Music Programs in Urban Schools

It is important to implement and maintain a music program within an urban school containing a high population of at-risk students. With the awareness of mental illness increasing, we are more knowledgeable of the cognitive deficits caused by ongoing abuse and neglect--often called complex trauma. The effects music can have on the brain combats the negative cognitive and emotional impacts of complex trauma, which is essentially the goal of music therapy. Not every child has the opportunity and/or means to experience music therapy. However, if music programs are offered in schools, kids can reap the positive benefits of music by participating in their school’s program. The role of the teacher as well as the type of music studied in school can have incredibly positive impacts on the student(s) as well. In order to reach the full potential of the positive effects of music, the teacher needs to take time to get to know and invest in their students. Additionally, they need to be willing to be creative and flexible with the curriculum. This might mean turning to nontraditional genres, including hip hop or rap. There is no formula for the perfect music program in an urban setting, but what is important is that one is implemented and shaped in a way that will best benefit the students and their well-being

Cascadas de señalización involucradas en la capacitación del espermatozoide de mamífero : participación de quinasas y fosfatasas

Mammalian ejaculated sperm become able to fertilize an egg only after they undergo the\ncapacitation process that occurs in the female reproductive tract and leads to an increase\nin protein tyrosine (Tyr) phosphorylation, the occurrence of the acrosome reaction and the\ndevelopment of hyperactivation. The main aim of this Thesis has been to investigate the\nmolecular mechanisms involved in the different signaling pathways leading to sperm\ncapacitation in mammals. Results revealed the involvement of both PKA activation and\nserine/threonine phosphatase down-regulation by Src family Tyr kinases in functional\nsperm capacitation, and provided convincing evidence that early PKA-dependent\nphosphorylation is the convergent regulatory point between these signaling pathways.\nMoreover, our observations supported that Tyr kinase PYK2, regulated by calcium, is the\nresponsible of integrating different signaling events between PKA-mediated- and Tyr\nphosphorylations and, it is required for achieving functional capacitation. Considering that\ncapacitation involves the release of ?decapacitating factors? among which is CRISP1\n(Cysteine Rich Secretory Protein 1), an epididymal protein identified by our group, we next\nstudied the signaling cascades involved in the regulation of capacitation by CRISP1. Our\nresults, using purified CRISP1 and CRISP1-knockout mice, indicated that this protein\ninhibits the two principal sperm calcium channels, regulating in this way the capacitation\nprocess and hyperactivation. Altogether, our observations contribute to a better\nunderstanding of the mechanisms leading to the acquisition of sperm fertilizing ability as\nwell as to the development of new pharmacological tools for fertility regulation and\ntreatment of human infertility.Fil: Battistone, María Agustina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica; ArgentinaLos espermatozoides de mamífero son capaces de fertilizar a un ovocito sólo luego de\nsufrir el proceso de ?capacitación? que ocurre en el tracto femenino y que tiene como\nconsecuencia un aumento en la fosforilación de proteínas en tirosina (Tyr), la ocurrencia\nde la reacción acrosomal y el desarrollo de la hiperactividad. El objetivo de esta Tesis\nDoctoral ha sido estudiar los mecanismos moleculares involucrados en las cascadas de\nseñalización conducentes a la capacitación del espermatozoide de mamífero. Los\nresultados obtenidos indican que la capacitación implica la activación de PKA y la\ninactivación de serina/treonina fosfatasas a través de Tyr quinasas de la familia de Src,\nvías que convergen tempranamente a nivel de la fosforilación de los sustratos de PKA.\nNuestros resultados también demuestran que la Tyr quinasa PYK2, regulada por calcio,\nsería la responsable de integrar distintas señales río abajo de PKA, conducentes tanto a\nla fosforilación en Tyr como al estado funcional del espermatozoide. Considerando que la\ncapacitación requiere la liberación de ?factores decapacitantes? entre los cuales se\nencuentra la proteína epididimaria CRISP1 (Cysteine Rich Secretory Protein 1)\nidentificada por nuestro grupo, estudiamos las vías de señalización por las cuales esta\nproteína regula la capacitación. Nuestros resultados utilizando CRISP1 purificada y\nratones ?knockout? para dicha proteína desarrollados en el laboratorio, muestran que\nCRISP1 inhibe los principales canales de calcio presentes en el espermatozoide de\nmamífero, regulando la capacitación y el desarrollo de la hiperactividad. En conjunto,\nestos estudios contribuyen al esclarecimiento de los mecanismos moleculares por los\ncuales los espermatozoides adquieren su capacidad fertilizante y al futuro desarrollo de\nmétodos de regulación de la fertilidad y tratamiento de la infertilidad humana

The Prevalence and Clinical Correlates of an Auscultatory Gap in Systemic Sclerosis Patients

Introduction. Accurate blood pressure (BP) measurement is essential to the diagnosis and management of hypertension in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) to help prevent renal and cardiovascular complications. The presence of an auscultatory gap during manual BP measurement—the temporary disappearance of the Korotkoff sounds during cuff deflation—leads to a potentially important underestimate of systolic BP if undetected. Objectives. Since the presence of an auscultatory gap is frequently associated with increased vascular stiffness, we investigated its presence and correlates in 50 consecutive SSc patients. Methods. For each patient, BP was measured sequentially using three different approaches performed in the same order. Results. Sixteen of 50 patients (32%) had an auscultatory gap which if undetected would have resulted in clinically important underestimates of systolic BP in 4 patients. The presence of an auscultatory gap was statistically associated with the presence of antibodies to RNA polymerase III (P<0.0068) and SSc diagnosis type (P<0.01). Conclusions. Our study demonstrates that auscultatory gaps are relatively common in SSc and correlate with markers for SSc vasculopathy. If undetected auscultatory gaps may result in clinically important underestimation of BP. Thus, electronic oscillometric BP may be preferred in SSc patients