Challenges for Behavioral Neuroscience: Prenatal, Postnatal, and Social Factors

Behavioral medicine has neglected social aspects for a long time. In the pre- and postnatal context, these are especially important, as parental competencies in the relational objects of the infant may be compromised by both inner and outer factors, thus potentially compromising the infant’s psychic development. The findings on pre- and postnatal stages of human development have shown that early psychosocial interventions can help out to some extent. Approaches for parents, which have mainly evolved from the findings of psychoanalysis and mother-infant research, must be augmented by a social perspective, just like postnatal concepts have been augmented by prenatal intervention approaches. The latter reach from how parents-to-be can be prepared for parenthood to how to support attachment and relation in infants, toddlers, and older children. Scientific behavioral reasoning, augmented by subjectivity- and objectivity-related concepts, provides a framework to work with, so that potential deprivation can be faced seriously. Intervention approaches focusing on bonding, on relational issues, and on educational practices are introduced, covering the most important time spans of psychic development from the mother-unborn period to the mother-infant period

Premature Born Infant's Reaction to the Mother's Voice in Comparison to their Reaction to Music - Effect on Heart Rate and Heart Rate Variability

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to compare stress-reduction effects of the mother’s voice and lullaby music in preterm infants and to explore whether the mother’s well-being affects her ability to calm down her preterm baby. It was hypothesized that both acoustic stimulation interventions can calm down the baby, i.e. decrease heart rate and increase heart rate variability (HRV) in preterm infants. Further it was hypothesized that the mother’s voice would have greater effect than lullaby music. Furthermore it was hypothesized that the mother´s voice from a mother who manages her current stress better, who feels more competent in parent-child interactions and who has a more functional family will have the greatest effect. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty preterm infants with gestational age of 27 to 36 weeks were acoustically stimulated with the voice of their own mother (reading favourite fairytale) and lullaby music at a postnatal age of 3 to 5 weeks when their cardiorespiration was stable (corrected gestational age 30-41 weeks). Acoustic stimulation with the mother’s voice and lullaby music was done on two consecutive days. The order of the two acoustic stimulations was randomly assigned for each infant. A continuous electrocardiogram was recorded by polysomnography device 15 minutes before, 15 minutes during and 15 minutes after the acoustic stimulation. Various HRV measures (NN interval mean value, NN interval median, variance of NN intervals, standard deviation of NN intervals, pnn 6,25, RMSSD, SDSD and RSA) were assessed. Behavioural states were differentiated both by clinical observations according to Prechtl and a PC software program. Non-REM sleep sections of 2 minutes duration (randomly cut out from the respective data sections in the continuous electrocardiogram) were matter of analyses. In order to study a possible influence of the mother’s well-being on the calming quality of her voice and thereby on the HRV of her preterm infant, maternal/paternal stress and competences as well as family functionality were assessed via respective questionnaires. Two-way repeated measures ANOVAs, testing for the factor “acoustic stimulation”, the factor “time” as well as for the interaction between these two factors, was considered as the most appropriate to test the hypotheses. For the interrelations between well-being of the mother and HRV of her preterm infant, Pearson correlations were conducted. RESULTS: Heart rate and HRV of preterm infants showed no statistically significant differences before acoustic stimulation. During acoustic stimulation, both music and mother’s voice decreased heart rate and increased different HRV measures. However, statistically significant differences were found for NN interval mean value during acoustic stimulation with mother’s voice. Beyond expectations, statistically significant differences were found also for NN interval mean value and NN interval median value after mother’s voice, suggesting thus a prolonged or lasting effect of the mother’s voice. Concerning well-being parameters of the mothers, the level of reported burden was elevated. Other well-being parameters of these premature mothers (resources, competences and family functionality) were within the normal range. The correlations between the mothers’ well-being and their babies’ HRV during and after fairytale acoustic stimulation indicate a strong relationship. The correlations point out that a higher family functionality is associated with a higher HRV of preterm babies. Contradictory to the expectations, higher burden and lower resources as well as lower competences of the mothers were associated with a higher HRV of the preterm babies. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with control situation, both acoustic stimulation interventions induce heart rate decrease, i.e. HRV increase in preterm babies during the acoustic stimulation intervention. Statistically significant increase in HRV was however shown only during mother’s voice acoustic stimulation. The calming effect of the mother‘s voice maintains also after the acoustic stimulation intervention, i.e. mother‘s voice has a prolonged/lasting effect. The correlations between the mother‘s well-being and their babies‘ HRV indicate a strong relationship. A higher family functionality was associated with a higher HRV of preterm babies. Also higher burden and lower resources as well as lower competences of the mothers were associated with a higher HRV of preterm babies. Mothers should be encouraged to interact (more) with their preterm infants. Simultaneous real-time investigations of the mothers’ and the babies’ HRV during a live mother-baby interaction seem to be necessary to provide further explanations of the noticed correlations between the mother‘s stress, her feelings of competence and their babies‘ HRV

