Medical Marijuana-Induced Tacrolimus Toxicity.

As both recreational and therapeutic marijuana use increases in the US, more attention is being paid to its direct medical and psychoactive effects. One crucial dimension is the potential for marijuana or marijuana-derived therapies to interact with other prescribed medications. Tacrolimus is an immunosuppressant medication prescribed to prevent rejection in patients receiving solid organ and bone marrow transplants. Clinically, it is characterized by a narrow therapeutic index and multiple drug-drug interactions. Constituents in marijuana are known to inhibit cytochrome P-450 3A, which is normally responsible for metabolizing tacrolimus, leading to the potential for a dangerous interaction. Though this phenomenon has been described previously in a stem cell transplant patient, we present the case of medical marijuana induced tacrolimus toxicity in a patient who recently received an orthotopic liver transplant

The Vowelindrome

I have coined a new term in order to point out a phenomenon in the English language: the vowelindrome. A vowelindrome is a series of palindromes which result from the placement of a single letter immediately before and after each of the five vowels. After 26 trials and 24 errors, I have determined that there are only two vowelindromes, corresponding to the letters P and T

On Teaching Palindromes

Webster\u27s Third New International Dictionary defines palindrome as a word, verse, or sentence that reads the same backward as forward . As is often the case with limericks, sonnets, and other highly-structured but nowadays seldom-pursued literary creations, the few frequently-anthologized examples have come to be the only examples we know. This is certainly the case with the palindrome

For Some Reason Cheese

I don\u27t propose to explain it. Cheese is as unlikely as it is likely: a seemingly ordinary food product. Why, then, do we find it treated more thoroughly in palindromes than any other substance? This enigma functions as a perfect metaphor for the whole subject of palindromes, full of eerie truths (Tessa\u27s in Italy: Latin is asset) and bizarre images (Satan, oscillate my metallic sonatas)

The Future of Education: Black Life and Our Classrooms A Moderated Panel Discussion

This piece is an abridged version of a panel discussion that was part of the symposium on Anti-Black State Violence Across the Americas: Power and Struggle in Brazil and the U.S., held at UC Berkeley on February 20–22, 2019, and organized by the LUTA Initiative, a coalition of scholars invested in facilitating international dialogue about racialized state violence across the Americas. The conversation featured Cherrish Cook and Muwazu Chisum-Misquitta (Berkeley High School Student Activists, United States) in conversation with Onirê Onã Walê Borges dos Santos and Andreia Beatriz Silva dos Santos (React or Die/Winnie Mandela Pan-Africanist School, Salvador da Bahia, Brazil). C. Darius Gordon moderated the panel (Editor, Berkeley Review of Education, Graduate School of Education, UC Berkeley). Alejandro Reyes performed transcription and translation for this article. For more information on the LUTA Initiative, the symposium, and a full video of this panel discussion with English and Portuguese subtitles, visit https://lutainitiative.wordpress.com

Intense field stabilization in circular polarization: 3D time-dependent dynamics

We investigate the stabilization of a hydrogen atom in circularly polarized laser fields. We use a time-dependent, fully three dimensional approach to study the quantum dynamics of the hydrogen atom subject to high intensity, short wavelength laser pulses. We find enhanced survival probability as the field is increased under fixed envelope conditions. We also confirm wavepacket dynamics seen in prior time-dependent computations restricted to two dimensions.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, submitte

Introducing Biology Undergraduates to Authentic Research through Grand Challenges in Global Health: Examining Environmental Factors that Influence the Development of Zebrafish Embryos

