Promoting Interprofessional Collaboration Through the Co-Curricular Environment

Interprofessional (IP) experiences are increasing in frequency and scope in health professions education, though little is known about the role of the co-curricular environment in fostering students’ attitudes towards IP collaboration. We examined if participants in IP co-curricular activities of substantive duration held attitudes toward IP learning and collaboration differently than students who did not participate in such activities. We distributed a questionnaire composed of the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) and the Interdisciplinary Education Perception Scale (IEPS) to the 2008, 2009, and 2010 graduates of an academic health center. Respondents indicated if they participated in any of the six substantive IP co-curricular activities offered by the institution. Respondents were grouped by participation in “one or more IP activity” or “no participation.” Independent sample T-tests were performed for each of the RIPLS and IEPS scales to assess differences between those groups. 997 (58.1%) of the graduates completed the survey; 52.9% of the respondents reporting participation in at least one IP activity. Of the seven scales from the two instruments, the mean scores of one scale were significantly different between the two groups: IEPS “perceived need for cooperation” (

Returning Veterans’ Experiences of a Holistic Therapeutic Program

Since 2001, over 2.7 million U.S. military service members have been deployed (Wenger et al., 2018). Many of these soldiers have encountered serious challenges readjusting upon their return home and many may not access the services needed to achieve successful reintegration. Current literature calls for holistic approaches to service provision, involving collaboration of support services to address the underutilization of services. To better understand the gap in treatment utilization, a qualitative approach was used to examine returning veterans’ experiences of an intensive and holistic service delivery program implemented in coordination with local veterans’ organizations. Within the study, a generic qualitative approach was used to analyze interviews with 6 military veterans who had previously been deployed and were participating in the holistic therapeutic program. Results of the analysis revealed the following themes pertaining to participants’ experiences of the treatment process: (a) the importance of trusting relationships in the therapeutic setting; (b) importance of gaining adaptive coping strategies; (c) maintaining a sense of strength and independence; (d) difficulty with adjusting to civilian life and access of support services; and (e) difficulty with self-expression in civilian contexts. Limitations and recommendations are also provided

A Novel Approach to Interprofessional Education: Interprofessional Day, the Four-Year Experience at the Medical University of South Carolina

Background: In order to introduce students to different disciplines and promote interprofessional teamwork, the Medical University of South Carolina developed an innovative educational program, Interprofessional (IP) Day, for all first- and second-year health professions students. The IP Day Committee, composed of representatives from each of the six colleges (pharmacy, nursing, medicine, graduate studies, health professions, and dental medicine), coordinates the day's activities. The morning session (for second-year students only) and the afternoon session (for first-year students only) each begin with a large group meeting where an invited speaker details the concept and implementation of interprofessional teamwork. Following the speaker, students divide into small discussion groups containing at least one student from each of the six colleges and led by a faculty member and student facilitators. The first-year session introduces the role of each discipline (e.g., occupational therapy, nursing). The second-year session promotes teamwork among the professions via a case discussion.Methods and Findings: We assessed the students' satisfaction with the program and measured their attitudes toward interprofessional collaboration using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Results from a formative evaluation of the IP Day suggest improved knowledge about other healthcare professions after participating in interprofessional day, particularly for first-year students.Conclusions: IP Day lays the groundwork for our students' successful interprofessional collaborative experience at MUSC, a paramount university goal

Quantum simulation of the wavefunction to probe frustrated Heisenberg spin systems

Quantum simulators are controllable quantum systems that can reproduce the dynamics of the system of interest, which are unfeasible for classical computers. Recent developments in quantum technology enable the precise control of individual quantum particles as required for studying complex quantum systems. Particularly, quantum simulators capable of simulating frustrated Heisenberg spin systems provide platforms for understanding exotic matter such as high-temperature superconductors. Here we report the analog quantum simulation of the ground-state wavefunction to probe arbitrary Heisenberg-type interactions among four spin-1/2 particles . Depending on the interaction strength, frustration within the system emerges such that the ground state evolves from a localized to a resonating valence-bond state. This spin-1/2 tetramer is created using the polarization states of four photons. The single-particle addressability and tunable measurement-induced interactions provide us insights into entanglement dynamics among individual particles. We directly extract ground-state energies and pair-wise quantum correlations to observe the monogamy of entanglement

Laser Cooling of two trapped ions: Sideband cooling beyond the Lamb-Dicke limit

We study laser cooling of two ions that are trapped in a harmonic potential and interact by Coulomb repulsion. Sideband cooling in the Lamb-Dicke regime is shown to work analogously to sideband cooling of a single ion. Outside the Lamb-Dicke regime, the incommensurable frequencies of the two vibrational modes result in a quasi-continuous energy spectrum that significantly alters the cooling dynamics. The cooling time decreases nonlinearly with the linewidth of the cooling transition, and the effect of trapping states which may slow down the cooling is considerably reduced. We show that cooling to the ground state is possible also outside the Lamb-Dicke regime. We develop the model and use Quantum Monte Carlo calculations for specific examples. We show that a rate equation treatment is a good approximation in all cases.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figure

