The effects of sexually transmitted illness (STI) stigmatization on intimate relationships : non-infected partners\u27 perceptions, reactions, feelings and attitudes toward female partners\u27 disclosure of Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) positive status

The purpose of this study was to explore in greater depth the effects of Sexually Transmitted Illness (STI) stigma on intimate relationships by examining the reactions of non-infected intimate partners to their female partner\u27s disclosure of her Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) positive status. The research question was: what are non-infected partners perceptions, reactions, feelings and attitudes to their female partner\u27s disclosure of HSV positive status? This exploratory mixed-methods study was informed by the extant literature on STI stigma and intimate relationships. The lens of stigma theory is used to frame the discussion of the findings. Forty-three participants responded to the predominantly quantitative online survey. Inclusion criteria required that the participant was over the age of 18 and had been disclosed to by his/her female Herpes positive intimate partner. Noteworthy findings point to both similarities and differences in gender responses to disclosure and speak to a general trend of partner positive emotional response to HSV+ disclosure in intimate relationships among this sample. Study findings further underline the importance of pre-intercourse disclosure, and the role of disclosure in supporting safe-sex practices and information seeking behavior

Going to Extremes: The National Parent Teacher Association and Political Extremism in the 1960s

In the 1960s, the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA) reported efforts at “infiltration” by conservative extremist groups, including the John Birch Society (JBS). Extremists sought to take over PTA meetings to obtain a mainstream platform for minority opinions. The PTA parried extremists’ efforts with a deluge of activities and publications dedicated to democratic fair play and research-based approaches to education. In spite of a coherent plan for dealing with such techniques in the 1960s, the methods used by the Birch Society and other conservative extremist groups appear to have resumed in contemporary educational discussions. Once again, opinions that appeal to the fringes of the American political and social spectrum have dominated policy discussions, most notably relating to textbook selection

Small heat-shock proteins: important players in regulating cellular proteostasis

Small heat-shock proteins (sHsps) are a diverse family of intra-cellular molecular chaperone proteins that play a critical role in mitigating and preventing protein aggregation under stress conditions such as elevated temperature, oxidation and infection. In doing so, they assist in the maintenance of protein homeostasis (proteostasis) thereby avoiding the deleterious effects that result from loss of protein function and/or protein aggregation. The chaperone properties of sHsps are therefore employed extensively in many tissues to prevent the development of diseases associated with protein aggregation. Significant progress has been made of late in understanding the structure and chaperone mechanism of sHsps. In this review, we discuss some of these advances, with a focus on mammalian sHsp hetero-oligomerisation, the mechanism by which sHsps act as molecular chaperones to prevent both amorphous and fibrillar protein aggregation, and the role of post-translational modifications in sHsp chaperone function, particularly in the context of disease.SM was supported by a Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship, HE is supported by an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (FT110100586) and JC is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council Project Grant (#1068087)

Empowerment Evaluation of Programs Involving Youth: Evaluators’ Perceptions

Background: Participatory and collaborative evaluation approaches, including Empowerment Evaluation (EE), are useful for evaluating programs involving youth. Empowerment evaluation involves stakeholders in the evaluation process through a set of structured steps. It is primarily concerned with empowering, illuminating, and building program beneficiaries’ self-determination. Given the emphasis that EE places on inclusivity of stakeholders, it appears to be a good fit for evaluating programs that involve youth. Purpose: To explore the extent to which evaluators use EE to evaluate programs involving youth as well as what factor(s) facilitate and hinder their use of EE in these programs. Setting: The study involved evaluators associated with the Collaborative, Participatory and Empowerment Evaluation and Youth-Focused Evaluation Targeted Interest Groups (TIGs) of the American Evaluation Association (AEA) who are involved in evaluating programs targeted at youth. Intervention: Not applicable. Research Design: We used a two-phase sequential mixed-methods research design. In Phase 1, we surveyed evaluators. In Phase 2, we interviewed a sample of evaluators from Phase 1.  Findings: In Phase 1, 41 (53.9%) respondents indicated not using EE to evaluate programs involving youth, 30 (39.5%) had used EE and 5 (6.6%) were unsure. Of those who used EE, they used it to teach youth program stakeholders about evaluation (n=8, 24.2%), produce more authentic results by engaging youth as experts of their lived experience (n=7, 21.2%) or produce more useful results for stakeholders to use (n=6, 18.2%), as well as other less popular reasons. In Phase 2, 12 interviewees raised five factors that facilitate or hinder the use of EE to evaluate programs involving youth including, evaluator perceptions, type of evaluation experience, evaluator knowledge and professional training, guidelines from organizations and funders, and stakeholders and time. Factors that some interviewees viewed as facilitators others viewed as hinderances.   Keywords: empowerment evaluation, program evaluation, youth-focused evaluation   &nbsp

