Screening and treatment of distress.

The screening and treatment of psychological distress is an increasingly important aspect of providing comprehensive care to medical patients. The importance of this within oncology was illustrated most recently by the publication of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network's Distress Guidelines (Holland, 1997). Given that measures of general distress assess for symptoms across diagnostic categories, it is not unusual to have a combination of symptoms indicating distress without meeting diagnostic criteria (Derogatis, Morrow, & Petting, 1983). We would suggest that general measures of distress and psychiatric diagnoses not assessed by Coyne et al. (e.g., somatoform or adjustment disorders) may reflect better the distress (health anxiety and somatic preoccupation) of women at increased risk for cancer and be more informative than assessing selectively for mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and alcohol abuse. The authors additionally concluded that if there is not psychiatric disorder, then there is no impairment. We believe it premature at best to reify the DSM in a nonpsychiatric population. Distress exists on a continuum. To wait until patients meet psychiatric criteria before they are seen is not in the spirit of comprehensive medical care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Multi-objective planning framework for stochastic and controllable distributed energy resources

The amount of distributed energy resources (DER) in the grid is continually increasing, and the potential benefits and drawbacks are becoming clearer. However, there is still a lack of clarity in how these multiple effects interact and which trade-offs should be made in the integration of new DER. There is a clear need for appropriate DER planning tools in the current market environment, in which both DER operators and distribution system operators (DSOs) may have multiple, often conflicting objectives and where uncertainty remains present as to which targets can be reached with a high amount of DER in the grid. A novel multi-objective planning framework is presented for the integration of stochastic and controllable DER in the distribution grid. A case study that illustrates the proposed framework is presented. Active DER management in terms of curtailment as well as dispatch of units is studied using the proposed multi-objective approach. Additionally, the extent to which active DER can be used as an alternative for grid reinforcements is analysed. The results show that the proposed multi-objective approach permits a better evaluation of the potential of active DER to support system operation.     

Partitioning and bioaccumulation of PBDEs and PCBs in Lake Michigan

Water from Lake Michigan and fish from all five Great Lakes have been sampled and analyzed for a suite of six polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners and 110 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners (PCBs). The Lake Michigan dissolved phase PBDE congener concentrations (0.2 to 10 pg/L) are similar to dissolved phase PCB congener concentrations (nondetected to 13 pg/L). Partitioning of PBDEs between the particulate and dissolved phases exhibits behavior similar to that of PCBs. Organic-carbon-normalized water-particle partition coefficients (log K(OC)s) ranged from 6.2 to 6.5. Lake trout are depleted in BDE-99 relative to dissolved phase concentrations, and in contrast to what is expected from the PCB congener patterns. This reflects suspected debromination of BDE-99 in the food web of Lake Michigan. A regression of the log of the bioaccumulation factor (BAF) and the log of the octanol-water partition coefficent (K(OW)) indicated a positive relationship for both PCB congeners and PBDE congeners. BDE-99 does not appear to followthe same trend, a further indication that it is subject to biotransformation. Using the PBDE BAFs for Lake Michigan and the PBDE fish concentrations from the other Great Lakes it is expected that the dissolved phase concentrations of congeners in the other lakes would range from 0.04 to approximately 3 pg/L.     

Incorporation of chia seed flour into gluten-free rice layer cake: Effects on nutritional quality and physicochemical properties

The purpose of this research was to incorporate 0% to 30% chia seed flour into rice flour gluten-free layer cake and evaluate its effect on nutritional qualities and physicochemical properties. The supplement of chia seed flour resulted in higher batter viscosity, hardness of gluten free layer cake, crude protein, fat, ash, α-linolenic acid (increase up to 10.2% of total fatty acid), total phenolics content, and reducing power but the lower crust, crumb white index, cohesiveness, and resilience of gluten-free layer cake was found. Substitution of rice flour with 10% prehydrated chia seed flour can achieve a higher center height and volume index of gluten-free layer cakes. Higher carosine and angiotension I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity was observed in the supplement of 10% chia seed flour when compared to a rice flour layer cake. Gluten-free layer cake with 10% prehydrated chia seeds flour had similar overall acceptability, texture, flavor, and odor scores except for lower appearance score to those of gluten-free layer cake made with 100% rice flour and layer cake made with 100% wheat flour. Incorporation of 10% prehydrated chia seed flour results in more desirable volume index of gluten-free layer cake and it is feasible for gluten-free layer cake application. Gluten-free layer cakes with improved quality characteristics and high nutritional value can be manufactured by the incorporation of chia seed flour.     

