Mice with null mutations of ciliary neurotrophic factor (Cntf) receptor alpha (Cntf-Rα), or cytokine-like factor 1 (Clf), one component of Cntf-II (a heterodimeric Cntf-Rα ligand), die as neonates from motor neuron loss affecting the facial nucleus and ventral horn of the lumbar spinal cord. Exposure to cardiotrophin-like cytokine (Clc), the other putative Cntf-II element, supports motor neuron survival in vitro and in ovo. Confirmation that Clc ablation induces an equivalent phenotype to Clf deletion would support a role for Clc in the functional Cntf-II complex. In this study, Clc knockout mice had decreased facial motility, did not suckle, died within 24 hours, and had 32% and 29% fewer motor neurons in the facial nucleus and lumbar ventral horn, respectively; thus, Clc is essential for motor neuron survival during development. The concordance of the Clc knockout phenotype with those of mice lacking Cntf-Rα or Clf bolsters the hypothesis that Clc participates in Cntf-II.

The purpose of this article is twofold: (1) to identify the factors that are perceived as constraints to leisure travel for seniors compared to other age groups, and (2) to investigate whether the constraints based on age interact with other sociodemographic variables for past travel behavior and intention to visit in the future. The data for this study were collected from a sample drawn from travel magazine subscribers and those who requested travel information. Two mail surveys and a Web survey yielded a total of 1,405 completed responses. Analysis was conducted using chi-square tests and logistic regression. Analysis indicated that younger age groups (59 years old or younger) were more likely to be constrained by time and money, whereas seniors (75 years and older) were constrained by health issues. Logistic regression analysis showed that the role of age and income as constraint was perceived differently for the past and future intension to visit. For the future visit, age was perceived as a constraining factor, whereas for the past visit, the role of age was moderated by income. This confirms that leisure travel constraints are not homogenous. The study suggests that the travel industry and organizations that provide services to seniors need to facilitate leisure travel opportunities by increasing affordability and making them accessible to those with declining health.

CASE REPORT:We report a case of traumatic dislocation of the globe into the maxillary sinus following a bull-riding incident.COMMENTS:Traumatic dislocations of the eye into the sinuses are rare, and urgent management and surgical repair are indicated.

During the past 30 years, senior centers have become an important source of services within the community for older adults in the United States. It is estimated that there are over 15,000 centers serving over 10 million older adults (National Council on Aging, 2005). Many of these senior centers have been designated by the Older Americans Act as focal points for community efforts to meet the needs of older adults. Although the profile of those served varies widely, the congregate meal programs offered by many centers tends to serve a large number of older adults who are less well off than the general population being served at the centers. These individuals tend to be older, less well off financially, have less education, and live alone, which limits the opportunities they have for social interaction, physical activity, recreation choices, learning opportunities, and access to information sources. This study focused on participants in the congregate meal program at nine senior centers located in Arizona and 10 centers located in South Carolina and the perceived benefits they obtained from senior center use. The results indicated that a majority of the individuals taking part in the congregate meal programs could be considered to have less opportunities than their more educated and financially well off counterparts not taking advantage of the congregate meal programs. The average age of the sample was 76; 45% lived alone; 47% had an annual household income of less than $12,000; 30% indicated their health was only poor or fair; and nearly 60% had 12 years or less of education. The study respondents indicated that they perceived the centers to be an important provider of information on health-related matters, nutrition issues, social service issues, volunteering opportunities, and legal issues. For the vast majority of the sample, the meal was an important source of nutrition and constituted their main meal of the day. The respondents also indicated that they perceived the centers to be important providers of physical, recreational, social, and learning benefits. The benefits they perceived they received from attending the senior centers included making and maintaining new friendships, learning new activities, improving their quality of life, feeling like they belonged to a group, having more fun, having a place they could go each day, and improving their health. This study documented the important role that senior centers played in the lives of older adults with limited resources in the United States.

