Evaluating polymer degradation with complex mixtures using a simplified surface area method.

Chemical-resistant gloves, designed to protect workers from chemical hazards, are made from a variety of polymer materials such as plastic, rubber, and synthetic rubber. One material does not provide protection against all chemicals, thus proper polymer selection is critical. Standardized testing, such as chemical degradation tests, are used to aid in the selection process.

The Role of Alcohol Expectancies in the Associations Between Close Friend, Typical College Student, and Personal Alcohol Use.

Unlabelled: Background Perceptions of peer drinking and alcohol expectancies have been consistently associated with alcohol use among college students. There is evidence that perceived peer drinking also shapes alcohol expectancies. Research has yet to address the potential differential impact of perceived drinking by close friends versus by typical college students on alcohol use among first-semester college students.

Spatial distributions and enantiomeric signatures of DDT and its metabolites in tree bark from agricultural regions across China.

Tree bark is considered as an effective passive sampler for estimating the atmospheric status of pollutants. In this study, we conducted a national scale tree bark sampling campaign across China. Concentration profiles revealed that Eastern China, especially the Jing-Jin-Ji region (including Hebei Province, Beijing and Tianjin) was a hot spot of bark DDT pollution.

Conscientiousness Moderates the Relationship Between Perceived Stress and Depressive Symptoms Among U.S. Chinese Older Adults.

Background: The present study examined whether individuals' personality traits, Neuroticism and Conscientiousness, moderated the relationship between perceived stress and depressive symptoms among U.S. Chinese older adults.

Noncontingent reinforcement without extinction plus differential reinforcement of alternative behavior during treatment of problem behavior.

The effects of noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) without extinction during treatment of problem behavior maintained by social positive reinforcement were evaluated for five individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. A continuous NCR schedule was gradually thinned to a fixed-time 5-min schedule. If problem behavior increased during NCR schedule thinning, a continuous NCR schedule was reinstated and NCR schedule thinning was repeated with differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) included.

Ethnic Identity and Regional Differences in Mental Health in a National Sample of African American Young Adults.

Prior research has found that a strong positive ethnic identity is a protective factor against anxiety and depression in African Americans. In this study, ethnic identity is examined in a geographically representative sample of African American young adults (n = 242), using the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) (Phinney in J Adolescent Res 7:156-76, 15). The two-factor structure of the measure (Roberts et al.

Side Chains of Parabens Modulate Antiandrogenic Activity: In Vitro and Molecular Docking Studies.

Parabens have been widely used in packaged foods, pharmaceuticals, and personal-care products. Considering their potential hydrolysis, we herein investigated structural features leading to the disruption of human androgen receptor (AR) and whether hydrolysis could alleviate such effects using the recombinant yeast two-hybrid assay. Parabens with an aryloxy side chain such as benzyl paraben and phenyl paraben have the strongest antiandrogenic activity.

Significance of User Participation in a Hospital Information System Success: Insights From a Case Study.

User participation in the development of a system is universally prescribed as an effective strategy to ensure the success of the resultant system. However, the existing literature on the merits of user participation only provides equivocal evidence. Various analyses of this literature point out that this equivocal evidence may be due to inconsistent operational measures of the user participation and system success constructs.

Ecological regime shift drives declining growth rates of sea turtles throughout the West Atlantic.

Somatic growth is an integrated, individual-based response to environmental conditions, especially in ectotherms. Growth dynamics of large, mobile animals are particularly useful as bio-indicators of environmental change at regional scales. We assembled growth rate data from throughout the West Atlantic for green turtles, Chelonia mydas, which are long-lived, highly migratory, primarily herbivorous mega-consumers that may migrate over hundreds to thousands of kilometers.

Functionalized Lanthanide(III) Complexes Constructed from Azobenzene Derivative and β-Diketone Ligands: Luminescent, Magnetic, and Reversible Trans-to-Cis Photoisomerization Properties.

The coordination ability of ligands functionalized by azobenzene was manipulated, and two novel chelating ligands, (E)-4-(phenyldiazenyl)-N,N-bis(pyridin-2-ylmethyl) benzohydrazide (CHNO, PBPM) and (E)-4-((4-(dimethylamino)phenyl)diazenyl)-N,N-bis(pyridin-2-ylmethyl) benzohydrazide (CHNO, dmPBPM), were synthesized. The ligands can offer four coordinating atoms (one oxygen and three nitrogens) to act as tetradendate ligands, together with the two β-diketonates (4,4,4-trifluoro-1-phenylbutane-1,3-dionate, tfd), and the trifluoroacetate anion presented as a ligand and a counterion to form the quaternary units with lanthanide(III) ions (La, Eu, and Gd), [Ln(tfd)(PBPM)(CFCO)] (LnCHFNO) and [Ln(tfd)(dmPBPM)(CFCO)] (LnCHFNO), where the lanthanide(III) ions are nine coordinated with NO donor sets. All six complexes were structurally characterized, and four crystals were obtained and further analyzed by means of single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

Social challenges faced by queer Latino college men: Navigating negative responses to coming out in a double minority sample of emerging adults.

