Male Rat Offspring Are More Impacted by Maternal Obesity Induced by Cafeteria Diet than Females—Additive Effect of Postweaning Diet

Maternal obesity increases the risk of health complications in offspring, but whether these effects are exacerbated by offspring exposure to unhealthy diets warrants further investigation. Female Sprague-Dawley rats were fed either standard chow (n = 15) or ‘cafeteria’ (Caf, n = 21) diets across pre-pregnancy, gestation, and lactation. Male and female offspring were weaned onto chow or Caf diet (2–3/sex/litter), forming four groups; behavioural and metabolic parameters were assessed. At weaning, offspring from Caf dams were smaller and lighter, but had more retroperitoneal (RP) fat, with a larger effect in males. Maternal Caf diet significantly increased relative expression of ACACA and Fasn in male and female weanling liver, but not CPT-1, SREBP and PGC1; PPARα was increased in males from Caf dams. Maternal obesity enhanced the impact of postweaning Caf exposure on adult body weight, RP fat, liver mass, and plasma leptin in males but not females. Offspring from Caf dams appeared to exhibit reduced anxiety-like behaviour on the elevated plus maze. Hepatic CPT-1 expression was reduced only in adult males from Caf fed dams. Post weaning Caf diet consumption did not alter liver gene expression in the adult offspring. Maternal obesity exacerbated the obesogenic phenotype produced by postweaning Caf diet in male, but not female offspring. Thus, the impact of maternal obesity on adiposity and liver gene expression appeared more marked in males. Our data underline the sex-specific detrimental effects of maternal obesity on offspring.     

Diffusion of water into a photopolymer film

Sorption of water vapor into thin films of a crosslinked dimethacrylate UV-cured polymer was measured by means of a quartz crystal microbalance apparatus. The diffusion coefficient and solubility were obtained. An upper limit to the water vapor diffusion coefficient, namely, the diffusion coefficient for liquid water in intimate contact with the sample, was measured for reference purposes by both gravimetric and infrared spectral techniques. A water uptake value for thick films was obtained gravimetrically as a reference for the thin film value. Measurement of the diffusion coefficient allows the determination of the length of time that the photopolymer could act as an effective water vapor barrier.     

Rosuvastatin Enhances the Catabolism of LDL apoB‐100 in Subjects with Combined Hyperlipidemia in a Dose Dependent Manner

Dose‐associated effects of rosuvastatin on the metabolism of apolipoprotein (apo) B‐100 in triacylglycerol rich lipoprotein (TRL, d < 1.019 g/ml) and low density lipoprotein (LDL) and of apoA‐I in high density lipoprotein (HDL) were assessed in subjects with combined hyperlipidemia. Our primary hypothesis was that maximal dose rosuvastatin would decrease the apoB‐100 production rate (PR), as well as increase apoB‐100 fractional catabolic rate (FCR). Eight subjects received placebo, rosuvastatin 5 mg/day, and rosuvastatin 40 mg/day for 8 weeks each in sequential order. The kinetics of apoB‐100 in TRL and LDL and apoA‐I in HDL were determined at the end of each phase using stable isotope methodology, gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry, and multicompartmental modeling. Rosuvastatin at 5 and 40 mg/day decreased LDL cholesterol by 44 and 54 % (both P < 0.0001), triacylglycerol by 14 % (ns) and 35 % (P < 0.01), apoB by 30 and 36 % (both P < 0.0001), respectively, and had no significant effects on HDL cholesterol or apoA‐I levels. Significant decreases in plasma markers of cholesterol synthesis and increases in cholesterol absorption markers were observed. Rosuvastatin 5 and 40 mg/day increased TRL apoB‐100 FCR by 36 and 46 % (both ns) and LDL apoB‐100 by 63 and 102 % (both P < 0.05), respectively. HDL apoA‐I PR increased with low dose rosuvastatin (12 %, P < 0.05) but not with maximal dose rosuvastatin. Neither rosuvastatin dose altered apoB‐100 PR or HDL apoA‐I FCR. Our data indicate that maximal dose rosuvastatin treatment in subjects with combined hyperlipidemia resulted in significant increases in the catabolism of LDL apoB‐100, with no significant effects on apoB‐100 production or HDL apoA‐I kinetics.     

