NURS 360: For a great deal of nurses they are subject to having to participate in mandatory overtime, are nurses that are required to participate in mandatory overtime, just as successful and functional in care for patients as nurses who are not required to participate in mandatory overtime?

In times of crisis, many nurses are required to complete mandatory overtime in order to assure that there are enough nurses for the correct nurse-to-patient ratio. This can lead to a significant increase in burnout for nurses who might already be experiencing fatigue related to their position (Dyrbye, West, Johnson, & Cipriano, 2020). The purpose of this research is to evaluate current evidence on whether nurses who are required to participate in mandatory overtime are as successful and functional in patient care as the nurses who are not required

Effects of Drought Conditions on Microbial Communities in Native Rangelands

Climate change is a result of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. These changes are expected to cause extreme weather conditions, including severe storms. Large amounts of rain will fall in shorter periods of time, leading to heavy runoff, and increasing the severity of drought conditions within the soil (Zeglin et al. 2013). Native grasslands occupy almost a quarter of the earth’s land surface and are valuable ecological resources. They contain soils with high concentrations of organic matter and play a key role in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions through carbon sequestration. There are a variety of grassland management techniques including annual burning, patch burning, and cattle grazing. These management techniques can be beneficial for ecosystems, but can also alter soil compositions (Jerome et al. 2014). Microbial communities in the soil influence many ecosystem processes such as nutrient acquisition, carbon and nitrogen cycling, and soil formation (Heijden et al. 2008). Changes in precipitation patterns can effect microbes in these grasslands by causing shifts in community composition, and changes in nutrient cycling and decomposition processes. Many microbial activities can be directly correlated with water availability, and drought conditions may be detrimental to these grazed grassland ecosystems (Gray et al. 2011). Summer months and differences in time lead to changes in temperatures and rainfall patters, similarly having the potential to alter activity and structure of microbial communities. This study was conducted at the Konza Prairie Biological Station in eastern Kansas, USA. Soil samples were collected to compare June versus July and moist versus dry treatments. Findings from this study concluded that seasonal changes through June and July alter microbial communities in Konza Prairie soil. Total PLFA concentrations significantly increased, with the largest increase occurring in fungi. This change caused a decrease in relative abundance of gram positive and gram negative bacteria, and also an increase in the ratio of fungi to bacteria. Drought conditions caused no significant change in microbial communities, suggesting the microbes in the soil have a high tolerance for lack of moisture

Hemostatic efficiency of amphiphilic peptide solution in Wistar Rat model

Master of ScienceDepartment of Grain Science and IndustryX. Susan SunOne of the leading causes of death following traumatic injury is exsanguination. The body addresses bleeding through the process of hemostasis which includes the formation of a fibrin mesh structure that holds a blood clot together. During traumatic injury, hemostasis may be unable to stop excess bleeding. Fibrin based hemostatic agents have been developed, however, these studies often use fibrin obtained from biological sources, which poses risk of infection. A novel amphiphilic peptide (h9e) has been studied to form three dimensional nanofibers networks. In this research, we studied the ability to form a synthetically produced, fibrin-mimic, hemostatic material from the h9e peptide sequence. The objective of this study was to determine the blood gelation strength of the h9e peptide necessary to arrest bleeding in the Wistar Rat model. Commercial mouse blood was used for blood gelation in vitro studies. Dynamic rheometer was used to determine the gelation kinetics at varied h9e peptide concentrations ranging from 1-5% wt. By directly mixing the h9e peptide with blood, we observed that the blood gelation strength right after mixing increased as the h9e peptide weight % concentration increased, from 67 to 1086 Pascals in the peptide concentration from 1 to 5%, respectively. After 24 hours, final gelation strength of all concentrations with commercial mouse blood was lower than the instantaneous strength but consistent throughout testing. Similar testing was conducted using commercial Wistar Rat blood with weight % concentrations of 1, 3, and 5% of h9e peptide. The gelation strength was 500, 1665, and 1914 Pascals, respectively. We also determined the gelation strength of Wistar Rat blood components, such as red blood cells, serum, and plasma with 1% h9e peptide. We observed the gelation response induced with individual blood components; however, the strength is weaker than whole blood. In vivo, we applied the cut-tail method by dipping the cut-tail of Wistar Rats into the h9e peptide solutions for 10 seconds and then took it out for blood lost collection. We observed that h9e peptide solution at 1, 3, and 5% weight concentrations can all generate hemostatic function. The h9e peptide solution at 5% weight concentration (1914 Pa) was able to outperform a commercial hemostatic material (Moore Medical CELOX* Hemostatic Granules), significantly reducing both bleeding time and blood lost: h9e peptide at 5% had a bleeding time of 94 sec and 0.75 mL blood lost, while the Celox hemostatic granules had a bleeding time of 225 sec and 1.5 mL blood lost. Transmission Electron Microscopy and Spinning Disk Confocal Microscope imaging indicated a blood component reinforced, web-like, h9e nanofiber structure similar to the structure formed by fibrin in a blood clot. This study showed that h9e peptide has the potential to be used to induce hemostasis

