Sulfurous Gases As Biological Messengers and Toxins: Comparative Genetics of Their Metabolism in Model Organisms

Gasotransmitters are biologically produced gaseous signalling molecules. As gases with potent biological activities, they are toxic as air pollutants, and the sulfurous compounds are used as fumigants. Most investigations focus on medical aspects of gasotransmitter biology rather than toxicity toward invertebrate pests of agriculture. In fact, the pathways for the metabolism of sulfur containing gases in lower organisms have not yet been described. To address this deficit, we use protein sequences from Homo sapiens to query Genbank for homologous proteins in Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila melanogaster, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In C. elegans, we find genes for all mammalian pathways for synthesis and catabolism of the three sulfur containing gasotransmitters, H2S, SO2 and COS. The genes for H2S synthesis have actually increased in number in C. elegans. Interestingly, D. melanogaster and Arthropoda in general, lack a gene for 3-mercaptopyruvate sulfurtransferase, an enzym for H2S synthesis under reducing conditions

The Universal Gaussian in Soliton Tails

We show that in a large class of equations, solitons formed from generic initial conditions do not have infinitely long exponential tails, but are truncated by a region of Gaussian decay. This phenomenon makes it possible to treat solitons as localized, individual objects. For the case of the KdV equation, we show how the Gaussian decay emerges in the inverse scattering formalism.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, revtex with eps

Overcome procrastination: Enhancing emotion regulation skills reduce procrastination

AbstractProcrastination is a widespread phenomenon that affects performance in various life domains including academic performance. Recently, it has been argued that procrastination can be conceptualized as a dysfunctional response to undesired affective states. Thus, we aimed to test the hypothesis that the availability of adaptive emotion regulation (ER) skills prevents procrastination.In a first study, cross-sectional analyses indicated that ER skills and procrastination were associated and that these connections were mediated by the ability to tolerate aversive emotions. In a second study, cross lagged panel analyses showed that (1) the ability to modify aversive emotions reduced subsequent procrastination and that (2) procrastination affected the subsequent ability to tolerate aversive emotions. Finally, in a third study, a two-arm randomized control trial (RCT) was conducted. Results indicated that systematic training of the ER skills tolerate and modify aversive emotions reduced procrastination. Thus, in order to overcome procrastination, emotion-focused strategies should be considered

Evaluating the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of web-based indicated prevention of major depression: design of a randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Major depressive disorder (MDD) imposes a considerable disease burden on individuals and societies. Web-based interventions have shown to be effective in reducing depressive symptom severity. However, it is not known whether web-based interventions may also be effective in preventing the onset of MDD. The aim of this study is to evaluate the (cost-) effectiveness of an indicated web-based guided self-help intervention (GET.ON Mood Enhancer Prevention) on the onset of MDD. METHODS/DESIGN: A randomised controlled trial (RCT) will be conducted to compare the (cost-) effectiveness of the GET.ON Mood Enhancer Prevention training with a control condition exclusively receiving online-based psychoeducation on depression. Adults with subthreshold depression (N = 406) will be recruited from the general population and randomised to one of the two conditions. The primary outcome is time to onset of MDD within a 12-months follow-up period. MDD will be assessed according to DSM-IV criteria as assessed by the telephone-administered Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID). Time to onset of MDD will be assessed using life charts. Secondary outcomes include changes on various indicators of depressive symptom severity, anxiety and quality of life from baseline to post-treatment, to a 6-month and a 12-month follow up. Additionally, an economic evaluation using a societal perspective will be conducted to examine the intervention’s cost-effectiveness. DISCUSSION: This is one of the first randomised controlled trials that examines the effect of an indicated guided self-help web-based intervention on the incidence of major depression. If shown to be effective, the intervention will contribute to reducing the disease burden due to MDD in the general population. TRIAL REGISTRATION: German Clinical Trial Registration DRKS00004709

Standalone smartphone apps for mental health—a systematic review and meta-analysis

