Calpains are calcium-dependent enzymes that determine the fate of proteins through regulated proteolytic activity. Calpains have been linked to the modulation of memory and are key to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease (AD). When abnormally activated, calpains can also initiate degradation of proteins essential for neuronal survival. Here we show that calpain inhibition through E64, a cysteine protease inhibitor, and the highly specific calpain inhibitor BDA-410 restored normal synaptic function both in hippocampal cultures and in hippocampal slices from the APP/PS1 mouse, an animal model of AD. Calpain inhibition also improved spatial-working memory and associative fear memory in APP/PS1 mice. These beneficial effects of the calpain inhibitors were associated with restoration of normal phosphorylation levels of the transcription factor CREB and involved redistribution of the synaptic protein synapsin I. Thus, calpain inhibition may prove useful in the alleviation of memory loss in AD.

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The IUD is a safe contraceptive option regardless of parity, provided that women are carefully selected.

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Ariel Nidalgo, a Cuban academic and writer, was arrested on 19 August 1981 by members of the Department of State Security and charged under Article 108-1 of the Cuban Penal Code ('Enemy propaganda') with 'incitement against the social order'. In late 1981 he was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment, and eventually released on 4 August 1988. He now lives in Miami, USA. Below, we publish Ariel Hidalgo's testimony on his imprisonment and the background to it..