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Healthcare as Complex, Entropic and Ethical
Published in Lesley Kuhn, Kieran Le Plastrier, Managing Complexity in Healthcare, 2022
Lesley Kuhn, Kieran Le Plastrier
Self-organisation accounts for how ‘global order emerges without plan, program or blue print’ (Stacey, 2012, p. 94), simply through local interactions between self-organising entities. This adaptive self-organising process can be thought of as ‘self-eco-organising’ (Morin, 2008), as it occurs within and in part constitutes a response to, an exterior environment that also self-organises: at the same time that the self-organising system detaches itself from the environment and distinguishes itself, by its autonomy and its individuality, it links itself ever more to the environment by increasing its openness and the exchange that accompanies all progress of complexity: it is self-eco-organising.(Morin, 2008, p. 19) Dynamism describes how living entities have the capacity to respond to, and influence others, and the environment within which they are situated (Gleick, 1990; Kuhn, 2009). Dynamism is not merely reacting. Entities can learn to change their self-organising responses. For example, at a cellular level, brain cells ‘constantly communicate electronically with one another and form and re-form new connections, moment by moment’ (Doidge, 2015, p. xvii).
Two-Pore Domain Potassium Channels in Pain and Depression
Published in Tian-Le Xu, Long-Jun Wu, Nonclassical Ion Channels in the Nervous System, 2021
At present, many reported studies on K2P channels in the nervous system focus on neurons of the central and peripheral nervous systems, including interneurons and sensory neurons (Cadaveira-Mosquera et al. 2012; La and Gebhart 2011; Leist et al. 2017; Weir et al. 2019). Compared with the number of neurons in the brain, the glia are much more abundant, constituting a greater component of brain cells (~90%), and astrocytes are one of the major types of glial cells (Kimelberg and Nedergaard 2010). It has been reported that some members of K2P, such as TWIK-1, TREK-1, and TASK-1, are expressed in astrocytes (Kindler et al. 2000; Seifert et al. 2009). Further functional studies have shown that K2P channels not only can mediate the passive conductance of astrocytes and improve the ability of astrocytes but also can contribute to the rapid release of glutamate (Hwang et al. 2014; Woo et al. 2012; Zhou et al. 2009).
Dementia
Published in Sally Robinson, Priorities for Health Promotion and Public Health, 2021
Pat Chung, Trish (Patricia) Vella-Burrows
Alzheimer’s disease was named after the clinician Alois Alzheimer in 1906. It is the most common cause of dementia, accounting for 60% to 70% of all cases across the world and 50% to 75% of cases in the UK (WHO, 2019a; NICE, 2019). It is caused by a build-up of amyloid plaques. These are types of proteins that clump together between the nerve cells in the brainan increase in neurofibrillary tangles, twisted fibres, in the braina reduction of neurotransmitters, the chemicals that transmit messages between the brain cells
Isocyanate induces cytotoxicity via activation of phosphorylated alpha synuclein protein, nitrosative stress, and apoptotic pathway in Parkinson’s Disease model-SHSY-5Y cells
Published in Neurological Research, 2023
NSMC exposure caused significant increases in nitrosative stress in SHSY-5Y cells. In Parkinson’s disease, oxidative stress via the production of nitric oxide has been documented [39]. Both studies in humans and in experimental models of parkinsonism give support to the contribution of NO in excitotoxicity, inflammation, oxidative stress, mitochondrial function impairment, DNA damage, and S nitrosylation of diverse proteins. The interaction of these mechanisms eventually leads to neuronal death [40–42]. The lower level of intercellular SOD, catalase, and GSH is an indicator of increased oxidative stress after NSMC exposure. These data suggest that oxidative stress and apoptosis are the early events induced by NSMC in the cell. Increased levels of ROS and decreased levels of antioxidant activity are associated with the degeneration of neuronal cells. Redox imbalance represents an imbalance between the levels of ROS and cellular antioxidant factors. Disturbed redox homeostasis leads to harmful effects on cells [43]. Our findings are supported by other studies. A recent study carried out by Karumuri et al. [44] showed that a low level of SOD and GSH activity was found after exposure to low doses of organophosphate pesticides. The study was conducted on mouse brain cells. Maran et al. [45] performed a study on four carbamate compounds and found that all four carbamates reduce the level of GSH in CHO-K1 cells. An experiment conducted by Han et al. [46] revealed that carbamate exposure decreases the SOD activity in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Protective effects of Forsythiae fructus and Cassiae semen water extract against memory deficits through the gut-microbiome-brain axis in an Alzheimer’s disease model
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2022
Da Sol Kim, Ting Zhang, Sunmin Park
Dementia is associated with brain cell death caused by cerebral ischaemia or Alzheimer’s disease (AD) (Kim et al. 2011; Park et al. 2013). Dementia from cerebral ischaemia occurs in middle-aged adults, and treatment targets include dyslipidemia and platelet aggregation to prevent ischaemia-related dementia (Kim et al. 2011). However, AD is a slowly progressive neurodegenerative disease characterised by amyloid-β accumulation and reductions in cholinergic neuron numbers caused by hippocampal cell death (Skovgard et al. 2018), eventually resulting in loss of cognitive function, disability, and dementia. The prevalence of AD is age-dependent, and the disease is common in those over age 70 (Hodson 2018). Most patients with dementia (75%) have AD, and although the cause of AD remains unknown, it is known to be associated with neuronal cell death caused by amyloid-β accumulation in the brain, including the hippocampus (Hodson 2018).
Effects of dechlorane plus on oxidative stress, inflammatory response, and cell apoptosis in Cyprinus carpio
Published in Drug and Chemical Toxicology, 2022
Baohua Li, Pengju Qi, Ying Qu, Beibei Wang, Jianjun Chen, Zhongjie Chang
To determine whether DP exposure damages the main target organs of the carp including the liver and the brain, changes in the histological patterns (cell abnormal rates) were examined. There were no obvious effects on the first day of exposure in any test group. The liver and brain cells were arranged in an orderly manner and their structure was intact. However, the tissue morphology (cell abnormal rate) had significantly (p < 0.05) changed by days 15 and 30 for the 60 μg L−1 and 120 μg L−1 DP exposure groups (Figure 1). The liver cells were visibly abnormal and presented with unclear contours, vacuolation, and nuclear lysis. The brain cells also presented with abnormalities including brain granule layers, unclear cell structures, disorderly arrangements, microthrombic RBCs, increased numbers of glial cells, and nodulation.