Reading Proficiency As A Public Policy Agenda Indicator: The Importance Of Reading Ability On The Educational Outcomes Of Students And The Collateral Effects To Society

This study explores reading proficiency as a public policy agenda indicator and hypothesizes that reading achievement scores among phonics-based, Reading First, literacy curriculum participants will significantly increase when a neuroscience-based intervention model is integrated into the instructional program. Using a deductive approach, English Language Arts (ELA) achievement percentages from 31 school districts in Maine were analyzed and compared to the Maine state average across 3 groups: All students, Economically Disadvantaged students, and Students with Disabilities. Secondary data was obtained from the Every Student Succeeds Acts (ESSA) Dashboard available on the Maine state government website. One-sample case t-test results indicate that the sample school districts scored significantly higher relative to all 3 groups, and that the possible effect of the ABC neuroscience-based intervention on reading achievement ranged from higher than small to slightly below moderate. Applications for the use of these findings as a policy stream indicator for agenda setting are discussed in addition to recommendations for educational practice and future research

Divergent GW182 functional domains in the regulation of translational silencing

MicroRNA (miRNA)-mediated gene regulation has become a major focus in many biological processes. GW182 and its long isoform TNGW1 are marker proteins of GW/P bodies and bind to Argonaute proteins of the RNA induced silencing complex. The goal of this study is to further define and distinguish the repression domain(s) in human GW182/TNGW1. Two non-overlapping regions, Δ12 (amino acids 896–1219) containing the Ago hook and Δ5 (amino acids 1670–1962) containing the RRM, both induced comparable silencing in a tethering assay. Mapping data showed that the RRM and its flanking sequences in Δ5, but not the Ago hook in Δ12, were important for silencing. Repression mediated by Δ5 or Δ12 was not differentially affected when known endogenous repressors RCK/p54, GW182/TNGW1, TNRC6B were depleted. Transfected Δ5, but not Δ12, enhanced Ago2-mediated repression in a tethering assay. Transfected Δ12, but not Δ5, released endogenous miRNA reporter silencing without affecting siRNA function. Alanine substitution showed that GW/WG motifs in Δ12 (Δ12a, amino acids 896–1045) were important for silencing activity. Although Δ12 appeared to bind PABPC1 more efficiently than Δ5, neither Δ5 nor Δ12 significantly enhanced reporter mRNA degradation. These different functional characteristics of Δ5 and Δ12 suggest that their roles are distinct, and possibly dynamic, in human GW182-mediated silencing

Identification of Piwil2-Like (PL2L) Proteins that Promote Tumorigenesis

PIWIL2, a member of PIWI/AGO gene family, is expressed in the germline stem cells (GSCs) of testis for gametogenesis but not in adult somatic and stem cells. It has been implicated to play an important role in tumor development. We have previously reported that precancerous stem cells (pCSCs) constitutively express Piwil2 transcripts to promote their proliferation. Here we show that these transcripts de facto represent Piwil2-like (PL2L) proteins. We have identified several PL2L proteins including PL2L80, PL2L60, PL2L50 and PL2L40, using combined methods of Gene-Exon-Mapping Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (GEM RT-PCR), bioinformatics and a group of novel monoclonal antibodies. Among them, PL2L60 rather than Piwil2 and other PL2L proteins is predominantly expressed in various types of human and mouse tumor cells. It promotes tumor cell survival and proliferation in vitro through up-regulation of Stat3 and Bcl2 gene expressions, the cell cycle entry from G0/1 into S-phase, and the nuclear expression of NF-κB, which contribute to the tumorigenicity of tumor cells in vivo. Consistently, PL2L proteins rather than Piwil2 are predominantly expressed in the cytoplasm or cytoplasm and nucleus of euchromatin-enriched tumor cells in human primary and metastatic cancers, such as breast and cervical cancers. Moreover, nuclear PL2L proteins are always co-expressed with nuclear NF-κB. These results reveal that PL2L60 can coordinate with NF-κB to promote tumorigenesis and might mediate a common pathway for tumor development without tissue restriction. The identification of PL2L proteins provides a novel insight into the mechanisms of cancer development as well as a novel bridge linking cancer diagnostics and anticancer drug development

A Critical Analysis of the Ethnography of Krannert Art Museum

This project evaluates the activity systems (composed of community, rules, division of labor, tools, subject, and motives) in the Krannert Art Museum as seen through its mission statement. It focuses on the evolution of the mission statement, how it should be interpreted, the exact motives behind the statement, what challenges it presents to the museum, and its involvement within the community. On the basis of interviews and archival, literature, and internet research, the authors find that the mission statement???s main goal is to provide a guide for the inner activities of the museum. Its connection to the community appears to be of primary importance.unpublishe

Affinity of fentanyl and its derivatives for the sigma(1)-receptor

Fentanyl and its 11 commercially available derivatives were investigated as to their affinity for the sigma(1) receptor. The parent compound is a rather poor binder (IC50 = 4973 nM), but its close derivatives (benzylfentanyl or p-fluorofentanyl) have submicromolar affinities. Modelling provides a structural basis for the observed trends in activity

Simian Virus 40 Large Tumor Antigen Modulates the Raf Signaling Pathway

This article is hosted on a website external to the CBCRA Open Access Archive. Selecting "View/Open" below will launch the full-text article in another browser windo

MIWI associates with translational machinery and PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) in regulating spermatogenesis

Noncoding small RNAs have emerged as important regulators of gene expression at both transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels. Particularly, microRNA (miRNA)-mediated translational repression involving PIWI/Argonaute family proteins has been widely recognized as a novel mechanism of gene regulation. We previously reported that MIWI, a murine PIWI family member, is required for initiating spermiogenesis, a process that transforms round spermatids into mature sperm. MIWI is a cytoplasmic protein present in spermatocytes and round spermatids, and it is required for the expression of its target mRNAs involved in spermiogenesis. Most recently, we discovered a class of noncoding small RNAs called PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) that are abundantly expressed during spermiogenesis in a MIWI-dependent fashion. Here, we show that MIWI associates with both piRNAs and mRNAs in cytosolic ribonucleoprotein and polysomal fractions. As polysomes increase in early spermiogenesis, MIWI increases in polysome fractions. Moreover, MIWI associates with the mRNA cap-binding complex. Interestingly, MIWI is required for the expression of not only piRNAs but also a subset of miRNAs, despite the presence of Dicer. These results suggest that MIWI has a complicated role in the biogenesis and/or maintenance of two distinct types of small RNAs. Together, our results indicate that MIWI, a PIWI subfamily protein, uses piRNA as the major, but not exclusive, binding partner, and it is associated with translational machinery