The role of Melancholia in prostate cancer patients' depression

BACKGROUND: Although it is well established that prostate cancer (PCa) patients are more likely to experience clinical depression than their age-matched non-prostate cancer peers, and that such depression can have negative effects upon survival, little is known about the underlying nature of the depressive symptomatology that these men experience. In particular, the incidence of melancholic symptoms of depression, which are signs of increased risk of suicide and resistance to treatment, has not previously been reported in PCa patients. The present study aimed to measure the incidence and nature of Melancholia in PCa depression. METHOD: A sample of 507 PCa patients in Queensland, Australia, completed anonymous and confidential questionnaires about their background, treatment status, and depression. Data were analysed to select depressive symptoms that were part of the definition of Melancholia vs those which were not. Regression was used to determine the links between Melancholia and overall depressive status, and factor analysis revealed the underlying components of Melancholia, which were mapped over time since diagnosis for 3 years. RESULTS: Psychometric data were satisfactory. Melancholia significantly predicted depressive status for the most depressed subset of patients, but not for the total sample. Melancholia was factored into its components of Anhedonia and Agitation, and the first of these was more powerful in predicting Melancholia. Variability over the 3 years following diagnosis was noted for each of these two components of Melancholia. CONCLUSIONS: The strong presence of Melancholia in the depressive symptomatology of this sample of PCa patients suggests that some forms of treatment for depression may be more likely to succeed than others. The dominance of Anhedonia and Agitation over other symptoms of Melancholia also holds implications for treatment options when assisting these men to cope with their depression

Factor structure of the Gotland Scale of male depression in two samples of men with prostate cancer:Implications for treating male depression

Up to a quarter of all prostate cancer (PCa) patients suffer from clinically significant depression but treatments are inconsistent and short-lived in their efficacy. One possible reason could be that 'male depression' is not adequately diagnosed by the criteria for major depressive disorder (MDD) used in many clinical settings.In response to this limitation, the Gotland Scale of Male Depression (GSMD) was developed to identify the extra symptoms of MDD in men. Although the factor structure of the GSMD has been reported in non-PCa samples, it has not been determined for this group of men. Two samples of PCa patients were recruited, 191 from Australia and 138 from the United Kingdom and all patients received the GSMD individually, plus a background questionnaire. Two-factor solutions were identified for each of the two samples. The Australian sample was characterized by changes in emotional and somatic function, followed by depressed mood. The U.K. sample exhibited the same two-factor solution but in reverse order of weighting. Targeted treatments for depression in PCa patients may benefit from identification of the loadings that individual patients have on these two GSMD factors so that specific clinical profiles and treatment needs may be based on this information about their depression

Angiogenesis in Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Opportunities for Novel Therapies

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) arises from neoplastic transformation of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells, and relapsed disease remains one of the greater challenges in treating this hematologic malignancy. This paper focuses on angiogenic aspects of AML including the significance and prognostic value of bone marrow microvessel density and circulating cytokine levels. We show three general mechanisms whereby AML exploits angiogenic pathways, including direct induction of angiogenesis, paracrine regulation, and autocrine stimulation. We also present early evidence that leukemia cells contribute directly to vascular endothelia. Novel treatment strategies are proposed, and a review of relevant antiangiogenic clinical trials is presented. By understanding how blood vessels can serve as a reservoir for refractory and relapsed AML, new diagnostics and promising treatment strategies can be developed

The Demand for Beef in Indonesia: Implications for Australian Agribusiness

Meat consumption and socio-demographic data from the 1990, 1993 and 1996 SUSENAS Household Food Expenditure and Consumption Surveys were employed to estimate the demand for meats in Indonesia. The focus was on the Provinces of DKI Jakarta and West Java where about one-fourth of the Indonesian population reside. Statistical and econometric procedures were used to aggregate the 16 meat types recorded in the SUSENAS into four Meat Groups. They were then used to estimate the Linear Approximation of the Almost Ideal Demand System (LA/AIDS) model, taking into account zero observations and the restrictions on budget shares. The demand for Meat Group 1 (with the dominant meat, beef) is income-inelastic, whereas for Meat Group 2 (with the dominant meat, commercial and native chicken) it is income-elastic. These two groups comprise nearly 95 per cent of all meat purchases. The estimated own-price elasticity of the beef group is -0.92, while that for the chicken group is -1.09. The cross-price elasticities indicate that all the meat groups are substitute goods, as expected. The results suggest that the current focus of the Indonesian government on strengthening the domestic poultry industry is well placed, as the demand for chicken is likely to respond more quickly to income growth than the demand for beef. Further, consumers seem more likely to adapt their chicken consumption patterns to price changes than they do for beef. However, these differences are relatively minor and there is still a major opportunity for Australian agribusiness firms in the cattle and beef sectors to take advantage of the projected rapid growth in Indonesian beef demand.beef demand, almost ideal demand system, commodity aggregation, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Livestock Production/Industries,

Psychological Distress among Prostate Cancer Patients: Fact Or Fiction?

