Most Recent PubMed Publications

Unique RNA Gene Expression Profile Is Seen in Chronic Non-Specific Low Back Pain

Saturday, January 10, 2026
Ann-Christin Sannes
Previous reports suggest that the progression from subacute to chronic non-specific low back pain (nsLBP) involves functional changes in both the nervous and immune systems. The purpose of the present study was to characterize the gene expression profiles of circulating immune cells that affect the interaction between these two systems when subacute nsLBP turns into chronic nsLBP. Participants aged 18-55 were included based on the presence or duration of LBP, with peripheral blood mononuclear...

The effects of marital status, partner drinking, and sex differences on the likelihood of remission from alcohol use disorder

Thursday, January 8, 2026
Christina Garasky
CONCLUSION: The findings suggest differences in marital status and relationship factors may indicate increased risk and challenges in sustaining remission and highlight potential caveats of marital status as a protective factor. This emphasizes the need to consider these factors in designing treatment strategies.

Characterization of CTNND2-related neurodevelopmental disease, phenotype-genotype spectrum and WNT dynamics in early neurogenesis

Thursday, January 8, 2026
Mansoureh Shahsavani
CONCLUSIONS: This study defines the clinical symptoms of CTNND2-related neurodevelopmental disorders, outlining a recognizable yet variable phenotype that overlaps with other forms of intellectual disability and autism. Our findings provide preliminary evidence of genotype-phenotype correlations and highlight δ-catenin's critical role in modulating WNT signaling during early neural development. These insights advance our understanding of CTNND2-associated disorders and support the importance of...

Spectrum of dominant Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease due to <em>SLC12A6</em> variants

Wednesday, January 7, 2026
Christopher J Record
CONCLUSIONS: Heterozygous variants in SLC12A6 can cause CMT of all clinical phenotypes, severity and age of onset, depending on the genotype. Such phenotypic diversity has not been described for any other CMT gene, and more work is needed to understand disease mechanisms to guide future therapeutic options.

A chromosome region linked to neurodevelopmental disorders influences locomotor behavior through sex-specific neural circuits

Saturday, January 3, 2026
Jaekyoon Kim
Biological sex shapes the manifestation and progression of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), however, the underlying mechanisms remains unclear. Hemideletion of the 16p11.2 region (16p11.2 del/+) is associated with NDDs, and 16p11.2 del/+ mice exhibit sex-specific, striatum-related phenotypes relevant to NDDs. In this study, using snRNA-seq, we identify cell type- and sex-specific transcriptomic changes in D1- and D2-spiny projection neurons (SPNs), with greater impact in males. Fiber...

Recommendations for the inclusion and study of sex and gender in research

Tuesday, December 30, 2025
David P Finn
Sex and gender are important variables in research, but they are inconsistently explored. The international PAINDIFF Network makes 13 recommendations for studying sex and gender as variables in pain research, which are applicable across the spectrum of biopsychosocial research. Five universal recommendations apply to the majority of research studies: (1) include males and females as standard practice, (2) account for sex in randomization or counterbalancing and testing order, (3) power for sex...

Machine learning helps predict early onset psychosis with serum protein biomarkers, neuropsychometry, and clinicodemographic data

Tuesday, December 30, 2025
Przemyslaw T Zakowicz
Early-onset psychosis presents diagnostic challenges due to overlapping clinical presentations and complex comorbidities, typically requiring specialized tertiary care with extensive neuroimaging, neuropsychometric testing, and multidisciplinary evaluation. This case-control study investigated whether machine learning could integrate multiple diagnostic modalities to create an objective diagnostic framework for early-onset psychosis. We recruited 45 patients with early-onset psychosis and 34...

Acute post-stroke cognitive test performance predicts one-year functional independence

Thursday, December 25, 2025
Alan Romanowski
CONCLUSIONS: Acute measures of cognition, including g, can predict functional independence 12 months after stroke. g and visuospatial ability measures were the most robust predictors.

A practical preprocessing pipeline for concurrent TMS-iEEG: Critical steps and methodological considerations

Thursday, December 25, 2025
Zhuoran Li
Transcranial magnetic stimulation combined with intracranial EEG (TMS-iEEG) has emerged as a powerful approach for probing the causal organization and dynamics of the human brain. Despite its promise, the presence of TMS-induced artifacts poses significant challenges for accurately characterizing and interpreting evoked neural responses. In this study, we present a practical preprocessing pipeline for single pulse TMS-iEEG data, incorporating key steps of re-referencing, filtering, artifact...

Risk factors associated to disability in primary headaches: a systematic review to inform future iterations of the Global Burden of Disease Study

Wednesday, December 24, 2025
Alberto Raggi
CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that it is possible to address headache-related disability by acting on a set of modifiable factors, with interventions tailored to the specific needs of patients or addressing the exposed populations as a whole. In particular, targeting dietary aspects and exercise is reasonably expected to promote weight loss, and might have an impact on the reduction in fasting plasma glucose and LDL cholesterol, ultimately improving patients’ overall health status and...

Nonexercise Equations for Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Older Adults using Body Roundness Index and Waist Circumference

Wednesday, December 24, 2025
Hayley Chappell
CONCLUSIONS: Equations using WC and BRI perform better for estimating CRF than equations using body mass index and resting heart rate in an inactive older adult population. These equations could be used to screen participants during study enrollment when specific estimates of CRF are desired for the study sample. However, these equations should be validated for use in clinical populations to stratify disease risk.

Potential Mechanisms of Influence Between Spiritual Practices and Cognitive Health: A Systematic Review and Conceptual Model

Wednesday, December 24, 2025
Katherine Carroll Britt
Background/Objectives: This systematic review summarizes the evidence regarding potential mechanisms underlying the relationship between spiritual practices and cognitive health in adults. The review was performed based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) checklist. Methods: An extensive search of six electronic databases (i.e., PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, Sociological Abstracts, ATLA, CINAHL) was conducted using keywords related to spiritual...

Reward-specific learning parameters change across normative adolescent development and are blunted in youth with high risk for depression

Monday, December 22, 2025
Holly Sullivan-Toole
CONCLUSIONS: The observed developmental changes in traditional and computational metrics are largely consistent with the optimization of learning from rewards across adolescence. Further, the observed developmental changes in specifically reward-related computational parameters are consistent with heightened adolescent reward system plasticity. Additionally, there was support for our hypothesis that maternal history of depression may exert a unique effect on learning from rewards specifically,...

Sex Specific Threshold Effects of Prenatal Stress on Striatal Microglia and Relevant Behaviors in Mice

Sunday, December 21, 2025
Sara V Maurer
CONCLUSIONS: High and immune stress affected adult striatal-dependent behavior, exceeding the threshold necessary for persistent impacts mostly in males, but all stress models affected embryonic microglia, suggesting a lower threshold for early neuroimmune impacts. Distinct severities and aspects of prenatal stress may therefore underlie different NDD-relevant outcomes.