ABSTRACT
Whereas mindfulness has been shown to enhance personal well-being, studies suggest it may also benefit intergroup dynamics. Using an integrative conceptual model, this meta-analysis examined associations between mindfulness and (a) different manifestations of bias (implicit/explicit attitudes, affect, behavior) directed toward (b) different bias targets (outgroup or ingroup, e.g., internalized bias), by (c) intergroup orientation (toward bias or anti-bias). Of 70 samples, 42 (N = 3,229) assessed mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) and 30 (N = 6,002) were correlational studies. Results showed a medium-sized negative effect of MBIs on bias outcomes, g = -0.56, 95% confidence interval [-0.72, -0.40]; I(2;3)2: 0.39; 0.48, and a small-to-medium negative effect between mindfulness and bias for correlational studies, r = -0.17 [-0.27, -0.03]; I(2;3)2: 0.11; 0.83. Effects were comparable for intergroup bias and internalized bias. We conclude by identifying gaps in the evidence base to guide future research.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Human and animal studies support the idea that there are sex differences in the development of diabetic renal disease. Our lab and others have determined that in addition to Ang II (through the AT1R), growth hormone (GH) contributes to renal damage in models of renal failure; however, the impact of sex and GH on the mechanisms initiating diabetic renal disease is not known. This study examined the effect of sex and GH on parameters of renal damage in early, uncontrolled streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes. METHODS: Adult male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with vehicle (control), STZ, or STZ + GH and euthanized after 8 weeks. RESULTS: Mild but significant glomerulosclerosis (GS) and tubulointerstitial fibrosis (TIF) was observed in both kidneys from male and female diabetic rats, with GH significantly increasing GS and TIF by 30% and 25% in male rats, but not in female rats. STZ increased TGF-ß expression in both kidneys from male and female rats; however, while GH had no further effect on TGF-ß protein in diabetic females, GH increased TGF-ß protein in the male rat's kidneys by an additional 30%. This sex-specific increase in renal injury following GH treatment was marked by increased MCP-1 and CD-68+ cell density. STZ also reduced renal MMP-2 and MMP-9 protein expression in both kidneys from male and female rats, but additional decreases were only observed in GH-treated diabetic male rats. The sex differences were independent of AT1R activity. CONCLUSIONS: These studies indicate that GH affects renal injury in diabetes in a sex-specific manner and is associated with an increase in pro-inflammatory mediators.
ABSTRACT
This study established the reliability of a novel upper-limb trajectory-tracking task for assessment of perceptual motor control in hemiparetic adults. Eleven persons with chronic poststroke hemiparesis (mean 58.6 months) and eleven nondisabled control subjects performed an elbow flexion-extension task against a low-resistance isotonic load at three speeds: 25 degrees/s, 45 degrees/s, and 65 degrees/s. Both arms (paretic and nonparetic or dominant and nondominant) were tested during two identical sessions separated by 1 week. Relative reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC]) ranged from 0.5 to 0.8 and absolute reliability (standard error of measurement [SEM%]) ranged between 19% to 36% across both subject groups. No systematic errors between test sessions were revealed. Smallest real differences (SRDs) were determined to be +/- 2 degrees to 3 degrees in nondisabled, +/- 2 degrees to 5 degrees in nonparetic and +/- 9 degrees in paretic arms. Responsiveness ratios derived with the use of the SRDs ranged between 1.91 to 2.45, indicating that this instrument is sensitive to clinically important change and suitable for demonstrating effects on upper-limb motor performance following clinical intervention.