Factors associated with postpartum weight retention in a Brazilian cohort

PURPOSE: To identify the factors associated with weight retention after pregnancy.METHODS: A cohort study was performed with 145 women receiving maternity care at a hospital in Caxias do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, aged 19 to 45 years, between weeks 38 and 42 of pregnancy. The patients were evaluated at one month, three months, and six months after delivery. Student's t-test or one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare groups, as indicated; correlations were assessed with Pearson's and Spearman's tests, as indicated; to identify and evaluate confounders independently associated with total weight loss, a multivariate linear regression analysis was performed and statistical significance was set at p≤0.05.RESULTS: There was a significant positive association between total weight gain - and a negative association with physical exercise during pregnancy - with total weight loss. Higher parity, inter-pregnancy interval, calorie intake, pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI), weight gain related to pre-pregnancy BMI, presence and severity of depression, and lack of exclusive breastfeeding were directly associated with lower weight loss. Among nominal variables, level of education and marital status were significantly associated with total weight loss.CONCLUSION: In the present study, lower weight retention in the postpartum period was associated with higher educational attainment and with being married. Normal or below-normal pre-pregnancy BMI, physical activity and adequate weight gain during pregnancy, lower parity, exclusive breastfeeding for a longer period, appropriate or low calorie intake, and absence of depression were also determinants of reduced weight retention.

The analysis of knowledge retention mechanisms for leaving experts

The goal of this thesis is studying knowledge retention mechanisms used in cases of single experts’ leaving in the case company, analyzing the reason for the mechanisms choice and successfulness of knowledge retention process depending of that choice. The theoretical part discusses the origins of knowledge retention processes in the theoretical studies, the existing knowledge retention mechanisms and practical issues of their implementation. The empirical part of the study is designed as employees’ interview with later discussion of the findings. The empirical findings indicate the following reasons for knowledge retention mechanisms choice: type of knowledge retained, specialty of leaving experts and time and distance issues of a particular case. The following factors influenced the success of a retention process: choice of knowledge retention mechanisms, usage of combination of mechanisms and creation of knowledge retention plans. The results might be useful for those interested in factors influencing knowledge retention processes in cases of experts’ departure.

Streamside management zone (SMZ) efficiency in herbicide retention from simulated surface flow

Plot-scale overland flow experiments were conducted to evaluate the efficiency of streamside management zones (SMZs) in retaining herbicides in runoff generated from silvicultural activities. Herbicide retention was evaluated for five different slopes (2, 5, 10, 15, and 20%), two cover conditions (undisturbed O horizon and raked surface), and two periods under contrasting soil moisture conditions (summer dry and winter wet season) and correlated to O horizon and site conditions. Picloram (highly soluble in water) and atrazine (moderately sorbed into soil particles) at concentrations in the range of 55 and 35 µg L-1 and kaolin clay (approximately 5 g L-1) were mixed with 13.000 liters of water and dispersed over the top of 5 x 10 m forested plots. Surface flow was collected 2, 4, 6, and 10 m below the disperser to evaluate the changes in concentration as it moved through the O horizon and surface soil horizon-mixing zone. Results showed that, on average, a 10 m long forested SMZ removed around 25% of the initial concentration of atrazine and was generally ineffective in reducing the more soluble picloram. Retention of picloram was only 6% of the applied quantity. Percentages of mass reduction by infiltration were 36% for atrazine and 20% for picloram. Stronger relationships existed between O horizon depth and atrazine retention than in any other measured variable, suggesting that better solid-solution contact associated with flow through deeper O horizons is more important than either velocity or soil moisture as a determinant of sorption.

