Effect of soluble ash components on the viscosity of lignite-water mixtures

The removal of multivalent cations from lignite-water mixtures (LWM) was shown to lower mixture apparent viscosity by a factor of about 40, for example, at 100 s^?1 by reducing both the yield stress and plastic viscosity. The cations Ca⁺⁺, Mg⁺⁺, Al⁺⁺⁺, K⁺, and Na⁺, among others, were found to be present in the aqueous phase of the LWM in concentrations ranging from 546 ppm to 8 ppm. The primary anions present were CI^? and SO₄⁼. The degree to which the cations affected viscosity were of order trivalent > divalent > monovalent. The nature of the anion was found to be relatively unimportant. A process utilizing ion-exchange resins for removing multivalent cations to produce low viscosity lignite-water or coal-water mixtures is described.     

A fragment-based approach to understanding inhibition of 1-deoxy-D-xylulose-5-phosphate reductoisomerase

The inhibition of 1-deoxy-D-xylulose-5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) by fosmidomycin was studied by using a kinetic assay based on the consumption of NADPH and synthetic substrate. Fosmidomycin is a slow tight-binding inhibitor of DXR that shows strong negative cooperativity (absolute value(h) = 0.3) in binding. Cooperativity is displayed during the initial (weak, K0.5 = 10 microM) binding event and does not change as the binding tightens to the equilibrium value of 0.9 nM over a period of seconds to minutes. A series of fosmidomycin fragments was examined, but all showed much weaker inhibition, in the mM range. A series of cyclic fosmidomycin analogues was also synthesised and tested, but these showed high-microM binding at best. None of the synthetic compounds showed time-dependent inhibition. We concluded that the slow tight-binding behaviour, and perhaps also cooperativity, are mediated by significant reorganisation of the active site upon fosmidomycin binding. This makes the rational design of new inhibitors of DXR difficult at best.     

Aging and negative affect: The rise and fall and rise of anxiety and depression symptoms.

The relationship between aging and negative affect is dynamic and complex. Although prior studies have often cited lower prevalence rates of anxiety and mood disorders among older individuals, these studies may miss the dynamic relationship between symptoms and aging. To evaluate a nonlinear model of the relationship between aging and negative affect, the author examined measures of neuroticism, anxiety, and depression symptoms in a cross-sectional, community sample (N = 335), ages 18 to 93. Results indicated a curvilinear relationship, with mean symptom levels increasing during early adulthood (until the mid-30s) and then showing a small decline until older adulthood (the mid-70s), when symptoms again increase with age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sol–Gel Synthesis of Robust Metal–Organic Frameworks for Nanoparticle Encapsulation

A new type of composite material involving the in situ immobilization of tin oxide nanoparticles (SnO₂‐NPs) within a monolithic metal–organic framework (MOF), the zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF)‐8 is presented. SnO₂@_monoZIF‐8 exploits the mechanical properties, structural resilience, and high density of a monolithic MOF, while leveraging the photocatalytic action of the nanoparticles. The composite displays outstanding photocatalytic properties and represents a critical advance in the field of treating toxic effluents and is a vital validation for commercial application. Crucially, full retention of catalytic activity is observed after ten catalytic cycles.     

Sexual arousal to erotic and aggressive stimuli in sexually coercive and noncoercive men.

Sexual arousal to erotic stimuli depicting various levels of force were examined among college men. Study 1 used phallometric indices to measure penile circumferential change during combined audiotape and slide presentations varying in degree of force. The results indicated that the sexually coercive group exhibited more penile tumescence than controls to scenes involving verbal pressure and verbal threats. Analyses across time blocks suggested that control participants inhibited sexual arousal with the introduction of force cues but that the sexually coercive group did not. Study 2 was a replication of Study 1 without slides. Both groups showed increases in penile tumescence in response to the consent scenario. Only the sexually coercive men demonstrated significant tumescence in response to force scenarios. The results indicated that the sexually coercive males had a lower threshold for arousal to sexual cues and did not inhibit sexual arousal when force cues were introduced. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A new mode of fear expression: Perceptual bias in height fear.

Emotion and psychopathology researchers have described the fear response as consisting of four main components--subjective affect, physiology, cognition, and behavior. The current study provides evidence for an additional component in the domain of height fear (perception) and shows that it is distinct from measures of cognitive processing. Individuals High (N = 35) and Low (N = 36) in acrophobic symptoms looked over a two-story balcony ledge and estimated its vertical extent using a direct height estimation task (visual matching), and an indirect task (size estimation); the latter task seems to exhibit little influence from cognitive factors. In addition, implicit and explicit measures of cognitive processing were obtained. Results indicated that, as expected, the High Fear group showed greater relative, implicit height fear associations and explicit threat cognitions. Of primary interest, the High (compared to Low) Fear group estimated the vertical extent to be higher, and judged target sizes to be greater, even when controlling for the cognitive bias measures. These results suggest that emotional factors such as fear are related to perception. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teriflunomide Inhibits JCPyV Infection and Spread in Glial Cells and Choroid Plexus Epithelial Cells