Effects of buffer gas composition on low temperature ignition of iso-octane and n-heptane

Experimental and numerical studies have been performed on the thermal and chemical effects of buffer gas composition on low temperature ignition of iso-octane and n-heptane. Experiments were conducted using a recently developed rapid compression machine in the temperature range of 600–850 K. Three buffer gases were studied including nitrogen (N₂), argon (Ar), and a mixture of Ar and carbon dioxide (CO₂) at a mole ratio of 65.1%/34.9%. Iso-octane was studied at 20 bar, ? = 1, and a dilution level of buffer gas to O₂ of 3.76:1 (mole ratio). n-Heptane was studied at 9 bar, ? = 1, and a dilution level of buffer gas to O₂ of 5.63:1 (mole ratio). For experiments where two-stage ignition was observed, the buffer gas composition had no impact on the first-stage ignition time but, as expected, it caused differences in the total heat release, pressure and temperature rise after the first-stage ignition. As a consequence, significant differences were observed for the total ignition delay time as a function of the buffer gas composition, with up to 40% and 42.5% faster total ignition time for iso-octane and n-heptane, respectively, by using Ar instead of N₂. The chemical effects of the buffer gas composition were studied experimentally by comparing the results of the N₂ and Ar/CO₂ (65.1%/34.9%) mixtures, recognizing that while the Ar/CO₂ mixture has the same heat capacity as N₂, its predicted combined third-body collision efficiency is about 76% higher than N₂. The experimental results showed negligible chemical effects on the first-stage and total ignition delay times. Numerical simulations were carried out over a wider range of temperatures for pure N₂, Ar, and CO₂ as buffer gases. Results showed that thermal effects are very pronounced and dominated at the negative temperature coefficient and two-stage ignition conditions, which is consistent with the experimental results and previous studies in the literature. However, the simulation results also showed at temperatures higher than 850 K, the chemical effects of CO₂ became more important than the thermal effects.     

Supportive friendships moderate the association between stressful life events and sexual risk taking among African American adolescents.

Objective: This study examined whether uncontrollable stressful life events were associated with sexual risk taking among adolescents across a 1-year period, and whether supportive friendships modified associations. Design: Participants were 159 sexually active African American adolescents (57% male; mean age [SD] = 17.0 [1.5] years at baseline). Participants were recruited for in-person interviews through random digit dialing in one inner-city neighborhood characterized by high rates of poverty and crime relative to the surrounding city. Main Outcome Measures: Dependent variables included substance use before sexual activity and inconsistent condom use. Results: Among adolescents who reported low levels of supportive friendships, uncontrollable stressors were associated with greater levels of sexual risk taking over time. In contrast, uncontrollable stressors were not associated with sexual risk taking among adolescents who reported high social support from friends; risk taking was typically moderate to high among these adolescents. Conclusion: Different processes may explain sexual risk taking among adolescents with varying levels of social support from friends. Adolescents with low support may be prone to engagement in health risk behavior as a stress response, while adolescents with high support may engage in risk behavior primarily due to peer socialization of risk. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of baking on cyanidin-3-glucoside content and antioxidant properties of black and yellow soybean crackers

Black soybean is a potential functional food ingredient with high anthocyanin content, but the ability to maintain anthocyanin content under dry heat processing has not been reported. This study investigated the effects of soybean seed coat colour and baking time–temperature combinations on the extractable antioxidant properties of a soy cracker food model. Crackers prepared with black soybeans had significantly higher TPC, total isoflavones, and peroxyl, hydroxyl, and ABTS⁺ radical scavenging abilities than their yellow counterparts, at all time–temperature combinations. Cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G) was detected only in black soybean crackers, and all baking treatments significantly decreased C3G. The greatest losses occurred at the low temperature × long time and high temperature × short time, the smallest loss with moderate temperature × short/medium time. The high temperature treatment altered phenolic acid and isoflavone profiles; however, total isoflavones were unaffected. Overall results suggest that moderate baking temperature at minimal time may best preserve anthocyanin and other phenolics in baked black soybean crackers.     

Still no phonological typicality effect on word reading time (and no good explanation of one, either): A rejoinder to Farmer, Monaghan, Misyak, and Christiansen.

In this brief rejoinder, we respond to Farmer, Monaghan, Misyak, and Christiansen (2011). We argue that the data still do not support the claim that reading time is affected by the phonological typicality of a word for its part of speech. We also question Farmer et al.'s claim that interleaving syntactic structures in an experiment modifies grammatically based syntactic expectations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological mediators of the effects of opposing expert testimony on juror decisions.

This study examined the effectiveness of the opposing expert safeguard against unreliable expert testimony and whether beliefs about experts as hired guns and general acceptance mediate the effect of opposing expert testimony on juror decisions. We found strong evidence that the presence, but not the content, of opposing expert testimony affected jurors’ trial judgments and that these effects were mediated by mock jurors’ beliefs about general acceptance. The presence of an opposing expert affected jurors’ ratings of the general acceptance of research investigating sexual harassment in the workplace. Jurors’ beliefs about general acceptance then affected jurors’ ratings of plaintiff expert competence and research, which affected juror ratings of the probability that the plaintiff experienced a hostile work environment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)