White Faces in a Black Movement: Why Their Voices Matter

This story follows the lives of two white activists in New York\u27s Black Lives Matter movement. It examines the largely ignored impact white activists have had on the BLM movement and also explores the history of white activists in the abolitionist and Civil Rights movements. The climax details a highly-publicized spat between rival Black Lives Matter organizations that happened during a Dec. 4 protest to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Officer Daniel Pantaleo\u27s non-indictment in Garner\u27s death. My main character, a white male, was blamed for causing the rift and was asked to step down from his leadership position in one organization

Respiratory Chain Activity and Protein Expression in Skeletal Muscles from High and Low Feed Efficient Swine within the Same Genetic Line

Current as well as past studies have provided evidence for a connection between macroeconomic/agricultural and cellular/biochemical basis of feed efficiency (FE; gain:feed) in farm animal production. Our investigation of respiratory chain activity, mitochondrial protein oxidation and protein expression was an expansion to the subcellular/molecular level. In this study we investigated the entire complex (Cx) of the electron transport chain (ETC) for differences in Cx activities in mitochondria isolated from skeletal muscle in high (HFE) and low (LFE) feed efficient swine within the same genetic line. Review of literature provided information for the connection between feed efficiency, mitochondrial function, and muscle type. Using UV spectrophotometry, gel electrophoresis and western blotting methods, we were able to study mitochondria from swine Longissimus (LM) and Spinalis dorsi muscles for differences in respiratory chain complex (I - V) activities, protein oxidation and protein expression of eleven subunits of the five electron transport chain complexes. We observed muscle dependent differences in Cx I and II, protein carbonyls and five subunits of the ETC (Cx I 30, Cor II, Cox IV, alpha and beta ATPase). We concluded after comparing our results with findings in literature, that respiratory chain activity protein oxidation and expression of protein subunits may be both skeletal muscle as well as a species dependent. These differential expressions may be the result of increased incidents of reactive oxygen species causing defects in Cx I or Cx II that may precipitate significant mitochondrial events and cellular pathways that provide links to the phenotypic expression of feed efficiency. Of high interest in relation to the mitochondrial link to FE are apoptotic, mTor and myostatin pathways

The Outstanding Decisions of the United States Supreme Court in 1954

We perform a kinematic and morphological analysis of 44 star-forming galaxies at z ̃ 2 in the COSMOS legacy field using near-infrared spectroscopy from Keck/MOSFIRE and F160W imaging from CANDELS/3D-HST as part of the ZFIRE survey. Our sample consists of cluster and field galaxies from 2.0 < z < 2.5 with K-band multi-object slit spectroscopic measurements of their Hα emission lines. Hα rotational velocities and gas velocity dispersions are measured using the Heidelberg Emission Line Algorithm (HELA), which compares directly to simulated 3D data cubes. Using a suite of simulated emission lines, we determine that HELA reliably recovers input S 0.5 and angular momentum at small offsets, but V 2.2/σ g values are offset and highly scattered. We examine the role of regular and irregular morphology in the stellar mass kinematic scaling relations, deriving the kinematic measurement S 0.5, and finding {log}({S}0.5)=(0.38+/- 0.07){log}(M/{M}☉ -10)+(2.04+/- 0.03) with no significant offset between morphological populations and similar levels of scatter (̃0.16 dex). Additionally, we identify a correlation between M ⋆ and V 2.2/σ g for the total sample, showing an increasing level of rotation dominance with increasing M ⋆, and a high level of scatter for both regular and irregular galaxies. We estimate the specific angular momenta (j disk) of these galaxies and find a slope of 0.36 ± 0.12, shallower than predicted without mass-dependent disk growth, but this result is possibly due to measurement uncertainty at M ⋆ < 9.5 However, through a Kolmogorov-Smirnov test we find irregular galaxies to have marginally higher j disk values than regular galaxies, and high scatter at low masses in both populations

