The effects of household substance abuse on the behavioral and emotional outcomes of child witnesses to domestic violence

Both domestic violence and parental substance abuse are risk factors for childhood developmental delays and emotional problems. The purpose of this study is to determine if child witnesses of domestic violence exhibit greater levels of emotional problems when substance abuse is present in the household, and to determine how both groups of children respond to therapeutic intervention targeting these problems. The results indicate that child witnesses of domestic violence exhibit a greater level of behavioral and emotional problems when alcohol and drug abuse is also a factor. Following treatment both groups show a greater reduction in behavioral and emotional pathology than does the control group. Children from substance abusing households show the greatest degree of improvement

Open-inquiry opens Doors to intriguing optics experiments at home: A case study

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Instructional labs: Improving traditions and new directions.] This manuscript presents a case study of an introductory physics student who, during the remote learning conditions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, found inspiration within a new, openinquiry, project-based, laboratory curriculum designed at Portland State University. The phenomenon investigated by the study subject was intriguing to both the student and the lab instructors for its unfamiliar and instructive optical effect: a ring-shaped pattern or halo created by a laser diffusely reflected in a shallow body of water. Drawing on classwork and interview responses, this study shows that the subject achieved many expected curriculum outcomes, particularly with respect to experimental design and data analysis tasks, indicating that the course’s open-inquiry structure can be effective while offering students a free choice of what to investigate in a laboratory class. Additionally, the case study shows that the halo phenomenon is pedagogically rich as it combines refraction, diffuse reflection, and total internal reflection in a nontrivial way, thereby answering calls by physics education researchers for more complex, realistic examples in geometric optics instruction. Finally, this case also highlights challenges students may experience interpreting diffuse reflection and determining the position of optical features beyond image formation, not commonly a focus of introductory physics courses, textbooks, and education research

Development of an X-band Photoinjector at SLAC

As part of a National Cancer Institute contract to develop a compact source of monoenergetic X-rays via Compton backscattering, we have completed the design and construction of a 5.5 cell Photoinjector operating at 11.424 GHz. Successful completion of this project will result in the capability of generating a monoenergetic X-ray beam, continuously tunable from 20 - 85 KeV. The immediate goal is the development of a Photoinjector producing 7 MeV, 0.5 nC, sub-picosecond electron bunches with normalized RMS emittances of approximately 1 pi-mm-mR at repetition rates up to 60 Hz. This beam will then be further accelerated to 60 MeV using a 1.05 m accelerating structure. This Photoinjector is somewhat different than the traditional 1.5 cell design both because of the number of cells and the symmetrically fed input coupler cell. Its operating frequency is also unique. Since the cathode is non-removable, cold-test tuning was somewhat more difficult than in other designs. We will present results of "bead-drop" measurements used in tuning this structure. Initial beam measurements are currently in progress and results will be presented as well as results of RF conditioning to high gradients at X-band. Details of the RF system, emittance-compensating solenoid, and cathode laser system as well as PARMELA simulations will also be presented.Comment: 3 pages, 6 figures, 1 Table, LINAC 200

Conformational states of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase for nucleotide incorporation vs. pyrophosphorolysis – binding of foscarnet

HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) catalytically incorporates individual nucleotides into a viral DNA strand complementing an RNA or DNA template strand; the polymerase active site of RT adopts multiple conformational and structural states while performing this task. The states associated are dNTP binding at the N site, catalytic incorporation of a nucleotide, release of a pyrophosphate, and translocation of the primer 3′-end to the P site. Structural characterization of each of these states may help in understanding the molecular mechanisms of drug activity and resistance and in developing new RT inhibitors. Using a 38-mer DNA template-primer aptamer as the substrate mimic, we crystallized an RT/dsDNA complex that is catalytically active, yet translocation-incompetent in crystals. The ability of RT to perform dNTP binding and incorporation in crystals permitted obtaining a series of structures: (I) RT/DNA (P-site), (II) RT/DNA/AZTTP ternary, (III) RT/AZT-terminated DNA (N-site), and (IV) RT/AZT-terminated DNA (N-site)/foscarnet complexes. The stable N-site complex permitted the binding of foscarnet as a pyrophosphate mimic. The Mg2+ ions dissociated after catalytic addition of AZTMP in the pretranslocated structure III, whereas ions A and B had re-entered the active site to bind foscarnet in structure IV. The binding of foscarnet involves chelation with the Mg2+ (B) ion and interactions with K65 and R72. The analysis of interactions of foscarnet and the recently discovered nucleotide-competing RT inhibitor (NcRTI) α-T-CNP in two different conformational states of the enzyme provides insights for developing new classes of polymerase active site RT inhibitors

