Suicidal ideation and its recurrence in boys and men from early adolescence to early adulthood: An event history analysis.

Occurrence and recurrences of suicidal ideation (SI) were modeled among boys/men assessed annually from ages 12 to 29 years. Multiple-spell discrete-time event-history analyses permitted (a) determination of whether risk for SI escalates with prior experiences of SI (spell effects), while (b) accounting for changes in risk with time (period effects) and (c) controlling for vulnerability factors. Self-reported SI (presence/absence in past week), depressive symptoms, alcohol/substance use, antisocial behavior, and official arrest records were collected annually from 205 boys recruited on the basis of community risk for delinquency. Parents' self-reported psychopathology and SES were collected in childhood. Period effects supported decreasing risk for SI over time. Spell and time-varying 1-year lagged substance use and depressive symptoms independently predicted increased risk for SI. Models involving SI with intent were explored. Consistent with interpersonal psychological theory, risk for young men's SI increases with past experience of SI, even with key propensities controlled. However, risk also decays over time. Targeting conditions that confer risk for SI is essential. Preventing and delaying SI occurrence and recurrence may represent independent mechanisms by which prevention efforts operate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive profile of fragile X premutation carriers with and without fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome.

Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS) develops in a subset of fragile X premutation carriers and involves gait ataxia, action tremor, Parkinsonism, peripheral neuropathy, autonomic disorders, and cognitive impairment. The study was designed to define the nature of cognitive deficits affecting male premutation carriers with and without FXTAS. A sample of 109 men underwent motor, cognitive, genetic, and neurologic testing, as well as brain magnetic resonance imaging. Subjects were classified into 3 groups: (a) asymptomatic premutation carriers, (b) premutation carriers with FXTAS, and (c) normal controls. Men with FXTAS performed worse than controls on mental status, intelligence, executive cognitive functioning (ECF), working memory, remote recall of information, declarative learning and memory, information processing speed, and temporal sequencing, as well as 1 measure of visuospatial functioning. Language and verbal comprehension were spared. Asymptomatic carriers performed worse than controls on ECF and declarative learning and memory. This comprehensive examination of cognitive impairment in male premutation carriers suggests that FXTAS involves substantial executive impairment and diffuse deficits in other cognitive functions. Longitudinal research currently underway will provide insight into the progression of the disorder. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

7-nitroindazole attenuates 6-hydroxydopamine-induced spatial learning deficits and dopamine neuron loss in a presymptomatic animal model of Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons (>50%) in the substantia nigra (SN) precedes most of the overt motor symptoms, making early diagnosis and treatment interventions difficult. Because PD has been associated with free radicals generated by nitric oxide, this study tested whether treatments of 7-nitroindazole (7NI), a nitric-oxide-synthase inhibitor, could reduce cognitive deficits that often emerge before overt motor symptoms in a presymptomatic rat model of PD. Rats were given intraperitoneal injections of 50 mg/kg 7NI (or vehicle) just before receiving bilateral, intrastriatal injections of the DA-toxin, 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). The rats were then given a battery of motor tasks, and their learning ability was assessed using a spatial reversal task in a water-T maze. Results indicate that 7NI treatments attenuate 6-OHDA-induced spatial learning deficits and protect against DA cell loss in the SN, suggesting that 7NI may have potential as an early, presymptomatic pharmacotherapy for PD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hydraulic habitat composition and diversity in rural and urban stream reaches of the North Carolina Piedmont (USA)

The differences between urban and rural streams regarding hydrological process, channel morphodynamics and ecosystem functioning have been highlighted by a number of studies in recent decades. The need to understand lotic ecosystem functioning in these environments at scales relevant to individual organisms has led to research focusing on hydraulic composition and structure over small areas of channel bed. In this study we map and analyze the hydraulic biotope composition of two urban and two rural stream reaches in the North Carolina (USA) Piedmont to determine if urban flow regimes and attendant channel modification processes might translate into important differences in hydraulic environment, and if so, what those differences are. Hydraulic biotope assemblages were found to vary only moderately in diversity per unit stream length between sites, but were distinctly different in composition. One important control on the differences between rural and urban streams was found to be the localized incision of urban channels into bedrock and saprolite. Resistant rock outcrop in the beds of urban streams creates rapid and riffle biotopes and long stretches of upstream pool habitat by impoundment. Urban reaches were found to be more homogeneous than rural reaches in hydraulic composition and were dominated by pools. Rural reaches, characterized by copious sandy alluvium in the bed, were dominated by runs or glides. Quantitative differentiation of biotopes based on four hydraulic indices generally yields coherent associations, although these may vary in content. Comparisons between hydraulic and biotic diversities suggest relationships favoring biotic functional group aggregation over species richness‐based indices of diversity. Because the majority of published hydraulic diversity analyses are based on coarse‐bed streams, further study of hydraulic diversity in streams with finer substrate is likely to be beneficial. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Novel mesoporous aluminosilicate supported palladium-rhodium catalysts for diesel upgrading: I. Preparation and characterisation

