Defining codependency : a factor analytic approach

This study examined the construct validity of the Friel Inventory, via relationship with the ACL. A factor analysis of the ACL scores collected from 89 introductory psychology students was conducted. These factors were then correlated with the items of the Friel Inventory, which was from the same subjects. The purpose was to determine if codependence, as measured by the Friel Inventory, was a unique construct or a combination of well researched personality traits, as measured by the ACL. The findings supported the former as the correlations among the Friel Inventory items and the ACL factors yielded no relationships above that of chance; therefore, these two inventories are independent. Suggestions for future research and explanation thereof are offered so that the professional community may better assess and meet the needs of the codependent individual

Transduction of E2F-1 TAT fusion proteins represses expression of hTERT in primary ductal breast carcinoma cell lines

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Telomerase expression is detectable in 81–95% of breast carcinomas and may serve as a therapeutic target. The objective of this study was to investigate repression of telomerase activity in primary ductal breast cancer cells through transcriptional regulation of the catalytic subunit hTERT. We hypothesized that inhibition of telomerase expression could be achieved via Tat mediated protein transduction of the repressor protein E2F-1.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Protein purification techniques were refined to yield biologically active Tat fusion proteins (TFPs) capable of transducing the breast cancer cell lines HCC1937 and HCC1599. Cell lines were treated with wildtype E2F-1 (E2F-1/TatHA), mutant E2F-1 (E132/TatHA) and a control Tat peptide (TatHA) for 24 hours. Total RNA was isolated from treated cells, reverse transcribed and fold changes in gene expression for hTERT determined via real-time RT-qPCR.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Significant repression of the catalytic subunit of telomerase (hTERT) was present in both HCC1937 and HCC1599 cells following treatment with E2F-1/TatHA. In HCC1937 cells, hTERT was repressed 3.5-fold by E2F-1/TatHA in comparison to E132/TatHA (p < 0.0012) and the TatHA peptide controls (p < 0.0024). In HCC1599 cells, hTERT was also repressed with E2F-1/TatHA treatment by 4.0-fold when compared to the E132/TatHA control (p < 0.0001). A slightly lower hTERT repression of 3.3-fold was observed with E2F-1/TatHA in the HCC1599 cells when compared to the TatHA control (p < 0.0001).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results suggest that transduction of E2F-1/TatHA fusion proteins in vitro is an effective repressor of hTERT expression in the primary ductal breast cancer cell lines HCC1937 and HCC1599.</p

Increasing the Availability and Consumption of Drinking Water in Middle Schools: A Pilot Study

Introduction: Although several studies suggest that drinking water may help prevent obesity, no US studies have examined the effect of school drinking water provision and promotion on student beverage intake. We assessed the acceptability, feasibility, and outcomes of a school-based intervention to improve drinking water consumption among adolescents. Methods: The 5-week program, conducted in a Los Angeles middle school in 2008, consisted of providing cold, filtered drinking water in cafeterias; distributing reusable water bottles to students and staff; conducting school promotional activities; and providing education. Self-reported consumption of water, nondiet soda, sports drinks, and 100% fruit juice was assessed by conducting surveys among students (n = 876), preintervention and at 1 week and 2 months postintervention, from the intervention school and the comparison school. Daily water (in gallons) distributed in the cafeteria during the intervention was recorded. Results: After adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and baseline intake of water at school, the odds of drinking water at school were higher for students at the intervention school than students at the comparison school. Students from the intervention school had higher adjusted odds of drinking water from fountains and from reusable water bottles at school than students from the comparison school. Intervention effects for other beverages were not significant. Conclusion: Provision of filtered, chilled drinking water in school cafeterias coupled with promotion and education is associated with increased consumption of drinking water at school. A randomized controlled trial is necessary to assess the intervention's influence on students' consumption of water and sugar-sweetened beverages, as well as obesity-related outcomes

Sex-Related Differences in Violence Exposure, Neural Reactivity to Threat, and Mental Health

The prefrontal cortex (PFC), hippocampus, and amygdala play an important role in emotional health. However, adverse life events (e.g., violence exposure) affect the function of these brain regions, which may lead to disorders such as depression and anxiety. Depression and anxiety disproportionately affect women compared to men, and this disparity may reflect sex differences in the neural processes that underlie emotion expression and regulation. The present study investigated sex differences in the relationship between violence exposure and the neural processes that underlie emotion regulation. In the present study, 200 participants completed a Pavlovian fear conditioning procedure in which cued and non-cued threats (i.e., unconditioned stimuli) were presented during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Violence exposure was previously assessed at four separate time points when participants were 11-19 years of age. Significant threat type (cued versus non-cued) × sex and sex × violence exposure interactions were observed. Specifically, women and men differed in amygdala and parahippocampal gyrus reactivity to cued versus non-cued threat. Further, dorsolateral PFC (dlPFC) and inferior parietal lobule (IPL) reactivity to threat varied positively with violence exposure among women, but not men. Similarly, threat-elicited skin conductance responses varied positively with violence exposure among women. Finally, women reported greater depression and anxiety symptoms than men. These findings suggest that sex differences in threat-related brain and psychophysiological activity may have implications for mental health

