A pilot evaluation of the SPARX-R gaming intervention for preventing depression and improving wellbeing among adolescents in alternative education.

AIM: The use of computerized mental health programs with vulnerable youth, such as early school leavers, remains relatively unstudied. This pilot study examined the feasibility of delivering a computerized cognitive behavioral therapy (cCBT) gaming intervention (SPARX-R) for young people (age 15-20 years) who have left school early and are attending Youthreach, an alternative education (AE) program in Ireland. METHOD: Students (n = 146) from twenty-one Youthreach Centers were randomized to SPARX-R and no-intervention control. All students within the group were included in the study whether or not they were exhibiting heightened levels of depression. Program impact was examined on both negative and positive indicators of mental health, including depression (primary outcome), generalized anxiety, general mental wellbeing, coping and emotion regulation. Assessments were conducted at baseline and post-intervention (7 weeks). Participants that provided data at post-assessment (n = 66) were included in the analysis. RESULTS: The participants completed on average 5.3 modules of SPARX-R with 30% (n = 9) completing the entire program. A significant improvement in emotion regulation strategies was detected, with expressive suppression decreasing significantly in the SPARX-R group in comparison to the control (- 2.97, 95% CI - 5.48 to - 0.46, p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that SPARX-R has a positive impact on emotion regulation. The lack of significant findings on other outcome measures may be attributed to inadequate sample size, and therefore, further research with larger samples are required to establish the effectiveness of the program in reducing depression and anxiety and improving psychological wellbeing among young people attending AE.

Identification of central nervous system sites involved in the water diuresis response elicited by central microinjection of nociceptin/ Orphanin FQ in conscious rats via c-Fos and inducible cAMP early repressor immunocytochemistry.

Intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) administration of the opioid-like peptide, nociceptin/Orphanin (nociceptin), in conscious rats produces diuretic and antinatriuretic effects. The present study utilised changes in Fos and inducible cAMP early repressor (ICER) immunocytochemistry expression to examine the central nervous (CNS) sites activated or inhibited, respectively, by central administration of nociceptin. Urine samples were collected during control (15 min) and after i.c.v. vehicle (5 microl, n = 12) or nociceptin (10 microg/5 microl; n = 12). Four additional urine samples (15-min) were collected after the i.c.v. injection. The brain was processed for Fos using a commercially available antibody (Oncogene AB-5) and for ICER using a polyclonal anti-ICER antibody raised in rabbits. In vehicle-injected conscious rats, renal excretion of water or sodium was not altered. However, nociceptin produced a rapid and marked increase in urine flow (V) and a decrease in urinary sodium excretion rate. In addition, i.c.v. nociceptin produced a significant increase in Fos staining in the dorsomedial nucleus of the hypothalamus, the perinuclear zone of the supraoptic nucleus, the organum vasculosum of the lamina terminalis (OVLT), the lateral preoptic area and the lateral hypothalamic area compared to control. By contrast, Fos expression decreased in the area postrema and locus coeruleus compared to controls. Furthermore, ICER staining was significantly increased in the perinuclear zone of the supraoptic nucleus, supraoptic nucleus, median preoptic nucleus, OVLT, medial preoptic area, central nucleus of the amygdala, and medial nucleus of the solitary tract. Together, central opioid receptor-like type 1 activation in these CNS regions may participate in the neural pathways involved in the diuretic and antinatriuretic effects of nociceptin.

Crystal structure of the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus.

The enzyme glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) from the archaea shows low sequence identity (16-20%) with its eubacterial and eukaryotic counterparts. The crystal structure of the apo GAPDH from Sulfolobus solfataricus has been determined by multiple isomorphous replacement at 2.05 A resolution. The enzyme has several differences in secondary structure when compared with eubacterial GAPDHs, with an overall increase in the number of alpha-helices. There is a relocation of the active-site residues within the catalytic domain of the enzyme. The thermostability of the S. solfataricus enzyme can be attributed to a combination of an ion pair cluster and an intrasubunit disulphide bond.

Characterization, crystallization and preliminary X-ray investigation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus.

Recombinant Sulfolobus solfataricus glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase has been purified and found to be a tetramer of 148 kDa. The enzyme shows dual cofactor specificity and uses NADP+ in preference to NAD+. The sequence has been compared with other GAPDH proteins including those from other archaeal sources. The purified protein has been crystallized from ammonium sulfate to produce crystals that diffract to 2.4 A with a space group of P43212 or P41212. A native data set has been collected to 2.4 A using synchrotron radiation and cryocooling.

