Electronic structure modifications induced by increased molecular complexity: from triphenylamine to m-MTDATA.

The starburst π-conjugated molecule 4,4',4''-tris(N-3-methylphenyl-N-phenyl-amino)triphenylamine (C57H48N4, m-MTDATA), based on triphenylamine (TPA) building blocks, is widely used in optoelectronic devices due to its good electron-donor characteristics. The electronic structure of m-MTDATA was investigated for the first time in the gas phase by means of PhotoElectron Spectroscopy (PES) and Near Edge X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy. The combination of Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations with the experimental spectra provides a comprehensive description of the molecular electronic structure. Moreover, by comparing the results with previous TPA measurements, we could shed light on how the electronic structure evolves when the molecular size is increased. We found that the C 1s photoelectron spectra of m-MTDATA and TPA are similar, due to the balance of the counter-acting effects of the electronegativity of the N atoms and the delocalization of the amine lone-pair electrons. In contrast, the increased number of N atoms (i.e. N lone pairs) in m-MTDATA determines a three-peak feature in the outermost valence binding energy region with strong contributions by the N 2pz orbitals. We also obtained a decrease of the HOMO-LUMO gap for m-MTDATA, which points to improved electron donating properties of m-MTDATA with respect to TPA.

Disclosure of cardiac variants of uncertain significance results in an exome cohort.

This study examined the impact of disclosing subclassifications of genetic variants of uncertain significance (VUS) on behavioral intentions. We studied return of VUS results to 79 individuals with a cardiomyopathy-associated VUS, subclassified into VUS-high or VUS-low. Primary outcomes were perceived risk (absolute and comparative), perceived severity, perceived value of information, self-efficacy, decision regret, and behavioral intentions to share results and change behaviors. There was no significant difference between the 2 subclasses in overall behavioral intentions (t = 0.023, P = .982) and each of the individual items on the behavioral intentions scale; absolute (t = -1.138, P = .259) or comparative (t = -0.463, P = .645) risk perceptions; perceived value of information (t = 0.582, P = .563) and self-efficacy (t = -0.733, P = .466). Decision regret was significantly different (t = 2.148, P = .035), with VUS-low (mean = 17.24, SD = 16.08) reporting greater regret. Combining the subclasses, perceived value of information was the strongest predictor of behavioral intentions (ß = 0.524, P < .001). Participants generally understood the meaning of a genetic VUS result classification and reported satisfaction with result disclosure. No differences in behavioral intentions were found, but differences in decision regret suggest participants distinguish subclasses of VUS results. The perceived value of VUS may motivate recipients to pursue health-related behaviors.

Electronic Structure Characterization of a Thiophene Benzo-Annulated Series of Common Building Blocks for Donor and Acceptor Compounds Studied by Gas Phase Photoelectron and Photoabsorption Synchrotron Spectroscopies.

The near-edge x-ray-absorption fine-structure (NEXAFS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra of benzo[ b]thiophene (BBT) and dibenzothiophene (DBT) in the gas phase have been measured at the carbon K-edge and sulfur LII,III-edge regions. The assignment of the spectral features has been provided by theoretical calculations based on density functional theory (DFT) and its time-dependent generalization (TDDFT) in the linear response regime. Observed trends in computed C 1s and S 2p ionization potentials (IPs) have been rationalized in terms of both the inductive effects due to the presence of S and the increased π-electrons delocalization arising from the benzo-annulation process. The analysis of the NEXAFS carbon K-edge and sulfur LII,III-edge regions provided information on both low-lying delocalized virtual π orbitals, and higher-lying localized σ*(C-S) states. The evolution of the NEXAFS carbon K-edge spectral features along the series thiophene (T) and derivatives, BBT and DBT, is informative of a stabilizing effect due to increased aromaticity. This effect is however more pronounced in going from T to BBT compared to the introduction of a second annulated phenyl ring in DBT. The nature of the most intense sulfur LII,III-edge NEXAFS spectral features is instead conserved along the series reflecting thus the localized nature of the virtual states involved in the S 2p core-excitation process.