The First Record of the Eastern Smallfooted Myotis (\u3ci\u3eMyotis leibii\u3c/i\u3e) in Illinois

The eastern small-footed myotis (Myotis leibii) is one of the least known bats in eastern North America. We document the first record of the species in Illinois, and discuss possible reasons it has not been reported in the state until now

Practice Problems in Biomedical Organic Chemistry: Self-Guided Problems and Answers for Students in Bioorganic and Organic Chemistry, Volume I

If you have ideas for topics to be included in future volumes or have suggestion or corrections you would like to share, you can email the authors at [email protected] problem set was developed to assist undergraduate students taking a one semester or two semester, non-majors course in organic chemistry. Students in these courses often come to organic chemistry from diverse backgrounds including biology, microbiology, and a variety of medical-related fields (e.g., pre-medical, pre-nursing, pre-pharmacy, and others). If you are one of these students, these problems were made for you. We have generated a series of questions and answers dealing with major topics in organic chemistry as they apply to biology, medicine, and cell biology. In addition, we have included questions related to important analytical chemistry tools that students might encounter during their professional careers.University of Oklahoma Libraries Alternative Textbook GrantN

Berberine Reduces cAMP-Induced Chloride Secretion in T84 Human Colonic Carcinoma Cells through Inhibition of Basolateral KCNQ1 Channels

Berberine is a plant alkaloid with multiple pharmacological actions, including antidiarrhoeal activity and has been shown to inhibit Cl− secretion in distal colon. The aims of this study were to determine the molecular signaling mechanisms of action of berberine on Cl− secretion and the ion transporter targets. Monolayers of T84 human colonic carcinoma cells grown in permeable supports were placed in Ussing chambers and short-circuit current measured in response to secretagogues and berberine. Whole-cell current recordings were performed in T84 cells using the patch-clamp technique. Berberine decreased forskolin-induced short-circuit current in a concentration-dependent manner (IC50 80 ± 8 μM). In apically permeabilized monolayers and whole-cell current recordings, berberine inhibited a cAMP-dependent and chromanol 293B-sensitive basolateral membrane K+ current by 88%, suggesting inhibition of KCNQ1 K+ channels. Berberine did not affect either apical Cl− conductance or basolateral Na+–K+-ATPase activity. Berberine stimulated p38 MAPK, PKCα and PKA, but had no effect on p42/p44 MAPK and PKCδ. However, berberine pre-treatment prevented stimulation of p42/p44 MAPK by epidermal growth factor. The inhibitory effect of berberine on Cl− secretion was partially blocked by HBDDE (∼65%), an inhibitor of PKCα and to a smaller extent by inhibition of p38 MAPK with SB202190 (∼15%). Berberine treatment induced an increase in association between PKCα and PKA with KCNQ1 and produced phosphorylation of the channel. We conclude that berberine exerts its inhibitory effect on colonic Cl− secretion through inhibition of basolateral KCNQ1 channels responsible for K+ recycling via a PKCα-dependent pathway

Researcher readiness for participating in community-engaged dissemination and implementation research: a conceptual framework of core competencies

