Does physical disability truly create impairment in adjustment to college life?

This research utilized a mixed methods design to explore the differences between students with and without disabilities in perceived social support, coping style, self efficacy, and college adjustment. In addition, the influence of athletic participation on the above variables was examined in the sub-sample of students with disabilities. Neither survey nor interview results supported any differences between students with disabilities and students without disabilities on the study variables. Results suggested that discrepancies in college outcome variables (i.e. matriculation and persistence) were not a result of differences in disability status, but are the result of differences in adjustment, perceived social support, self-efficacy, and coping style. Quantitative results found the strongest correlations between self-efficacy, coping style, and adjustment factors. Qualitatively, students reporting more adjustment difficulties perceived more challenges within the week, fewer factors that lent to stress management, and more factors that added to the experience of stress. A more active coping style, the use of refraining techniques, and perception of shared social reality support were associated with fewer adjustment difficulties. Interview results also suggested participation in athletics for students with disabilities provided several incentives, such as academic motivation, increased self-efficacy, and campus integration that could lend to adjustment

Lysophosphatidic acid, vitamin D, and p53: a novel signaling axis in cell death and differentiation

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is the simplest of the glycerol lipids and regulates a number of cellular processes such as morphological changes, migration, proliferation, and inhibition of apoptosis. LPA exerts these effects through activation of the G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) LPA1-6 and the intracellular fatty acid receptor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ). The overall goal of this thesis was to determine the mechanisms by which LPA enhances cell survival by inhibiting apoptosis. The project was divided into three studies: 1) to determine the mechanism of LPA-mediated inhibition of p53 in A549 lung carcinoma cells, 2) to investigate the regulation of growth plate chondrocytes by LPA, and 3) to determine the mechanisms of LPA-mediated effects in the growth plate. In the first study, evidence is provided that LPA reduces the cellular abundance of the tumor suppressor p53 in A549 lung carcinoma cells. The LPA effect depends upon increased proteasomal degradation of p53 and it results in a corresponding decrease in p53-mediated transcription. The result of LPA-mediated inhibition of p53 in A549 cells is enhanced resistance to chemotherapeutic-induced apoptosis. In the second study, the role of LPA in resting zone chondrocytes (RC cells) was investigated. RC cells are regulated by 24,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [24,25(OH)[subscript2]D [subscript 3]] via a phospholipase D-dependent pathway, suggesting downstream phospholipid metabolites are involved. In this study, we showed that 24R,25(OH)[subscript 2]D[subscript 3] stimulates rat costochondral RC cells to release LPA. Additionally, we demonstrated that RC cells respond to LPA with increased proliferation, maturation, and inhibition of apoptosis. In the final study, the mechanism of LPA and 24R,25(OH)[subscript 2]D[subscript 3]-mediated inhibition of chondrocyte apoptosis was further investigated. Our data show that 24R,25(OH)[subscript 2]D[subscript 3] inhibits apoptosis through Ca⁺⁺, PLD, and PLC signaling and through LPA/Gαi/PI[subscript 3]K/mdm2-mediated degradation of p53, resulting in decreased caspase-3 activity. Collectively, our data establish LPA, vitamin D, and p53 as an anti-apoptotic signaling axis.Ph.D.Committee Chair: Barbara D. Boyan; Committee Member: Al Merrill; Committee Member: Harish Radhakrishna; Committee Member: Kirill Lobachev; Committee Member: Nael McCart

Individuals with low back pain: how do they view physical activity?

Background. Recent guidelines for those with acute low back pain have advocated early resumption of normal activity and increased physical activity. Little is known about the relationship between low back pain and physical activity, and on the impact of that relationship on the promotion of increased levels of physical activity within a general practice population. Objectives. We aimed to explore associations between factors that influence changes in physical activity and the way individuals perceive and behave with their low back pain, and the impact of those perceptions and behaviour on physical activity. Methods. Twenty-seven informants were chosen using a purposive sample from a larger group of individuals who, because of their low back trouble, had been referred by their GPs to a community-based, single-blind, randomized controlled trial (RCT) at the University of York, which is evaluating the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a progressive exercise programme. Fifty-four interviews were conducted with this subgroup of the RCT; four informants were interviewed once, 19 twice and four of them three times. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using manual and computer-aided approaches. Results. Physical activity was perceived as (i) activities of daily living, (ii) activities causing breathlessness that they went out of the way to do and (iii) more competitive-type activity. The avoidance of physical activity and fear of pain returning were the two main factors directly associated with informants' backs and changes in physical activity. These two factors hindered increases in physical activity, even though the majority of informants believed strongly that being physically active helped ease their low back pain. Conclusions. When advocating that individuals with acute low back pain return to or increase physical activity, it is important that clinicians identify avoidance of physical activity and/or fear of pain at the earliest stage in order to tailor advice and reassurance appropriately. If avoidance of activity and fear of pain is identified and clinicians want to encourage patients to take up and sustain increased physical activity, they should explore issues of fear of pain, and avoidance of and confidence to do physical activities, in addition to other factors influencing physical activity

Speaking Freely and Freedom of Speech: Feminists Navigating the "New" Right

An introduction to the special section “Speaking Freely and Freedom of Speech: Feminists Navigating the ‘New’ Right.