Effects of oxytocin on human aggression

EFFECTS OF OXYTOCIN ON HUMAN AGGRESSION Joseph Louis Alcorn III, B.S. Advisory Professor: Scott D. Lane, Ph.D. Human interaction is comprised of common, yet complex, behaviors and the outcomes of these social behaviors can beneficially or detrimentally impact individual and public health. One social behavior that can have profound detrimental outcomes is aggression. Aggression is a class of social behavior that is particularly prevalent in individuals with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and comorbid substance use disorder (SUD). Aggression in these individuals can manifest at maladaptive levels that place considerable burdens on public health and communities. Therefore, understanding the neurobehavioral underpinnings of aggression holds substantial merit. The goal of this project was to examine the effects of this oxytocin (OT) on human aggression. Considerable work has demonstrated that OT engenders the promotion of affiliative social behaviors that are mutually beneficial (or prosocial) between two individuals. Aggression is characterized, in part, by social behaviors that are antisocial (which are opposite to prosocial behavior). The hypothesis was that acute administration of OT would reduce the frequency of human aggression. This hypothesis was tested in both individuals with comorbid ASPD and SUD, and healthy volunteers. This project employed a well-established laboratory measure of human aggression, the Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm, which measures changes in the frequency of aggressive behavior. In ASPD+SUD individuals there was no significant reduction in aggressive behavior following OT administration. However, there were non-systematic individual differences on aggressive behavior following OT dosing, which suggested modulation of aggressive behavior by OT. In healthy volunteers there was no significant effect of OT dose on aggressive behavior. However, in healthy volunteers, an examination of individual differences focused on antisocial personality traits revealed that aggressive behavior under OT was positively correlated with interpersonal manipulation and anger (Pearson’s r = 0.57). Healthy volunteers with higher scores of interpersonal manipulation and anger actually showed an increase in their aggressive behavior following OT administration. In both ASPD+SUD individual and healthy volunteers, the hypothesis that OT would decrease human aggression was not supported. The experiments of this dissertation revealed substantial individual differences in aggression following OT administration, which is important for future research in examining the therapeutic efficacy of OT for the management of aggression in antisocial and substance abuse populations

Chop (Ddit3) Is Essential for D469del-COMP Retention and Cell Death in Chondrocytes in an Inducible Transgenic Mouse Model of Pseudoachondroplasia

Cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP), a secreted glycoprotein synthesized by chondrocytes, regulates proliferation and type II collagen assembly. Mutations in the COMP gene cause pseudoachondroplasia and multiple epiphyseal dysplasia. Previously, we have shown that expression of D469del-COMP in transgenic mice causes intracellular retention of D469del-COMP, thereby recapitulating pseudoachondroplasia chondrocyte pathology. This inducible transgenic D469del-COMP mouse is the only in vivo model to replicate the critical cellular and clinical features of pseudoachondroplasia. Here, we report developmental studies of D469del-COMP-induced chondrocyte pathology from the prenatal period to adolescence. D469del-COMP retention was limited prenatally and did not negatively affect the growth plate until 3 weeks after birth. Results of immunostaining, transcriptome analysis, and qRT-PCR suggest a molecular model in which D469del-COMP triggers apoptosis during the first postnatal week. By 3 weeks (when most chondrocytes are retaining D469del-COMP), inflammation, oxidative stress, and DNA damage contribute to chondrocyte cell death by necroptosis. Importantly, by crossing the D469del-COMP mouse onto a Chop null background (Ddit3 null), thereby eliminating Chop, the unfolded protein response was disrupted, thus alleviating both D469del-COMP intracellular retention and premature chondrocyte cell death. Chop therefore plays a significant role in processes that mediate D469del-COMP retention. Taken together, these results suggest that there may be an optimal window before the induction of significant D469del-COMP retention during which endoplasmic reticulum stress could be targeted

