Executive functions and adaptive functioning in young adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with impairments in occupational, social, and educational functioning in adults. This study examined relations of adaptive impairment to ADHD symptom domains (inattentive-disorganized and hyperactive-impulsive) and to deficits in executive functioning (EF) in 195 well-characterized adults (105 ADHD, 90 non-ADHD, between ages 18 and 37). Participants completed a battery of EF measures as well as assessments of adaptive functioning. Confirmatory factor analyses were used to validate latent factors for adaptive functioning and EF. In a measurement model, weaker EF was associated with poorer adaptive functioning (r = -.30). When multi-informant composite variables for current inattentive-disorganized and hyperactive-impulsive ADHD symptoms were included in the structural model, EF no longer predicted adaptive functioning. While both symptom composites were similarly related to EF (inattentive-disorganized r = .36; hyperactive-impulsive r = .29), inattentive-disorganized symptoms accounted for more variance in adaptive functioning (67.2% vs. 3.6%). Furthermore, for retrospectively reported childhood symptoms of ADHD, only the inattentive-disorganized symptom domain was related to EF or adaptive impairment. These results suggest that, in adults with ADHD, inattentive-disorganized symptoms may be the primary contributor to key aspects of poorer adaptive function and may be the behavioral path through which EF deficits lead to adaptive impairment.     

Reducing obesity indicators through brief physical activity counseling (pace) in italian primary care settings

Background: There is an alarming prevalence of obesity and sedentariness in Western countries. An ideal context for health promotion and preventive medicine seems to be the setting of primary care provided by the general practitioner (GP).Purpose: Therefore, this study evaluated the impact of GPs’brief physical activity counseling for overweight and obese patients.Methods: Individuals recruited during routine physician visits were randomly split into an experimental (n = 48) group that received the Patient-centered Assessment and Counseling for Exercise (PACE) protocol, and a usual-care control (n = 48) group. Body mass index (BMI) and abdominal girth were assessed as objective biometrical parameters. Patients in the experimental group self-reported their readiness for physical activity and self-efficacy.Results: The experimental group had significantly better BMI and abdominal girth compared with the control group after a 5- to 6-month follow-up. Furthermore, the experimental group progressed in their stage of physical activity readiness and increased their self-efficacy.Conclusions: The GPs’counseling for physical activity using the PACE protocol influenced mediators and biometrical outcomes in an Italian primary care context. An earlier version of this article was presented for the degree thesis in Community Psychology at the Bologna University. The advisor was Professor Bruna Zani. We thank the general practitioners who contributed to this project: Marcatelli M., Forgiarini A., Fabbri M., De Astis R., Aguzzoni F., Barbarossa L., Montalti M. (Azienda USL-Distretto di Cesena Italy), and we thank Silvano Zanuso (Technogym Research Center-Gambettola Italy) for his helpful comments.     

Release of soluble transferrin receptor from the surface of human leukemic HL60 cells

Information regarding transferrin (Tf) receptor degradation is largely incomplete. HL60 cells were shown to release to their growth medium a Tf-binding protein which could be immunoprecipitated by anti-Tf receptor monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) B3/25 and OKT9. Soluble Tf receptor was detected in the medium within one hour of replating of cells, and its release was inhibited at 4 degrees C. The affinity of Tf for the soluble receptor released by cells (kd = 2.3 x 10(-10) mol/L) was slightly lower than its affinity for the detergent-solubilized cellular receptor (kd = 1.2 x 10(-10) mol/L). 125I-Tf internalized and released by cells subsequently bound to Tf receptor released by the same cells, and soluble Tf receptor in the conditioned medium (CM) inhibited 125I-Tf binding to intact cells. The soluble Tf receptor isolated from the CM was smaller (78,000 daltons) than the cell surface receptor (94,000 daltons) when analyzed by gel electrophoresis under reducing conditions. Isolated cell membranes readily released soluble receptor; however, this release could be blocked by protease inhibitors. The soluble Tf receptor may represent the extracytoplasmic domain of the cellular Tf receptor released from the surface of HL60 cells through proteolytic cleavage by a membrane-based protease.     