A Critical Study of John Camden Hotten and The Slang Dictionary

Many lexicographers found some words unsuitable for inclusion in their dictionaries, thus the examination of general purpose dictionaries alone will not give us a faithful history of changes of the language. Nevertheless, by taking into account cant and slang dictionaries, the origins and history of such marginalized language can be truly examined. Despite people's natural fascination with these works, the early slang dictionaries have received relatively little scholarly attention, the later ones even less. This dissertation is written to honor those lexicographers who succeeded in a truthful documentation of nonstandard language. One of these disreputable lexicographers who found joy in an unending search for new and better ways of treating abstruse vocabulary was John Camden Hotten. This study investigates the importance of Hotten's Dictionary of Modern Slang, Cant, and Vulgar Words in the evolution of dictionary making. I analyze how many editions exist, the popularity of the 1864 edition, and differences between this and preceding editions, suggesting the inexorable growth of Hotten as a compiler. A short history of British cant and slang lexicography is provided and questions concerning the inclusion and exclusion of obsolete words and who makes such decisions are answered. Key terms such as slang and cant are defined and discussed briefly within the context of recent, relevant scholarship. The conclusions drawn from this research are laid out in extensive annotations embedded in the lexical items of a critical edition demonstrating once again that Hotten's compilation was extremely important in the evolution of dictionary making. That Hotten's work was accepted as authoritative is evidenced by the number of allusions and borrowings from it as seen in the work of later lexicographers: Barrere and Leland draw extensively upon it in A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon, and Cant, 2 vols. (1889-90) as do Farmer and Henley in Slang and Its Analogues, 7 vols. (1890-1904), and Eric Partridge in A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English (1937). Hotten's work seems to have been very influential in the preservation of words as well. A vast number of slang words that are cited in Hotten's dictionaries were used for a long time among the common people; in fact, the popular literature of the nineteenth century, particularly historical fiction, draws upon this vocabulary, and may well prove to be specifically indebted to Hotten's work. Thackeray's Vanity Fair and Joyce's Ulysses are full of slang expressions; Conan Doyle shows himself familiar with the terminology of pugilism in Rodney Stone, as does George Bernard Shaw in Cashel Byron's Profession. This dissertation places John Camden Hotten as a writer/publisher/compiler and his work within contemporaneous scholarly argument, and, contrary to popular opinion, acknowledges the publisher's significant contributions to the development of Victorian literature and late nineteenth- and twentieth-century lexicography

CHILDHOOD INTERVENTION AGAINST VIOLENCE

Violence has its roots in many factors. Structured interventions for children can be useful when it comes to building emotional competencies. Self-regulation of negative emotions, impulse control, and empathy are important competencies to be achieved in order to prevent violence. The 'Faustlos' ('No Fists') program, which was designed to learn how to deal with emotions as well as to develop empathic dealings with one another, offers a wide variety of techniques and strategies for children. Furthermore, children are given a secure realm of learning and transfer in which no-one is excluded and stigmatization is avoided. With the additional involvement of parents, new modes of intra- and interpersonal conflict solutions in families can be developed. Its special relational approach makes the program convincing as a tool for childhood intervention. The development of pro-social emotions should be a base for the prevention of bullying and violence. Implementation in Serbia might be useful

