Cognitive abilities that predict success in a computer-based training program.

PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were (a) to identify cognitive abilities and other factors related to successful completion of training for computer-based tasks that simulated real jobs and (b) to create a brief assessment battery useful in assessing older adults for these kinds of jobs. DESIGN AND METHODS: Participants from three age groups (young, middle-aged, and older) completed a battery of cognitive measures. They then trained on one of three computer-based tasks that simulated actual jobs and were asked to perform the tasks for 3 days. We recorded whether they completed training and whether and how well they did the tasks. In a series of logistic regressions, we evaluated the ability of a subset of cognitive measures drawn from a larger battery to predict participants\u27 ability to successfully complete training and go on to task performance. RESULTS: Results confirmed theory-based expectations that measures of domain knowledge, crystallized intelligence, memory, and psychomotor speed would predict success in computer-based activities. A brief battery was able to predict older adults\u27 successful completion of training for one task but was less useful for another. IMPLICATIONS: A brief battery of cognitive measures may be useful in evaluating individuals for job selection. Different measures are related to job-related criteria depending on task and group evaluated, although it was not possible to identify a reduced battery for one task. The specific cognitive abilities related to participants\u27 success have implications for task and interface design for the elderly population

Estudo da infestação por Haematobia irritans e por larvas de Dermatobia hominis em bovinos de corte.

As miíases provocadas por larvas de conhecidas como berne e o parasitismo pela mosca-dos-chifres, causam graves prejuízos aos pecuaristas no Brasil. Como têm sido observadas diferenças nas infestações entre animais de diferentes grupos genéticos, o presente estudo teve por objetivo verificar se existe diferença na suscetibilidade/resistência às infestações por bernes e mosca-dos-chifres, em bovinos de dois grupos genéticos diferentes. Foram utilizados bovinos machos e fêmeas, nascidos de outubro a dezembro de 2008 puros , da raça Nelore (n=28) e animais com maior grau de sangue , filhos de vacas ½ Canchim + ½ Nelore inseminadas com Angus (TC, n=17). Estes animais foram mantidos sem qualquer tratamento químico para controle de parasitas, em piquetes rotacionados de capim tanzânia ( ), na fazenda experimental da Embrapa Pecuária Sudeste e receberam suplementação somente no inverno. Mensalmente foram feitas avaliações por meio de inspeções visuais e táteis para contagem dos nódulos de bernes presentes em todo o corpo dos animais. As contagens das moscas-dos-chifres foram feitas simultaneamente às contagens de bernes, por meio da análise em computador de fotografias da região lombar de cada animal. Até o momento foram realizadas 10 contagens, totalizando 450 observações (de agosto de 2009 a maio de 2010). Todos os dados obtidos foram transformados em log (n+1) e analisados por meio do procedimento MIXED do SAS (2002/2003), de acordo com um modelo que incluiu os efeitos de grupo genético (GG), sexo (SX), contagem (CO) e interações, além do resíduo. Os resultados obtidos até o momento mostraram que os animais ?Nelore intensivo? (NI) apresentaram menores infestações pelos ectoparasitas estudados, que os animais ?Tricross? (TC). As maiores diferenças entre os grupos genéticos foram observadas para as infestações por bernes, sendo que as médias erro padrão foram de 0,10 0,04 e 0,58 0,05, para os animais NI e TC, respectivamente. As maiores infestações por bernes ocorreram durante os meses mais quentes e úmidos (dezembro/janeiro ). Para a mosca-dos-chifres as médias erro padrão foram de 1,01 0,05 para os animais NI e 1,41 0,064 para os animais TC e os machos apresentaram infestações superiores àquelas observadas para as fêmeas

Resposta da erva-mate (Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil.) a adubação, no Município de Taquaruçu do Sul, RS

bitstream/CNPF-2009-09/44320/1/pesq-andam-86.PD

Updated Iberian archeomagnetic catalogue: new full vector paleosecular variation curve for the last three millennia

In this work, we present 16 directional and 27 intensity high‐quality values from Iberia. Moreover, we have updated the Iberian archeomagnetic catalogue published more than 10 years ago with a considerable increase in the database. This has led to a notable improvement of both temporal and spatial data distribution. A full vector paleosecular variation curve from 1000 BC to 1900 AD has been developed using high‐quality data within a radius of 900 km from Madrid. A hierarchical bootstrap method has been followed for the computation of the curves. The most remarkable feature of the new curves is a notable intensity maximum of about 80 μT around 600 BC, which has not been previously reported for the Iberian Peninsula. We have also analyzed the evolution of the paleofield in Europe for the last three thousand years and conclude that the high maximum intensity values observed around 600 BC in the Iberian Peninsula could respond to the same feature as the Levantine Iron Age Anomaly, after travelling westward through Europe

