Protooncogenes Subserve Memory Formation in the Adult CNS

AbstractStudies of the signal transduction mechanisms underlying learning and memory have provided many new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying associative conditioning in mammals. In this issue of Neuron, Gean and colleagues report the discovery that the PI-3 kinase/AKT(PKB) pathway contributes to LTP and the consolidation of amygdala-dependent cued fear conditioning in rats

Long-Term Potentiation: One Kind or Many?

Do neurobiologists aim to discover natural kinds? I address this question in this chapter via a critical analysis of classification practices operative across the 43-year history of research on long-term potentiation (LTP). I argue that this 43-year history supports the idea that the structure of scientific practice surrounding LTP research has remained an obstacle to the discovery of natural kinds

Diabetes Risk In Women: Pschosocial And Lifestyle Determinants

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a major public health concern. Physical inactivity, poor diet, and psychosocial distress have emerged as factors contributing to T2D. Women may be uniquely affected by these factors as obesity, physical inactivity, and the prevalence of psychosocial distress are higher in women. Additionally, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder in women and increases the risk of both T2D and psychosocial distress. However, the relationship between physical activity (PA), psychosocial distress, and metabolic health is not fully understood, particularly in at risk populations such as minorities and women with PCOS. Therefore, the goal of this project was to examine the relationships among PA patterns, psychosocial distress, and metabolic health in women, and investigate the effects of a lifestyle intervention on metabolic and psychosocial health in women with PCOS. Aims included 1) assess the PA patterns and the association between PA and health parameters in Latina immigrants living in Alabama; 2) examine the relationship between metabolic health and psychosocial distress in women; and 3) determine the effects of a diet and exercise intervention on metabolic health and psychosocial distress in women with PCOS. In aim 1, 44 Latina immigrates completed the Global Physical Activity to assess self-reported PA and wore an accelerometer to evaluate objective PA. Aim 2 was conducted in 61 women who underwent an intravenous glucose tolerance test to measure insulin sensitivity (SI) and β-cell function, and completed questionnaires to evaluate psychosocial distress. In aim 3, 18 women with PCOS participated in an exercise program and were randomized to either a lower-fat (LFD) or lower-carbohydrate diet (LCD) for 12 weeks. Participants underwent a liquid meal tolerance test to measure SI and β-cell function and completed questionnaires to determine psychosocial distress. Results indicated that Latinas greatly underestimated sedentary time. Women who perceived greater psychosocial stress had greater chronic inflammation, which may adversely affect both SI and β-cell responsiveness. Lastly, a diet and exercise intervention appeared to improve psychosocial stress and metabolic health, and a LCD specifically may decrease risk for T2D by elevating adiponectin in women with PCOS

The Lived Experience Of African American Teachers Utilizing Co-Cultural Adaptation At Predominantly White Rural Schools In Central Appalachia

Primary and secondary schools across the nation are becoming increasingly heterogeneous, yet the teacher population remains homogenous. In fairness, this is not a new issue: At the turn of the century, Whites represented a significant aggregate of the teacher population: 73% in the inner city; 81% in suburban schools; 91% in small towns; and 98% in rural areas. The magnitude of this issue is significant since approximately 33% of schools in the U.S. are located in rural areas, which already struggle with recruiting and retaining teachers, much less African-American ones. In fact, Bireda and Chait (2011) found that over 40% of public schools lack a single African American teacher on staff. The shortage of African American teachers can be traced back to the historic Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision in 1954. While recruitment initiatives have been somewhat productive, studies nonetheless reveal a revolving door whereby scores of teachers abandon their jobs before retirement. Attrition is the primary factor impacting retention, according to the National Commission on Teaching and America\u27s Future. Retaining African American teachers is an essential part of narrowing this chasm. As an effort to understand the causes of attrition and perseverance among African-American teachers, this study offers several qualitative interviews as part of an inductive, multiple-case study. The findings indicate that White superintendents are consciously or unconsciously supportive of the veils of oppression. Meanwhile, the principals and White faculty in these districts remain purposefully negligent of the needs and issues that African American teachers confront as co-cultural group members at predominantly White school districts

Ethnic Differences in the Consistency of Accuracy of Perceived Exertion

Objective It has been previously found previously overweight women who over-perceived their exertion during a submaximal task gained more weight during the following year and reported lower vitality, poorer mental health, and poorer dietary control when compared to those who under-perceived exertion. Therefore, we investigated the effect of diet-induced weight loss on accuracy of perceived exertion (APE), and examined whether any changes persist one year following a weight loss intervention in premenopausal, previously overweight, African American (AA) and European American (EA) women. Design formerly overweight women (n=102, age 20-44 yrs) completed a weight loss program to achieve a normal body weight (BMI \u3c25). Submaximal aerobic exercise task was performed while measures of physiological and perceived exertion (Borg\u27s 6-20 RPE Scale) were recorded prior to, immediately following, and approximately one year after weight loss. Results APEz was significantly greater than zero at baseline and at 1-year follow-up for EA women (0.347±0.88 p\u3c0.05 and 0.525±0.92, p\u3c0.01 respectively) and was significantly less than zero at 1-year follow-up for AA (-0.366±1.1, p\u3c.010). EA women had lower physiological effort at baseline and 1-year follow-up states (-0.238±0.66 p\u3c0.05; and, -0.266±0.84 p\u3c0.05 respectively). AA women had higher physiological effort, at 1-year follow-up state (0.207±0.61, p\u3c0.010). Conclusion EA women tended to overperceive despite lower physiological effort compared to AA women. AA women tended to underperceive, despite having higher physiological effort than EA women. Physiologic effort and perceived exertion contributed independently to the racial differences, and APE may be a trait evaluation before planning an exercise intervention

Intracellular mechanisms underlying the nicotinic enhancement of LTP in the rat dentate gyrus

We have previously shown that activation of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) enhanced long-term potentiation (LTP) in the rat dentate gyrus in vitro via activation of α7 nAChR. In the present studies, mechanisms underlying the acute and chronic nicotinic enhancement of LTP were examined. In particular, the involvement of activation of intracellular kinases was examined using selective kinase antagonists, and the effects of enhancing cholinergic function with positive allosteric modulators of the α7 nAChR and with acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors were also investigated. Activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) was found to be involved in the induction of the acute nicotinic enhancement of LTP, although not control LTP. In contrast, activation of the tyrosine kinase Src, Ca2+-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, Janus kinase 2 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase was not involved in the acute nicotinic enhancement of LTP, although Src activation was necessary for control LTP. Moreover, activation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase was involved in the acute nicotinic enhancement of LTP to a much lesser extent than in control LTP. Chronic nicotine enhancement of LTP was found to be dependent on PKA, ERK and Src kinases. Acute nicotinic enhancement of LTP was occluded by chronic nicotine treatment. The positive allosteric modulator PNU-120596 was found to strongly reduce the threshold for nicotinic enhancement of LTP, an affect mediated via the α7 nAChR as it was blocked by the selective antagonist methyllycaconitine. The AChE inhibitors tacrine and physostigmine enhanced control LTP

Personality Disorders as Maladaptive Variants of General Personality Traits: A Subclinical Approach

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science and Technology at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Stephanie N. Mullins-Sweatt on June 4, 2004