University of Cologne

About: University of Cologne is a education organization based out in Cologne, Germany. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Gene. The organization has 32050 authors who have published 66350 publications receiving 2210092 citations. The organization is also known as: Universität zu Köln & Universitatis Coloniensis.

Pain catastrophizing and neural responses to pain among persons with fibromyalgia

Abstract: Pain catastrophizing, or characterizations of pain as awful, horrible and unbearable, is increasingly being recognized as an important factor in the experience of pain. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the association between catastrophizing, as measured by the Coping Strategies Questionnaire Catastrophizing Subscale, and brain responses to blunt pressure assessed by functional MRI among 29 subjects with fibromyalgia. Since catastrophizing has been suggested to augment pain perception through enhanced attention to painful stimuli, and heightened emotional responses to pain, we hypothesized that catastrophizing would be positively associated with activation in structures believed to be involved in these aspects of pain processing. As catastrophizing is also strongly associated with depression, the influence of depressive symptomatology was statistically removed. Residual scores of catastrophizing controlling for depressive symptomatology were significantly associated with increased activity in the ipsilateral claustrum (r = 0.51, P < 0.05), cerebellum (r = 0.43, P < 0.05), dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (r = 0.47, P < 0.05), and parietal cortex (r = 0.41, P < 0.05), and in the contralateral dorsal anterior cingulate gyrus (ACC; r = 0.43, P < 0.05), dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (r = 0.41, P < 0.05), medial frontal cortex (r = 0.40, P < 0.05) and lentiform nuclei (r = 0.40, P < 0.05). Analysis of subjects classified as high or low catastrophizers, based on a median split of residual catastrophizing scores, showed that both groups displayed significant increases in ipsilateral secondary somatosensory cortex (SII), although the magnitude of activation was twice as large among high catastrophizers. Both groups also had significant activations in contralateral insula, SII, primary somatosensory cortex (SI), inferior parietal lobule and thalamus. High catastrophizers displayed unique activation in the contralateral anterior ACC, and the contralateral and ipsilateral lentiform. Both groups also displayed significant ipsilateral activation in SI, anterior and posterior cerebellum, posterior cingulate gyrus, and superior and inferior frontal gyrus. These findings suggest that pain catastrophizing, independent of the influence of depression, is significantly associated with increased activity in brain areas related to anticipation of pain (medial frontal cortex, cerebellum), attention to pain (dorsal ACC, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), emotional aspects of pain (claustrum, closely connected to amygdala) and motor control. These results support the hypothesis that catastrophizing influences pain perception through altering attention and anticipation, and heightening emotional responses to pain. Activation associated with catastrophizing in motor areas of the brain may reflect expressive responses to pain that are associated with greater pain catastrophizing.

Convergent losses of decay mechanisms and rapid turnover of symbiosis genes in mycorrhizal mutualists.

Abstract: To elucidate the genetic bases of mycorrhizal lifestyle evolution, we sequenced new fungal genomes, including 13 ectomycorrhizal (ECM), orchid (ORM) and ericoid (ERM) species, and five saprotrophs, which we analyzed along with other fungal genomes. Ectomycorrhizal fungi have a reduced complement of genes encoding plant cell wall-degrading enzymes (PCWDEs), as compared to their ancestral wood decayers. Nevertheless, they have retained a unique array of PCWDEs, thus suggesting that they possess diverse abilities to decompose lignocellulose. Similar functional categories of nonorthologous genes are induced in symbiosis. Of induced genes, 7-38% are orphan genes, including genes that encode secreted effector-like proteins. Convergent evolution of the mycorrhizal habit in fungi occurred via the repeated evolution of a 'symbiosis toolkit', with reduced numbers of PCWDEs and lineage-specific suites of mycorrhiza-induced genes.

Consequences of dominance: a review of evenness effects on local and regional ecosystem processes

Abstract: The composition of communities is strongly altered by anthropogenic manipulations of biogeochemical cycles, abiotic conditions, and trophic structure in all major ecosystems. Whereas the effects of species loss on ecosystem processes have received broad attention, the consequences of altered species dominance for emergent properties of communities and ecosystems are poorly investigated. Here we propose a framework guiding our understanding of how dominance affects species interactions within communities, processes within ecosystems, and dynamics on regional scales. Dominance (or the complementary term, evenness) reflects the distribution of traits in a community, which in turn affects the strength and sign of both intraspecifc and interspecific interactions. Consequently, dominance also mediates the effect of such interactions on species coexistence. We review the evidence for the fact that dominance directly affects ecosystem functions such as process rates via species identity (the dominant trait) and evenness (the frequency distribution of traits), and indirectly alters the relationship between process rates and species richness. Dominance also influences the temporal and spatial variability of aggregate community properties and compositional stability (invasibility). Finally, we propose that dominance affects regional species coexistence by altering metacommunity dynamics. Local dominance leads to high beta diversity, and rare species can persist because of source-sink dynamics, but anthropogenically induced environmental changes result in regional dominance and low beta diversity, reducing regional coexistence. Given the rapid anthropogenic alterations of dominance in many ecosystems and the strong implications of these changes, dominance should be considered explicitly in the analysis of consequences of altered biodiversity.

Morphine and alternative opioids in cancer pain : the EAPC recommendations

Abstract: An expert working group of the European Association for Palliative Care has revised and updated its guidelines on the use of morphine in the management of cancer pain. The revised recommendations presented here give guidance on the use of morphine and the alternative strong opioid analgesics which have been introduced in many parts of the world in recent years. Practical strategies for dealing with difficult situations are described presenting a consensus view where supporting evidence is lacking. The strength of the evidence on which each recommendation is based is indicated.