Molecular basis of reproductive senescence: insights from model organisms

PurposeReproductive decline due to parental age has become a major barrier to fertility as couples have delayed having offspring into their thirties and forties. Advanced parental age is also associated with increased incidence of neurological and cardiovascular disease in offspring. Thus, elucidating the etiology of reproductive decline is of clinical importance.MethodsDeciphering the underlying processes that drive reproductive decline is particularly challenging in women in whom a discrete oocyte pool is established during embryogenesis and may remain dormant for tens of years. Instead, our understanding of the processes that drive reproductive senescence has emerged from studies in model organisms, both vertebrate and invertebrate, that are the focus of this literature review.ConclusionsStudies of reproductive aging in model organisms not only have revealed the detrimental cellular changes that occur with age but also are helping identify major regulator proteins controlling them. Here, we discuss what we have learned from model organisms with respect to the molecular mechanisms that maintain both genome integrity and oocyte quality.     

精神分裂症患者防御方式及家庭背景因素研究

目的:探讨精神分裂症患者的防御方式、父母教养方式及亲密度和适应性的特点.方法: 采用防御方式问卷(DSQ)、父母教养方式评价量表(EMBU)及家庭亲密度和适应性量表(中文版)(FACESII-CV)对80例精神分裂症患者(研究组)进行了问卷调查,并与80例正常受试者(对照组)加以比较.结果:①研究组中间型和不成熟防御方式因子分均明显高于对照组(P<0.01),而成熟防御方式因子分则明显低于对照组(P<0.05);②研究组父母的情感温暖因子分明显低于对照组(P<0.01),而惩罚及拒绝因子分则明显高于对照组(P<0.01),另外患者父亲的过分干涉及母亲的偏爱被试因子分亦均明显高于对照组(前者P<0.01,后者P<0.05).③研究组家庭的实际亲密度、实际适应性、理想亲密度和理想适应性评分均明显低于对照组(P<0.01).结论: 精神分裂症患者的防御方式、父母教养方式及亲密度和适应性与正常人有着明显的不同.     

Shugoshin-2 is essential for the completion of meiosis but not for mitotic cell division in mice

Shugoshin-2 (SGOL2) is one of the two mammalian orthologs of the Shugoshin/Mei-S322 family of proteins that regulate sister chromatid cohesion by protecting the integrity of the multiprotein cohesin complexes. This protective system is essential for faithful chromosome segregation during mitosis and meiosis, which is the physical basis of Mendelian inheritance. Regardless of its evolutionary conservation from yeast to mammals, little is known about the in vivo relevance and specific role that SGOL2 plays in mammals. Here we show that disruption of the gene encoding mouse SGOL2 does not cause any alteration in sister chromatid cohesion in embryonic cultured fibroblasts and adult somatic tissues. Moreover, mutant mice develop normally and survive to adulthood without any apparent alteration. However, both male and female Sgol2-deficient mice are infertile. We demonstrate that SGOL2 is necessary for protecting centromeric cohesion during mammalian meiosis I. In vivo, the loss of SGOL2 promotes a premature release of the meiosis-specific REC8 cohesin complexes from anaphase I centromeres. This molecular alteration is manifested cytologically by the complete loss of centromere cohesion at metaphase II leading to single chromatids and physiologically with the formation of aneuploid gametes that give rise to infertility.     

大学生QQ的使用及亲密度相关研究

目的 探究大学生使用沟通工具QQ和由此带来的亲密程度之间的关系.方法 使用亲密度相关问卷,并用统计方法分析.结果 大部分的QQ使用者,不仅通过QQ进行口头的联系,而且是其促进情感交流的沟通方式.相关系数分析表明QQ的使用频率和亲密之间确实存在相关,研究的假设被数据支持,当QQ使用增加,感知的语言亲密也增加(F=8.24,P＜0.01);当QQ使用增加,同样情感亲密也在增加(F=4.87,P＜0.05).结论 调查结果对于更好地促进大学生亲密关系的维持,缓解社会对QQ产生的舆论压力都有重要意义;在QQ上面的交谈会激发人们真实面对面交流的欲望,同时也增强了远距离人们的情感沟通.     

女性精神分裂症患者的家庭亲密度与适应性

目的　探讨女性精神分裂症患者的家庭亲密度与适应性。方法　采用家庭亲密度与适应性量表中文版(FACESⅡ CV)和幸福感指数量表对 66例已婚女性精神分裂症患者进行评定 ,并与量表的正常参考值比较。结果　已婚女性精神分裂症患者的家庭亲密度与适应性明显降低 ,FACESⅡ CV“拱极模式”中 ,平衡型家庭比例 (3 4 8% ) ,明显减少 ,中间型比例 (48 6% )增加 ,极端型比例 (16 6% )无变化。家庭适应性僵硬的比例 (5 2 0 % )也明显增加 ,且家庭经济状况愈差 ,分型表现愈不佳。另患者幸福感指数评分也低于正常对照值。结论　已婚女性精神分裂症患者家庭成员之间亲密度降低 ,家庭体系适应环境的能力降低。提出应根据患者的家庭实际情况 ,及早进行有针对性的家庭干预与家庭治疗。     