MINERVA-a multi-modal radiation treatment planning system.

Researchers at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory and Montana State University have undertaken development of MINERVA, a patient-centric, multi-modal, radiation treatment planning system. This system can be used for planning and analyzing several radiotherapy modalities, either singly or combined, using common modality independent image and geometry construction and dose reporting and guiding. It employs an integrated, lightweight plugin architecture to accommodate multi-modal treatment planning using standard interface components. The MINERVA design also facilitates the future integration of improved planning technologies. The code is being developed with the Java Virtual Machine for interoperability. A full computation path has been established for molecular targeted radiotherapy treatment planning, with the associated transport plugin developed by researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Development of the neutron transport plugin module is proceeding rapidly, with completion expected later this year. Future development efforts will include development of deformable registration methods, improved segmentation methods for patient model definition, and three-dimensional visualization of the patient images, geometry, and dose data. Transport and source plugins will be created for additional treatment modalities, including brachytherapy, external beam proton radiotherapy, and the EGSnrc/BEAMnrc codes for external beam photon and electron radiotherapy.     

Pneumothorax and other lung diseases: effect of altered resolution and edge enhancement on diagnosis with digitized radiographs

Prior studies have shown that pneumothorax is one of the more difficult entities to diagnose with digitized radiography. This study was designed to test whether increasing resolution from 1.25 to 2.5 line pairs per millimeter (lp/mm) and image processing (edge enhancement from unsharp masking) would increase accuracy and confidence in the diagnosis of pneumothorax, as well as normal cases and other forms of lung disease. Conventional radiographs were digitized with use of a laser reader and then reformatted as film hard copy. Eleven observers read 35 cases reformatted in three different ways (1.25 lp/mm, 2.5 lp/mm, 1.25 lp/mm unsharp mask). The images with finer resolution (2.5 lp/mm) and unsharp mask images were superior to those with coarser resolution (1.25 lp/mm) for the diagnosis of pneumothorax. There was no difference in diagnostic accuracy for normal patients. For abnormalities other than pneumothorax, the unsharp mask images were significantly worse. Confidence in the diagnosis of pneumothorax and other abnormalities was highest with the finest resolution (2.5 lp/mm).     

Macroscopic geometric heterogeneity effects in radiation dose distribution analysis for boron neutron capture therapy.

Calculations of radiation flux and dose distributions for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) of brain tumors are typically performed using sophisticated three-dimensional analytical models based on either a homogeneous approximation or a simplified few-region approximation to the actual highly heterogeneous geometry of the irradiation volume. Such models should be validated by comparison with calculations using detailed models in which all significant macroscopic tissue heterogeneities and geometric structures are explicitly represented as faithfully as possible. This paper describes such a validation exercise for BNCT of canine brain tumors. Geometric measurements of the canine anatomical structures of interest for this work were performed by dissecting and examining two essentially identical Labrador retriever heads. Chemical analyses of various tissue samples taken during the dissections were conducted to obtain measurements of elemental compositions for the tissues of interest. The resulting geometry and tissue composition data were then used to construct a detailed heterogeneous calculational model of the Labrador head. Calculations of three-dimensional radiation flux distributions pertinent to BNCT were performed for this model using the TORT discrete-ordinates radiation transport code. The calculations were repeated for a corresponding volume-weighted homogeneous-tissue model. Comparison of the results showed that peak neutron and photon flux magnitudes were quite similar for the two models (within 5%), but that the spatial flux profiles were shifted in the heterogeneous model such that the fluxes in some locations away from the peak differed from the corresponding fluxes in the homogeneous model by as much as 10%-20%. Differences of this magnitude can be therapeutically significant, emphasizing the need for proper validation of simplified treatment planning models.