Commentary: Protect, prevent, prolong…

Proteasome inhibitors prevent cell death and prolong survival of mice challenged by Shiga toxin

Shiga toxin (Stx) causes fatal systemic complications. Stx induces apoptosis, but the mechanism of which is unclear. We report that Stx induced rapid reduction of short-lived anti-apoptotic proteins followed by activation of caspase 9 and the progression of apoptosis. Proteasome inhibitors prevented the reduction of anti-apoptotic proteins, and inhibited caspase activation and apoptosis, sugges...

Commentary: so the pendulum swings--making sense of the duty to protect.

Psychiatry has been struggling for nearly 40 years to make sense of the duty to protect. The great jurisdictional disparity as to what constitutes the duty has been a significant contributing factor. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) released the Model Statute in 1987 to establish a framework to guide legislators and courts toward consensus, to some effect. In response to case law and ...

Editorial Commentary Diet and Exercise: Blood Pressure and Cognition To Protect and Serve

Overweight and hypertension are major risk factors for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality1,2; both are associated with decline in cognitive performance.3,4 We know that exercise is associated with modest reductions in blood pressure (BP) and that weight loss results in even larger, clinically important reductions in BP.5 What we did not know, before a report6 in this issue of Hypertension, ...

Commentary: Nix restores mitophagy and mitochondrial function to protect against PINK1/Parkin-related Parkinson's disease

Estrogens protect pancreatic beta-cells from apoptosis and prevent insulin-deficient diabetes mellitus in mice.

In diabetes, the death of insulin-producing beta-cells by apoptosis leads to insulin deficiency. The lower prevalence of diabetes in females suggests that female sex steroids protect from beta-cell injury. Consistent with this hypothesis, 17beta-estradiol (estradiol) manifests antidiabetic actions in humans and rodents. In addition, estradiol has antiapoptotic actions in cells that are mediated...