Anterior Talofibular Ligament and Superior Extensor Ankle Retinaculum Thicknesses: Relationship with Balance

Purpose This study determined if anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL)/superior extensor ankle retinaculum (SEAR) thicknesses are related to dynamic balance in individuals with chronic ankle instability (CAI). Materials and Methods The subjects were 14 males and 15 females (age=24.52±3.46 years). Ankle instability was assessed using the Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool (CAIT) with a cut off score of 25 to define two groups. SonoSite MTurbo (Fugifilm Sonosite, Inc.) musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSKUS) unit was used to assess ATFL and SEAR thicknesses. Dynamic balance was measured with the Y Balance Test (YBT) and two NeuroCom balance tests. Results There were no significant differences in the average ATFL thickness between stable and unstable ankles in those subjects with CAI (0.25±0.03 cm and 0.21±0.05 cm, respectively) or in the SEAR thickness (0.09±0.04 cm and 0.10±0.03 cm, respectively). There were also no significant differences in the right and left ATFL thicknesses (0.23±0.07 cm and 0.21±0.04 cm, respectively) or the SEAR thicknesses (0.09±0.01 cm and 0.09±0.01 cm, respectively) in those without CAI. There were no differences between limbs in composite scores on YBT in those with CAI (p=0.35) and those without CAI (p=0.33). There was a moderate correlation between the left SEAR thickness and the large forward/backward perturbations on the NeuroCom (Natus) motor control test (r=0.51, p=0.006 and r=0.54, p=0.003, respectively). Conclusion There were no differences in the ATFL/SEAR thicknesses or balance measures between or within the groups, likely because CAI is multi-factorial and related to mechanisms other than tissue changes alone. More sensitive technology and a better definition of the measurement process may provide more definitive results

Don’t Tread on Me: Masculine Honor Ideology in the U.S. and Militant Responses to Terrorism

Using both college students and a national sample of adults, the authors report evidence linking the ideology of masculine honor in the U.S. with militant responses to terrorism. In Study 1, individuals’ honor ideology endorsement predicted, among other outcomes, open-ended hostile responses to a fictitious attack on the Statue of Liberty and support for the use of extreme counterterrorism measures (e.g., severe interrogations), controlling for right-wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and other covariates. In Study 2, the authors used a regional classification to distinguish honor state respondents from nonhonor state respondents, as has traditionally been done in the literature, and showed that students attending a southwestern university desired the death of the terrorists responsible for 9/11 more than did their northern counterparts. These studies are the first to show that masculine honor ideology in the U.S. has implications for the intergroup phenomenon of people’s responses to terrorism.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

THE SIMULATED PATIENT ASSESSMENT, RESEARCH, AND COLLABORATION PROJECT (SPARC)

INTRODUCTION: At least 80% of medical schools in the United States use standardized patients (SPs) for the training and evaluation of students (Clay, M. C., Lane, H., Willis, S. E., Peal, M., Chakravarthi, S., & Poehlman, G., 2000). Despite the potential benefits of using SPs in professional psychology, there has been little research regarding their effectiveness in the preparation of mental health practitioners. PURPOSE: The purpose of the SPARC study is to investigate whether practice interviewing with a SP results in greater skill development than role-playing with a peer. METHODOLOGY: Participants in each condition were required to attend five, three-hour laboratory sessions and engage in 15-minute pre- and post-assessment interviews with a SP. Sessions were held in classrooms, and assessments were conducted in the on-campus mental health clinic. Laboratory session facilitators were provided with detailed protocols based upon actual, de-identified cases, and pre- and post-test sessions were videotaped to evaluate interviewing skills and laboratory sessions were videotaped to assess fidelity of implementation. Each role play/simulation was 10 minutes in length. Participants received verbal feedback regarding interviewing skills from both the group facilitators as well as their peers. RESULTS: Qualitative feedback from participating students has been consistently positive. Participants cite the opportunity to engage in simulated sessions as extremely beneficial. Furthermore, the students reported appreciating extra structured practice prior to their first practicum experience. A weakness of the study was the significant time commitment required for participation (a total of five, three-hour sessions, as well as the pre- and posttests) resulting in a relatively small number of participants (N=15) CONCLUSIONS: Overall, qualitative responses to the study are consistent with the authors’ hypothesized benefits of utilizing SPs. Data are being collected in order to evaluate the efficacy of SPs as a method of instruction

Ensemble Concerts

Concert performed at UNT College of Music Kenton Hall on October 7, 2004 at 8:00 p

Changes in children’s and adolescents’ dietary intake after the implementation of Chile’s law of food labeling, advertising and sales in schools: a longitudinal study