A Pilot Investigation of Acute Inhibitory Control Training in Cocaine Users

Background—Disrupted response inhibition and presence of drug-cue attentional bias in cocaine-using individuals have predicted poor treatment outcomes. Inhibitory control training could help improve treatment outcomes by strengthening cognitive control. This pilot study assessed the effects of acute inhibitory control training to drug- and non-drug-related cues on response inhibition performance and cocaine-cue attentional bias in cocaine-using individuals. Methods—Participants who met criteria for a cocaine-use disorder underwent five sessions of inhibitory control training to either non-drug-related cues (i.e., rectangles) or cocaine cues (n=10/condition) in a single day. Response inhibition and attentional bias were assessed prior to and following training using the stop-signal task and visual-probe task with eye tracking, respectively. Results—Training condition groups did not differ on demographics, inhibitory control training performance, response inhibition, or cocaine-cue attentional bias. Response inhibition performance improved as a function of inhibitory control training in both conditions. Cocaine-cue attentional bias was observed, but did not change as a function of inhibitory control training in either condition. Conclusions—Response inhibition in cocaine-using individuals was augmented by acute inhibitory control training, which may improve treatment outcomes through better behavioral inhibition. Future studies should investigate longer-term implementation of inhibitory control training, as well as combining inhibitory control training with other treatment modalities

Predicting posttraumatic stress disorder after childbirth

Objective: around 50% of women report symptoms that indicate some aspect of their childbirth experience was 'traumatic', and at least 3.1% meet diagnosis for PTSD six months post partum. Here we aimed to conduct a prospective longitudinal study and examine predictors of birth-related trauma - predictors that included a range of pre-event factors - as a first step in the creation of a screening questionnaire. Method: of the 933 women who completed an assessment in their third trimester, 866 were followed-up at four to six week post partum. Two canonical discriminant function analyses were conducted to ascertain factors associated with experiencing birth as traumatic and, of the women who found the birth traumatic, which factors were associated with those who developed PTSD. Findings: a mix of 16 pre-birth predictor variables and event-specific predictor variables distinguished women who reported symptoms consistent with trauma from those who did not. Fourteen predictor variables distinguished women who went on to develop PTSD from those who did not. Conclusions: anxiety sensitivity to possible birthing problems, breached birthing expectations, and severity of any actual birth problem, predicted those who found the birth traumatic. Prior trauma was the single most important predictive factor of PTSD. Evaluating the utility of brief, cost-effective, and accurate screening for women at risk of developing birth-related PTSD is suggested

RNAi Reduces Expression and Intracellular Retention of Mutant Cartilage Oligomeric Matrix Protein

Mutations in cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP), a large extracellular glycoprotein expressed in musculoskeletal tissues, cause two skeletal dysplasias, pseudoachondroplasia and multiple epiphyseal dysplasia. These mutations lead to massive intracellular retention of COMP, chondrocyte death and loss of growth plate chondrocytes that are necessary for linear growth. In contrast, COMP null mice have only minor growth plate abnormalities, normal growth and longevity. This suggests that reducing mutant and wild-type COMP expression in chondrocytes may prevent the toxic cellular phenotype causing the skeletal dysplasias. We tested this hypothesis using RNA interference to reduce steady state levels of COMP mRNA. A panel of shRNAs directed against COMP was tested. One shRNA (3B) reduced endogenous and recombinant COMP mRNA dramatically, regardless of expression levels. The activity of the shRNA against COMP mRNA was maintained for up to 10 weeks. We also demonstrate that this treatment reduced ER stress. Moreover, we show that reducing steady state levels of COMP mRNA alleviates intracellular retention of other extracellular matrix proteins associated with the pseudoachondroplasia cellular pathology. These findings are a proof of principle and the foundation for the development of a therapeutic intervention based on reduction of COMP expression

Experimental Demonstration of an Electride as a 2D Material

Because of their loosely bound electrons, electrides offer physical properties useful in chemical synthesis and electronics. For these applications and others, nano-sized electrides offer advantages, but to-date no electride has been synthesized as a nanomaterial. We demonstrate experimentally that Ca$_2$N, a layered electride in which layers of atoms are separated by layers of a 2D electron gas (2DEG), can be exfoliated into two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets using liquid exfoliation. The 2D flakes are stable in a nitrogen atmosphere or in select organic solvents for at least one month. Electron microscopy and elemental analysis reveal that the 2D flakes retain the crystal structure and stoichiometry of the parent 3D Ca$_2$N. In addition, the 2D flakes exhibit metallic character and an optical response that agrees with DFT calculations. Together these findings suggest that the 2DEG is preserved in the 2D material. With this work, we bring electrides into the nano-regime and experimentally demonstrate a 2D electride, Ca$_2$N