Using the five-factor model to identify a new personality disorder domain: The case for experiential permeability.

Two studies were conducted to demonstrate that maladaptive aspects of high and low Openness to Experience were related to characterological impairment and that this aspect of personality may define a new domain of personality dysfunction. The 55-item Experiential Permeability Inventory (EPI; containing 4 scales) was developed and demonstrated to have acceptable psychometric properties. Evidence of convergent, discriminant, and incremental validity was provided. These studies provide a methodological framework for identifying and developing aspects of personality dysfunction that can expand the comprehensiveness of the current set of Axis II disorders. Theoretical implications of the EPI are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ein kurzes Verfahren zur Bestimmung des Kochsalzgehaltes von Fleischwaren

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Mental model organization.

Previous research (G. A. Radvansky and R. T. Zacks; see record 1992-04153-001) has shown that the fan effect is mediated not by the number of nominal associations paired with a concept but by the number of mental models into which related concepts are organized. Specifically, newly learned "facts" about different objects in one location are integrated into a single mental model and no fan effect is produced, whereas facts about one object in different locations are not integrated and a fan effect is produced. In 6 experiments the authors investigated several factors' influence on location-based organization preferences. No impact on either article type (definite or indefinite) or object transportability was found. However, animate sentence subjects (people) reduced preference for location-based organizations. A clear person-based organization emerged by using locations that typically contain only a single person (e.g., phone booth) to make location-based situations less plausible. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Strain components of nuclear-reactor-type concretes during first heat cycle

Strains of three advanced-gas-cooled-reactor-type nuclear reactor concretes were measured during the first heat cycle and their relative thermal stability determined. It was possible to isolate for the first time the shrinkage component for the period during heating. Predictions of the residual strains for the loaded specimens can be made by simple superposition of creep and shrinkage components up to a certain critical temperature, which for basalt concrete is about 500 °C and for limestone concrete is about 200–300 °C. Above the critical temperature, an expansive “cracking” strain component is present. It is shown that the strain behaviour of concrete provides a sensitive indication of its thermal stability during heating and subsequent cooling.     

Serotonin function and treatment response to clozapine in schizophrenic patients

OBJECTIVE: Clozapine is the only compound proven to be effective in the 20% of schizophrenic patients refractory to treatment with conventional neuroleptics. Although its mechanism of action has not been elucidated, clozapine appears, in contrast to most conventional neuroleptics, to be a potent serotonin (5-HT) antagonist. This study hypothesized that 5-HT function is increased in patients who benefit from clozapine treatment relative to patients who fail to improve on it. METHOD: The 5-HT receptor agonist m-chlorophenylpiperazine (MCPP) was used as a probe to examine 5-HT function. MCPP (0.35 mg/kg p.o.) was administered in a placebo-controlled design after a 3-week drug-free period to 19 schizophrenic patients. ACTH, prolactin, body temperature, behavior, and MCPP blood level were measured. Patients were then treated with a conventional neuroleptic, and, having failed to respond to it, were treated with clozapine for 5 weeks (up to 600 mg/day). RESULTS: Patients who responded to clozapine had significantly higher ACTH responses to MCPP during the drug-free state than the patients who failed to benefit from clozapine. Moreover, the degree of improvement with clozapine, particularly the improvement in psychotic symptoms, was strongly correlated with the magnitude of MCPP-induced ACTH release. Other MCPP-induced responses and MCPP blood level were similar for the two groups and did not correlate with the degree of symptomatic improvement with clozapine. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study suggest that MCPP-induced ACTH release, and by inference 5-HT receptor function, may be increased in patients who benefit from treatment with clozapine relative to patients who fail to improve on this drug.     

Can cumulative tobacco consumption, FTND score, and carbon monoxide concentration in expired air be predictors of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease?