Pituitary function within the first year after traumatic brain injury or subarachnoid haemorrhage.

PURPOSE: Reports on long-term variations in pituitary function after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) diverge. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the prevalence and changes in pituitary function during the first year after moderate and severe TBI and SAH and to explore the relation between pituitary function and injury variables. METHODS: Adults with moderate and severe TBI or SAH were evaluated at 10 days, 3, 6 and 12 months post-injury/illness. Demographic, clinical, radiological, laboratory, including hormonal data were collected. RESULTS: A total of 91 adults, 56 (15 women/41 men) with TBI and 35 (27 women/8 men) with SAH were included. Perturbations in pituitary function were frequent early after the event but declined during the first year of follow-up. The most frequent deficiency was hypogonadotrope hypogonadism which was seen in approximately 25 % of the patients. Most of the variations were transient and without clinical significance. At 12 months, two patients were on replacement with hydrocortisone, four men on testosterone and one man on replacement with growth hormone. No relations were seen between hormonal levels and injury variables. CONCLUSIONS: Perturbations in pituitary function continue to occur during the first year after TBI and SAH, but only a few patients need replacement therapy. Our study could not identify a marker of increased risk of pituitary dysfunction that could guide routine screening. However, data demonstrate the need for systematic follow-up of pituitary function after moderate or severe TBI or SAH.

Changing the habitat: the evolution of intercorrelated traits to escape from predators.

Burst escape speed is an effective and widely used behaviour for evading predators, with burst escape speed relying on several different morphological features. However, we know little about how behavioural and underlying morphological attributes change in concert as a response to changes in selective predation regime. We studied intercorrelated trait differentiation of body shape and burst-swim-mediating morphology in response to a habitat shift-related reduction in burst escape speed using larvae of the dragonfly genus Leucorrhinia. Species in this genus underwent a well-known habitat shift from predatory fish lakes (fish lakes) to predatory fish-free lakes dominated by large predatory dragonflies (dragonfly lakes) accompanied by relaxed selection on escape burst speed. Results revealed that species from fish lakes that possess faster burst speed have evolved a suite of functionally intercorrelated traits, expressing a wider abdomen, a higher abdominal muscles mass and a larger branchial chamber compared with species from dragonfly lakes. In contrast, populations within species did not show significant differences in muscle mass and branchial chamber size between lake types in three of the species. High multicollinearity among variables suggests that traits have evolved in concert rather than independently when Leucorrhinia shifted from fish lakes to dragonfly lakes. Thus, relaxed selection on burst escape speed in dragonfly-lake species resulted in a correlated reduction of abdominal muscles and a smaller branchial chamber, likely to save production and/or maintenance costs. Our results highlight the importance of studying integrated behavioural and morphological traits to fully understand the evolution of complex phenotypes.

Patient-reported stressful events and coping strategies in post-menopausal women with breast cancer.

The objective of this paper was to explore what stressful events post-menopausal women with primary or recurrent breast cancer experience, how bothersome these events were and which coping strategies these women used. Data were collected from 131 patients diagnosed with primary or recurrent breast cancer. The Daily Coping Assessment was used. Thematic analysis was applied to form themes of stressful events. Six types of stressful events were extracted. The most frequently experienced events for women with primary cancer and those with recurrent cancer were 'distressing bodily symptoms'. The most bothersome event among primary cancer was 'everyday concerns' and in the recurrent group, 'distressing psychological reactions'. The most commonly used strategies were 'acceptance', 'distraction' and 'relaxation'. This study shows that women in different parts of the cancer trajectory differ in what they perceive to be stressful events when reporting them in their own words in a diary. The differences have an impact on the subsequent coping strategies they used.

Bird predation selects for wing shape and coloration in a damselfly.

