Appearance of Damage Symptoms and Reinfestation Rates for Christmas Trees Attacked by the Zimmerman Pine Moth, \u3ci\u3eDioryctria Zimmermani\u3c/i\u3e (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

Two blocks of Scotch pine Christmas trees were inspected to determine an appropriate time to evaluate Zimmerman pine moth damage, and to determine reinfestation rates for trees previously attacked by this insect. Results showed that damage evaluation should be delayed until mid-August and possibly later, in early fall. Evaluation done before this time could result in underestimation of total damage. In the reinfestation study, previously attacked trees were shown to sustain both a higher rate of reattack and more attacks per tree the following year than control trees. However, at most, only 61 % of the new attacks the following year were on trees with a previous attaek. Also, 47% or more of the infested trees observed the second year were newly infested. These results indicate little practical benefit of using attacked trees solely as a trap crop for ovipositing moths. Attacked trees with severe damage should therefore be removed

Myocardial infarction in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study: The interaction among environmental, health, social, behavioural and genetic factors

Objectives This study examined how environmental, health, social, behavioural and genetic factors interact to contribute to myocardial infarction (MI) risk. Design Survey data collected by Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS), USA, from 1957 to 2011, including 235 environmental, health, social and behavioural factors, and 77 single- nucleotide polymorphisms were analysed for association with MI. To identify associations with MI we utilized recursive partitioning and random forest prior to logistic regression and chi-squared analyses. Participants 6198 WLS participants (2938 men; 3260 women) who (1) had a MI before 72 years and (2) had a MI between 65 and 72 years. ResultsIn men, stroke (LR OR: 5.01, 95% CI 3.36 to 7.48), high cholesterol (3.29, 2.59 to 4.18), diabetes (3.24, 2.53 to 4.15) and high blood pressure (2.39, 1.92 to 2.96) were significantly associated with MI up to 72 years of age. For those with high cholesterol, the interaction of smoking and lower alcohol consumption increased prevalence from 23% to 41%, with exposure to dangerous working conditions, a factor not previously linked with MI, further increasing prevalence to 50%. Conversely, MI was reported in Conclusions Together these results indicate important differences in factors associated with MI between the sexes, that combinations of factors greatly influence the likelihood of MI, that MI-associated factors change and associations weaken after 65 years of age in both sexes, and that the limited genotypes assessed were secondary to environmental, health, social and behavioral factors

MRI signal intensity differentiation of brainstem encephalitis induced by Enterovirus 71: a classification approach for acute and convalescence stages

Additional file 3. After tick the segment region, Medflovan show the segmentation region of lesion

Multigene interactions and the prediction of depression in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study

Objectives: Single genetic loci offer little predictive power for the identification of depression. This study examined whether an analysis of gene-gene (G x G) interactions of 78 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes associated with depression and agerelated diseases would identify significant interactions with increased predictive power for depression. Design: A retrospective cohort study. Setting: A survey of participants in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. Participants: A total of 4811 persons (2464 women and 2347 men) who provided saliva for genotyping; the group comes from a randomly selected sample of Wisconsin high school graduates from the class of 1957 as well as a randomly selected sibling, almost all of whom are non-Hispanic white. Primary outcome measure: Depression as determine by the Composite International Diagnostic Interview-Short-Form. Results: Using a classification tree approach (recursive partitioning (RP)), the authors identified a number of candidate G 3 G interactions associated with depression. The primary SNP splits revealed by RP (ANKK1 rs1800497 (also known as DRD2 Taq1A) in men and DRD2 rs224592 in women) were found to be significant as single factors by logistic regression (LR) after controlling for multiple testing (p=0.001 for both). Without considering interaction effects, only one of the five subsequent RP splits reached nominal significance in LR (FTO rs1421085 in women, p=0.008). However, after controlling for G x G interactions by running LR on RP-specific subsets, every split became significant and grew larger in magnitude (OR (before) → (after): men: GNRH1 novel SNP: (1.43 → 1.57); women: APOC3 rs2854116: (1.28 → 1.55), ACVR2B rs3749386: (1.11 → 2.17), FTO rs1421085: (1.32 → 1.65), IL6 rs1800795: (1.12 → 1.85)). Conclusions: The results suggest that examining G x G interactions improves the identification of genetic associations predictive of depression. 4 of the SNPs identified in these interactions were located in two pathways well known to impact depression: neurotransmitter (ANKK1 and DRD2) and neuroendocrine (GNRH1 and ACVR2B) signalling. This study demonstrates the utility of RP analysis as an efficient and powerful exploratory analysis technique for uncovering genetic and molecular pathway interactions associated with disease aetiology

New Findings, Classification and Long-Term Follow-Up Study Based on MRI Characterization of Brainstem Encephalitis Induced by Enterovirus 71

