Treating a 20 mm Hg Gradient Alleviates Myocardial Hypertrophy in Experimental Aortic Coarctation

Background Children with coarctation of the aorta (CoA) can have a hyperdynamic and remodeled left ventricle (LV) from increased afterload. Literature from an experimental model suggests the putative 20 mm Hg blood pressure gradient (BPG) treatment guideline frequently implemented in CoA studies may permit irreversible vascular changes. LV remodeling from pressure overload has been studied, but data are limited following correction and using a clinically representative BPG. Materials and methods Rabbits underwent CoA at 10 weeks to induce a 20 mm Hg BPG using permanent or dissolvable suture thereby replicating untreated and corrected CoA, respectively. Cardiac function was evaluated at 32 weeks by magnetic resonance imaging using a spoiled cine GRE sequence (TR/TE/FA 8/2.9/20), 14 × 14-cm FOV, and 3-mm slice thickness. Images (20 frames/cycle) were acquired in 6-8 short axis views from the apex to the mitral valve annulus. LV volume, ejection fraction (EF), and mass were quantified. Results LV mass was elevated for CoA (5.2 ± 0.55 g) versus control (3.6 ± 0.16 g) and corrected (4.0 ± 0.44 g) rabbits, resulting in increased LV mass/volume ratio for CoA rabbits. A trend toward increased EF and stroke volume was observed but did not reach significance. Elevated EF by volumetric analysis in CoA rabbits was supported by concomitant increases in total aortic flow by phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging. Conclusions The indices quantified trended toward a persistent hyperdynamic LV despite correction, but differences were not statistically significant versus control rabbits. These findings suggest the current putative 20 mm Hg BPG for treatment may be reasonable from the LV\u27s perspective

Perceptions of Touch in Psychotherapy: A Survey of Clients Recovering from Substance Abuse and/or Childhood Sexual Abuse

Differences in perception of touch in psychotherapy were studied among clients with childhood sexual abuse and/or substance abuse issues. Forty clients from the general context of the recovery community were recruited to fill out an eleven item Revised Touch in Therapy Survey. Participants also gave narrative responses to a single open-ended question asking what meaning their touch experience held for them. The researcher adapted this current instrument from the longer, 1995 Touch in Therapy self-report questionnaire developed by Horton, Clance, Sterk-Elifson and Emshoff. A mail back system was used, with swveys returned to a local post office box.. The Llkert scale responses of the forty participants were analyzed based upon chi-square analyses, the purpose being to investigate the relationship between client type of issue and client type of perception of touch in therapy. Use of descriptive statistics supplemented the chi-square analyses. Ability to interpret chi-square results was unfortunately limited due to small sample size. The descriptive data and narrative responses, however, indicated generally positive touch perceptions among this sample group. The results did not support a blanket statement of contraindication of touch for clients with sexual abuse issues, a particular stance sometimes presented in the professional literature. The survey results generally appeared to support the position that a circumspect, ethical use of touch in psychotherapy may well be of benefit to some clients. General implications of these findings are discussed, as well as recommendations for further research

Local charge and spin currents in magnetothermal landscapes

A scannable laser beam is used to generate local thermal gradients in metallic (Co2FeAl) or insulating (Y3Fe5O12) ferromagnetic thin films. We study the resulting local charge and spin currents that arise due to the anomalous Nernst effect (ANE) and the spin Seebeck effect (SSE), respectively. In the local ANE experiments, we detect the voltage in the Co2FeAl thin film plane as a function of the laser spot position and external magnetic field magnitude and orientation. The local SSE effect is detected in a similar fashion by exploiting the inverse spin Hall effect in a Pt layer deposited on top of the Y3Fe5O12. Our findings establish local thermal spin and charge current generation as well as spin caloritronic domain imaging

Whole-thorax irradiation induces hypoxic respiratory failure, pleural effusions and cardiac remodeling

