Interpreting nature: shifts in the presentation and display of taxidermy in contemporary museums in Northern England

Taxidermy is an organised craft which synthesises preserved animal skins with man-made materials to recreate a resemblance of living animals. As products of a cultural practice, displayed and interpreted in museums for the public, taxidermied animals are material manifestations of contingent value judgements. Despite the now widely held view in museum studies that the meanings of museum objects are constructed through their interpretation and reception, and therefore can have a multiplicity of meanings, many museums today continue to present and interpret taxidermied animals as objective species representatives. Although scientific themes continue to be privileged by many museums which maintain natural science as a discrete discipline, various social, ethical and political themes relating to the environment and to relationships between people have become more pronounced in recently redeveloped museums. Using Leeds City Museum, the Great North Museum: Hancock, and Museums Sheffield: Weston Park as case studies, this thesis investigates these changes to trace wider cultural shifts in politics, ethics, education and science. By analysing the frameworks within which museums and their staff operate, this investigation is concerned with the relationship between discourse and social practice in the form of museum exhibitions as a means of creating knowledge. It highlights how the public understanding of the natural world is more mutable than some of the enduring traditions of science may suggest, and how the discourses on science, and the objects through which they are articulated, are subject to cultural shifts which put their meanings in flux. This study is both part of, and a response to, an expanding field in museum studies and material culture studies which re-frames taxidermy objects as culturally contingent and therefore reflective of the subject positions of their makers, and the broader contexts of their making. In collating and investigating a diverse collection of archival material, this study recovers some of taxidermy’s histories, and contributes to the historical discourse on the display and interpretation of museum collections

Extended Duration Dual Antiplatelet Therapy after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Patients with Peripheral Arterial Disease: A Meta-Analysis

Background: Patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) are at elevated risk of ischemic and bleeding events. However, the optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after PCI in patients with PAD remains unclear. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed through June 2017 using PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane databases with the following key terms: “dual antiplatelet therapy”, “P2Y12 inhibitor”, “myocardial infarction”, “percutaneous coronary intervention”, “stent”, “peripheral arterial disease”, and “ankle-brachial index”. The analysis was restricted to randomized trials published in English in patients with PAD receiving extended DAPT (\u3e 12-month) after PCI. Overall analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3 with the Mantel-Haenszel method. Results: Two randomized controlled trials involving 895 patients were included in this review. Compared to the placebo group, there was no statistical significance in the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) in patients receiving extended DAPT (odds ratio (OR) 0.76, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.37 - 1.57; P = 0.46). The results were associated with substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 71%, P = 0.07). Extended DAPT was not significantly associated with increased moderate/severe bleeding events (OR 1.63, 95% CI 0.84 - 3.18; P = 0.15; I2 = 0%, P = 0.59). The extended DAPT was associated with 82% relative risk reduction in the events of definite/probably stent thrombosis. Conclusions: Among patients with PAD, extended DAPT after PCI resulted in a non-significant difference in ischemic and bleeding events compared to placebo, respectively. The routine use of extended DAPT in this cohort should be carefully evaluated

Tafamidis: A First-in-Class Transthyretin Stabilizer for Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy.

Objective: To review the pharmacology, efficacy, and safety of the selective transthyretin inhibitor tafamidis for transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM). Data Sources: A PubMed (1966 to October 2019) and ClinicalTrials. gov search was conducted using the keywords tafamidis, Fx-1006A, Vyndaqel, and Vyndamax. Additional articles were identified from references. Study Selection and Data Extraction: We included English-language clinical studies evaluating the pharmacology, efficacy, or safety of tafamidis in humans for ATTR-CM. Data Synthesis: Tafamidis binds to the thyroxine-binding sites of the transthyretin tetramer and inhibits its dissociation into monomers, which is the rate-limiting step in the amyloidogenic process. Treatment with tafamidis was significantly associated with a significant reduction in mortality, lowered cardiovascular-related hospitalizations, less functional decline, and improved transthyretin stabilization compared with placebo. Additionally, tafamidis was found to have fewer adverse events, with no difference found compared with placebo. Relevance to Patient Care and Clinical Practice: Historically, symptomatic management for ATTR-CM was the only option, and the treatment of the underlying disease was limited to liver or heart transplantation. Tafamidis is the first medication approved for the treatment of ATTR-CM and the only medication that showed a reduction in all-cause mortality and cardiovascular-related hospitalizations in patients with amyloidosis. However, the role of tafamidis in patients with the New York Heart Association class III/IV heart failure or mutated transthyretin remains unclear. Conclusion: Tafamidis is an effective and safe oral medication for the treatment of the cardiomyopathy of transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis in adults to reduce cardiovascular mortality and cardiovascular-related hospitalization

