The cellular prion protein, PrPC, is neuroprotective in a number of settings and in particular prevents cerebellar degeneration mediated by CNS‐expressed Doppel or internally deleted PrP (‘ΔPrP’). This paradigm has facilitated mapping of activity determinants in PrPC and implicated a cryptic PrPC‐like protein, ‘π’. Shadoo (Sho) is a hypothetical GPI‐anchored protein encoded by the Sprn gene, exhibiting homology and domain organization similar to the N‐terminus of PrP. Here we demonstrate Sprn expression and Sho protein in the adult CNS. Sho expression overlaps PrPC, but is low in cerebellar granular neurons (CGNs) containing PrPC and high in PrPC‐deficient dendritic processes. In Prnp0/0 CGNs, Sho transgenes were PrPC‐like in their ability to counteract neurotoxic effects of either Doppel or ΔPrP. Additionally, prion‐infected mice exhibit a dramatic reduction in endogenous Sho protein. Sho is a candidate for π, and since it engenders a PrPC‐like neuroprotective activity, compromised neuroprotective activity resulting from reduced levels may exacerbate damage in prion infections. Sho may prove useful in deciphering several unresolved facets of prion biology.

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The objective of this study was to explore the pattern of adaptation in patients who have been diagnosed with visual impairment. Participants (N = 700), recruited in the Montreal area (Canada), underwent a structured interview in order to collect information on the duration of the acquired visual impairment and answered the 'Brief Cope', 'Satisfaction with Life Scale' and 'Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale' (CES-D). Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) revealed that patients who have lived with vision impairment for over 2 years reach significantly higher acceptance and lower denial levels compared to those of patients who had recent vision loss (≤2 years). We also found that acceptance was positively correlated with wellbeing and denial with depression, while acceptance was negatively correlated with depression and, likewise, denial with well-being. Our study results suggest that patients who have been diagnosed with visual impairment engage in an adaptative coping style early in the grief process.

This experimental study investigated whether implicitly priming mindfulness would facilitate psychological and cortisol recovery after undergoing a standardized psychological stressor. After completing baseline measures of well-being, all participants (N = 91) completed a public speaking stress task, were implicitly primed with “mindfulness” or “neutral” concepts using a scrambled sentence task, and finally, reported their situational well-being and provided cortisol samples. Simple moderation regression analyses revealed that the implicit mindfulness condition had significant beneficial effects for participants with low trait mindfulness. These participants reported higher situational self-esteem as well as less negative affect, perceived stress, and self-reported physiological arousal than their counterparts in the control condition. Cortisol analyses revealed that participants in the implicit mindfulness condition, regardless of level of trait mindfulness, showed a greater decline in cortisol during the early recovery stage compared to those in the control condition. Overall, results suggest that implicitly activating mindfulness can mitigate the psychological and physiological effects of a social stressor.