Embedding graphic organisers in the teaching and learning of family and consumer sciences (home economics) in Kuwait

Educational reforms currently being enacted in Kuwaiti Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) in response to contemporary demands for increased student-centred teaching and learning are challenging for FCS teachers due to their limited experience with student-centred learning tools such as Graphic Organisers (GOs). To adopt these reforms, Kuwaiti teachers require a better understanding of and competency in promoting cognitive learning processes that will maximise student-centred learning approaches. This study followed the experiences of four Grade 6 FCS Kuwaiti teachers as they undertook a Professional Development (PD) program specifically designed to advance their understanding of the use of GOs and then as they implemented what they had learned in their Grade 6 FCS classroom. The PD program developed for this study was informed by Nasseh.s competency PD model as well as Piaget and Ausubel.s cognitive theories. This model enabled an assessment and evaluation of the development of the teachers. competencies as an outcome of the PD program in terms of the adoption of GOs, in particular, and their capacity to use GOs to engage students in personalised, in-depth, learning through critical thinking and understanding. The research revealed that the PD program was influential in reforming the teachers. learning, understanding of and competency in, cognitive and visual theories of learning, so that they facilitated student-centred teaching and learning processes that enabled students to adopt and adapt GOs in constructivist learning. The implementation of five GOs - Flow Chart, Concept Maps, K-W-L Chart, Fishbone Diagram and Venn Diagram - as learning tools in classrooms was investigated to find if changes in pedagogical approach for supporting conceptual learning through cognitive information processing would reduce the cognitive work load of students and produce better learning approaches. The study as evidenced by the participant teachers. responses and classroom observations, showed a marked increase in student interest, participation, critical thought, problem solving skills, as a result of using GOs, compared to using traditional teaching and learning methods. A theoretical model was developed from the study based on the premise that teachers. knowledge of the subject, pedagogy and student learning precede the implementation of student-centred learning reform, that it plays an important role in the implementation of student-centred learning and that it brings about a change in teaching practice. The model affirmed that observed change in teaching-practice included aspects of teachers. beliefs, as well as confidence and effect on workplace and on student learning, including engagement, understanding, critical thinking and problem solving. The model assumed that change in teaching practice is inseparable from teachers. lifelong PD needs related to knowledge, understanding, skills and competency. These findings produced a set of preliminary guidelines for establishing student-centred constructivist strategies in Kuwaiti education while retaining Kuwait.s cultural uniqueness.

Vibrational spectroscopy of the mineral meyerhofferite CaB3O3(OH)5·H2O – An assessment of the molecular structure

Meyerhofferite is a calcium hydrated borate mineral with ideal formula: CaB3O3(OH)5�H2O and occurs as white complex acicular to crude crystals with length up to �4 cm, in fibrous divergent, radiating aggregates or reticulated and is often found in sedimentary or lake-bed borate deposits. The Raman spectrum of meyerhofferite is dominated by intense sharp band at 880 cm�1 assigned to the symmetric stretching mode of trigonal boron. Broad Raman bands at 1046, 1110, 1135 and 1201 cm�1 are attributed to BOH in-plane bending modes. Raman bands in the 900–1000 cm�1 spectral region are assigned to the antisymmetric stretching of tetrahedral boron. Distinct OH stretching Raman bands are observed at 3400, 3483 and 3608 cm�1. The mineral meyerhofferite has a distinct Raman spectrum which is different from the spectrum of other borate minerals, making Raman spectroscopy a very useful tool for the detection of meyerhofferite in sedimentary and lake bed deposits.