A new modality of audiovisual translation? Covert translation of presenter scripts in Japan's globally aired English-language TV music show

This article sheds light on an unresearched translation modality that forms a pillar of program production for Japan’s publicly funded, globally aired, round-the-clock English-language television channel, NHK World-Japan TV. The modality in question is the translation of presenter scripts written in one language (Japanese) and delivered to camera exclusively in another (English). Through a critical self-reflexion on the lead author’s construction and application of translation guidelines aimed largely at optimizing comprehensibility for viewers of the NHK World-Japan TV music show J-MELO, new lines of Translation Studies research into this underrepresented modality and its significance in the wider context of international TV broadcasting are suggested

Intervention in health care teams and working relationships

Introduction: Communication is an intrinsic part of collaborative working but can be problematic when the complexities of professional and personal identities inhibit quality care provision. This paper investigates these complexities and recommends interventions to facilitate collaborative working.Methods: A qualitative comparative approach examined data collected from participants using purposive non-probability sampling. Perspectives were obtained from four professional groups (nurses, social workers, care managers, and police), from different organizations with different theoretical and practice frameworks, and from a fifth group (informal carers).Results: Curriculum change and leadership initiatives are required to address the complexities inhibiting collaborative working relationships. Integrating complexity theory, personality typology, and problem-based learning into the curriculum to understand behavioral actions will enable interventions to effect change and promote the centrality of those being cared for

A randomized controlled trial of PEEK versus titanium interference screws for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with 2-year follow-up

Purpose: To compare the clinical performance of ACL reconstruction with PEEK and titanium interference screws at 2 years and to evaluate a novel method of measuring tunnel volume. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial; Level of evidence, 1. Methods: A total of 133 patients underwent arthroscopic ACL reconstruction with 4-strand hamstring autografts and were randomized to have titanium or PEEK interference screws for femoral and tibial tunnel fixation. At 2 years, subjective Lysholm and International Knee Documentation Committee scores were assessed and clinical examination performed. At 12 months, MRI was performed to assess graft incorporation and cyst formation, and a novel technique was employed to measure tunnel volumes. Results: There were no significant differences in graft rerupture rate, contralateral ACL rupture rate, subjective outcomes, or objective outcomes. In the titanium and PEEK groups, MRI demonstrated high overall rates of graft integration (96%-100% and 90%-93%, respectively) and ligamentization (89% and 84%) and low rates of synovitis (22% and 10%) and cyst formation (0%-18% and 13%-15%). There was a higher proportion of patients with incomplete graft integration within the femoral tunnel in the PEEK group as compared with the titanium group (10% vs 0%, P = .03); however, the authors suggest that metal artifact precluded proper assessment of the graft in the titanium group by MRI. Tunnel volumes also appeared to be equivalent in the 2 groups and were measured with a novel technique that was highly reproducible in the PEEK group secondary to the absence of flare. Conclusion: Two-year clinical analysis of PEEK interference screws for femoral and tibial fixation of ACL reconstructions showed equivalent clinical performance to titanium interference screws. Given the excellent mechanical characteristics, biological compatibility, and absence of metal artifact on MRI, PEEK has become our material of choice for interference screw fixation in ACL reconstruction

Sperm competition, but not major histocompatibility divergence, drive differential fertilization success between alternative reproductive tactics in Chinook salmon

Post-copulatory sexual selection processes, including sperm competition and cryptic female choice (CFC), can operate based on major histocompatibility (MH) genes. We investigated sperm competition between male alternative reproductive tactics (jack (sneaker) and hooknose (guard)) of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). Using a full factorial design, we examined in vitro competitive fertilization success of paired jack and hooknose males at three time points after sperm activation (0, 15 and 60 seconds) to test for male competition, CFC and time effects on male fertilization success. We also examined egg-mediated CFC at two MH genes by examining both the relationship between competitive fertilization success and MH divergence as well as inheritance patterns of MH alleles in resulting offspring. We found that jacks sired more offspring than hooknose males at 0 seconds post-activation; however, jack fertilization success declined over time post-activation, suggesting a trade-off between sperm speed and longevity. Enhanced fertilization success of jacks (presumably via higher sperm quality) may serve to increase sneaker tactic competitiveness relative to dominant hooknose males. We also found evidence of egg-mediated CFC (i.e., female x male interaction) influencing competitive fertilization success, however CFC was not acting on the MH genes as we found no relationship between fertilization success and MH II β1 or MH I α1 divergence and we found no deviations from Mendelian inheritance of MH alleles in the offspring. Our study provides insight into evolutionary mechanisms influencing variation in male mating success within alternative reproductive tactics, thus underscoring different strategies that males can adopt to attain success