Background To report the diversity of MRI features of brainstem encephalitis (BE) induced by Enterovirus 71. This is supported by implementation and testing of our new classification scheme in order to improve the diagnostic level on this specific disease. Methods Neuroimaging of 91 pediatric patients who got EV71 related BE were hospitalized between March, 2010 to October, 2012, were analyzed retrospectively. All patients underwent pre- and post-contrast MRI scan. Thereafter, 31 patients were randomly called back for follow-up MRI study during December 2013 to August 2014. The MRI signal patterns of BE primary lesion were analyzed and classified according to MR signal alteration at various disease stages. Findings in fatal and non-fatal cases were compared, and according to the MRI scan time point during the course of this disease, the patients’ conditions were classified as 1) acute stage, 2) convalescence stage, 3) post mortem stage, and 4) long term follow-up study. Results 103 patients were identified. 11 patients did not undergo MRI, as they died within 48 hours. One patient died on 14th day without MR imaging. 2 patients had postmortem MRI. Medical records and imaging were reviewed in the 91 patients, aged 4 months to 12 years, and two cadavers who have had MRI scan. At acute stage: the most frequent pattern (40 patients) was foci of prolonged T1 and T2 signal, with (15) or without (25) contrast enhancement. We observed a novel pattern in 4 patients having foci of low signal intensity on T2WI, with contrast enhancement. Another pattern in 10 patients having foci of contrast enhancement without abnormalities in T1WI or T2WI weighted images. Based on 2 cases, the entire medulla and pons had prolonged T1 and T2 signal, and 2 of our postmortem cases demonstrated the same pattern. At convalescence stage, the pattern observed in 4 patients was foci of prolonged T1 and T2 signal without contrast enhancement. Follow-up MR study of 31 cases showed normal in 26 cases, and demonstrated foci of prolonged T1 and T2 signal with hyper-intensity on FLAIR in 3 cases, or of prolonged T1 and T2 signal with hypo-intensity on FLAIR in 2 cases. Most importantly, MR findings of each case were thoroughly investigated and classified according to phases and MRI signal alteration. Conclusions This study has provided enhanced and useful information for the MRI features of BE induced by EV71, apart from common practice established by previous reports. In addition, a classification scheme that summarizes all types of features based on the MRI signal at the four different stages of the disease would be helpful to improve the diagnostic level

Gender and sexual orientation differences in cognition across adulthood : age is kinder to women than to men regardless of sexual orientation

Despite some evidence of greater age-related deterioration of the brain in males than in females, gender differences in rates of cognitive aging have proved inconsistent. The present study employed web-based methodology to collect data from people aged 20-65 years (109,612 men; 88,509 women). As expected, men outperformed women on tests of mental rotation and line angle judgment, whereas women outperformed men on tests of category fluency and object location memory. Performance on all tests declined with age but significantly more so for men than for women. Heterosexuals of each gender generally outperformed bisexuals and homosexuals on tests where that gender was superior; however, there were no clear interactions between age and sexual orientation for either gender. At least for these particular tests from young adulthood to retirement, age is kinder to women than to men, but treats heterosexuals, bisexuals, and homosexuals just the same

Exploring the views of young women and their healthcare professionals on dietary habits and supplementation practices in adolescent pregnancy: a qualitative study

Background: Nutrition is a modifiable factor affecting foetal growth and pregnancy outcomes. Inadequate nutrition is of particular concern in adolescent pregnancies with poor quality diet and competing demands for nutrients. The aim of this study was to explore knowledge and understanding of nutrition advice during adolescent pregnancy,and identify barriers and facilitators to dietary change and supplementation use in this vulnerable population. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with young women and key antenatal healthcare providers: midwives, family nurses and obstetricians. Doncaster, Manchester and London were chosen as sites offering different models of midwifery care alongside referral to the Family Nurse Partnership programme. Results: A total of 34 young women (adolescents aged 16–19 years) and 20 health professionals were interviewed. Young women made small changes to their dietary intake despite limited knowledge and social constraints. Supplementation use varied; the tablet format was identified by few participants as a barrier but forgetting to take them was the main reason for poor adherence. Health professionals provided nutrition information but often lack the time and resources to tailor this appropriately. Young women’s prime motivator was a desire to have a healthy baby; they wanted to understand the benefits of supplementation and dietary change in those terms. Conclusion: Pregnancy is a window of opportunity for improving nutrition but often constrained by social circumstances. Health professionals should be supported in their role to access education, training and resources which build their self-efficacy to facilitate change in this vulnerable population group beyond the routine care they provide