Processable Thermally Conductive Polyurethane Composite Fibers

The demand for wearable electronics has resulted in an increasing interest in the development of functional fibers, with a specific focus upon the development of electrically conductive fibers incorporable into garments. However, the production of thermally conductive fibers for heat dissipation has been largely neglected. Owing to the very rapid development of miniaturized wearable electronics, there is an increasing need for the development of thermally conductive fibers as heat sinks and thermal management processes. In this study, thermally conductive but electrically insulating boron nitride nanopowder (BNNP) fillers are used to effectively enhance the thermal conductivity and mechanical properties of elastomeric polyurethane fibers. Thermal conductivity enhancement of more than 160% is achieved at very low loadings of BNNP (less than 5 wt%) with an improvement in the mechanical properties of the unmodified fiber. These thermally conductive fibers are also incorporated into 3D textile structures as a proof of processability.     

Low-Reynolds-number flow over partially covered cavities

We solve the problem of two-dimensional flow of a viscous fluid over a rectangular approximation of an etched hole. In the absence of inertia, the problem is solved by a technique involving the matching of biorthogonal infinite eigenfunction expansions in different parts of the domain. Truncated versions of these series are used to compute a finite number of unknown coefficients. In this way, the stream function and its derivatives can be determined in any arbitrary point. The accuracy of the results and the influence of the singularities at the mask-edge corners is discussed. The singularities result in a reduced convergence of the eigenfunction expansions on the interfaces of the different regions. However, accurate results can be computed for the interior points without using a lot of computational time and memory. These results can be used as a benchmark for other methods which will have to be used for geometries involving curved boundaries. The effect of hole size on the flow pattern is also discussed. These flow patterns have a strong influence on the etch rate in the different regions.     

A simple molecular assay differentiates two burrowing mayfly species, Hexagenia limbata and H. rigida (Ephemeroptera: Ephemeridae), in western Lake Erie

Burrowing mayflies (Hexagenia spp.) are important indicators of mesotrophic water conditions, and have been studied for several decades in conjunction with the changing trophic status of western Lake Erie. However, most studies on the biology of burrowing mayflies have failed to differentiate between immature H. limbata and H. rigida, the life stages that are most commonly collected. We developed a simple molecular assay to facilitate species-level identification of the two mayflies as an easier alternative to sequencing the COI gene. We analyzed a total of 152 cytochrome c oxidase, subunit I barcoding sequences from the Barcode of Life Data System (BOLD) for these mayfly species and developed a diagnostic primer set. We tested our primers on 46 random burrowing Lake Erie mayfly nymphs using both conventional PCR and qPCR. Results of the two methods were consistent and unambiguous. Sequencing of the COI barcoding region in the mayflies confirmed that the PCR assays correctly identified mayflies in all cases. Our assay is simple and effective, and will facilitate species-level identification of burrowing mayflies in future studies on their biology where the two species co-occur.     

Differential protein expression in exosomal samples taken from trauma patients

Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are among the most misdiagnosed and underreported types of head trauma. The potential long‐term impact of undiagnosed or incorrectly identified concussions and other head injuries are potentially devastating, as evidenced by the increasing societal burden exhibited by soldiers returning from combat and athletes in contact sports. Concussions and TBI are notoriously difficult to correctly diagnose and prognosis for these injuries is poorly understood. In order to increase the likelihood of successful diagnosis, treatment, and prediction of outcomes, a definitive differential diagnosis will need to be established. The establishment of a “trauma–specific profile” or a panel of known trauma markers will significantly aid in this goal. Small membrane vesicles called exosomes have been shown to contain proteins and injury‐specific biomarkers. In the future it is possible that they could become an important tool, utilized for their diagnostic and therapeutic potential.     

Knowledge of family history as a clinically useful index of psychological well-being and prognosis: A brief report.

Based on an instance of "clinical lore" we assess the efficacy of children's and adolescents' knowledge of family history as an index of psychological well-being and potential for positive change in clinical and educational settings. We report that knowledge of family history is significantly correlated with internal locus of control, higher self-esteem, better family functioning, greater family cohesiveness, lower levels of anxiety, and lower incidence of behavior problems. We suggest that through the use of a brief measure of family knowledge, practicing clinicians can rapidly generate a data-based correlate of children's well-being and likelihood of overcoming psychological and educational challenges. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)