Women and Sustainability: Investing in Women's Economic Empowerment

This brief is intended to arm companies with the information, process, and tools to identify and implement strategic investments in women's economic empowerment

Launching a Peer Supplemental Instruction Program for an Introductory Biology Course

For the first time at Georgia Gwinnett College, a supplemental instruction (PSI) program was designed to provide peer-led instruction on a) principles of biology, chemistry, mathematics and b) academic skills e.g. self-regulated learning, strategies in studying and test-taking. PSI for Principles of Biology (BIOL1107K) was carried out by PSI leaders who previously earned a grade of ‘A’ or ‘B’ in BIOL1107K, received training on tutoring practices and worked with faculty to develop active learning exercises/worksheets for PSI sessions. PSI was open only to students who earned a grade of ≤ 75% on the first exam across four BIOL1107K sections. Comparison of exam grades revealed that PSI student performance was not significantly different from control (students who earned a grade of ≤ 75% on the first exam but did not enroll in PSI). The challenges at an institution lacking a PSI culture and strategies to encourage student commitment will be discussed

Do children have a right to do nothing? exploring the place of passive leisure in Australian school age care

In 2021, the Australian Government commissioned a review and update of My Time Our Place, its curriculum framework for School-Age Care services for primary-age children. One update trialled was the introduction of passive leisure. Whilst children’s passive use of leisure time is recognised as a right, it is often problematised and associated with negative health outcomes. This article explores a trial of passive leisure provision. It provides hopeful evidence that passive leisure spaces can be interactive, conversational and restful

The effectiveness of beach mega-nourishment, assessed over three management epochs

Resilient coastal protection requires adaptive management strategies that build with nature to maintain long-term sustainability. With increasing pressures on shorelines from urbanisation, industrial growth, sea-level rise and changing storm climates soft approaches to coastal management are implemented to support natural habitats and maintain healthy coastal ecosystems. The impact of a beach mega-nourishment along a frontage of interactive natural and engineered systems that incorporate soft and hard defences is explored. A coastal evolution model is applied to simulate the impact of different hypothetical mega-nourishment interventions to assess their impacts’ over 3 shoreline management planning epochs: present-day (0–20 years), medium-term (20–50 years) and long-term (50–100 years). The impacts of the smaller interventions when appropriately positioned are found to be as effective as larger schemes, thus making them more cost-effective for present-day management. Over time the benefit from larger interventions becomes more noticeable, with multi-location schemes requiring a smaller initial nourishment to achieve at least the same benefit as that of a single-location scheme. While the longer-term impact of larger schemes reduces erosion across a frontage the short-term impact down drift of the scheme can lead to an increase in erosion as the natural sediment drift becomes interrupted. This research presents a transferable modelling tool to assess the impact of nourishment schemes for a variety of sedimentary shorelines and highlights both the positive and negative impact of beach mega-nourishment

Size-Specific Tree Mortality Varies with Neighbourhood Crowding and Disturbance in a Montane Nothofagus Forest

Tree mortality is a fundamental process governing forest dynamics, but understanding tree mortality patterns is challenging because large, long-term datasets are required. Describing size-specific mortality patterns can be especially difficult, due to few trees in larger size classes. We used permanent plot data from Nothofagus solandri var. cliffortioides (mountain beech) forest on the eastern slopes of the Southern Alps, New Zealand, where the fates of trees on 250 plots of 0.04 ha were followed, to examine: (1) patterns of size-specific mortality over three consecutive periods spanning 30 years, each characterised by different disturbance, and (2) the strength and direction of neighbourhood crowding effects on size-specific mortality rates. We found that the size-specific mortality function was U-shaped over the 30-year period as well as within two shorter periods characterised by small-scale pinhole beetle and windthrow disturbance. During a third period, characterised by earthquake disturbance, tree mortality was less size dependent. Small trees (<20 cm in diameter) were more likely to die, in all three periods, if surrounded by a high basal area of larger neighbours, suggesting that size-asymmetric competition for light was a major cause of mortality. In contrast, large trees (≥20 cm in diameter) were more likely to die in the first period if they had few neighbours, indicating that positive crowding effects were sometimes important for survival of large trees. Overall our results suggest that temporal variability in size-specific mortality patterns, and positive interactions between large trees, may sometimes need to be incorporated into models of forest dynamics

Glareosin : A novel sexually dimorphic urinary lipocalin in the bank vole, Myodes glareolus

Electronic supplementary material is available online at https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.3859369. Detailed methods are presented in the electronic supplementary material. The mass spectrometry proteomics data have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange Consortium via the PRIDE [32] partner repository with the dataset identifier PXD006645 and 10.6019/PXD006645 This work was funded in part by BBSRC (BB/J002631/1 and BB/M012557/1).Peer reviewedPublisher PD