERG when compared with control subjects and the a-wave amplitude was independent of the dose of antipsychotic agents being taken. The a-wave of the ERG is thought to reflect activity of the photoreceptor cells. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the hypothesis that patients with schizophrenia have abnormalities of photoreceptor function, which may be a result of reduced levels of n-3 EFA in the cell membrane.

Adaptation, Ocular↗
PubMed1998

Onset and recovery from panic disorder in the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area follow-up.

BACKGROUND: The objective is to estimate parameters of the natural history of panic disorder, including its prodrome, incidence, recovery and recurrence. METHOD: In 1981 the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study interviewed 3481 individuals probabilistically selected from the household population. During 1993-1996, 1920 of these individuals (73% of survivors) were interviewed again. Baseline and follow-up interviews included the National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule. During the follow-up, a subsample was assessed by psychiatrists using the World Health Organization Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry (SCAN). RESULTS: There were 35 new cases of panic disorder in 24,475 person years of exposure, yielding an annual incidence of 1.43 per 1000 per year. Data from the SCAN assessments suggest the incidence estimate is conservative. Incidence is greater in females and declines with age. About one-third of the new cases arise without agoraphobia, but about half have anxiety of some sort present for many years prior to meeting criteria for diagnosis. People with agoraphobia have less intense onsets but slower recoveries than those without agoraphobia. CONCLUSIONS: Panic is heterogeneous in its pattern of onset and recovery. Some of the heterogeneity is associated with the presence of other anxiety over a long period of the life.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Tardive dyskinesia, lipid peroxidation, and sustained amelioration with vitamin E treatment.

Plasma levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were measured as an indicator of lipid peroxidation, in 14 patients suffering from tardive dyskinesia (TD). There was a highly significant positive correlation between plasma TBARS (both basal and iron stimulated) and severity of TD. Patients were then treated for 1 month with the free radical scavenger vitamin E (1200 i.u. daily). Following vitamin E treatment, there was a clinically and statistically significant amelioration of TD, and this improvement was maintained at follow-up 7-13 months later. There was no consistent or significant change in plasma TBARS levels related to treatment with vitamin E.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Depleted red cell membrane essential fatty acids in drug-treated schizophrenic patients.

The fatty acid composition of red blood cell membranes from 23 drug-treated schizophrenic patients was measured and compared with a healthy control group. There were substantial depletions of fatty acids from the n6 and n3 series, particularly arachidonic and docosahexanoic acid. Significant negative correlations between depleted n6 fatty acids and plasma levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances suggests that depletion is caused by increased breakdown of these fatty acids rather than by impaired incorporation of fatty acids into membranes. Arachidonic and docosahexanoic acids appear to show a bimodal distribution. We propose that this may be a metabolic abnormality which is of aetiological importance in schizophrenia.

Adult↗