Lupus risk variants in the PXK locus alter B-cell receptor internalization

Genome wide association studies have identified variants in PXK that confer risk for humoral autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE or lupus), rheumatoid arthritis and more recently systemic sclerosis. While PXK is involved in trafficking of epidermal growth factor Receptor (EGFR) in COS-7 cells, mechanisms linking PXK to lupus pathophysiology have remained undefined. In an effort to uncover the mechanism at this locus that increases lupus-risk, we undertook a fine-mapping analysis in a large multi-ancestral study of lupus patients and controls. We define a large (257kb) common haplotype marking a single causal variant that confers lupus risk detected only in European ancestral populations and spans the promoter through the 3' UTR of PXK. The strongest association was found at rs6445972 with P < 4.62 × 10-10, OR 0.81 (0.75 - 0.86). Using stepwise logistic regression analysis, we demonstrate that one signal drives the genetic association in the region. Bayesian analysis confirms our results, identifying a 95% credible set consisting of 172 variants spanning 202 kb. Functionally, we found that PXK operates on the B-cell antigen receptor (BCR); we confirmed that PXK influenced the rate of BCR internalization. Furthermore, we demonstrate that individuals carrying the risk haplotype exhibited a decreased rate of BCR internalization, a process known to impact B cell survival and cell fate. Taken together, these data define a new candidate mechanism for the genetic association of variants around PXK with lupus risk and highlight the regulation of intracellular trafficking as a genetically regulated pathway mediating human autoimmunity

Plate-based diversity subset screening generation 2: An improved paradigm for high throughput screening of large compound files

High throughput screening (HTS) is an effective method for lead and probe discovery that is widely used in industry and academia to identify novel chemical matter and to initiate the drug discovery process. However, HTS can be time-consuming and costly and the use of subsets as an efficient alternative to screening these large collections has been investigated. Subsets may be selected on the basis of chemical diversity, molecular properties, biological activity diversity, or biological target focus. Previously we described a novel form of subset screening: plate-based diversity subset (PBDS) screening, in which the screening subset is constructed by plate selection (rather than individual compound cherry-picking), using algorithms that select for compound quality and chemical diversity on a plate basis. In this paper, we describe a second generation approach to the construction of an updated subset: PBDS2, using both plate and individual compound selection, that has an improved coverage of the chemical space of the screening file, whilst only selecting the same number of plates for screening. We describe the validation of PBDS2 and its successful use in hit and lead discovery. PBDS2 screening became the default mode of singleton (one compound per well) HTS for lead discovery in Pfizer

Computational analysis of expression of human embryonic stem cell-associated signatures in tumors

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The cancer stem cell model has been proposed based on the linkage between human embryonic stem cells and human cancer cells. However, the evidences supporting the cancer stem cell model remain to be collected. In this study, we extensively examined the expression of human embryonic stem cell-associated signatures including core genes, transcription factors, pathways and microRNAs in various cancers using the computational biology approach.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We used the class comparison analysis and survival analysis algorithms to identify differentially expressed genes and their associated transcription factors, pathways and microRNAs among normal vs. tumor or good prognosis vs. poor prognosis phenotypes classes based on numerous human cancer gene expression data. We found that most of the human embryonic stem cell- associated signatures were frequently identified in the analysis, suggesting a strong linkage between human embryonic stem cells and cancer cells.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The present study revealed the close linkage between the human embryonic stem cell associated gene expression profiles and cancer-associated gene expression profiles, and therefore offered an indirect support for the cancer stem cell theory. However, many interest issues remain to be addressed further.</p

Contribution of draft cattle to rural livelihoods in a district of southeastern Uganda endemic for bovine parasitic diseases: an economic evaluation

BACKGROUND: A study was conducted in Tororo District in eastern Uganda to assess the socio-economic contribution of draft cattle to rural livelihoods. The aim of the study was to empirically quantify the economic value of draft cattle thus contributing to understanding the impact of endemic parasitic diseases of cattle on livestock productivity and subsequently household income, labor and food security. METHOD: A total of 205 draft cattle keeping households (n = 205) were randomly selected and structured household questionnaires were administered, focusing on work oxen use, productivity, inputs and outputs. The data obtained was analyzed using standard statistical methods and used to calculate the gross margin from the draft cattle enterprise. Secondary data were obtained from focus group discussions and key informant interviews and these were analyzed using Bayesian methods. RESULTS: The study showed that, apart from being labor saving, the use of animal traction is highly profitable with the gross margin per year from the use of draft cattle amounting to 245 United States dollars per work oxen owning household. The cash obtained from hiring out draft animals was equivalent to nearly a quarter of the average local household’s monetary receipts. It also revealed that endemic bovine parasitic diseases such as trypanosomiasis and tick-borne diseases reduced draft cattle output by 20.9 % and potential household income from the use of draft oxen by 32.2 %. CONCLUSION: The presence of endemic cattle diseases in rural Uganda is adversely affecting the productivity of draft cattle, which in turn affects household income, labor and ultimately food security. This study highlights the contribution of draft cattle to rural livelihoods, thus increasing the expected impact of cost-effective control strategies of endemic production limiting livestock diseases in Uganda