Ruptures and repairs of group therapy alliance. an untold story in psychotherapy research

Although previous studies investigated the characteristics of therapeutic alliance in group treatments, there is still a dearth of research on group alliance ruptures and repairs. The model by Safran and Muran was originally developed to address therapeutic alliance in individual therapies, and the usefulness of this approach to group intervention needs to be demonstrated. Alliance ruptures are possible at member to therapist, member to member, member to group levels. Moreover, repairs of ruptures in group are quite complex, i.e., because other group members have to process the rupture even if not directly involved. The aim of the current study is to review the empirical research on group alliance, and to examine whether the rupture repair model can be a suitable framework for clinical understanding and research of the complexity of therapeutic alliance in group treatments. We provide clinical vignettes and commentary to illustrate theoretical and research aspects of therapeutic alliance rupture and repair in groups. Our colleague Jeremy Safran made a substantial contribution to research on therapeutic alliance, and the current paper illustrates the enduring legacy of this work and its potential application to the group therapy context

Magic mirror on the wall: Selfie-related behavior as mediator of the relationship between narcissism and problematic smartphone use

Objective: Recent research has suggested that problematic smartphone use is associated with several psychological factors and that mobile apps and smartphone-related behavior (i.e. selfi e behavior) may encourage the development of problematic smartphone use. However, little is known about how the interplay between dysfunctional personality characteristics and selfi e-related behavior can infl uence problematic smartphone use. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between narcissism and problematic smartphone use, as well as the mediating role of selfi e-related behavior in this relationship among young men and women. Method: In the current study, a total of 627 undergraduate students (283 males and 344 females) completed a cross-sectional survey. A structural equation model was tested separately for males and females in order to evaluate the associations between narcissism, selfi e-related behavior and problematic smartphone use. Results: The results showed that greater narcissism was related to increased selfi e-related behavior, which in turn were positively associated with problematic smartphone use both for males and females. However, selfi e-related behavior mediated the relationship between narcissism and problematic smartphone use only for females. Conclusions: The study provides fresh insight into our understanding of the psychological mechanisms underlying problematic smartphone use, which may inform prevention and treatment interventions

Spillover effect in supplier related product recall: the impact of supplier COO on product evaluations

Research has shown that supplier quality can lead to brand quality failures. However, what is not clear is whether a supplier’s country of origin (COO) plays a role in the evaluations of manufacturer brands after a recall is initiated. In this paper, through the lens of resource advantage (R-A) theory, we empirically examine whether a supplier’s COO hurts or helps the vehicle brand when a supplier is blamed during a vehicle recall event. R-A theory suggests that high brand quality can enhance competitive advantage for a firm. Through an experimental study, we find that high brand quality can override the spillover effect of COO after a product recall. However, the severity of a recall can nullify the impact of high brand quality

Arsenic trioxide (ATO) and MEK1 inhibition synergize to induce apoptosis in acute promyelocytic leukemia cells

Recent studies suggest that components of the prosurvival signal transduction pathways involving the Ras-mitogen-activated protein kinase ( MAPK) can confer an aggressive, apoptosis-resistant phenotype to leukemia cells. In this study, we report that acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) cells exploit the Ras-MAPK activation pathway to phosphorylate at Ser112 and to inactivate the proapoptotic protein Bad, delaying arsenic trioxide (ATO)-induced apoptosis. Both in APL cell line NB4 and in APL primary blasts, the inhibition of extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2) and Bad phosphorylation by MEK1 inhibitors enhanced apoptosis in ATO-treated cells. We isolated an arsenic-resistant NB4 subline (NB4-As-R), which showed stronger ERK1/2 activity (2.7-fold increase) and Bad phosphorylation (2.4-fold increase) compared to parental NB4 cells in response to ATO treatment. Upon ATO exposure, both NB4 and NB4-As-R cell lines doubled protein levels of the death antagonist Bcl-xL, but the amount of free Bcl-xL that did not heterodimerize with Bad was 1.8-fold greater in NB4-As-R than in the parental line. MEK1 inhibitors dephosphorylated Bad and inhibited the ATO-induced increase of Bcl-xL, overcoming ATO resistance in NB4-As-R. These results may provide a rationale to develop combined or sequential MEK1 inhibitors plus ATO therapy in this clinical setting

The patient-physician relationship in the face of oncological disease: A review of literature on the emotional and psychological reactions of patients and physician

The physician-patient relationship is daily destabilized by emotional reactions and psychic defenses that cancer arises in the two partners. Continued scientific and technological progresses which were reached by medicine in recent years, and particularly oncologic clinical discoveries, increased the chance of not only survival but also healing. Nevertheless, cancer diagnosis is still a hard existential text that destabilizes everyday life, all the psychic and relational balance, inevitably causing a psychological and social change not only in the patient who is affected but also into the wide social network around him (family, friends, doctors, healthcare team). The aim of this review is to understand how problems, feelings, emotions, distresses or defense mechanisms could garble the relation and the communication dynamics between physician and patients and then prejudicing the efficacy of oncologic therapeutic compliance. Pubmed and Scopus were searched, using strings related to "cancer", "physician-patient relations", burn-out", "compliance", and "communication", identifying literature published from 2000 to January 2015. Extracted papers were assessed for their relevance (10 of 412 papers initially reviewed). Results indicate that a good and empathetic relationship between physician and patient were related to good therapeutic adherence. In particular, a good physician-patient relation maximizes the impact of clinical therapies and reduces psychophysical implications

Determination of zinc (II), cadmium (II), lead (II) and copper (II) in common and balsamic vinegar by stripping chronopotentiometry

