Embedding retrieval practice in undergraduate biochemistry teaching using PeerWise

Retrieval practice is an evidence‐based approach to teaching; here, we evaluate the use of PeerWise for embedding retrieval practice into summative assessment. PeerWise allows anonymous authoring, sharing, answering, rating, and feedback on peer‐authored multiple choice questions. PeerWise was embedded as a summative assessment in a large first‐year introductory biochemistry module. Engagement with five aspects of the tool was evaluated against student performance in coursework, exam, and overall module outcome. Results indicated a weak‐to‐moderate positive but significant correlation between engagement with PeerWise and assessment performance. Student feedback showed PeerWise had a polarizing effect; the majority recognized the benefits as a learning and revision tool, but a minority strongly disliked it, complaining of a lack of academic moderation and irrelevant questions unrelated to the module. PeerWise can be considered a helpful learning tool for some students and a means of embedding retrieval practice into summative assessment

Efflux pump inhibitors (EPIs) as new antimicrobial agents against Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic human pathogen and one of the leading causes of nosocomial infections worldwide. The difficulty in treatment of pseudomonas infections arises from being multidrug resistant (MDR) and exhibits resistance to most antimicrobial agents due to the expression of different mechanisms overcoming their effects. Of these resistance mechanisms, the active efflux pumps in Pseudomonas aeruginosa that belong to the resistance nodulation division (RND) plays a very important role in extruding the antibiotics outside the bacterial cells providing a protective means against their antibacterial activity. Beside its role against the antimicrobial agents, these pumps can extrude biocides, detergents, and other metabolic inhibitors. It is clear that efflux pumps can be targets for new antimicrobial agents. Peptidomimetic compounds such as phenylalanine arginyl β-naphthylamide (PAβN) have been introduced as efflux pump inhibitors (EPIs); their mechanism of action is through competitive inhibition with antibiotics on the efflux pump resulting in increased intracellular concentration of antibiotic, hence, restoring its antibacterial activity. The advantage of EPIs is the difficulty to develop bacterial resistance against them, but the disadvantage is their toxic property hindering their clinical application. The structure activity relationship of these compounds showed other derivatives from PAβN that are higher in their activity with higher solubility in biological fluids and decreased toxicity level. This raises further questions on how can we compact Pseudomonas infections. Of particular importance, the recent resurgence in the use of older antibiotics such as polymyxins and probably applying stricter control measures in order to prevent their spread in clinical sittings

Is alcohol consumption a risk factor for prostate cancer? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Research on a possible causal association between alcohol consumption and risk of prostate cancer is inconclusive. Recent studies on associations between alcohol consumption and other health outcomes suggest these are influenced by drinker misclassification errors and other study quality characteristics. The influence of these factors on estimates of the relationship between alcohol consumption and prostate cancer has not been previously investigated. Methods: PubMed and Web of Science searches were made for case–control and cohort studies of alcohol consumption and prostate cancer morbidity and mortality (ICD–10: C61) up to December 2014. Studies were coded for drinker misclassification errors, quality of alcohol measures, extent of control for confounding and other study characteristics. Mixed models were used to estimate relative risk (RR) of morbidity or mortality from prostate cancer due to alcohol consumption with study level controls for selection bias and confounding. Results: A total of 340 studies were identified of which 27 satisfied inclusion criteria providing 126 estimates for different alcohol exposures. Adjusted RR estimates indicated a significantly increased risk of prostate cancer among low (RR = 1.08, P 1.3, <24 g per day). This relationship is stronger in the relatively few studies free of former drinker misclassification error. Given the high prevalence of prostate cancer in the developed world, the public health implications of these findings are significant. Prostate cancer may need to be incorporated into future estimates of the burden of disease alongside other cancers (e.g. breast, oesophagus, colon, liver) and be integrated into public health strategies for reducing alcohol related disease

Morphology, hydrology, and water quality of two vernal pools in Madera County, California

Vernal pools are unique ecosystems that are under great threat from urban and agricultural expansion. Many of the biological processes critical for successful construction and restoration of vernal pools, including those that allow fairy shrimp cysts to hatch, are not well understood. To further research on vernal pool functioning, we conducted a one-month study of two vernal pools on the Caltrans Mitigation site in Madera County, California. We placed data-logging temperature sensors along the long axis at the bottom of each vernal pool; over three site visits we also collected water quality data (temperature by a second method, pH, conductivity, and dissolved oxygen) at these same points. In addition, we collected data on aquatic community, pool morphology and hydrology, and rainfall on the site. Although other studies have recognized that direct precipitation infl uences the morphological characteristics of vernal pools in general, we found these two individual vernal pools to be quite different in both their morphology and hydrology in response to precipitation. One pool increased fi vefold in surface area and only gradually in depth, while the other pool increased 1.5-fold in depth while increasing, then decreasing in surface area over the study period. We found that the two pools support different aquatic communities, most likely based on these differences in habitat. Additionally, we found that a spatial temperature distribution existed in one vernal pool by analysis of variance (temperature sensors from second pool will be retrieved once pool dries). By regression analysis we found that “position” (distance from the pool edge along long axis) explains trends in temperature and pH better than “depth” (water level above each sensor, from pool bottom to surface). Conductivity and dissolved oxygen showed no signifi cant trends in regards to position or depth. The existence of microhabitats within a vernal pool may explain our fi ndings of spatial temperature stratifi cation and the stronger relationships between water chemistry variables and position (versus depth). There is ample support in the literature for microhabitats in lotic systems, whereas this is a new fi nding for vernal pools and as such, warrants further study especially as it relates to the ecology of natural and mitigated vernal pool

