Measures of attention deficit. Part II: Clinical perspectives and test interpretation

Assessment of circulating proteins in thyroid cancer: Proteome-wide Mendelian randomization and colocalization analysis

The causality between circulating proteins and thyroid cancer (TC) remains unclear. We employed five large-scale circulating proteomic genome-wide association studies (GWASs) with up to 100,000 participants and a TC meta-GWAS (nCase = 3,418, nControl = 292,703) to conduct proteome-wide Mendelian randomization (MR) and Bayesian colocalization analysis. Protein and gene expressions were validated in thyroid tissue. Through MR analysis, we identified 26 circulating proteins with a putative causal relationship with TCs, among which NANS protein passed multiple corrections (P BH = 3.28e-5, 0.05/1,525). These proteins were involved in amino acids and organic acid synthesis pathways. Colocalization analysis further identified six proteins associated with TCs (VCAM1, LGMN, NPTX1, PLEKHA7, TNFAIP3, and BMP1). Tissue validation confirmed BMP1, LGMN, and PLEKHA7's differential expression between normal and TC tissues. We found limited evidence for linking circulating proteins and the risk of TCs. Our study highlighted the contribution of proteins, particularly those involved in amino acid metabolism, to TCs.

Assessment of anxiety in adolescents involved in a study abroad program: a prospective study

Objective The aim of the study was to measure the effects on levels of anxiety in healthy teenagers caused by a temporary change of country and school during a study abroad program. Methods In a prospective study we gathered the data from six anxiety level related tests on high school participants in a study abroad program (age 15-17, n = 364, M 172, F 192). These volunteer participants were divided into two separate groups: with self-reported elevated levels of anxiety (n = 111; YES-group) and with self-reported normal levels of anxiety (n = 253; NO-group). Two control groups of schoolchildren drawn from two local schools were used for comparison (n = 100 each). Three tests were subjective, i.e. self-fill-out tests. The next three tests were objective psychological or neurophysiological tests designed to estimate reflex control, concentration and a feeling for the passage of time. Results The initial mean anxiety level score among the 364 participants was 41.5 ± 16.7 (min 16, max 80) on 5-110 scale. For the YES-group the score was 56.5 ± 15.9, and for the NO-group the score was 34.7 ± 17.4 (p = 0.05). The retesting after they had been in the same place for 7 weeks revealed that the mean anxiety level score of the participants decreased to 37.4 ± 16.9 (min 15, max 72). For the YES-group the score significantly decreased to 39.3 ± 15.5, and for the NO-group the score slightly elevated to 36.7 ± 16.4 producing similar results for both groups (p = 0.81). Conclusion A temporary change of country and school at first results in a rise in anxiety levels in about one third of participants. However, after an extended stay it falls to normal levels.

A model for combined assessment of motor performance and behaviour in 3-year-old children

This paper presents a new model for combined assessment of motor performance and behaviour (CAMPB) in 3-year-old children. It is intended for simultaneous use with a scale for assessment of motor-perceptual development. The child's performance is observed and compared with detailed descriptions of performance in gross and fine motor functions, and descriptions of coordination, attention and social behaviour, included in a protocol. An overall evaluation is also made. These assessments have been performed in a longitudinal follow-up study of children who needed intensive care neonatally and a control group of 72 neonatally healthy children. In this report the results from CAMPB assessments in the control group are presented. CAMPB together with the motor-perceptual scale was feasible in these 3-year-old children and CAMPB was sensitive enough to detect differences between children. The motor performance in most children conformed with the descriptions of gross and fine motor function in the protocol, and clear deviations were few. Seven per cent of the children had considerable problems in motor function and/or perception, in combination with a lack of attention, according to the overall evaluation.