In vitro and in vivo detection of microbial gene expression in bioactivated scaffolds seeded with cyanobacteria.

Dermal replacement materials bioactivated with cyanobacteria have shown promising potential for wound regeneration. To date, extraction of cyanobacteria RNA from seeded scaffolds has not been described. The aim of this study was to develop a method to isolate total RNA from bioactivated scaffolds and to propose a new approach in determining living bacteria based on real-time PCR. Transgenic Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 (tSyn7002) were seeded in liquid cultures or scaffolds for dermal regeneration in vitro and in vivo for 7 days. RNA was extracted with a 260/280 ratio of ≥2. The small subunit of the 30S ribosome in prokaryotes (16S) and RNAse P protein (rnpA) were validated as reference transcripts for PCR analysis. Gene expression patterns differed in vitro and in vivo. Expression of 16S was significantly upregulated in scaffolds in vitro, as compared to liquid cultures, whilst rnpA expression was comparable. In vivo, both 16S and rnpA showed reduced expression compared to in vitro (16S: in vivo Ct value 13.21 ± 0.32, in vitro 12.44 ± 0.42; rnpA in vivo Ct value 19.87 ± 0.41, in vitro 17.75 ± 1.41). Overall, the results demonstrate rnpA and 16S expression after 7 days of implantation in vitro and in vivo, proving the presence of living bacteria embedded in scaffolds using qPCR.

Registered Replication Report: Schooler and Engstler-Schooler (1990).

Trying to remember something now typically improves your ability to remember it later. However, after watching a video of a simulated bank robbery, participants who verbally described the robber were 25% worse at identifying the robber in a lineup than were participants who instead listed U.S. states and capitals-this has been termed the "verbal overshadowing" effect (Schooler & Engstler-Schooler, 1990). More recent studies suggested that this effect might be substantially smaller than first reported. Given uncertainty about the effect size, the influence of this finding in the memory literature, and its practical importance for police procedures, we conducted two collections of preregistered direct replications (RRR1 and RRR2) that differed only in the order of the description task and a filler task. In RRR1, when the description task immediately followed the robbery, participants who provided a description were 4% less likely to select the robber than were those in the control condition. In RRR2, when the description was delayed by 20 min, they were 16% less likely to select the robber. These findings reveal a robust verbal overshadowing effect that is strongly influenced by the relative timing of the tasks. The discussion considers further implications of these replications for our understanding of verbal overshadowing.

Beamline I11 at Diamond: a new instrument for high resolution powder diffraction.

The performance characteristics of a new synchrotron x-ray powder diffraction beamline (I11) at the Diamond Light Source are presented. Using an in-vacuum undulator for photon production and deploying simple x-ray optics centered around a double-crystal monochromator and a pair of harmonic rejection mirrors, a high brightness and low bandpass x-ray beam is delivered at the sample. To provide fast data collection, 45 Si(111) analyzing crystals and detectors are installed onto a large and high precision diffractometer. High resolution powder diffraction data from standard reference materials of Si, alpha-quartz, and LaB6 are used to characterize instrumental performance.

The role of large-scale spatially explicit and small-scale localized processes on the population dynamics of cereal aphids.

A field-scale study of the spatially explicit interaction between the carabid Poecilus cupreus Linnaeus, and two common aphid species (Sitobion avenae (Fabricius) and Metopolophium dirhodum (Walker)) in winter wheat was conducted. All three species showed considerable spatial pattern at the field scale. Activity-density of P. cupreus was an order of magnitude higher in the central part of the field compared to its periphery. Where P. cupreus activity-density was highest, S. avenae and M. dirhodum population peaks were delayed. Additionally, in the case of M. dirhodum, lower maximum counts were evident where P. cupreus activity-density was highest. An analysis of the movement of individual P. cupreus using release-recapture indicated that those beetles within the centre of the field exhibited reduced displacement, which may have caused the generation or maintenance of spatial pattern. Crop density was also measured throughout the field. Although crop density had no large-scale spatial pattern, its variability at the small-scale was consistent with an influence on aphid population dynamics. This study demonstrates empirically that both large-scale spatially explicit and small-scale localized processes influenced aphid population dynamics simultaneously.

