Leisure Boredom,Timing of Sexual Debut,and Co-Occurring Behaviors among South African Adolescents

Archives of Sexual Behavior - Sex during adolescence is normative; however, there are substantial individual differences in the timing and context of sexual debut. Leisure boredom is an...     

Involvement in self-care and psychological well-being of Spanish family caregivers of relatives with dementia

The provision of continuous care to a dependent person can lead to a lack of self-care by the caregiver themselves with corresponding low levels of well-being. This well-being has been analysed mostly from within the perspective of the hedonic tradition, with the development of personal growth often being overlooked. This study aims to increase the understanding of the connection between this type of psychological well-being and involvement in self-care activities, and to be a starting point for the determination of categories that may serve in the screening of potential participants in social-health interventions where it is being promoted. Taking the hypothesis of a probable positive connection between psychological well-being and involvement in self-care, an observational study was carried out on 45 caregivers of relatives with dementia. In those caregivers showing greater dedication to self-care, a higher score was obtained on the well-being scales connected to personal significance and positive emotions and experiences. These findings were further reinforced by the identification of other positive connections, the involvement in self-care and the six dimensions of wellness contemplated by Ryff. It is possible to envisage the existence of a virtuous circle in respect of the caregiver, whereby a greater involvement in self-care is related to a higher psychological well-being, which in turn is related to greater self-care, and so on.     

Rapid changes in the expression of a gene encoding a calcium-binding protein in Schistosoma mansoni

Genes expressed in a stage-specific manner may help us understand the molecular events controlling the complex life cycle of schistosomes. cDNA and genomic clones encoding a calcium-binding protein (CaBP) were obtained from cercariae and their sequence determined. The encoded protein (69 amino acids long) shows clear resemblance to the domain structure and organization of CaBP molecules. It contains two typical calcium-binding loops, the distance between which is identical to the length conserved in other CaBP molecules. In addition, the schistosome CaBP shows Ca2+-dependent electrophoretic mobility (increased with Ca2+-ions and decreased with EGTA). Northern blots revealed expression of the CaBP gene in cercariae but not in sporocyst or worm (developmental stages preceding and following cercaria). The preferential expression of this CaBP in the cercaria raises questions as to what cercaria-specific function(s) it performs. The structure of the gene is similar to that in other eukaryotes, and one intron interrupts the coding sequence. The region of the cap site was determined, and there was no evidence of the spliced leader sequence found in the mRNAs of other parasites. The CaBP reveals a rapid change in gene expression, since the mRNA is missing in the parasite residing in infected snails, but is readily detected in cercariae 1 h after shedding. We identified other genes which are turned on (like the CaBP) or shut off within the short period of transition from cercariae in the snail to free-swimming cercariae.     

Luteolin alleviates bronchoconstriction and airway hyperreactivity in ovalbumin sensitized mice

OBJECTIVE AND DESIGN: Asthma is an inflammatory disease of the airways and the current focus in managing asthma is the control of inflammation. In this study, we attempted to investigate the anti-asthmatic potential of a plant derived natural compound, luteolin. MATERIAL: We used a murine model of airway hyperreactivity, which mimicked some of the characteristic features of asthma. Male BALB/c mice (8-9 weeks) were used for this study. TREATMENT: Mice (n = 6) were sensitized by intraperitoneal (i. p.) injection of 10 mg of ovalbumin (OVA) on days 0, 7 and 14 followed by aerosol inhalation (5% OVA) treatments daily beginning from day 19 to day 23. To study its preventive effect, luteolin (0.1, 1.0, and 10 mg/kg body weight; daily) was administered orally during the entire period (0 to 23 day) of sensitization. To study its curative effect, mice were first sensitized and then luteolin (1.0 mg/kg body weight daily) was given orally from day 26 to 32. The airway hyperreactivity, immunoglobulin E (IgE) in the sera, and cytokines (IFN-gamma, IL-4 and IL-5) in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were measured. RESULTS: Both during sensitization and after sensitization, luteolin, at a dose of 0.1 mg/kg body weight, significantly modulated OVA-induced airway bronchoconstriction and bronchial hyperreactivity (p < 0.05). Luteolin also reduced OVA-specific IgE levels in the sera, increased interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) levels and decreased the interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-5 (IL-5) levels in the BALF. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that luteolin treatment during and after sensitization significantly attenuated the asthmatic features in experimental mice. Therefore, luteolin could be used either as a lead molecule to identify an effective antiasthma therapy or as a means to identify novel anti-asthma targets.     

Synthesis and biodistribution of peptide based 99mTc/186Re-MAGIPG-D612 monoclonal antibody in nude mice bearing colon cancer xenografts

A new bifunctional chelating agent MAGIPG was synthesized in good yield using Boc-p-nitro-phenylalanine as the starting material. 99mTc-labeled-MAGIPG-D612 conjugates reactive with human colon cancer were prepared in 3% to 15% yield with a radiochemical purity of 63% to 97%. 186Re-labeled MAGIPG-D612 conjugates were prepared with a 7% to 30% yield and a radiochemical purity of 82% to 98%. The biodistribution results demonstrate that these radioimmuno-conjugates selectively localized in LS174T human colon cancer xenografts.     

Alpha-lipoic acid prevents 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA)-induced neurotoxicity

A single administration of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, 20 mg/kg, i.p.), induced significant hyperthermia in rats and reduced 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) content and [3H]paroxetine-labeled 5-HT transporter density in the frontal cortex, striatum and hippocampus by 40-60% 1 week later. MDMA treatment also increased glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactivity in the hippocampus. Repeated administration of the metabolic antioxidant alpha-lipoic acid (100 mg/kg, i.p., b.i.d. for 2 consecutive days) 30 min prior to MDMA did not prevent the acute hyperthermia induced by the drug; however, it fully prevented the serotonergic deficits and the changes in the glial response induced by MDMA. These results further support the hypothesis that free radical formation is responsible for MDMA-induced neurotoxicity.     

Growth factors effects on the expression of morphological and biochemical properties of avian embryonic sympathetic cells. Emphasis on NGF

Growth factors are known to be important agents in the differentiation and modulation of neuronal phenotypes. We have analyzed the effect of several growth factors on the modulation of morphological and biochemical properties of avian embryonic sympathetic neurons. The growth factors studied include: nerve growth factor (NGF), neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGF-beta1). Morphological properties were analyzed by immunocytochemistry to neurofilament proteins and visualization of fibers after glyoxylic acid-induced fluorescence. Biochemical modulation was determined by radioimmunoanalysis for the peptides enkephalin (ENK), somatostatin (SS) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) and by HPLC-electrochemistry quantification of catecholamines. Similar to previous results using chromaffin cell cultures [R. Ramírez-Ordó?ez, J.E. García-Arrarás, Peptidergic, catecholaminergic and morphological properties of avian chromaffin cells are modulated distinctively by growth factors, Dev. Brain Res., 87 (1995) 160-171], we found a dissociation in the modulation of biochemical and morphological properties, however, the effect of specific factors differed between the chromaffin and sympathetic cultures. We have focused on NGF to analyze its effect on the sympathetic peptide phenotypes and its lack of an effect on the chromaffin cell peptide phenotypes. The results presented here, establish interesting differences between chromaffin cells and sympathetic neurons that are of importance to studies of cell lineage and differentiation.