To increase student excitement and engagement in science, a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) has been introduced in the curriculum at IUPUI. In Fall 2013, original research projects investigating prenatal alcohol, nicotine and caffeine exposure effects on development of zebrafish embryos was introduced into the Introductory Biology K102 course. This research project was also a part of a new Themed Learning Community (TLC) at IUPUI called “From Molecules to Medicines” that examined grand challenges in global health. In documenting the developmental effects on zebrafish embryos, and designing new protocols to address student research questions, students gained experience with authentic research methods, laboratory techniques, microscopy, image analyses, statistical analyses, scientific writing and presentation skills. This project, especially in a freshman undergraduate lab setting, requires a new way of problem-solving, but greatly facilitates student excitement and engagement in science through the use of research-based high-impact practices for student success and persistence. To continue an inquiry-based lab on global health issues and to keep IUPUI biology curricula current with the rapid rise of bioinformatics, concepts of bioinformatics were introduced into the Cell Biology Laboratory K325 course in Spring, 2014. Students were allowed to work on their own investigatory projects to analyzed zebrafish microarray data to find genes affected after ethanol exposure. Students used NCBI/ Ensembl databases to retrieve the gene/protein sequences, and various freely available tools (GeneBank, Protein Data Bank, BLAST, ClustalW, ExPasy, Phylogenetic Tree) to investigate the evolutionary conservation of genes/proteins affected after ethanol exposure. Student learnt 3D-protein structure construction and observed how 3D-protein structure could change with single amino acid changes. Preliminary assessment indicates that students are gaining an understanding the web-based databases and tools and enjoying the investigatory nature of the lab exercises

Seed production of barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli) in response to time of emergence in cotton and rice

The spread of herbicide resistance in barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli (L.) Beauv.) poses a serious threat to crop production in the southern United States. A thorough knowledge of the biology of barnyardgrass is fundamental for designing effective resistance-management programmes. In the present study, seed production of barnyardgrass in response to time of emergence was investigated in cotton and rice, respectively, in Fayetteville and Rohwer, Arkansas, over a 2-year period (2008–09). Barnyardgrass seed production was greater when seedlings emerged with the crop, but some seed production was observed even if seedlings emerged several weeks after crop emergence. Moreover, barnyardgrass seed production was highly variable across environments. When emerging with the crop (0 weeks after crop emergence (WAE)), barnyardgrass produced c. 35 500 and 16 500 seeds/plant in cotton, and c. 39 000 and 2900 seeds/plant in rice, in 2008 and 2009, respectively. Seed production was observed when seedlings emerged up to 5 WAE (2008) or 7 WAE (2009) in cotton and up to 5 WAE (2008, 2009) in rice; corresponding seed production was c. 2500 and 1500 seeds/plant in cotton, and c. 14 700 and 110 seeds/plant in rice, in 2008 and 2009, respectively. The results suggest that cultural approaches that delay the emergence of barnyardgrass or approaches that make the associated crop more competitive will be useful in integrated management programmes. In the context of herbicide resistance management, it may be valuable to prevent seed return to the seedbank, irrespective of cohorts. The findings are vital for parameterizing herbicide resistance simulation models for barnyardgrass

Using Zebrafish to implement a Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) to study Teratogenesis in Two Biology Laboratory Courses

poster abstractAbstract: Two related course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) were introduced into a freshman introductory biology and a sophomore level cell biology class. In fall 2013, first semester freshman students were introduced to scientific research in an introductory biology laboratory course. Students were mentored to develop and execute original research projects investigating embryonic nicotine and caffeine exposure effects on development, particularly on heart development and function, using zebrafish embryos. In spring 2014, sophomore level cell biology students extended these studies and analyzed the effects of nicotine and caffeine at precise times in gastrulation. The freshman research experience was repeated in fall 2014 where a new group of students expanded the earlier research to investigate effects of additional toxicants on development. Students designed new protocols, made measurements, documented data, presented results and generated novel, high quality preliminary data that will be further studied in successive semesters. Student researchers identified novel effects of nicotine exposure on gastrulation and heart morphogenesis. Student surveys showed the greatest gains in ability to (1) design experiments, (2) analyze data, and (3) make scientific presentations. This CURE approach generated excitement and engagement that translated into high student satisfaction and enhanced learning

Stepping Stones: A Leadership Development Program to Inspire and Promote Reflection Among Women Faculty and Staff

Women frequently benefit from focused faculty development opportunities not because they need to be “fixed,” but rather it is a means to demonstrate that success, even in chilly environments, is possible. The Stepping Stones program uses a unique design to provide participants with inspiration, time for reflection, and strategies for how to navigate one's career, through hearing about the journeys of successful women. In this article, we describe the program and evaluation results. Post‐event and longitudinal follow‐up surveys indicate that the program and its unique narrative format help to debunk the superwoman myth and leave participants with a sense of optimism about their future careers