Hibernation-based blood loss therapy increases survivability of lethal hemorrhagic shock in rats.

A small-volume (1 ml/kg) resuscitation fluid based on metabolic adaptations in hibernating mammals was optimized using a rat model of hemorrhagic shock. A previous study of this therapy tested only one concentration of three specific components: 4 M D-stereoisomer of beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), 43 mM melatonin, and 20% DMSO. In this study, we considered the range of concentrations of BHB and melatonin seen during the physiological extremes of rapid arousal from hypothermic torpor in natural hibernators and applied these to the non-hibernating Sprague-Dawley rat model.

A Cautionary Tale: Examining the Interplay of Culturally Specific Risk and Resilience Factors in Indigenous Communities.

Efforts to build empirical evidence for the protective effects of Indigenous cultural factors on psychological health have yielded mixed findings. We examine the interplay of previously hypothesized culturally relevant risk (discrimination, historical loss) and protective (spiritual activities) factors among Indigenous people. The sample includes 569 Indigenous adolescents (M age = 17.

DNA methylation in a sea lamprey vasotocin receptor gene promoter correlates with tissue- and life-stage-specific mRNA expression.

The jawless vertebrate sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) genome has a different structure from both invertebrates and jawed vertebrates featuring high guanine-cytosine (GC) content. This raises the question of whether DNA methylation of cytosine-guanine (CpG) dinucleotides could function to regulate lamprey gene transcription. We previously characterized a lamprey arginine vasotocin (AVT) receptor gene (Pm807) possessing characteristics of both arginine vasopressin (AVP) V1A and oxytocin (OXT) receptor genes of jawed vertebrates.

Advance Care Planning among People Living with Dialysis.

Purpose: Recent nephrology literature focuses on the need for discussions regarding advance care planning (ACP) for people living with dialysis (PWD). PWD and their family members' attitudes toward ACP and other aspects of late-life decision making were assessed in this qualitative study.

Methodology: Thirty-one interviews were completed with 20 PWD over the age of 70 (mean dialysis 34 months) and 11 family members, related to life experiences, making medical decisions, and planning for the future.

A method to distinguish morphologically similar Peromyscus species using extracellular RNA and high-resolution melt analysis.

A method applying high-resolution melt (HRM) analysis to PCR products copied and amplified from extracellular RNA (exRNA) has been developed to distinguish two morphologically similar Peromyscus species: Peromyscus leucopus and Peromyscus maniculatus. P. leucopus is considered the primary reservoir host of Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent for Lyme disease in North America.

A Randomized Crossover Design to Assess Learning Impact and Student Preference for Active and Passive Online Learning Modules.

Medical education increasingly involves online learning experiences to facilitate the standardization of curriculum across time and space. In class, delivering material by lecture is less effective at promoting student learning than engaging students in active learning experience and it is unclear whether this difference also exists online. We sought to evaluate medical student preferences for online lecture or online active learning formats and the impact of format on short- and long-term learning gains.

The emergence of the vasopressin and oxytocin hormone receptor gene family lineage: Clues from the characterization of vasotocin receptors in the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus).

The sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) is a jawless vertebrate at an evolutionary nexus between invertebrates and jawed vertebrates. Lampreys are known to possess the arginine vasotocin (AVT) hormone utilized by all non-mammalian vertebrates. We postulated that the lamprey would possess AVT receptor orthologs of predecessors to the arginine vasopressin (AVP)/oxytocin (OXT) family of G protein-coupled receptors found in mammals, providing insights into the origins of the mammalian V1A, V1B, V2 and OXT receptors.

The interplay between genetic background and sexual dimorphism of doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity.

Background: Doxorubicin (DOX) is a very effective anticancer medication that is commonly used to treat hematological malignancies and solid tumors. Nevertheless, DOX is known to have cardiotoxic effects that may lead to cardiac dysfunction and failure. In experimental studies, female animals have been shown to be protected against DOX-induced cardiotoxicity; however, the evidence of this sexual dimorphism is inconclusive in clinical studies.

Global research challenges and opportunities for mental health and substance-use disorders.

The research agenda for global mental health and substance-use disorders has been largely driven by the exigencies of high health burdens and associated unmet needs in low- and middle-income countries. Implementation research focused on context-driven adaptation and innovation in service delivery has begun to yield promising results that are improving the quality of, and access to, care in low-resource settings. Importantly, these efforts have also resulted in the development and augmentation of local, in-country research capacities.

Evaluation of whole-mount in situ hybridization as a tool for pathway-based toxicological research with early-life stage fathead minnows.

Early-life stage fish can be more sensitive to toxicants than adults, so delineating mechanisms of perturbation of biological pathways by chemicals during this life stage is crucial. Whole-mount in situ hybridization (WISH) paired with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) assays can enhance pathway-based analyses through determination of specific tissues where changes in gene expression are occurring. While WISH has frequently been used in zebrafish (Danio rerio), this technology has not previously been applied to fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas), another well-established small fish model species.

Why Small is Too Small a Term: Prevention Science for Health Disparities, Culturally Distinct Groups, and Community-Level Intervention.

