Influence of imipramine on the duration of immobility in chronic forced-swim-stressed rats.

We studied the influence of imipramine on the duration of immobility in chronic forced-swim-stressed rats. Both single and chronic administration of imipramine potently shortened immobility in naive rats during forced-swim testing. However, chronic, 14-day forced-swim stress testing blocked the immobility-decreasing effect induced by a single administration of imipramine. When imipramine was administered for 14 days concurrently with forced-swim stress testing, immobility was shortened significantly. From the viewpoint of imipramine's effect, these findings suggest that chronic forced-swim stress testing in rats may be an effective animal model for depression.</p

Dedicated hippocampal inhibitory networks for locomotion and immobility

Network activity is strongly tied to animal movement; however, hippocampal circuits selectively engaged during locomotion or immobility remain poorly characterized. Here we examined whether distinct locomotor states are encoded differentially in genetically defined classes of hippocampal interneurons. To characterize the relationship between interneuron activity and movement, we usedin vivo, two-photon calcium imaging in CA1 of male and female mice, as animals performed a virtual-reality (VR) track running task. We found that activity in most somatostatin-expressing and parvalbumin-expressing interneurons positively correlated with locomotion. Surprisingly, nearly one in five somatostatin or one in seven parvalbumin interneurons were inhibited during locomotion and activated during periods of immobility. Anatomically, the somata of somatostatin immobility-activated neurons were smaller than those of movement-activated neurons. Furthermore, immobility-activated interneurons were distributed across cell layers, with somatostatin-expressing cells predominantly in stratum oriens and parvalbumin-expressing cells mostly in stratum pyramidale. Importantly, each cell's correlation between activity and movement was stable both over time and across VR environments. Our findings suggest that hippocampal interneuronal microcircuits are preferentially active during either movement or immobility periods. These inhibitory networks may regulate information flow in “labeled lines” within the hippocampus to process information during distinct behavioral states.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTThe hippocampus is required for learning and memory. Movement controls network activity in the hippocampus but it's unclear how hippocampal neurons encode movement state. We investigated neural circuits active during locomotion and immobility and found interneurons were selectively active during movement or stopped periods, but not both. Each cell's response to locomotion was consistent across time and environments, suggesting there are separate dedicated circuits for processing information during locomotion and immobility. Understanding how the hippocampus switches between different network configurations may lead to therapeutic approaches to hippocampal-dependent dysfunctions, such as Alzheimer's disease or cognitive decline.</jats:p

Earnings Mobility and Origin Dependence: What can twins say together with nonparametric econometrics?

This study focuses on earnings immobility and its relation to the originin terms of both the social background and the initial position in the earnings distribution. Twin data is used to reveal the importance for the common background for immobility. A nonparametric technique is used to study if the immobility varies over the distribution. The results indicate strong immobility, an important effect of the background, and that these effects vary over the distribution. For the male monozygotic sample, the social background accounts for 71-88 percent of the immobility in deciles 3 to 7, where the background is found to be most important. The common background has its strongest impact in deciles 6 to 10 for the female sample, where these effects accounts for 66-77 percent of the immobility. Comparing results for monozygotic and dizygotic twins also indicate that genes play an important role in income immobility.Earnings mobility; nonparametric; twins

Risk marker associations with venous thrombotic events: a cross-sectional analysis.

ObjectiveTo examine the interrelations among, and risk marker associations for, superficial and deep venous events-superficial venous thrombosis (SVT), deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE).DesignCross-sectional analysis.SettingSan Diego, California, USA.Participants2404 men and women aged 40-79 years from four ethnic groups: non-Hispanic White, Hispanic, African-American and Asian. The study sample was drawn from current and former staff and employees of the University of California, San Diego and their spouses/significant others.Outcome measuresSuperficial and deep venous events, specifically SVT, DVT, PE and combined deep venous events (DVE) comprising DVT and PE.ResultsSignificant correlates on multivariable analysis were, for SVT: female sex, ethnicity (African-American=protective), lower educational attainment, immobility and family history of varicose veins. For DVT and DVE, significant correlates included: heavy smoking, immobility and family history of DVEs (borderline for DVE). For PE, significant predictors included immobility and, in contrast to DVT, blood pressure (BP, systolic or diastolic). In women, oestrogen use duration for hormone replacement therapy, in all and among oestrogen users, predicted PE and DVE, respectively.ConclusionsThese findings fortify evidence for known risk correlates/predictors for venous disease, such as family history, hormone use and immobility. New risk associations are shown. Striking among these is an association of PE, but not DVT, to elevated BP: we conjecture PE may serve as cause rather than consequence. Future studies should evaluate the temporal direction of this association. Oxidative stress and cell energy compromise are proposed to explain and predict many risk factors, operating through cell-death mediated triggering of coagulation activation