Poređenje kvaliteta mesa linjaka i šarana

U poslednje dve godine postoje veliki problemi u plasmanu slatkovodnih riba proizvedenih na našim ribnjacima. Zahvaljujući nekontrolisanom uvozu, došlo je do toga da se na našem tržištu nađe velika količina jeftinih vrsta riba, pre svega Pangasius pangasius iz Vijetnama , čiji je uvoz zabranjen u mnogim razvijenim zemljama, pre svega SAD, Kanadi i većem broju zemalja Evropske Unije. Velprodajna cena šarana je veoma niska, pa je doveden u pitanje opstanak naše ribarske privrede, u čijoj strukturi šaran učestvuje najvećim delom. Stoga je potrebno razmišljati o uvođenju drugih slatkovodnih vrsta koje bi se mogle plasirati na tržište Evropske Unije, što se pre svega odnosi na linjaka. Takođe, treba razmišljati i o organskoj proizvodnji riba i o kreatnju ka ekstenzivnijim metodama gajenja. Neophodno je voditi računa i o nutritivnom kvalitetu mesa jer se od ribarske privrede očekuje proizvod sa niskim sadržajem masti i povoljnim odnosom nezasićenih masnih kiselina, pre svega ω-3 i ω-6 masnih kiselina. Poznat je povoljan uticaj ω-3 polinezasićenih masnih kiselina (PNMK) iz mesa ribe na zdravlje čoveka, kao i da povećana potrošnja ribe utiče na sprečavanje nastanka oboljenja kardiovaskularnog sistema, kao i u prevenciji inflamatornih, autoimunih i malignih oboljenja, dijabetesa i drugih bolesti. Literalni podaci o randmanu dvogodišnjih riba linjaka i šarana su veoma oskudni, dok su dostupne informacije o konzumnim ribama koje su starosti tri i više godina. Kako kvalitet mesa zavisi od starosti jedinke, neophodna su istraživanja i o kvalitetu mesa mlađih kategorija riba. Osim randmana analizirani su i hemijski sastav mesa dvogodišnjeg linjaka i šarana sa akcentom na zastupljenost masnih kiselina i poređenje odnosa ovih vrednosti kod linjaka i šarana. Uzorci dvogodišnjeg linjaka i šarana uzeti su na oglednom ribnjaku "Mošorin". Proizvodnja ovih riba odvijala se u ekstenzivnom sistemu, gde je povećanje organske produkcije vršeno pregorelim goveđim i ovčijim stajnjakom. Ishrana dodatnim hranivima nije vršena. U pripremi objekta i tokom vegetacionog perioda korišćen je hidratni kreč. Analize hemijskog sastava i masnokiselinskog sastava lipida ribe su izvršene u Institutu za higijenu i tehnologiju mesa, Beograd. Analizom morfometrijskih karakteristika ribe utvrđena je dobra kondicija. Randman mesa linjaka povoljniji je od istoga kod šarana što se može objasniti manjom masom digestivnog trakta ove vrste. Razlog za niži procenat proteina kod linjaka i kod šarana nego što je to prikazivano u klasičnoj literaturi je što se radi o mesu dvogodišnjih riba dok se pomenuti literaturni podaci odnose na starije kategorije koje imaju manji sadržaj vode. Veći sadržaj vode kod dvogodišnjih riba doprinosi boljem gastronomskom kvalitetu mesa. Po sadržaju masti meso linjaka je približno vrednostima tolstolobika i amura, iz čega se može zaključiti da je veoma pogodno kao dijetalna hrana za potrebe posebnih zdravstvenih kategorija ljudi. I dvogodišnji šaran ima nizak procenat masti iz čega se može zaključiti da šaran ne spada u masne ribe jer ima niži procenat sadržaja masti od pastrmke. Tehnologija gajenja odnosno vrsta dodatne ishrane je najodgovornija za procenat masti. Odnos nezasićenih masnih kiselina kod linjaka povoljniji je nego kod šarana i pastrmke i u sličnom nivou je sa istim kod morskih vrsta riba. Meso dvogodišnjih riba po svom hemijskom sastavu ima prednost u odnosu na meso riba gajenih u trogodišnjem i višegodišnjem sistemu gajenja. Ekstenzivni sistem ima prednost u kvalitetu mesa ali treba analizirati njegovu ekonomsku opravdanost. Kvalitet mesa linjaka je izuzetnih nutritivnih vrednosti što je razlog za njegovu reintrodukciju i repopulaciju. Meso riba visoke nutritivne vrednosti ima perspektivu kao izvozni artikal u zemlje Evropske Unije i druge razvijene zemlje