Physical performance profile of sub-elite juvenile Gaelic Games players and the prevalence of a Relative Age Effect (RAE)

Gaelic Games are the indigenous sports played in Ireland, the most popular being Gaelic football and hurling. The games are contact sports and the physical demands are thought to be similar to those of Australian Rules football, rugby union, rugby league, field hockey, and lacrosse (Delahunt et al., 2011). The difference in chronological age between children in a single age group is known as relative age and its consequences as the RAE, whereby younger players are disadvantaged (Del Campo et al., 2010). The purpose of this study was to describe the physical and performance profile of sub-elite juvenile Gaelic Games players and to establish if a RAE is present in this cohort and any influence physiological moderator variables may have on this. Following receipt of ethical approval (EHSREC11-45), six sub-elite county development squads (Under-14/15/16 age groups, male, n=115) volunteered to partake in the study. Anthropometric data including skin folds and girths were collected. A number of field tests of physical performance including 5 and 20m speed, vertical and broad jump distance, and an estimate of VO2max were carried out. Descriptive data are presented as Mean SD. Juvenile sub-elite Gaelic Games players aged 14.53 0.82 y were 172.87 7.63 cm tall, had a mass of 64.74 11.06 kg, a BMI of 21.57 2.82 kg.m-2 and 9.22 4.78 % body fat. Flexibility, measured by sit and reach was 33.62 6.86 cm and lower limb power measured by vertical and broad jump were 42.19 5.73 and 191.16 25.26 cm, respectively. Participant time to complete 5m, 20m and an agility test (T-Test) was 1.12 0.07, 3.31 0.30 and 9.31 0.55 s respectively. Participant’s estimated VO2max was 48.23 5.05 ml.kg.min-1. Chi-Square analysis of birth month by quartile (Q1 = January-March) revealed that a RAE was present in this cohort, whereby an over-representation of players born in Q1 compared with Q2, Q3 and Q4 was evident (2 = 14.078, df = 3, p = 0.003). Kruskal-Wallis analysis of the data revealed no significant difference in any of the performance parameters based on quartile of birth (Alpha level = 0.05).This study provides a physical performance profile of juvenile sub-elite Gaelic Games players, comparable with those of other sports such as soccer and rugby. This novel data can inform us of the physical requirements of the sport. The evidence of a RAE is similar to that observed in other contact sports such as soccer and rugby league (Carling et al, 2009; Till et al, 2010). Although a RAE exists in this cohort, this cannot be explained by any physical/physiological moderator variables. Carling C et al. (2009). Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sport 19, 3-9. Delahunt E et al. (2011). Journal of Athletic Training 46, 241-5. Del Campo DG et al. (2010). Journal of Sport Science and Medicine 9, 190-198. Delorme N et al. (2010). European Journal of Sport Science 10, 91-96. Till K et al. (2010). Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports 20, 320-329.

Prolegomenon to the study of the concepts of maturity and maturity model : from Black Horse to White Knight?

This paper takes its root in a trivial observation: management approaches are unable to provide relevant guidelines to cope with uncertainty, and trust of our modern worlds. Thus, managers are looking for reducing uncertainty through information’s supported decision-making, sustained by ex-ante rationalization. They strive to achieve best possible solution, stability, predictability, and control of “future”. Hence, they turn to a plethora of “prescriptive panaceas”, and “management fads” to bring simple solutions through best practices. However, these solutions are ineffective. They address only one part of a system (e.g. an organization) instead of the whole. They miss the interactions and interdependencies with other parts leading to “suboptimization”. Further classical cause-effects investigations and researches are not very helpful to this regard. Where do we go from there? In this conversation, we want to challenge the assumptions supporting the traditional management approaches and shed some lights on the problem of management discourse fad using the concept of maturity and maturity models in the context of temporary organizations as support for reflexion. Global economy is characterized by use and development of standards and compliance to standards as a practice is said to enable better decision-making by managers in uncertainty, control complexity, and higher performance. Amongst the plethora of standards, organizational maturity and maturity models hold a specific place due to general belief in organizational performance as dependent variable of (business) processes continuous improvement, grounded on a kind of evolutionary metaphor. Our intention is neither to offer a new “evidence based management fad” for practitioners, nor to suggest research gap to scholars. Rather, we want to open an assumption-challenging conversation with regards to main stream approaches (neo-classical economics and organization theory), turning “our eyes away from the blinding light of eternal certitude towards the refracted world of turbid finitude” (Long, 2002, p. 44) generating what Bernstein has named “Cartesian Anxiety” (Bernstein, 1983, p. 18), and revisit the conceptualization of maturity and maturity models. We rely on conventions theory and a systemic-discursive perspective. These two lenses have both information & communication and self-producing systems as common threads. Furthermore the narrative approach is well suited to explore complex way of thinking about organizational phenomena as complex systems. This approach is relevant with our object of curiosity, i.e. the concept of maturity and maturity models, as maturity models (as standards) are discourses and systems of regulations. The main contribution of this conversation is that we suggest moving from a neo-classical “theory of the game” aiming at making the complex world simpler in playing the game, to a “theory of the rules of the game”, aiming at influencing and challenging the rules of the game constitutive of maturity models – conventions, governing systems – making compatible individual calculation and social context, and possible the coordination of relationships and cooperation between agents with or potentially divergent interests and values. A second contribution is the reconceptualization of maturity as structural coupling between conventions, rather than as an independent variable leading to organizational performance.