While smartphone usage is ubiquitous, and the app market for smartphone apps targeted at mental health is growing rapidly, the evidence of standalone apps for treating mental health symptoms is still unclear. This meta-analysis investigated the efficacy of standalone smartphone apps for mental health. A comprehensive literature search was conducted in February 2018 on randomized controlled trials investigating the effects of standalone apps for mental health in adults with heightened symptom severity, compared to a control group. A random-effects model was employed. When insufficient comparisons were available, data was presented in a narrative synthesis. Outcomes included assessments of mental health disorder symptom severity specifically targeted at by the app. In total, 5945 records were identified and 165 full-text articles were screened for inclusion by two independent researchers. Nineteen trials with 3681 participants were included in the analysis: depression (k = 6), anxiety (k = 4), substance use (k = 5), self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (k = 4), PTSD (k = 2), and sleep problems (k = 2). Effects on depression (Hedges’ g = 0.33, 95%CI 0.10–0.57, P = 0.005, NNT = 5.43, I2 = 59%) and on smoking behavior (g = 0.39, 95%CI 0.21–0.57, NNT = 4.59, P ≤ 0.001, I2 = 0%) were significant. No significant pooled effects were found for anxiety, suicidal ideation, self-injury, or alcohol use (g = −0.14 to 0.18). Effect sizes for single trials ranged from g = −0.05 to 0.14 for PTSD and g = 0.72 to 0.84 for insomnia. Although some trials showed potential of apps targeting mental health symptoms, using smartphone apps as standalone psychological interventions cannot be recommended based on the current level of evidence

Numerical Simulations of Globular Cluster Formation

We examine various physical processes associated with the formation of globular clusters by using the three-dimensional Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) code. Our code includes radiative cooling of gases, star formation, energy feedback from stars including stellar winds and supernovae, and chemical enrichment by stars. We assume that, in the collapsing galaxy, isothermal cold clouds form through thermal condensations and become proto-globular clouds. We calculate the size of proto-globular clouds by solving the linearized equations for perturbation. We compute the evolution of the inner region of the proto-cloud with our SPH code for various initial radius and initial composition of gases. When the initial gases contain no heavy elements, the evolution of proto-clouds sensitively depends on the initial radius. For a smaller initial radius, the initial star burst is so intense that the subsequent star formation occurs in the central regions to form a dense star cluster as massive as the globular cluster. When the initial gases contain some heavy elements, the metallicity of gases affects the evolution and the final stellar mass. If the initial radius of the proto-globular clouds was relatively large, the formation of a star cluster as massive as the globular clusters requires the initial metallicity as high as [Fe/H] $\geq -2$. The self-enrichment of heavy elements in the star cluster does not occur in all cases.Comment: Accpeted for publication in the ApJ. Correctiong errors in Table

COMPARE Family (Children of Mentally Ill Parents at Risk Evaluation): A Study Protocol for a Preventive Intervention for Children of Mentally Ill Parents (Triple P, Evidence-Based Program That Enhances Parentings Skills, in Addition to Gold-Standard CBT With the Mentally Ill Parent) in a Multicenter RCT—Part II

Background: Mental health problems are highly frequent, as well as being associated with enormous societal and economic costs and significant disability-adjusted life years. Children of parents with a mental illness (COPMI) are at a tremendously increased risk to develop disorders themselves. According to the literature, parental mental disorders launch a wave of risk factors that in turn predict the emergence of psychological problems in the offspring, and effective treatment of the parental disorder has been associated with reduced child psychopathology (launch and grow assumption). Furthermore, studies focusing on parent-child interaction demonstrate generally poorer parenting skills in parents with mental disorders, and the enhancement of such skills has been a significant mediator in improving child outcomes (parenting assumption).Objective: To implement a preventive intervention for COPMI with the aim of interrupting the transmission of mental disorders in children of a parent with mental disorders. An RCT will compare state-of-the-art cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for a parent with mental disorders to CBT plus the Positive Parenting Program (Triple-P), a well-established and evidence-based program that enhances parenting skills.Methods: A total of 634 patients seeking treatment in 8 outpatient clinics in Germany and their children will be included between January 2018 and April 2021 in the study. We use (clinical) interviews and self- as well as other-report questionnaires to assess the families at four main measurement points [T1: beginning of waiting period for psychotherapy treatment (duration of waiting period depends on usual waiting period in the study center: multiple baselines), T2: begin of parental psychotherapy, T3: post-assessment, T4: 6 months follow-up]. The total observation period will be 39 months. The patients will be randomly assigned to either the control condition (25 to 45 CBT sessions) or the experimental condition (25 to 45 CBT sessions + 10 Triple-P sessions). For evaluating the treatment process, the patients and clinicians will also be assessed after each treatment session. Furthermore, there will be a continuous assessment and report of adverse events during treatment.Discussion: This trial will be the first ever to address the launch and grow as well as the parenting assumption in one study and to establish effects of the two different interventions on children's health. Our study will also likely be the first one to provide data on the comparative cost-effectiveness and will therefore provide essential information relevant for the potential implementation of such programs. The structure of the RCT will allow us to establish effects of the parental disorder(s) with/without comorbidities on children's health, to test assumptions of the trans-generational transmission model of mental disorders and bi-directional influences of different treatments on the model and to analyze specific transmission mechanisms. A deeper understanding of risk mechanisms will reveal specific transmission profiles that will result in the early detection of and effective reduction in risk factors and thus improve the health of the children at risk.Ethics: The study is carried out according to the Good Clinical Practice (GCP) guidelines, the Declaration of Helsinki and its later supplements and local legal requirements. The lead ethics committee at the department of psychology at Philipps-University Marburg approved the study procedure and all study documents. A positive ethics committee vote is required at a study site, before the inclusion of a first patient at the respective site.Dissemination: Via peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals, the results of this study will be made available to the scientific community. Using PsychData all primary data will be made available for re- and meta-analyses. Politicians, public health services, and stakeholders will be informed throughout the study and beyond, thus, improving public policy and health care decisions concerning preventive interventions and treatments for COPMI.Trial Registration: DRKS-ID: DRKS00013516 (German Clinical Trials Register, https://www.drks.de/drks_web/navigate.do?navigationId=trial.HTML&TRIAL_ID=DRKS00013516

