College Transition : Voices of First-Generation Minority STEM Students

The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) college transition experience for first-generation minority students can be arduous. Despite advancements with inclusivity in higher education institutions in the U.S., first-generation college students of color from lowincome households (FGML) find their first-year college transition difficult to navigate. Higher education institutions were created and still are in some ways encapsulated in white, Christian, male ideals (Alenuma-Nimoh, 2016). Therefore, when FGML start their college transition they can feel out of place and can struggle with the academic adjustment in their pursuit of a STEM degree (Bowman & Sharon, 2016; Dika & D’Amico, 2016; Goonewardene, Offutt, Whitling, & Woodhouse, 2016). The goal of this dissertation study was to understand the STEM college transition for FGML. Participants identifying as FGML were recruited to discuss their STEM college experience. Grounded in Critical Race Theory (Crenshaw, Gotanda, Peller, & Thomas, 1995; Haskins & Singh, 2015), this phenomenological, qualitative study included an in-depth, semi-structured interview. A cross section of 10 participants with varying genders, racial compositions, and ethnicities engaged in this study. Findings suggest that the construct of the STEM college transition is not confined to FGML, however FGML have a unique STEM college transition experience. Participants identified being FGML resulted in a dist inct understanding of how STEM college culture with its systemic barriers affected their academic success. Implications for counselor education, higher education and future research were provided

Cathodal Occipital tDCS is unable to modulate The Sound Induced Flash Illusion in migraine

Migraine is a highly disabling disease characterized by recurrent pain.Despite an intensive effort, mechanisms of migraine pathophysiology, still represent an unsolved issue. Evidences from both animals and humans studies suggest that migraine is characterized by hyperresponsivity or hyperexcitability of sensory cortices, especially the visual cortex. This phenomenon, in turn, may affect multisensory processing. Indeed, migraineurs present with an abnormal, reduced, perception of the Sound-induced Flash Illusion (SiFI), a crossmodal illusion that relies on optimal integration of visual and auditory stimuli by the occipital visual cortex. Decreasing visual cortical excitability with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can increase the SiFI in healthy subjects. Moving from these issues , we applied cathodal tDCS over the visual cortex of migraineurs, with and without aura, in order to decrease cortical excitability and thus physiologically restoring the perception of a reliable SiFI. Differently from our expectations tDCS was unable to reliably modulate SiFI in migraine. The chronic, relatively excessive, visual cortex hyperexcitability, , featuring the migraineur brain, may render tDCS ineffective for restoring multisensory processing in this disease

Release of premotor activity after repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation of prefrontal cortex

In the present study we aimed to explore by means of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) the reciprocal influences between prefrontal cortex (PFC) and premotor cortex (PMC). Subjects were asked to observe on a computer monitor different pictures representing manipulations of different kind of tools. They had to produce a movement (go condition) or to keep the resting position (no-go condition) at the appearance of different cue signals represented by different colors shown alternatively on the hands manipulating the tools or on the picture background. Motor evoked potentials (MEPs) were collected at the offset of the visual stimuli before and after a 10 minute, 1 Hz rTMS train applied to the dorsolateral PFC (Experiment 1), to the PMC (Experiment 2) or to the primary motor cortex (Experiment 3). Following rTMS to the PFC, MEPs increased in the go condition when the cue for the go command was presented on the hand. In contrast, following rTMS to the PMC, in the same condition, MEPs were decreased. rTMS to the primary motor cortex did not produce any modulation. Results are discussed according to the presence of a visual-motor matching system in the PMC and to the role of the PFC in the attention-related processes. We hypothesize that the perceptual analysis for action selection within the PFC was modulated by rTMS and its temporary functional inactivation in turn influenced the premotor areas for motor programming

Modulation of premotor mirror neuron activity during observation of unpredictable grasping movements