Participating in community-engaged dissemination and implementation (CEDI) research is challenging for a variety of reasons. Currently, there is not specific guidance or a tool available for researchers to assess their readiness to conduct CEDI research. We propose a conceptual framework that identifies detailed competencies for researchers participating in CEDI and maps these competencies to domains. The framework is a necessary step toward developing a CEDI research readiness survey that measures a researcher's attitudes, willingness, and self-reported ability for acquiring the knowledge and performing the behaviors necessary for effective community engagement. The conceptual framework for CEDI competencies was developed by a team of eight faculty and staff affiliated with a university's Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA). The authors developed CEDI competencies by identifying the attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors necessary for carrying out commonly accepted CE principles. After collectively developing an initial list of competencies, team members individually mapped each competency to a single domain that provided the best fit. Following the individual mapping, the group held two sessions in which the sorting preferences were shared and discrepancies were discussed until consensus was reached. During this discussion, modifications to wording of competencies and domains were made as needed. The team then engaged five community stakeholders to review and modify the competencies and domains. The CEDI framework consists of 40 competencies organized into nine domains: perceived value of CE in D&I research, introspection and openness, knowledge of community characteristics, appreciation for stakeholder's experience with and attitudes toward research, preparing the partnership for collaborative decision-making, collaborative planning for the research design and goals, communication effectiveness, equitable distribution of resources and credit, and sustaining the partnership. Delineation of CEDI competencies advances the broader CE principles and D&I research goals found in the literature and facilitates development of readiness assessments tied to specific training resources for researchers interested in conducting CEDI research

Differences of Photographs Inducing Craving Between Alcoholics and Non-alcoholics

Many researchers have used cue reactivity paradigm to study alcohol craving. But the difference of craving response to drinks between alcoholic patients and social drinkers was little evaluated. To investigate characteristics of alcohol-related visual cues which induce alcohol craving in alcoholism, we examined the response of subjects to alcohol-related cues considering qualitative aspects. The authors developed 27 photographs related to alcohol as candidate visual cues. Thirty five patients with alcohol dependence, 35 heavy drinkers and 35 social drinkers were shown these pictures and asked to rate these 6 pictures in order of inducing alcohol craving the most. 'A glass of Soju' and 'A Party scene' were chosen as the alcohol-related visual cues which induced craving the most in the patients and heavy drinkers, respectively. The results suggest that the patients with alcohol dependence are more absorbed by alcohol without drinking context such as an atmosphere or situation involving drinking. Heavy drinkers may experience craving in anticipation of being in a drinking situation

Abundance measurements of H₂O and carbon-bearing species in the atmosphere of WASP-127b confirm its super-solar metallicity

The chemical abundances of exoplanet atmospheres may provide valuable information about the bulk compositions, formation pathways, and evolutionary histories of planets. Exoplanets with large, relatively cloud-free atmospheres, and which orbit bright stars provide the best opportunities for accurate abundance measurements. For this reason, we measured the transmission spectrum of the bright (V∼10.2), large ($1.37 R_J$), sub-Saturn mass ($0.19 M_J$) exoplanet WASP-127b across the near-UV to near-infrared wavelength range (0.3–5 μm), using the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. Our results show a feature-rich transmission spectrum, with absorption from Na, $H_2O$, and $CO_2$, and wavelength-dependent scattering from small-particle condensates. We ran two types of atmospheric retrieval models: one enforcing chemical equilibrium, and the other which fit the abundances freely. Our retrieved abundances at chemical equilibrium for Na, O and C are all super-solar, with abundances relative to solar values of $9^{+15}_{-6}$, $16^{+7}_{-5}$⁠, and $26^{+12}_{-9}$ respectively. Despite giving conflicting C/O ratios, both retrievals gave super-solar $CO_2$ volume mixing ratios, which adds to the likelihood that WASP-127b’s bulk metallicity is super-solar, since $CO_2$ abundance is highly sensitive to atmospheric metallicity. We detect water at a significance of 13.7 σ. Our detection of Na is in agreement with previous ground-based detections, though we find a much lower abundance, and we also do not find evidence for Li or K despite increased sensitivity. In the future, spectroscopy with JWST will be able to constrain WASP-127b’s C/O ratio, and may reveal the formation history of this metal-enriched, highly observable exoplanet