Opening Doors to Engage a More Diverse Population in Honors: A Conversation

In this article, a student, faculty member, and staff member address the question of how to engage underrepresented student populations in honors programs. A student of color describes how an honors course with experiential learning components captivated and motivated her, significantly altering her definition of self. The faculty and staff member acknowledge the necessary changes to large-scale policies, such as refining admissions criteria and implementing more diverse programs, in order to engage students of color in honors education. Key suggestions include cross-listing courses to engage current and prospective honors students, teaching honors courses and facilitating honors experiences that emphasize aspects of social (in)justice, and incorporating a holistic admissions process for both new and current university students. Identifying ways to engage diverse student populations in predominantly white programs is vital to both the success of all students and to honors education as a whole

The Development of eHealth in an Enlarged EU: Synthesis Report

In 2005, IPTS launched a project which aimed to assess the developments in eGoverment, eHealth and eLearning in the 10 New Member States at national, and cross-country level. At that time, the 10 New Member States were Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia. A report for each country was produced, describing its government and health systems and the role played by eGovernment and eHealth within these systems. Each report then analyzes, on the basis of desk research and expert interviews, the major achievements, shortcomings, drivers and barriers in the development of eGovernment and eHealth in one of the countries in question. This analysis provides the basis for the identification and discussion of national policy options to address the major challenges and to suggest R&D issues relevant to the needs of each country. In addition to national monographs, the project has delivered three synthesis reports, which offers an integrated view of the developments of each application domain in the New Member States. This report gives a comparative assessment of eHealth policies and institutions, problems and achievements with eHealth in the EU10. It also shows the examples of best practices with in eHealth developments, analyses the possible policy options at local, regional, national and European levels and highlights the most important future technical and non-technical R&D challenges specific to eHealth. Furthermore, a prospective report looking across and beyond the development of the eGoverment, eHealth and eLearning areas has been developed to summarize policy challenges and options for the development of eServices and the Information Society towards the goals of Lisbon and i2010.JRC.J.4-Information Societ

Statement on imaging and pulmonary hypertension from the Pulmonary Vascular Research Institute (PVRI)

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is highly heterogeneous and despite treatment advances it remains a life-shortening condition. There have been significant advances in imaging technologies, but despite evidence of their potential clinical utility, practice remains variable, dependent in part on imaging availability and expertise. This statement summarizes current and emerging imaging modalities and their potential role in the diagnosis and assessment of suspected PH. It also includes a review of commonly encountered clinical and radiological scenarios, and imaging and modeling-based biomarkers. An expert panel was formed including clinicians, radiologists, imaging scientists, and computational modelers. Section editors generated a series of summary statements based on a review of the literature and professional experience and, following consensus review, a diagnostic algorithm and 55 statements were agreed. The diagnostic algorithm and summary statements emphasize the key role and added value of imaging in the diagnosis and assessment of PH and highlight areas requiring further research

Understanding Middle Neolithic food and farming in and around the Stonehenge World Heritage Site: an integrated approach

Little synthesis of evidence for Middle Neolithic food and farming in Wiltshire, particularly in and around the Stonehenge World Heritage Site (WHS) has been possible, until now, due to a paucity of assemblages. The excavation of a cluster of five Middle Neolithic pits and an inhumation burial at West Amesbury Farm (WAF) has prompted a review of our understanding of pit sites of this period from the county. Bioarchaeological assemblages are used to investigate evidence for the consumption of animal and plant-based foods, and for agricultural and pastoral farming. For the first time Middle Neolithic zooarchaeological evidence, including strontium isotope data, is considered alongside archaeobotanical data, and radiocarbon dating. The absence of cultivated plants from WAF and contemporary sites in the county is consistent with the hypothesis that the reduction in cereal cultivation and greater reliance of wild plants witnessed in the later part of the Neolithic in southern England began in the Middle Neolithic. The zooarchaeological evidence from the same sites demonstrates that the shift away from cereal cultivation may be concurrent with, rather than earlier than, an increase in the relative proportion of deposited pig bones relative to cattle. Both cattle and pigs deposited in pits at WAF have strontium and sulphur isotope values consistent with the local biosphere, and therefore were potentially raised in the area. Zooarchaeological data from WAF compliments that from human dental calculus and lipid residues in associated Peterborough Ware pottery that local cattle husbandry included exploitation of dairy. It also highlights the presence of consistent food preparation methods between pits as seen through butchery practice. The faunal and archaeobotanical remains from contemporary pit deposits suggest that similar farming and subsistence strategies can be proposed across the county, though with some inter-site variation in deposition. Together these excavated pit sites are likely to represent only a sample of those present in the area. Application of a similar integrated approach to material from other Middle Neolithic pits holds potential for better understanding of food and farming in this previously neglected period

