Affirming Theologies and Transgender Refugees and Asylum Seekers

The resettlement process of refugees and asylum seekers in the United States involves many services to a multitude of marginalized identities. The creation of religious community is commonly foundational for the resiliency of refugees. In terms of transgender and non-binary refugees and asylum seekers, this creation proves more difficult but equally as necessary. The two theological frameworks that welcome gender minorities are inclusive theology and affirming theology. This project examines the current practices of resettlement agencies as to the creation of religious community for transgender and non-binary clients and offers a critique to the theological frameworks. Through improving the creation of religious community for transgender and non-binary refugees and asylum seekers, the concept of home can be better supported and strengthened. This will allow for greater chances for resiliency in the resettlement process for such marginalized groups seeking refuge in the United States

First-fault detection in DC distribution with IT grounding based on Sliding Discrete Fourier-Transform

Since dc distribution minimizes the number of power conversion stages, it lowers the overall cost, power losses, and weight of a power system. Critical systems use IT grounding because it is tolerant to the first-fault. Hence, this is an attractive option for hybrid electric aircraft (HEA), which combines gas engines with electric motors driven by power electronic converters. This letter proposes an accurate implementation for the procedure of first-fault detection with IT grounding. The ac component injection along with the sliding discrete Fourier transform (SDFT) is used to estimate the fault impedance. The procedure is very accurate due to the heavy filtering of the implicit moving average filter. Further computation savings are obtained by using the double look-up tables, and the Goertzel algorithm for the SDFT. Results are validated by simulations and experiments

Identifying factors associated with sedentary time after stroke. Secondary analysis of pooled data from nine primary studies.

<p><b>Background</b>: High levels of sedentary time increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, including recurrent stroke.</p> <p><b>Objective</b>: This study aimed to identify factors associated with high sedentary time in community-dwelling people with stroke.</p> <p><b>Methods</b>: For this data pooling study, authors of published and ongoing trials that collected sedentary time data, using the activPAL monitor, in community-dwelling people with stroke were invited to contribute their raw data. The data was reprocessed, algorithms were created to identify sleep-wake time and determine the percentage of waking hours spent sedentary. We explored demographic and stroke-related factors associated with total sedentary time and time in uninterrupted sedentary bouts using unique, both univariable and multivariable, regression analyses.</p> <p><b>Results</b>: The 274 included participants were from Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom, and spent, on average, 69% (SD 12.4) of their waking hours sedentary. Of the demographic and stroke-related factors, slower walking speeds were significantly and independently associated with a higher percentage of waking hours spent sedentary (p = 0.001) and uninterrupted sedentary bouts of <i>>30</i> and <i>>60 min</i> (p = 0.001 and p = 0.004, respectively). Regression models explained 11–19% of the variance in total sedentary time and time in prolonged sedentary bouts.</p> <p><b>Conclusion</b>: We found that variability in sedentary time of people with stroke was largely unaccounted for by demographic and stroke-related variables. Behavioral and environmental factors are likely to play an important role in sedentary behavior after stroke. Further work is required to develop and test effective interventions to address sedentary behavior after stroke.</p

Inhibition of αvβ5 Integrin Attenuates Vascular Permeability and Protects against Renal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury

Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is a leading cause of AKI. This common clinical complication lacks effective therapies and can lead to the development of CKD. The αvβ5 integrin may have an important role in acute injury, including septic shock and acute lung injury. To examine its function in AKI, we utilized a specific function-blocking antibody to inhibit αvβ5 in a rat model of renal IRI. Pretreatment with this anti-αvβ5 antibody significantly reduced serum creatinine levels, diminished renal damage detected by histopathologic evaluation, and decreased levels of injury biomarkers. Notably, therapeutic treatment with the αvβ5 antibody 8 hours after IRI also provided protection from injury. Global gene expression profiling of post-ischemic kidneys showed that αvβ5 inhibition affected established injury markers and induced pathway alterations previously shown to be protective. Intravital imaging of post-ischemic kidneys revealed reduced vascular leak with αvβ5 antibody treatment. Immunostaining for αvβ5 in the kidney detected evident expression in perivascular cells, with negligible expression in the endothelium. Studies in a three-dimensional microfluidics system identified a pericyte-dependent role for αvβ5 in modulating vascular leak. Additional studies showed αvβ5 functions in the adhesion and migration of kidney pericytes in vitro Initial studies monitoring renal blood flow after IRI did not find significant effects with αvβ5 inhibition; however, future studies should explore the contribution of vasomotor effects. These studies identify a role for αvβ5 in modulating injury-induced renal vascular leak, possibly through effects on pericyte adhesion and migration, and reveal αvβ5 inhibition as a promising therapeutic strategy for AKI

Drug Use and Receipt of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy among HIV-Infected Persons in Two U.S. Clinic Cohorts