Inner Structure of Protostellar Collapse Candidate B335 Derived from Millimeter-Wave Interferometry

We present a study of the density structure of the protostellar collapse candidate B335 using continuum observations from the IRAM Plateau de Bure Interferometer made at wavelengths of 1.2mm and 3.0mm. We analyze these data, which probe spatial scales from 5000 AU to 500 AU, directly in the visibility domain by comparison to synthetic observations constructed from models that assume different physical conditions. This approach allows for much more stringent constraints to be derived from the data than from analysis of images. A single radial power law in density provides a good description of the data, with best fit power law index p=1.65+/-0.05. Through simulations, we quantify the sensitivity of this result to various model uncertainties, including assumptions of temperature distribution, outer boundary, dust opacity spectral index, and an unresolved central component. The largest uncertainty comes from the unknown presence of a centralized point source. A point source with 1.2mm flux of F=12+/-7 mJy reduces the density index to p=1.47+/-0.07. The remaining sources of systematic uncertainty, the most important of which is the temperature distribution, likely contribute a total uncertainty of < 0.2. We therefore find strong evidence that the power law index of the density distribution within 5000 AU is significantly less than the value at larger radii, close to 2.0 from previous studies of dust emission and extinction. These results conform well to the generic paradigm of isolated, low-mass star formation which predicts a power law density index close to p=1.5 for an inner region of gravitational free fall onto the protostar.Comment: Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal; 27 pages, 3 figure

Quantum gravitational contributions to quantum electrodynamics

Quantum electrodynamics describes the interactions of electrons and photons. Electric charge (the gauge coupling constant) is energy dependent, and there is a previous claim that charge is affected by gravity (described by general relativity) with the implication that the charge is reduced at high energies. But that claim has been very controversial with the situation inconclusive. Here I report an analysis (free from earlier controversies) demonstrating that that quantum gravity corrections to quantum electrodynamics have a quadratic energy dependence that result in the reduction of the electric charge at high energies, a result known as asymptotic freedom.Comment: To be published in Nature. 19 pages LaTeX, no figure

Does SMS-Support Make a Difference? Effectiveness of a Two-Week Online-Training to Overcome Procrastination. A Randomized Controlled Trial

The primary purpose of this randomized controlled trial (RCT) was to evaluate the efficacy of an unguided, 2-week internet-based training program to overcome procrastination, called ON.TOP. Because adherence is a typical problem among individuals who tend to procrastinate, especially with internet-based interventions, the secondary purpose of the present study was to investigate whether adding SMS support increases subjects’ frequency of engagement in training. In a three-armed RCT (N = 161), the effects of the intervention alone and intervention with daily SMS-support were compared to a waiting list control condition in a sample of students. The primary outcome of interest was procrastination. The secondary outcome of interest was the extent of training behavior. Baseline (T0), immediate post-treatment (T1) and 8-week post-treatment (T2) assessments were conducted. Results indicated that procrastination decreased significantly only with intervention group with daily SMS support, relative to control. Moreover, incorporating SMS support also may enhance extent of training behavior