Long-term follow-up confirms a survival advantage of the paclitaxel-cisplatin regimen over the cyclophosphamide-cisplatin combination in advanced ovarian cancer.

Two independent and consecutive randomized clinical trials, conducted by the American Gynecological Oncology Group and by an European-Canadian Intergroup, have shown superiority, in clinical response rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival, of a cisplatin-paclitaxel regimen over cisplatin-cyclophosphamide given as first-line chemotherapy for women with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer. The results of these studies, published with a median follow-up of about 3 years, have been updated with a 6.5-year follow-up: In each case, an 11% absolute gain in survival favoring the paclitaxel arm is shown; this advantage remains both statistically and clinically significant and supports a role for paclitaxel in frontline chemotherapy for advanced ovarian cancer.

Memory for murder. A psychological perspective on dissociative amnesia in legal contexts.

There is currently a complex and inconsistent state in the law relating to dissociation and dissociative amnesia (McSherry, 1998). Although dissociative amnesia in defendants is relevant to both competency to stand trial and criminal responsibility in principle, courts have typically assumed a skeptical stance toward such claims in practice. However, there is considerable evidence from both nonoffender and offender populations to support the validity of dissociative amnesia in defendants. Further, there is information available to aid in the evaluation of amnesia, such as the quality of the report itself and characteristics of the person reporting the amnesia (e.g., psychopathy). When consideration is given to the legal response to reports of dissociative amnesia by complainants, the situation becomes even more complex. While some courts have rejected recovered memory evidence, others have convicted defendants of historical offenses based on such evidence. In some cases, judges have argued that jurors should be left to decide on the validity of recovered memories based on their common sense and experience. The uncritical acceptance of the validity of repressed memories in complainants by many courts stands in stark contrast to the response to claims of amnesia from defendants. It seems apparent that the courts need better guidelines around the issue of dissociative amnesia in both populations. We think that the increasing scientific understanding of memory in the past decade (see Schacter, 1999) can meaningfully contribute to the development of such guidelines. Responsible, nonpartisan expert testimony from mental health professionals would be one step in the direction of rectifying the current state of law in regards to dissociation.

Investigation of the criminal and conditional release profiles of Canadian federal offenders as a function of psychopathy and age.

Using the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; R. D. Hare, 1991) diagnostic cut-off score of 30, the complete criminal career and community release profiles of 317 Canadian federal offenders (224 low scorers and 93 scoring within the psychopathic range) were investigated. Adult crimes were coded according to age at commission as well as either violent, nonviolent, or nonsexually violent. Changes in performance following release into the community also were examined. Results indicated that offenders scoring within the psychopathic range consistently committed more violent and nonviolent crimes than their counterparts for about three decades, spanning their late adolescence to their late 40s. Numbers of nonviolent criminal offenses committed by high PCL-R scorers declined considerably after age 30 relative to violent offenses, which declined and then rebounded in the late 30s before a major reduction was evidenced. Throughout adulthood, high PCL-R scorers failed during community release significantly faster than did low scorers. Importantly, from a risk management perspective, the release performance of low PCL-R scorers improved with age, whereas the opposite was seen for high scorers. Further, offenders scoring high on the PCL-R did not show a lower charge to conviction ratio with age, suggesting that they may not have been getting better at manipulating the legal system.

Truth, lies, and videotape: an investigation of the ability of federal parole officers to detect deception.

The ability of a group of Canadian federal parole officers to detect deception was investigated over the course of 2 days of lie detection training. On the first day of training, 32 officers judged the honesty of 12 (6 true, 6 fabricated) videotaped speakers describing personal experiences, half of which were judged before and half judged after training. On the second day, 5 weeks later, 20 of the original participants judged the honesty of another 12 videotapes (again, 6 pre- and 6 posttraining). To isolate factors relating to detection accuracy, three groups of undergraduate participants made judgments on the same 24 videotapes: (1) a feedback group, which received feedback on accuracy following each judgment, (2) a feedback + cue information group, which was given feedback and information on empirically based cues to deception, and (3) a control group, which did not receive feedback or cue information. Results indicated that at baseline all groups performed at or below chance levels. However, overall, all experimental groups (including the parole officers) became significantly better at detecting deception than the control group. By the final set of judgments, the parole officers were significantly more accurate (M = 76.7%) than their baseline performance (M = 40.4%) as well as significantly more accurate than the control group (M = 62.5%). The results indicate that detecting deceit is difficult, but training and feedback can enhance detection skills.

