Eugenol as an anti-stress agent: modulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and brain monoaminergic systems in a rat model of stress

Stress is the leading psychopathological cause for several mental disorders. Physiological and psychological responses to stress are mediated by the hypothalamic?pituitary?adrenal (HPA), sympathoadrenal system (SAS), and brain monoaminergic systems (BMS). Eugenol is reported to substantially modulate brain functions by regulating voltage-gated cation channels and release of neurotransmitters. This study was designed to evaluate the anti-stress effect of eugenol in the 4-h restraint model using rats. Ulcer index was measured as a parameter of the stress response. HPA axis and the SAS were monitored by estimating plasma corticosterone and norepinephrine (NE), respectively. Analysis of NE, serotonin (5-HT), dopamine, and their metabolites in discrete brain regions was performed to understand the role of BMS in the anti-stress effect of eugenol. Stress exposure increased the ulcer index as well as plasma corticosterone and NE levels. Eugenol pretreatment for 7 days decreased the stress-induced increase in ulcer index and plasma corticosterone but not NE levels, indicating a preferential effect on the HPA axis. Furthermore, eugenol showed a ?U?-shaped dose?response curve in decreasing ulcer index and plasma corticosterone levels. Eugenol also reversed the stress-induced changes in 5-HT levels in all brain regions, whereas NE levels were reversed in all brain regions except hippocampus. These results suggest that eugenol possesses significant anti-stress activity in the 4-h restraint model and the effect is due to modulation of HPA and BMS.     

Genetics of emotional regulation: the role of the serotonin transporter in neural function

Identifying biological mechanisms through which genes lead to individual differences in emotional behavior is paramount to our understanding of how such differences confer risk for neuropsychiatric illness. The emergence of techniques such as in vivo imaging of brain function in humans and genetic engineering in rodents has provided important new insights into the impact of serotonin (5-HT), a key modulator of emotional behavior, on neural systems subserving anxiety and depression. A major finding has been the discovery of genetic variation in a crucial regulatory molecule within the 5-HT system, the 5HT transporter (5-HTT), and its influence on emotional traits. The study of the 5-HTT provides a new foundation for understanding the neurobiological and genetic basis of emotional regulation and affective illness.     

Describing the Acquisition of Determiners in English: A Growth Modeling Approach

This paper, based on naturalistic data, describes the acquisitional course and use of the articles a and the in young English-speaking children (18-61 months), with special emphasis on the role of individual variation. A growth modeling approach to the data reveals that children's individual acquisition schedules are similar in trend, but vary in the rate at which they omit determiners at a given point of time. This picture suggests that an analysis that presumes homogeneous development will seriously misrepresent the fluctuations between and within individuals. Interestingly, this variation does not reflect a variation in children's abilities to use determiners correctly-irrespective of the rate in which they used determiners, children seldom used determiners incorrectly. The analysis also reveals that children's optional omission of determiners in obligatory contexts, beginning at 18 months of age, gradually decreases on average by 3-4% a month until 36 months of age, and thereafter plunges by a factor of 10 to an average of 0.3% per month. At 36 month of age the majority of children use determiners at a near-mastery level (Brown, 1973). These findings provide a useful framework for theorizing about possible mechanisms underlying the nature of early language development pre- and post-36 months of age.     

Classification rules for basic phonological processing disabilities and nonverbal learning disabilities: formulation and external validity.

Rules for the classification of two subtypes of learning disabilities (LD), namely, Basic Phonological Processing Disabilities (BPPD) and Nonverbal Learning Disabilities (NLD), are reported. These rules (refined as a result of application to two separate samples of children with LD) were used to select children from an entirely new sample who could be classified as having "definite" or "probable" BPPD or NLD. As a first step in the external validation of these rules, the patterns of psychosocial functioning exhibited by these two subtypes of LD were determined. As predicted, the vast majority of the BPPD subtype exhibited a pattern most consistent with normal or relatively normal psychosocial adjustment, and no appreciable increase in the incidence of significant psychosocial disturbance with advancing years. Also, as predicted, an increasing incidence of internalized psychosocial dysfunction (a form of significant psychosocial disturbance) was evident in the NLD subtype with advancing years. It is clear that children classified as having BPPD or NLD using these rules exhibit quite different, and predicted, relative patterns of psychosocial functioning. Thus, in this sense, the rules have concurrent validity. Finally, sets of rules/criteria for classification are presented that reflect their actual incidence in the two subtypes of LD generated for use in the validation phase of this investigation. These rules would appear to be useful for clinical purposes. It is also clear that they should be subjected to further validation studies in a broader age range for clinical and research purposes.     

The fundamentality of existence or quiddity: a confusion between epistemology and ontology

Regarding the exhaustive discussions of the fundamentality of existence versus the fundamentality of quiddity, it is a necessary preliminary to examine and analyze the first documented statement of the fundamentality of existence. Following this, we must inquire how the concept is obtained on the basis of which such a judgment could be formed. Then we must illuminate the meaning of propositions that state only that an object is or exists (ontological propositions). Finally, by explaining the meaning of the words “quiddity” and “existence” and comparing them, indications are found of confusion between epistemological and ontological issues.

The Ahmadiyya and the Study of Comparative Religion in Indonesia: Controversies and Influences

As an organization of foreign origin, the existence and contribution of the Ahmadiyya in Indonesia has been a subject of debate. Some scholars ignore it completely as unimportant, while others consider that it has had significant influence. The contribution of the Ahmadiyya to Indonesian Islam most asserted by the movement itself is its efforts to check and respond to Christian missionary activity. In what way has the movement actually made a contribution to that effort? How widespread is the influence of the Ahmadiyya in the discourse on Christianity, in particular, and the study of comparative religion, in general, in Indonesia? Why has the Ahmadiyya paid more attention to the issue of Christianity than other Muslim groups? This article aims to answer these questions by analysing literature on Christianity written and distributed by the Ahmadiyya in Indonesia and the effect this has had on relations between Islam and Christianity in two fields – religious mission and academia. The article presents three propositions. First, Ahmadiyya literature, with its apologetic, polemical and controversial character, had a significant influence on the academic study of comparative religion during two periods of instability: the late colonial era and the first two decades after the declaration of independence in 1945. Second, Ahmadiyya literature on Christianity has been most influential through the way it sets out to create a sense of the superiority of Islam and its compatibility with modernity. Third, for the Ahmadiyya, the issue of Christianity, particularly the death of Jesus, has been used as evidence that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is the second Messiah.