Crohn’s Disease linked Polymorphisms associated with Autophagy contribute to Th17 cell induction through increasing the expression of IL-1β and TNF-α

Abstract Genome wide association studies (GWAS) have linked polymorphisms in autophagy genes to Crohn’s Disease (CD). Interestingly, recent studies have shown that defective autophagy leads to increased levels of the cytokines IL-1b and TNF-a, which play a critical role in Th17 cell differentiation. This is significant because CD is marked by a Th17 cell mediated inflammatory response. This article examines the manners in which defective expression of autophagy linked proteins, can indirectly amplify and sustain Th17 cell induction through increasing the production of Th17 positively differentiating cytokines (IL-1b and TNF-a) and decreasing the production of a Th17 down regulating cytokine, IL-10

Toward a Unified Theory of Cognition: A Kantian Analysis

The goal of this paper is to provide classroom teachers a more unified theory of cognition. The current cognitive theories of information processing, schema theory, and constructivism exhibit limitations and a lack of cohesion that make their implications for teachers unclear. This paper will be presented in five sections. 1) The first describes problems with current cognitive theories and the need for a unified theory of cognition 2) The second provides a review of the literature of current cognitive theories. 3) The third section consists of research in the history of cognitive theory both in philosophy and psychology. 4) The fourth describes how a fresh look at the philosophy of Immanuel Kant can provide a more unified cognitive theory to educational psychology. 5) Finally, the paper offers specific implications for instruction under these headings: Teachers should describe the concept to be taught as a rule. Teachers should introduce the concept rule by experience or by example. Teachers should use the concept rule as a framework for effective questioning. Teachers should describe the rule with abstract language only after students have understood the rule

Adults can be trained to acquire synesthetic experiences

Synesthesia is a condition where presentation of one perceptual class consistently evokes additional experiences in different perceptual categories. Synesthesia is widely considered a congenital condition, although an alternative view is that it is underpinned by repeated exposure to combined perceptual features at key developmental stages. Here we explore the potential for repeated associative learning to shape and engender synesthetic experiences. Non-synesthetic adult participants engaged in an extensive training regime that involved adaptive memory and reading tasks, designed to reinforce 13 specific letter-color associations. Following training, subjects exhibited a range of standard behavioral and physiological markers for grapheme-color synesthesia; crucially, most also described perceiving color experiences for achromatic letters, inside and outside the lab, where such experiences are usually considered the hallmark of genuine synesthetes. Collectively our results are consistent with developmental accounts of synesthesia and illuminate a previously unsuspected potential for new learning to shape perceptual experience, even in adulthood

LUNA: Nuclear Astrophysics Deep Underground

Nuclear astrophysics strives for a comprehensive picture of the nuclear reactions responsible for synthesizing the chemical elements and for powering the stellar evolution engine. Deep underground in the Gran Sasso laboratory the cross sections of the key reactions of the proton-proton chain and of the Carbon-Nitrogen-Oxygen (CNO) cycle have been measured right down to the energies of astrophysical interest. The salient features of underground nuclear astrophysics are summarized here. The main results obtained by LUNA in the last twenty years are reviewed, and their influence on the comprehension of the properties of the neutrino, of the Sun and of the Universe itself are discussed. Future directions of underground nuclear astrophysics towards the study of helium and carbon burning and of stellar neutron sources in stars are pointed out.Comment: Invited review, submitted to Annu. Rev. Nucl. Part. Scienc

"Unknown" Students on College Campuses: An Exploratory Analysis

Examines data from three campuses to identify college students falling into the "race/ethnicity unknown" category. Provides recommendations for increasing demographic accuracy, and measuring the success of underrepresented students in higher education

Canvassers tend to seek out supporters who are like themselves, and that's not good for political participation.

Petition canvassers play an important role as political recruiters by introducing citizens to political issues and seeking their support. But not much is known about how these canvassers decide whom to recruit or about their methods. Research by Clayton Nall, Benjamin Schneer, and Daniel Carpenter sets forth a model of political recruiting that changes depending on canvassers' experiences, is constrained ..