Status epilepticus is a medical emergency with elevated morbidity and mortality rates, and represents a leading cause of epilepsy-related deaths. Though status epilepticus can occur at any age, it manifests more likely in children and elderly people. Despite the common prevalence of epileptic disorders, a complete explanation for the mechanisms leading to development of self-limited or long lasting seizures (as in status epilepticus) are still lacking. Apart from neurons, research evidence suggests the involvement of immune and glial cells in epileptogenesis. Among glial cells, astrocytes represent an ideal target for the study of the pathophysiology of status epilepticus, due to their key role in homeostatic balance of the central nervous system. During status epilepticus, astroglial cells are activated by the presence of cytokines, damage associated molecular patterns and reactive oxygen species. The persistent activation of astrocytes leads to a decrease in glutamate clearance with a corresponding accumulation in the synaptic extracellular space, increasing the chance of neuronal excitotoxicity. Moreover, major alterations in astrocytic gap junction coupling, inflammation and receptor expression, facilitate the generation of seizures. Astrocytes are also involved in dysregulation of inhibitory transmission in the central nervous system and directly participate in ionic homeostatic alterations during status epilepticus. In the present review, we focus on the functional and structural changes in astrocytic activity that participate in the development and maintenance of status epilepticus, with special attention on concurrent inflammatory alterations. We also include potential astrocytic treatment targets for status epilepticus.

Non-invasive PET neuroimaging was a useful tool for discerning epileptogenesis progression in this animal model. Particularly, the [(18)F]FDG uptake of the hippocampus proved to be an early predictive parameter to differentiate resistant and non-resistant animals to the PTZ kindling.

Summary,-Anger is a basic emotion experienced in several aversive situations, In this study, the relation between Anger, Fear, and Sadness, as well as the dimensions of Valen ce, Arousal, and Dominance, were examined. It was hypothesized that pictures showing an Intention to Harm would evoke not only Anger, but also Fear and Sadness, and that this would be correlated with low Valen ce, high Arousal, and high Dominance. To this end, 45 healthy volunteers (25 women and 20 men; M age=272 yr" SD = 9.5) recorded appraisals for each of these emotional experience while viewing 120 pictures selected from the International Affective Picture System, Data were analyzed with a linear mixed model and a hierarchical classes approach to identify differences and corrclations between emotional categories. Results indicate that those pictures showing Intention to Harm generate higher Anger and Fear, while pictures representing Frustration of Goals leads to higher Sadness, In addition, high Anger, Fear, and Sadness are associated with low Valence, moderate Arousal, and high Dominance, These findings suggest that the experience of Anger requires the inference of the other' s mental and physical state and need the regulation of cognitive and affective systems acting together. The study of this emotion should consider both categorical and dimensional approaches in order to define its coherent features, Darwin's thesis about the innate component oE emotional expressions (1872/1988) has served to sustain the concept of emotion inside evolutionary mechanisms that aid an organism to alternate motivational systems and regulate environmental cues (Plutchik, 1980), Considering emotional expressions 'Addresss correspondence to Dr. J. Martín Ramírez,

Family communication establishes a vehicle for the transmission of information between family members and completely marks the nature and quality of family life. Family communication can be understood as an index of the climate and quality of the family system. La comunicación familiar establece un vehículo para la transmisión de información entre los miembros dela familia y marca por completo la naturaleza y la calidad de la vida familiar. La comunicación familiar puede entenderse como un índice del clima y la calidaddel sistema familiar.

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