Drug use and receipt of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) were assessed in HIV-infected persons from the Comprehensive Care Center (CCC; Nashville, TN) and Johns Hopkins University HIV Clinic (JHU; Baltimore, MD) between 1999 and 2005.Participants with and without injection drug use (IDU) history in the CCC and JHU cohorts were evaluated. Additional analysis of persons with history of IDU, non-injection drug use (NIDU), and no drug use from CCC were performed. Activity of IDU and NIDU also was assessed for the CCC cohort. HAART use and time on HAART were analyzed according to drug use category and site of care.1745 persons were included from CCC: 268 (15%) with IDU history and 796 (46%) with NIDU history. 1977 persons were included from JHU: 731 (35%) with IDU history. Overall, the cohorts differed in IDU risk factor rates, age, race, sex, and time in follow-up. In multivariate analyses, IDU was associated with decreased HAART receipt overall (OR = 0.61, 95% CI: [0.45-0.84] and OR = 0.58, 95% CI: [0.46-0.73], respectively for CCC and JHU) and less time on HAART at JHU (0.70, [0.55-0.88]), but not statistically associated with time on HAART at CCC (0.78, [0.56-1.09]). NIDU was independently associated with decreased HAART receipt (0.62, [0.47-0.81]) and less time on HAART (0.66, [0.52-0.85]) at CCC. These associations were not altered significantly whether patients at CCC were categorized according to historical drug use or drug use during the study period.Persons with IDU history from both clinic populations were less likely to receive HAART and tended to have less cumulative time on HAART. Effects of NIDU were similar to IDU at CCC. NIDU without IDU is an important contributor to HAART utilization

Attention Drives Synchronization of Alpha and Beta Rhythms between Right Inferior Frontal and Primary Sensory Neocortex

The right inferior frontal cortex (rIFC) is specifically associated with attentional control via the inhibition of behaviorally irrelevant stimuli and motor responses. Similarly, recent evidence has shown that alpha (7–14 Hz) and beta (15–29 Hz) oscillations in primary sensory neocortical areas are enhanced in the representation of non-attended stimuli, leading to the hypothesis that allocation of these rhythms plays an active role in optimal inattention. Here, we tested the hypothesis that selective synchronization between rIFC and primary sensory neocortex occurs in these frequency bands during inattention. We used magnetoencephalography to investigate phase synchrony between primary somatosensory (SI) and rIFC regions during a cued-attention tactile detection task that required suppression of response to uncertain distractor stimuli. Attentional modulation of synchrony between SI and rIFC was found in both the alpha and beta frequency bands. This synchrony manifested as an increase in the alpha-band early after cue between non-attended SI representations and rIFC, and as a subsequent increase in beta-band synchrony closer to stimulus processing. Differences in phase synchrony were not found in several proximal control regions. These results are the first to reveal distinct interactions between primary sensory cortex and rIFC in humans and suggest that synchrony between rIFC and primary sensory representations plays a role in the inhibition of irrelevant sensory stimuli and motor responses.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant P41RR14075)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant K25MH072941)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant K01AT003459)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant K24AT004095)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant RO1-NS045130-01)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant T32GM007484)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant 0316933)National Science Foundation (U.S.). Graduate Research Fellowship Program (Grant DGE-1147470

Changes in HPV prevalence following a national bivalent HPV vaccination programme in Scotland: a 7-year cross-sectional study

Background: On Sept 1, 2008, Scotland launched routine vaccination for human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16 and 18, targeted at 12–13-year-old girls, of whom 92·4% were fully vaccinated in 2008–09. In this study, we report on vaccine effectiveness of the bivalent vaccine in these vaccinated women who attended for routine cervical screening at age 20–21 years. Methods: In this 7-year cross-sectional study (covering birth cohorts 1988–1995), we sampled approximately 1000 samples per year from those attending cervical screening at age 20–21 years and tested each for HPV. By linkage to vaccination records we ascertained prevalence by birth cohort and vaccination status. Estimates of vaccine effectiveness for HPV types 16 and 18, HPV types 31, 33, and 45, other high-risk types, and any HPV were calculated using logistic regression. Findings: In total, 8584 samples were HPV genotyped. Prevalence of HPV types 16 and 18 reduced substantially from 30·0% (95% CI 26·9–33·1) in the 1988 cohort to 4·5% (3·5–5·7) in the 1995 cohort, giving a vaccine effectiveness of 89·1% (85·1–92·3) for those vaccinated at age 12–13 years. All cross-protective types showed significant vaccine effectiveness (HPV type 31, 93·8% [95% CI 83·8–98·5]; HPV type 33, 79·1% [64·2–89·0]; HPV type 45, 82·6% [61·5–93·9]). Unvaccinated individuals born in 1995 had a reduced odds of HPV types 16 and 18 infection compared with those born in 1988 (adjusted odds ratio 0·13 [95% CI 0·06–0·28]) and reduced odds of HPV types 31, 33, and 45 (odds ratio 0·45 [0·23–0·89]). Interpretation: Bivalent vaccination has led to a startling reduction in vaccine and cross-protective HPV types 7 years after vaccination. There is also evidence of herd protection against the vaccine-specific and cross-protective types in unvaccinated individuals born in 1995. These findings should be considered in cost-effectiveness models informing vaccine choice and models to shape the future of cervical screening programmes