Wing shape is related to flight performance, which is expected to be under selection for improving flight behaviours such as predator avoidance. Moreover, wing conspicuousness, usually involved in sexual selection processes, is also relevant in terms of predation risk. In this study, we examined how predation by a passerine bird, the white wagtail Motacilla alba, selects wing shape and wing colour patch size in males of the banded demoiselle Calopteryx splendens. The wing colour patch is intra- and intersexually selected in the study species. In a field study, we compared wings of live damselflies to wings of predated damselflies which are always discarded after predation. Based on aerodynamic theory and a previous study on wing shape of territorial tactics in damselflies, we predicted an overall short and broad wing, with a concave front margin shape to be selected by predation. This shape would be expected to improve escaping ability. Moreover, we predicted that wing patch size should be negatively selected by predation. We found that selection operated differently on fore- and hindwings. In contrast to our predictions, predation favoured a slender general forewing shape. However, the predicted wing shape was favoured in hindwings. We also found selection favouring a narrower wing colour patch. Our results suggest different roles of fore- and hindwings in flight, as previously suggested for Calopteryx damselflies and shown for butterflies and moths. Forewings would be more involved in sustained flight and hindwings in flight manoeuvrability. Our results differ somehow from a recently published work in the same study system, but using another population, suggesting that selection can fluctuate across space, despite the simplicity of this predator-prey system.

Relaxed predation results in reduced phenotypic integration in a suite of dragonflies.

Although changes in magnitude of single traits responding to selective agents have been studied intensively, little is known about selection shaping networks of traits and their patterns of covariation. However, this is central for our understanding of phenotypic evolution as traits are embedded in a multivariate environment with selection affecting a multitude of traits simultaneously rather than individually. Here, we investigate inter- and intraspecific patterns of trait integration (trait correlations) in the larval abdomen of dragonflies as a response to a change in predator selection. Species of the dragonfly genus Leucorrhinia underwent a larval habitat shift from predatory fish to predatory dragonfly-dominated lakes with an associated relaxation in selection pressure from fish predation. Our results indicate that the habitat-shift-induced relaxed selection pressure caused phenotypic integration of abdominal traits to be reduced. Intraspecific findings matched patterns comparing species from both habitats with higher abdominal integration in response to predatory fish. This higher integration is probably a result of faster burst swimming speed. The abdomen holds the necessary morphological machinery to successfully evade predatory fish via burst swimming. Hence, abdominal traits have to function in a tight coordinated manner, as maladaptive variation and consequently nonoptimal burst swimming would cause increased mortality. In predatory dragonfly-dominated lakes, no such strong link between burst swimming and mortality is present. Our findings highlight the importance of studying multivariate trait relationships as a response to selection for understanding patterns of phenotypic diversification.

Ontogenetic changes in genetic variances of age-dependent plasticity along a latitudinal gradient.

The expression of phenotypic plasticity may differ among life stages of the same organism. Age-dependent plasticity can be important for adaptation to heterogeneous environments, but this has only recently been recognized. Whether age-dependent plasticity is a common outcome of local adaptation and whether populations harbor genetic variation in this respect remains largely unknown. To answer these questions, we estimated levels of additive genetic variation in age-dependent plasticity in six species of damselflies sampled from 18 populations along a latitudinal gradient spanning 3600 km. We reared full sib larvae at three temperatures and estimated genetic variances in the height and slope of thermal reaction norms of body size at three points in time during ontogeny using random regression. Our data show that most populations harbor genetic variation in growth rate (reaction norm height) in all ontogenetic stages, but only some populations and ontogenetic stages were found to harbor genetic variation in thermal plasticity (reaction norm slope). Genetic variances in reaction norm height differed among species, while genetic variances in reaction norm slope differed among populations. The slope of the ontogenetic trend in genetic variances of both reaction norm height and slope increased with latitude. We propose that differences in genetic variances reflect temporal and spatial variation in the strength and direction of natural selection on growth trajectories and age-dependent plasticity. Selection on age-dependent plasticity may depend on the interaction between temperature seasonality and time constraints associated with variation in life history traits such as generation length.

