Genome Mining Reveals a Surprising Number of Sugar Reductases in .

Metabolic engineering of filamentous fungi has received increasing attention in recent years, especially in the context of creating better industrial fungal cell factories to produce a wide range of valuable enzymes and metabolites from plant biomass. Recent studies into the pentose catabolic pathway (PCP) in have revealed functional redundancy in most of the pathway steps. In this study, a closer examination of the genome revealed five additional paralogs for the three original pentose reductases (LarA, XyrA, XyrB).

Inattention and Disordered Gaming: Does Culture Matter?

Problematic gaming has emerged as a contemporary concern, leading to the introduction of the diagnostic term 'Internet Gaming Disorder' (IGD; American Psychiatric Association). The present study aims to empirically assess the association between inattention and IGD, in the light of variable levels of vertical-individualism that reflects cultural inclinations towards independence, competitiveness, and hierarchy. The participants (N = 1032) comprised a normative cohort of Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) gamers (Mage = 24 years; 48.

User-avatar bond profiles: How do they associate with disordered gaming?

Aims: The avatar constitutes the in-game representation of the gamer. Although aspects of the user-avatar bond (UAB) have been associated with disordered gaming, there is a need for clearer understanding concerning the impact of potential UAB profiles.

Methods: To address this need, the present study recruited a normative sample of 1022 World of Warcraft (WoW) players (M = 28.

Livedoid vasculopathy: does hyperhomocysteinaemia play an aetiological role?

Background: Livedoid vasculopathy (LV) has been shown to be associated with hypercoagulability. However, relevant genetic and exogenous thrombophilic factors are not fully determined.

Objectives: To evaluate the frequency of hyperhomocysteinaemia (HHCE) and genotypes of hypercoagulative factors in LV patients.

Predictors of satisfaction with excess skin and desire for body contouring after bariatric surgery.

Background: Bariatric surgery (BS) produces rapid, massive weight loss, often leaving patients with excess skin that can be esthetically disappointing and can present barriers to physical and psychosocial functioning. Thus, body contouring surgery (BCS) is frequently sought by post-BS patients. The objectives of the present study were to characterize the frequency at which post-BS patients desire BCS and the extent to which patients are satisfied with the excess skin in specific body regions before and after contouring.

Validation of the social appearance anxiety scale in female eating disorder patients.

In the present study, we investigated the psychometric properties of the Social Appearance Anxiety Scale (SAAS) in a sample of 60 female eating disorder patients (M(age) = 27.82, SD = 9.76).

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in a prebariatric surgery sample.

Background: Research suggests that obese children, adolescents and adults frequently suffer from attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The aim of the current study was to estimate the prevalence of adult ADHD in a group of patients with grade 3 obesity (body mass index ≥40 kg/m(2)) prior to bariatric surgery.

Method: We assessed 116 patients for childhood and adult ADHD, co-occurring psychiatric disorders, severity of depression and daytime sleepiness.

Depression, materialism, and excessive Internet use in relation to compulsive buying.

Objective: The objective of the study was to examine the relationship between compulsive buying (CB), depression, materialism, and excessive Internet use.

Methods: An online survey of 387 consumers was conducted including questions about demographics and shopping venues, the Compulsive Buying Scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Scale, the Materialistic Values Scale, and questions concerning excessive Internet use.

Results: Seventeen percent of the participants reported Compulsive Buying Scale scores less than -1.

Pectus excavatum and pectus carinatum patients suffer from lower quality of life and impaired body image: a control group comparison of psychological characteristics prior to surgical correction.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of anterior chest-wall deformities on disease-specific and health-related quality of life, body image, and psychiatric comorbidity prior to surgical correction.

Methods: A total of 90 patients (71 with pectus excavatum, 19 with pectus carinatum) presenting themselves for pectus repair and 82 control subjects were recruited for this study. The objective severity of the deformity was determined through the funnel-chest index by Hümmer and the Haller index.

Prevalence of body dysmorphic disorder in a German psychiatric inpatient sample.

Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a distressing or impairing preoccupation with an imagined or slight defect in appearance. Only a few studies have examined BDD prevalence in psychiatric settings. Prevalence rates vary widely and most studies have been conducted in outpatient samples.

The relationship between compulsive buying, eating disorder symptoms, and temperament in a sample of female students.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between compulsive buying (CB), eating disorder symptoms, and temperament (controlling for depression) in a sample of female students. We assessed 211 female undergraduate students using the Compulsive Buying Scale, the Eating Disorder Inventory, the Behavioral Inhibition System and Behavioral Activation System scales, the Adult Temperament Questionnaire, and the Physical Health Questionnaire-Depression. The results show a positive association between CB and the Eating Disorder Inventory-II drive for thinness and bulimia subscales.

Personality prototypes in individuals with compulsive buying based on the Big Five Model.