Uticaj ulja uljane repice u ribljoj hrani na kvalitet mesa šarana

Meso šarana, najzastupljenije ribe na ribnjacima u Republici Srbiji, predstavlja značajan nutritivni izvor n-3 visoko nezasićenih masnih kisleina (HUFA), pre svega eikozapentaenske (EPA) i dokozaheksaenske (DHA) kiseline, koje imaju važnu ulogu u bitnim fiziološkim procesima u organizmu i očuvanju zdravlja ljudi. Sadržaj masti i masnokiselinski sastav šarana su pod uticajem pola, godišnjeg doba, reproduktivnog statusa, uslova životne sredine, načina gajenja a posebno načina ishrane. Dobra tehnologija proizvodnje na ribnjaku je od nesumnjivog značaja za odgovarajuću strukturu planktonskih i bentosnih organizama, što igra veliku ulogu u dobijanju mesa šarana što boljeg hemijskog sastava. Riblje ulje je dugo predstavljalo glavni izvor masti u hrani za ribe, ali je zbog sve veće potrošnje, pa samim tim smanjene raspoloživosti i drastičnog povećanja cene istog došlo do povećanja upotrebe ulja biljnog porekla kao potpune ili delimične zamene za riblje ulje u hrani za ribe. Zamena ribljeg ulja sa biljnim uljima može imati i negativnih efekata na ribe iz uzgoja pošto je riblje ulje dobar izvor n-3 HUFA, što nije slučaj kada su u pitanju ulja biljnog porekla koja sadrže visok procenat 18C n-3 masnih kiselina, ali su siromašna ili potpuno lišena n-3 HUFA. Prema dosadašnjim istraživanima šaran ima veće potrebe za n-6, nego za n-3 masnim kisleinama za optimalan rast i razvoj. Uljana repica ima višestruku namenu: za ishranu ljudi, životinja i kao industrijska biljka. Odnos n-6/n-3 u ulju uljane repice je 2:1, što je pogodno sa aspekta zdravlja ljudi; bogato je oleinskom kisleinom i polinezasićenom masnim kiselinama (PUFA), pogotovo sa linolnom i linoleinskom kiselinom, ali ne poseduje n-3 HUFA. Često se upotrebljava u komercijalnim smešama za ishranu riba, bez negativnog uticaja na proizvodne parametre, ali može imati negativan uticaj na masnokiselinski sastav mesa šarana. Međutim, najveći broj istraživanja o zameni ribljeg ulja uljem uljane repice je izveden na salmonidnim vrtsama riba, pa su poželjna dalja ispitivanja o uticaju ovog ulja na kvalitet mesa i imunološki status šarana. Može se reći da meso šarana uglavnom poseduje povoljan masnokisleinski sastav i svrstati se u zdravu hranu za ljude. Gajenje šarana sa korišćenjem gotovih krmnih smeša bi trebalo da postane praksa na ribnjacima u Srbiji, kako bi se povećala proizvodnja po jedinici površine, dobio šaran što boljeg kvaliteta i postigla dugoročna ekonomska održivost. Takođe, potrebno je vršiti promociju šarana kao nacionalog zdravog proizvoda poželjnog u svakodnevnoj ishrani ljudi. Istraživanja o daljem unapređenju kvaliteta mesa šarana, kao i o načinu ishrane koji će zadovoljiti potrebe ove vrste, ali i ciljeve što ekonomičnije proizvodnje su neophodna u cilju dobijanja što jeftinijeg šarana, koji će zadovoljiti sve potrebe potrošača

