When opportunity knocks: Bottom-up priming of goals by means and its effects on self-regulation.

Four studies using general attribute goals or specific task goals revealed that attainment means cognitively activate the goals they are perceived to serve. A range of means replicated this effect including goal-directed activities, specific behavioral strategies, or opportunities, assumed to afford effective goal pursuit. The increased accessibility of a currently pursued goal due to "bottom-up" priming by its attainment means improved task persistence and performance, whereas a similarly increased accessibility of a competing goal impeded task persistence and performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attitudes of Kuwaiti parents toward physical punishment of children

OBJECTIVE: The major aim was to describe parental attitudes to physical punishments and examine their sociodemographic correlates. A related aim was to assess the association of parents' own experience of physical punishment with attitudes to punishment of children. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey was conducted during the second week of December, 1996 in five general clinics covering the major administrative areas of Kuwait: 337 Kuwaiti mothers and fathers with at least one living child were contacted; 95% were successfully interviewed using a structured questionnaire. RESULTS: Eighty-six percent of parents agreed with physical punishment as a means of child disciplining. Agreement with punishment was higher in case of serious misbehaviors such as stealing (63%), sniffing glue and using drugs (77%). Multiple regression results showed that parent's lower level of education and Bedouin ethnicity were positively associated with agreement on physical punishment. Larger percentages of parents who had experienced physical punishments themselves agreed with such punishment to discipline their children, but this was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: In recent years education has become widespread for both sexes. An inverse association between educational level and agreement on physical beating suggest that attitudes to this form of child disciplining are changing. Those with a Bedouin ethnic background still adhere more strictly to the traditional forms of child disciplining including physical beating. There is a need for conducting research on the possible negative psychosocial impacts of physical punishment in view of findings from other countries.     

Dietary monounsaturated fatty acids promote aortic atherosclerosis in LDL receptor-null, human ApoB100-overexpressing transgenic mice

In mice with genetically engineered high levels of plasma low density lipoprotein (LDL), we tested the hypothesis that an increase in the dietary content of monounsaturated fatty acids but not of polyunsaturated fatty acids would promote atherosclerosis. The mouse model used was an LDL receptor-null, human apoB100-overexpressing strain. Six experimental groups of 19 to 38 mice of both sexes were established when the animals had reached 8 weeks of age. For the next 16 weeks, individual groups were fed either a commercial diet or prepared diets including fat as 10% of energy, with 5 different fatty acid enrichment patterns including the following: saturated (sat), cis and trans monounsaturated (mono), and n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated (poly). Highly significant differences (ANOVA, P<0. 0001) in LDL cholesterol (in mg/dL) were found, with the rank order at 16 weeks being trans mono (mean, 1390)>sat (922)=cis mono (869)=n-6 poly (868)>n-3 poly (652)>commercial diet (526). Significant elevations in very low density lipoprotein cholesterol were also found in the trans and cis mono and sat groups, and triacylglycerol concentrations were also elevated in all groups. High density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations were consistently low (20 to 50 mg/dL) in all groups. Highly significant differences (ANOVA, P<0.0001) in atherosclerosis, quantified by measurement of aortic cholesteryl ester concentration (mg/g protein) among dietary fatty acid groups were found, with the order being trans mono (mean, 50.4)>sat (35.6)=cis mono (34.6)>n-6 poly (18. 3)=n-3 poly (9.7)=commercial diet (7.8). Therefore, in this mouse model of hypercholesterolemia, dietary cis or trans monounsaturated fat did not protect against atherosclerosis development, whereas aortic atherosclerosis in either of the polyunsaturated fat groups was significantly less than in the saturated fat group.     

High Temperature Uniaxial Compression and Stress–Relaxation Behavior of India-Specific RAFM Steel