Autophagy gene haploinsufficiency drives chromosome instability, increases migration, and promotes early ovarian tumors.

Autophagy, particularly with BECN1, has paradoxically been highlighted as tumor promoting in Ras-driven cancers, but potentially tumor suppressing in breast and ovarian cancers. However, studying the specific role of BECN1 at the genetic level is complicated due to its genomic proximity to BRCA1 on both human (chromosome 17) and murine (chromosome 11) genomes. In human breast and ovarian cancers, the monoallelic deletion of these genes is often co-occurring. To investigate the potential tumor suppressor roles of two of the most commonly deleted autophagy genes in ovarian cancer, BECN1 and MAP1LC3B were knocked-down in atypical (BECN1+/+ and MAP1LC3B+/+) ovarian cancer cells. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography mass-spectrometry metabolomics revealed reduced levels of acetyl-CoA which corresponded with elevated levels of glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids. Migration rates of ovarian cancer cells were increased upon autophagy gene knockdown. Genomic instability was increased, resulting in copy-number alteration patterns which mimicked high grade serous ovarian cancer. We further investigated the causal role of Becn1 haploinsufficiency for oncogenesis in a MISIIR SV40 large T antigen driven spontaneous ovarian cancer mouse model. Tumors were evident earlier among the Becn1+/- mice, and this correlated with an increase in copy-number alterations per chromosome in the Becn1+/- tumors. The results support monoallelic loss of BECN1 as permissive for tumor initiation and potentiating for genomic instability in ovarian cancer

Optimization of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Extraction of Rice Bran Oil and γ-Oryzanol Using Multi-Factorial Design of Experiment

After rice harvesting, the milling processes generate many by-products including husk, bran, germs, and broken rice representing around 40% of the total grain. Bran, one of the external cereal layers, contains proteins, dietary fibers, minerals, and lipids. One of the most common rice bran utilization is the extraction of rice bran oil (RBO). Among all vegetable oils, RBO presents a unique chemical composition rich in antioxidant compounds such as γ-oryzanol that provide several beneficial properties. RBO is generally extracted by exploiting hexane, a solvent toxic to the environment and human health. The growing demand for this oil has led researchers to look for more sustainable extraction techniques. Supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) has been successfully applied to extract oil and functional compounds from several matrices. In this work, the SC-CO2 extraction of RBO was optimized using a Design of Experiment (DoE) on a pilot scale. "The DoE approach involving multilinear regression allowed modelling the yield in RBO and gamma oryzanol as a function of temperature and pressure, keeping the extraction time constant, as decided by the company. This approach made it possible to optimize the extraction yield and to identify the best temperature (40 °C), while also highlighting that pressure did not play any influential role in the process, at least concerning the analyzed experimental domain on this industrial plant. A model for computing the extraction yield as a function of temperature and pressure was obtained. This study shows that it is possible to obtain good quality RBO, rich in γ-oryzanol and essential fatty acids, using low temperatures and pressures, starting from a rice milling by-product. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Mismatch Repair Proteins Initiate Epigenetic Alterations during Inflammation-Driven Tumorigenesis