Using transcranial magnetic stimulation, we explored the properties of premotor mirror neurons during the passive observation of a reaching-grasping movement in human subjects. Two different experiments were run using video-clips as visual stimuli. Video-clips showed a normally performed (control stimulus) or an anomalous reaching-grasping movement executed by delaying the time of the appearance of the maximal finger aperture (experiment 1), or substituting it with an unpredictable closure (experiment 2). Motor evoked potentials were recorded at different time-points during the observation of the video-clips. Profiles of cortical excitability were drawn and compared with the kinematic profiles of the corresponding movement. Passive observation of the natural movement evoked a profile of cortical excitability that is in concordance with the timing of the kinematic profile of the shown finger movements. Observation of the uncommon movements did not exert any modulation (experiment 1) or evoked an activity that matched, at the beginning, the modulation obtained with observation of the natural movement (experiment 2). Results show that the resonant motor plan is loaded as whole at the beginning of observation and once started tends to proceed to its completion regardless of changes to the visual cues. The results exclude the possibility of a temporal fragmentation of the resonant plan, because activation of different populations of mirror neurons for each phase of the ongoing action. They further support the notion of the role of the mirror system as neural substrate for the observing-execution matching system and extend the current knowledge regarding mechanisms that trigger the internal representation of an action

Mangosteen Extract Shows a Potent Insulin Sensitizing Effect in Obese Female Patients: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Pilot Study.

There is a widely acknowledged association between insulin resistance and obesity/type 2 diabetes (T2DM), and insulin sensitizing treatments have proved effective in preventing diabetes and inducing weight loss. Obesity and T2DM are also associated with increased inflammation. Mangosteen is a tropical tree, whose fruits—known for their antioxidant properties—have been recently suggested having a possible further role in the treatment of obesity and T2DM. The objective of this pilot study has been to evaluate safety and efficacy of treatment with mangosteen extract on insulin resistance, weight management, and inflammatory status in obese female patients with insulin resistance. Twenty-two patients were randomized 1:1 to behavioral therapy alone or behavioral therapy and mangosteen and 20 completed the 26-week study. The mangosteen group reported a significant improvement in insulin sensitivity (homeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance, HOMA-IR −53.22% vs. −15.23%, p = 0.004), and no side effect attributable to treatment was reported. Given the positive preliminary results we report and the excellent safety profile, we suggest a possible supplementary role of mangosteen extracts in the treatment of obesity, insulin resistance, and inflammation

Grammatical Distinctions in the Left Frontal Cortex

Selective deficits in producing verbs relative to nouns in speech are well documented in neuropsychology and have been associated with left hemisphere frontal cortical lesions resulting from stroke and other neurological disorders. The basis for these impairments is unresolved: Do they arise because of differences in the way grammatical categories of words are organized in the brain, or because of differences in the neural representation of actions and objects? We used repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to suppress the excitability of a portion of left prefrontal cortex and to assess its role in producing nouns and verbs. In one experiment subjects generated real words; in a second, they produced pseudowords as nouns or verbs. In both experiments, response latencies increased for verbs but were unaffected for nouns following rTMS. These results demonstrate that grammatical categories have a neuroanatomical basis and that the left prefrontal cortex is selectively engaged in processing verbs as grammatical objects.Psycholog

Overweight and obese patients with nickel allergy have a worse metabolic profile compared to weight matched non-allergic individuals

A lack of balance between energy intake and expenditure due to overeating or reduced physical activity does not seem to explain entirely the obesity epidemic we are facing, and further factors are therefore being evaluated. Nickel (Ni) is a ubiquitous heavy metal implied in several health conditions. Regarding this, the European Food Safety Authority has recently released an alert on the possible deleterious effects of dietary Ni on human health given the current levels of Ni dietary intake in some countries. Pre-clinical studies have also suggested its role as an endocrine disruptor and have linked its exposure to energy metabolism and glucose homeostasis dysregulation. Ni allergy is common in the general population, but preliminary data suggest it being even more widespread among overweight patients. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study has been to evaluate the presence of Ni allergy and its association with the metabolic and endocrine profile in overweight and obese individuals. METHODS: We have evaluated 1128 consecutive overweight and obese outpatients. 784 were suspected of being allergic to Ni and 666 were assessed for it. Presence of Ni allergy and correlation with body mass index (BMI), body composition, metabolic parameters and hormonal levels were evaluated. RESULTS: We report that Ni allergy is more frequent in presence of weight excess and is associated with worse metabolic parameters and impaired Growth Hormone secretion. CONCLUSIONS: We confirm that Ni allergy is more common in obese patients, and we report for the first time its association with worse metabolic parameters and impaired function of the GH-IGF1 axis in human subjects