Several classes of immunomodulators are used for treating relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Most of these disease-modifying therapies, except teriflunomide, carry the risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a severely debilitating, often fatal virus-induced demyelinating disease. Because teriflunomide has been shown to have antiviral activity against DNA viruses, we investigated whether treatment of cells with teriflunomide inhibits infection and spread of JC polyomavirus (JCPyV), the causative agent of PML. Treatment of choroid plexus epithelial cells and astrocytes with teriflunomide reduced JCPyV infection and spread. We also used droplet digital PCR to quantify JCPyV DNA associated with extracellular vesicles isolated from RRMS patients. We detected JCPyV DNA in all patients with confirmed PML diagnosis (n = 2), and in six natalizumab-treated (n = 12), two teriflunomide-treated (n = 7), and two nonimmunomodulated (n = 2) patients. Of the 21 patients, 12 (57%) had detectable JCPyV in either plasma or serum. CSF was uniformly negative for JCPyV. Isolation of extracellular vesicles did not increase the level of detection of JCPyV DNA versus bulk unprocessed biofluid. Overall, our study demonstrated an effect of teriflunomide inhibiting JCPyV infection and spread in glial and choroid plexus epithelial cells. Larger studies using patient samples are needed to correlate these in vitro findings with patient data.     

Trimethylamine as precursor to secondary organic aerosol formation via nitrate radical reaction in the atmosphere

Amines in fine particulate matter have been detected and quantified during ambient studies of winter inversions in Logan, UT, using aerosol mass spectrometry. Amine-related compounds account for 0.5-6 microg m(-3) of fine particulate mass during some wintertime periods. The amine contributions sometimes show a clear diurnal pattern, reaching peak concentrations during the middle of the nightwhile decreasing during the morning and afternoon. Smog chamber reactions show that the reaction of tertiary amines with nitrate radical can account for this behavior in the atmosphere. The lower bound reaction rate of trimethylamine and nitrate radical is estimated at 4.4 x 10(-16) cm3/molecules/s with a conversion rate to the aerosol phase of approximately 65%. This suggests that amines could be a contributor to secondary organic aerosol formation in areas where nitrate radical is a significant player in oxidation chemistry.     

A naturalistic study of dissociative identity disorder and dissociative disorder not otherwise specified patients treated by community clinicians.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 1(3) of Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy (see record 2009-18612-003). Author Ruth Lanius’s name was misspelled as Ruth Lanins; author Scot McNary’s name was misspelled Scott McNary; author Clare Pain’s name was misspelled Claire Pain; and the affiliation for Richard Loewenstein should have read Sheppard Pratt Health System.] The goals of this naturalistic, cross-sectional study were to describe the patient, therapist, and therapeutic conditions of an international sample of dissociative disorder (DD) patients treated by community therapists and to determine if community treatment for DD appears to be as effective as treatment for chronic PTSD and conditions comorbid with DD. Analyses found that across both patient (N = 280) and therapist (N = 292) reports, patients in the later stages of treatment engaged in fewer self-injurious behaviors, had fewer hospitalizations, and showed higher levels of various measures of adaptive functioning (e.g., GAF) than those in the initial stage of treatment. Additionally, patients in the later stages of treatment reported lower symptoms of dissociation, posttraumatic stress disorder, and distress than patients in the initial stage of treatment. The effect sizes for Stage 5 versus Stage 1 differences in DD treatment were comparable to those published for chronic PTSD associated with childhood trauma and depression comorbid with borderline personality disorder. Given the prevalence, severity, chronicity, and high health care costs associated with DD, these results suggest that extended treatment for DD may be beneficial and merits further research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Administration of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) enhances visual-spatial performance in postmenopausal women.

The current article examines the effect of administering dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) on visual-spatial performance in postmenopausal women (N = 24, ages 55–80). The concurrent reduction of serum DHEA levels and visual-spatial performance in this population, coupled with the documented effects of DHEA's androgenic metabolites on visual-spatial performance, suggests that DHEA administration may enhance visual-spatial performance. The current experiment used a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover design in which 50 mg of oral DHEA was administered daily in the drug condition to explore this hypothesis. Performance on the Mental Rotation, Subject-Ordered Pointing, Fragmented Picture Identification, Perceptual Identification, Same-Different Judgment, and Visual Search tasks and serum levels of DHEA, DHEAS, testosterone, estrone, and cortisol were measured in the DHEA and placebo conditions. In contrast to prior experiments using the current methodology that did not demonstrate effects of DHEA administration on episodic and short-term memory tasks, the current experiment demonstrated large beneficial effects of DHEA administration on Mental Rotation, Subject-Ordered Pointing, Fragmented Picture Identification, Perceptual Identification, and Same-Different Judgment. Moreover, DHEA administration enhanced serum levels of DHEA, DHEAS, testosterone, and estrone, and regression analyses demonstrated that levels of DHEA and its metabolites were positively related to cognitive performance on the visual-spatial tasks in the DHEA condition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)