The Chinese version of COMM showed satisfactory reliability and validity, and could be used as a screening tool to evaluate and monitor current aberrant drug-related behavior among Chinese patients with chronic pain.

Determinants of waterpipe use in adolescents are believed to differ from those for other tobacco products, but there is a lack of studies of possible social, cultural, or psychological aspects of waterpipe use in this population. This study applied a socioecological model to explore waterpipe use, and its relationship to other tobacco use in Swedish adolescents.

A total of 106 adolescents who attended an urban high-school in northern Sweden responded to an anonymous questionnaire. Prevalence rates for waterpipe use were examined in relation to socio-demographics, peer pressure, sensation seeking behavior, harm perception, environmental factors, and depression.

Thirty-three percent reported ever having smoked waterpipe (ever use), with 30% having done so during the last 30 days (current use). Among waterpipe ever users, 60% had ever smoked cigarettes in comparison to 32% of non-waterpipe smokers (95% confidence interval 1.4-7.9). The odds of having ever smoked waterpipe were three times higher among malee current study reports a high use of waterpipe in a select group of students in northern Sweden. The study adds the importance of looking at socioecological determinants of use, including peer pressure and exposure to media marketing, as well as mental health among users.

Development of sequencing technologies and supporting computation enable discovery of small RNA molecules that previously escaped detection or were ignored due to low count numbers. While the focus in the analysis of small RNA libraries has been primarily on microRNAs (miRNAs), recent studies have reported findings of fragments of transfer RNAs (tRFs) across a range of organisms.

