Black Sermonology and Gospel Music: A Corpus Based Study

Spirituality is an important component in the lives of many Black Americans. Black American life has spirituality woven into multiple aspects. From what clothes to wear, what words to use when creating a dialogue with others, which television shows to watch, which jobs to pursue, how to treat those who harness similar and different belief systems, to seeking and maintaining personal relationships. Spiritualty permeates these decision-making processes and challenges individuals to make appropriate but difficult decisions. A spiritual lifestyle is an ever-evolving, ever-deepening component of the Black experience in America. It is a profoundly personal and private lifestyle yet communal because spirituality challenges individuals to live a holistic life while also involving themselves with the well-being of the community. Spirituality provides a sense of structure and assists individuals with organizing their world and navigating the complexities of life (Fields, 2015). Proficient mental health clinicians are encouraged to understand the spiritual beliefs of their clients and how those spiritual beliefs impact the clients’ worldview (CACREP, 2016)

Endometriosis and the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic: Clinical Advice and Future Considerations

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic shift in the clinical practice of women’s health and routine care for endometriosis has been severely disrupted. Endometriosis is defined as an inflammatory disease characterized by lesions of endometrial-like tissue outside the uterus that is associated with pelvic pain and/or infertility (1). It affects ∼10% of reproductive age women worldwide, is diagnosed by surgical visualization or by radiological imaging, and is managed with hormone treatments or by laparoscopic removal of lesions (2–4). At the time of writing, under the guidance of international gynecological organizations (5–7), many centers temporarily ceased offering outpatient appointments, diagnostic imaging for nonacute pelvic pain, surgery for endometriosis, and fertility treatments. In the absence of routine care pathways and uncertainty about when health services will be available again, endometriosis sufferers are likely to feel vulnerable and that resultant stress and anxiety may contribute to a worsening of symptoms. The pandemic poses several important questions for healthcare providers on how best to deliver care within these restrictions. Herein, we present clinical advice on the management of endometriosis during the COVID-19 pandemic and future considerations

Magnetic properties of some carbonatites from Tanzania, East Africa

The magnetization of fresh natrocarbonatite lavas from Oldoinyo Lengai in Tanzania is dominated by small amounts of single- or pseudo-single-domain grains of a spinel in the solid solution series jacobsite (MnFe 2 O 4 )-magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ). Although this phase may acquire TRM before carbonatite lava crust has ceased being mobile, the Oldoinyo Lengai samples are good palaeomagnetic recorders of the field they cooled in. In comparison, samples from older carbonatites in Tanzania have very different magnetic mineralogies and unstable behaviour of remanent magnetization. There are two possible explanations for the contrast in magnetic properties. Recrystallization of fresh carbonatites during weathering may destroy the original remanence and lead to the production of various authigenic magnetic minerals. Alternatively, the different magnetic mineralogies may derive from distinct types of carbonatite magmas. Some older calcitic carbonatites may have associated magnetic anomalies that could be useful in prospecting for economically valuable minerals often associated with carbonatites.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73225/1/j.1365-246X.1990.tb01756.x.pd

Association between breast cancer genetic susceptibility variants and terminal duct lobular unit involution of the breast

Terminal duct lobular units (TDLUs) are the predominant source of future breast cancers, and lack of TDLU involution (higher TDLU counts, higher acini count per TDLU and the product of the two) is a breast cancer risk factor. Numerous breast cancer susceptibility single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been identified, but whether they are associated with TDLU involution is unknown. In a pooled analysis of 872 women from two studies, we investigated 62 established breast cancer SNPs and relationships with TDLU involution. Poisson regression models with robust variance were used to calculate adjusted per-allele relative risks (with the non-breast cancer risk allele as the referent) and 95% confidence intervals between TDLU measures and each SNP. All statistical tests were two-sided; P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Overall, 36 SNPs (58.1%) were related to higher TDLU counts although this was not statistically significant (P=0.25). Six of the 62 SNPs (9.7%) were nominally associated with at least one TDLU measure: rs616488 (PEX14), rs11242675 (FOXQ1) and rs6001930 (MKL1) were associated with higher TDLU count (P=0.047, 0.045 and 0.031, respectively); rs1353747 (PDE4D) and rs6472903 (8q21.11) were associated with higher acini count per TDLU (P=0.007 and 0.027, respectively); and rs1353747 (PDE4D) and rs204247 (RANBP9) were associated with the product of TDLU and acini counts (P=0.024 and 0.017, respectively). Our findings suggest breast cancer SNPs may not strongly influence TDLU involution. Agnostic genome-wide association studies of TDLU involution may provide new insights on its biologic underpinnings and breast cancer susceptibility