Edem mozga kod zavisnika od droge

Background/Aim. The effect of drugs leaves permanent consequences on the brain, organic in type, followed by numerous manifestations, and it significantly affects the development of mental dysfunctions. The clinicians are often given a task to estimate a patient's personality during treatment or during experts estimate of a drug addict. The aim of this research was to determine the differences, if any, in characteristics of addicts experience and personality traits in drug addicts with or without cerebral edema. Methods. The research was conducted on a sample of 252 male drug addicts, the average age of 23.3 (SD = 4.3) years. Cerebral edema was confirmed on magnetic resonance (MR) images of the brain performed during the treatment of the addicts. The participants were tested by the psychologists using Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-201) test, and the data were processed using canonical discriminate analysis within the SPSS program. The dependent variable in the study was cerebral edema. A block of independent variables, designed for the requirements of this study, consisted of two subgroups. The first one consisted of 12 variables describing the relevant characteristics of drug abuse. The second subgroup consisted of 8 psychopathological tendencies in the personality defined by the mentioned test. Results. Cerebral edema was confirmed in 52 (20.63%) of the drug addicts. The differences between the groups of drug addicts with and without cerebral edema were determined in the following: the time span of taking drugs (0.301), use of alcohol parallel with drugs (0.466), and treatment for addiction (0.603). In the drug addicts with a cerebral edema, MMPI-201 confirmed the increase in the scales for hypochondria, psychopathic deviations and psychastenia, and the decrease in the scales for schizophrenia and depression. Conclusion. Our study confirmed a possible connection between cerebral edema and personality traits in a number of the examined drug addicts. Considering the fact that practice often requires personality estimation, regardless whether it is about treatment or expert's estimate, it is necessary to further research in this direction.Uvod/Cilj. Dejstvo droge ostavlja trajne posledice organskog tipa, na mozak, praćene brojnim neurološkim manifestacijama, i bitno utiče na razvoj psihičkih poremećaja. Kliničarima se često postavlja zadatak da procene ličnost tokom lečenja ili veštačenja zavisnika od droge. Cilj istraživanja bio je utvrđivanje karakteristika narkomanskog staža i osobina ličnosti kod zavisnika od droge sa i bez edema mozga. Metode. Istraživanje je sprovedeno u grupi od 252 zavisnika od droge muškog pola, prosečne starosti 23,3 (SD = 4,3) godine. Za vreme lečenja zavisnika od droge rađena je magnetna rezonanca mozga, a za procenu psihopatoloških tendencija ličnosti korišćen je Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-201) test. Za obradu podataka korišćena je kanonička diskriminativna analiza u sklopu SPSS programa. Zavisna varijabla u istraživanju bio je edem mozga. Blok nezavisnih varijabli, sačinjen za potrebe ovog istraživanja, sastojao se od dve podgrupe. Prvu je činilo 12 varijabli kojima se opisuju relevantna obeležja zavisnosti od droga. Drugu je činilo 8 psihopatoloških tendencija ličnosti definisanih pomenutim testom. Rezultati. Edem mozga utvrđen je kod 52 (20,63%) zavisnika od droge. Razlike između grupa zavisnika od droge sa i bez edema mozga utvrđene su u dužini narkomanskog staža (0,301), korišćenju alkohola paralelno sa drogama (0,466) i lečenju zavisnosti (0,603). Kod zavisnika od droge sa cerebralnim edemom na MMPI-201 testu utvrđene su povišene skale hipohondrije, psihopatske devijacije i psihastenije, a sniženje skala šizofrenije i depresije. Zaključak. Kod jednog broja ispitivanih zavisnika od droge potvrđena je sumnja u mogućnost povezanosti edema mozga i osobina ličnosti. S obzirom na to da praksa često iziskuje potrebu za procenom ličnosti, bilo da se radi o lečenju ili veštačenju, neophodno je nastaviti istraživanja u ovom pravcu

Dispositional Mindfulness, Meditation, and Conditional Goal Setting

Conditional goal setting (CGS, the tendency to regard high order goals such as happiness, as conditional upon the achievement of lower order goals) is observed in individuals with depression and recent research has suggested a link between levels of dispositional mindfulness and conditional goal setting in depressed patients. Since interventions which aim to increase mindfulness through training in meditation are used with patients suffering from depression it is of interest to examine whether such interventions might alter CGS. Study 1 examined the correlation between changes in dispositional mindfulness and changes in CGS over a 3-4 month period in patients participating in a pilot randomised controlled trial of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). Results indicated that increases in dispositional mindfulness were significantly associated with decreases in CGS, although this effect could not be attributed specifically to the group who had received training in meditation. Study 2 explored the impact of brief periods of either breathing or loving kindness meditation on CGS in 55 healthy participants. Contrary to expectation, a brief period of meditation increased CGS. Further analyses indicated that this effect was restricted to participants low in goal re-engagement ability who were allocated to loving kindness meditation. Longer term changes in dispositional mindfulness are associated with reductions in CGS in patients with depressed mood. However initial reactions to meditation, and in particular loving kindness meditation, may be counterintuitive and further research is required in order to determine the relationship between initial reactions and longer-term benefits of meditation practice