精神分裂症患者家庭环境、父母教养方式以及亲密度和适应性的调查分析

目的　探索精神分裂症患者的家庭环境、父母教养方式以及亲密度和适应性的特点。方法　采用家庭环境量表 (中文版 ) ) (FES -CV)、父母教养方式评价量表 (EMBU)及家庭亲密度和适应性量表 (中文版 ) (FACESII-CV)对 110例精神分裂症患者 (研究组 )进行评定 ,并与 110例正常受试者 (对照组 )加以比较。结果　①同正常对照组相比 ,患者家庭表现为低亲密度、低情感表达、低成功性、低组织性以及高矛盾性和控制性差 (P <0 0 5或P<0 0 1)。②在教养方式上 ,患者父亲表现为低情感温暖、高惩罚严厉、过分干涉和拒绝否认 (P <0 0 1) ;而母亲表现为低情感温暖、高拒绝否认、惩罚严厉和偏爱被试 (P <0 0 5和P <0 0 1)。③在亲密度和适应性方面 ,患者家庭的实际亲密度、实际适应性、理想亲密度和理想适应性均较对照组为差 (P <0 0 1)。结论　患者的家庭环境、父母教养方式以及亲密度和适应性方面均存在着诸多方面的问题 ,可能对精神分裂症的发病起重要作用。     

Do perceived neighbourhood cohesion and safety contribute to neighbourhood differences in health?

This paper reports on a survey (N=3344) and in-depth interviews (N=80) from four socio-economically contrasting postcode areas in Adelaide. Logistic regression was used to examine locational differences in self-rated health, controlling for demographic, socio-economic factors, health behaviours, individual social capital (social networks, support, reciprocity, trust) and perceived neighbourhood cohesion and safety. Statistically significant locational differences in health emerged. Perceived neighbourhood cohesion and safety accounted for this difference. Interviews explored perceptions of cohesion and safety and found that they were intricately related and varied between the areas. The implications of the findings for understanding locational differences in health are discussed.     

A Study to Evaluate the Retentive Ability of Different Denture Adhesive Materials: An In Vitro Study

Denture Adhesives are commonly used by denture wearers to enhance the retentive ability of their dentures however, little is known about the efficacy of these materials. To compare the retentive ability of three different commercially available denture adhesives. To find out the best available denture adhesive material. An in vitro investigation to evaluate the retentive ability of three commercially available denture adhesive powders and two adhesive pastes was conducted. The adhesion and cohesion that developed between the glass surface and acrylic resin samples when the various materials were interposed between them was evaluated by means of a testing apparatus. Denture adhesives increase the adhesion of resin samples to the glass surface. Fixon powder showed the highest resistance to dislodgement. The paste forms were found to be more retentive. Denture adhesives when used in combination with synthetic saliva showed the maximum value.     

Children’s Enduring PTSD Symptoms are Related to Their Family’s Adaptability and Cohesion

This study compared, 18–24 months after an industrial disaster, in two groups of children (those with clinically relevant PTSD symptoms versus those with low PTSD symptoms), the child’s perception of family cohesion and adaptability, the child’s experience of the explosion, and parental characteristics. Enmeshed family cohesion or rigid family adaptability were more frequently found in children with low PTSD symptoms. PTSD symptoms in the mother, living in a family of 3 or more children, and being female were significantly associated with PTSD symptoms in the children. The assessment of traumatized children should include assessment of family’s adaptability and cohesion. This paper was presented at the American Psychiatric Association 2006 Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada, and the 17th world congress of the International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions, 2006, Melbourne, Australia.     

An investigation into the relationship between carrier-based dry powder inhalation performance and formulation cohesive–adhesive force balances

The inclusion of different carrier materials in a dry powder inhaler (DPI) system can alter formulation performance, which might be attributable to variation in the adhesion between drug and carrier particles. The aim of this study was, therefore, to further examine the relationship between drug-carrier adhesion and performance, by comparing data relating to many different drug-carrier combinations. Four drugs and four carriers were employed, giving a total of 16 combinations. The relative magnitude of the drug-carrier adhesion for each combination was quantified using the cohesion-adhesion balance (CAB) approach to colloidal probe atomic force microscopy. The in vitro inhalation performance of the 16 formulations (1.5% w/w drug) was investigated and found to vary significantly. Plots of fine particle dose against drug-carrier CAB ratio revealed that performance was optimised when the drug-carrier CAB ratio was slightly cohesive. This trend was found to fit with those from similar previous studies, although due to the smaller number of formulations investigated previously, the full extent of this relationship had not been revealed. It was concluded, therefore, that when developing a carrier-based DPI, the selection of a drug-carrier combination with a slightly cohesive CAB ratio might result in optimal performance.