Focus group interviews were conducted with 14 adolescents with asthma to explore self-management behavior, in particular with regard to adherence behavior. In addition, the adolescents discussed their feelings about having asthma, gave insight into how they evaluate the provided health care, and made recommendations for healthcare providers and for the development of patient education materials. The majority of participants did not take their prophylactic asthma medication regularly, and were rather late in starting to use their bronchodilator. They were sometimes fed up with having asthma. Moreover, the majority of participants were not always frank in telling their pediatrician how they managed their asthma. Finally, they found it essential that information about asthma should be given personally and not by means of leaflets, and recommended that healthcare providers should use audio-visual aids to illustrate what they are explaining. The results of the focus group interviews have been used for the development of an intervention program which aims at enhancing adherence in adolescents with asthma.

RationaleDisturbed reward processing in humans has been associated with a number of disorders, such as depression, addiction, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. The endocannabinoid (eCB) system has been implicated in reward processing in animals, but in humans, the relation between eCB functioning and reward is less clear.ObjectivesThe current study uses functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the role of the eCB system in reward processing in humans by examining the effect of the eCB agonist Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on reward-related brain activity.MethodsEleven healthy males participated in a randomized placebo-controlled pharmacological fMRI study with administration of THC to challenge the eCB system. We compared anticipatory and feedback-related brain activity after placebo and THC, using a monetary incentive delay task. In this task, subjects are notified before each trial whether a correct response is rewarded (“reward trial”) or not (“neutral trial”).ResultsSubjects showed faster reaction times during reward trials compared to neutral trials, and this effect was not altered by THC. THC induced a widespread attenuation of the brain response to feedback in reward trials but not in neutral trials. Anticipatory brain activity was not affected.ConclusionsThese results suggest a role for the eCB system in the appreciation of rewards. The involvement of the eCB system in feedback processing may be relevant for disorders in which appreciation of natural rewards may be affected such as addiction.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00213-011-2428-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

OBJECTIVE Poor sleep has been identified as a risk factor for poor glycemic control in individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D). As optimal sleep can be characterized in several ways, we evaluated which sleep characteristics are most strongly associated with glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A total of 172 patients with T2D completed 7-day wrist-actigraphy and sleep questionnaires. Linear regression was used to evaluate associations between sleep measures (total sleep duration, variability in sleep duration, midsleep time, variability in midsleep time, sleep efficiency, subjective sleep quality, and subjective insomnia symptoms) and HbA1c, individually and in concert. RESULTS Variability in sleep duration was individually most strongly associated with HbA1c (β = 0.239; P = 0.002; R2 = 4.9%), followed by total sleep duration (U-shaped: β = 1.161/β2 = 1.044; P = 0.017/0.032; R2 = 4.3%), subjective sleep quality (β = 0.191; P = 0.012; R2 = 3.6%), variability in midsleep time (β = 0.184; P = 0.016; R2 = 3.4%), and sleep efficiency (β = −0.150; R2 = 2.3%). Midsleep time and subjective insomnia symptoms were not associated with HbA1c. In combination, variability in sleep duration, total sleep duration, and subjective sleep quality were significantly associated with HbA1c, together explaining 10.3% of the variance in HbA1c. Analyses adjusted for covariates provided similar results, although the strength of associations was generally decreased and showing total sleep duration and subjective sleep quality to be most strongly associated with HbA1c, together explaining 6.0% of the variance in HbA1c. CONCLUSIONS Sleep in general may be a modifiable factor of importance for patients with T2D. The prevention of sleep curtailment may serve as a primary focus in the sleep-centered management of T2D.

Promiscuity, sperm storage and internal fertilization enhance sperm competition, which leads to sexual confl ict whenever an advantageous trait for sperm donors is harmful to recipients. In separate-sex species, such confl icts can severely impact the evolution of reproductive characteristics, physiology and behaviours. For simultaneous hermaphrodites, the generality of this impact remains unclear and underlying mechanisms remain largely unexplored. In the hermaphrodite Lymnaea stagnalis several previous studies showed that investment in eggs diff ers depending on semen receipt, but these were inconsistent about the direction of change. We investigated whether the change in egg laying is caused by a seminal fl uid component. By intravaginally injecting animals, we here reveal that a component of the seminal fl uid inhibits egg laying, thus providing the fi rst direct evidence for involvement of such components in competition for fertilization in hermaphrodites. We discuss the broad implications that this fi nding has on a number of previous studies performed in the same species. © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2009.

OBJECTIVEDepression is common in patients with type 2 diabetes and adversely affects quality of life and diabetes outcomes. We assessed whether light therapy, an antidepressant, improves mood and insulin sensitivity in patients with depression and type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSThis randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial included 83 patients with depression and type 2 diabetes. The intervention comprised 4 weeks of light therapy (10,000 lux) or placebo light therapy daily at home. Primary outcomes included depressive symptoms (Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology [IDS]) and insulin sensitivity (M-value derived from the results of a hyperinsulinemiceuglycemic clamp). Secondary outcomes were related psychological and glucometabolic measures. RESULTSIntention-to-treat analysis showed that light therapy was not superior to placebo in reducing depressive symptoms (23.9 IDS points [95% CI 29.0 to 1.2]; P = 0.248) and had no effect on insulin sensitivity (0.15 mg/kg*min [95% CI 20.41 to 0.70]; P = 0.608). Analyses incorporating only those participants who accurately adhered to the light therapy protocol (n = 51) provided similar results, but did suggest positive effects of light therapy on depression response rates ( ‡50% reduction in IDS points) (26% more response; P = 0.031). Prespecified analysis showed effect moderation by baseline insulin sensitivity (P = 0.009) and use of glucose-lowering medication (P = 0.023). Light therapy did not affect depressive symptoms in participants with higher insulin sensitivity or those who use only oral glucose-lowering medication or none at all, but it did produce a relevant effect in participants with lower insulin sensitivity (212.9 IDS points [95% CI 221.6 to 24.2]; P = 0.017) and a trend toward effectiveness in those using insulin (212.2 IDS points [95% CI 221.3 to 23.1]; P = 0.094). Light therapy was well tolerated. CONCLUSIONSAlthough this trial is essentially inconclusive, secondary analyses indicate that light therapy might be a promising treatment for depression among a subgroup of highly insulin-resistant individuals with type 2 diabetes. Clinical trial reg. no. NTR4942, www.trialregister .nl/trial/4802 This article contains Supplementary Data online at