Challenges Facing East Asian Immigrant Children in Sexual Abuse Cases

Immigrants from East Asia make up 14.21% of the total number of immigrants in Canada. These families face many challenges as they acculturate to North America but, sadly, some of these children may be at risk for sexual abuse. In this position paper, we outline the ways in which East Asian children are at a particular disadvantage when considering prosecution of those who perpetrate abuse compared to Western non-immigrant children. We focus specifically on two areas of concern: 1) Cultural differences that can impact the disclosure of sexual abuse; and, 2) Language differences which reduce the chances that perpetrators will be prosecuted for sexual abuse. The consequences for East Asian immigrant youth who allege (or are suspected) that they are victims of abuse are serious. East Asian children face an uphill battle to see justice in sexual abuse cases. Thus, a significant portion of immigrant children will not see their abusers punished and, worse, the knowledge that prosecution is unlikely makes East Asian immigrant children a targeted population for those who abuse

THE INFLUENCES OF CULTURE AND THE SELF ON CHILDREN’S MEMORY ENCODING AND DELAYED RETRIEVAL

Culture and the self form a dynamic system that shapes children’s memories. However, how these two constructs influence specific memory processes still requires further investigation. The present dissertation contains four studies that examined the influences of cultural backgrounds and self-views on children’s memory encoding and delayed retrieval. Participants across four studies were recruited in the year range of 2016 to 2018. A total of 243 Grade 1 and 2 (the younger group) and Grade 3 and 4 (the older group) children participated, with an age range of seven to ten years. Specifically, 121 Chinese children were from Mainland China and 96 Euro-Canadian and 26 Eastern children were from Canada. In Study 1, 61 Chinese children and 50 Euro-Canadian children watched a story that contained both social- and individual-focused events. Participants’ recall and recognition memory were tested immediately after watching the story (to measure encoding), and then 5 to 7 days later (to measure memory reconstruction and delayed retrieval). Children’s self-views were measured using a revision of the Twenty Statements Test in which they provided 10 statements to describe the self following the “I…” prompt (renamed the TenST). To eliminate the confounding effect of the immediate interview on children’s delayed recall, Study 2 was conducted in which 60 Chinese and 46 Euro-Canadian children participated and received the delayed interview only. To explore how Eastern immigrant children’s unique acculturation experience shapes their memory processes, in Study 3, 26 Eastern children were recruited and their memory encoding and delayed retrieval were assessed. Study 4 included participants from the first three experiments and the association between children’s self-concept and memory encoding and delayed retrieval was evaluated. Results showed that, compared to Euro-Canadian children, Chinese children accurately recalled more social-oriented information in both the immediate (Study 1) and delayed interviews (Studies 1 and 2). In Study 3, older Eastern children’s recall and recognition memory resembled that of their Euro-Canadian counterparts, whereas younger Eastern children’s recall and recognition memory reflected collectivist emphasis. In Study 4, whether children’s self-concept oriented towards the individualist or collectivist dimension was significantly associated with whether individual- or social-oriented information was well-encoded and remembered. A culturally invariant development trend in self-understanding also emerged – older children, compared to younger children, provided more self-descriptions related to abstract and inner qualities (e.g., “I am smart”). Overall, findings from the present program of research could elucidate the extent to which children’s memory encoding and delayed retrieval vary with their ethnic backgrounds and self-views

SEIPIN Regulates Lipid Droplet Expansion and Adipocyte Development by Modulating the Activity of Glycerol-3-phosphate Acyltransferase

Berardinelli-Seip congenital lipodystrophy 2 (BSCL2) is caused by loss-of-function mutations in SEIPIN, a protein implicated in both adipogenesis and lipid droplet expansion but whose molecular function remains obscure. Here, we identify physical and functional interactions between SEIPIN and microsomal isoforms of glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase (GPAT) in multiple organisms. Compared to controls, GPAT activity was elevated in SEIPIN-deficient cells and tissues and GPAT kinetic values were altered. Increased GPAT activity appears to underpin the block in adipogenesis and abnormal lipid droplet morphology associated with SEIPIN loss. Overexpression of Gpat3 blocked adipogenesis, and Gpat3 knockdown in SEIPIN-deficient preadipocytes partially restored differentiation. GPAT overexpression in yeast, preadipocytes, and fly salivary glands also formed supersized lipid droplets. Finally, pharmacological inhibition of GPAT in Seipin-/- mouse preadipocytes partially restored adipogenesis. These data identify SEIPIN as an evolutionarily conserved regulator of microsomal GPAT and suggest that GPAT inhibitors might be useful for the treatment of human BSCL2 patients

Fsp27 promotes lipid droplet growth by lipid exchange and transfer at lipid droplet contact sites

The lipid droplet–associated protein Fsp27 mediates lipid droplet growth by promoting directional lipid transfer from smaller to larger lipid droplets

Identification of QTLs for Arsenic Accumulation in Maize (Zea mays L.) Using a RIL Population

The Arsenic (As) concentration in different tissues of maize was analyzed using a set of RIL populations derived from an elite hybrid, Nongda108. The results showed that the trend of As concentration in the four measured tissues was leaves>stems>bracts>kernels. Eleven QTLs for As concentration were detected in the four tissues. Three QTLs for As concentration in leaves were mapped on chromosomes 1, 5, and 8, respectively. For As concentration in the bracts, two QTLs were identified, with 9.61% and 10.03% phenotypic variance. For As concentration in the stems, three QTLs were detected with 8.24%, 14.86%, and 15.23% phenotypic variance. Three QTLs were identified for kernels on chromosomes 3, 5, and 7, respectively, with 10.73%, 8.52%, and 9.10% phenotypic variance. Only one common chromosomal region between SSR marker bnlg1811 and umc1243 was detected for QTLs qLAV1 and qSAC1. The results implied that the As accumulation in different tissues in maize was controlled by different molecular mechanism. The study demonstrated that maize could be a useful plant for phytoremediation of As-contaminated paddy soil, and the QTLs will be useful for selecting inbred lines and hybrids with low As concentration in their kernels