Erektilna disfunkcija, zavisnost od droge i osobine ličnosti

Introduction Drug addiction is a relatively frequent cause of erectile dysfunction. It is believed that this substance induced disorder is a consequence of direct physiological effects of toxic substances. Objective The subject of this paper is to analyze the impact of variables of dependency and variables of personality on the differences between groups of drug users with and without diagnosed erectile dysfunction. The objective is to determine the possibility of predicting these differences using variables of dependency and analysis of the role of personality in that process. Method A sample of addicts comprises 252 males, aged between 19 and 25 years (average 23.3), with the length of dependency from 1 to 5 years. All subjects were convicted for robbery in the period 2007- 2010. year. Dependence and sexual dysfunction were determined using the forensic examination of psychiatrists, and evidence of personality traits using the psychologists expertise (based on the MMPI). Data collection was performed by analyzing of court cases in 2011 year. Testing the difference between groups was done by canonical discriminant analysis. Group of addicts with erectile dysfunction consists of 54 subjects (21.4%), and group of addicts without that dysfunction consists of 198 subjects (78.6%). Results The results obtained by analyzing the difference found out one canonical function, significant at the level of 0.001. Its canonical correlation is .430. This function is defined by four variables of dependency and two variables of personality traits. Conclusion Canonical function explains 18.5% of the variance of differences between analyzed groups. The direct impact and the ability to predict differences have: early onset of drug use, lack of addiction treatment, short periods of abstinence, taking of heroin and synthetic drugs and high hysteria. All of these variables affect in the direction of the occurrence of disorder. In the opposite direction operate the using of cocaine and paranoia.Uvod Zavisnost od droge je relativno čest razlog erektilne disfunkcije. Smatra se da je ovaj supstancama indukovani poremećaj posledica direktnih fizioloških efekata toksičnih supstanci. Cilj Predmet ovog rada je analiza uticaja varijabli zavisnosti i osobina ličnosti na razlike između grupa zavisnika sa i bez dijagnostifikovane erektilne disfunkcije. Cilj rada je utvrđivanje mogućnosti prognoziranja ovih razlika varijablama zavisnosti i analiza uloge osobina ličnosti u tom procesu. Metod Uzorak zavisnika čini 252 subjekta muškog pola, starih između 19 i 25 godina (prosek 23,3), sa stažom zavisnosti od 1 do 5 godina. Svi subjekti su osuđeni za razbojništva u periodu 2007-2010. godine. Zavisnost i seksualna disfunkcija utvrđeni su sudskim veštačenjem psihijatara, a osobine ličnosti veštačenjem psihologa (na osnovu testa MMPI). Prikupljanje podataka obavljeno je analizom sudskih predmeta 2011. godine. Testiranje razlika između grupa učinjeno je kanoničkom diskriminativnom analizom. Grupa zavisnika sa erektilnom disfunkcijom broji 54 (21,4%) ispitanika, a grupa bez te disfunkcije 198 (78,6%). Rezultati Analizom razlika dobijena je jedna kanonička funkcija značajna na nivou 0.001. Njena kanonička korelacija je reda veličine .430. Ovu funkciju definišu četiri varijable zavisnosti i dve osobine ličnosti. Zaključak Kanonička funkcija objašnjava 18,5% varijanse razlika između grupa koje su analizirane. Neposredan uticaj i mogućnost predviđanja razlika imaju: rani početak korišćenja droge, izostanak lečenja zavisnosti, kratki periodi apstinencije, unos heroina i sintetičkih droga i visoka histeričnost. Sve te varijable deluju u pravcu javljanja poremećaja. U suprotnom smeru deluju korišćenje kokaina i paranoidnost

Bis-Bibenzyls from the Liverwort Pellia endiviifolia and Their Biological Activity