Visualization of C. elegans transgenic arrays by GFP

BACKGROUND: Targeting the green fluorescent protein (GFP) via the E. coli lac repressor (LacI) to a specific DNA sequence, the lac operator (lacO), allows visualization of chromosomes in yeast and mammalian cells. In principle this method of visualization could be used for genetic mosaic analysis, which requires cell-autonomous markers that can be scored easily and at single cell resolution. The C. elegans lin-3 gene encodes an epidermal growth factor family (EGF) growth factor. lin-3 is expressed in the gonadal anchor cell and acts through LET-23 (transmembrane protein tyrosine kinase and ortholog of EGF receptor) to signal the vulval precursor cells to generate vulval tissue. lin-3 is expressed in the vulval cells later, and recent evidence raises the possibility that lin-3 acts in the vulval cells as a relay signal during vulval induction. It is thus of interest to test the site of action of lin-3 by mosaic analysis. RESULTS: We visualized transgenes in living C. elegans by targeting the green fluorescent protein (GFP) via the E. coli lac repressor (LacI) to a specific 256 sequence repeat of the lac operator (lacO) incorporated into transgenes. We engineered animals to express a nuclear-localized GFP-LacI fusion protein. C. elegans cells having a lacO transgene result in nuclear-localized bright spots (i.e., GFP-LacI bound to lacO). Cells with diffuse nuclear fluorescence correspond to unbound nuclear localized GFP-LacI. We detected chromosomes in living animals by chromosomally integrating the array of the lacO repeat sequence and visualizing the integrated transgene with GFP-LacI. This detection system can be applied to determine polyploidy as well as investigating chromosome segregation. To assess the GFP-LacI•lacO system as a marker for mosaic analysis, we conducted genetic mosaic analysis of the epidermal growth factor lin-3, expressed in the anchor cell. We establish that lin-3 acts in the anchor cell to induce vulva development, demonstrating this method's utility in detecting the presence of a transgene. CONCLUSION: The GFP-LacI•lacO transgene detection system works in C. elegans for visualization of chromosomes and extrachromosomal transgenes. It can be used as a marker for genetic mosaic analysis. The lacO repeat sequence as an extrachromosomal array becomes a valuable technique allowing rapid, accurate determination of spontaneous loss of the array, thereby allowing high-resolution mosaic analysis. The lin-3 gene is required in the anchor cell to induce the epidermal vulval precursors cells to undergo vulval development

Adjunctive raloxifene treatment improves attention and memory in men and women with schizophrenia

There is increasing clinical and molecular evidence for the role of hormones and specifically estrogen and its receptor in schizophrenia. A selective estrogen receptor modulator, raloxifene, stimulates estrogen-like activity in brain and can improve cognition in older adults. The present study tested the extent to which adjunctive raloxifene treatment improved cognition and reduced symptoms in young to middle-age men and women with schizophrenia. Ninety-eight patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were recruited into a dual-site, thirteen-week, randomized, double-blind, placebocontrolled, crossover trial of adjunctive raloxifene treatment in addition to their usual antipsychotic medications. Symptom severity and cognition in the domains of working memory, attention/processing speed, language and verbal memory were assessed at baseline, 6 and 13 weeks. Analyses of the initial 6-week phase of the study using a parallel groups design (with 39 patients receiving placebo and 40 receiving raloxifene) revealed that participants receiving adjunctive raloxifene treatment showed significant improvement relative to placebo in memory and attention/processing speed. There was no reduction in symptom severity with treatment compared with placebo. There were significant carryover effects, suggesting some cognitive benefits are sustained even after raloxifene withdrawal. Analysis of the 13-week crossover data revealed significant improvement with raloxifene only in attention/processing speed. This is the first study to show that daily, oral adjunctive raloxifene treatment at 120 mg per day has beneficial effects on attention/processing speed and memory for both men and women with schizophrenia. Thus, raloxifene may be useful as an adjunctive treatment for cognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia.TW Weickert, D Weinberg, R Lenroot, SV Catts, R Wells, A Vercammen, M O, Donnell, C Galletly, D Liu, R Balzan, B Short, D Pellen, J Curtis, VJ Carr, J Kulkarni, PR Schofield and CS Weicker

The functional anatomy of semantic retrieval is influenced by gender, menstrual cycle, and sex hormones

This study examines the neurobiology of semantic retrieval and describes the influence of gender, menstrual cycle, and sex hormones on semantic networks. Healthy right-handed subjects (12 men, 12 women) were investigated with 3T-fMRI during synonym generation. Behavioral performance and sex hormone levels were assessed. Women were examined during the early follicular and midluteal cycle phase. The activation pattern in all groups involved left frontal and temporal as well as bilateral medial frontal, cingulate, occipital, basal ganglia, and cerebellar regions. Men showed greater left frontal activation than women in both menstrual cycle phases. Women yielded high correlations of left prefrontal activation with estradiol in the midluteal phase and with progesterone in both phases. Testosterone levels correlated highly with left prefrontal activation in all three groups. In all, we describe a cerebral network involved in semantic processing and demonstrate that it is significantly affected by gender and sex steroid hormones