Increasing Iron and Zinc in Pre-Menopausal Women and Its Effects on Mood and Cognition: A Systematic Review.

Iron and zinc are essential minerals often present in similar food sources. In addition to the adverse effects of frank iron and zinc-deficient states, iron insufficiency has been associated with impairments in mood and cognition. This paper reviews current literature on iron or zinc supplementation and its impact on mood or cognition in pre-menopausal women. Searches included MEDLINE complete, Excerpta Medica Database (EMBASE), psychINFO, psychARTICLES, pubMED, ProQuest Health and Medical Complete Academic Search complete, Scopus and ScienceDirect. Ten randomized controlled trials and one non-randomized controlled trial were found to meet the inclusion criteria. Seven studies found improvements in aspects of mood and cognition after iron supplementation. Iron supplementation appeared to improve memory and intellectual ability in participants aged between 12 and 55 years in seven studies, regardless of whether the participant was initially iron insufficient or iron-deficient with anaemia. The review also found three controlled studies providing evidence to suggest a role for zinc supplementation as a treatment for depressive symptoms, as both an adjunct to traditional antidepressant therapy for individuals with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder and as a therapy in its own right in pre-menopausal women with zinc deficiency. Overall, the current literature indicates a positive effect of improving zinc status on enhanced cognitive and emotional functioning. However, further study involving well-designed randomized controlled trials is needed to identify the impact of improving iron and zinc status on mood and cognition

Patient recall of receiving lifestyle advice for overweight and hypertension from their General Practitioner

BackgroundOverweight, obesity and hypertension can be prevented through improvements in lifestyle including nutrition and physical activity. General practitioners (GPs) in Australia have access to over 90% of the population in the course of a year and therefore, the general practice setting may be ideal to assist patients with lifestyle change for weight management and hypertension. The present study aimed to determine the proportion of overweight/obese patients that recalled receiving advice by their GP to make lifestyle changes for weight loss. Recall of advice received by hypertensive patients to reduce salt intake was also measured.MethodsA face to face survey was conducted on a representative sample (urban, suburban and rural) of South Australian residents. Respondents provided information on height and weight (self-report), whether they had received lifestyle advice from their GP for weight loss, and for those with self reported hypertension if they had received advice to reduce dietary salt.ResultsThe sample included 2947 South Australian adult residents (58% female; BMI (mean (SD)), 26.6 (5.3) kg/m2; age, 50.7 (18.0) years). Ninety-six percent had visited their GP in the past 12 months. Forty-one percent of males and 25% of females were overweight and 19% of males and 20% of females were obese. Twenty-seven percent of overweight/obese respondents reported receiving lifestyle advice for weight loss purposes. Of the 33% who reported they had hypertension, 34% reported receiving advice to reduce salt intake.ConclusionsLess than 1/3 of overweight/obese patients reported that they had received lifestyle advice that could assist with weight loss from their GP. About a third of respondents with hypertension reported that they received advice to reduce salt intake. There are potentially missed opportunities in which GPs could provide re-enforcement of benefits of lifestyle changes with respect to weight and blood pressure control.<br /

IL-12 RB1 Genetic Variants Contribute to Human Susceptibility to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Infection among Chinese

BACKGROUND: Cytokines play important roles in antiviral action. We examined whether polymorphisms of interleukin (IL)-12 receptor B1 (IL-12RB1) affect the susceptibility to and outcome of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). METHODS: A case-control study was carried out in Chinese SARS patients and healthy controls. The genotypes of 4SNPs on IL-12 RB1 gene, +705A/G,+1158T/C, +1196G/C and +1664 C/T, were determined by PCR-RFLP. Haplotypes were estimated from the genotype data using the expectation-maximisation algorithm. RESULTS: Comparison between patients and close contacts showed that individuals with the +1664 C/T (CT and TT) genotype had a 2.09-fold (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.90-7.16) and 2.34-fold (95% CI, 1.79-13.37) increased risk of developing SARS, respectively. For any of the other three polymorphisms, however, no significant difference can be detected in allele or genotype frequencies between patients and controls. Additionally, estimation of the frequencies of multiple-locus haplotypes revealed potential risk haplotypes (GCCT) for SARS infection. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that genetic variants of IL12RB1confer genetic susceptibility to SARS infection, but not necessary associated with the progression of the disease in Chinese population

The association of self-esteem, depression and body satisfaction with obesity among Turkish adolescents

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity and to examine the effects of actual weight status, perceived weight status and body satisfaction on self-esteem and depression in a high school population in Turkey.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cross-sectional survey of 2101 tenth-grade Turkish adolescents aged 15–18 was conducted. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated using weight and height measures. The overweight and obesity were based on the age- and gender-spesific BMI cut-off points of the International Obesity Task Force values. Self-esteem was measured using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and depression was measured using Children's Depression Inventory. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine relationships among the variables.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Based on BMI cut-off points, 9.0% of the students were overweight and 1.1% were obese. Logistic regression analysis indicated that (1) being male and being from a higher socio-economical level were important in the prediction of overweight based on BMI; (2) being female and being from a higher socio-economical level were important in the prediction of perceived overweight; (3) being female was important in the prediction of body dissatisfaction; (4) body dissatisfaction was related to low self-esteem and depression, perceived overweight was related only to low self-esteem but actual overweight was not related to low self-esteem and depression in adolescents.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results of this study suggest that school-based adolescents in urban Turkey have a lower risk of overweight and obesity than adolescents in developed countries. The findings of this study suggest that psychological well-being of adolescents is more related to body satisfaction than actual and perceived weight status is.</p