To study the mechanisms of death following a single lethal dose of thoracic radiation, WAG/RijCmcr (Wistar) rats were treated with 15 Gy to the whole thorax and followed until they were morbid or sacrificed for invasive assays at 6 weeks. Lung function was assessed by breathing rate and arterial oxygen saturation. Lung structure was evaluated histologically. Cardiac structure and function were examined by echocardiography. The frequency and characteristics of pleural effusions were determined. Morbidity from 15 Gy radiation occurred in all rats 5 to 8 weeks after exposure, coincident with histological pneumonitis. Increases in breathing frequencies peaked at 6 weeks, when profound arterial hypoxia was also recorded. Echocardiography analysis at 6 weeks showed pulmonary hypertension and severe right ventricular enlargement with impaired left ventricular function and cardiac output. Histologic sections of the heart revealed only rare foci of lymphocytic infiltration. Total lung weight more than doubled. Pleural effusions were present in the majority of the irradiated rats and contained elevated protein, but low lactate dehydrogenase, when compared with serum from the same animal. Pleural effusions had a higher percentage of macrophages and large monocytes than neutrophils and contained mast cells that are rarely present in other pathological states. Lethal irradiation to rat lungs leads to hypoxia with infiltration of immune cells, edema and pleural effusion. These changes may contribute to pulmonary vascular and parenchymal injury that result in secondary changes in heart structure and function. We report that conditions resembling congestive heart failure contribute to death during radiation pneumonitis, which indicates new targets for therapy

Fossil Ursus Reported as Early Man in Louisiana

In early 1951, certain Louisiana newspapers carried a story reporting the discovery of "Neanderthal man-an 11 foot tall ancestor of modern man- that lived in North America about 50,000 years ago." (States Times, Baron Rouge, Vol. 109, No. 8, Jan. 9, 1951, page 1; and Morning Advocate, Baron Rouge, Vol. 26, No. 189, Jan. 9, 1951, page 10)

The Effect of Visual Pathways on Race Priming

Biased responding based on race is consistently observed on tests like the Weapon Identification Task (WIT), with the implication being that racial information affects decision making despite participants&rsquo; intentions to the contrary. The current work seeks to examine visual pathways that may transmit racial information. Vision science has identified two pathways from the eye to the brain, the magnocellular (M) and the parvocellular (P) pathways that we predict to be differentially involved in conveying the kind of information that cues racial identity. Prior research indicates that the M pathway takes in broad, general information about a stimulus as fast as possible, including that of ingroup (same-race) and outgroup (cross-race) information and is thus also predicted to be the mechanism primarily involved in picking up racial information and translating it to the brain. In the current study, participants performed a Weapon Identification Task. The priming images, either White or Black faces, containing spatial frequency and color manipulations, favored one pathway or the other. We found racial bias such that participants were faster to respond to guns after seeing a Black prime and faster to respond to non-guns after seeing a White prime, regardless of the pathway favored by the various visual manipulations. Interestingly, we found evidence that low spatial frequency primes prompted faster response rates than did high spatial frequency primes. This paper will discuss these results in terms of the effectiveness of the manipulation and theoretical concerns around these visual pathways.</p

When Jack And I Were Children

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The Effect of the Wood Defects on Fire Resistance

In the case of charcoal speeds, the defects of the wood and the effect of the metal fixing elements are not taken into account. The aim of our research was to analyze and investigate the effect of wood defects and fasteners on fire resistance. During the experiments we investigated the effect of the defects in the wood and the effect of the metal fasteners on the fire resistance. In the first part of the experiments we examined the effect of wooden defects (knots, thread direction, cracks, insect repellent) on fire resistance. We assumed that the higher hardness or density of the knots and the different fiber direction would facilitate the burning of the wood in the vicinity of the knot. In our experiments, we also examined the effects of cracks and insect pests. The second part of our experiment was to test the switching elements under the effect of heat load.res