Effects of lined traces and hand motion in underlining sentences on comprehension

Previous studies have shown that underlining sentences while reading is an effective comprehension strategy that many people use spontaneously. We examined which components of this underlining strategy could facilitate comprehension. The effects on comprehension of lined traces and hand movement were examined independently. Eighty-two undergraduates were assigned to one of the four conditions: both traces and movement, movement and no trace, traces and no movement, and neither trace nor movement. After reading the expository text as instructed for ten minutes, participants were instructed to solve a Sudoku puzzle as a distracter task for three minutes. They were then asked to summarize, title, and generate three keywords for the text in ten minutes. The results showed that hand movement facilitated appropriate summarization and that lined traces enhanced appropriate titling. We interpreted the results in terms of cognitive load theory and external memory aid

Aging-like physiological changes in the skin of Japanese obese diabetic patients

Objective: Obesity-associated diabetes causes aging-like changes to skin physiology in animal models, but there have been no clinical studies focusing on human obese diabetic patients. The purpose of this study was to examine the hypothesis that obesity-associated diabetes accelerates aging-like skin changes in Japanese people. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled obese-diabetes patients (body mass index ≥ 25 kg m−2) and healthy volunteers (body mass index < 25 kg m −2 ) as controls. Skin physiology parameters relating to aging (stratum corneum hydration, transepidermal water loss, skin pH, advanced glycation end-products, and dermal collagen density) were evaluated in the two groups. Results: About 37 subjects participated (16 in a control group and 21 in an obese-diabetes group). Age was not significantly different between the groups. The stratum corneum hydration level was significantly lower in the obese-diabetes group. Transepidermal water loss and levels of advanced glycation end-products were significantly higher in this group. Skin pH was not significantly different between groups. Dermal collagen density decreased in the obese-diabetes group. Conclusion: We showed that obese-diabetes patients have decreased stratum corneum hydration, increased transepidermal water loss, higher skin advanced glycation end-products and decreased dermal collagen fiber density compared with normal-weight subjects. These results indicate that the ordinary age-related physiological skin changes seen in the elderly can also occur in obese-diabetes patients aged in their 40s

Synthesis, Characterization, and Biological Affinity of a Near-Infrared-Emitting Conjugated Oligoelectrolyte

[Image: see text] A near-IR-emitting conjugated oligoelectrolyte (COE), ZCOE, was synthesized, and its photophysical features were characterized. The biological affinity of ZCOE is compared to that of an established lipid-membrane-intercalating COE, DSSN+, which has blue-shifted optical properties making it compatible for tracking preferential sites of accumulation. ZCOE exhibits diffuse staining of E. coli cells, whereas it displays internal staining of select yeast cells which also show propidium iodide staining, indicating ZCOE is a “dead” stain for this organism. Staining of mammalian cells reveals complete internalization of ZCOE through endocytosis, as supported by colocalization with LysoTracker and late endosome markers. In all cases DSSN+ persists in the outer membranes, most likely due to its chemical structure more closely resembling a lipid bilayer

Substance P NK1 receptor in the rat corpus callosum during postnatal development

Introduction: The expression of substance P (SP) receptor (neurokinin 1, NK1) was studied in the rat corpus callosum (cc) from postnatal day 0 (the first 24 hr from birth, P0) to P30. Methods: We used immunocytochemistry to study the presence of intracallosal NK1- immunopositive neurons (NK1IP-n) during cc development. Results: NK1IP-n first appeared on P5. Their number increased significantly between P5 and P10, it remained almost constant between P10 and P15, then declined slightly until P30. The size of intracallosal NK1IP-n increased constantly from P5 (102.3 μm2) to P30 (262.07 μm2). From P5 onward, their distribution pattern was adult-like, that is, they were more numerous in the lateral and intermediate parts of the cc, and declined to few or none approaching the midline. At P5, intracallosal NK1IP-n had a predomi- nantly round cell bodies with primary dendrites of different thickness from which origi- nated thinner secondary branches. Between P10 and P15, dendrites were longer and more thickly branched, and displayed several varicosities as well as short, thin append- ages. Between P20 and P30, NK1IP-n were qualitatively indistinguishable from those of adult animals and could be classified as bipolar (fusiform and rectangular), round– polygonal, and pyramidal (triangular–pyriform). Conclusions: Number of NK1IP-n increase between P5 and P10, then declines, but un- like other intracallosal neurons, NK1IP-n make up a significant population in the adult cc. These findings suggest that NK1IP-n may be involved in the myelination of callosal axons, could play an important role in their pathfinding. Since they are also found in adult rat cc, it is likely that their role changes during lifetime