Physical activity counseling for older women.

Physical inactivity is a major factor in increasing women's risk for chronic disease, disability, and premature mortality. This study compared the effectiveness of five behavioral counseling (BC) sessions with a comparison group receiving one BC session based on the five A's (ask, advise, assist, arrange, and agree) to increase moderate-intensity physical activity, muscle strengthening, and stretching activity. The health promotion model provided the framework for the intervention. A pretest/posttest comparison group design was used, with random assignment of 46 women recruited from an urban midwestern community. A significant group interaction was found only for cardiorespiratory fitness (p < .001). Significant time effects were found (p < .001) for both groups in increasing handgrip, leg strength, and flexibility. BC is a promising intervention to achieve physical activity behavior change with older women.

Practice of health-promoting behaviors by nursing home residents.

The decade of the '90s witnessed the emergence of health promotion as a national priority for all age groups. Despite the fact that Healthy People 2010 identified objectives for the nursing home population, little is known about factors that promote the practice of health-promoting behaviors by nursing home residents. This study examined the separate and combined contributions of personal and contextual influences on the practice of health-promoting behaviors by nursing home residents. One hundred eighty-four residents and 90 staff members from six nursing homes participated in this study. Using a modified version of contextual regression analysis, 57.8% of the variance in health-promoting lifestyle (HPL) behaviors was explained when all variables were entered into the equation. Personal influences explained a significant amount of variation (53.5%) in current HPL behaviors. These findings underscore the importance of looking at ways to support the efforts of nursing home residents to engage in the practice of health-promoting behaviors.

The bacteriophage 434 repressor dimer preferentially undergoes autoproteolysis by an intramolecular mechanism.

Inactivation of the lambdoid phage repressor protein is necessary to induce lytic growth of a lambdoid prophage. Activated RecA, the mediator of the host SOS response to DNA damage, causes inactivation of the repressor by stimulating the repressor's nascent autocleavage activity. The repressor of bacteriophage lambda and its homolog, LexA, preferentially undergo RecA-stimulated autocleavage as free monomers, which requires that each monomer mediates its own (intramolecular) cleavage. The cI repressor of bacteriophage 434 preferentially undergoes autocleavage as a dimer specifically bound to DNA, opening the possibility that one 434 repressor subunit may catalyze proteolysis of its partner subunit (intermolecular cleavage) in the DNA-bound dimer. Here, we first identified and mutagenized the residues at the cleavage and active sites of 434 repressor. We utilized the mutant repressors to show that the DNA-bound 434 repressor dimer overwhelmingly prefers to use an intramolecular mechanism of autocleavage. Our data suggest that the 434 repressor cannot be forced to use an intermolecular cleavage mechanism. Based on these data, we propose a model in which the cleavage-competent conformation of the repressor is stabilized by operator binding.

Victim of a dictatorial regime: identification of Mr. Roberto Gomensoro Josman.

Forensic cases are ideal to test osteological techniques developed by physical anthropologists. Forensic anthropology is a scientific discipline that applies population-based standards to individual skeletal remains. Many complex techniques are used in an attempt to make a positive identification. Several of these techniques, specifically digital video superimposition and DNA, were used to identify the victim in this case. The purpose of this paper is to describe anthropological techniques used to identify the remains of an unknown person who was later identified as Mr. Roberto Gomensoro Josman, the victim of a Uruguayan dictatorial regime. Mr. Gomensoro Josman disappeared after authorities of the Uruguayan dictatorial government (1973-1984) arrested him. Six days later an unknown body was found floating in Lake Rincon del Bonete. The corpse was found tied with wire and weighted with three large stones used to keep the body submerged. An autopsy was performed and the body was buried as an unknown person in the grave identified as number 10936 of Tacuarembo Cemetery. On December 2002 the Peace and Justice Service asked the local judge to authorize the exhumation of the remains. The exhumed body was headless. An investigation revealed that the local medical examiner who had autopsied the remains on March 1973 had retained the victim's skull in his office. Osteological analysis indicated the victim was a white male in his 20s. Four good quality photographs of Mr. Gomensoro who was known to be missing were compared with the skull. To confirm the identification from the video a DNA analysis was carried out comparing the victim with relatives. DNA typing confirmed the results of the earlier identification.

Cellular levels of trp RNA-binding attenuation protein in Bacillus subtilis.

Expression of the Bacillus subtilis trp genes is negatively regulated by an 11-subunit trp RNA-binding attenuation protein (TRAP), which is activated to bind RNA by binding l-tryptophan. We used Western blotting to estimate that there are 200 to 400 TRAP 11-mer molecules per cell in cells grown in either minimal or rich medium.

How elderly nursing home residents transcend losses of later life.

Losses of later life can prove overwhelming to older adults. Some elderly persons seem to cope with these losses with a spirit of acceptance and serenity. The purpose of this study was to identify qualities in selected nursing home residents that allow them to transcend difficulties and continue living with some degree of contentment and satisfaction. Qualitative data were obtained in taped interviews from 95 functionally impaired residents (mean age 82.16 years). Content analysis resulted in several themes supporting the spiritual perspective of Reed's theory of self-transcendence: generativity, introjectivity, temporal integration, body-transcendence, and relationship with self, others, and a higher being.

Resident dog in the Alzheimer's special care unit.

Behavioral disturbances are a commonfeature of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Prior studies have demonstrated a significant reduction in agitation behaviors during short-term exposure to a dog on an Alzheimer's special care unit (SCU)for persons with AD. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect over time of a resident dog on problem behaviors of persons with AD in an SCU. A within-participants repeated-measures design was used for this study. The Nursing Home Behavior Problem Scale was used to document behaviors (on days and evenings) I week before and 4 weeks after placement of the dog. Participants on the day shift exhibited significantly fewer problem behaviors across the 4 weeks of the study (F[1, 80] = 7.69, p < .05). No significant change in behaviors occurred on the evening shift. Thefindings support the long-term therapeutic effects of dogs for persons residing in Alheimer's SCUs.