The power of play in developing emotional intelligence impacting leadership success: a study of the leadership team in a Midwest private, liberal arts university

Higher education leaders have a unique position of power and influence that can span generations (Clawson, 2009). Previous research discovered emotional intelligence to be the single biggest predictor of performance in the workplace and strongest driver of leadership and personal excellence (Bar-On, 1997; Brown, 2009; Goleman & Boyatzis, 2008; Zeidner, Matthews, & Roberts, 2012). Play develops sensing capabilities for teamwork, self-awareness, empathy, trust, and compassion, which inform development of emotional intelligence. Exploring the influence of play in developing emotional intelligence fills a void in existing research. This explanatory sequential mixed methods study sought to discover the power of play in developing emotional intelligence in higher education leaders and the resulting impact on their ability to develop and lead emotionally intelligent teams in creating a high-performing organization. Research questions focused on assessing individual emotional intelligence, team emotional and social intelligence, the meaning of the power of play and its impact in developing emotional intelligence, personal play history descriptions, power of play in developing emotional intelligence (individual and team), and describing emotional intelligence skill level and its impact on personal leadership success. The Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), Team Emotional and Social Intelligence (TESI), and personal play history narratives (gathered with five researcher-designed questions) were the instruments used. The study was conducted with the eight members of the University Cabinet of a private, Liberal Arts university in the Midwest. All eight members fully participated in the research, with honest and oftentimes personal responses, providing rich data for examination. Participants expressed a high level of awareness of the value of play over a lifetime to maintain good physical and psychological health. They also were able to make direct linkages to their play experiences in developing their individual and team emotional intelligence skills. Finally, a common desire was expressed to grow emotional intelligence skills, integrate play more into the work environment, and build the high performing, playful, and healthy organizational culture they desire. The contribution this study makes is important to allow future researchers to gather and examine additional evidence to support the relationship between play, emotional intelligence skill development, and leadership success

A novel parallel nanomixer for high-throughput single-molecule fluorescence detection

This paper introduces a novel fluidic device based on syringe-driven flow of fluorescent species through a parallel array of nanochannels, in which the geometrical confinement enables long observation times of non-immobilized\ud molecules. Extremely low flow rates are achieved by operating the array of nanochannels in parallel with a larger microchannel. The addition of a second microfluidic inlet allows for mixing different species in a well-defined volume,\ud enabling the study of irreversible reactions such as DNA synthesis in real-time using single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer. Devices are fabricated in glass with the purpose of high-throughput single-molecule\ud fluorescence detection

Male reproductive health and environmental xenoestrogens

EHP is a publication of the U.S. government. Publication of EHP lies in the public domain and is therefore without copyright. Research articles from EHP may be used freely; however, articles from the News section of EHP may contain photographs or figures copyrighted by other commercial organizations and individuals that may not be used without obtaining prior approval from both the EHP editors and the holder of the copyright. Use of any materials published in EHP should be acknowledged (for example, "Reproduced with permission from Environmental Health Perspectives") and a reference provided for the article from which the material was reproduced.Male reproductive health has deteriorated in many countries during the last few decades. In the 1990s, declining semen quality has been reported from Belgium, Denmark, France, and Great Britain. The incidence of testicular cancer has increased during the same time incidences of hypospadias and cryptorchidism also appear to be increasing. Similar reproductive problems occur in many wildlife species. There are marked geographic differences in the prevalence of male reproductive disorders. While the reasons for these differences are currently unknown, both clinical and laboratory research suggest that the adverse changes may be inter-related and have a common origin in fetal life or childhood. Exposure of the male fetus to supranormal levels of estrogens, such as diethlylstilbestrol, can result in the above-mentioned reproductive defects. The growing number of reports demonstrating that common environmental contaminants and natural factors possess estrogenic activity presents the working hypothesis that the adverse trends in male reproductive health may be, at least in part, associated with exposure to estrogenic or other hormonally active (e.g., antiandrogenic) environmental chemicals during fetal and childhood development. An extensive research program is needed to understand the extent of the problem, its underlying etiology, and the development of a strategy for prevention and intervention.Supported by EU Contract BMH4-CT96-0314

Substrate conformational dynamics facilitate structure-specific recognition of gapped DNA by DNA polymerase

DNA-binding proteins utilise different recognition mechanisms to locate their DNA targets; some proteins recognise specific DNA sequences, while others interact with specific DNA structures. While sequence-specific DNA binding has been studied extensively, structure-specific recognition mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we study structure-specific DNA recognition by examining the structure and dynamics of DNA polymerase I Klenow Fragment (Pol) substrates both alone and in DNA–Pol complexes. Using a docking approach based on a network of 73 distances collected using single-molecule FRET, we determined a novel solution structure of the single-nucleotide-gapped DNA–Pol binary complex. The structure resembled existing crystal structures with regards to the downstream primer-template DNA substrate, and revealed a previously unobserved sharp bend (∼120°) in the DNA substrate; this pronounced bend was present in living cells. MD simulations and single-molecule assays also revealed that 4–5 nt of downstream gap-proximal DNA are unwound in the binary complex. Further, experiments and coarse-grained modelling showed the substrate alone frequently adopts bent conformations with 1–2 nt fraying around the gap, suggesting a mechanism wherein Pol recognises a pre-bent, partially-melted conformation of gapped DNA. We propose a general mechanism for substrate recognition by structure-specific enzymes driven by protein sensing of the conformational dynamics of their DNA substrates

Precision and accuracy of single-molecule FRET measurements - a multi-laboratory benchmark study

Single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) is increasingly being used to determine distances, structures, and dynamics of biomolecules in vitro and in vivo. However, generalized protocols and FRET standards to ensure the reproducibility and accuracy of measurements of FRET efficiencies are currently lacking. Here we report the results of a comparative blind study in which 20 labs determined the FRET efficiencies (E) of several dye-labeled DNA duplexes. Using a unified, straightforward method, we obtained FRET efficiencies with s.d. between ±0.02 and ±0.05. We suggest experimental and computational procedures for converting FRET efficiencies into accurate distances, and discuss potential uncertainties in the experiment and the modeling. Our quantitative assessment of the reproducibility of intensity-based smFRET measurements and a unified correction procedure represents an important step toward the validation of distance networks, with the ultimate aim of achieving reliable structural models of biomolecular systems by smFRET-based hybrid methods

Probing the Conformational Landscape of DNA Polymerases Using Diffusion-Based Single-Molecule FRET

Monitoring conformational changes in DNA polymerases using single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) has provided new tools for studying fidelity-related mechanisms that promote the rejection of incorrect nucleotides before DNA synthesis. In addition to the previously known open and closed conformations of DNA polymerases, our smFRET assays utilizing doubly labeled variants of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I were pivotal in identifying and characterizing a partially closed conformation as a primary checkpoint for nucleotide selection. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of the methods we used for the conformational analysis of wild-type DNA polymerase and some of its low-fidelity derivatives; these methods include strategies for protein labeling and our procedures for solution-based single-molecule fluorescence data acquisition and data analysis. We also discuss alternative single-molecule fluorescence strategies for analyzing the conformations of DNA polymerases in vitro and in vivo