High-throughput assay of oleopentanedialdheydes in extra virgin olive oil by the UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS and isotope dilution methods

The quality of extra virgin olive oil is associated with the presence of microcomponents whose healing effects have been proved in some special cases. The enzymatic hydrolysis of oleuropein and ligstroside, and of their demethylated analogues, affords four different pentanedialdehydes, and for one of which, 2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethyl (3S,4E)-4-formyl-3-(2-oxoethyl)hex-4-enoate, also known as oleocanthal, an anti-inflammatory effect was quite recently carefully assessed. Extra virgin olive oil is now worldwide considered as a functional food whose daily intake, as for the Mediterranean diet, helps consumers in keeping a constant level of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) in the blood. The presence of these active principles provides, therefore, olive oil with an important added value. In the framework of the actions of the recently funded Agrifood Regional Center, which should coordinate the scientific research and production worlds, an absolute analytical method was developed for the mass spectrometric detection of the two most abundant NSAIDs, Tyr-OLPD and HTyr-OLPD (oleopentanedialdehydes (OLPDs) conjugated to p-hydroxyphenylethanol and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethanol, respectively), by UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS.     

The individual response of saline lakes to a severe drought

A severe protracted drought between 1997 and 2009 has altered the physical and chemical hydrology of a series of lakes in the Corangamite Basin of southeast Australia. Leading up to the drying out of most lakes (many for the first time on record), we document the changes in lakes' water quantity (water levels and inundation), salinity (Cl concentrations), salinity processes (Cl/Br ratios), nutrient concentrations and ratios (ammonia, phosphate and NOx (nitrate and nitrite)) and algae (as chlorophyll-a) for six lakes. All lakes show record declines in inundated areas and increases in salinity from pre-drought (< 1997) to drought conditions. However, the magnitude of change in salinity varies for different lakes, and there is no systematic change in the controls on lake salinity processes. Four lakes show no change in salinity processes, one lake shows the beginnings of change; where halite dissolution reactions increased closer to the time of the lake drying up, and another lake shows a marked shift from predominantly evaporation to the cyclic dissolution and precipitation of halite. Changes in filterable reactive phosphorus (FRP) values and lake N and P limitation predictions also showed little systematic correlation with changes in lake salinity, and nutrient values varied between lakes and over time. The decline in NO_x concentrations in lakes where electrical conductivity (EC) values were above 100 mS/cm indicates some correlation with changes in salinity. Largely, these lakes exhibit individual changes in water quality parameters and salinity processes in response to the drought, indicating that while the stress of drought is regional, the hydrochemical response is local. In future changing climates, these results suggest that the catchment adaption strategies will require comprehensive plans for individual lake systems.     

Isomers of dechlorane plus in Lake Winnipeg and Lake Ontario food webs

The extent of bioaccumulation of the syn- and anti-isomers of Dechlorane Plus (DP) is assessed in archived food web samples from Lake Winnipeg and Lake Ontario. Concentrations of the isomers were determined using purified analytical solutions of individual isomers as opposed to the technical mixture. The syn-isomer was consistently detected in all samples from both lakes; the anti-isomer was detected in all Lake Ontario samples, but only 45% of the samples from Lake Winnipeg. The pattern of bioaccumulation was different for the isomers in Lake Winnipeg. The anti-isomer was dominant in higher trophic level (TL) organisms like walleye [arithmetic mean +/- 1 x standard error: 730 +/- 120 pg/g, lipid weight (1w)] and goldeye (760 +/- 170 pg/g, Iw) while the syn-isomer dominated the lower TL organisms like zooplankton (550 +/- 40 pg/g, Iw) and mussels (430 +/- 140 pg/g, Iw). In Lake Ontario, the extent of bioaccumulation of the isomers and concentrations was greatest in the lower TL benthic organism, Diporeia (syn, 1307 +/- 554; and anti, 3108 +/- 898 pg/g Iw) and also high in zooplankton (syn, 719; and anti, 1332 pg/g Iw). This suggests that the isomers are bioavailable in sediment and that, despite their molecular size, diffusion from the water column into zooplankton can occur. Differences in the mean fractional abundance of the anti-isomer (mean fanti = mean concentration of the anti-isomer divided by sum of mean syn- and anti-concentrations) were pronounced in sediments between lakes (Lake Winnipeg mean fanti = 0.610, Lake Ontario mean fanti = 0.860) and the extent of enrichment (anti-) and depletion (syn-) of the isomers were more marked in Lake Winnipeg biota. There were also differences in the biomagnification potentials, as measured bythe trophic magnification factor (TMF), between the isomers in the Lake Winnipeg food web; no statistically significant TMFs for either isomer were found for the     

Assignment methods in experimentation: When do nonrandomized experiments approximate answers from randomized experiments?

