2,527 research outputs found
Depressed Adolescents’ Pupillary Response to Peer Acceptance and Rejection: The Role of Rumination
Heightened emotional reactivity to peer feedback is predictive of adolescents’ depression risk. Examining variation in emotional reactivity within currently depressed adolescents may identify subgroups that struggle the most with these daily interactions. We tested whether trait rumination, which amplifies emotional reactions, explained variance in depressed adolescents’ physiological reactivity to peer feedback, hypothesizing that rumination would be associated with greater pupillary response to peer rejection and diminished response to peer acceptance. Twenty currently depressed adolescents (12–17) completed a virtual peer interaction paradigm where they received fictitious rejection and acceptance feedback. Pupillary response provided a time-sensitive index of physiological arousal. Rumination was associated with greater initial pupil dilation to both peer rejection and acceptance, and diminished late pupillary response to peer acceptance trials only. Results indicate that depressed adolescents high on trait rumination are more reactive to social feedback regardless of valence, but fail to sustain cognitive-affective load on positive feedback
Genetic evidence for an essential role of neuronally expressed IL-6 signal transducer gp130 in the induction and maintenance of experimentally induced mechanical hypersensitivity in vivo and in vitro
Tenderness and mechanical allodynia are key symptoms of malignant tumor, inflammation and neuropathy. The proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) is causally involved in all three pathologies. IL-6 not only regulates innate immunity and inflammation but also causes nociceptor sensitization and hyperalgesia. In general and in most cell types including immune cells and sensory neurons, IL-6 binds soluble μ receptor subunits which heteromerizes with membrane bound IL-6 signal transducer gp130. In the present study, we used a conditional knock-out strategy to investigate the importance of signal transducer gp130 expressed in C nociceptors for the generation and maintenance of mechanical hypersensitivity. Nociceptors were sensitized to mechanical stimuli by experimental tumor and this nociceptor sensitization was preserved at later stages of the pathology in control mice. However, in mice with a conditional deletion of gp130 in Nav1.8 expressing nociceptors mechanical hypersensitivity by experimental tumor, nerve injury or inflammation recovery was not preserved in the maintenance phase and nociceptors exhibited normal mechanical thresholds comparable to untreated mice. Together, the results argue for IL-6 signal transducer gp130 as an essential prerequisite in nociceptors for long-term mechanical hypersensitivity associated with cancer, inflammation and nerve injury
Impact of generic alendronate cost on the cost-effectiveness of osteoporosis screening and treatment
Introduction: Since alendronate became available in generic form in the Unites States in 2008, its price has been decreasing. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of alendronate cost on the cost-effectiveness of osteoporosis screening and treatment in postmenopausal women. Methods: Microsimulation cost-effectiveness model of osteoporosis screening and treatment for U.S. women age 65 and older. We assumed screening initiation at age 65 with central dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and alendronate treatment for individuals with osteoporosis; with a comparator of "no screening" and treatment only after fracture occurrence. We evaluated annual alendronate costs of 800; outcome measures included fractures; nursing home admission; medication adverse events; death; costs; quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs); and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) in 2010 U.S. dollars per QALY gained. A lifetime time horizon was used, and direct costs were included. Base-case and sensitivity analyses were performed. Results: Base-case analysis results showed that at annual alendronate costs of 400 through 714 per QALY gained through 50,000/QALY at all alendronate costs evaluated. Conclusions: Osteoporosis screening followed by alendronate treatment is effective and highly cost-effective for postmenopausal women across a range of alendronate costs, and may be cost-saving at annual alendronate costs of $200 or less. © 2012 Nayak et al
Depicting the tree of life in museums: guiding principles from psychological research
The Tree of Life is revolutionizing our understanding of life on Earth, and, accordingly, evolutionary trees are increasingly important parts of exhibits on biodiversity and evolution. The authors argue that in using these trees to effectively communicate evolutionary principles, museums need to take into account research results from cognitive, developmental, and educational psychology while maintaining a focus on visitor engagement and enjoyment. Six guiding principles for depicting evolutionary trees in museum exhibits distilled from this research literature were used to evaluate five current or recent museum trees. One of the trees was then redesigned in light of the research while preserving the exhibit’s original learning goals. By attending both to traditional factors that influence museum exhibit design and to psychological research on how people understand diagrams in general and Tree of Life graphics in particular, museums can play a key role in fostering 21st century scientific literacy
Regulation of neutrophil senescence by microRNAs
