Learning to Sew: A Student Pharmacist’s Service-Learning Experience

Karolina Grzesiak is a fourth-year professional student in the College of Pharmacy at Purdue University and will earn her Doctor of Pharmacy degree in May 2017. She was raised in Poland but has called La Porte, Indiana home for the past eight years. Craig Vargo is a 2012 pharmacy graduate working as a clinical specialist pharmacist at the James Cancer Hospital at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio

Creating a Play Area for Shoe4Africa Pediatric Hospital: A Purdue University College of Pharmacy Service Learning Project

Hundreds of children walk through the doors of Shoe4Africa Pediatric Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya everyday. They face many obstacles varying from acute illnesses to cancer and burn wounds or even dealing with the stress of a sick family member. According to the Child Life Council Evidence-Based Practice Statement on therapeutic play in pediatric health care, “Research provides evidence for the effectiveness of therapeutic play in reducing psychological and physiological stress for children facing medical challenges.” Shoe4Africa had a need for an outdoor playground where children can nourish their mental and phyical wellbeing. A $1,500 service learning grant was obtained by students to build a safe and stimulating play area on the hospital grounds. Play promotes cognitive and social development which is crucial in every young life. Childhood play surpasses culture barriers which gives Purdue Pharmacy Students on rotation at the hospital the chance to interact with and support children of the community in which they are learning. Participation in this project allowed student pharmacists to learn about patient care and community engagement outside of the pharmacy, develop communication skills, and break cultural barriers. Student pharmacists are now given the opportunity to develop skills beyond their pharmacy training though engaging in therapeutic play that can later translate to interactions with other pediatric populations. Future plans for the play area include incorporating medication education for the parents conducted by student pharmacists and promoting healthy activities for children and their families

Calprotectin is a contributor to and potential therapeutic target for vascular calcification in chronic kidney disease

Vascular calcification is an important risk factor for cardiovascular (CV) mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). It is also a complex process involving osteochondrogenic differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and abnormal deposition of minerals in the vascular wall. In an observational, multicenter European study, including 112 patients with CKD from Spain and 171 patients on dialysis from France, we used serum proteome analysis and further validation by ELISA to identify calprotectin, a circulating damage-associated molecular pattern protein, as being independently associated with CV outcome and mortality. This was confirmed in an additional cohort of 170 patients with CKD from Sweden, where increased serum calprotectin concentrations correlated with increased vascular calcification. In primary human VSMCs and mouse aortic rings, calprotectin exacerbated calcification. Treatment with paquinimod, a calprotectin inhibitor, as well as pharmacological inhibition of the receptor for advanced glycation end products and Toll-like receptor 4 inhibited the procalcifying effect of calprotectin. Paquinimod also ameliorated calcification induced by the sera of uremic patients in primary human VSMCs. Treatment with paquinimod prevented vascular calcification in mice with chronic renal failure induced by subtotal nephrectomy and in aged apolipoprotein E-deficient mice as well. These observations identified calprotectin as a key contributor of vascular calcification, and increased circulating calprotectin was strongly and independently associated with calcification, CV outcome, and mortality in patients with CKD. Inhibition of calprotectin might therefore be a promising strategy to prevent vascular calcification in patients with CKD