India-specific reduced activity ferritic martensitic steel (INRAFM), a modified 9Cr-1Mo grade, has been developed by India as its own structural material for fabrication of the Indian Test Blanket Module (TBM) to be installed in the International Thermonuclear Energy Reactor (ITER). The extensive study on mechanical and physical properties of this material has been currently going on for appraisal of this material before being put to use in the ITER. High temperature compression, stress–relaxation, and strain-rate change behavior of the INRAFM steel have been investigated. The optical microscopic and scanning electron microscopic characterizations were carried out to observe the microstructural changes that occur during uniaxial compressive deformation test. Comparable true plastic stress values at 300 °C and 500 °C and a high drop in true plastic stress at 600 °C were observed during the compression test. Stress–relaxation behaviors were investigated at 500 °C, 550 °C, and 600 °C at a strain rate of 10^?3 s^?1. The creep properties of the steel at different temperatures were predicted from the stress–relaxation test. The Norton’s stress exponent (n) was found to decrease with the increasing temperature. Using Bird–Mukherjee–Dorn relationship, the temperature-compensated normalized strain rate vs stress was plotted. The stress exponent (n) value of 10.05 was obtained from the normalized plot. The increasing nature of the strain rate sensitivity (m) with the test temperature was found from strain-rate change test. The low plastic stability with m ~ 0.06 was observed at 600 °C. The activation volume (V^*) values were obtained in the range of 100 to 300 b³. By comparing the experimental values with the literature, the rate-controlling mechanisms at the thermally activated region of high temperature were found to be the nonconservative movement of jogged screw dislocations and thermal breaking of attractive junctions.     

Analytical decision model for the cost-effective management of solitary pulmonary nodules

PURPOSE AND METHODS: Multiple strategies are currently being used to manage patients who present with indeterminate solitary pulmonary nodules (SPN). We have used decision-analysis models to assess the cost-effectiveness of various strategies for the diagnosis and management of SPN. Four decision strategies were compared: a wait and watch strategy, a surgery strategy, a computed tomography (CT)-based strategy, and a CT-plus-positron emission tomography (PET) strategy. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was used to compare all strategies to the wait and watch strategy. RESULTS: A CT-plus-PET strategy was the most cost-effective over a large pretest likelihood (probability of having a malignant nodule), with a range of 0.12 to 0.69. Furthermore, within this likelihood range, the potential cost savings of using the CT-plus-PET strategy over the CT strategy ranged from $91 to $2,200 per patient. This translates to a yearly national savings of approximately $62.7 million. CONCLUSION: Decision-analysis modeling indicates the potential cost-effectiveness of [18F]2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG)-PET in the management of SPN. Furthermore, the decision trees developed can be used to model various features of the management of SPN, including modeling the cost-effectiveness of other newly emerging technologies.     

A newly recognized entity: intraductal "oncocytic" papillary neoplasm of the pancreas

Intraductal papillary-mucinous tumors of the pancreas are increasingly recognized, and their characteristic endoscopic and radiological features are well reported in the literature in recent years. Oncocytic features in these tumors are uncommon and unrecognized. Intraductal oncocytic papillary neoplasm is a distinct pancreatic tumor and is a recently recognized entity. We report a case of a 69-yr-old patient who presented with symptoms mimicking pancreatitis, resulting in delay in the diagnosis of her pancreatic tumor. She underwent a successful Whipple's procedure and subsequently has remained well. The resected specimen showed an intraductal oncocytic papillary-mucinous neoplasm. The entity is new and the literature information is inadequate at present to judge the biological behavior of this tumor. We discuss this recently recognized entity.     

Effect of testosterone replacement on whole body glucose utilisation and other cardiovascular risk factors in males with idiopathic hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism

BACKGROUND: Excessive testosterone in males or estrogens in females could explain their differences in coronary heart disease event rates. As a contraceptive testosterone is likely to be used at large scale the role of testosterone in increasing the risks of coronary heart disease needs investigation. AIM: To look at the role of testosterone in development of insulin resistance and other cardiovascular risk factors. DESIGN: Prospective, before-after study on ten male subjects with idiopathic hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism pre- and post-testosterone replacement therapy; outcome measures: anthropometry, lipoprotein profile and M value (whole body glucose disposal rates on standard hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp; at insulin infusion rate: 40 mU x (m-2)). RESULTS: Pre-treatment serum testosterone was 0.43 (0.515) ng x mL(-1), LH was 1.29 (0.08) IU x L(-1), and FSH was 1.54 (0.08) IU x L(-1). None had glucose intolerance. After replacement testosterone levels increased to 9.4 ng x mL(-1) (p=0.0005); weight increase of 5.0 kg (p=0.140), body mass index increase of 1.2 kg x m(-2) (p=0.28), and the change in waist to hip ratio (p=0.31) were not statistically significant. M-value (mg x kg x min(-1)) did not change after testosterone therapy (5.86 [0.72] vs 5.29 [0.82], p=0.62). Insulin levels (mU x L(-1)) achieved during the clamps were 89.5 (14.2) before and 146 (32.2) after androgen therapy (p=0.127). There was no change in glucose area under curve (mg x min x dL(-1)) (14406 [502.2] vs 12557 [826.5], p=0.312). On testosterone replacement therapy total and LDL cholesterol levels (mg x dL(-1)) declined (122.5 [13.4] vs 91.6 [5.0], p=0.04; 65.9 [9.9] vs 39.4 [7.3], p=0.05); Ratio of total cholesterol to HDL ratio also decreased significantly (p=0.05). Changes of serum triglycerides (p=0.25) and HDL cholesterol (p=0.19) did not attain statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS: Insulin sensitivity does not decrease on testosterone replacement therapy of male subjects with idiopathic hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism. Testosterone replacement was associated with decrease in other cardiovascular risk factors.     

