Teaching note-infusing social justice into doctoral programs of social welfare: An incremental approach

This article describes an effort to further infuse social justice education into doctoral programs in social welfare. It articulates the rationale and tactical approaches for aligning mission statements with the operational realities of university contexts. Within 1 school of social work, doctoral students with diverse orientations to social justice came together to articulate a vision for social justice education that expanded the educational contract between students and the institution by enhancing their respective opportunities and responsibilities in the areas of scholarship, teaching, and service. This article shares 30 learning objectives emergent from an incremental change process for enhancing social justice education at the doctoral level and reflects on the strengths and limitations of this approach to advancing social justice priorities. © 2014 Council on Social Work Education

Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Perceptions of Medical Students from Pakistan

Background: In view of the increasing popularity of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), it is imperative that medical students, the health professionals of tomorrow, possess adequate knowledge on the topic. Objectives: This is a descriptive study designed to assess the knowledge, attitudes and behavior of medical students about CAM and to capture their perceptions and opinions about its integration into the medical curriculum. Methods: A questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey was done on 198 medical students selected randomly from a Pakistani medical college. Associations between different variables were tested using the chi2-test of significance. Results: Among the 198 participants, a majority believed that some of the CAM modalities are useful; they lacked knowledge, however, about their safety and efficacy. Most of the students believed that it should be used in conjunction with conventional medicine and that, if given adequate training, they would incorporate it in their future medical practice. One-third of the respondents voted in favor of incorporation of CAM into the medical curriculum. CONCLUSION: Despite being aware of the usefulness of CAM only a few medical students had pursued further knowledge. In order to prepare the medical students of today to better fulfill their duties as tomorrow\u27s physicians, consideration should be given to incorporating CAM in the medical curriculum

Noncoding deletions reveal a gene that is critical for intestinal function

Large-scale genome sequencing is poised to provide a substantial increase in the rate of discovery of disease-associated mutations, but the functional interpretation of such mutations remains challenging. Here we show that deletions of a sequence on human chromosome 16 that we term the intestine-critical region (ICR) cause intractable congenital diarrhoea in infants1,2. Reporter assays in transgenic mice show that the ICR contains a regulatory sequence that activates transcription during the development of the gastrointestinal system. Targeted deletion of the ICR in mice caused symptoms that recapitulated the human condition. Transcriptome analysis revealed that an unannotated open reading frame (Percc1) flanks the regulatory sequence, and the expression of this gene was lost in the developing gut of mice that lacked the ICR. Percc1-knockout mice displayed phenotypes similar to those observed upon ICR deletion in mice and patients, whereas an ICR-driven Percc1 transgene was sufficient to rescue the phenotypes found in mice that lacked the ICR. Together, our results identify a gene that is critical for intestinal function and underscore the need for targeted in vivo studies to interpret the growing number of clinical genetic findings that do not affect known protein-coding genes

Human milk oligosaccharides in premature infants: absorption, excretion, and influence on the intestinal microbiota

BACKGROUND: Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) shape the intestinal microbiota in term infants. In premature infants, alterations in the intestinal microbiota (dysbiosis) are associated with risk of necrotizing enterocolitis and sepsis and the influence of HMOs on the microbiota is unclear. METHODS: Milk, urine, and stool specimens from 14 mother-premature infant dyads were investigated by mass spectrometry for HMO composition. The stools were analyzed by next-generation sequencing (NGS) to complement a previous analysis. RESULTS: Percentages of fucosylated and sialylated HMOs were highly variable between individuals but similar in urine, feces and milk within dyads. Differences in urine and fecal HMO composition suggest variability in absorption. Secretor status of the mother correlated with the urine and fecal content of specific HMO structures. Trends toward higher levels of Proteobacteria and lower levels of Firmicutes, were noted in premature infants of non-secretor mothers. Specific HMO structures in the milk, urine and feces were associated with alterations in fecal Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. CONCLUSION: HMOs may influence the intestinal microbiota in premature infants. Specific HMOs, for example those associated with secretor mothers, may have a protective effect by decreasing pathogens associated with sepsis and necrotizing enterocolitis while other HMOs may increase dysbiosis in this population