Nitric oxide production and monoamine oxidase activity in cancer patients during interferon-α therapy

Both increased and decreased nitric oxide (NO) synthesis have been reported in patients treated with interferon-α (IFN-α). Animal studies showed that IFN-α administration results in increased levels of biogenic amines, subsequent activation of monoamine oxidases (MAOs), and finally in a change in NO production due to the H2O2 generated by MAOs. We examined the potential relationship between NO production in plasma and MAO-B activity in platelets of 43 cancer patients during 8 weeks of treatment with IFN-α. NO synthesis was quantitated by measuring both the ratio of citrulline and arginine (CIT/ARG-ratio) and total nitrite/nitrate (NOx) levels. Compared to baseline, MAO activity and NOx increased, while the CIT/ARG-ratio decreased. No associations were found between NOx, MAO and CIT/ARG-ratio. Only few associations were observed between changes in the biochemical parameters and changes in psychopathology induced by IFN-α, of which the association between changes in CIT and lassitude was the most consistent. The results suggest that peripheral NO production and MAO activity are unrelated to each other, and that peripheral changes in these biochemical parameters induced by IFN-α are unlikely to contribute to definite psychiatric disturbance

Does affirming children's autonomy and prosocial intentions help? A microtrial into intervention component effects to improve psychosocial behavior

Item does not contain fulltextPrior research has related children's prosocial behavior to overall well-being, and stimulating prosocial behavior is the aim of many social-emotional skills interventions. This study assessed if affirming children's autonomy stimulates their psychosocial behavior. We conducted a three-arm microtrial with four repeated measures to assess if a social-emotional skills intervention with an autonomy affirmation component had an additive effect on children's behavior as compared to a "regular" intervention focused exclusively on teaching social-emotional skills and a no-treatment control condition. Our sample consisted of 779 children in Grades 4-6 (Mage = 10.61, SD = 0.93). Findings from latent change modeling demonstrated that the social-emotional skills intervention with an autonomy affirmation component yielded superior effects as compared to the "regular" intervention and the no-treatment control condition on the improvement of internalizing and externalizing problem behavior in the three-month period after the intervention. The intervention with autonomy affirmation did not yield superior effects on prosociality and social skills, self-efficacy, and self-esteem or self-perceived competence. The absence of these effects may be attributed to the dosage of the interventions implemented - the affirmation of children's autonomy may require more than four sessions to sort observable effects. Overall, however, the findings of this study provide an initial suggestion that it may be beneficial to affirm children's autonomy and prosocial intentions when enhancing children's behavior.22 p

Plasma levels of nitric oxide related amino acids in demented subjects with Down syndrome are related to neopterin concentrations

Subjects with Down syndrome (DS) have abnormalities in virtually all aspects of the immune system and almost all will be affected with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). It is thought that nitric oxide (NO) is involved in the pathophysiology of AD. In the present study, including a total of 401 elderly DS subjects, the spectrum of plasma amino acids and neopterin was investigated and related to development of AD. Concentrations of nearly all amino acids in DS subjects differed significantly from those of healthy controls. Neopterin was increased in DS subjects, especially in dementia. The production of NO as reflected by an increased citrulline/arginine ratio (Cit/Arg ratio) was enhanced during development of clinical dementia. Neopterin concentrations correlated to the Cit/Arg ratio only in the group of prevalent demented subjects (ρ = 0.48, P = 0.006). The results of this study are suggestive for an increase in oxidative processes in DS subjects with AD

Plasma amino acids and neopterin in healthy persons with Down’s syndrome

In persons with Down’s syndrome (DS) immunological abnormalities as well as hypothyroidism and Alzheimer type dementia are frequently observed. In addition, the activity of the enzyme cystathionine beta-synthase (CBS) is over-expressed which results in an altered homocysteine metabolism

Inter-cultural differences in response to a computer-based anti-bullying intervention

Background and purpose: Many holistic anti-bullying interventions have been attempted, with mixed success, while little work has been done to promote a 'self-help' approach to victimisation. The rise of the ICT curriculum and computer support in schools now allows for approaches that benefit from technology to be implemented. This study evaluates the cross-cultural effects of a computer-based anti-bullying intervention on primary school-aged children's knowledge about bullying and relevant coping strategies. Programme description: FearNot! is an interactive computer-based virtual learning environment designed for use as an anti-bullying intervention. It includes interactive virtual agents who assume the most common participant roles found in episodes of bullying. FearNot! was used by children over three consecutive weeks to allow its effectiveness to be evaluated in a longitudinal in situ programme. Sample: Two comparable samples were drawn from the UK and Germany. In the UK, 651 participants (aged 8-11) were recruited from primary schools in Hertfordshire, Coventry and Warwickshire, whereas the 535 German participants (aged 7-10) were sourced from Grundschulen in the Bayern and Hessen regions. Because of lack of parental consent, late joiners and absences/missing responses, data from 908 participants (UK 493; Germany 415) were analysed. Design and methods: A quasi-experimental, pre/post-tests control group design employed pre-published and bespoke questionnaires to collect data. Descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted. Results: UK students possessed higher coping strategy knowledge scores than German participants, but German children's scores improved over time and as a result of the FearNot! intervention. Conclusions: Overall, while not effective at increasing children's coping strategy knowledge in this study, the FearNot! intervention could prove a useful classroom tool to approach the issue of bullying as part of a wider initiative. Cultural differences at baseline and reactions to the intervention are discussed