Here we describe Drosophila melanogaster tRFs, which appear to have a number of structural and functional features similar to those of miRNAs but are less abundant. As is the case with miRNAs, (i) tRFs seem to have distinct isoforms preferentially originating from 5′ or 3′ end of a precursor molecule (in this case, tRNA), (ii) ends of tRFs appear to contain short „seed” sequences matching conserved regions across 12 Drosophila genomes, preferentially in 3′ UTRs but also in introns and exons; (iii) tRFs display specific isoform loading into Ago1 and Ago2 and thus likely function in RISC complexes; (iii) levels of loading in Ago1 areported fragments from only a few tRNAs. These tRFs show a number of similarities with miRNAs, including seed sequences. Based on complementarity with conserved Drosophila regions we identified such seed sequences and their possible targets with matches in the 3’UTR regions. Strikingly, the potential target genes of the most abundant tRFs show significant Gene Ontology enrichment in development and neuronal function. The latter suggests that involvement of tRFs in the RNA interfering pathway may play a role in brain activity or brain changes with age.While fore- and hindlimbs are commonly assumed to be serially homologous, the serial homology of the pectoral and pelvic girdles is more ambiguous. We investigate the degree to which a common history, developmental program, and gene network are shared between the girdles relative to the rest of the appendicular skeleton. Paleontological data indicate that pectoral appendages arose millions of years before pelvic appendages. Recent embryological and genetic data suggest that the anatomical similarity between the fore- and hindlimbs arose through the sequential, derived deployment of similar developmental programs and gene networks, and is therefore not due to ancestral serial homology. Much less developmental work has however been published about the girdles. Here, we provide the first detailed review of the developmental programs and gene networks of the pectoral and pelvic girdles. Our review shows that, with respect to these programs and networks, there are fewer similarities between pelvic and pectoral girdles than there are between the limbs. The available data therefore support recent hypotheses that the anatomical similarities between the fore- and hindlimbs arose during the fin-to-limb transition through the derived co-option of similar developmental mechanisms, while the phylogenetically older pectoral and pelvic girdles have remained more distinct since their evolutionary origin.This study investigated whether initial respiratory status in hyperleukocytic acute myeloid leukemia (AML), as defined by oxygen/ventilatory support, is (1) associated with early mortality and overall survival and (2) improved after leukapheresis. A retrospective chart review of 89 patients requiring leukapheresis was performed. White blood cell count (WBC) decreased from 153 (56-475) × 10(9)/L to 60 (17-259) × 10(9)/L after first leukapheresis (p  less then  0.01). Initial respiratory status was room air (n = 40), low (n = 31) or high flow oxygen therapy (n = 8) or mechanical ventilation (n = 10). As compared to admission, respiratory status significantly deteriorated after both first and second leukapheresis (p  less then  0.01) and was not different at day 5 for patients still alive (p = 0.131). Both day 28 mortality and overall survival were significantly affected by initial respiratory status (p  less then  0.01). Despite being effective in reducing WBC, leukapheresis did not improve respiratory status of hyperleukocytic AML patients, a factor strongly associated with survival.The use of sulphur dioxide (SO2) in the treatment of foodstuffs presents some problems as it could lead to pseudo-allergies in some people. The aim of this research work was to study the addition of different preservative mixtures and their influence on the concentration of volatile compounds and sensorial quality in wine. To do so, vinifications were carried out using Garnacha must to which lysozyme, dimethyl dicarbonate (DMDC) and mixtures of these with SO2 were added at different doses (25 and 50 mg l(-1)). The results were compared with a control sample to which only SO2 had been added (50 mg l(-1)). In general, mixtures of SO2 with lysozyme and DMDC favoured the formation of volatile compounds in the wines. Wines obtained from the mixtures of lysozyme and DMDC with 25 mg l(-1) of SO2 had better sensorial quality than the wines obtained with 50 mg l(-1) as the only preservative used.Emission of unintentionally formed polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from industrial thermal processes is a global issue. Because the production and use of technical PCB mixtures has been banned, industrial thermal processes have become increasingly important sources of PCBs. Among these processes, secondary copper smelting is an important PCB source in China. In the present study, the potential for fly ash-mediated formation of PCBs in the secondary copper industry, and the mechanisms involved, were studied in laboratory thermochemical experiments. The total PCB concentrations were 37-70 times higher than the initial concentrations. Thermochemical reactions on the fly ash amplified the potential toxic equivalents of PCBs. The formation of PCBs over time and the effect of temperature were investigated. Based on analyses of PCB homologue profiles with different reaction conditions, a chlorination mechanism was proposed for forming PCBs in addition to a de novo synthesis mechanism. The chlorination pathway was supported by close correlations between each pair of adjacent homologue groups. Formation of PCBs and multiple persistent organic pollutants, including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, polychlorinated dibenzofurans and polychlorinated naphthalenes, occurred during the tests, indicating that these compounds may share similar formation mechanisms.The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a leading cause of nosocomial infections. Its relatively impermeable outer membrane (OM) limits antibiotic entry, and a chromosomally encoded AmpC β-lactamase inactivates β-lactam antibiotics. AmpC expression is linked to peptidoglycan (PG) recycling, and soluble (sLT) or membrane-bound (mLT) lytic transglycosylases are responsible for generating the anhydromuropeptides that induce AmpC expression. Thus, inhibition of LT activity could reduce AmpC-mediated β-lactam resistance in P. aeruginosa. Here, we characterized single and combination LT mutants. Strains lacking SltB1 or MltB had increased β-lactam minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) compared to wild type, while only loss of Slt decreased MICs. An sltB1 mltB double mutant had elevated β-lactam MICs compared to either the sltB1 or mltB single mutants (96 vs. 32 μg/mL cefotaxime), without changes to AmpC levels. Time-kill assays with β-lactams suggested that increased MIC correlated with a slower rate of autolysis in the sltB1 mltB mutant – an antisuicide phenotype. Strains lacking multiple mLTs were more sensitive to β-lactams and up to 16-fold more sensitive to vancomycin, normally incapable of crossing the OM. Multi-mLT mutants were also sensitive to bile salts and osmotic stress, and were hyperbiofilm formers, all phenotypes consistent with cell envelope compromise. Complementation with genes encoding inactive forms of the enzymes – or alternatively, overexpression of Braun’s lipoprotein – reversed the mutants’ cell envelope damage phenotypes, suggesting that mLTs help to stabilize the OM. We conclude that P. aeruginosa mLTs contribute physically to cell envelope stability, and that Slt is the preferred target for future development of LT inhibitors that could synergize with β-lactams.

Chickpea is considered a wholesome and nutritious food due to its nutritional properties and glycemic response. Such properties can be influenced by the thermal treatment used to cook this legume and produce a snack named leblebi. From the consumers’ point of view, it is desirable to improve texture and palatability of the chickpea by the processing steps used to make leblebi. However, consumers are increasingly concerned with the nutritional value of snack foods.

Nutritional components and digestibility properties of single and double heat-treated chickpea, single and double roasted leblebi and white leblebi were studied. High sodium, starch damage and soluble dietary fiber content were observed in white leblebi; while the other samples showed significantly (P < 0.05) higher insoluble dietary fiber content. Heat treatment and processing significantly (P < 0.05) altered the viscosity and starch properties of the samples. High resistant starch content (28.28% to 30.20%) and low estimated glycemic index (38.67 to 41.28) in heat-treated chickpeas and roasted leblebi were observed.

The results indicate that heat-treated chickpea and roasted leblebi have good nutritional quality and low glycemic response. White leblebi had relatively high sodium content and glycemic response. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

The results indicate that heat-treated chickpea and roasted leblebi have good nutritional quality and low glycemic response. White leblebi had relatively high sodium content and glycemic response. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.