Real time information provision benefit measured by macroscopic fundamental diagram

The existence of Macroscopic Fundamental Diagram (MFD), which relates space-mean density and flow, has been shown in urban networks under homogeneous traffic conditions. Since MFD represents the area-wide network traffic performances, studies on perimeter control strategies and an area traffic state estimation utilizing the MFD concept has been reported. One of the key requirements for well-defined MFD is the homogeneity of the area-wide traffic condition with links of similar properties, which is not universally expected in real world. For the practical application of the MFD concept, several researchers have identified the influencing factors for network homogeneity. However, they did not explicitly take the impact of drivers’ behaviour and information provision into account, which has a significant impact on simulation outputs. This research aims to demonstrate the effect of dynamic information provision on network performance by employing the MFD as a measurement. A microscopic simulation, AIMSUN, is chosen as an experiment platform. By changing the ratio of en-route informed drivers and pre-trip informed drivers different scenarios are simulated in order to investigate how drivers’ adaptation to the traffic congestion influences the network performance with respect to the MFD shape as well as other indicators, such as total travel time. This study confirmed the impact of information provision on the MFD shape, and addressed the usefulness of the MFD for measuring the dynamic information provision benefit.

The voices of the exegesis : Composing the speech genres of the practitioner-researcher into a connective thesis

Postgraduate candidates in the creative arts encounter unique challenges when writing an exegesis (the written document that accompanies creative work as a thesis). As a practitioner-researcher, they must adopt a dual perspective–looking out towards an established field of research, exemplars and theories, as well as inwards towards their experiential creative processes and practice. This dual orientation provides clear benefits, for it enables them to situate the research within its field and make objective claims for the research methodologies and outcomes while maintaining an intimate, voiced relationship with the practice. However, a dual orientation introduces considerable complexities in the writing. It requires a reconciliation of multi-perspectival subject positions: the disinterested academic posture of the observer/ethnographer/analyst/theorist at times; and the invested, subjective stance the practitioner/producer at others. It requires the author to negotiate a range of writing styles and speech genres–from the formal, polemical style of the theorist to the personal, questioning and emotive voice of reflexivity. Moreover, these multi-variant orientations, subject positions, styles and voices must be integrated into a unified and coherent text. In this chapter I offer a conceptual framework and strategies for approaching this relatively new genre of thesis. I begin by summarizing the characteristics of what has begun to emerge as the predominant model of exegesis (the dual-oriented ‘Connective’ exegesis). Framing it against theoretical and philosophical understandings of polyvocality and matrixicality, I go on to point to recent textual models that provide precedents for connecting differently oriented perspectives, subjectivities and voices. I then turn to emergent archives of practice-led research to explain how the challenge of writing a ‘Connective’ exegesis has so far been resolved by higher degree research (HDR) candidates. Exemplars illustrate a range of strategies they have used to compose a multi-perspectival text, reconcile the divergent subject positions of the practitioner researcher, and harmonize the speech genres of a ployvocal text.

