A brief intervention to increase physical activity behavior among adolescents using mental simulations and action planning

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a brief integrated theory-based intervention to increase physical activity (PA) among adolescents over a three-month follow-up period. A 2 (mental simulation: present vs. absent) × 2 (action planning: present vs. absent) × 4 (time: baseline vs. one-month vs. two-month vs. three-month follow-up) mixed-model randomized controlled design was adopted. Adolescents aged 14–15 years (N = 267) completed baseline psychological measures and self-reported PA followed by the relevant intervention manipulation, if appropriate, with follow-up measures collected one, two, and three months later. Results revealed no significant effects for the mental simulation and action planning strategies nor the interaction of the two strategies. However, among participants with low levels of baseline PA, participants in both mental simulation alone and action planning alone groups reported significantly higher levels of PA at one-month follow up than other groups, suggesting that individual intervention components may be effective in low-active adolescents

Relationships between perceived teachers' controlling behaviour, psychological need thwarting, anger and bullying behaviour in high-school students

© 2015 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. We tested a model of the associations between students' perceptions of their physical education teacher's controlling behaviour, perceptions of basic psychological need thwarting, anger and bullying behaviour. School students (N=602; M age=12.88, SD=1.37) from 10 schools completed measures of perceived teachers' controlling behaviour and perceived thwarting of the psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness in physical education context and self-reported bullying and anger. A well-fitting structural equation model demonstrated that students' perceptions of the negative conditional regard and intimidation exhibited by the teacher had significant indirect effect on students' feelings of anger and bullying behaviour through the perceived psychological need thwarting in physical education. Findings suggest that physical education teachers who avoid the use of negative conditional regard and intimidation in their classes have students who perceive less need thwarting and report less bullying behaviour

Screw and welded connection behavior using structural grade 80 of A653 steel (a preliminary study)

This Fourth Progress Report presents the results of 56 connection tests conducted at the University of Missouri-Rolla during February-April, 1997. The intent of this limited test program was to gain an understanding of the general behavior characteristics of connections in grade 80 steels. No attempt was made to develop an indepth understanding of the connection behavior, which would be necessary to propose complete or comprehensive design recommendations. The performance and behavior of screw and welded connections in low-ductility steel were studied by testing to failure 36 specimens using self-drilling screws, 16 welded connections using either transverse or longitudinal fillet welds, and 4 connections using resistance welds. The material used in this study consisted of ASTM A653 Structural Grade 80 Steel (formerly ASTM A446 Grade E). Test results were compared with the recently approved AISI Specification (1), and other recently published research results (2)

HER-2/neu and CD117 (c-kit) overexpression in patients with pesticide exposure and extensive stage small cell lung carcinoma (ESSCLC)

BACKGROUND: The rate of detection of HER-2/neu and CD117 (c-kit) overexpression in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) has varied widely; between 5–35% and 21–70% respectively. METHODS: To evaluate the relationship between pesticide exposure and HER-2/neu and CD117 overexpression in extensive stage SCLC (ESSCLC), we identified patients with ESSCLC and assessed pesticide exposure using a predetermined questionnaire. An exposure index (hours/day × days/year × years) ≥ 2400 hours was considered as 'exposed.' HER-2/neu overexpression was evaluated on archival tissue using the DAKO Hercep test, and CD117 testing was performed using immunohistochemistry (A4052 polyclonal antibody). RESULTS: 193 ESSCLC patients were identified. Pesticide exposure data could be obtained on 174 patients (84 females and 109 males) with a mean age of 68.5 years. 53/174 (30.4%) revealed HER-2/neu overexpression. 54/174 (31.03%) specimens showed CD117 overexpression by IHC. On multivariate analysis, HER-2/neu overexpression was associated with diminished survival (p < 0.001). In comparison, CD117 expression did not have an adverse prognostic value (p = 0.025). 41/53 (77.4%) patients with HER-2/neu overexpression and 47/121 (38.8%) patients without overexpression had exposure to pesticides (odds ratio: 5.38; p < 0.01). Among the cohort tested for CD117, 29/54 (53.7%) patients with CD117 overexpression and 59/120 (49.2%) patients without CD117 overexpression had pesticide exposure (odds ratio: 1.18; p = 0.12). CONCLUSION: Pesticide exposure affects HER-2/neu but not CD117 overexpression. Future studies are needed to determine specific pesticide(s)/pesticide components that are responsible for HER-2/neu overexpression in ESSCLC, and to validate our findings in other solid tumors that overexpress HER-2/neu