Involvement of hippocampal NMDA receptors in retention of shuttle avoidance conditioning in rats

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the role of hippocampal N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in acquisition and consolidation of memory during shuttle avoidance conditioning in rats. Adult male Wistar rats were surgically implanted with cannulae aimed at the CA1 area of the dorsal hippocampus. After recovery from surgery, animals were trained and tested in a shuttle avoidance apparatus (30 trials, 0.5-mA footshock, 24-h training-test interval). Immediately before or immediately after training, animals received a bilateral intrahippocampal 0.5-µl infusion containing 5.0 µg of the NMDA competitive receptor antagonist aminophosphonopentanoic acid (AP5) or vehicle (phosphate-buffered saline, pH 7.4). Infusion duration was 2 min per side. Pre-training infusion of AP5 impaired retention test performance (mean ± SEM number of conditioned responses (CRs) during retention test session was 16.47 ± 1.78 in the vehicle group and 9.93 ± 1.59 in the AP5 group; P<0.05). Post-training infusion of AP5 did not affect retention (mean ± SEM number of conditioned responses during retention test session was 18.46 ± 1.94 in the vehicle group and 20.42 ± 2.38 in the AP5 group; P>0.10). This impairment could not be attributed to an effect on acquisition, motor activity or footshock sensitivity since AP5 affected neither training session performance measured by the number of CRs nor the number of intertrial crossings during the training session. These data suggest that NMDA receptors in the hippocampus are critical for retention of shuttle avoidance conditioning, in agreement with previous evidence showing a role of NMDA receptors in fear memory.

The influence of septal lesions on sodium and water retention induced by Walker 256 tumor

In the course of studies on the effects of septal area lesions on neuroimmunomodulation and Walker 256 tumor development, it was observed that tumor-induced sodium and water retention was less marked in lesioned than in non-lesioned rats. In the present study possible mechanisms involved in this phenomenon were investigated. The experiments were performed in septal-lesioned (LW; N = 15) and sham-operated (SW; N = 7) 8-week-old male Wistar rats, which received multifocal simultaneous subcutaneous (sc) inoculations of Walker 256 tumor cells about 30 days after the stereotaxic surgery. Control groups (no tumor, sham-operated food-restricted (SFR), N = 7) and lesioned food-restricted (LFR, N = 10) were subjected to a feeding pattern similar to that observed in tumor-bearing animals. Multifocal inoculation of Walker 256 tumor rapidly induces anorexia, which is paradoxically accompanied by an increase in body weight, as a result of renal Na+ and fluid retention. These effects of the tumor were also seen in LW rats, although the rise in fractional sodium balance during the early clinical period was significantly smaller than in SW rats (day 4: SW = 47.6 ± 6.4% and LW = 13.8 ± 5.2%; day 5: SW = 57.5 ± 3.5% and LW = 25.7 ± 4.8%; day 6: SW = 54.4 ± 3.8% and LW = 32.1 ± 4.4%; P<0.05), suggesting a temporary reduction in tumor-induced sodium retention. In contrast, urine output was significantly reduced in SW rats and increased in LW rats (LW up to -0.85 and SW up to 4.5 ml/100 g body weight), with no change in osmolar excretion. These temporary changes in the tumor's effects on LW rats may reflect a "reversal" of the secondary central antidiuretic response induced by the tumor (from antidiuretic to diuretic).

Polymorphism of the aryl-hydrocarbon receptor gene in intron 10 of human cancers

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and related halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g., PCDFs), often called "dioxins", are ubiquitously present environmental contaminants. Some of them, notably 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), are among the most toxic synthetic compounds known. The biological effects of dioxins are mediated via the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). Mutations in the AhR transactivation domain are linked to sensitivity to the acute lethality of TCDD. We present here a study of AhR gene polymorphism in normal and cancer human tissues affecting pre-mRNA splicing in the AhR gene-coding transactivation domain region (exon 10, intron 10, exon 11 region), previously shown to be associated with AhR dysfunction. We tested 126 pairs of normal and cancer tissue samples from liver, lung, stomach, kidney, mucous, breast, and pancreas of 49 males and 77 females (45-70 years of age). We used in vitro splicing assay, RT-PCR and sequencing methods. Our results showed that in an in vitro system it is possible to reconstitute cellular pre-mRNA splicing events. Tested cancer tissues did not contain mutations in the AhR transactivation domain region when the DNA sequences were compared with those from normal tissues. There were also no differences in AhR mRNA splice variants between normal and malignant breast tissues and no polymorphisms in the studied regions or cDNA.