Between 15% and 20% of smokers develop chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The aim of the present study was to determine which characteristics of smoking, particularly the Fagerstr?m Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND) score, were associated with the risk of developing COPD. Data from the IBERPOC epidemiological study were analyzed. IBERPOC was a multicenter epidemiological study including 4035 individuals aged 40-69 years, 1023 (25%) of whom were active smokers. We analyzed the association between smoking characteristics--such as the cumulative consumption of tobacco, FTND score, and expired-air carbon monoxide levels--and the diagnosis of COPD. Among the smokers, 153 (15%) were diagnosed with COPD. A cumulative tobacco consumption of more than 30 pack-years (OR=4.24, 95% CI=2.83-6.36) and the FTND score (OR=1.11, 95% CI=1.02-1.21, for each point increase) were significantly associated with the diagnosis of COPD in the model obtained by logistic regression analysis with the full sample of smokers. Cumulative consumption of tobacco was associated with the diagnosis of COPD. For each point increase in the FTND score, the probability of a smoker developing COPD increased by 11%.     

Poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐polystyrene copolymers obtained by radical polymerization involving chain‐transfer processes

Poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐polystyrene (PEO–PSt) block copolymers were prepared by radical polymerization of styrene in the presence of iodoacetate—terminated PEO (PEO‐I) as a macromolecular chain‐transfer agent. PEO‐I was synthesized by successively converting the OH end‐group of α‐methoxy ω‐hydroxy PEO to chloroacetate and then to the iodoacetate. The chain‐transfer constant of PEO‐I was estimated from the rate of consumption of the transfer agent versus the rate of consumption of the monomer (C_{tr, PEO‐I} = 0.23). Due to the involvement of degenerative transfer, styrene polymerization in the presence of PEO‐I displayed some of the characteristics of a controlled/‘living’ process, namely an increase in the molecular weight and decrease of polydispersity with monomer conversion. However, because of the slow consumption of PEO‐I due to its low chain‐transfer constant, this process was not a fully controlled one, as indicated by the polydispersity being higher than in a controlled polymerization process (1.65 versus < 1.5). The formation of PEO–PSt block copolymers was confirmed by the use of size‐exclusion chromatography and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Urea kinetic modeling: an in vitro and in vivo comparative study

The urea kinetic model (UK) and the direct dialysis quantification method based on dialysate collection (DDQ) were used to determine the urea distribution volume (V) identified with the total body water and the urea generation rate (G) for different dialysis times, both in vivo during short hemodialysis (N = 20) and in vitro using an experimental single-pool urea system (N = 10). Both UK and DDQ allowed a satisfactory in vitro estimation of V and G for all dialysis times. On the other hand in vivo V and G estimations by both methods showed an increase of more than 50% between the determinations performed after 30 minutes of dialysis and at the end of dialysis. Our theoretical analysis shows that the in vivo changes of V are compatible with those expected for a two-compartment system in which one compartment is cleared faster than the other. Furthermore, given that urea is allowed to equilibrate in the body at the end of dialysis, DDQ permits an accurate estimate of V, G and PCR even for short hemodialysis, which UK does not.     

Effects of various cryostabilisers on protein functionality in frozen-stored minced blue whiting muscle: The importance of inhibiting formaldehyde production

Addition of several maltodextrins (dextrose equivalent 9, 12, 18 and 28) or sucrose to minced blue whiting muscle slowed down decreases in protein solubility and viscosity during storage at -20 and -10 °C. These effects were greater at -20 °C, and DE 18 maltodextrin seemed to be the most effective treatment at both temperatures. Conversely, sucrose was as effective as maltodextrins at -20 °C, but showed hardly any effect at -10 °C. A high correlation (likely causal) was found between the effectiveness of cryostabilisers in preventing protein alterations and their effectiveness in inhibiting formaldehyde production, particularly at -10 °C. Additionally, a sigmoidal relationship between protein solubility and formaldehyde content was found at this temperature, which supports the hypothesis of the cooperative nature of the effect of formaldehyde (i.e. an autocatalytic process) on protein alterations, reinforcing the determinist perspective of the process.