Affective responses for the promotion of physical activity in emerging adulthood

Physical activity (PA) has mental and physical health benefits, yet many emerging adults (aged 18-29) are not meeting PA recommendations and thus, not reaping those benefits. Emerging adulthood is marked by new life experiences (e.g., changing residence) that are related to negative health effects which may be mitigated by PA. Affect may be one way to promote PA as hedonic theories posit that people are more likely to participate in behaviors that make them feel more pleasurable. Laboratory-based studies provide support for hedonic theories; however, laboratory investigations may not represent affective responses during PA in everyday life. Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) can overcome laboratory limitations by using accelerometers and mobile phones to repeatedly capture affective responses during PA in real-time and -world settings. This study sought to examine (1) how PA influences affective responses during the behavior in real-world settings and (2) how affective responses during PA predicts minutes of PA the following day. Physically active emerging adults completed a 10-day study in which participants responded to EMA prompts randomly throughout the day and during PA bouts to assess affect. Participants wore an accelerometer during waking hours to assess PA and trigger EMA prompts during bouts of PA. Emerging adults (n = 80; Mage = 22.8; 79% Female; 56% White, 41% Black or African American; MBMI = 25.38) completed the 10-day study. Results for Aim 1 revealed that at the between-person level, emerging adults who, on average, engaged in a greater proportion of occasions of PA experienced increases in positive affect (b = 24.901, SE = 10.384, p = 0.017) and decreases in negative affect (b = -39.693, SE = 14.533, p = 0.006) but no difference in feelings of energy (b = 13.721, SE = 13.084, p = 0.295) or feelings of fatigue (b = -21.541, SE = 16.441, p = 0.190). At the within-person level, on occasions when emerging adults engaged in PA, they experienced a decrease in negative affect (b = -4.808, SE = 1.306, p < 0.001) and feelings of fatigue (b = -7.224, SE = 1.900, p < 0.001) and increases in feelings of energy (b = 14.231, SE = 2.065, p < 0.001) but no difference in positive affect (b = 1.414, SE = 1.359, p = 0.298). Results for Aim 2 revealed that at the between-person level, emerging adults who, on average, experienced an increase in their average negative affect and feelings of energy during PA compared to non-PA occasions tended to engage in more next day PA (b = 0.025, SE = 0.011, p = 0.023) and less next day PA (b = -0.016, SE = 0.008, p = 0.036), respectively. At the between-person level, average changes in positive affect (b = 0.007, SE = 0.011, p = 0.502) and feelings of fatigue (b = 0.006, SE = 0.011, p = 0.596) during PA compared to non-PA occasions were not associated with next day PA. At the within-person level, on days when an individual experienced a larger than usual increase in feelings of fatigue during a bout of PA compared to during non-PA occasions, they engaged in less PA time the following day (b = -0.025, SE = 0.008, p = 0.002). At the within-person level, changes in positive affect (b = -0.009, SE = 0.009, p = 0.321), negative affect (b = -0.041, SE = 0.023, p = 0.077), and feelings of energy (b = 0.001, SE = 0.005, p = 0.855) during a bout of PA compared to during non-PA occasions were not associated with next day PA. Current findings suggests that interventions may consider promoting PA based on affective recommendations for immediate health benefits. Future work should examine differences in the association across the lifespan, in insufficiently active individuals, and across varying timescales to elucidate the pathway for effective health promotion

Biochemical aspects of nitric oxide synthase feedback regulation by nitric oxide

Nitric oxide (NO) is a small gas molecule derived from at least three isoforms of the enzyme termed nitric oxide synthase (NOS). More than 15 years ago, the question of feedback regulation of NOS activity and expression by its own product was raised. Since then, a number of trials have verified the existence of negative feedback loop both in vitro and in vivo. NO, whether released from exogenous donors or applied in authentic NO solution, is able to inhibit NOS activity and also intervenes in NOS expression processes by its effect on transcriptional nuclear factor NF-κB. The existence of negative feedback regulation of NOS may provide a powerful tool for experimental and clinical use, especially in inflammation, when massive NOS expression may be detrimental