Transatlantic combined and comparative data analysis of 1095 patients with urea cycle disorders?A successful strategy for clinical research of rare diseases

BACKGROUND: To improve our understanding of urea cycle disorders (UCDs) prospectively followed by two North American (NA) and European (EU) patient cohorts. AIMS: Description of the NA and EU patient samples and investigation of the prospects of combined and comparative analyses for individuals with UCDs. METHODS: Retrieval and comparison of the data from 1095 individuals (NA: 620, EU: 475) from two electronic databases. RESULTS: The proportion of females with ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (fOTC-D), particularly those being asymptomatic (asfOTC-D), was higher in the NA than in the EU sample. Exclusion of asfOTC-D resulted in similar distributions in both samples. The mean age at first symptoms was higher in NA than in EU patients with late onset (LO), but similar for those with early (</= 28 days) onset (EO) of symptoms. Also, the mean age at diagnosis and diagnostic delay for EO and LO patients were similar in the NA and EU cohorts. In most patients (including fOTC-D), diagnosis was made after the onset of symptoms (59.9%) or by high-risk family screening (24.7%), and less often by newborn screening (8.9%) and prenatal testing (3.7%). Analysis of clinical phenotypes revealed that EO patients presented with more symptoms than LO individuals, but that numbers of symptoms correlated with plasma ammonium concentrations in EO patients only. Liver transplantation was reported for 90 NA and 25 EU patients. CONCLUSIONS: Combined analysis of databases drawn from distinct populations opens the possibility to increase sample sizes for natural history questions, while comparative analysis utilizing differences in approach to treatment can evaluate therapeutic options and enhance long-term outcome studies

Lysine-based surfactants in nanovesicle formulations: the role of cationic charge position and hydrophobicity in in vitro cytotoxicity and intracellular delivery

Understanding nanomaterial interactions within cells is of increasing importance for assessing their toxicity and cellular transport. Here, we developed nanovesicles containing bioactive cationic lysine-based amphiphiles, and assessed whether these cationic compounds increase the likelihood of intracellular delivery and modulate toxicity. We found different cytotoxic responses among the formulations, depending on surfactant, cell line and endpoint assayed. The induction of mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress and apoptosis were the general mechanisms underlying cytotoxicity. Fluorescence microscopy analysis demonstrated that nanovesicles were internalized by HeLa cells, and evidenced that their ability to release endocytosed materials into cell cytoplasm depends on the structural parameters of amphiphiles. The cationic charge position and hydrophobicity of surfactants determine the nanovesicle interactions within the cell and, thus, the resulting toxicity and intracellular behavior after cell uptake of the nanomaterial. The insights into some toxicity mechanisms of these new nanomaterials contribute to reducing the uncertainty surrounding their potential health hazards

Retinoic Acid-Dependent Signaling Pathways and Lineage Events in the Developing Mouse Spinal Cord

Studies in avian models have demonstrated an involvement of retinoid signaling in early neural tube patterning. The roles of this signaling pathway at later stages of spinal cord development are only partly characterized. Here we use Raldh2-null mouse mutants rescued from early embryonic lethality to study the consequences of lack of endogenous retinoic acid (RA) in the differentiating spinal cord. Mid-gestation RA deficiency produces prominent structural and molecular deficiencies in dorsal regions of the spinal cord. While targets of Wnt signaling in the dorsal neuronal lineage are unaltered, reductions in Fibroblast Growth Factor (FGF) and Notch signaling are clearly observed. We further provide evidence that endogenous RA is capable of driving stem cell differentiation. Raldh2 deficiency results in a decreased number of spinal cord derived neurospheres, which exhibit a reduced differentiation potential. Raldh2-null neurospheres have a decreased number of cells expressing the neuronal marker β-III-tubulin, while the nestin-positive cell population is increased. Hence, in vivo retinoid deficiency impaired neural stem cell growth. We propose that RA has separable functions in the developing spinal cord to (i) maintain high levels of FGF and Notch signaling and (ii) drive stem cell differentiation, thus restricting both the numbers and the pluripotent character of neural stem cells