Effect of l-Arginine on Nitric Oxide Levels in Intrauterine Growth Restriction and its Correlation with Fetal Outcome

The current management of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) being empirical and aimed at selecting a safe time for delivery. Acknowledging the beneficial effects of l-arginine on endothelial vasculature the present study was designed to evaluate efficacy of l-arginine on bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO) with respect to fetal outcome. With l-arginine supplementation, mean NO levels were significantly increased and a significant mild reduction in systolic/end-diastolic velocity ratio (S/D ratio) was observed on doppler blood flow study, also neonatal outcome improved and incidences of complications were lowered. A deficiency in NO may play an important role in the causation of asymmetric fetal growth restriction. l-Arginine can be used to increase maternal NO levels, enhancing birth weight and decreasing neonatal morbidity. The ideal candidate for arginine therapy according to our study would be IUGR cases with S/D ratio less than 4.96 ± 0.49 and NO levels below 33 μmol/L with minimum of 3 weeks duration of arginine supplementation.     

The life of Henry Eyring

In this era of blurring boundaries between various disciplines of science and technology, Henry Eyring stands tall as one of the earliest examples. Starting with a degree in mining, to becoming one of the greatest theoretical chemists ever; it was a journey guided by passion and curiosity. Eyring??s first brush with reaction kinetics came at the age of 23, after which his enthusiasm for the subject continued unabated. ??Potential Energy Surfaces??, that he developed along with Polyani and his ??Activated Complex Theory??, completely changed the face of reaction kinetics. This article will cover the exciting life of Eyring.     

Preservice Elementary Teachers’ Science Self-Efficacy Beliefs and Science Content Knowledge

Self-efficacy beliefs that relate to teachers’ motivation and performance have been an important area of concern for preservice teacher education. Research suggests high-quality science coursework has the potential to shape preservice teachers’ science self-efficacy beliefs. However, there are few studies examining the relationship between science self-efficacy beliefs and science content knowledge. The purpose of this mixed methods study is to investigate changes in preservice teachers’ science self-efficacy beliefs and science content knowledge and the relationship between the two variables as they co-evolve in a specialized science content course. Results from pre- and post-course administrations of the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument-B (Bleicher, 2004) and a physical science concept test along with semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and artifacts served as data sources for the study. The 18 participants belonged to three groups representing low, medium and high initial levels of self-efficacy beliefs. A repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance design was used to test the significance of differences between the pre- and post-surveys across time. Results indicated statistically significant gains in participants’ science self-efficacy beliefs and science conceptual understandings. Additionally, a positive moderate relationship between gains in science conceptual understandings and gains in personal science teaching efficacy beliefs was found. Qualitative analysis of the participants’ responses indicated positive shifts in their science teacher self-image and they credited their experiences in the course as sources of new levels of confidence to teach science. The study includes implications for preservice teacher education programs, science teacher education, and research.     

身体成分研究的10大问题

摘要：理解身体成分对于理解人体健康、疾病和功能至关重要。身体成分的研究集中在评估方法的改进、对随着生长发育和老龄化身体成分正常变化的描述、以及由于疾病和计划性干预带来的身体成分的变化。每个关注点都很重要,从某种意义上来说,它们是相互依赖的。因为技术的进步使得更多复杂的问题被解决,反过来也推动研究方法的更好发展。尽管基础性的问题仍然存在,但每个领域里都有了明显进步。例如：生长发育的轨迹往往用横断面数据进行评估,考虑到也需要长期观察性资料,因此,也需要纵向描述性数据。随着实验室方法的改进,场地测试方法的发展对于筛选受试者和临床实践仍然具有重要意义。尽管已经认识到了干预应答存在广泛个体差异,但结果的均值仍然受到重视。随着技术的进步,可以研究引起身体成分变化的遗传和非遗传因素,但这些技术需要先应用于长期、控制严格的试验。在本文中,我们提出了该领域需要进行研究的10大问题,以推动该领域的发展。