A method for the determination of zinc (II), cadmium (II), lead (II) and copper (II) in common and balsamic vinegar by stripping chronopotentiometry is described. The metal ions were concentrated as their amalgams on a glassy carbon working electrode that was previously coated with a thin mercury film and then stripped by a suitable oxidant. Potential and time data were digitally converted into dt dE-1, and E was plotted vs. dt dE-1, thus increasing both sensitivity of the method and resolution of the analysis. Quantitative analysis was carried out by the method of standard additions. A good linearity was obtained in the range of concentrations examined. Recoveries of 90-98% for zinc (II), 91- 97% for cadmium (II), 94-98% for lead (II) and 93-97% for copper (II) were obtained from a sample spiked at different levels. The detection limits were 10.6 ng g-1 for zinc (II), 2.2 ng g-1 for cadmium (II), 3.4 ng g-1 for lead (II) and 4.2 ng g-1 for copper (II) and the relative standard deviations (mean of nine determinations) were 4.8, 6.5, 3.2 and 5.3%, respectively. Results obtained on commercial common and balsamic vinegars were not significantly different from those obtained by atomic absorption spectrometr

Determination of cadmium (II) and lead (II) in whole and skim milk by stripping chronopotentiometric analysis

A method for the determination of cadmium (II) and lead (II) in whole and skim milk by stripping chronopotentiometric analysis is described. The metal ions were concentrated as their amalgams on a glassy carbon working electrode that was previously coated with a thin mercury film and then stripped by a suitable oxidant. Potential and time data were digitally converted into dt dE-1, and E was plotted vs. dt dE-1, thus increasing both sensitivity of the method and resolution of the analysis. Quantitative analysis was carried out by the method of standard additions. A good linearity was obtained in the range of concentrations examined. Recoveries of 94-100% for cadmium (II) and of 91-98% for lead (II) were obtained from a sample spiked at different levels. The detection limits were 4.4 ng g-1 for cadmium (II) and 8.6 ng g-1 for lead (II) and the relative standard deviations (mean of nine determinations) were 4.1 and 5.6%, respectively. Results obtained on commercial whole and skim milk were not significantly different from those obtained by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry

Vitamin C inhibits platelet expression of CD40 ligand

Upon stimulation with agonists, platelets express CD40 ligand (CD40L), a transmembrane protein implicated in the initiation and progression of atherosclerotic disease. We have recently discovered that oxidative stress plays a major role in platelet CD40L expression. In this study, we sought to determine whether vitamin C, a known antioxidant, is able to influence platelet CD40L expression. In vitro experiments were done by stimulating platelets with collagen in the presence or absence of vitamin C (50-100 mu M) or vehicle as control. An in vivo study was done in 10 healthy subjects who were randomized to intravenous infusion of placebo or 1 g vitamin C for 45 min in a crossover design. At the end of infusion platelet CD40L and O2- were measured. The in vitro study demonstrated that vitamin C dose dependently inhibited platelet CD40L expression without affecting agonist-induced platelet aggregation. In subjects treated with placebo no changes of platelet CD40L and O2- were observed; conversely, vitamin C infusion caused a significant and parallel decrease of platelet O2- (-70%, P < 0.001) and CD40L (-68%, P < 0.001). Platelet aggregation was not modified by either treatment. This study suggests that water-soluble antioxidants, which scavenge superoxide radicals, may reduce platelet CD40L expression. (c) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Determination of Cadmium and Lead in Vegetables by Stripping Chronopotentiometry

A method for the determination of cadmium and lead in vegetables by stripping chronopotentiometry, after digestion of the sample with concentrated sulphuric acid and dry-ashing, is described. Metal ions were concentrated as their amalgams on a glassy carbon-working electrode previously coated with a thin mercury film and then stripped by a suitable oxidant. Potential and time data were digitally derived and E was plotted versus dt/dE, thus increasing both the sensitivity of the method and the resolution of the analysis. Quantitative analysis was carried out by the method of standard additions; a good linearity was obtained in the range of examined concentrations, as was shown by the determination coefficients, which were 0.998 (n= 4) for cadmium and 0.993 (n= 4) for lead. Recoveries of 85\u2013100% for cadmium and of 84\u201397% for lead were obtained from a sample spiked at different levels. Accuracy was demonstrated by analysis of a matching reference sample of cabbage. The detection limits were 1.8 ng/g of wet mass for cadmium and 5.1 ng/g of wet mass for lead. The relative standard deviations (mean of nine determinations), evaluated on a real sample, were 6.7 and 6.2%, respectively. Results obtained on 10 different commercial samples of pepper (Capsicum annuum) and egg plant (Solanum melongena) were not significantly different from those obtained by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The average content was in the range 3.1\u201318.6 ng/g for cadmium and 38.2\u201364.3 ng/g for lead

Imatinib-mesylate for all patients with hypereosinophilic syndrome?

Some recent papers have focused on the activity of imatinib-mesylate, a selective inhibitor of tyrosine kinase, in idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES) [1], [2], [3] and [4]. In this setting, a possible therapeutic target was identified by Cools et al. [2], who described the fusion tyrosine-kinase gene FIP1L1/PDGFRA as the result of an interstitial deletion within chromosome 4 in nine out of sixteen (56%) patients affected by HES. Of interest, although in this study the response to imatinib was strictly correlated with the presence of FIP1L1/PDGFRA rearrangement (all patients with such a molecular lesion treated with imatinib responded), only five out of nine responding patients evidenced the abnormal transcript [2]. Among the possible alternative mechanisms for the activation of the PDGFRA tyrosine-kinase domain, these authors suggested there may be a different fusion gene