Bimetallic PdRh (with Pd/Rh mole ratio = 2/1) catalysts supported on a mesoporous aluminosilicate have been prepared and three methods of metal incorporation in the support have been compared: direct incorporation into the synthesis gel, impregnation and ion-exchange. Physico-chemical characterisations (nitrogen adsorption–desorption, hydrogen chemisorption, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron and extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopies), as well as simulated coking and regeneration tests are described. The dispersion, metal particle size and the formation of bimetallic particles within the material depend on the method of metal incorporation. Direct incorporation and ion-exchange methods lead to co-existence of PdRh intermetallic aggregates and segregated Pd; on the other hand, the impregnation method leads to the formation of very small and well dispersed PdRh alloy particles, with Pd preferentially located on the alloy particle surface.     

Evidence for terror management theory II: The effects of mortality salience on reactions to those who threaten or bolster the cultural worldview.

Three experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis, derived from terror management theory, that reminding people of their mortality increases attraction to those who consensually validate their beliefs and decreases attraction to those who threaten their beliefs. In Study 1, subjects with a Christian religious background were asked to form impressions of Christian and Jewish target persons. Before doing so, mortality was made salient to half of the subjects. In support of predictions, mortality salience led to more positive evaluations of the in-group member (the Christian) and more negative evaluations of the out-group member (the Jew). In Study 2, mortality salience led to especially negative evaluations of an attitudinally dissimilar other, but only among subjects high in authoritarianism. In Study 3, mortality salience led to especially positive reactions to someone who directly praised subjects' cultural worldviews and especially negative reactions to someone who criticized them. The implications of these findings for understanding in-group favoritism, prejudice, and intolerance of deviance are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Health practices and hardiness as mediators in the stress-illness relationship.

Two stress and illness models that included the joint mediating effects of health practices and hardiness were tested prospectively over a 2-mo period. 86 undergraduates completed 5 subscales indexing hardiness. Stress, health practices, and illness for the prior month were assessed at this time as well as 1 and 2 mo later. In the 1st model, illness was measured by the severity of physical symptoms. In the 2nd model, it was measured by the number of symptoms reported. In both models, path analyses revealed that stress acted directly to affect illness as well as indirectly by changing health practices. Hardiness also had a direct effect on illness as well as an indirect effect through health practices. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cleaning for Improved Indoor Air Quality: an Initial Assessment of Effectiveness

Abstract A study was conducted to characterize the indoor environment of a multifloor, multiuse, nonproblem, noncompliant building through long-term monitoring for biological, chemical, and particulate pollutants. The study also assessed the effects of cleaning on indoor air quality by providing a program to monitor baseline levels, providing a rigorous (deep) cleaning of the building, and then continuing to monitor after implementation of a standardized, improved, cleaning program. To assess the effectiveness of the cleaning program, air, surface, and dust data from monitoring prior to the cleaning program were compared with those obtained while the improved housekeeping program was in place. Correlations between pollutants and other environmental factors were studied. The data suggest that the improved cleaning program contributed to indoor air quality through the reduction of airborne dust mass, total volatile organic compounds, and culturable bacteria and fungi.     

Poverty and women's mental health.

The positive association between poverty and mental health problems is one of the most well established in all of psychiatric epidemiology. Research has documented consistently that low income and low socioeconomic status are associated with high rates of mental disorder. With the prevalence of poverty itself now on the rise in our country, particularly among women, children and those from minority groups, increased attention must be paid to the mental health risks that accompany poverty. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Risk-Based Compliance Monitoring Becoming More Tailored in 2015

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation's (NERC's) revised and recently deployed compliance monitoring and enforcement program is intended to create a unique compliance monitoring program for each registered entity based on the inherent risk each entity poses to the reliability of the Bulk Power System (BPS). This revised program is intended to provide a reasonable assurance of BPS reliability while allowing NERC and its regional entities to focus their compliance monitoring and enforcement resources on issues that pose the greatest risk to reliability. For registered entities, the program has the potential to result in lighter-handed compliance oversight where the registered entity poses a lower risk to the BPS and has internal controls in place that mitigate the entity's BPS risk by helping to prevent, detect, and correct reliability standards violations.