Based on previous investigations where bis-bibenzyls isolated from liverworts showed various biological activities (cytotoxic, antimicrobial, and antiviral), we investigated their cytotoxic activity in several human cancer cell lines. From the methylene-chloride/methanol extract of the liverwort Pellia endiviifolia, three bis-bibenzyls of the perrottetin type were isolated, namely perrottetin E, 10′-hydroxyperrottetin E, and 10,10′-dihydroxyperrottetin E. The last two were found for the first time in this species. Their structures were resolved using 1D and 2D NMR, as well as by comparison with data in the literature. Cytotoxic activity of the isolated compounds was tested on three human leukemia cell lines, HL-60 (acute promyelocytic leukemia cells), U-937 (acute monocytic leukemia cells), and K-562 (human chronic myelogenous leukemia cells), as well as on human embryonal teratocarcinoma cell line (NT2/D1) and human glioblastoma cell lines A-172 and U-251, and compared to the previously isolated bis-bibenzyls (perrottetins) of similar structure. The isolated compounds exhibited modest activity against leukemia cells and significant activity against NT2/D1 and A-172. Overall, the most active cytotoxic compounds in this investigation were perrottetin E (1), isolated in this work from Pellia endiviifolia, and perrottetin F phenanthrene derivative (7), previously isolated from Lunularia cruciata and added for a comparison of their cytotoxic activity

Honey bee foraging distance depends on month and forage type

To investigate the distances at which honey bee foragers collect nectar and pollen, we analysed 5,484 decoded waggle dances made to natural forage sites to determine monthly foraging distance for each forage type. Firstly, we found significantly fewer overall dances made for pollen (16.8 %) than for non-pollen, presumably nectar (83.2 %; P < 2.2 × 10−23). When we analysed distance against month and forage type, there was a significant interaction between the two factors, which demonstrates that in some months, one forage type is collected at farther distances, but this would reverse in other months. Overall, these data suggest that distance, as a proxy for forage availability, is not significantly and consistently driven by need for one type of forage over the other

Influence of dietary carrot and paprika on egg physical characteristics and yolk color

For many consumers egg yolk color is a very important characteristic of egg quality. Since hens are not able to synthesize coloring pigments, the intensity of the yolk color depends directly on the content and profile of pigmenting carotenoids present in their feed. The aim of this study was to assess the combined pigmenting effect of paprika and carrot and their ability to achieve egg yolks in the desired color range. Biological tests lasted for 30 days and were conducted on 180 Lohmann Brown layers. The laying hens were divided in six groups. Every group was assigned to one of six possible treatments, control 1 (C1) treatment without any pigments added, control 2 (C2) treatment with synthetic pigments added and four experimental diets (D1, D2, D3, D4) with the addition of natural color sources (paprika and carrot). After experimental period collected eggs were analyzed regarding physical characteristics of eggs, content of β-carotene and yolk color of eggs. Obtained results has shown that dried carrot and milled paprika can successfully replace synthetic pigments, with no negative effects on physical characteristics of produced eggs, egg yolk color, acceptability or β-carotene content

The Validity and Structure of Culture-Level Personality Scores: Data From Ratings of Young Adolescents

We examined properties of culture-level personality traits in ratings of targets (N=5,109) ages 12 to 17 in 24 cultures. Aggregate scores were generalizable across gender, age, and relationship groups and showed convergence with culture-level scores from previous studies of self-reports and observer ratings of adults, but they were unrelated to national character stereotypes. Trait profiles also showed cross-study agreement within most cultures, 8 of which had not previously been studied. Multidimensional scaling showed that Western and non-Western cultures clustered along a dimension related to Extraversion. A culture-level factor analysis replicated earlier findings of a broad Extraversion factor but generally resembled the factor structure found in individuals. Continued analysis of aggregate personality scores is warranted. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.Fil: McCrae, Robert R.. National Institute on Ageing; CanadáFil: Terracciano, Antonio. National Institute on Ageing; CanadáFil: De Fruyt, Filip. University of Ghent; BélgicaFil: De Bolle, Marleen. University of Ghent; BélgicaFil: Gelfand, Michele J.. University of Maryland; Estados UnidosFil: Costa Jr., Paul T.. National Institute on Ageing; CanadáFil: Klinkosz, Waldemar. The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin; PoloniaFil: Knežević, Goran. Belgrade University; SerbiaFil: Leibovich de Figueroa, Nora. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Löckenhoff, Corinna E.. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Martin, Thomas A.. Susquehanna University; Estados UnidosFil: Marušić, Iris. Institute for Social Research; CroaciaFil: Mastor, Khairul Anwar. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia; MalasiaFil: Nakazato, Katsuharu. Iwate Prefectural University; AfganistánFil: Nansubuga, Florence. Makerere University; UgandaFil: Porrata, Jose. No especifíca;Fil: Purić, Danka. Belgrade University; SerbiaFil: Realo, aAnu. University of Tartu; EstoniaFil: Reátegui, Norma. Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia; PerúFil: Rolland, Jean Pierre. Universite Paris Ouest Nanterre la Defense; FranciaFil: Schmidt, Vanina Ines. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología. Instituto de Investigaciones; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Sekowski, Andrzej. The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin; PoloniaFil: Shakespeare Finch, Jane. Queensland University of Technology; AustraliaFil: Shimonaka, Yoshiko. Bunkyo Gakuin University; JapónFil: Simonetti, Franco. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; ChileFil: Siuta, Jerzy. Jagiellonian University;Fil: Szmigielska, Barbara. Jagiellonian University;Fil: Vanno, Vitanya. Srinakharinwirot University; TailandiaFil: Wang, Lei. Peking University; ChinaFil: Yik, Michelle. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; Hong Kon