Simulation of retrofitted unreinforced concrete masonry unit walls under blast loading

This paper describes an investigation into the effectiveness of using spray-on nano-particle reinforced polymer and aluminium foam as new types of retrofit material to prevent the breaching and collapse of unreinforced concrete masonry walls subjected to blast over a whole range of dynamic and impulsive regimes. Material models from the LSDYNA material library were used to model the behaviors of each of the materials and its interface for retrofitted and unretrofitted masonry walls. Available test data were used to validate the numerical models. Using the validated LS-DYNA numerical models, the pressure-impulse diagrams for retrofitted concrete masonry walls were constructed. The efficiency of using these retrofits to strengthen the unreinforced concrete masonry unit (CMU) walls under various pressures and impulses was investigated using pressure-impulse diagrams. Comparisons were made to find the most efficient retrofits for masonry walls against blasts.

An androgen receptor mutation in the MDA-MB-453 cell line model of molecular apocrine breast cancer compromises receptor activity

Recent evidence indicates that the estrogen receptor-a-negative, androgen receptor (AR)- positive molecular apocrine subtype of breast cancer is driven by AR signaling. The MDA-MB-453 cell line is the prototypical model of this breast cancer subtype; its proliferation is stimulated by androgens such as 5a-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) but inhibited by the progestin medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) via AR-mediated mechanisms. We report here that the AR gene in MDAMB- 453 cells contains a G-T transversion in exon 7, resulting in a receptor variant with a glutamine to histidine substitution at amino acid 865 (Q865H) in the ligand binding domain. Compared with wild-type AR, the Q865H variant exhibited reduced sensitivity to DHT and MPA in transactivation assays in MDA-MB-453 and PC-3 cells but did not respond to non-androgenic ligands or receptor antagonists. Ligand binding, molecular modeling, mammalian two-hybrid and immunoblot assays revealed effects of the Q865H mutation on ligand dissociation, AR intramolecular interactions, and receptor stability. Microarray expression profiling demonstrated that DHT and MPA regulate distinct transcriptional programs in MDA-MB-453 cells. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis revealed that DHT- but not MPA-regulated genes were associated with estrogen-responsive transcriptomes from MCF-7 cells and the Wnt signaling pathway. These findings suggest that the divergent proliferative responses of MDA-MB-453 cells to DHT and MPA result from the different genetic programs elicited by these two ligands through the AR-Q865H variant. This work highlights the necessity to characterize additional models of molecular apocrine breast cancer to determine the precise role of AR signaling in this breast cancer subtype. Endocrine-Related Cancer (2012) 19 599–613

