Clinical trials targeting recently elucidated synaptic defects in fragile X syndrome (FXS) will require outcome measures capable of assessing short-term changes in cognitive functioning. Potentially useful measures for FXS were evaluated here in a test-retest setting in males and females with FXS (N = 46). Good reproducibility, determined by an interclass correlation (ICC) or weighted kappa (kappa) of 0.7-0.9 was seen for RBANS List and Story Memory, NEPSY Tower, Woodcock-Johnson Spatial Relations and the commissions score from the Carolina Fragile X Project Continuous Performance Test (CPT). This study demonstrates the feasibility of generating test profiles containing reliability data, ability levels required for test performance, and refusal rates to assist with choice of outcome measures in FXS and other cohorts with cognitive disability.

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Seeds of Korean pine cone (Pinus koraiensis) have long been consumed as an edible food in countries located in NorthEast Asia, On the other hand, Korean pine cone, containing various polyphenols, is discarded as a useless garbage after removing seeds. This study investigated the lipolytic effects of pine cone extract in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Intracellular lipid accumulation was measured by Oil red O staining, free glycerol release by colorimetric reaction, and expression of genes related to lipid metabolism by real-time PCR. Compared to control, pine cone extract reduced intracellular lipid accumulation by 8.8% and increased free glycerol release by 8.2% a concentration of 5 μg/mL in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes. mRNA levels of fatty acid synthesis were not significantly different between control and pine cone extract, but mRNA levels of lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) significantly increased by 38.7% and 94.1% at a concentration of 5 μg/mL, respectively. Thus, pine cone extract is suggested to have lipolytic effects through induction of LPL and HSL gene expression.