Predicting Cochlear Implant Electrode Placement Using Monopolar, Three-Point and Four-Point Impedance Measurements

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between cochlear implant (CI) electrode distances to the cochleas inner wall (the modiolus) and electrical impedance measurements made at the CIs electrode contacts. We introduced a protocol for three-point impedances in which we recorded bipolar impedances in response to monopolar stimulation at a neighboring electrode. We aimed to assess the usability of three-point impedances and two existing CI impedance measurement methods (monopolar and four-point impedances) for predicting electrode positioning during CI insertion. Methods: Impedances were recorded during stepwise CI electrode array insertions in cadaveric human temporal bones. The positioning of the electrodes with respect to the modiolus was assessed at each step using cone beam computed tomography. Linear mixed regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between the impedances and electrode-modiolar distances. The experimental results were compared to clinical impedance data and to an existing lumped-element model of an implanted CI. Results: Three-point and four-point impedances strongly correlated with electrode-modiolar distance. In contrast, monopolar impedances were only minimally affected by changes in electrode positioning with respect to the modiolus. An overall model specificity of 62% was achieved when incorporating all impedance parameters. This specificity could be increased beyond 73% when prior expectations of electrode positioning were incorporated in the model. Conclusion: Three-point and four-point impedances are promising measures to predict electrode-modiolar distance in real-time during CI insertion. Significance: This work shows how electrical impedance measurements can be used to predict the CIs electrode positioning in a biologically realistic model

DAP12 Signaling Directly Augments Proproliferative Cytokine Stimulation of NK Cells during Viral Infections

Abstract NK cells vigorously proliferate during viral infections. During the course of murine CMV infection, this response becomes dominated by the preferential proliferation of NK cells that express the activation receptor Ly49H. The factors driving such selective NK cell proliferation have not been characterized. In this study, we demonstrate that preferential NK cell proliferation is dependent on DAP12-mediated signaling following the binding of Ly49H to its virally encoded ligand, m157. Ly49H signaling through DAP12 appears to directly augment NK cell sensitivity to low concentrations of proproliferative cytokines such as IL-15. The impact of Ly49H-mediated signaling on NK cell proliferation is masked in the presence of high concentrations of proproliferative cytokines that nonselectively drive all NK cells to proliferate

Validation of the SCID-hu Thy/Liv mouse model with four classes of licensed antiretrovirals.

BackgroundThe SCID-hu Thy/Liv mouse model of HIV-1 infection is a useful platform for the preclinical evaluation of antiviral efficacy in vivo. We performed this study to validate the model with representatives of all four classes of licensed antiretrovirals.Methodology/principal findingsEndpoint analyses for quantification of Thy/Liv implant viral load included ELISA for cell-associated p24, branched DNA assay for HIV-1 RNA, and detection of infected thymocytes by intracellular staining for Gag-p24. Antiviral protection from HIV-1-mediated thymocyte depletion was assessed by multicolor flow cytometric analysis of thymocyte subpopulations based on surface expression of CD3, CD4, and CD8. These mice can be productively infected with molecular clones of HIV-1 (e.g., the X4 clone NL4-3) as well as with primary R5 and R5X4 isolates. To determine whether results in this model are concordant with those found in humans, we performed direct comparisons of two drugs in the same class, each of which has known potency and dosing levels in humans. Here we show that second-generation antiretrovirals were, as expected, more potent than their first-generation predecessors: emtricitabine was more potent than lamivudine, efavirenz was more potent than nevirapine, and atazanavir was more potent than indinavir. After interspecies pharmacodynamic scaling, the dose ranges found to inhibit viral replication in the SCID-hu Thy/Liv mouse were similar to those used in humans. Moreover, HIV-1 replication in these mice was genetically stable; treatment of the mice with lamivudine did not result in the M184V substitution in reverse transcriptase, and the multidrug-resistant NY index case HIV-1 retained its drug-resistance substitutions.ConclusionGiven the fidelity of such comparisons, we conclude that this highly reproducible mouse model is likely to predict clinical antiviral efficacy in humans