ABSTRACT Misconceptions and myths regarding the image of senior centers need to be overcome especially among the baby boom generation. Although past research and programming have addressed the traditional model of senior centers, little attention has focused on senior center programs and activities that address the needs of younger and more active older adults. Aging and adult services, specifically, senior centers, face challenges in maintaining their role in the community through and beyond the next decade. This article discusses the challenges senior centers face and suggests new approaches for programming and activities that will enable senior centers to make the transition whereby they engage baby boomers in utilizing their services while continuing to address the needs of the present users of senior centers.

Past research has mainly focused on the differences between senior center users and non-users and has examined various socioeconomic and demographic characteristics related to participation. The purpose of this study was to examine factors that influence perceived social and health benefits of participation. Data were collected at seven Senior Centers in Mesa, Glendale and the Phoenix area of Arizona. We used a self-administered questionnaire among a sample of older participants (N = 1026). Multivariate Analysis (MANOVA) with post hoc Bonferroni t-tests revealed that eating lunch at the center, working for pay at the center and demographic variables such as age, gender, and income were all significantly related to social and health benefits. Results suggest that interventions and activities designed to promote affordable meal programs along with educational health strategies for activity professionals and service providers would more adequately address the specific social and health needs and increase participation among community-dwelling elders. (C) 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.

Artemin (ART) signals through the GFRα—3/RET receptor complex to support sympathetic neuron development. Here we show that ART also influences autonomic elements in adrenal medulla and enteric and pelvic ganglia. Transgenic mice over-expressing Art throughout development exhibited systemic autonomic neural lesions including fusion of adrenal medullae with adjacent paraganglia, adrenal medullary dysplasia, and marked enlargement of sympathetic (superior cervical and sympathetic chain ganglia) and parasympathetic (enteric, pelvic) ganglia. Changes began by gestational day 12.5 and formed progressively larger masses during adulthood. Art supplementation in wild type adult mice by administering recombinant protein or an Art-bearing retroviral vector resulted in hyperplasia or neuronal metaplasia at the adrenal corticomedullary junction. Expression data revealed that Gfrα—3 is expressed during development in the adrenal medulla, sensory and autonomic ganglia and their projections, while Art is found in contiguous mesenchymal domains (especially skeleton) and in certain nerves. Intrathecal Art therapy did not reduce hypalgesia in rats following nerve ligation. These data (1) confirm that ART acts as a differentiation factor for autonomic (chiefly sympathoadrenal but also parasympathetic) neurons, (2) suggest a role for ART overexpression in the genesis of pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas, and (3) indicate that ART is not a suitable therapy for peripheral neuropathy.

We have generated RANK (receptor activator of NF-kappaB) nullizygous mice to determine the molecular genetic interactions between osteoprotegerin, osteoprotegerin ligand, and RANK during bone resorption and remodeling processes. RANK(-/-) mice lack osteoclasts and have a profound defect in bone resorption and remodeling and in the development of the cartilaginous growth plates of endochondral bone. The osteopetrosis observed in these mice can be reversed by transplantation of bone marrow from rag1(-/-) (recombinase activating gene 1) mice, indicating that RANK(-/-) mice have an intrinsic defect in osteoclast function. Calciotropic hormones and proresorptive cytokines that are known to induce bone resorption in mice and human were administered to RANK(-/-) mice without inducing hypercalcemia, although tumor necrosis factor alpha treatment leads to the rare appearance of osteoclast-like cells near the site of injection. Osteoclastogenesis can be initiated in RANK(-/-) mice by transfer of the RANK cDNA back into hematopoietic precursors, suggesting a means to critically evaluate RANK structural features required for bone resorption. Together these data indicate that RANK is the intrinsic cell surface determinant that mediates osteoprotegerin ligand effects on bone resorption and remodeling as well as the physiological and pathological effects of calciotropic hormones and proresorptive cytokines.