Hand preference for sending mobile-phone text messages: Associations with sex,writing hand,and throwing hand

Hand preference for sending mobile-phone text messages (“texting”) and its relationship with hand preference for other activities were investigated in a questionnaire study with 886 participants. Overall rates of both sinistrality and dextrality were reduced for texting, in comparison with other activities, due to the substantial number of individuals who use both hands simultaneously when performing this activity. Because they both involve verbal expression, it was hypothesised that the association between hand preferences for texting and writing might be stronger than the association between either of these tasks and more spatial activities, such as throwing. This prediction was not confirmed, either in the sample as a whole or in a sub-group of individuals who reported writing and throwing with opposite hands. Females were less likely than males to use their left hand when sending text messages. Implications of these findings are discussed, in relation to theoretical views of handedness and in relation to practical aspects of mobile-phone design.     

Structured disposition planning for adolescent suicide attempters in a general hospital: Preliminary findings on short-term outcome

Abstract

Adolescent suicide attempters are often noncompliant with outpatient psychotherapy and drop out of treatment much more quickly than non-suicidal adolescents. In this study, 23 adolescents received medical treatment and a standard psychiatric evaluation in an Emergency Department following a suicide attempt. In addition, all subjects and their parents received a psychotherapy compliance enhancement intervention which included a verbal agreement between the adolescent and parent/guardian to attend at least four psychotherapy sessions. After discharge from the hospital, each subject received three phone interviews over an 8 week period using a problem solving approach around two key areas: suicidal ideation and psychotherapy compliance. Compared to a three month follow-up of 78 subjects (which did not include an experimental intervention), conducted at the same hospital, the experimental intervention resulted in fewer outpatient psychotherapy ‘no shows' (9% vs. 18%) and a trend toward greater number of sessions attended (5.5 vs. 3.9). There were no re-attempts in the experimental group as compared to 9% in the comparison group. Results are promising and a randomized intervention trial appears indicated.     

Sexual Offences: Help for the forgotten victims

Societies which do not safeguard and give prime support for the relations between men and women for procreation and child rearing undermine our propensity for and fundamental need of secure attachment. Without attachment, and the nurture it brings, well-being is displaced by destructiveness and despair; these then tend to develop a debilitating cultural history. Contemporary sex education is seriously flawed in that it is rarely set within a sufficient model of human nature. Now governed extensively by fear within a culture of transient, disposable relationships, sex education is subject to ambivalent social policies and confused values. This paper offers a more constructive and defensible scenario rooted in the ethical and educational implications of what we now know about human nature and of the psychosocial and other risks to our species.     

Cognitive impairment or inadequate norms? A study of healthy,rural, older adults with limited education

Abstract

This study established preliminary norms for nine commonly administered neuropsychological tests for a biracial sample (N = 133; White = 64, African American = 69) of nondemented, rural community-dwelling elders (mean age = 76.48; SD = 7.87) with 10 or fewer years of formal education (mean education = 6.65 years; SD = 2.14). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that education was an important predictor of performance on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Mattis Dementia Rating Scale (MDRS), Clock Drawing, Ravens' Colored Progressive Matrices, Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) Vocabulary and Block Design, Verbal Fluency (Category) and Logical Memory and Visual Reproduction subtests from the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R), but did not predict scores on the Fuld Object Memory Evaluation or memory savings scores from the WMS-R. Race was a predictor only for WAIS-R Vocabulary and Block Design, and WMS-R Logical Memory Delayed. Approximately half of the subjects scored below the published cut-offs for the MMSE and MDRS and would have been considered mildly to moderately impaired on many of the test measures.     

Influence of ATP-Binding Cassette Polymorphisms on Neurological Outcome After Traumatic Brain Injury

Background

As important mediators of solute transport at the blood–brain and blood–cerebrospinal fluid barriers, ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters (including ABCB1, ABCC1, and ABCC2), impact the bioavailability of drugs and endogenous substrates in the brain. While several ABCB1, ABCC1, and ABCC2 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been identified, their impact on outcome after traumatic brain injury (TBI) is unknown.