Golgi cell activity during eyeblink conditioning in decerebrate ferrets.

Golgi cells have a central position in the cerebellar cortical network and are indirectly connected to Purkinje cells, which are important for the acquisition of learned responses in classical conditioning. In order to clarify the role of Golgi cells in classical conditioning, we made extracellular Golgi cell recordings during different stages of conditioning, using four different conditional stimuli. Our results show that forelimb and superior colliculus stimulation, but not mossy fiber stimulation, evokes a short latency increase in Golgi cell firing. These results suggest that Golgi cells are involved in modulating input to the cerebellar cortex. There were however no differences in Golgi cell activity between naïve and trained animals, which suggests that Golgi cells are not intimately involved in the plastic changes that occur during classical conditioning. The absence of long latency effects of the conditional stimulus also questions whether Golgi cells contribute to the generation of a temporal code in the granule cells.

Phylogeography and phenotypic wing shape variation in a damselfly across populations in Europe.

BACKGROUND: Describing geographical variation in morphology of organisms in combination with data on genetic differentiation and biogeography can provide important information on how natural selection shapes such variation. Here we study genetic structure using ddRAD seq and wing shape variation using geometric morphometrics in 14 populations of the damselfly Lestes sponsa along its latitudinal range in Europe. RESULTS: The genetic analysis showed a significant, yet relatively weak population structure with high genetic heterozygosity and low inbreeding coefficients, indicating that neutral processes contributed very little to the observed wing shape differences. The genetic analysis also showed that some regions of the genome (about 10%) are putatively shaped by selection. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the Spanish and French populations were the ancestral ones with northern Swedish and Finnish populations being the most derived ones. We found that wing shape differed significantly among populations and showed a significant quadratic (but weak) relationship with latitude. This latitudinal relationship was largely attributed to allometric effects of wing size, but non-allometric variation also explained a portion of this relationship. However, wing shape showed no phylogenetic signal suggesting that lineage-specific variation did not contribute to the variation along the latitudinal gradient. In contrast, wing size, which is correlated with body size in L. sponsa, had a strong negative correlation with latitude. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest a relatively weak population structure among the sampled populations across Europe, but a clear differentiation between south and north populations. The observed geographic phenotypic variation in wing shape may have been affected by different local selection pressures or environmental effects.

Habitat variation and wing coloration affect wing shape evolution in dragonflies.

Habitats are spatially and temporally variable, and organisms must be able to track these changes. One potential mechanism for this is dispersal by flight. Therefore, we would expect flying animals to show adaptations in wing shape related to habitat variation. In this work, we explored variation in wing shape in relation to preferred water body (flowing water or standing water with tolerance for temporary conditions) and landscape (forested to open) using 32 species of dragonflies of the genus Trithemis (80% of the known species). We included a potential source of variation linked to sexual selection: the extent of wing coloration on hindwings. We used geometric morphometric methods for studying wing shape. We also explored the phenotypic correlation of wing shape between the sexes. We found that wing shape showed a phylogenetic structure and therefore also ran phylogenetic independent contrasts. After correcting for the phylogenetic effects, we found (i) no significant effect of water body on wing shape; (ii) male forewings and female hindwings differed with regard to landscape, being progressively broader from forested to open habitats; (iii) hindwings showed a wider base in wings with more coloration, especially in males; and (iv) evidence for phenotypic correlation of wing shape between the sexes across species. Hence, our results suggest that natural and sexual selection are acting partially independently on fore- and hindwings and with differences between the sexes, despite evidence for phenotypic correlation of wing shape between males and females.

Testing the role of phenotypic plasticity for local adaptation: growth and development in time-constrained Rana temporaria populations.