Personality prototypes based on the Big Five factor model were investigated in a treatment-seeking sample of 68 individuals with compulsive buying (CB). Cluster analysis of the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) scales yielded two distinct personality clusters. Participants in cluster II scored significantly higher than those in cluster I on neuroticism and lower on the other four personality traits.

Estimated prevalence of compulsive buying in Germany and its association with sociodemographic characteristics and depressive symptoms.

The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of compulsive buying and its association with sociodemographic characteristics and depressive symptoms in a nationally representative sample of the German population using the validated German version of the Compulsive Buying Scale (CBS; Faber and O'Guinn, 1992) in order to have a direct comparison with U.S. findings.

Latent profile analysis and comorbidity in a sample of individuals with compulsive buying disorder.

The aims of this study were to perform a latent profile analysis in a sample of individuals with compulsive buying, to explore the psychiatric comorbidity, and to examine whether or not more severe compulsive buying is associated with greater comorbidity. Compulsive buying measures and SCID data obtained from 171 patients with compulsive buying behavior who had participated in treatment trials at different clinical centers in the U.S.

[Compulsive hoarding - a literature review].

Objective: To provide an overview of empirical findings with regard to compulsive hoarding.

Methods: A systematic literature search of medical and psychological journals was conducted using PubMed. Relevant publications from the reference lists and recent books were also identified and included.

The prevalence of compulsive hoarding and its association with compulsive buying in a German population-based sample.

The aims of the study were to estimate the prevalence rate of compulsive hoarding, and to determine the association between compulsive hoarding and compulsive buying in a nationally representative sample of the German population (N = 2307). Compulsive hoarding was assessed with the German version of the Saving Inventory-Revised (SI-R; Frost, R.O.

Dendritic and linear macromolecular architectures for photovoltaics: a photoinduced charge transfer investigation.

Dendrimers have been previously shown to provide significant advantages in both excited-state energy transfer and charge transfer. However, this architecture causes one of the charges to be encapsulated and thus not available for charge separation over long distances. We conceived dendron-rod-coils as scaffolds that could have the architectural advantage of the dendrimers, while still providing a possible conduit for charge separation.

[Compulsive buying and psychiatric comorbidity].

Compulsive buying is an excessive behavior that has begun to receive attention from researchers in recent years. The current study provides an overview of research on compulsive buying and examines the psychiatric co-morbidity in a German female treatment seeking compulsive buying sample in comparison with age and gender-matched normal buying control groups. Thirty women suffering from compulsive buying disorder, 30 community controls, and 30 bariatric surgery candidates were assessed with the German versions of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV diagnoses (SCID).

A randomized, controlled trial of group cognitive-behavioral therapy for compulsive buying disorder: posttreatment and 6-month follow-up results.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to conduct a randomized trial comparing the efficacy of a group cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention designed for the treatment of compulsive buying disorder to a waiting list control (WLC) group.

Method: Thirty-one patients with compulsive buying problems according to the criteria developed by McElroy et al. were assigned to receive active treatment (12 weekly sessions and 6-month follow-up) and 29 to the WLC group.

Hoarding in a compulsive buying sample.

Previous research has indicated that many compulsive buyers also suffer from compulsive hoarding. The present work specifically examined hoarding in a compulsive buying sample. Sixty-six treatment-seeking compulsive buyers were assessed prior to entering a group therapy for compulsive buying using the Compulsive Buying Scale (CBS), the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)-Shopping Version, the Compulsive Acquisition Scale (CAS), the German-CBS, the Saving Inventory-Revised (SI-R), the Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI), the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11), and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I (SCID).

Comparison of treatment seeking compulsive buyers in Germany and the United States.

Objective: The aim of this pilot study was to compare a German (Bavaria) and an American (North Dakota) sample of women suffering from compulsive buying.

Method: Thirty-eight German and 39 American female compulsive buyers were screened with the Compulsive Buying Scale (CBS), and the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale-Shopping Version (Y-BOCS-SV) prior to entering a group treatment study. Psychiatric co-morbidity was assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I disorders (SCID).

Maternal influences on adult stress and anxiety-like behavior in C57BL/6J and BALB/cJ mice: a cross-fostering study.

The quality of maternal care during early life has a dramatic impact on later stress reactivity and anxiety. Two inbred mouse strains, C57BL/6J and BALB/cJ, differ in levels of maternal care, stress reactivity, and anxiety-like behavior in adulthood. However, the relative contribution of early environmental factors and genetic predisposition to differences in these strains is not known.

Anxiety and fear behaviors in adult male and female C57BL/6 mice are modulated by maternal separation.

This study investigated the effects of maternal separation in C57BL/6 male and female mice during infancy on later adult fear and anxiety behaviors. Additionally, we observed the maternal behavior of the dams to examine aspects of maternal care that may be modulated by daily bouts of separation. In males, mice that experienced maternal separation during the neonatal period displayed significantly higher levels of anxiety and fear behavior, as measured by the open field test and elevated plus maze, compared to control, standard facility reared males.