Gastric emptying of water in children with severe functional fecal retention

The objective of this study was to evaluate gastric emptying (GE) in pediatric patients with functional constipation. GE delay has been reported in adults with functional constipation. Gastric emptying studies were performed in 22 children with chronic constipation, fecal retention and fecal incontinence, while presenting fecal retention and after resuming regular bowel movements. Patients (18 boys, median age: 10 years; range: 7.2 to 12.7 years) were evaluated in a tertiary pediatric gastroenterology clinic. Gastric half-emptying time of water (reference range: 12 ± 3 min) was measured using a radionuclide technique immediately after first patient evaluation, when they presented fecal impaction (GE1), and when they achieved regular bowel movements (GE2), 12 ± 5 weeks after GE1. At study admission, 21 patients had reported dyspeptic symptoms, which were completely relieved after resuming regular bowel movements. Medians (and interquartile ranges) for GE1 and GE2 were not significantly different [27.0 (16) and 27.5 (21) min, respectively (P = 0.10)]. Delayed GE seems to be a common feature among children with chronic constipation and fecal retention. Resuming satisfactory bowel function and improvement in dyspeptic symptoms did not result in normalization of GE data.

Utilização do Intron Splice Site primer EI-1 na discriminação de leveduras contaminantes do processo de fermentação alcoólica

Neste trabalho, utilizamos o Intron Splice Site primer EI-1 para a análise do perfil de amplificação de diferentes espécies de leveduras consideradas contaminantes no processo de fermentação alcoólica, originadas de uma destilaria no Estado da Paraíba na safra 2004/2005. Foram realizadas as etapas analíticas para discriminação molecular das leveduras a partir da extração do DNA total, amplificação por PCR e análise do perfil genético. Os resultados obtidos indicam que o Intron Splice Site primer EI-1é muito eficaz na discriminação das diferentes espécies de Saccharomyces e não Saccharomyces, evidenciando padrões de bandas específicos para as leveduras analisadas. Este primer, por ser complementar a uma região muito conservada do genoma das leveduras, mostrou-se incapaz de uma discriminação intraespecífica. Isto demonstra a utilidade deste marcador no auxílio à taxonomia de leveduras.

Retention of short chain fatty acids under drying and storage conditions

Cheese whey permeate was used as a substrate for the fermentation of Propionibacterium freudenreichi PS1 for the production of short chain fatty acids, components of the bio-aroma of Swiss cheese. The liquid bio-aroma was encapsulated by spray drying under different conditions of air inlet temperature and feed rate. A study was carried out on the stability of the bio-aroma during storage in laminated packages at 30 °C for 96 days using the product showing the greatest retention of acetic and propionic acids. The results showed that the best drying conditions were an air entrance temperature of 180 °C and a feed rate of 24 g/min resulting in particles with a smooth surface and few invaginations and micro-fissures. However, 72% of the acetic acid and 80% of the propionic acid were lost during storage showing that the wall material used was inadequate to guarantee product stability.

Arrêt du Grand-conseil... (qui, sans s'arrêter à l'arrêt rendu le 16 avril dernier au parlement de Metz, ordonne que les jugements sur les demandes en renvoi et ceux de retention continueront d'être donnés en dernier ressort par les présidiaux, etc.)