Agent-based model of passenger flows in airport terminals

Passenger flow studies in airport terminals have shown consistent statistical relationships between airport spatial layout and pedestrian movement, facilitating prediction of movement from terminal designs. However, these studies are done at an aggregate level and do not incorporate how individual passengers make decisions at a microscopic level. Therefore, they do not explain the formation of complex movement flows. In addition, existing models mostly focus on standard airport processing procedures such as immigration and security, but seldom consider discretionary activities of passengers, and thus are not able to truly describe the full range of passenger flows within airport terminals. As the route-choice decision-making of passengers involves many uncertain factors within the airport terminals, the mechanisms to fulfill the capacity of managing the route-choice have proven difficult to acquire and quantify. Could the study of cognitive factors of passengers (i.e. human mental preferences of deciding which on-airport facility to use) be useful to tackle these issues? Assuming the movement in virtual simulated environments can be analogous to movement in real environments, passenger behaviour dynamics can be similar to those generated in virtual experiments. Three levels of dynamics have been devised for motion control: the localised field, tactical level, and strategic level. A localised field refers to basic motion capabilities, such as walking speed, direction and avoidance of obstacles. The other two fields represent cognitive route-choice decision-making. This research views passenger flow problems via a "bottom-up approach", regarding individual passengers as independent intelligent agents who can behave autonomously and are able to interact with others and the ambient environment. In this regard, passenger flow formation becomes an emergent phenomenon of large numbers of passengers interacting with others. In the thesis, first, the passenger flow in airport terminals was investigated. Discretionary activities of passengers were integrated with standard processing procedures in the research. The localised field for passenger motion dynamics was constructed by a devised force-based model. Next, advanced traits of passengers (such as their desire to shop, their comfort with technology and their willingness to ask for assistance) were formulated to facilitate tactical route-choice decision-making. The traits consist of quantified measures of mental preferences of passengers when they travel through airport terminals. Each category of the traits indicates a decision which passengers may take. They were inferred through a Bayesian network model by analysing the probabilities based on currently available data. Route-choice decision-making was finalised by calculating corresponding utility results based on those probabilities observed. Three sorts of simulation outcomes were generated: namely, queuing length before checkpoints, average dwell time of passengers at service facilities, and instantaneous space utilisation. Queuing length reflects the number of passengers who are in a queue. Long queues no doubt cause significant delay in processing procedures. The dwell time of each passenger agent at the service facilities were recorded. The overall dwell time of passenger agents at typical facility areas were analysed so as to demonstrate portions of utilisation in the temporal aspect. For the spatial aspect, the number of passenger agents who were dwelling within specific terminal areas can be used to estimate service rates. All outcomes demonstrated specific results by typical simulated passenger flows. They directly reflect terminal capacity. The simulation results strongly suggest that integrating discretionary activities of passengers makes the passenger flows more intuitive, observing probabilities of mental preferences by inferring advanced traits make up an approach capable of carrying out tactical route-choice decision-making. On the whole, the research studied passenger flows in airport terminals by an agent-based model, which investigated individual characteristics of passengers and their impact on psychological route-choice decisions of passengers. Finally, intuitive passenger flows in airport terminals were able to be realised in simulation.

Storytelling beyond the anthropocene : a quest through the crises of ecocide toward new ecological paradigms

This project is a passionate and sometimes enraged thrust toward a biodiverse future. Weaving stories with deep thinking beyond the limits of the anthropocene, I am trying to recall myself in a more-than-human world. Our planet is suffering human induced ecocide which is a global crisis threatening the existence of multiple life forms. The alchemical mix of storytelling and ecological thinking could be part remedy for humanity's adaptation: a transformational mix to re-pattern the crisis into an opportunity and shift anthropocentric structures toward networks of dynamic relationships. The purpose of this project is to explore this cultural remedy. This is a quest, a search for tools that can germinate the hypothesis: storytelling in relation to ecological thinking manifests human potential in a more-than-human world. The practice-led research is guided by the philosophy and practice of Mythology, Deep ecology and Transdisciplinarity. Further navigation is sourced from Systems Thinking, Indigenous Methodologies, Biomimicry, and Quantum Physics. The journey unfolds by reawakening the Artist's function as caretaker of Mythology and pattern inciter for the collective. The resounding discovery of this adventure is Quantum Narratives: a storytelling tool for today's world, a method to connect multiple ways of knowing and diverse languages with the purpose of engaging, relating and working with living knowledge. Quantum Narratives are used to test the field study research into the Future of Water in context of Coal Seam Gas Mining in the Murray-Darling Basin and to materialise the collaborative results as the Water Stories. This thesis is a Living Script, full of imagination and complexity. Within its folds are strategies for systemic change ready to be adapted by policy and planning brokers and those who hold power for widespread remedial action.