The 1.8 A crystal structure of a statically disordered 17 base-pair RNA duplex: principles of RNA crystal packing and its effect on nucleic acid structure

The crystal structure of a 17 base RNA oligomer, r(CACCGGAUG GUUCGGUG), has been solved to a resolution of 1.8 A through a combination of molecular replacement, multiple isomorphous replacement phasing, and analysis of observed intensity distributions. The oligomer, which forms a stem-loop in solution, crystallized as a pseudo-infinite duplex in spacegroup P321. The asymmetric unit of the crystal contains four superimposed orientations of the duplex that are out of register, such that backbones superimpose, but base identity differs. This static disorder was initially discovered by brominating a single residue per strand in the sequence, and observing four peaks per strand in difference maps phased with a native molecular replacement solution. The presence of four superimposed duplex "motifs" related by non-crystallographic hypersymmetry was detected by computing /2 and Wilson ratios for the observed intensities. The observed ratios matched those produced from calculated intensities of a 4-fold statically disordered model. Multi-conformer simulated annealing refinement against a maximum-likelihood target incorporating experimental phase information was used to refine the 4-fold disordered model to an Rfree and R of 29.35% and 25.5%, respectively. The resulting structure reveals four distinct conformations of the duplex, with an average pairwise backbone rmsd of 2.35 A. The structural differences between the four conformations, which can be attributed to differences in packing environment, highlight the possible influence of crystal packing forces on nucleic acid X-ray structures. Analysis of inter-helical packing between symmetry-related molecules reveals an RNA "zipper" that mediates direct phosphate oxygen-2' hydroxyl interactions between close-packed phosphate-sugar backbones. This may be a general mode for RNA tertiary interaction that does not depend on metal ions or primary sequence.     

Graphs as aids to knowledge construction: Signaling techniques for guiding the process of graph comprehension.

Graphical displays are frequently used to express quantitative information in texts, but viewers are sometimes unable to comprehend and learn the relevant information. According to a cognitive analysis, graph interpretation involves (a) relatively simple pattern perception and association processes in which viewers can associate graphic patterns to quantitative referents and (b) more complex and error-prone inferential processes in which viewers must mentally transform data. Experiment 1 establishes that graphs can be redesigned to improve viewers' interpretations by minimizing the inferential processes and maximizing the pattern association processes required to interpret relevant information. In Experiments 2 and 3, the researchers isolated one important factor that affects viewers' interpretation (i.e., the perceptual organization of the information in graphs). If relevant quantitative information is perceptually grouped to form visual chunks (because relevant data points are either connected in line graphs or close together in bar graphs), then viewers describe relevant trends. If relevant information is not perceptually grouped, viewers are less likely to comprehend relevant trends. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prevalence of microalbuminuria in diabetic subjects

Total 193 diabetic patients were investigated to assess the prevalence of microalbuminuria. Urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER) was measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA) on 3 hours urine samples. The prevalence of microalbuminuria (UAER) > 15 micrograms/min was 41%. Microalbuminuria was commonly observed in patients having diabetes for more than 5 years. A significant correlation was found between duration of diabetes and microalbuminuria (p < 0.01). Glycemic control (fasting and postprandial blood sugar) did not show any correlation with UAER, whereas blood urea (r.39, p < 0.01), creatinine (r.26, p < 0.05) and chloride (r.24, p < 0.05) were positively correlated. A significant correlation was found between raised blood pressure and UAER (p < 0.01).