[Acte. 1776-05-24. Paris]

Protein subcellular targeting inTrichoderma aggressivum f. aggressivum

Trichoderma aggressivum f. aggressivum is a filamentous soil fungus. Green mold disease of commercial mushrooms caused by this species in North America has resulted in millions of dollars in lost revenue within the mushroom growing industry. Research on the molecular level of T aggressivum have jus t begun with the goal of understanding the functions of each gene and protein, and their expression control. Protein targeting has not been well studied in this species yet. Therefore, the intent of this study was to test the protein localization and production levels in T aggressivum with green fluorescent protein (GFP) with an intron and tagged with either nuclear localization signal (NLS) or an endoplasmic reticulum retention signal (KDEL). Two GFP constructs (with and without the intron) were used as controls in this study. All four constructs were successfully transferred into T aggressivum and all modified strains showed similar growth characteristics as the wild type non-transformed isolate. GFP expression was detected from all modified T aggressivum with confocal microscopy and the expression was similar in all four strains. The intron tested in this study had no or very minor effects as GFP expression was similar with or without it. The GFP signal increased over a 5 day period for all transformants, while the GFP to total protein ratio decreased over the same period for all transformants. The GFP-KDEL transformant showed similar protein expression level and localization as did the control transformant lacking the KDEL retention signal. The GFP-NLS transformant similarly failed to localize GFP into nucleus as fluorescence with this strain was virtually identical to the GFP transformant lacking the NLS. Thus, future research is required to find effective localization signals for T aggressivum.

A Basis for Understanding Volunteer Coach Retention in Youth Sports

Youth sport organizations depend on volunteers to coach the teams in the organization. The purpose of this quantitative study was to develop a further understanding of volunteer coach retention in youth sport. The data was collected through a quantitative questionnaire which used close-ended and Likert-scale questions. The questionnaire collected data on the modified Model of Volunteer Retention in Youth Sports, reasons to withdraw from coaching and human resource management. There were 126 surveys collected from members of the three largest youth sport associations in the town of Aylmer, Ontario. The study found that Person-Task fit was the best predictor of volunteer coach retention as it significantly correlated to one’s intention to continue coaching (p< 0.01). Furthermore, additional reasons were found to explain withdrawal from coaching - if one’s child stops playing the sport or if coaching is too time consuming. The retention of volunteer coaches in youth sport organizations requires a multi-dimensional approach in understanding how to best retain volunteer coaches.

“You Know What I Mean?”- Language and Cultural Retention in Luso-Canadian Mothers in the Greater Toronto Area

The Portuguese community is one of the largest diasporic groups in the Greater Toronto Area and the choice of retention and transmission of language and culture to Luso-Canadians is crucial to the development and sustainability of the community. The overall objective of this study is to learn about the factors that influence Luso-Canadian mothers’ inclination to teach Portuguese language and cultural retention to their children. To explore this topic I employed a qualitative research design that included in-depth interviews conducted in 2012 with six Luso-Canadian mothers. Three central arguments emerged from the findings. First, Luso-Canadian mothers interviewed posses a pronounced desire for their children to succeed academically, and to provide opportunities that their children that they did not have. Second, five of the mothers attempt to achieve this mothering objective partly by disconnecting from their Portuguese roots, and by disassociating their children from the Portuguese language and culture. Third, the disconnection they experience and enact is influenced by the divisions evident in the Portuguese community in the GTA that divides regions and hierarchically ranks dialects, and groups. I conclude that the children in these households inevitably bear the prospects of maintaining a vibrant Portuguese community in the GTA and I propose that actions by the community in ranking dialects influence mothers’ decisions about transmitting language and culture to their children.

Active nuclear import and cytoplasmic retention of activation-induced deaminase

The enzyme activation-induced deaminase (AID) triggers antibody diversification in B cells by catalyzing deamination and consequently mutation of immunoglobulin genes. To minimize off-target deamination, AID is restrained by several regulatory mechanisms including nuclear exclusion, thought to be mediated exclusively by active nuclear export. Here we identify two other mechanisms involved in controlling AID subcellular localization. AID is unable to passively diffuse into the nucleus, despite its small size, and its nuclear entry requires active import mediated by a conformational nuclear localization signal. We also identify in its C terminus a determinant for AID cytoplasmic retention, which hampers diffusion to the nucleus, competes with nuclear import and is crucial for maintaining the predominantly cytoplasmic localization of AID in steady-state conditions. Blocking nuclear import alters the balance between these processes in favor of cytoplasmic retention, resulting in reduced isotype class switching.