Randomized intergroup trial of cisplatin-paclitaxel versus cisplatin-cyclophosphamide in women with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer: three-year results.

BACKGROUND: A randomized trial conducted by the Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG, study #111) in the United States showed a better outcome for patients with advanced ovarian cancer on the paclitaxel-cisplatin regimen than for those on a standard cyclophosphamide-cisplatin regimen. Before considering the paclitaxel-cisplatin regimen as the new "standard," a group of European and Canadian investigators planned a confirmatory phase III trial. METHODS: This intergroup trial recruited 680 patients with broader selection criteria than the GOG #111 study and administered paclitaxel as a 3-hour instead of a 24-hour infusion; progression-free survival was the primary end point. Patient survival was analyzed by use of the Kaplan-Meier technique. Treatment effects on patient survival were estimated by Cox proportional hazards regression models. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS: The overall clinical response rate was 59% in the paclitaxel group and 45% in the cyclophosphamide group; the complete clinical remission rates were 41% and 27%, respectively; both differences were statistically significant (P =.01 for both). At a median follow-up of 38.5 months and despite a high rate of crossover (48%) from the cyclophosphamide arm to the paclitaxel arm at first detection of progression of disease, a longer progression-free survival (log-rank P =.0005; median of 15.5 months versus 11.5 months) and a longer overall survival (log-rank P =. 0016; median of 35.6 months versus 25.8 months) were seen in the paclitaxel regimen compared with the cyclophosphamide regimen. CONCLUSIONS: There is strong and confirmatory evidence from two large randomized phase III trials to support paclitaxel-cisplatin as the new standard regimen for treatment of patients with advanced ovarian cancer.

Negotiating false memories: interviewer and rememberer characteristics relate to memory distortion.

In a recent study, more than half of the participants were led to create a partial or complete false memory for an emotional childhood event (e.g., serious animal attack). Using a subsample from that study, we examined the hypothesis that memory distortion is related to characteristics of interviewers and rememberers. The relations between susceptibility to memory distortion and (a) dissociation (Dissociative Experiences Scale) and (b) personality traits (NEO-Five Factor Inventory) were investigated. Results indicated that participants who exhibited memory distortion scored significantly higher on the dissociative scale than their counterparts who did not exhibit memory distortion. Further, susceptibility to memory distortion was associated with higher extraversion scores in interviewers and lower extraversion scores in participants. This pattern of findings suggests that false memories may derive from a social negotiation between particular interviewers and rememberers.

Docetaxel and cisplatin in combination as first-line chemotherapy for advanced epithelial ovarian cancer. Scottish Gynaecological Cancer Trials Group.

PURPOSE: A prospective, nonrandomized, multicenter, open feasibility study of cisplatin and docetaxel as first-line chemotherapy in International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage IC-IV epithelial ovarian cancer was conducted. The primary end point was the incidence of severe fluid retention that necessitated treatment withdrawal. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Cisplatin and docetaxel were administered every 3 weeks for six planned cycles, with a 5-day prophylactic dexamethasone regimen (8 mg two times per day). One hundred patients (median age, 53 years; range, 24 to 71 years) received a total of 512 cycles of chemotherapy in two cohorts: cohort 1, 49 patients, 258 cycles (cisplatin 75 mg/m(2) and docetaxel 75 mg/m(2)); cohort 2, 51 patients, 254 cycles (cisplatin 75 mg/m(2) and docetaxel 85 mg/m(2)). RESULTS: No patients were taken off study because of fluid retention. Sixty-six patients completed six cycles of protocol therapy; 16 stopped early because of toxicity (neurotoxicity in six patients, nephrotoxicity in three, neutropenia in two, and hypersensitivity, diarrhea and vomiting, skin rash, clinical deterioration, and patient's wishes in one patient each). Grade 3/4 neutropenia was observed in more than 75% of patients and seemed to be cumulative. Patients in cohort 2 had significantly more severe neutropenia and lethargy than those in cohort 1. In addition, there were five treatment-related deaths in cohort 2 (three neutropenia and two upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage). Neurotoxicity (mainly sensory, > grade 1) was observed in 23 patients. The overall clinical response rate was 69% (complete response, 38%; partial response, 31%); CA-125 response rate was 73%. Median progression-free survival for the group was 12 months. CONCLUSION: Cisplatin and docetaxel can be administered at doses of 75 mg/m(2) and 75 mg/m(2), respectively, every 3 weeks, and the utility of this regimen is not limited by fluid retention. However, 33 of 100 patients were unable to complete the planned six cycles, which may explain, in part, the poor overall progression-free survival. Increasing the docetaxel dose to 85 mg/m(2) adds unacceptable hematologic toxicity and potential risks to the patient.