Aberrant silencing of genes by DNA methylation contributes to cancer, yet how this process is initiated remains unclear. Using a murine model of inflammation-induced tumorigenesis, we tested the hypothesis that inflammation promotes recruitment of epigenetic proteins to chromatin, initiating methylation and gene silencing in tumors. Compared with normal epithelium and noninflammation-induced tumors, inflammation-induced tumors gained DNA methylation at CpG islands, some of which are associated with putative tumor suppressor genes. Hypermethylated genes exhibited enrichment of repressive chromatin marks and reduced expression prior to tumorigenesis, at a time point coinciding with peak levels of inflammation-associated DNA damage. Loss of MutS homolog 2 (MSH2), a mismatch repair (MMR) protein, abrogated early inflammation-induced epigenetic alterations and DNA hypermethylation alterations observed in inflammation-induced tumors. These results indicate that early epigenetic alterations initiated by inflammation and MMR proteins lead to gene silencing during tumorigenesis, revealing a novel mechanism of epigenetic alterations in inflammation-driven cancer. Understanding such mechanisms will inform development of pharmacotherapies to reduce carcinogenesis

Regression, developmental trajectory and associated problems in disorders in the autism spectrum: the SNAP study

We report rates of regression and associated findings in a population derived group of 255 children aged 9-14 years, participating in a prevalence study of autism spectrum disorders (ASD); 53 with narrowly defined autism, 105 with broader ASD and 97 with non-ASD neurodevelopmental problems, drawn from those with special educational needs within a population of 56,946 children. Language regression was reported in 30% with narrowly defined autism, 8% with broader ASD and less than 3% with developmental problems without ASD. A smaller group of children were identified who underwent a less clear setback. Regression was associated with higher rates of autistic symptoms and a deviation in developmental trajectory. Regression was not associated with epilepsy or gastrointestinal problems

Associations of NINJ2 sequence variants with incident ischemic stroke in the Cohorts for Heart and Aging in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) consortium

Background<p></p> Stroke, the leading neurologic cause of death and disability, has a substantial genetic component. We previously conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in four prospective studies from the Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) consortium and demonstrated that sequence variants near the NINJ2 gene are associated with incident ischemic stroke. Here, we sought to fine-map functional variants in the region and evaluate the contribution of rare variants to ischemic stroke risk.<p></p> Methods and Results<p></p> We sequenced 196 kb around NINJ2 on chromosome 12p13 among 3,986 European ancestry participants, including 475 ischemic stroke cases, from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study, Cardiovascular Health Study, and Framingham Heart Study. Meta-analyses of single-variant tests for 425 common variants (minor allele frequency [MAF] ≥ 1%) confirmed the original GWAS results and identified an independent intronic variant, rs34166160 (MAF = 0.012), most significantly associated with incident ischemic stroke (HR = 1.80, p = 0.0003). Aggregating 278 putatively-functional variants with MAF≤ 1% using count statistics, we observed a nominally statistically significant association, with the burden of rare NINJ2 variants contributing to decreased ischemic stroke incidence (HR = 0.81; p = 0.026).<p></p> Conclusion<p></p> Common and rare variants in the NINJ2 region were nominally associated with incident ischemic stroke among a subset of CHARGE participants. Allelic heterogeneity at this locus, caused by multiple rare, low frequency, and common variants with disparate effects on risk, may explain the difficulties in replicating the original GWAS results. Additional studies that take into account the complex allelic architecture at this locus are needed to confirm these findings

Systems of education governance and cultures of justice in Ireland, Scotland and Pakistan

This chapter compares the issue of cultures of justice in the systems of education governance in three education systems: Ireland, Scotland and Pakistan. The focus for the comparison are the current policies which shape the regulation of education. These policies were reviewed to identify key issues relating to social justice and equality, decision-making and accountability. From the analysis of each system, three central issues were identified: firstly, the improvement of a state education system; secondly, the degree of decentralisation and centralisation in governance structures and thirdly, the expectations placed on school leaders. The chapter concludes by discussing the tensions between the drive for system improvement and opportunities for school leaders to build strategies to address issues of inequality in schools