Matrigel 3D bioprinting of contractile human skeletal muscle models recapitulating exercise and pharmacological responses

A key to enhance the low translatability of preclinical drug discovery are in vitro human three-dimensional (3D) microphysiological systems (MPS). Here, we show a new method for automated engineering of 3D human skeletal muscle models in microplates and functional compound screening to address the lack of muscle wasting disease medication. To this end, we adapted our recently described 24-well plate 3D bioprinting platform with a printhead cooling system to allow microvalve-based drop-on-demand printing of cell-laden Matrigel containing primary human muscle precursor cells. Mini skeletal muscle models develop within a week exhibiting contractile, striated myofibers aligned between two attachment posts. As an in vitro exercise model, repeated high impact stimulation of contractions for 3 h by a custom-made electrical pulse stimulation (EPS) system for 24-well plates induced interleukin-6 myokine expression and Akt hypertrophy pathway activation. Furthermore, the known muscle stimulators caffeine and Tirasemtiv acutely increase EPS-induced contractile force of the models. This validated new human muscle MPS will benefit development of drugs against muscle wasting diseases. Moreover, our Matrigel 3D bioprinting platform will allow engineering of non-self-organizing complex human 3D MPS

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Key signaling nodes in mammary gland development and cancer: β-catenin

β-Catenin plays important roles in mammary development and tumorigenesis through its functions in cell adhesion, signal transduction and regulation of cell-context-specific gene expression. Studies in mice have highlighted the critical role of β-catenin signaling for stem cell biology at multiple stages of mammary development. Deregulated β-catenin signaling disturbs stem and progenitor cell dynamics and induces mammary tumors in mice. Recent data showing deregulated β-catenin signaling in metaplastic and basal-type tumors suggest a similar link to reactivated developmental pathways and human breast cancer. The present review will discuss β-catenin as a central transducer of numerous signaling pathways and its role in mammary development and breast cancer

Factors Associated with Revision Surgery after Internal Fixation of Hip Fractures

Background: Femoral neck fractures are associated with high rates of revision surgery after management with internal fixation. Using data from the Fixation using Alternative Implants for the Treatment of Hip fractures (FAITH) trial evaluating methods of internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures, we investigated associations between baseline and surgical factors and the need for revision surgery to promote healing, relieve pain, treat infection or improve function over 24 months postsurgery. Additionally, we investigated factors associated with (1) hardware removal and (2) implant exchange from cancellous screws (CS) or sliding hip screw (SHS) to total hip arthroplasty, hemiarthroplasty, or another internal fixation device. Methods: We identified 15 potential factors a priori that may be associated with revision surgery, 7 with hardware removal, and 14 with implant exchange. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards analyses in our investigation. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of revision surgery included: female sex, [hazard ratio (HR) 1.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.25-2.50; P = 0.001], higher body mass index (fo

Opening Doors to Engage a More Diverse Population in Honors: A Conversation

In this article, a student, faculty member, and staff member address the question of how to engage underrepresented student populations in honors programs. A student of color describes how an honors course with experiential learning components captivated and motivated her, significantly altering her definition of self. The faculty and staff member acknowledge the necessary changes to large-scale policies, such as refining admissions criteria and implementing more diverse programs, in order to engage students of color in honors education. Key suggestions include cross-listing courses to engage current and prospective honors students, teaching honors courses and facilitating honors experiences that emphasize aspects of social (in)justice, and incorporating a holistic admissions process for both new and current university students. Identifying ways to engage diverse student populations in predominantly white programs is vital to both the success of all students and to honors education as a whole