Neutrophils are rapidly recruited to sites of tissue injury or infection, where they protect against invading pathogens. Neutrophil functions are limited by a process of neutrophil senescence, which renders the cells unable to respond to chemoattractants, carry out respiratory burst, or degranulate. In parallel, aged neutrophils also undergo spontaneous apoptosis, which can be delayed by factors such as GMCSF. This is then followed by their subsequent removal by phagocytic cells such as macrophages, thereby preventing unwanted inflammation and tissue damage. Neutrophils translate mRNA to make new proteins that are important in maintaining functional longevity. We therefore hypothesised that neutrophil functions and lifespan might be regulated by microRNAs expressed within human neutrophils. Total RNA from highly purified neutrophils was prepared and subjected to microarray analysis using the Agilent human miRNA microarray V3. We found human neutrophils expressed a selected repertoire of 148 microRNAs and that 6 of these were significantly upregulated after a period of 4 hours in culture, at a time when the contribution of apoptosis is negligible. A list of predicted targets for these 6 microRNAs was generated from http://mirecords.biolead.org and compared to mRNA species downregulated over time, revealing 83 genes targeted by at least 2 out of the 6 regulated microRNAs. Pathway analysis of genes containing binding sites for these microRNAs identified the following pathways: chemokine and cytokine signalling, Ras pathway, and regulation of the actin cytoskeleton. Our data suggest that microRNAs may play a role in the regulation of neutrophil senescence and further suggest that manipulation of microRNAs might represent an area of future therapeutic interest for the treatment of inflammatory disease
Quality of life and metabolic status in mildly depressed patients with type 2 diabetes treated with paroxetine: A double-blind randomised placebo controlled 6-month trial
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Depression is prevalent in people with type 2 diabetes and affects both glycaemic control and overall quality of life. The aim of this investigator-initiated trial was to evaluate the effect of the antidepressant paroxetine on quality of life, metabolic control, and mental well-being in mildly depressed diabetics aged 50–70 years.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We randomised 49 mildly depressed primary care outpatients with non-optimally controlled diabetes to a 6-month double-blind treatment with either paroxetine 20 mg per day or matching placebo. Primary efficacy measurements were quality of life and glycaemic control. The primary global outcome of the study was defined as a 10 points improvement in the SF-36 quality of life score. The primary metabolic outcome of the study was defined as a 0.8%-units decrease in glycosylated haemoglobin A<sub>1c</sub>(GHbA<sub>1c</sub>). Psychiatric symptoms were assessed with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Six patients withdrew their consent before starting medication and six dropped out later in the study. We performed analysis of covariance with the baseline value as a covariate. Quality of life and glycaemic control as well as symptoms of depression and anxiety improved in both groups over the 6-month study period. After three months of treatment we found a statistically significant difference between the two treatment groups in GHbA<sub>1c </sub>(mean difference = 0.59%-units, p = 0.018) and in SF-36 score (mean difference = 11.0 points, p = 0.039). However, at the end of the study, no statistically significant differences between the treatment groups were observed. No severe adverse events occurred.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This pragmatic study of primary care patients did not confirm earlier preliminary findings indicating a beneficial effect of paroxetine on glycaemic control. The study indicates that in pragmatic circumstances any possible benefit from administration of paroxetine in diabetic patients with sub-threshold depression is likely to be modest and of short duration. Routine antidepressant prescription for patients with diabetes and sub-threshold depressive symptoms is not indicated.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>Current controlled trials ISRCTN55819922</p
Opioid but not nonopioid stress-induced analgesia is enhanced following prenatal exposure to ethanol
Two neurochemically distinct forms of stress-induced analgesia were examined in adult rats following prenatal ethanol exposure. Rats were exposed to ethanol during the last 2 weeks of gestation through a liquid diet presented to the dams. Analgesia testing was conducted when the offspring were 150–210 days of age. Two forms of footshock stress were administered; one that resulted in a naloxone-sensitive (opioid-mediated) analgesia and one that resulted in a naloxone-insensitive (nonopioid) form of analgesia. Rats prenatally exposed to ethanol demonstrated significantly enhanced opioid-mediated analgesia, but unaltered nonpoioid analgesia compared to controls. These results confirm previous findings that prenatal exposure to ethanol leads to long-term alterations in responding to some, but not all forms of stress. The possibility that prenatal exposure to ethanol leads to perturbations in the endogenous opioid systems is discussed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/46435/1/213_2004_Article_BF00427329.pd
Sociological and Communication-Theoretical Perspectives on the Commercialization of the Sciences
Both self-organization and organization are important for the further
development of the sciences: the two dynamics condition and enable each other.
Commercial and public considerations can interact and "interpenetrate" in
historical organization; different codes of communication are then
"recombined." However, self-organization in the symbolically generalized codes
of communication can be expected to operate at the global level. The Triple
Helix model allows for both a neo-institutional appreciation in terms of
historical networks of university-industry-government relations and a
neo-evolutionary interpretation in terms of three functions: (i) novelty
production, (i) wealth generation, and (iii) political control. Using this
model, one can appreciate both subdynamics. The mutual information in three
dimensions enables us to measure the trade-off between organization and
self-organization as a possible synergy. The question of optimization between
commercial and public interests in the different sciences can thus be made
empirical.Comment: Science & Education (forthcoming
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