Background: Paranoia is a disruptive belief that can vary across a continuum, ranging from persec... more Background: Paranoia is a disruptive belief that can vary across a continuum, ranging from persecutory delusions presented in clinical settings to paranoid cognitions that are highly prevalent in the general population. The literature suggests that paranoid thoughts derive from the activation of a paranoid schema or information processing biases that can be sensitive to socially ambiguous stimuli and influence the processing of threatening situations. Method: Four groups (Schizophrenic participants in active psychotic phases, n=6; stable participants in remission, n=30; participants' relatives, n=32; and healthy controls, n=64) were assessed with self-report questionnaires to determine how the reactions to paranoia of clinical patients differ from healthy individuals. Cognitive, emotional and behavioral dimensions of their reactions to these paranoid thoughts were examined. Results: Paranoid individuals were present in all groups. Most participants referred the rejection by others as an important trigger of paranoid ideations, while active psychotic were unable to identify triggering situations to their thoughts and reactions. This may be determinant to the different reactions and the different degree of invalidation caused by paranoid thoughts observed across groups. Conclusion: Clinical and non-clinical expressions of paranoid ideations differ in terms of their cognitive, emotional and behavioral components. It is suggested that, in socially ambiguous situations, paranoid participants (presenting lower thresholds of paranoid schema activation) lose the opportunity to disconfirm their paranoid beliefs by resourcing to more maladaptive coping strategies. Consequently, by dwelling on these thoughts, the amount of time spent thinking about their condition and the disability related to the disease increases.
Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid with anti-diabetic properties. Despite the central role of ... more Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid with anti-diabetic properties. Despite the central role of liver and thus hepatic mitochondria in whole-body metabolism, berberine effects on hepatic mitochondrial function in an obesity model are still unknown. Here, we demonstrate that berberine treatment recovers mitochondrial efficiency when altered by a high-fat feeding. Mitochondria isolated from the liver of high-fat fed rats exhibited decreased capacity to accumulate calcium and impaired oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) capacity, as shown by impaired mitochondrial membrane potential, oxygen consumption and cellular ATP levels. Interestingly, the recovery of mitochondrial function by berberine was associated with an increased activity of the mitochondrial sirtuin 3 (SirT3). In conclusion, berberine potent protective effects against metabolic syndrome may rely on increasing mitochondrial SirT3 activity, normalizing mitochondrial function and preventing a state of energetic deficit caused by impaired OXPHOS.
In this Special Issue The European Association for Practitioner Research on Improving Learning (E... more In this Special Issue The European Association for Practitioner Research on Improving Learning (EAPRIL) joins forces with the Journal of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS Journal) to highlight practitioner-researchers’ visions of future education and learning. This is the second special issue reported by EAPRIL and UAS journal (see https://uasjournal.fi/arkisto/eapril/). EAPRIL and UAS Journal both focus on research and development in education. That is, on the one hand, UAS Journal focuses on the fields of practice-oriented higher education in Finland since 2011 and, on the other hand, EAPRIL focuses on practice-based research and bridging research and practice with the aim to improve learning, both in education and organisations.
Background: Paranoia is a disruptive belief that can vary across a continuum, ranging from persec... more Background: Paranoia is a disruptive belief that can vary across a continuum, ranging from persecutory delusions presented in clinical settings to paranoid cognitions that are highly prevalent in the general population. The literature suggests that paranoid thoughts derive from the activation of a paranoid schema or information processing biases that can be sensitive to socially ambiguous stimuli and influence the processing of threatening situations. Method: Four groups (Schizophrenic participants in active psychotic phases, n=6; stable participants in remission, n=30; participants' relatives, n=32; and healthy controls, n=64) were assessed with self-report questionnaires to determine how the reactions to paranoia of clinical patients differ from healthy individuals. Cognitive, emotional and behavioral dimensions of their reactions to these paranoid thoughts were examined. Results: Paranoid individuals were present in all groups. Most participants referred the rejection by others as an important trigger of paranoid ideations, while active psychotic were unable to identify triggering situations to their thoughts and reactions. This may be determinant to the different reactions and the different degree of invalidation caused by paranoid thoughts observed across groups. Conclusion: Clinical and non-clinical expressions of paranoid ideations differ in terms of their cognitive, emotional and behavioral components. It is suggested that, in socially ambiguous situations, paranoid participants (presenting lower thresholds of paranoid schema activation) lose the opportunity to disconfirm their paranoid beliefs by resourcing to more maladaptive coping strategies. Consequently, by dwelling on these thoughts, the amount of time spent thinking about their condition and the disability related to the disease increases.
Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid with anti-diabetic properties. Despite the central role of ... more Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid with anti-diabetic properties. Despite the central role of liver and thus hepatic mitochondria in whole-body metabolism, berberine effects on hepatic mitochondrial function in an obesity model are still unknown. Here, we demonstrate that berberine treatment recovers mitochondrial efficiency when altered by a high-fat feeding. Mitochondria isolated from the liver of high-fat fed rats exhibited decreased capacity to accumulate calcium and impaired oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) capacity, as shown by impaired mitochondrial membrane potential, oxygen consumption and cellular ATP levels. Interestingly, the recovery of mitochondrial function by berberine was associated with an increased activity of the mitochondrial sirtuin 3 (SirT3). In conclusion, berberine potent protective effects against metabolic syndrome may rely on increasing mitochondrial SirT3 activity, normalizing mitochondrial function and preventing a state of energetic deficit caused by impaired OXPHOS.
In this Special Issue The European Association for Practitioner Research on Improving Learning (E... more In this Special Issue The European Association for Practitioner Research on Improving Learning (EAPRIL) joins forces with the Journal of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS Journal) to highlight practitioner-researchers’ visions of future education and learning. This is the second special issue reported by EAPRIL and UAS journal (see https://uasjournal.fi/arkisto/eapril/). EAPRIL and UAS Journal both focus on research and development in education. That is, on the one hand, UAS Journal focuses on the fields of practice-oriented higher education in Finland since 2011 and, on the other hand, EAPRIL focuses on practice-based research and bridging research and practice with the aim to improve learning, both in education and organisations.
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Papers by Manuel Peixoto