No description available.

Humans can taste many compounds but are able to distinguish between five basic tastes, bitter, sweet, umami, sour and salt. Bitter taste, which is mediated by 25 bitter taste receptors (T2Rs) in humans, acts as a central warning signal against the ingestion of toxic compounds. In addition to their expression in the oral cavity, T2Rs are expressed in various extra-oral tissues, suggesting that they have additional functions apart from sensing taste. The recent finding that T2Rs, upon activation with bitter tastants, cause muscle relaxation and bronchodilation of pre-contracted airway smooth muscle, has been a topic of consideration. The bronchodilatory role of T2Rs, which was three fold greater than that elicited by currently used beta-adrenergic receptor agonists, has implicated them as potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of asthma. In view of the importance of T2R function in extra-oral tissues, it is of fundamental importance to determine their physiological role in extra-oral regions like the vascular tissues, and understand how T2R signal is regulated. In this study, two representative bitter taste receptors, T2R1 and T2R4, were selected to elucidate the function and signal regulation of T2Rs. The expression of T2Rs was characterized in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells, and studies were pursued to explore the effects of dextromethorphan (DXM) on the pulmonary artery. DXM caused vasoconstriction in pulmonary arterial cells by activating endogenous T2R1. The structure-function role of the C-terminus of T2R4 receptor was characterized by site-directed mutagenesis. A conserved KLK motif was identified in the C-terminus and many residues involved in cell surface targeting and function of T2R4 were revealed. A constitutively active mutant (CAM) was also discovered within the T2R4 C-terminus. To identify the regulatory proteins involved in T2R4 desensitization, a molecular and pharmacological approach was used. The kinases involved in this process were identified by performing either a knockdown or by using activators and inhibitors. The potential residues of T2R4 involved in desensitization were assessed for function. In addition, the internalization status of few T2Rs was determined by using different bitter compounds. This study provides novel insights into the function and desensitization of T2Rs and reports a pharmacochaperone activity for quinine.

This investigation focused on an empirical evaluation of the efficacy of preventative systematic desensitization, a recently developed psychotherapeutic technique intended to preclude the formation of a phobic or adverse autonomic reaction. While earlier research suggested the therapeutic viability of this technique, various methodological difficulties inherent in the experimental designs negated any clear an unequivocal statements regarding therapeutic efficacy. The design of the experiment central to this dissertation was developed expressly to avoid the methodological problems which characterized prior research, expand upon the hypothesis of earlier investigators, and evaluate the effectiveness of prophylactic desensitization. The following results were obtained: (a) the experimental group did not show an increase in fear on the dependent measures following conditioning, (b) the placebo control group did show a significant increase in fear on the dependent measures following conditioning, (c) the group that received traditional systematic desensitization showed a significant fear increase after conditioning which was reduced to baseline following systematic desensitization, and (d) the measurements control group confirmed the above result and showed no significant differences in fear at retests. The major conclusion of this experiment is that within the context of the laboratory, it would appear that preventive systematic desensitization is an efficient psychotherapeutic technique. Further research designs and therapeutic strategies are discussed with regard to clients who may be expected to develop significant clinical phobias.

This investigation was concerned with the potential effectiveness of systematic desensitization as a technique in the prevention of pervasive anxiety. It was hypothesized for investigatory purposes, that if two specific, potentially anxiety-evoking stimuli could be pre-desensitized, this would be strongly suggestive that pre-desensitization programs might also prove successful in the prevention of pervasive anxiety.

The present study was an attempt to show that the behavioral technique of desensitization is superior to insight-oriented psychotherapy in terms of not only behavior change for individuals undergoing desensitization but in terms of case of acquisition to novice therapists who have virtually no clinical experience.

No description available.

Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references.

Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy has burst upon the psychotherapeutic scene as a time-limited, cost-contained, and efficacious treatment for anxiety, stress, and psychological trauma. Although this therapy has been pronounced as revolutionary by its inventor, Francine Shapiro, it has distinct historical precedents. The explanatory models of pathogenic memory and dissociation theory, and the reliance on mechanical inference for objectivity make EMDR therapy familiar and salient. Notions of suggestion and hypnosis, and the eye-movement component of therapy are presented as discontinuous with clinical and theoretical practice, in order to free them from the tainting associations of pseudo-science and quackery. By connecting the current EMDR movement with the conceptual and practical history of traumatic memory, dissociation, and suggestion, I argue that EMDR is not revolutionary. It is a powerful technology of the self, normalizing and valourizing certain ways of behaving and thinking. Shapiro's implicit assumptions that psychological suffering is pathological, and that early traumatic events are indelibly encoded, stored and dissociated in the brain are problematized. A brief commentary on the moral, political, and psychotherapeutic implications of EMDR therapy is provided.

The purpose of this study was to test the therapeutic usefulness of a completely self-administered, behavior-therapy technique: systematic desensitization. The method involved the comparison of behavior change following the treatment of two groups of subjects. One group received the actual systematic-desensitization procedure, while the other underwent a similar but theoretically ineffective treatment termed attention-placebo.

The present research was undertaken to investigate the effects of two independent variables considered potentially important to the reduction of fear through systematic desensitization. The first independent variable investigated was the importance of making covert motor responses when instructions were given to imagine motor behavior. Electromyographic measures were obtained on subjects' covert muscular activity as they imagined themselves raising their arms. The subjects were then classified, on the basis of their average electromyographic responsiveness, as high-responders (those showing relatively high levels when imaging movement) and low-responders. A 2 X 2 analysis of covariance showed a significant difference in the posttreatment scores of the high- and low responders on performance measures, the high-responders performing better. The difference between the two instruction groups was not statistically significant. Additional analyses indicate the importance of the instruction variable is mitigated by the extent to which subjects actually follow the particular instructions given. These data imply electromyography may be used in clinical practice as an assessment tool to determine which subjects are likely to respond to systematic desensitization. They also suggest the possibility of using response measures to train self-monitoring of imagery. Concerning the imagery construct, the present study offers an empirical alternative to the traditional conceptualization. The data obtained support the utility of the analysis of imagery advanced in this paper.