Phenotypic plasticity can be important for local adaptation, because it enables individuals to survive in a novel environment until genetic changes have been accumulated by genetic accommodation. By analysing the relationship between development rate and growth rate, it can be determined whether plasticity in life-history traits is caused by changed physiology or behaviour. We extended this to examine whether plasticity had been aiding local adaptation, by investigating whether the plastic response had been fixed in locally adapted populations. Tadpoles from island populations of Rana temporaria, locally adapted to different pool-drying regimes, were monitored in a common garden. Individual differences in development rate were caused by different foraging efficiency. However, developmental plasticity was physiologically mediated by trading off growth against development rate. Surprisingly, plasticity has not aided local adaptation to time-stressed environments, because local adaptation was not caused by genetic assimilation but on selection on the standing genetic variation in development time.

Significant improvement in quality of life of patients with incurable cancer after designation to a palliative homecare team.

The aims of this study were to describe and compare quality of life before and after designation to a palliative homecare team in patients with different cancer diagnoses and to identify pre-designation predictors of post-designation global quality of life. We measured patients' quality of life 1 week before designation and 11 days (median time) after with the Assessment of Quality of life at the End of Life (Axelsson & Sjödén 1999). Of 163 eligible patients 63 participated without attrition. Patients' quality of life improved in the physical, psychological, medical and global areas. Six items significantly improved: hours recumbent during the day (P = 0.009), nausea (P = 0.008), anxiety (P = 0.007), getting hold of staff (P = 0.000), received care (P = 0.003) and global quality of life (P = 0.023). Depression/low in mood (r = 0.55) and meaningfulness (r = 0.70) associated to global quality of life. Furthermore, pain (P = 0.028) and meaningfulness (P = 0.028) predicted global quality of life. In the existential area, it is important to further explore how meaningfulness is associated to and predicts global quality of life.

Psychosocial profile in men and women with unexplained chest pain.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare men and women with unexplained chest pain (UCP) to a randomly selected population sample free of clinical heart disease with regard to sleep problems, mental strain at work, stress at home, negative life events and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). DESIGN AND SUBJECTS: The study was conducted at a university hospital in Sweden including 231 patients aged 25-69 without any organic cause for chest pain. As a reference group, 1069 participants, were recruited from the INTERGENE population-based study. RESULTS: Patients with UCP had more sleep problems (OR = 1.8, P < 0.0001), were almost three times more worried about stress at work (OR = 2.9, P < 0.0001), or had more stress at home (OR = 2.8, P < 0.0001), and were twice as likely to have negative life events (OR = 2.1, P < 0.0001). Women, but not men, with UCP, had a higher prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors (obesity, smoking, diabetes and hypertension) compared with references. With regard to HRQOL, UCP patients scored significantly lower than references in all dimensions of the SF-36. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with a healthy reference group, patients with UCP reported more sleep problems, mental strain at work, stress at home and negative life events and had lower health-related quality of life. Aside from immigration the strongest independent psychosocial factors were mental strain at work and negative life events last year in men and stress at home in women.

Multicentre European study of thalamic stimulation for parkinsonian tremor: a 6 year follow-up.

AIM: To evaluate the results of ventral intermediate (Vim) thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) in patients with tremor predominant Parkinson's disease (PD) at 6 years post surgery. METHODS: This was a prolonged follow-up study of 38 patients from eight centres who participated in a multicentre study, the 1 year results of which have been published previously. Total scores as well as scores for individual items of the motor part and the disability part of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale were used for evaluation. RESULTS: Tremor was still effectively controlled by DBS and appendicular rigidity and akinesia remained stable compared with baseline. Axial scores (speech, gait and postural instability), however, worsened, and in parallel the initial improvement in activities of daily living scores at the 1 year follow-up had disappeared at 6 years, despite sustained improvement of tremor. Remarkably, neither daily doses of dopaminergic medication nor fluctuations and dyskinesias had changed at 6 years compared with baseline in this particular patient group. CONCLUSION: This study confirms that patients with tremor dominant PD who do not present with fluctuations and dyskinesias may have a relatively benign progression of the disease. Vim DBS, although having no effect on akinesia and rigidity, is a relatively lenient surgical procedure and may still have a place for long term symptomatic control of PD tremor in selected patients.