Hypothesis

ABCB1, ABCC1, and ABCC2 SNPs are associated with Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) score after TBI.

Methods

DNA samples from 305 adult patients with severe TBI (Glasgow Coma Scale, GCS score ≤ 8) were genotyped for tagging SNPs of ABCB1 (rs1045642; rs1128503), ABCC1 (rs212093; rs35621; rs4148382), and ABCC2 (rs2273697). For each SNP, patients were dichotomized based on presence of variant allele for multivariate analysis to determine associations with GOS assigned at 6 months adjusting for GCS, Injury Severity score, age, and patient sex.

Results

For ABCB1 rs1045642, patients homozygous for the T allele were less likely to be assigned poor outcome versus those possessing the C allele [CT/CC; odds of unfavorable GOS = 0.71(0.55–0.92)]. For ABCC1 rs4148382, patients homozygous for the G allele were less likely to be assigned poor outcome versus those possessing the A allele [AG/AA; odds of unfavorable GOS = 0.73(0.55–0.98)].

Conclusions

In this single-center study, patients homozygous for the T allele of ABCB1 rs1045642 or the G allele of ABCC1 rs4148382 were found to have better outcome after severe TBI. Further study is necessary to replicate these very preliminary findings and to determine whether these associations are due to central nervous system bioavailability of ABC transporter drug substrates commonly used in the management of TBI, brain efflux of endogenous solutes, or both.     

Variants in the promoter region of CYP7A1 are associated with neuromyelitis optica but not with multiple sclerosis in the Han Chinese population

Multiple sclerosis（MS）and neuromyelitis optica（NMO）are common autoimmune demyelinating disorders of the central nervous system.The exact etiology of each remains unclear.CYP7A1was reported to be associated with NMO in Korean patients,but this is yet to be confirmed in other populations.In this study,we used Sanger sequencing to detect SNPs in the promoter region of CYP7A1 in a population consisting of unrelated patients and controls from the Han Chinese population（129 MS;89 NMO;325 controls）.Two known SNPs,204A〉C（rs3808607）and 469T〉C（rs3824260）,and a novel SNP（208G〉C）were identified in the 5＇-UTR of CYP7A1.The 204A〉C was in complete linkage with 469T〉C and both were associated with NMO but not with MS.Results suggest that the CYP7A1 allele was associated with NMO.NMO and MS have different genetic risk factors.This further supports the emerging evidence that MS and NMO are distinct disorders.     

Biological Activity of sym-Triazines with Acetylcholine-like Substitutions as Multitarget Modulators of Alzheimer’s Disease

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The effects of interactive mechanical and biochemical niche signaling on osteogenic differentiation of adipose-derived stem cells using combinatorial hydrogels

Stem cells reside in a multi-factorial environment containing biochemical and mechanical signals. Changing biochemical signals in most scaffolds often leads to simultaneous changes in mechanical properties, which makes it difficult to elucidate the complex interplay between niche cues. Combinatorial studies on cell–material interactions have emerged as a tool to facilitate analyses of stem cell responses to various niche cues, but most studies to date have been performed on two-dimensional environments. Here we developed three-dimensional combinatorial hydrogels with independent control of biochemical and mechanical properties to facilitate analysis of interactive biochemical and mechanical signaling on adipose-derived stem cell osteogenesis in three dimensions. Our results suggest that scaffold biochemical and mechanical signals synergize only at specific combinations to promote bone differentiation. Leading compositions were identified to have intermediate stiffness (～55 kPa) and low concentration of fibronectin (10 μg ml^?1), which led to an increase in osteocalcin gene expression of over 130-fold. Our results suggest that scaffolds with independently tunable niche cues could provide a powerful tool for conducting mechanistic studies to decipher how complex niche cues regulate stem cell fate in three dimensions, and facilitate rapid identification of optimal niche cues that promote desirable cellular processes or tissue regeneration.