A constructive approach to Noether's problem

A general method is developed to attack Noether's Problem constructively by trying to find minimal bases consisting of rational invariants which are quotients of polynomials of small degrees. The applications show that this approach is successful for many small groups and for most of the classical groups with their natural representations. Affirmative answers to Noether's Problem are obtained for the conformal symplectic groups CSp_2_n(q), for the simple subgroups #OMEGA#_n(q) of the orthogonal groups for n and q odd, for some other subgroups of orthogonal groups and for the special unitary groups SU_n(q"2). (orig.)Available from TIB Hannover: RR 1606(95-21) / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekSIGLEDEGerman

Epidemiology of trauma history and body pain : A retrospective study of community-based Australian women

Objective To assess whether body pain was associated with different trauma histories (physical injury vs. interpersonal injury [IPI]) within Australian women, along with body pain and trauma history associations with biological and psychological (biopsycho) confounders. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional analysis was conducted on the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH) 1973–1978 birth cohort wave 6 data. Relevant life events were categorized into two types of traumatic experience and included as exposure variables in a multinomial regression model for body pain subgroups. Also, subgroup analyses considered trauma and pain effects and interactions on biopsycho burden. Results The unadjusted multinomial regression model revealed that a history of physical injury was found to be significantly associated with body pain severity, as was a history of IPI trauma. After the model was adjusted to include biopsycho confounders, the association between IPI and body pain was no longer significant, and post hoc analysis revealed the relationship was instead mediated by biopsycho confounders. Women with a history of IPI and body pain were also found to have the greatest biopsycho (physical functioning, stress, anxiety, and depression) burden. Discussion The relationship between IPI and body pain was found to be mediated by biopsycho burden, whereas the relationship between physical injury and body pain was not. Also, a history of IPI was associated with a greater biopsycho burden than was a history of physical injury. These results suggest there is clinical value in considering the comprehensive trauma history of patients with pain when developing their biopsychosocial model of care

Experiences and interpretations of BRCA1/2 testing among women affected by breast or ovarian cancer who received a negative result

The aim of this study was to retrospectively describe the genetic testing motives and experiences of women with a previous breast and/or ovarian cancer diagnosis, who received negative BRCA1/2 results including variants of unknown significance and no pathogenic variant detected. One hundred and thirteen women (mean age 56.17 years) were recruited from a familial cancer centre in metropolitan Australia, an average 3.4 years after undergoing testing. Participants completed a self-report questionnaire focusing on the retrospective experience of and motives for undergoing BRCA1/2 testing. The study found that the primary motives for undergoing BRCA1/2 testing were (a) to know more about whether their cancer was hereditary, and (b) to have more certainty about the risk of their children developing cancer. In terms of perceptions of personal risk, 35% of women perceived that their risk of breast cancer to be the same or lower than the general population and 80% believed the negative test result to mean that a risk-conferring gene had not been detected. Yet, the average estimate of the likelihood that their cancer was hereditary was 48 out of a possible 100. Psychologically, women did not interpret the negative BRCA1/2 result as a positive outcome. Half were not relieved by the result and were as or more worried than before. Psychological morbidity was high with 17%, 100%, and 36% experiencing clinically significant depression, anxiety, and cancer-specific distress, respectively. Self-ratings of the likelihood that their cancer was hereditary were more closely associated with their personal family cancer histories than with measures of psychological distress. These results have implications for adherence to risk-reducing behaviours and quality of life. Given that these women are not routinely followed up in clinical practice, these findings highlight the importance of post-test genetic counselling and longer-term follow-up for women with negative BRCA1/2 results. Additional time and emotional support from genetic counsellors may help this group of women make sense of the meaning of their test result and adjust psychologically, particularly to uncertainty around the cause of their family history

#MindinBody - Feasibility of vigorous exercise (Bikram yoga versus high intensity interval training) to improve persistent pain in women with a history of trauma:A pilot randomized control trial