Differences in sympathetic nervous response due to gender

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston UniversityThe sympathetic nervous system, in addition to its many roles as part of the autonomic nervous system, utilizes contact with many organs in the body to recruit them for an immediate response to danger. The multiple survival responses that the sympathetic nervous system manifests are typically known as the fight, flight or freeze response. The freeze response, otherwise referred to as tonic immobility, is being explored here for its survival value in the specific context of gender. It is our belief that in situations of interpersonal aggression, females may be more suited to survive by utilizing a tonic response when they are confronted with violence. Research in the areas of both tonic immobility and gender differences will be explored and compared, as well as animal origins of tonic immobility. It is our hope that by looking at the various studies already conducted on these topics, a path for future research on gender and sympathetic response may be illuminated in the field of physiological psychology

Why is Capital so Immobile Internationally?: Possible Explanations and Implications for Capital Income Taxation

The evidence on international capital immobility is extensive, ranging from the correlations between domestic savings and investment pointed out by Feldstein-Horioka (1980), to real interest differentials across countries, to the lack of international portfolio diversification. To what degree does capital immobility modify past results forecasting that small open economies should not tax savings or investment? The answer depends on the cause of this immobility. We argue that asymmetric information between countries provides the most plausible explanation for the above observations. When we examine optimal tax policy in an open economy allowing for asymmetric information, rather than simply finding that savings and investment should not be taxed, we now forecast government subsidies to foreign acquisitions of domestic firms. Some omitted factors that would argue against subsidizing foreign acquisitions are explored briefly.

Effect of peppermint oil on serum lipid peroxidation and hepatic enzymes after immobility stress in mice

This study was undertaken to determine the influences of various doses of peppermint oil on the hepatic enzymes, alanine transaminase, apartate tranaminase, alkaline phosphotase and gamma glutamyl transferase and the level of malondialdehyde in the serum of mice with and without immobility stress. The mice exposed to drink water, 0.9, 27 and 60 mg/kg peppermint oil from the days 1 to 5 for a period of 4 h before and after immobility stress. Serum MDA increased in treatment group II, III and IV after immobility stress. There was a significant decrease in ALT in treatment group III and IV after immobility stress. There were also significant decreases in ALP and GGT in treatment group IV after immobility stress. This result may suggest that, MDA level is higher in immobilization stress group than in the un-immobilized animals in serum and this results show that enzyme activities decreased after immobilization stress. © Marjani et al

Discrimination and Economic Mobility

Reviews current research on primarily racial discrimination to assess the extent to which it persists and contributes to relative immobility for minorities, especially African Americans. Discusses methods of measuring discrimination and their limitations

Trapped in the prison of the mind: notions of climate-induced (im)mobility decision-making and wellbeing from an urban informal settlement in Bangladesh

The concept of Trapped Populations has until date mainly referred to people ‘trapped’ in environmentally high-risk rural areas due to economic constraints. This article attempts to widen our understanding of the concept by investigating climate-induced socio-psychological immobility and its link to Internally Displaced People’s (IDPs) wellbeing in a slum of Dhaka. People migrated here due to environmental changes back on Bhola Island and named the settlement Bhola Slum after their home. In this way, many found themselves ‘immobile’ after having been mobile—unable to move back home, and unable to move to other parts of Dhaka, Bangladesh, or beyond. The analysis incorporates the emotional and psychosocial aspects of the diverse immobility states. Mind and emotion are vital to better understand people’s (im)mobility decision-making and wellbeing status. The study applies an innovative and interdisciplinary methodological approach combining Q-methodology and discourse analysis (DA). This mixed-method illustrates a replicable approach to capture the complex state of climate-induced (im)mobility and its interlinkages to people’s wellbeing. People reported facing non-economic losses due to the move, such as identity, honour, sense of belonging and mental health. These psychosocial processes helped explain why some people ended up ‘trapped’ or immobile. The psychosocial constraints paralysed them mentally, as well as geographically. More empirical evidence on how climate change influences people’s wellbeing and mental health will be important to provide us with insights in how to best support vulnerable people having faced climatic impacts, and build more sustainable climate policy frameworks