Complementation of a pgk deletion mutation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae with expression of the phosphoglycerate-kinase gene from the hyperthermophilic Archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus.

The gene encoding phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) from the Archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus, an organism growing optimally at 87 degrees C, was inserted into a yeast expression vector under the control of the galactose-inducible GAL1 yeast promoter. This vector was then transformed into a pgk::TRP1 yeast mutant, a strain inhibited for growth on galactose or glucose due to its lack of PGK enzyme. Slow-growing transformants were obtained on galactose plates at 37 degrees C, but not 28 degrees C. These transformants contained low levels of transcripts of the heterologous gene and low amounts of thermostable PGK activity. Weak expression of the hyperthermophile gene in yeast, a mesophile, therefore enabled complementation of the yeast pgk defect at 37 degrees C but not at 28 degrees C.

The phosphoglycerate kinase and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase genes from the thermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus overlap by 8-bp. Isolation, sequencing of the genes and expression in Escherichia coli.

The overlapping genes encoding phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GraP-DH) from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus have been cloned and sequenced. PCR primers based on highly conserved regions of different PGK sequences were used to isolate an internal region of the pgk gene. This was then used to screen a genomic library to isolate the full length pgk gene. A 2.5-kb BglII fragment of S. solfataricus DNA contained both the pgk gene and the gap gene immediately downstream. Unexpectedly, the pgk and gap genes were found to overlap by 8 bp, with the initiation codon of the gap gene preceding the termination codon of the pgk gene. Evidence that the two genes are co-transcribed was obtained by Northern-blot analysis. The S. solfataricus PGK amino acid sequence shows 43% and 45% identity to the PGK sequences of the Archaea Methanobacterium bryantii and Methanothermus fervidus, respectively. High level expression of the S. solfataricus PGK and GraP-DH in Escherichia coli was achieved, with heat treatment at 80 degrees C proving an effective first step in the purification of these recombinant enzymes from extracts of the E. coli host. Purified recombinant S. solfataricus PGK and GraP-DH showed half lives of 39 min and 17 h, respectively, at 80 degrees C. Unlike bacterial GraP-DH enzymes, S. solfataricus GraP-DH was able to use both NAD+ and NADP+ as cofactors, but exhibited a marked preference for NADP+.

Selection of a hospital based director of pastoral care: process and stakeholders.

Details the steps which were taken in the process of hiring a Director of Pastoral Care for a 274-bed acute care regional referral center in southern Alberta, Canada. Stresses the importance of anchoring the hiring process steps within a relevant context. Offers recommendations for hospitals and clergy faced with a similar project.

Cloning and sequencing of a gene from the archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus with high homology to a gene encoding phosphoenolpyruvate synthetase from Escherichia coli.

A gene from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus, strain Vc1 (DSM 3638), contains an 817-amino-acid open reading frame which shows 42% identity to the phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) synthetase of Escherichia coli. This putative P. furiosus PEP synthetase is slightly larger than the E. coli enzyme, the region between residues 58 and 89 being absent from the latter.

Tonic immobility and high-intensity calls in a precocial chick as a function of age, diet, and time of day.

Tonic immobility (TI) and high-intensity vocalizations are two antipredator behaviors employed by domestic chicks (Gallus gallus) which vary in their function and the proximate mechanisms that govern them. In the present study, we sought to determine the influence of age (3 or 10 days old), diet (control or tryptophan-free), and time of testing (A.M. or P.M.) on the duration of TI and the number of calls produced in domestic chicks. Older chicks remained immobile significantly longer than younger chicks as did subjects on the control diet or those tested at night. However, 3-day-old chicks had significantly shorter TI durations only when tested in the A.M.: TI did not differ between age groups when subjects were tested in the P.M. Three-day-olds called significantly more than 10-day-olds when given the control diet and when tested in the P.M. but vocalization frequencies did not differ between age groups during the A.M. testing or when given the tryptophan-free diet (T-). Vocalization rate (calls/TI duration), however, was significantly greater during the A.M. testing. These results emphasize the importance of considering circadian rhythms and behavioral development. Furthermore, an integrative view of the proximate mechanisms and adaptive functions of TI and high-intensity vocalizations is presented.