GABA agonist-induced changes in motor, oculomotor, and attention measures correlate in schizophrenics with tardive dyskinesia.

Saccadic distractibility, Stroop color-word scores, and serial dyskinesia assessments were obtained on 10 schizophrenic patients with tardive dyskinesia during a pharmacologic challenge with placebo or 7 mg muscimol, a potent, direct-acting GABA agonist. Although no significant difference in the measures was evident between conditions, a significant correlation was found between GABA agonist-induced changes in saccadic distractibility and dyskinesia scores where no correlation existed between these measures on placebo. Improvement in saccadic distractibility was also correlated with reduction in attention performance, as measured by Stroop. These effects are not due to sedation. The correlation between dyskinesia and saccadic distractibility is consistent with a model of parallel motor and oculomotor cortico-striatal-thalamic circuits in humans. This work supports the hypothesis that a dysfunction in GABA-mediated neurotransmission may be the basis for tardive dyskinesia.

Hereditary polymorphic light eruption in Canadian Inuit.

Twelve Canadian Inuit patients from the Keewatin District of the Northwest Territories were found to have hereditary polymorphic light eruption. The clinical manifestations were similar to those described in the North American Indian, with a photodermatitis occurring in the sunlight-exposed area. The onset occurred prior to the age of 15 years in 70% of subjects, and the condition was seasonally recurrent, starting in February and lasting until September. Patients demonstrated improvement on a combined regime of local therapy and oral trioxalen. Seventy-five percent of patients had a family history of photosensitivity, suggesting an autosomal dominant trait with incomplete penetrance. Indian ancestry was not demonstrated in these patients.

The actinic cheilitis of hereditary polymorphic light eruption.

Sixty-four North American Indians with hereditary polymorphic light eruption (HPLE), or a family history of HPLE, had chronic, recurrent, exudative, and exfoliative cheilitis. Fifty-two had the cheilitis by the age of 10 years. Microscopically, the epithelium was either thickened, or thinned and covered by a thick crust. The dermis had a dense infiltration of inflammatory cells, mostly lymphocytes and plasma cells. The condition was not premalignant. The HPLE has to be differentiated from the chronic actinic cheilitis caused by long exposure to sunlight with out any element of hypersensitivity. The latter is potentially premalignant. Chronic recurrent actinic cheilitis associated with hereditary polymorphic light eruption appears to be a specific characteristic of photosensitivity occurring in American Indians. Plasma cell infiltration is not specific for either type of cheilitis.

Hereditary multiple fibrofolliculomas with trichodiscomas and acrochordons.

In a sibship of nine, six members had hereditary medullary carcinoma of the thyroid. Two of those with thyroid neoplasms and two without had numerous small papular skin lesions. These proved to be a type of pilar tumor that we named fibrofolliculoma. Further investigation of the total kindred of 70 showed no other evidence of thyroid neoplasm. Skin tumors only appeared after the age of 25 years. Fifteen of 37 members older than the age of 25 years exhibited the typical skin lesions. Obviously, the original sibship was the repository of two dominantly inherited traits. The fibrofolliculoma is characterized by abnormal hair follicles with epithelial strands extending out from the infundibulum of the hair follicle into a hyperplastic mantle of specialized firbrous tissue. Associated skin lesions in this kindred were trichodiscomas and acrochordons.