Seasonal Habitat Preference and Foraging Behaviour of Post-Moult Weddell Seals in the Western Ross Sea

Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) are important predators in the Southern Ocean and are among the best-studied pinnipeds on Earth, yet much still needs to be learned about their year-round movements and foraging behaviour. Using biologgers, we tagged 62 post-moult Weddell seals in McMurdo Sound and vicinity between 2010 and 2012. Generalized additive mixed models were used to (i) explain and predict the probability of seal presence and foraging behaviour from eight environmental variables, and (ii) examine foraging behaviour in relation to dive metrics. Foraging probability was highest in winter and lowest in summer, and foraging occurred mostly in the water column or just above the bottom; across all seasons, seals preferentially exploited the shallow banks and deeper troughs of the Ross Sea, the latter providing a pathway for Circumpolar Deep Water to flow onto the shelf. In addition, the probability of Weddell seal occurrence and foraging increased with increasing bathymetric slope and where water depth was typically less than 600 m. Although the probability of occurrence was higher closer to the shelf break, foraging was higher in areas closer to shore and over banks. This study highlights the importance of overwinter foraging for recouping body mass lost during the previous summer

K2 discovers a busy bee: an unusual transiting Neptune found in the beehive cluster

Open clusters have been the focus of several exoplanet surveys, but only a few planets have so far been discovered. The Kepler spacecraft revealed an abundance of small planets around small cool stars, therefore, such cluster members are prime targets for exoplanet transit searches. Kepler's new mission, K2, is targeting several open clusters and star-forming regions around the ecliptic to search for transiting planets around their low-mass constituents. Here, we report the discovery of the first transiting planet in the intermediate-age (800 Myr) Beehive cluster (Praesepe). K2-95 is a faint (Kp = 15.5 mag) dwarf from K2's Campaign 5 with an effective temperature of 3471 ±124 K, approximately solar metallicity and a radius of 0.402± 0.050.R⊕ We detected a transiting planet with a radius of3.47+0.78 -0.53R⊕ and an orbital period of 10.134 days. We combined photometry, medium/high-resolution spectroscopy, adaptive optics/speckle imaging, and archival survey images to rule out any false-positive detection scenarios, validate the planet, and further characterize the system. The planet's radius is very unusual as M-dwarf field stars rarely have Neptune-sized transiting planets. The comparatively large radius of K2-95b is consistent with the other recently discovered cluster planets K2-25b (Hyades) and K2-33b (Upper Scorpius), indicating systematic differences in their evolutionary states or formation. These discoveries from K2 provide a snapshot of planet formation and evolution in cluster environments and thus make excellent laboratories to test differences between field-star and cluster planet populations

Risk of Ovarian Cancer and Inherited Variants in Relapse-Associated Genes

Background: We previously identified a panel of genes associated with outcome of ovarian cancer. The purpose of the current study was to assess whether variants in these genes correlated with ovarian cancer risk. Methods and Findings: Women with and without invasive ovarian cancer (749 cases, 1,041 controls) were genotyped at 136 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within 13 candidate genes. Risk was estimated for each SNP and for overall variation within each gene. At the gene-level, variation within MSL1 (male-specific lethal-1 homolog) was associated with risk of serous cancer (p = 0.03); haplotypes within PRPF31 (PRP31 pre-mRNA processing factor 31 homolog) were associated with risk of invasive disease (p = 0.03). MSL1 rs7211770 was associated with decreased risk of serous disease (OR 0.81, 95 % CI 0.66–0.98; p = 0.03). SNPs in MFSD7, BTN3A3, ZNF200, PTPRS, and CCND1A were inversely associated with risk (p,0.05), and there was increased risk at HEXIM1 rs1053578 (p = 0.04, OR 1.40, 95 % CI 1.02–1.91). Conclusions: Tumor studies can reveal novel genes worthy of follow-up for cancer susceptibility. Here, we found that inherited markers in the gene encoding MSL1, part of a complex that modifies the histone H4, may decrease risk of invasiv