Ulja biljnog porekla u ishrani ciprinidnih vrsta riba

Meso ciprinidnih vrsta riba predstavlja značajan izvor proteina, masti, vitamina i minerala u ishrani ljudi. Masti ovih ribljih vrsta su bogate nezasićenim masnim kiselinama (USFA), kako mononezasićenom (MUFA), tako i polinezasićenim (PUFA) masnim kiselinama. Navedene grupe masnih kiselina imaju mnogobrojne povoljne efekte na održavanje fizioloških procesa u organizmu, pa samim tim i na očuvanje zdravlja ljudi. Hemijski sastav mesa ciprinidnih vrsta riba, kao i masnokisleinski sastav istog su pod uticajem brojnih faktora, među kojima je ishrana jedan od najznačajnijih. Glavni izvor masti u hrani za ribe je dugo bilo riblje ulje, ali je zbog drastičnog povećanja proizvodnje ribe iz akvakulture, njegova dalja upotreba u istoj meri postala neodrživa. U zavisnosti od vrste ribe, kao izvor masti se sve više koriste ulja biljnog porekla, kao delimična ili potpuna zamena za riblje ulje u kompletnoj hrani za ribe. Ovaj alternativni izvor masti može imati i negativnih efekata na ribe iz akvakulture, pre svega jer su ulja biljnog porekla siromašna ili su potpuno bez n-3 visoko nezasićenih masnih kiselina (n-3 HUFA), dok je riblje ulje poznato kao jako dobar izvor pomenutih masnih kiselina. Ovaj problem je slabije izražen kod ciprinidnih vrsta riba, koje su omnivori ili herbivori i prema rezultatima dosadašnjih istraživanja imaju veće potrebe za n-6 nego za n-3 masnim kiselinama za optimalan rast i održavanje bitnih fizioloških funkcija. Biljna ulja koje se najčešće koriste u ishrani riba su sojino, laneno, ulje uljane repice, suncokretovo, palmino i druga ulja. Upotrebljavaju se u komercijalnim smešama za ishranu ciprinidnih vrsta riba, bez negativnog uticaja na proizvodne parametre, ali mogu nepovoljno uticati na masnokiselinski sastav mesa ovako hranjenih riba. Međutim, najveći broj istraživanja o zameni ribljeg ulja uljima biljnog porekla je izveden na salmonidnim vrstama riba, pa su poželjna dalja ispitivanja o uticaju različitih vrsta ulja biljnog porekla na hemijski i masnokiselinski sastav mesa, kao i na zdravstveno stanje ciprinida. Meso cipirinidnih vrsta je uglavnom pogodnog hemijskog i masnokiselinskog sastava i predstavlja važnu komponentu u zdravoj ishrani ljudi. Sve navedeno ukazuje na neophodnost istraživanja o daljem unapređenju kvaliteta mesa ciprinidnih vrsta riba upotrebom kompletnih smeša, kako bi se zadovoljile nutritivne potrebe ovih vrsta, povećala proizvodnja po jedinici površine, dobila riba kao finalni proizvod što boljeg kvaliteta i postigla dugoročna ekonomska održivost i zadovoljile potrebe potrošača. Pored toga, potrebno je kontinuirano vršiti promociju ribe gajene na ribnjacima Srbije kao nacionalog zdravog proizvoda poželjnog u svakodnevnoj ishrani ljudi

The Role of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Obesity: A Review of Laboratory and Epidemiological Studies

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are considered as potential obesogens that may affect adipose tissue development and functioning, thus promoting obesity. However, various POPs may have different mechanisms of action. The objective of the present review is to discuss the key mechanisms linking exposure to POPs to adipose tissue dysfunction and obesity. Laboratory data clearly demonstrate that the mechanisms associated with the interference of exposure to POPs with obesity include: (a) dysregulation of adipogenesis regulators (PPARγ and C/EBPα); (b) affinity and binding to nuclear receptors; (c) epigenetic effects; and/or (d) proinflammatory activity. Although in vivo data are generally corroborative of the in vitro results, studies in living organisms have shown that the impact of POPs on adipogenesis is affected by biological factors such as sex, age, and period of exposure. Epidemiological data demonstrate a significant association between exposure to POPs and obesity and obesity-associated metabolic disturbances (e.g., type 2 diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome), although the existing data are considered insufficient. In conclusion, both laboratory and epidemiological data underline the significant role of POPs as environmental obesogens. However, further studies are required to better characterize both the mechanisms and the dose/concentration-response effects of exposure to POPs in the development of obesity and other metabolic diseases.publishedVersio

Photoacoustic characterization of TiO2 thin-films deposited on Silicon substrate using neural networks

In this paper, the possibility of determining the thermal, elastic and geometric characteristics of a thin TiO2 film deposited on a silicon substrate, thickness 30 mikrons, in the frequency range of 20 to 20 kHz with neural networks was analyzed. For this purpose, the substrate parameters remained the known and constant in the two-layer model and nano layer thin-film parameters were changed: thickness, expansion and thermal diffusivity. Prediction of these three parameters was analyzed separately with three neural networks and all of these together by fourth neural network. It was shown that neural network, which analyzed all three parameters at the same time, achieved the highest accuracy, so the use of networks that provide predictions for only one parameter is less reliable.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figure