The kynurenine pathway and the brain: challenges, controversies and promises

Research on the neurobiology of the kynurenine pathway has suffered years of relative obscurity because tryptophan degradation, and its involvement in both physiology and major brain diseases, was viewed almost exclusively through the lens of the well-established metabolite serotonin. With increasing recognition that kynurenine and its metabolites can affect and even control a variety of classic neurotransmitter systems directly and indirectly, interest is expanding rapidly. Moreover, kynurenine pathway metabolism itself is modulated in conditions such as infection and stress, which are known to induce major changes in well-being and behaviour, so that kynurenines may be instrumental in the etiology of psychiatric and neurological disorders. It is therefore likely that the near future will not only witness the discovery of additional physiological and pathological roles for brain kynurenines, but also ever-increasing interest in drug development based on these roles. In particular, targeting the kynurenine pathway with new specific agents may make it possible to prevent disease by appropriate pharmacological or genetic manipulations. The following overview focuses on areas of kynurenine research which are either controversial, of major potential therapeutic interest, or just beginning to receive the degree of attention which will clarify their relevance to neurobiology and medicine. It also highlights technical issues so that investigators entering the field, and new research initiatives, are not misdirected by inappropriate experimental approaches or incorrect interpretations at this time of skyrocketing interest in the subject matter

The roles of computer self-efficacy, outcome expectancy, and attribution theory in impacting computer system use

TJte process by which individuals accept or reject information technologies was theoretically explained in a model employing attributional relationships and computer self-ejficacy and outcome expectancy. The model was empirically tested using structural equations modeling and data collected in afield setting. The results provided partial confiirmation of the theory that attributions to ability, effort, luck, and task difficulty impact information system use mediated by computer self-ejficacy and outcome expectancy. The stable attributions of ability and task difficulty had meaningful impacts on computer self-ejficacy. Similarly, task difficulty had a meaningful impact on outcome expectancy. The unstable attributes of effort and luck demonstrated meaningful impacts on computer self-ejficacy but not outcome expectancy. In addition, these results showed that computer self-ejficacy had a significant impact on both outcome expectancy and computer system use

The effects of computer self-efficacy and outcome expectancy on end-user job control and stress

This article examines the effects of computer self-efficacy and outcome expectancy on the end-user\u27s sense of felt stress as mediated by job control. A nationwide survey of information technology end-users provided the sample. The results show that computer self-efficacy directly impacts personal and job related outcome expectancies and that computer self-efficacy and job related outcome expectancies directly affect job control. Job control is shown to mediate the impacts of computer self-efficacy and job related expectancies on stress. The results are discussed and implications for information technology managers are presented

The Impacts of End-User Gender, Education, Performance, and System Use on Computer Self-Efficacy and Outcome Expectancy

John W. Henry, Ph.D., is an associate professor of management, Department of Management, College of Business, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Ga. Robert W. Stone, Ph.D., is an associate professor of information systems, Department of Business, College of Business and Economics, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID

Trading With A Day Job: Can Automated Trading Strategies Be Profitable?

The focus of the research is the profitability of using automated trading strategies. In other words, can trading strategies that are automatically executed in financial markets be profitable? In this study, three strategies are traded in a simulated environment under two different types of market conditions and on two different underlying assets. The trading strategies are based on a moving average crossover system with 5, 10, and 20 day moving averages. The first strategy uses only this moving average crossover system. The second strategy uses this same moving average system requiring increasing volume confirmation to make a trade. The final strategy uses this moving average crossover system but requires confirmation by a relative strength index to make a trade. The two market conditions used are an upward trending market and a consolidating market. The assets traded are the NASDQ 100 (i.e., QQQQ) and the S&P Deposit Receipts Trust (SPY). These assets tend to have different levels of volatility over time. The automated trading strategies are simulated using historical data and the trading software TradeStation. TradeStation allows for trading strategies to be implemented and tested on historic data at various time intervals and using a variety of time charts. A number of numeric values are also calculated by TradeStation including the number of trades and the profit or loss produced by these trades. The simulation results indicated that for both assets in markets that trend upwards, the moving average strategy with confirmation by the relative strength index dominated the other two strategies in terms of profits. During consolidating market periods, the simulation results are less clear. The magnitude of the profits when trading the relatively stable S&P varied across the three strategies and various time charts. However for the more volatile NASDQ 100, profits tended to be greater for the simple moving average strategy than the other two strategies

A Model Of Information Technology Impacts: An Invariance Analysis By Executive Position

The invariance, by executive position in the organization, of an information technology impacts model is examined.  The theoretical model links computer training, end-user previous computer experience, information (provided by the system) quality, ease of system use, customer knowledge in the firm’s industry, and the tasks performed using the system to individual and firm performance impacts through system use and satisfaction.  The empirical examination uses data from a national mail survey.  The respondents are business executives at four different organizational levels (i.e., owners, senior executives, marketing executives, and middle/operational executives).  The quantitative technique used is invariance analysis based on structural equation modeling.  The results indicate that the interrelationships among the theoretical constructs in the model are generally invariant across these different organizational positions.  The one difference identified is the path from information quality to system use.  Examining each executive group individually shows that this path is significant for marketing executives, but no other executive group.  Thus, the identified difference appears to be produced by the importance of information quality on marketing executives’ use of computer systems.  Managerial implications, conclusions, and suggestions for future research are discussed based upon these results

An Exploratory Study of the Faculty Influences on Student\u27s Attitudes and Learning Using the Collaborative Software Sharepoint Services

The research focuses on the impacts of using collaborative software in student project teams. Specifically, an exploratory study of students’ perceptions of learning and attitudes and the impact of faculty actions when using Microsoft’s SharePoint Services to facilitate student intra-team collaboration is examined. The research objective is to identify meaningful correlations between variables measuring students’ attitudes and affective behaviors regarding SharePoint and actions controllable by faculty supporting the use of SharePoint. Students enrolled in a required, core business course that made significant use of student teams supported by SharePoint participated in the web-based questionnaire. The significant correlations among the measures developed using this data indicate that faculty action supporting the use of collaborative software may influence student learning directly as well as indirectly through students’ attitudes and intentions to use the software. These empirical results also indicate that social cognitive theory may well provide a theoretical foundation for future research

Factors Influencing Adopters and Non-Adopters of E-Textbooks

A trend in education is the use of electronic textbooks (e-textbook). A variety of research has examined the factors influencing the likelihood to purchase an e-textbook, from motivation to continuance. This research compares student adopters and non-adopters of e-textbook using a content analysis of comments to understand influencing factors. The data were collected via an online questionnaire by students at a medium-sized (USA) university. A total of 1,434 students responded with 758 adopters and 464 nonadopters providing written comments regarding the e-textbooks. The themes identified between the two groups were usability, type of class, accessibility, ownership, and learning impacts. Understanding the influencing factors of adoption from the adopter and the non-adopter are valuable to the future of e-textbook acceptance

The Use Of A Financial Trading Room To Develop Risk Management Competency

The use of a financial trading room and its role in financial trading and risk management education are presented. The program makes use of experiential learning to aid students in the development of competency in financial trading by coupling knowledge with skill. The current status of program features and curriculum are presented first along with anecdotal evidence of its impacts on students. Next the immediate changes planned for the program are presented along with the long term objectives for the program. Conclusions regarding the role of financial trading in providing experiential learning and its impacts on students are presented last.&nbsp

The kynurenine pathway: towards metabolic equilibrium

No abstract available