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Minimal Reductions (minimal + reduction)
Selected AbstractsEffects of post-density gradient swim-up on apoptosis signalling in human spermatozoaANDROLOGIA, Issue 2 2010S. Grunewald Summary The inclusion of apoptotic spermatozoa during assisted reproductive techniques (ART) may be one reason for suboptimal success rates. The aim of our study was to evaluate the potential of routine semen preparation to eliminate spermatozoa with activated apoptosis signalling. Semen samples from 20 infertility patients scheduled for ART procedures were investigated. Following density gradient centrifugation (DGC) and swim-up, aliquots were taken from each sample to analyse motility, Caspase-3 activation (CP3) and integrity of the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) using flow cytometry. Aliquots from the neat semen served as controls. Semen samples of patients contained 53.8 ± 17.7% spermatozoa with disrupted MMP and 51.8 ± 14.9% with active CP3. Preparation by DGC and swim-up resulted in improvement of progressive motility (+43.5%) and reduction of spermatozoa with disrupted MMP (,34.3%) and activated CP3 (,25.7%, P < 0.01). Minimal reduction of spermatozoa with disrupted MMP and active CP3 was 6.0% and 0.7%, maximum reduction was 65.5% (disrupted MMP) and 49.3% (CP3). Semen samples of subfertile patients contain high levels of spermatozoa with activated apoptosis signalling. Although there was a reduction in the majority of the samples, profound interindividual differences in the separation effect demand further development of innovative molecular-based separation methods to deplete apoptotic spermatozoa. [source] Evaluation of canola oils as alternative lipid resources in diets for juvenile red seabream, Pagrus auratusAQUACULTURE NUTRITION, Issue 5 2003B. Glencross Abstract This study examined three potential oil resources, crude and refined canola oil and refined soybean oil as replacements for added dietary fish oil in diets for juvenile red seabream. These oil resources were evaluated for their potential to replace added fish oil (40 g kg,1) in fishmeal based (600 g kg,1) diets, with 100 g kg,1 of total lipids. Each of the three plant oils was used to replace 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% of the added dietary fish oil. Each of the three plant oils showed potential as a replacement for dietary fish oil, although a significant reduction in growth and feed utilisation was observed with the complete (100%) replacement of added fish oil by crude canola oil. No other significant effects of oil type or inclusion level on growth were apparent. A negative control (no added fish oil or plant oil, 60 g kg,1 of total lipid) yielded poorer growth than all treatments except the diet containing 40 g kg,1 of added crude canola oil (100% replacement). This observation confirmed that the added oils were utilized by the fish. A positive control diet containing 80 g kg,1 of added fish oil (140 g kg,1 total dietary lipid) sustained the best growth in the study, confirming that the 13 experimental diets were energy limiting as planned. Notably, few effects of the alternative oils were seen on the proximate composition of the fish. However, the influence of the alternative oils on the tissue fatty acid composition was considerable, irrespective of plant oil type or processing grade. Particularly notable was the overall increase in the level of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the tissues of the fish fed the plant oil diets, with these trends becoming more apparent with the greater levels of fish oil replacement. Minimal reductions in the levels of the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids of eicosapentaenoic (20:5n-3) and docosahexaenoic (22:6n-3) acid were observed from any of the plant oil treatments. Sensory assessment, by an Australian taste panel, of the fish fed the fish oil reference, or the 100% replacement by refined canola or refined soybean diets showed a preference in order of canola oil > soybean oil > fish oil fed fish. Clearly, both canola and soybean oils have considerable potential as replacements of fish oils in diets for this species. [source] Vagal tone as an indicator of treatment response in major depressionPSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 6 2002Andrea S. Chambers Increased vagal tone has been associated with treatment success using pharmacological agents and cognitive-behavioral treatment in major depression, but not using electroconvulsive therapy. The present study investigated whether increases in vagal tone would be associated with favorable treatment response with nonpharmacological treatment. At baseline and following treatment, 16 subjects were administered the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) followed by electrocardiographic recording. Those with little change in vagal tone from before to after treatment showed minimal reduction in HRSD score (,4.8); those with larger vagal tone change showed a large decrease in HRSD score (,14.8). Changes in vagal tone are thus related to favorable treatment response in depression, and do not represent anticholinergic pharmacological effects. Future work manipulating vagal tone might prove informative in teasing apart the causal role of vagal tone and depression. [source] Modeling the Practical Effects of Applicant Reactions: Subgroup Differences in Test-Taking Motivation, Test Performance, and Selection RatesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SELECTION AND ASSESSMENT, Issue 4 2002Robert E. Ployhart Research suggests that Black,White differences in test-taking motivation may be related to subgroup test score differences, but this research has not shown the extent to which minimizing subgroup motivation differences will reduce subgroup differences in selection rates and adverse impact. This Monte Carlo study examined how enhancing Blacks' test-taking motivation for cognitive ability tests might reduce adverse impact across a range of (a) subgroup test differences, (b) selection ratios, (c) subgroup differences in test-taking motivation, and (d) relationships between motivation and test scores. The results suggest that although enhancing test-taking motivation will consistently reduce subgroup differences in test performance and adverse impact, the effect is often small and will not eliminate adverse impact for any condition we examine. However, under some conditions the reduction may be important, and the discussion considers conditions where even these minimal reductions may be practically helpful. [source] Chronic telogen effluvium is due to a reduction in the variance of anagen durationAUSTRALASIAN JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 3 2010Stephen Gilmore ABSTRACT Background/Objectives:, Chronic telogen effluvium and diffuse cyclical hair loss in women are well-described clinical entities characterized by chronic and fluctuating increases in hair shedding without loss of hair volume. We sought to investigate the follicular dynamics of chronic telogen effluvium and diffuse cyclical hair loss using a previously validated computer simulation known as the follicular automaton. Methods:, Using our model, we were able to simulate reductions in both the mean and variance of anagen duration and thus investigate their consequences with respect to both hair volume and hair shedding. Results:, We showed that reducing the mean anagen duration results in a loss of hair volume without prominent fluctuations in hair fall: findings that reproduced the key features in androgenetic alopecia. In contrast, a reduction in the variance of anagen duration generated follicular dynamics that accurately reproduced the known key features of chronic telogen effluvium and diffuse cyclical hair loss: acute exacerbations, periodicity and only minimal reductions in long-term hair volume. Conclusions:, We provide evidence that suggests chronic telogen effluvium may be secondary to a reduction in the variance of anagen and suggest this pathological state represents a new functional type of recurrent hair shedding. [source] | ||||||||||