Background: The neurobiology of persistent pain shares common underlying psychobiology with that of traumatic stress. Modern treatments for traumatic stress often involve bottom-up sensorimotor retraining/exposure therapies, where breath, movement, balance and mindfulness, are used to target underlying psychobiology. Vigorous exercise, in particular Bikram yoga, combines many of these sensorimotor/exposure therapeutic features. However, there is very little research investigating the feasibility and efficacy of such treatments for targeting the underlying psychobiology of persistent pain. Methods: This study was a randomized controlled trail (RCT) comparing the efficacy of Bikram yoga versus high intensity interval training (HIIT), for improving persistent pain in women aged 20 to 50 years. The participants were 1:1 randomized to attend their assigned intervention, 3 times per week, for 8 weeks. The primary outcome measure was the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) and further pain related biopsychosocial secondary outcomes, including SF-36 Medical Outcomes and heart rate variability (HRV), were also explored. Data was collected pre (t0) and post (t1) intervention via an online questionnaire and physiological testing. Results: A total of 34 women were recruited from the community. Analyses using ANCOVA demonstrated no significant difference in BPI (severity plus interference) scores between the Bikram yoga (n = 17) and the HIIT (n = 15). Women in the Bikram yoga group demonstrated significantly improved SF-36 subscale physical functioning: [ANCOVA: F(1, 29) = 6.17, p = .019, partial eta-squared effect size (ηp2) = .175 and mental health: F(1, 29) = 9.09, p = .005, ηp2 = .239; and increased heart rate variability (SDNN): F(1, 29) = 5.12, p = .013, ηp2 = .150, scores compared to the HIIT group. Across both groups, pain was shown to decrease, no injuries were experienced and retention rates were 94% for Bikram yoga and 75% for HIIT . Conclusions: Bikram yoga does not appear a superior exercise compared to HIIT for persistent pain. However, imporvements in quality of life measures and indicator of better health were seen in the Bikram yoga group. The outcomes of the present study suggest vigorous exercise interventions in persistent pain cohorts are feasible

Incorporating a Piperidinyl Group in the Fluorophore Extends the Fluorescence Lifetime of Click-Derived Cyclam-Naphthalimide Conjugates

<div><p>Ligands incorporating a tetraazamacrocycle receptor, a ‘click’- derived triazole and a 1,8-naphthalimide fluorophore have proven utility as probes for metal ions. Three new cyclam-based molecular probes are reported, in which a piperidinyl group has been introduced at the 4-position of the naphthalimide fluorophore. These compounds have been synthesized using the copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne Huisgen cycloaddition and their photophysical properties studied in detail. The alkylamino group induces the expected red-shift in absorption and emission spectra relative to the simple naphthalimide derivatives and gives rise to extended fluorescence lifetimes in aqueous buffer. The photophysical properties of these systems are shown to be highly solvent-dependent. Screening the fluorescence responses of the new conjugates to a wide variety of metal ions reveals significant and selective fluorescence quenching in the presence of copper(II), yet no fluorescence enhancement with zinc(II) as observed previously for the simple naphthalimide derivatives. Reasons for this different behaviour are proposed. Cytotoxicity testing shows that these new cyclam-triazole-dye conjugates display little or no toxicity against either DLD-1 colon carcinoma cells or MDA-MB-231 breast carcinoma cells, suggesting a potential role for these and related systems in biological sensing applications.</p></div

Cytotoxicity of 8–10, 14, 18 and 21 against DLD-1 colon carcinoma cells and MDA-MB-231 breast carcinoma cells after incubation for 72 h.

<p>IC₅₀ values are expressed as mean ± standard error of mean of at least 3 independent experiments.</p

Synthesis of the cyclam-piperidinylnaphthalimide conjugates 8–10.

<p><i>Reagents and conditions</i>: (a) 4-bromoaniline, piperidine, 2-methoxyethanol, reflux, 72 h, 90%; (b) NaN₃, CuI, sodium ascorbate, DMEDA, THF/H₂O (7∶3), 12 h, 50%; (c) propargyl-tri-Boc cyclam, CuSO₄·5H₂O, sodium ascorbate, THF/H₂O (7∶3), rt for <b>13</b> and 50°C for <b>17</b>, 12 h, <b>14</b>: 96%, <b>18</b>: 92%; (d) (i) TFA/DCM/H₂O (90∶5∶5), rt, 6 h; (ii) Ambersep 900 hydroxide form, CH₃OH, rt, 15 min, <b>8</b>: 96%, <b>9</b>: 99%, <b>10</b>: 99%; (e) 2-aminoethanol, EtOH, reflux, 22 h, 92%; (f) PBr₃, pyridine, THF, 50°C, 16 h, 60%; (g) NaN₃, EtOH, reflux, 6 h, 80%; (h) trimethylsilylacetylene, CuI, triphenylphosphine, Pd(PPh₃)₄, Et₃N, pyridine, 85°C, o/n, 94%; (i) K₂CO₃, CH₃OH, rt, o/n, 97%; (j) 2-azidoethyl-tri-Boc cyclam, CuSO₄·5H₂O, sodium ascorbate, THF/H₂O (7∶3), 12 h, 66%.</p

Competitive binding experiments.

<p>Experiments were carried out to investigate the effectiveness of Cu²⁺-induced (1 equiv.) quenching of the fluorescence of probes <b>8</b>–<b>10</b> (10 µM) in HEPES buffer (10 mM, pH 7.4) at 25°C in the presence of excess Zn²⁺ (50 equiv.).</p

Cyclam-piperidinylnaphthalimide conjugates 8–10 studied in this work.

<p>Cyclam-piperidinylnaphthalimide conjugates 8–10 studied in this work.</p

Fluorescent probes 1–7 used in previous studies.

<p>Fluorescent probes 1–7 used in previous studies.</p