Implications of the Advancing Small Sample Prevention Science Special Section are discussed. Efficiency and precision are inadequately considered in many current prevention-science methodological approaches. As a result, design and analytic practices pose difficulties for the study of contextual factors in prevention, which often involve small samples.

Associations between adrenocortical activity and nicotine response in female smokers by menstrual phase.

Previous research suggests that menstrual phase may influence smoking-related symptomatology. The present study analyzes the relationship between menstrual phase and salivary cortisol with subjective responses to nicotine among female smokers during ad libitum smoking. We hypothesize higher cortisol levels would be associated with increased positive and decreased negative subjective responses to nicotine.

The complement system and adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Adverse pregnancy outcomes significantly contribute to morbidity and mortality for mother and child, with lifelong health consequences for both. The innate and adaptive immune system must be regulated to insure survival of the fetal allograft, and the complement system is no exception. An intact complement system optimizes placental development and function and is essential to maintain host defense and fetal survival.

The effect of combination oral contraceptives on smoking-related symptomatology during short-term smoking abstinence.

Although an estimated 25% of premenopausal smokers report using oral contraceptives (OC), little is known about how OC use may influence smoking cessation. The purpose of this study was to examine the difference in smoking-related symptomatology during acute smoking abstinence between women on a standardized combination OC (Tri-Sprintec(™)) compared to women not on OCs (no-OC). Participants were women aged 18-40 who smoked ≥5 cigarettes/day and reported regular menstrual cycles.

Severity of khat dependence among adult khat chewers: the moderating influence of gender and age.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: The escalating use of khat (Catha edulis) in East Africa and Arabia is a major concern for public health. Yet little is known about the impact of khat on behavior. There has been no study in the region to assess the extent to which dependence syndrome is associated with khat use in this population.

Changes in circulating leptin levels during acute stress and associations with craving in abstinent smokers: a preliminary investigation.

Recent research suggests a role for the appetite hormone leptin in cigarette smoking. This study examined patterns of change in leptin in response to stress and associations with craving during the initial phase of a quit attempt. Thirty-six smokers (average age±SEM, 33.

Introduction to ecological description of a community intervention: building prevention through collaborative field based research.

This special issue of the American Journal of Community Psychology is the result of a 18-year partnership with Alaska Native communities using collaborative field based research methods. Its goal is to provide a case study fulfilling the spirit of ecological inquiry, offering a detailed and nuanced description of a community intervention. The articles describe the nature of our work, including some of our successes, as well as challenges, dilemmas, and even disappointments we experienced along the way.

Smoking- and menstrual-related symptomatology during short-term smoking abstinence by menstrual phase and depressive symptoms.

Menstrual phase and depressive symptoms are known to minimize quit attempts in women. Therefore, the influence of these factors on smoking- and menstrual-related symptomatology during acute smoking cessation was investigated in a controlled cross-over lab-study. Participants (n=147) completed two six-day testing weeks during their menstrual cycle with testing order randomly assigned (follicular vs.

Shifting responses in quality of life: people living with dialysis.

Purpose: People assess their quality of life (QoL) using internal standards, values, and priorities. With health changes, QoL responses shift to reflect current realities. This qualitative study investigated the life experience and QoL assessments of people living with dialysis (PWDs).

Keap1 redox-dependent regulation of doxorubicin-induced oxidative stress response in cardiac myoblasts.

Doxorubicin (DOX) is a widely prescribed treatment for a broad scope of cancers, but clinical utility is limited by the cumulative, dose-dependent cardiomyopathy that occurs with repeated administration. DOX-induced cardiotoxicity is associated with the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidation of lipids, DNA and proteins. A major cellular defense mechanism against such oxidative stress is activation of the Keap1/Nrf2-antioxidant response element (ARE) signaling pathway, which transcriptionally regulates expression of antioxidant genes such as Nqo1 and Gstp1.

An examination of the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence among concurrent tobacco and khat users.

The current study examined the psychometric properties of the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND) among tobacco smokers who use khat (Catha edulis), a widely used substance in East Africa and Arabian Peninsula. We also explored gender differences in response to FTND items because little attention has been paid to women's smoking behavior in Middle Eastern societies. A total of 103 (38 women) concurrent users (mean age +/- SD: 24.

North American Indigenous adolescent substance use.

Objectives: To investigate growth in problem drinking and monthly marijuana use among North American Indigenous adolescents from the upper Midwest and Canada.

Methods: Panel data from a community-based participatory research project includes responses from 619 adolescents residing on or near 7 different reservations/reserves. All respondents were members of the same Indigenous cultural group.

Suppressed hepcidin expression correlates with hypotransferrinemia in copper-deficient rat pups but not dams.

Copper deficiency leads to anemia but the mechanism is unknown. Copper deficiency also leads to hypoferremia, which may limit erythropoiesis. The hypoferremia may be due to limited function of multicopper oxidases (MCO) hephaestin in enterocytes or GPI-ceruloplasmin in macrophages of liver and spleen whose function as a ferroxidase is thought essential for iron transfer out of cells.