Although the detrimental effect upon psychological well-being of receiving a diagnosis of, or treatment for, cancer has been demonstrated across many different types of cancer, three recent reviews of the psychological health of prostate cancer patients have produced contradictory conclusions. In order to elucidate the reasons for these apparent different conclusions, each of these reviews is described, with principal methods and findings summarised. Actual data, methodology used to select/reject research studies for inclusion in reviews, plus the validity of strict methodological culling of some research studies are discussed. Several extra studies and commentaries are also described, and a resolution of the apparent contradictory review conclusions is offered

Boston Hospitality Review: Winter 2018

Table of contents: Blockchain Technology & its Implications for the Hospitality Industry By Tarik Dogru, Makarand Mody, & Christie Leonardi -- How Does My Neighbor Feel About my Airbnb? By Makarand Mody, Courtney Suess & Tarik Dogru -- 5 Keys to Successful Hospitality Leadership By Sarah Andersen -- Cutting Through the Online Hospitality Clutter: 10 Best Practices for Organic Visibility By Leora Lanz & Juan Lesmes -- When is a Group a Chain, and a Chain a Brand? By Christopher Muller -- À la Carte Dining in a Banquet Setting: Is it Feasible? By Peter Szende and Ally Run

Distinguishing between Rooted and Rootless Detachments: A Case Study from the Mormon Mountains of Southeastern Nevada

Rooted detachment faults and detachments beneath rootless slide blocks exhibit many similar structural characteristics. However, while rooted detachments are thought to penetrate into the midcrust and to accommodate significant crustal extension, rootless detachments break to the surface downdip and are not directly involved in such extension. Distinguishing between these two mechanically different kinds of structure is central to the assessment of extension magnitude. Here we examine deformation along the Mormon Peak detachment, a feature that has been cited as an example of both a rooted and a rootless structure. Located in the Mormon Mountains of southeastern Nevada, this detachment has been interpreted as one of three low‐angle normal faults of regional scale that together are thought to have accommodated more than 50 km of Basin and Range extension. For the most part, however, the Mormon Peak detachment is expressed as a series of isolated exposures where Paleozoic rocks are in brittle fault contact with nonmylonitized underlying rocks. Individual blocks contain high‐angle normal faults that terminate downward at their respective detachment surfaces, yielding a geometry common to both modes of emplacement. In order to test between these competing interpretations, we studied deformational characteristics close to the detachment surface, reasoning that a seismogenic fault ought to differ fundamentally from a surficial slide block, particularly if the slide block was emplaced in a single event rather than by protracted or episodic creep. An examination of the contact mapped as the Mormon Peak detachment reveals that the character of deformation is indistinguishable from that of known gravity‐driven slide blocks and is fundamentally different from that associated with seismically cycled faults. Moreover, the orientation of kinematic indicators observed at detachment surfaces is consistently close to the downdip direction, which in many places diverges strongly from the expected direction of movement in the rooted detachment model. We conclude that outcrops of the inferred upper plate of the Mormon Peak detachment represent an assemblage of individual rootless gravity‐driven slide blocks and not the erosional remnants of a formerly contiguous extensional allochthon. If similar misidentifications have been made elsewhere in the Basin and Range Province, total Cenozoic extension may have been significantly overestimated. Implications for the interpretation of extensional geology in general are far‐reaching

Laboratory evaluation of stable isotope labeling of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) for adult dispersal studies.

BackgroundStable isotope labeling is a promising method for use in insect mark-capture and dispersal studies. Culicoides biting midges, which transmit several important animal pathogens, including bluetongue virus (BTV) and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV), are small flies that develop in various semi-aquatic habitats. Previous Culicoides dispersal studies have suffered from the limitations of other labeling techniques, and an inability to definitively connect collected adult midges to specific immature development sites.ResultsAdult C. sonorensis were successfully labeled with 13C and 15N stable isotopes as larvae developing in a semi-aquatic mud substrate in the laboratory. High and low-dose isotope treatments for both elements significantly enriched midges above the background isotope levels of unenriched controls. Enrichment had no effect on C. sonorensis survival, though a slight (~ 5 day) delay in emergence was observed, and there was no significant effect of pool size on 13C or 15N enrichment levels.ConclusionsStable isotope labeling is life-long, and does not interfere with natural insect behaviors. Stable isotope enrichment using 13C or 15N shows promise for Culicoides dispersal studies in the field. This method can be used to identify adult dispersal from larval source habitat where a midge developed. It may be possible to detect a single enriched midge in a pool of unenriched individuals, though further testing is needed to confirm the sensitivity of this method