Fusicoccin Activates the Plasma Membrane H+-ATPase by a Mechanism Involving the C-Terminal Inhibitory Domain.

Plasma membrane vesicles isolated from spinach leaves incubated with the fungal toxin fusicoccin showed a twofold increase in ATP hydrolytic activity and a threefold increase in H+ pumping compared to controls. This increase in H+-ATPase activity was largely completed within 4 min of incubation and was not due to de novo synthesis of H+-ATPase as demonstrated by immunoblotting. Incubation with fusicoccin also resulted in a decrease in the apparent Km for ATP of the H+-ATPase from 0.22 to 0.10 mM. The fusicoccin-mediated activation of H+-ATPase activity and the accompanying decrease in the Km for ATP are changes very similar to those observed upon trypsin activation of the H+-ATPase, where an autoinhibitory domain in the C-terminal region of the H+-ATPase is removed. Thus, trypsin treatment of plasma membrane vesicles from control leaves gave a twofold increase in ATP hydrolytic activity and a threefold increase in H+ pumping, as well as a decrease in the apparent Km for ATP of the H+-ATPase from 0.22 to 0.10 mM. Trypsin treatment of plasma membranes from fusicoccin-incubated leaves did not further enhance the H+-ATPase activity, however, and neither was the Km for ATP further decreased. That trypsin really removed a small segment from the fusicoccin-activated H+-ATPase was confirmed by immunoblotting, which showed the appearance of a 90-kD band in addition to the native 100-kD H+-ATPase band upon trypsin treatment. Taken together, our data suggest that in vivo activation of the H+-ATPase by fusicoccin proceeds by a mechanism involving a displacement of the C-terminal inhibitory domain.

Dose regimen of deprenyl (selegiline) and platelet MAO activities.

The effect of various doses of deprenyl on thrombocyte MAO activity in parkinsonian patients has been studied. It is suggested that individual differences in the degree of inhibition are due to differences in the metabolic rate of deprenyl. The recovery of thrombocyte MAO activity was linear at a rate of approximately 10% per day. The linearity of the recovery suggests that the disappearance of the population of thrombocytes is selected with respect to age.

Predictors for the outcome of treatment with high frequency transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation in patients with chronic pain.

Seventy-two patients suffering from chronic pain were treated with high frequency transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (hi-TNS). Significant predictors for a positive result were pains of neurogenic origin and pains located mainly in the extremities. CSF endorphin levels were determined for 22 patients with organic pain and the group with positive results from the treatment had somewhat (but not significantly) lower levels of fraction I endorphins. Age, sex or reported severity of pain had no predictive value.

Substance P in CSF of patients with chronic pain syndromes.

Immunoreactive substance P was determined in lumbar CSF of 35 healthy volunteers and 60 patients with chronic pain syndromes of at least 6 months duration. No significant relationships were found between substance P levels and age, sex or body height. Substance P levels were lower in chronic pain patients, with either neurogenic (n = 23) or idiopathic pain (n = 37) syndromes, than in the healthy volunteers. Substance P levels were especially low in patients with neurogenic pain with lesions involving the extremities and in those with polyneuropathy, while patients with central pain or pain of the head or face had higher values. Substance P levels were related to depressive symptomatology as determined by means of visual analogue scales and to stable personality traits as determined by means of the Karolinska Scales of Personality (KSP). The most consistent (and inverse) relationship was found between substance P levels and the symptom 'inner tension' and between substance P levels and the personality trait 'psychic anxiety.'