Campus & alumni news

Boston University Medicine was published by the Boston University Medical Campus, and presented stories on events and topics of interest to members of the BU Medical Campus community. It followed the discontinued publication Centerscope as Boston University Medicine from 1991-2005, then continued as Campus and Alumni News from 2006-2013 before returning to the title Boston University Medicine from 2014-present

Die Bedeutung von Impulsivität bei Alkoholabhängigkeit

Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der Frage, welche Bedeutung Impulsivität bei Alkoholabhängigkeit zukommt. Zu diesem Zweck wird untersucht, ob sich die Alkoholikersubtypen Typ I und Typ II nach Cloninger, Bohman und Sigvardsson (1981) hinsichtlich ihrer Impulsivität unterscheiden. Ebenso wird die Bedeutung auftretender Komorbiditäten ADHS, Frontalhirnschädigung und Psychopathie in Bezug auf Impulsivität überprüft. Die Studie bezieht sich auf 72 alkoholabhängige Männer. Zur Erfassung der Impulsivität dient der Subtest „Flächengrößen vergleichen“ aus der Computertestbatterie „Arbeitshaltungen“. Dabei handelt es sich um einen objektiven Persönlichkeitstest, der Impulsivität im Sinne eines kognitiven Stils erfasst. In zahlreichen Studien wurde festgestellt, dass höhere Impulsivität bei substanzabhängigen Personen im Vergleich zu Kontrollgruppen ohne Drogenkonsum besteht. Es liegen auch Unterschiede zwischen alkoholabhängigen Personen mit Merkmalen wie antisozialer Persönlichkeitsstörung oder früher Beginn der Alkoholabhängigkeit und alkoholabhängigen Personen, die diese Kriterien nicht erfüllen, vor. Deshalb soll als Studienziel der Frage nachgegangen werden, ob dies auch bei den Subtypen der Alkoholabhängigkeit Typ I und Typ II nach Cloninger et al. (1981) und bei Komorbiditäten, die durch impulsive Verhaltensweisen gekennzeichnet sind, beobachtbar sind. Die Analyse der Daten zeigt, dass ein signifikanter Unterschied nur bei einer Komponente der Psychopathie, nämlich der „Schuldexternalisierung“ feststellbar ist. Die Ergebnisse sind somit nur als mäßig zu beschreiben, wobei gewisse Trends erkennbar sind, deren Aussagekraft an einer zu kleinen Stichprobe scheitert.This study was carried out in order to analyze the impact of impulsivity on alcoholism. For this reason 72 alcohol dependend men were analyzed concerning impulsivity and their particular subtype of alcohol dependency. Furthermure, the frequent comorbidities ADHD, frontal lobe syndrom and psychopathy are researched with regard on differences in impulsivity. Impulsivity is measured by the subtest „Flächengrößen vergleichen“, which is part of the computer testbattery „Arbeitshaltungen“. This objective assessment measures impulsivity as a cognitve style. A number of studies showed that substance addicted persons score higher on impulsivity in contrast to healthy control groups. Alcohol dependend persons with characteristics like antisocial personality disorder or an early onset of addiction also score higher on impulsivity than persons without these characteristics. The aim of this study was to research whether these differences also occur on the binary typology for subjects with alcohol dependency as promoted by Cloninger, Bohman and Sigvardsson (1981) and on comorbidities characterized by impulsive behavior. Data shows that this difference appeares only significant on one component of psychopathy, the externalization of blame. The results can be considered as unspecific, although certain trends occur, which have to be retested in a greater sample

Wenn die Rolle nicht mehr reicht. Im Chaos von Lesbos

Julia Horn arbeitet seit 27 Jahren als freie Fernsehjournalistin und Filmemacherin vorwiegend für WDR, arte, ZDF und ist als Dozentin und Coach tätig. Auf Lesbos wollte sie eigentlich einen Film über eine Hilfsaktion von Rupert Neudeck drehen, doch dann kam alles ganz anders. Konfrontiert mit der Not der auf Lesbos ankommenden Flüchtenden, konnte sie nicht länger objektive Beobachterin bleiben. Für Communicatio Socialis reflektiert sie ihren Rollenwechsel und berichtet über ihre Erfahrungen.