Abstract Background In June 2016, a comprehensive food policy was implemented in Chile that included front-of-package warning labels on key nutrients of concern (total sugars, added saturated fats, sodium, and calories), child-directed food advertisement bans, and school regulations. The policy was implemented in 3 phases from 2016 to 2019 and the primary objective was to improve children’s food environments. This study’s objective was to assess changes in child and adolescent intake of key nutrients of concern (total sugars, saturated fats, and sodium) at school after the initial implementation of Chile’s Law of Food Labeling and Advertisement. Methods Longitudinal study of 349 children from the Food Environment Chilean Cohort (FECHIC) and 294 adolescents from the Growth and Obesity Cohort Study (GOCS). Data were from single 24-hour dietary recalls collected from 2016 to 2019. Fixed-effects models stratified by school, home, and other locations compared nutrient consumption in each year to consumption at the pre-policy 2016 baseline. Nutrient intakes are expressed as percent of total energy. Results Compared to 2016 (pre-policy), total sugars consumed by children at school decreased 4.5 [-8.0, -0.9] percentage points (pp) and 11.8 [-15.4, -8.3] pp in 2018 and 2019 respectively. In 2019, children’s saturated fats and sodium intake at school also decreased (1.1 [-1.9, -0.2] pp and 10.3 [-18.1, -2.5] mg/100 kcal respectively). Likewise, in adolescents, total sugars and saturated fats consumed at school decreased in 2018 (5.3 [-8.4, -2.2] pp and 1.5 [-2.7, -0.3] pp respectively). However, consumption of key nutrients of concern at other locations increased after implementation of the policy. Conclusions After initial implementation of Chile’s Labeling Law, intake of most key nutrients of concern significantly declined at school. However, we found evidence of compensatory behavior in out-of-school settings. Further research is needed to evaluate what other actions are needed to impact overall diets in the long term both at schools and out of school

Therapeutic reduction of lysophospholipids in the digestive tract recapitulates the metabolic benefits of bariatric surgery and promotes diabetes remission

Objective: Obesity and obesity-related metabolic disorders are major health problems worldwide. The most effective obesity intervention is bariatric surgery. This study tested the hypothesis that bariatric surgery alters phospholipid metabolism in the gastrointestinal tract to favor a metabolically healthy gut microbiota profile and therapeutic intervention of phospholipid metabolism in the gastrointestinal may have similar metabolic benefits. Methods: The first study compared plasma levels of the bioactive lipid metabolites lysophospholipid and trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) as well as gut microbiota profile in high fat/carbohydrate (HFHC) diet-fed C57BL/6 mice with or without vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) and in Pla2g1b−/− mice with group 1B phospholipase A2 gene inactivation. The second study examined the effectiveness of the non-absorbable secretory phospholipase A2 inhibitor methyl indoxam to reverse hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia in HFHC diet-fed C57BL/6 mice after diabetes onset. Results: Both bariatric surgery and PLA2G1B inactivation were shown to reduce lysophospholipid content in the gastrointestinal tract, resulting in resistance to HFHC diet-induced alterations of the gut microbiota, reduction of the cardiovascular risk factors hyperlipidemia and TMAO, decreased adiposity, and prevention of HFHC diet-induced diabetes. Importantly, treatment of wild type mice with methyl indoxam after HFHC diet-induced onset of hyperlipidemia and hyperglycemia effectively restored normal plasma lipid and glucose levels and replicated the metabolic benefits of VSG surgery with diabetes remission and TMAO reduction. Conclusion: These results provided pre-clinical evidence that PLA2G1B inhibition in the digestive tract may be a viable alternative option to bariatric surgery for obesity and obesity-related cardiometabolic disorder intervention. Keywords: Phospholipase A2, Gut microbiota, Cardiometabolic disease, Bariatric surgery, Lysophospholipi

Global patterns in conservation capacity development

Conservation is an interdisciplinary and applied field with a range of careers requiring different skills and abilities. Recent studies have identified ‘miss-matches’ between training available to early-career conservationists with the expectations and demands of the sector (Andrade et al., 2014; Lucas et al., 2017). Given the complexity of contemporary conservation challenges, and trends towards new ways of doing conservation that are more integrative, interactive and inclusive, the necessary ‘capacity’ now extends beyond knowledge of conservation science into a range of other skills and competencies. A diversity of capacity development initiatives are required to ensure that early-career conservationists around the world can seek out the necessary skills and experiences for their desired conservation career. However, at present we lack a global picture of conservation capacity provision and global priorities for capacity development in the conservation sector are unclear. Based on a review of relevant literature we focus on five focal areas of importance to contemporary conservation: policy, practice, collaboration, leadership and interdisciplinarity. Our study compiles and analyses an extensive database of 650 postgraduate-level conservation capacity development initiatives from 54 countries. We find the five focal areas to be highly correlated and postulate that this reflects requirements for foundational skills in communication, interpersonal interaction and boundary crossing. This study reveals substantial regional gaps in the provision of leadership capacity in Oceania, South and Central America, the Caribbean and all Asian regions. It also highlights a general need to strengthen policy-related capacity within conservation initiatives with other foci. These findings could help capacity development institutions, organisations and funders to improve the design and delivery of a comprehensive suite of initiatives to suit the changing needs of contemporary conservation