Comments on the phase diagrams and crystallisation paths of Y-Ba-Cu-O materials

Our micro structural characterisation of Y-Ba-Cu-O quenched partial melts shows that the BaCuO2 (BC1) phase is crystalline at temperatures as high as 1100°C, and that the partial melt self-establishes a micro structural gradient from the surface towards the interior of the samples, which can be associated with a gradient in an equivalent partial pressure of O2 (pO2). The extension of the Y2BaCuO5-YBa2Cu3O7-x (Y211-Y123) tie-line intersects the primary crystallisation field of BC1 first. The actual peritectic reaction that takes place is Y2BaCuO5(s) + BaCuO2(s) + 2BaCu2O2(L) + 1/2O2 → 2YBa2Cu3O6(s). Two schematic representations which allow an analysis of the pO2 dependence are given. The gradient in micro structure self-established by the sample acts as a driving force for texturing. With this new perspective gained about the actual peritectic reaction and mechanisms of melt-texturing of Y123, it is possible to explain most of the aspects about partial melt-texturing. In addition, it seems possible to devise heat treatments that may allow for the production of well-oriented single domains with very large diameters. © 1999 Elsevier Science B.V.

Early time course of Akt phosphorylation after endurance and resistance exercise

Purpose The aim of this study was to determine the early time course of exercise-induced signaling after divergent contractile activity associated with resistance and endurance exercise. Methods Sixteen male subjects were randomly assigned to either a cycling (CYC; n = 8, 60 min, 70% V?O2peak) or resistance (REX; n = 8, 8×5 leg extension, 80% one-repetition maximum, 3-min recovery) exercise group. Serial muscle biopsies were obtained from vastus lateralis at rest before, immediately after, and after 15, 30, and 60 min of passive recovery to determine early signaling responses after exercise. Results There were comparable increases from rest in AktThr308/Ser473 and mTORSer2448 phosphorylation during the postexercise time course that peaked 30-60 min after both CYC and REX (P<0.05). There were also similar patterns in p70S6K Thr389 and 4E-BP1Thr37/46 phosphorylation, but a greater magnitude of effect was observed for REX and CYC, respectively (P<0.05). However, AMPKThr172 phosphorylation was only significantly elevated after CYC (P<0.05), and we observed divergent responses for glycogen synthaseSer641 and AS160 phosphorylation that were enhanced after CYC but not REX (P<0.05). Conclusions We show a similar time course for Akt-mTOR-S6K phosphorylation during the initial 60-min recovery period after divergent contractile stimuli. Conversely, enhanced phosphorylation status of proteins that promote glucose transport and glycogen synthesis only occurred after endurance exercise. Our results indicate that endurance and resistance exercise initiate translational signaling, but high-load, low-repetition contractile activity failed to promote phosphorylation of pathways regulating glucose metabolism.

Effect of consecutive repeated sprint and resistance exercise bouts on acute adaptive responses in human skeletal muscle

We examined acute molecular responses in skeletal muscle to repeated sprint and resistance exercise bouts. Six men [age, 24.7 ± 6.3 yr; body mass, 81.6 ± 7.3 kg; peak oxygen uptake, 47 ± 9.9 ml·kg -1 ·min -1; one repetition maximum (1-RM) leg extension 92.2 ± 12.5 kg; means ± SD] were randomly assigned to trials consisting of either resistance exercise (8 × 5 leg extension, 80% 1-RM) followed by repeated sprints (10 × 6 s, 0.75 N·m torque·kg -1) or vice-versa. Muscle biopsies from vastus lateralis were obtained at rest, 15 min after each exercise bout, and following 3-h recovery to determine early signaling and mRNA responses. There was divergent exercise order-dependent phosphorylation of p70 S6K (S6K). Specifically, initial resistance exercise increased S6K phosphorylation (?75% P < 0.05), but there was no effect when resistance exercise was undertaken after sprints. Exercise decreased IGF-I mRNA following 3-h recovery (?50%, P = 0.06) independent of order, while muscle RING finger mRNA was elevated with a moderate exercise order effect (P < 0.01). When resistance exercise was followed by repeated sprints PGC-1? mRNA was increased (REX1-SPR2; P = 0.02) with a modest distinction between exercise orders. Repeated sprints may promote acute interference on resistance exercise responses by attenuating translation initiation signaling and exacerbating ubiquitin ligase expression. Indeed, repeated sprints appear to generate the overriding acute exercise-induced response when undertaking concurrent repeated sprint and resistance exercise. Accordingly, we suggest that sprint-activities are isolated from resistance training and that adequate recovery time is considered within periodized training plans that incorporate these divergent exercise modes.