Morphology, hydrology, and water quality of two vernal pools in Madera County, California

Vernal pools are unique ecosystems that are under great threat from urban and agricultural expansion. Many of the biological processes critical for successful construction and restoration of vernal pools, including those that allow fairy shrimp cysts to hatch, are not well understood. To further research on vernal pool functioning, we conducted a one-month study of two vernal pools on the Caltrans Mitigation site in Madera County, California. We placed data-logging temperature sensors along the long axis at the bottom of each vernal pool; over three site visits we also collected water quality data (temperature by a second method, pH, conductivity, and dissolved oxygen) at these same points. In addition, we collected data on aquatic community, pool morphology and hydrology, and rainfall on the site. Although other studies have recognized that direct precipitation infl uences the morphological characteristics of vernal pools in general, we found these two individual vernal pools to be quite different in both their morphology and hydrology in response to precipitation. One pool increased fi vefold in surface area and only gradually in depth, while the other pool increased 1.5-fold in depth while increasing, then decreasing in surface area over the study period. We found that the two pools support different aquatic communities, most likely based on these differences in habitat. Additionally, we found that a spatial temperature distribution existed in one vernal pool by analysis of variance (temperature sensors from second pool will be retrieved once pool dries). By regression analysis we found that “position” (distance from the pool edge along long axis) explains trends in temperature and pH better than “depth” (water level above each sensor, from pool bottom to surface). Conductivity and dissolved oxygen showed no signifi cant trends in regards to position or depth. The existence of microhabitats within a vernal pool may explain our fi ndings of spatial temperature stratifi cation and the stronger relationships between water chemistry variables and position (versus depth). There is ample support in the literature for microhabitats in lotic systems, whereas this is a new fi nding for vernal pools and as such, warrants further study especially as it relates to the ecology of natural and mitigated vernal pool

Rompiendo esquemas. El retrato etnográfico de una familia de travestíes en el Oaxaca urbano

El presente artículo está basado en entrevistas a un grupo de hombres travestíes dedicados a la prostitución y que conforman en el Grupo Unión de Lucha por la Prevención de Enfermedades Transmisibles. Integraron esta organización para luchar por el derecho a trabajar en la calle y para promover la educación sobre el sida entre sus clientes y en foros públicos. El autor nos presenta el retrato etnográfico de Leslie y de lo que ella define como su familia: Adrián es su marido, Tania su compañera de cuarto y amiga de quien se refiere también como hermana, e Iridiann Leslie niña de cuatro años que los tres han adoptado como su hija

Correlates of HIV Risks Among Women on Probation and Parole

This article examines HIV risks among a sample of 406 women on probation and parole with lifetime histories of victimization who were recruited from an urban community in the southern U.S. Guided by the Comprehensive Health Seeking and Coping Paradigm, we analyze the significance of sociodemographic characteristics, substance use, posttraumatic stress disorder, and social support in relationship to three sexual risks and one drug use risk using multivariable regression. Findings indicate that substance use is a significant correlate of nearly all HIV risks examined, including lifetime sexual partners and sexual partners during the past 12 months. Age, race/ethnicity, homelessness, lifetime traumatic event exposure, regular use of alcohol to intoxication and other drugs, functional social support, and substance use treatment in the past 12 months are associated with specific HIV risks. The findings identify potential targets to address in HIV prevention with women on probation and parole who have experienced victimization

Correlates of HIV Risks Among Women on Probation and Parole

This article examines HIV risks among a sample of 406 women on probation and parole with lifetime histories of victimization who were recruited from an urban community in the southern U.S. Guided by the Comprehensive Health Seeking and Coping Paradigm, we analyze the significance of sociodemographic characteristics, substance use, posttraumatic stress disorder, and social support in relationship to three sexual risks and one drug use risk using multivariable regression. Findings indicate that substance use is a significant correlate of nearly all HIV risks examined, including lifetime sexual partners and sexual partners during the past 12 months. Age, race/ethnicity, homelessness, lifetime traumatic event exposure, regular use of alcohol to intoxication and other drugs, functional social support, and substance use treatment in the past 12 months are associated with specific HIV risks. The findings identify potential targets to address in HIV prevention with women on probation and parole who have experienced victimization

Childhood Victimization, Attachment, Psychological Distress, and Substance Use Among Women on Probation and Parole

The present analysis was guided by a gendered pathways-based theoretical model and examined relationships between childhood victimization and current attachment, psychological distress, and substance use among 406 women with histories of victimization who were on probation and parole in an urban Kentucky county. Structural equation modeling examined relationships among childhood victimization, attachment, psychological distress, and substance use. Additionally, we examined the mediational role that attachment plays in relationships between childhood victimization and both psychological distress and substance use. The data fit the models properly. Psychological distress was significantly predicted by childhood victimization, and adult attachment partially mediated this relationship. Childhood victimization did not significantly predict substance use; however, attachment did. The findings suggest that attachment may be an important factor to further understand and address in relation to psychological distress and substance use among women with histories of victimization who are involved in the criminal justice system