The Role of Protein Crystallography in Defining the Mechanisms of Biogenesis and Catalysis in Copper Amine Oxidase

Copper amine oxidases (CAOs) are a ubiquitous group of enzymes that catalyze the conversion of primary amines to aldehydes coupled to the reduction of O2 to H2O2. These enzymes utilize a wide range of substrates from methylamine to polypeptides. Changes in CAO activity are correlated with a variety of human diseases, including diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer’s disease, and inflammatory disorders. CAOs contain a cofactor, 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ), that is required for catalytic activity and synthesized through the post-translational modification of a tyrosine residue within the CAO polypeptide. TPQ generation is a self-processing event only requiring the addition of oxygen and Cu(II) to the apoCAO. Thus, the CAO active site supports two very different reactions: TPQ synthesis, and the two electron oxidation of primary amines. Crystal structures are available from bacterial through to human sources, and have given insight into substrate preference, stereospecificity, and structural changes during biogenesis and catalysis. In particular both these processes have been studied in crystallo through the addition of native substrates. These latter studies enable intermediates during physiological turnover to be directly visualized, and demonstrate the power of this relatively recent development in protein crystallography

Evidence-based Kernels: Fundamental Units of Behavioral Influence

This paper describes evidence-based kernels, fundamental units of behavioral influence that appear to underlie effective prevention and treatment for children, adults, and families. A kernel is a behavior–influence procedure shown through experimental analysis to affect a specific behavior and that is indivisible in the sense that removing any of its components would render it inert. Existing evidence shows that a variety of kernels can influence behavior in context, and some evidence suggests that frequent use or sufficient use of some kernels may produce longer lasting behavioral shifts. The analysis of kernels could contribute to an empirically based theory of behavioral influence, augment existing prevention or treatment efforts, facilitate the dissemination of effective prevention and treatment practices, clarify the active ingredients in existing interventions, and contribute to efficiently developing interventions that are more effective. Kernels involve one or more of the following mechanisms of behavior influence: reinforcement, altering antecedents, changing verbal relational responding, or changing physiological states directly. The paper describes 52 of these kernels, and details practical, theoretical, and research implications, including calling for a national database of kernels that influence human behavior

Racial and Sex Differences in 24 Hour Urinary Hydration Markers among Male and Female Emerging Adults: A Pilot Study

The purpose of this study was to examine 24 h urinary hydration markers in non-Hispanic White (WH) and non-Hispanic Black (BL) males and females. Thirteen males (BL, n = 6; WH, n = 7) and nineteen females (BL, n = 16, WH, n = 3) (mean ± SD; age, 20 ± 4 y; height, 169.2 ± 12.2 cm; body mass, 71.3 ± 12.2 kg; body fat, 20.8 ± 9.7%) provided a 24 h urine sample across 7 (n = 13) or 3 (n = 19) consecutive days (148 d total) for assessment of urine volume (UVOL), urine osmolality (UOSM), urine specific gravity (USG), and urine color (UCOL). UVOL was significantly lower in BL (0.85 ± 0.43 L) compared to WH college students (2.03 ± 0.70 L) (p < 0.001). Measures of UOSM, USG, and UCOL, were significantly greater in BL (716 ± 263 mOsm∙kg−1, 1.020 ± 0.007, and 4.2 ± 1.4, respectively) compared to WH college students (473 ± 194 mOsm∙kg−1, 1.013 ± 0.006, 3.0 ± 1.2, and respectively) (p < 0.05). Differences in 24 h urinary hydration measures were not significantly different between males and females (p > 0.05) or between the interaction of sex and race/ethnicity (p > 0.05). Non-Hispanic Black men and women were inadequately hydrated compared to their non-Hispanic White counterparts. Our findings suggest that development of targeted strategies to improve habitual fluid intake and potentially overall health are needed