The Effect of Ranolazine on Glycemic Control: a Narrative Review to Define the Target Population

Ranolazine is an anti-anginal medication that reduces the sodium-dependent calcium overload via the inhibition of the late sodium current. After its approval for the treatment of chronic angina in 2006 in the USA, ranolazine has been reported to have several pleiotropic effects on various cardiac conditions, such as atrial fibrillation, ventricular arrhythmias, diastolic and microvascular dysfunction, and pulmonary arterial hypertension. Recently, several studies reported some promising results on the potential benefits of ranolazine on glycemic control. Though the mechanism of the antihyperglycemic effect is still unknown, ranolazine may exert the effect through β cell preservation, inhibition of glucose secretion, and enhancement of insulin secretion in a glucose-dependent manner. Given the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes, it will be useful if one medication can simultaneously improve chronic angina and diabetes. Therefore, ranolazine could be a favored choice among other anti-anginal agents for patients with comorbidity of chronic angina and diabetes mellitus. In this review, we summarize the available data from clinical studies and provide valuable insight into defining the target population for the antihyperglycemic effect of ranolazine

Calculations Across the Curriculum: An Innovative Approach to Improve Student’s Ability to Perform Pharmaceutical Calculations

Objective: In an effort to improve learning in Area 2 of the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX), the School of Pharmacy at Hampton University implemented a Calculations Across the Curriculum (CAC) program. Our objective is to evaluate the impact of theCACprogram on student competency in Area 2 and to determine ifCACcan be used as a predictor for future Area 2 scores for our pharmacy graduates. Methods: CAC incorporates pharmaceutical calculations problems and exercises in courses throughout the didactic curriculum based on a monthly calculations theme, such as alligation, aliquot, isotonicity or percentage. Students were administered a pharmaceutical calculations pre-test at the start of the semester. This was followed by a monthly review session on a relevant topic and a calculations assessment posted on Blackboard. A remediation session was offered to students who did not pass the calculations assessment. In addition, faculty administered calculation questions based on the monthly theme to the students in various forms of assessment, such as quizzes, exams, and class exercises.Apost-test was then given at the end of the semester. Results were measured using descriptive statistics and comparative (T-test) analysis. Results: Feedback from students concerning the CAC program has been positive. Preliminary results indicate that 60% of the students who participated in CAC showed an improvement between their pre- and post-test scores. Implications: Utilizing a Calculations Across the Curriculum program ensures continuous reinforcement and reiteration of calculation concepts each semester, and is expected to enhance student performance on the NAPLEX

Self MHC class I–licensed NK cells enhance adaptive CD8 T-cell viral immunity

MHC class I (MHC I) is essential to NK- and T-cell effector and surveillance functions. However, it is unknown whether MHC I polymorphism influences adaptive immunity through NK cells. Previously, we found that MHC I Dk, a cognate ligand for the Ly49G2 inhibitory receptor, was essential to NK control of murine (M)CMV infection. Here we assessed the significance of NK inhibitory receptor recognition of MCMV on CD8 T cells in genetically defined MHC I Dk disparate mice. We observed that Dk-licensed Ly49G2+ NK cells stabilized and then enhanced conventional dendritic cells (cDCs) recovery after infection. Furthermore, licensed NK support of cDC recovery was essential to enhance the tempo, magnitude, and effector activity of virus-specific CD8 T cells. Minimal cDC and CD8 T-cell number differences after low-dose MCMV in Dk disparate animals further implied that licensed NK recognition of MCMV imparted qualitative cDC changes to enhance CD8 T-cell priming