Evaluation of a Brief Personalised Intervention for Alcohol Consumption in College Students.

In the current study we investigated the effect of a brief personalised feedback intervention (BPI), compared to an active control intervention, on outcome measures of (i) alcohol consumption (ii) frequency of binge drinking and (iii) readiness to change (RTC). A sample of 103 college students (mean age=23.85) who consumed alcohol regularly provided baseline measures of drinking behaviour and readiness to change before completing an alcohol-related quiz on the UK Department of Health's Change4Life website (active control). The study was a between subjects design and half the participants were randomly allocated to the BPI group (N=52), who received 10 minutes personalised feedback on their drinking in addition to the alcohol-related quiz. At a two-week follow-up, participants (N=103) repeated the questionnaire battery, and attempted to recall the answers to the alcohol quiz. Results indicated that both groups significantly reduced their alcohol consumption and frequency of binge drinking but there were no significant group differences in either of these measures. We conclude that the provision of generalised information can be as efficient as a BPI for the reduction of alcohol consumption in students

Alcohol-induced risk taking on the BART mediates alcohol priming

Rationale Hazardous drinking has been associated with risk taking and alcohol priming effects. However, the potential relationship between risk taking and priming has not been investigated. The Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) is a behavioural measure of risk taking which appears to be associated with drinking behaviour. However, alcohol's acute effects on BART performance are not clear, and the potentially mediating effect of alcohol-induced risk taking on priming has not been tested. Objectives To assess the effects of a priming dose of alcohol on BART performance; to determine the predictive utility of the BART on drinking habits; and to identify whether alcohol-induced risk taking mediates alcohol priming (urge to drink). Methods A total of 142 participants provided data on drinking habits and trait-like impulsivity and sensation seeking. The BART was then completed after consuming alcohol (0.6 g/kg) or placebo (between-subjects design). Baseline and post-drink measures of alcohol urge were also taken. Results Alcohol consumption increased urge to drink (priming) and risk taking on the BART. In the alcohol group only, risk taking on the BART predicted unique variance in weekly alcohol consumption and bingeing. Mediation analysis showed that risk taking following alcohol consumption mediated alcohol priming. Conclusions This is the first study to show that alcohol acutely increases risk taking on the BART. Results suggest that social drinkers susceptible to alcohol-induced risk taking may be more likely to drink excessively, perhaps due to increased urge to drink (priming)

Perceptual and conceptual processing of visual objects across the adult lifespan.

Making sense of the external world is vital for multiple domains of cognition, and so it is crucial that object recognition is maintained across the lifespan. We investigated age differences in perceptual and conceptual processing of visual objects in a population-derived sample of 85 healthy adults (24-87 years old) by relating measures of object processing to cognition across the lifespan. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was recorded during a picture naming task to provide a direct measure of neural activity, that is not confounded by age-related vascular changes. Multiple linear regression was used to estimate neural responsivity for each individual, namely the capacity to represent visual or semantic information relating to the pictures. We find that the capacity to represent semantic information is linked to higher naming accuracy, a measure of task-specific performance. In mature adults, the capacity to represent semantic information also correlated with higher levels of fluid intelligence, reflecting domain-general performance. In contrast, the latency of visual processing did not relate to measures of cognition. These results indicate that neural responsivity measures relate to naming accuracy and fluid intelligence. We propose that maintaining neural responsivity in older age confers benefits in task-related and domain-general cognitive processes, supporting the brain maintenance view of healthy cognitive ageing.Research Foundation Flander

Using novel palaeolimnological techniques to define lake conservation objectives for three Cheshire meres

This is the final report to Natural England on the project „Using novel palaeolimnological techniques to define lake conservation objectives for three Cheshire meres‟: Melchett Mere, Tatton Mere and Comber Mere. The aim is to use existing and recently developed palaeoecological techniques to define reference conditions and assess the condition of selected Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) in the Cheshire meres, and thereby assist in the setting of conservation objectives and management goals

Maternal consumption of canola oil suppressed mammary gland tumorigenesis in C3(1) TAg mice offspring

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Maternal consumption of a diet high in omega 6 polyunsaturated fats (n-6 PUFA) has been shown to increase risk whereas a diet high in omega 3 polyunsaturated fats (n-3 PUFA) from fish oil has been shown to decrease risk for mammary gland cancer in female offspring of rats. The aim of this study was to determine whether increasing n-3 PUFA and reducing n-6 PUFA by using canola oil instead of corn oil in the maternal diet might reduce the risk for breast cancer in female offspring.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Female SV 129 mice were divided into two groups and placed on diets containing either 10% w/w corn oil (which is 50% n-6 PUFA, control diet) or 10% w/w canola oil (which is 20% n-6 PUFA, 10% n-3 PUFA, test diet). After two weeks on the diets the females were bred with homozygous C3(1) TAg transgenic mice. Mother mice consumed the assigned diet throughout gestation and nursing of the offspring. After weaning, all female offspring were maintained on the control diet.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared to offspring of mothers fed the corn oil diet (CO/CO group), offspring of mothers fed the canola oil diet (CA/CO group) had significantly fewer mammary glands with tumors throughout the experiment. At 130 days of age, the CA/CO group had significantly fewer tumors per mouse (multiplicity); the tumor incidence (fraction of mice with any tumor) and the total tumor weight (per mouse that developed tumor) was less than one half that of the CO/CO group. At 170 days of age, the total tumor weight per mouse was significantly less in the CA/CO group and if a tumor developed the rate of tumor growth rate was half that of CO/CO group. These results indicate that maternal consumption of canola oil was associated with delayed appearance of mammary gland tumors and slowed growth of the tumors that developed.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Substituting canola oil for corn oil is an easy dietary change for people to make; such a change to the maternal diet may decrease risk for breast cancer in the daughter.</p