This meta-analysis compares effect size estimates from 51 randomized experiments to those from 47 nonrandomized experiments. These experiments were drawn from published and unpublished studies of Scholastic Aptitude Test coaching, ability grouping of students within classrooms, presurgical education of patients to improve postsurgical outcome, and drug abuse prevention with juveniles. The raw results suggest that the two kinds of experiments yield very different answers. But when studies are equated for crucial features (which is not always possible), nonrandomized experiments can yield a reasonably accurate effect size in comparison with randomized designs. Crucial design features include the activity level of the intervention given the control group, pretest effect size, selection and attrition levels, and the accuracy of the effect-size estimation method. Implications of these results for the conduct of meta-analysis and for the design of good nonrandomized experiments are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Impact of the Sibling in Clinical Practice: Transference and Countertransference Dynamics.

For many years, the impact of sibling relationships on psychological development has been neglected in the literature, overshadowed by the role of the parent-child relationship. As a result, attention to sibling dynamics and sibling transference as valuable information for case formulation and treatment interventions has not been used to its maximum potential. The authors demonstrate how deliberate consideration of sibling dynamics as well as the transferences and countertransferences associated with those dynamics can facilitate treatment. Several important sibling dynamics are discussed, including siblings' influences on identity development; sibling rivalry, jealousy, envy, guilt, and resentment; and sibling attachment. The impact of sibling dynamics on adult love relationships is discussed, as are potential effects of sibling abuse and sibling bereavement. Examples of how these dynamics can manifest themselves in transference and countertransference reactions and suggestions for working with those dynamics are illustrated with clinical examples. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An investigation of six- to eleven-year-old children with allergic disorders.

Compared 6-11 yr. old children with and without allergic reactions on their intellectual ability, academic performance, social interaction patterns, medical history, TAT responses, and scores on a number of other psychological tests. Placement in the allergic sample was determined by a medical history provided by the parents of each child. The allergic sample included 199 boys and 172 girls, while the nonallergic sample consisted of 419 boys and 400 girls. Results indicate that Ss who did not exhibit allergic reactions were otherwise healthier and were rated as superior on a number of academic, social, and emotional adjustment dimensions. Results are related to studies of psychosomatic children. (19 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rat strain differences in copulatory behavior after para-chlorophenylalanine and hormone treatment.

The potentiation of masculine copulatory behavior in castrated male rats following systemic parachlorophenylalanine (PCPA) treatment was found to be dependent upon the strain of rat and the recency of castration. Wistar (W) and Sprague-Dawley (SD) males displayed a decline in behavioral responsiveness to PCPA treatment following castration, the Ws retaining their behavioral responsiveness longer than SDs. Castrated Ws were also behaviorally more responsive to androgen replacement than were SDs. Ovariectomized W and SD females receiving estrogen replacement displayed a strain difference in hormonal sensitivity. In tests for feminine copulatory behavior, ovariectomized Ws were behaviorally more sensitive to estrogen treatment than SDs. Ovariectomized and estrogen-primed females of both strains displayed potentiated lordotic behavior following chronic PCPA treatment. Concomitant treatment with dexamethasone to reduce adrenal steroid output abolished the potentiation of lordotic behavior found with PCPA treatment. (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Taste aversions to food flavors and vaginal secretion in golden hamsters.

Although rodents readily associate virtually any distinctive flavor with gastrointestinal illness when the flavor and illness have been paired, experience with a flavor can provide information that interferes with later attempts to produce aversions to the familiar taste. The vaginal secretion of female hamsters carries sexual information for males, which does not depend on previous experience; it was studied, in the present 3 experiments, whether that built-in information might interfere with associations between flavor of the excretion and illness. Surprisingly, the Ss, 32 male Syrian hamsters, showed dramatic changes in behavior toward the vaginal secretion when its presentation was followed by lithium chloride poisoning. Results suggest that mammalian responses to sex pheromones are far more easily modified by experience than has been supposed. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of institutional room acoustics on speech discrimination of developmentally disabled residents and of staff.

High ambient noise levels and long reverberation times can degrade speech discrimination. An experiment examined the effects on speech discrimination of 2 acoustic factors: (a) noise level (high, 72 db; low, 65 db); and (b) reverberation times (long, 1.77 sec; short, .79 sec). Ss were 12 developmentally disabled state school residents and 12 normal staff members. Their speech discrimination abilities were tested under conditions simulating the institutional environment prior to renovations (high noise/long reverberation time) and following renovations (low noise/short reverberation time). A 3-way mixed ANOVA showed main effects of noise, reverberation time, and group. There was a Noise?×?Group interaction and a significant difference between simulated prerenovation and postrenovation conditions. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)