Drying-Rewetting and Flooding Impact Denitrifier Activity Rather than Community Structure in a Moderately Acidic Fen

Wetlands represent sources or sinks of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O). The acidic fen Schlöppnerbrunnen emits denitrification derived N2O and is also capable of N2O consumption. Global warming is predicted to cause more extreme weather events in future years, including prolonged drought periods as well as heavy rainfall events, which may result in flooding. Thus, the effects of prolonged drought and flooding events on the abundance, community composition, and activity of fen denitrifiers were investigated in manipulation experiments. The water table in the fen was experimentally lowered for 8 weeks in 2008 and raised for 5.5 months in 2009 on three treatment plots, while three plots were left untreated and served as controls. In situ N2O fluxes were rather unaffected by the drought treatment and were marginally increased by the flooding treatment. Samples were taken before and after treatment in both years. The structural gene markers narG and nosZ were used to assess possible changes in the nitrate reducer and denitrifier community in response to water table manipulations. Detected copy numbers of narG and nosZ were essentially unaffected by the experimental drought and flooding. Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP) patterns of narG and nosZ were similar before and after experimental drought or experimental flooding, indicating a stable nitrate reducer and denitrifier community in the fen. However, certain TRFs of narG and nosZ transcripts responded to experimental drought or flooding. Nitrate-dependent Michaelis-Menten kinetics were assessed in anoxic microcosms with peat samples taken before and 6 months after the onset of experimental flooding. Maximal reaction velocities vmax were higher after than before flooding in samples from treament but not in those from control plots taken at the same time. The ratio of N2O to N2O + N2 was lower in soil from treatment plots after flooding than in soil from control plots, suggesting mitigation of N2O emissions by increased N2O-reduction rates after flooding. N2O was consumed to subatmospheric levels in all microcosms after flooding. The collective data indicate that water table manipulations had only minor effects on in situ N2O fluxes, denitrifier abundance, and denitrifier community composition of the acidic fen, while active subpopulations of denitrifiers changed in response to water table manipulations, suggesting functionally redundant subpopulations occupying distinct ecological niches in the fen

Methylomonas albis sp. nov. and Methylomonas fluvii sp. nov.: Two cold-adapted methanotrophs from the river Elbe and emended description of the species Methylovulum psychrotolerans

Three strains of methanotrophic bacteria (EbAT, EbBT and Eb1) were isolated from the River Elbe, Germany. These Gram-negative, rod-shaped or coccoid cells contain intracytoplasmic membranes perpendicular to the cell surface. Colonies and liquid cultures appeared bright-pink. The major cellular fatty acids were 12:0 and 14:0, in addition in Eb1 the FA 16:1ω5t was also dominant. Methane and methanol were utilized as sole carbon sources by EbBT and Eb1, while EbAT could not use methanol. All strains oxidize methane using the particulate methane monooxygenase. Both strains contain an additional soluble methane monooxygenase. The strains grew optimally at 15–25 °C and at pH 6 and 8. Based on 16S rRNA gene analysis recovered from the full genome, the phylogenetic position of EbAT is robustly outside any species clade with its closest relatives being Methylomonas sp. MK1 (98.24%) and Methylomonas sp. 11b (98.11%). Its closest type strain is Methylomonas methanica NCIMB11130 (97.91%). The 16S rRNA genes of EbBT are highly similar to Methylomonas methanica strains with Methylomonas methanica R-45371 as the closest relative (99.87% sequence identity). However, average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA-hybridization (dDDH) values reveal it as distinct species. The DNA G + C contents were 51.07 mol% and 51.5 mol% for EbAT and EbBT, and 50.7 mol% for Eb1, respectively. Strains EbAT and EbBT are representing two novel species within the genus Methylomonas. For strain EbAT we propose the name Methylomonas albis sp. nov (LMG 29958, JCM 32282) and for EbBT, we propose the name Methylomonas fluvii sp. nov (LMG 29959, JCM 32283). Eco-physiological descriptions for both strains are provided. Strain Eb1 (LMG 30323, JCM 32281) is a member of the species Methylovulum psychrotolerans. This genus is so far only represented by two isolates but Eb1 is the first isolate from a temperate environment; so, an emended description of the species is given

Guest Recital: Gaudete Brass

Kemp Recital HallFebruary 8, 2012Wednesday Evening7:00 p.m

Beweidungsinduzierte Änderungen des Wasserhaushaltes in der Inneren Mongolei, VR China

Steigende Beweidungsintensitäten in der Inneren Mongolei haben in den letzten Jahrzehnten zu einer fortschreitenden Degradation des Steppenbodens geführt. Beweidung und Tiertritt haben nachhaltige Auswirkungen auf den Bodenwasserhaushalt u. a. durch die Veränderung der Wasserleitfähigkeitsfunktion, seiner Tensor-komponenten und von Poreneigenschaften. Ziel dieser Untersuchung war die Darstellung der Auswirkung unterschiedlicher Beweidungs- intensitäten auf Kenngrößen des Bodenwasserhaushaltes

Child Marriages and Unions in Latin America: Understanding the Roles of Agency and Social Norms

El propósito de este artículo es demostrar que los matrimonios y las uniones infantiles pueden infringir los derechos sexuales y reproductivos de adolescentes y jóvenes. Indica que las intervenciones promueven cada vez más estrategias para transformar las normas sociales. Presenta los resultados de un análisis de secundario de casos cruzados de tres estudios cualitativos: en Brasil, Guatemala y Honduras. Se trató de entender las prácticas matrimoniales. En los tres casos, la agencia como las normas sociales siempre desempeñaron un papel en el matrimonio y/o uniones de los niños