Consecutive bouts of diverse contractile activity alter acute responses in human skeletal muscle

We examined acute molecular responses in skeletal muscle to divergent exercise stimuli by combining consecutive bouts of resistance and endurance exercise. Eight men [22.9 ± 6.3 yr, body mass of 73.2 ± 4.5 kg, peak O2 uptake (V?O2peak) of 54.0 ± 5.7 ml·kg-1·min-1] were randomly assigned to complete trials consisting of either resistance exercise (8 x 5 leg extension, 80% 1 repetition maximum) followed by a bout of endurance exercise (30 min cycling, 70% V?O2peak) or vice versa. Muscle biopsies were obtained from the vastus lateralis at rest, 15 min after each exercise bout, and after 3 h of passive recovery to determine early signaling and mRNA responses. Phosphorylation of Akt and Akt1Ser473 were elevated 15 min after resistance exercise compared with cycling, with the greatest increase observed when resistance exercise followed cycling (?55%; P < 0.01). TSC2-mTOR-S6 kinase phosphorylation 15 min after each bout of exercise was similar regardless of the exercise mode. The cumulative effect of combined exercise resulted in disparate mRNA responses. IGF-I mRNA content was reduced when cycling preceded resistance exercise (-42%), whereas muscle ring finger mRNA was elevated when cycling was undertaken after resistance exercise (?52%; P < 0.05). The hexokinase II mRNA level was higher after resistance cycling (?45%; P < 0.05) than after cycling-resistance exercise, whereas modest increases in peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1? mRNA did not reveal an order effect. We conclude that acute responses to diverse bouts of contractile activity are modified by the exercise order. Moreover, undertaking divergent exercise in close proximity influences the acute molecular profile and likely exacerbates acute "interference".

Traits of fear resistance and susceptibility in an advanced intercross line

Genetic variability in the strength and precision of fear memory is hypothesised to contribute to the etiology of anxiety disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder. We generated fear-susceptible (F-S) or fear-resistant (F-R) phenotypes from an F8 advanced intercross line (AIL) of C57BL/6J and DBA/2J inbred mice by selective breeding. We identified specific traits underlying individual variability in Pavlovian conditioned fear learning and memory. Offspring of selected lines differed in the acquisition of conditioned fear. Furthermore, F-S mice showed greater cued fear memory and generalised fear in response to a novel context than F-R mice. F-S mice showed greater basal corticosterone levels and hypothalamic corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) mRNA levels than F-R mice, consistent with higher hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis drive. Hypothalamic mineralocorticoid receptor and CRH receptor 1 mRNA levels were decreased in F-S mice as compared with F-R mice. Manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MEMRI) was used to investigate basal levels of brain activity. MEMRI identified a pattern of increased brain activity in F-S mice that was driven primarily by the hippocampus and amygdala, indicating excessive limbic circuit activity in F-S mice as compared with F-R mice. Thus, selection pressure applied to the AIL population leads to the accumulation of heritable trait-relevant characteristics within each line, whereas non-behaviorally relevant traits remain distributed. Selected lines therefore minimise false-positive associations between behavioral phenotypes and physiology. We demonstrate that intrinsic differences in HPA axis function and limbic excitability contribute to phenotypic differences in the acquisition and consolidation of associative fear memory. Identification of system-wide traits predisposing to variability in fear memory may help in the direction of more targeted and efficacious treatments for fear-related pathology. Through short-term selection in a B6D2 advanced intercross line we created mouse populations divergent for the retention of Pavlovian fear memory. Trait distinctions in HPA-axis drive and fear network circuitry could be made between naïve animals in the two lines. These data demonstrate underlying physiological and neurological differences between Fear-Susceptible and Fear-Resistant animals in a natural population. F-S and F-R mice may therefore be relevant to a spectrum of disorders including depression, anxiety disorders and PTSD for which altered fear processing occurs.