Deep Theorizing in International Relations

This paper starts from the observation that, at a time when the popularity of grand theory is in decline among IR scholars, they do not agree on what they mean by theory. In fact, the celebration of theoretical pluralism is accompanied by the relative absence of a serious conversation about what ‘theory’ is, could, or should be. Taking the view that we need such a conversation, this puts forward the notion of ‘deep theorizing’. Countering both the shallow theorizing of modern scholarship that conflates theory with scientific method, and the postmodern view that abstract narratives must be deconstructed and rejected, it offers a reading of the parameters along which substantial theorizing proceeds. Specifically, it suggests that ‘deep theorizing’ is the conceptual effort of explaining (inter)action by developing a reading of drives/basic motivations and the ontology of its carrier through an account of the human condition, that is, a particular account of how the subject (the political actor) is positioned in social space and time. The paper illustrates the plausibility of this meta-theoretical angle in a discussion of realist, liberal and postcolonial schools of thought

First data with the ATLAS Level-1 Calorimeter Trigger

The ATLAS Level-1 Calorimeter Trigger is one of the main elements of the first stage of event selection for the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. The input stage consists of a mixed analogue/digital component taking trigger sums from the ATLAS calorimeters. The trigger logic is performed in a digital, pipelined system with several stages of processing, largely based on FPGAs, which perform programmable algorithms in parallel with a fixed latency to process about 300 Gbyte/s of input data. The real-time output consists of counts of different types of physics objects, and energy sums. The final system consists of over 300 custom-built VME modules, of several different types. The installation at ATLAS of these modules, and the necessary infrastructure, was completed at the end of 2007. The system has since undergone intensive testing, both in standalone mode, and in conjunction with the whole of the ATLAS detector in combined running. The final steps of commissioning, and experience with running the full-scale system are presented. Results of integration tests performed with the upstream calorimeters, and downstream trigger and data-flow systems, are shown, along with an analysis of the performance of the calorimeter trigger in full ATLAS data-taking. This includes trigger operation during the cosmic muon runs from before LHC start-up, and a first look at LHC proton beam data

The normal breast microenvironment of premenopausal women differentially influences the behavior of breast cancer cells in vitro and in vivo

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Breast cancer studies frequently focus on the role of the tumor microenvironment in the promotion of cancer; however, the influence of the normal breast microenvironment on cancer cells remains relatively unknown. To investigate the role of the normal breast microenvironment on breast cancer cell tumorigenicity, we examined whether extracellular matrix molecules (ECM) derived from premenopausal African-American (AA) or Caucasian-American (CAU) breast tissue would affect the tumorigenicity of cancer cells <it>in vitro </it>and <it>in vivo</it>. We chose these two populations because of the well documented predisposition of AA women to develop aggressive, highly metastatic breast cancer compared to CAU women.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The effects of primary breast fibroblasts on tumorigenicity were analyzed via real-time PCR arrays and mouse xenograft models. Whole breast ECM was isolated, analyzed via zymography, and its effects on breast cancer cell aggressiveness were tested <it>in vitro </it>via soft agar and invasion assays, and <it>in vivo </it>via xenograft models. Breast ECM and hormone metabolites were analyzed via mass spectrometry.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Mouse mammary glands humanized with premenopausal CAU fibroblasts and injected with primary breast cancer cells developed significantly larger tumors compared to AA humanized glands. Examination of 164 ECM molecules and cytokines from CAU-derived fibroblasts demonstrated a differentially regulated set of ECM proteins and increased cytokine expression. Whole breast ECM was isolated; invasion and soft agar assays demonstrated that estrogen receptor (ER)^-, progesterone receptor (PR)/PR^-cells were significantly more aggressive when in contact with AA ECM, as were ER⁺/PR⁺cells with CAU ECM. Using zymography, protease activity was comparatively upregulated in CAU ECM. In xenograft models, CAU ECM significantly increased the tumorigenicity of ER⁺/PR⁺cells and enhanced metastases. Mass spectrometry analysis of ECM proteins showed that only 1,759 of approximately 8,000 identified were in common. In the AA dataset, proteins associated with breast cancer were primarily related to tumorigenesis/neoplasia, while CAU unique proteins were involved with growth/metastasis. Using a novel mass spectrometry method, 17 biologically active hormones were measured; estradiol, estriol and 2-methoxyestrone were significantly higher in CAU breast tissue.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study details normal premenopausal breast tissue composition, delineates potential mechanisms for breast cancer development, and provides data for further investigation into the role of the microenvironment in cancer disparities.</p

Stripping the Boss : The Powerful Role of Humor in the Egyptian Revolution 2011

The Egyptian Revolution 2011 has shaken the Arab world and stirred up Middle-East politics. Moreover, it caused a rush in political science and the neighboring disciplines, which had not predicted an event like this and now have troubles explaining it. While many things can be learned from the popular uprising, and from the limitations of previous scholarship, our focus will be on a moral resource, which has occasionally been noticed, but not sufficiently explored: the role of humor in keeping up the spirit of the Revolution. For eighteen days, protestors persevered at Liberation Square in Central Cairo, the epicenter of resistance; at times a few dozens, at times hundreds of thousands. What they did was to fight the terror of the regime, which reached absurd peaks during those days, with humor – successfully. We offer a social-functionalist account of the uprising, which includes behavioral as well as cultural levels of analysis, and illuminates how humorous means helped to achieve deadly serious goals. By reconstructing how Egyptians laughed themselves into democracy, we outline a social psychology of resistance, which uses humor both as a sword and a shield.Peer reviewe