Behavioral genetics and taste

This review focuses on behavioral genetic studies of sweet, umami, bitter and salt taste responses in mammals. Studies involving mouse inbred strain comparisons and genetic analyses, and their impact on elucidation of taste receptors and transduction mechanisms are discussed. Finally, the effect of genetic variation in taste responsiveness on complex traits such as drug intake is considered. Recent advances in development of genomic resources make behavioral genetics a powerful approach for understanding mechanisms of taste

Is cognitive lifestyle associated with depressive thoughts and self-reported depressive symptoms in later life?

© 2015, The Author(s). Key components of cognitive lifestyle are educational attainment, occupational complexity and engagement in cognitively stimulating leisure activities. Each of these factors is associated with experiencing fewer depressive symptoms in later life, but no study to date has examined the relationship between overall cognitive lifestyle and depressive symptoms. This task is made more complex because relatively few older participants in cross-sectional studies will be currently experiencing depression. However, many more will show evidence of a depressive thinking style that predisposes them towards depression. This study aimed to investigate the extent to which cognitive lifestyle and its individual components are associated with depressive thoughts and symptoms. Two hundred and six community-dwelling participants aged 65+ completed the depressive cognitions scale, the geriatric depression scale and the lifetime of experiences questionnaire, which assesses cognitive lifestyle. Correlational analysis indicated that each of the individual lifestyle factors—education, occupational complexity and activities in young adulthood, mid-life and later life—and the combined cognitive lifestyle score was positively associated with each other and negatively with depressive symptoms, while all except education were negatively associated with depressive thoughts. Depressive thoughts and symptoms were strongly correlated. Cognitive lifestyle score explained 4.6 % of the variance in depressive thoughts and 10.2 % of the variance in depressive symptoms. The association of greater participation in cognitive activities, especially in later life, with fewer depressive symptoms and thoughts suggests that preventive interventions aimed at increasing participation in cognitively stimulating leisure activity could be beneficial in decreasing the risk of experiencing depressive thoughts and symptoms in later life

Peptide bonds affect the formation of haloacetamides, an emerging class of N-DBPs in drinking water: free amino acids versus oligopeptides

Haloacetamides (HAcAms), an emerging class of nitrogenous disinfection by-products (N-DBPs) of health concern, have been frequently identified in drinking waters. It has long been appreciated that free amino acids (AAs), accounting for a small fraction of the dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) pool, can form dichloroacetamide (DCAcAm) during chlorination. However, the information regarding the impacts of combined AAs, which contribute to the greatest identifiable DON portion in natural waters, is limited. In this study, we compared the formation of HAcAms from free AAs (tyrosine [Tyr] and alanine [Ala]) and combined AAs (Tyr-Ala, Ala-Tyr, Tyr-Tyr-Tyr, Ala-Ala-Ala), and found that HAcAm formation from the chlorination of AAs in combined forms (oligopeptides) significantly exhibited a different pattern with HAcAm formation from free AAs. Due to the presence of peptide bonds in tripeptides, Tyr-Tyr-Tyr and Ala-Ala-Ala produced trichloroacetamide (TCAcAm) in which free AAs was unable to form TCAcAm during chlorination. Moreover, peptide bond in tripeptides formed more tri-HAcAms than di-HAcAms in the presence of bromide. Therefore, the peptide bond may be an important indicator to predict the formation of specific N-DBPs in chlorination. The increased use of algal- and wastewater-impacted water as drinking water sources will increase health concerns over exposure to HAcAms in drinking water

Ett samtal om samtal : Chefers upplevelse av medarbetarsamtalet som förändringsverktyg

Studien syftar till att undersöka medarbetarsamtal utifrån ett chefsperspektiv och studien intresserar sig för vilka effekter cheferna upplever att samtalet generar i verksamheten och hur de använder sig av samtalet i utveckling av verksamheten. Metoden är kvalitativ och utgörs av åtta stycken semistrukturerade intervjuer, där individer med personalansvar fick möjlighet att berätta sina upplevelser och erfarenheter av samtalet samt reflektera runt dess betydelse utifrån deras position i organisationen. Resultatet visar att medarbetarsamtalet är en tids- och energikrävande insats för cheferna som ibland måste ställa sin fritid till förfogande. Dialog och social kompetens lyfts fram som nyckelfaktorer för ett bra samtal och deltagarna i studien förlitar sig på sin upparbetade erfarenhet och känner en trygghet i sin yrkesroll vid genomförandet av samtalet. Denna studie bidrar till djupare kunskap om chefernas upplevelse av medarbetarsamtalet och dess potential som styrverktyg inom organisationer och kan medverka till framtida forskning som ett komplement till studier rörande medarbetarnas upplevelse. Studien visar att det även kan vara av intresse att via observationer av samtalet undersöka hur väl det praktiska genomförandet stämmer överens med chefens intentioner om verksamhetsutveckling.This study aims to examine employee review, based on a manager perspective with an interest in what effects leaders' experience it is generating, and how they use the employee review in the development of their organization. The method used in this study is qualitative and comprises eight semi-structured interviews, in which individuals with personnel responsibility where given the opportunity to share their comprehension off and experience from the phenomenon employee review, and its importance based on their position in the organization. The result shows that the employee review is a time and energy-intensive effort for the managers who sometimes have to make their spare time available for the task.Dialogue and social skills are highlighted as key factors for a good conversation, and the participants in the study relies on their self-generated experience and feel confident in their professional role in the implementation of employee review. This study contributes to deeper knowledge of the managers' experience regarding the employee review and its potential as an organizational management tool, and can contribute to future research as a complement to studies regarding the employees' experience. The results shows that it may also be of interest to study employee reviews through observations of the interview, how well the practical implementation is in line with the manager's intentions on business development