Objectives: In this paper, we qualitatively examine the social challenges experienced by queer, Latino college men in the coming out process. Using an intersectional perspective informed by the double jeopardy hypothesis, intersectional invisibility, and Latino/a cultural norms, we asked 22 queer Latino college men to describe the major challenges they experienced with their sexual identities.

Method: To examine the subjective experiences of participants' multiple minority identities, we conducted semistructured interviews.

Cellular responses and gene expression profile changes due to bleomycin-induced DNA damage in human fibroblasts in space.

Living organisms in space are constantly exposed to radiation, toxic chemicals or reactive oxygen species generated due to increased levels of environmental and psychological stresses. Understanding the impact of spaceflight factors, microgravity in particular, on cellular responses to DNA damage is essential for assessing the radiation risk for astronauts and the mutation rate in microorganisms. In a study conducted on the International Space Station, confluent human fibroblasts in culture were treated with bleomycin for three hours in the true microgravity environment.

Detection of DNA damage by space radiation in human fibroblasts flown on the International Space Station.

Although charged particles in space have been detected with radiation detectors on board spacecraft since the discovery of the Van Allen Belts, reports on the effects of direct exposure to space radiation in biological systems have been limited. Measurement of biological effects of space radiation is challenging due to the low dose and low dose rate nature of the radiation environment, and due to the difficulty in distinguishing the radiation effects from microgravity and other space environmental factors. In astronauts, only a few changes, such as increased chromosome aberrations in their lymphocytes and early onset of cataracts, are attributed primarily to their exposure to space radiation.

Height, BMI, and relative economic standing in children from developing countries.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to estimate a height-BMI association in child and female adolescent populations in developing countries, and to evaluate the potential role of relative economic status in this association.

Methods: Flexible structured additive regression models were used to estimate associations between height, BMI, and relative wealth. Linear regression models were used to evaluate height-wealth interactions on BMI outcomes.

The NOTCH Ligand JAG1 Regulates GDNF Expression in Sertoli Cells.

In the seminiferous epithelium of the testis, Sertoli cells are key niche cells directing proliferation and differentiation of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) into spermatozoa. Sertoli cells produce glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), which is essential for SSC self-renewal and progenitor expansion. While the role of GDNF in the testis stem cell niche is established, little is known about how this factor is regulated.

In vitro and in silico investigations of the binary-mixture toxicity of phthalate esters and cadmium (II) to Vibrio qinghaiensis sp.-Q67.

Phthalate esters (PAEs) are widely used as plasticizers and have become one of the emerging contaminants with an increasing public concern. The residues of PAEs frequently co-exist with heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd) in waters; however, their joint ecotoxicity remains largely unknown. We herein investigated the single and joint toxicity of commonly used PAEs and Cd using freshwater luminescent bacteria Vibrio qinghaiensis sp.

A Longitudinal Study of Income Differences in the Height-BMI Relation among U.S. Children Ages 6 to 14.

Previous work has shown a positive height-obesity association in U.S. children that is more pronounced in those from lower-income families than in those from higher-income families.

Antiepileptic Drugs Based on the α-Substituted Amide Group Pharmacophore: From Chemical Crystallography to Molecular Pharmaceutics.

The antiepileptic activity of α-substituted acetamides, lactams, and cyclic imides has been known for over six decades. We recently proposed an α-substituted amide group as the minimum pharmacophore responsible for inhibition of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors by these compounds, with the implication that inhibition of these receptors in the brain might be the unifying mechanism of action for these classes of antiepileptic drugs. In order to realize the pharmacological potential of these orally administered drugs, the relevant aspects of solid-state chemistry and pharmaceutics (including solubility and stability) need to be addressed.

Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study on the Use of Platelet-Rich Plasma in Women With Female Androgenetic Alopecia.

Background: Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has been suggested as a therapeutic intervention for female androgenetic alopecia.

Objective: To perform a pilot study on the effect of PRP scalp injections in women with female androgenetic alopecia.

Materials And Methods: This double-blind, multicenter, placebo-controlled study compared the effect of PRP with that of saline placebo as scalp injection.

Successful classification of cocaine dependence using brain imaging: a generalizable machine learning approach.

Background: Neuroimaging studies have yielded significant advances in the understanding of neural processes relevant to the development and persistence of addiction. However, these advances have not explored extensively for diagnostic accuracy in human subjects. The aim of this study was to develop a statistical approach, using a machine learning framework, to correctly classify brain images of cocaine-dependent participants and healthy controls.