Targeting deficiencies in the TLR5 mediated vaginal response to treat female recurrent urinary tract infection

Abstract The identification of the host defence peptides as target effectors in the innate defence of the uro-genital tract creates new translational possibilities for immunomodulatory therapies, specifically vaginal therapies to treat women suffering from rUTI, particularly those carrying the TLR5_C1174T SNP. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a microbial disease reported worldwide. Women are particularly susceptible with many suffering debilitating recurrent (r) infections. Treatment is by antibiotics, but such therapy is linked to antibiotic resistance and re-infection. This study explored the innate protective mechanisms of the urogenital tract with the aim of boosting such defences therapeutically. Modelling UTIs in vitro, human vaginal and bladder epithelial cells were challenged with uropathogenic Escherichia coli (CFT073) and microbial PAMPs including flagellin, LPS and peptidoglycan. Flagellin functioning via the TLR5/NFκB pathway was identified as the key UPEC virulence factor causing a significant increase (P < 0.05) in the production of the host-defence peptide (HDP), BD2. BD2-depleted urine samples from bladder infected mice supported increased UPEC growth, strengthening the significance of the HDPs in protecting the urogenital tissues from infection. Clinically, vaginal-douche BD2 concentrations were reduced (p < 0.05) in women suffering rUTIs, compared to age-matched healthy controls with concentrations further decreased (p < 0.05) in a TLR5392Stop SNP rUTI subgroup. Topical vaginal estrogen treatment increased (p < 0.001) BD2 concentrations in all women, including those carrying the SNP. These data identify therapeutic and antibiotic sparing roles for vaginal immunomodulatory agents that specifically target HDP induction, facilitate bacterial killing and disrupt the UPEC infection cycle

Reconstruction of Family-Level Phylogenetic Relationships within Demospongiae (Porifera) Using Nuclear Encoded Housekeeping Genes

Background: Demosponges are challenging for phylogenetic systematics because of their plastic and relatively simple morphologies and many deep divergences between major clades. To improve understanding of the phylogenetic relationships within Demospongiae, we sequenced and analyzed seven nuclear housekeeping genes involved in a variety of cellular functions from a diverse group of sponges. Methodology/Principal Findings: We generated data from each of the four sponge classes (i.e., Calcarea, Demospongiae, Hexactinellida, and Homoscleromorpha), but focused on family-level relationships within demosponges. With data for 21 newly sampled families, our Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian-based approaches recovered previously phylogenetically defined taxa: Keratosap, Myxospongiaep, Spongillidap, Haploscleromorphap (the marine haplosclerids) and Democlaviap. We found conflicting results concerning the relationships of Keratosap and Myxospongiaep to the remaining demosponges, but our results strongly supported a clade of Haploscleromorphap+Spongillidap+Democlaviap. In contrast to hypotheses based on mitochondrial genome and ribosomal data, nuclear housekeeping gene data suggested that freshwater sponges (Spongillidap) are sister to Haploscleromorphap rather than part of Democlaviap. Within Keratosap, we found equivocal results as to the monophyly of Dictyoceratida. Within Myxospongiaep, Chondrosida and Verongida were monophyletic. A well supported clade within Democlaviap, Tetractinellidap, composed of all sampled members of Astrophorina and Spirophorina (including the only lithistid in our analysis), was consistently revealed as the sister group to all other members of Democlaviap. Within Tetractinellidap, we did not recover monophyletic Astrophorina or Spirophorina. Our results also reaffirmed the monophyly of order Poecilosclerida (excluding Desmacellidae and Raspailiidae), and polyphyly of Hadromerida and Halichondrida. Conclusions/Significance: These results, using an independent nuclear gene set, confirmed many hypotheses based on ribosomal and/or mitochondrial genes, and they also identified clades with low statistical support or clades that conflicted with traditional morphological classification. Our results will serve as a basis for future exploration of these outstanding questions using more taxon- and gene-rich datasets