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Brooding in the octocoral Xenia macrospiculata is described. Young planulae of X. macrospiculata were found in brooding pouches located below the anthocodia among the polyps' cavities. These cavities are connected by and lined with ectoderm. Detached zooxanthellae were present within the brooding pouches, and are most probably acquired later by the planulae. The zooxanthellae enter into ectodermal ameboid cells by phagocytosis, and are then transferred to the endoderm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Pediatric brain tumor survivors (PBTS) are at risk for neurocognitive late effects that can resemble symptoms of cognitive disengagement syndrome (CDS). In the current study, we compared the CDS symptoms of PBTS to those of healthy comparison classmates (CC) and examined whether CDS might explain group differences in depressive symptoms. We also explored whether CDS symptoms were associated with engagement-based coping strategies and stress responses, thereby testing one mechanism by which CDS could lead to affective difficulties., Methods: Data were from a larger, multisite study examining the psychosocial impact of pediatric brain tumors on survivors (ages 8-15; 1- to 5-year post-treatment) and their families. PBTS (n = 68) and CC (n = 64) were matched on age and sex and reported depressive symptoms, coping strategies, and stress responses during a home-based assessment. Caregivers reported child CDS symptoms. Analyses used multiple regression with post hoc bootstrapping to test indirect effects., Results: CDS symptoms were elevated in PBTS compared to CC (d = 0.49, p = .005), and elevated CDS symptoms partially explained higher depressive symptoms for PBTS. Exploratory serial mediation models suggested that coping strategies and stress responses did not account for the relationship between CDS and depressive symptoms. Alternative mechanisms to explain the association between CDS and depressive symptoms are discussed., Conclusions: CDS may be a relevant framework to understand why some PBTS are at risk for depressive symptoms. Although additional research is needed, clinicians should consider screening for CDS symptoms to assess risk for depressive symptoms in survivorship., (© The Author(s) 2025. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Aims: To develop a comprehensive etiological model of pathological gambling (PG) for men and women based on Kendler's development model for major depression, which groups 22 risk factors into five developmental tiers (childhood, early adolescence, late adolescence, adulthood, last year). We hypothesized that: (1) all risk factors would be associated significantly with PG; (2) the effect of risk factors in earlier developmental tiers would be accounted for by later tiers; and (3) there would be few gender differences., Design: Separate models were built for life-time gambling and for 12-month PG among those with life-time gambling., Setting: Data drawn from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) in the United States., Participants: Respondents to NESARC wave 1 (n = 43 093)., Measurements: Odds ratios (OR) and adjusted OR (AOR) were used to determine the risk factors in multiple models., Findings: After mutually adjusting for other risk factors, family history of substance use disorders (SUD) or depression, impulsivity, childhood-onset anxiety, number of Axis I and II disorders, history of SUD, nicotine dependence, social deviance in adulthood, and past-year history of SUD, nicotine dependence and independent stressful life events predicted life-time gambling. Past history of PG, number of personality disorders and past year nicotine dependence were associated significantly with 12-month PG (all P < 0.05). There were no significant gender interactions for 12-month PG., Conclusions: A modification of Kendler's model for major depression provides a foundation for the development of a comprehensive developmental model of pathological gambling. Life-time history of gambling and 12-month pathological gambling appear to be determined by risk factors in several developmental levels, with the effect of earlier development tiers accounted for by later ones., (© 2015 Society for the Study of Addiction.)

The interrelationship between the effect of serum on the induction of porphyrin synthesis, intracellular porphyrin accumulation and photodynamic sensitization of human K562 cells is described. Endogenous porphyrins, synthesized from supplemented 5-amino levulinic acid (5-ALA), were shown to accumulate in the cells, while an addition of serum triggered porphyrin translocation from the cell to the serum. In order to enhance porphyrin accumulation in the cells themselves, they were further stimulated by EDTA, which in combination with 5-ALA reduces Fe++ cellular content. The higher porphyrin cellular content under EDTA and 5-ALA induction was exploited to photoinactivate the human leukemic cells by more then 3 orders of magnitude.

Photoactivated porphyrins display a potent cytotoxic activity towards a variety of Gram positive bacteria, mycoplasma and yeasts, but not Gram negative cells. The prerequisite for photosensitization of a microbial cell is the binding of porphyrin to the cytoplasmic membrane in a pH-dependent manner. On illumination, the membrane bound, and possibly, cytoplasmic porphyrin molecules generate singlet oxygen and radicals which sensitize biomolecules and lead to cell death. The immediate inhibition of cell growth on photodynamic treatment is accompanied by alterations in cell wall and membrane synthesis, leading to the formation of large mesosomes adjacent to the unaccomplished septa. Hemin bound to microbial cells exerts cytotoxic activity by peroxidative and oxidative reactions independent of light. Future research in the field may enhance the possibility of using porphyrin photosensitization for treatment of microbial infections. Such clinical use will be unrelated to the antibiotic resistance of the pathogen. Resistance of Gram negative bacteria to porphyrin photosensitization is the main impediment to its use as a broad spectrum antibacterial method.

The late events of erythroid differentiation in Friend erythroleukemic cells (FELC), stimulated by 5-amino levulinic acid (5-ALA), were studied. Cultivation of the cells in 5-ALA-enriched media triggered a chain reaction, beginning with an immediate and rapid accumulation of endogenous porphyrins, in particular protoporphyrin and hemin. Incorporation of 14C-ALA was rapid and independent of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) induction. In parallel, on the second day of growth, a marked decrease in cell volume was elucidated by flow cytometry. The total protein content was reduced, while Fe uptake and hemoglobin synthesis were increased. The combination of DMSO and 5-ALA produced the most effective induction of the FELC, and the differentiation criteria were the most advanced. The cells exposed to the combined stimulation became loaded with heme and hemoglobin and their generation time was prolonged up to 35 h. Transmission electron microscopy of these treated cells showed a morphological alteration to pearlike cells, associated with a typical nuclear translocation phenomenon and a regional segregation of sialoglycoproteins. An uneven distribution of organelles was revealed; one part of the cell contained numerous ribosomes and the nucleus, while the other part was hemoglobinized, contained mitochondria, and the outer membrane was heavily labeled with ferritin hydrazide, a marker for sialoglycoproteins. The enhanced stimulation of Friend cells by 5-ALA promoted an advanced step of erythroid maturation that has much in common with the late events of normal nuclear extrusion process.