Cross-cultural Experiences during a Visiting Scholar Program: “…A Start[ing] not a Finishing Point”

Aim To describe the Visiting Scholar Program as a context for cross-cultural learning experiences and the development of intercultural competencies. Background In 2004, a Visiting Scholar Program (VSP) was developed between the Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta (UA), Canada, and the University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Preto College of Nursing (USP-EERP), Brazil, with the goal to promote capacity building among nurse researchers. During a cross-cultural exchange program, participants are immersed in a foreign culture and language over an extended period of time, which offers them a potential opportunity to develop intercultural competence. Methods A qualitative design was utilized and data were collected in June 2011 through semi-structured in-depth interviews with scholars, supervisors and staff members from both institutions. Following data collection, an inductive process was used to analyze the data, following Morse’s (1994) taxonomy. Results At USP-EERP participants included 12 former scholars, two staff members from the International Office, one graduate student, and one former Dean. At the UA, 12 supervisors and 5 staff, affiliated with the VSP participated in an interview and two provided feedback by email. The central theme in the findings was the ‘Cross-Cultural Learning Process’, with three main sub-themes: challenges; benefits; and lessons learned. Conclusion Cross-cultural learning was a circular process that involved dealing with challenges, experiencing stress in a strange environment and building intercultural competencies. The VSP program enhanced scholars and supervisors’ awareness and sensitivity to cultural diversity and their openness to new cross-cultural experiences. Résumé Objectif Présenter le programme de chercheur invité comme une occasion de vivre des expériences d’apprentissage et de développer des compétences interculturelles. Contexte En 2004, un programme de chercheur invité (PCI) a été élaboré entre la Faculté des sciences infirmières de l’Université de l’Alberta (UA), au Canada, et l’École de sciences infirmières de Ribeirão Preto de l’Université de São Paulo (EERP-USP), au Brésil, dans le but d’encourager le renforcement des capacités parmi les chercheurs en sciences infirmières. Au cours de ce programme d’échange interculturel, les participants sont en immersion dans une culture et une langue étrangères pendant une longue période, ce qui leur donne la possibilité de développer des compétences interculturelles. Méthodes Une approche qualitative de recherche a été adoptée et des données ont été recueillies en juin 2011 au moyen d’entretiens en profondeur semi-dirigés avec les chercheurs, les superviseurs et les membres du personnel des deux institutions. Un processus inductif a ensuite été utilisé pour analyser les données, d’après la taxonomie de Morse (1994). Résultats À l’EERP-USP, les participants comprenaient douze anciens chercheurs, deux membres du personnel du Bureau international, une étudiante diplômée et un ancien doyen. À l’UA, douze superviseurs et cinq membres du personnel liés au PCI ont participé à un entretien et deux ont envoyé des commentaires par courriel. Le thème central des constatations était « le processus d’apprentissage interculturel », qui se divisait en trois sous-thèmes principaux : les défis, les avantages et les leçons apprises. Conclusion L’apprentissage interculturel dans ce cas particulier était un processus circulaire qui exigeait de relever des défis, de subir du stress dans un environnement étranger et de développer des compétences interculturelles. Le PCI a amélioré la sensibilisation et la sensibilité des chercheurs et des superviseurs à la diversité culturelle ainsi que leur ouverture à vivre de nouvelles expériences interculturelles

Process Evaluation in Action: Lessons Learned from Alabama REACH 2010

The CDC-funded Alabama Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH 2010) project is designed to reduce and eliminate disparities in breast and cervical cancer between African American and white women in six rural and three urban counties in Alabama. In this manuscript, we report on the development, implementation, results, and lessons learned from a process evaluation plan initiated during the Phase I planning period of the Alabama REACH 2010 program. The process evaluation plan for Alabama REACH 2010 focused on four main areas of activity that coincided with program objectives: assessing coalition development, building community capacity, conducting a needs assessment, and developing a community action plan. Process evaluation findings indicated that progress made by Alabama REACH 2010 was due, in part, to evaluative feedback. We conclude that process evaluation can be a powerful tool for monitoring and measuring the administrative aspect of a complex, community-based health intervention

Alphaviruses Detected in Mosquitoes in the North-Eastern Regions of South Africa, 2014 to 2018

The prevalence and distribution of African alphaviruses such as chikungunya have increased in recent years. Therefore, a better understanding of the local distribution of alphaviruses in vectors across the African continent is important. Here, entomological surveillance was performed from 2014 to 2018 at selected sites in north-eastern parts of South Africa where alphaviruses have been identified during outbreaks in humans and animals in the past. Mosquitoes were collected using a net, CDC-light, and BG-traps. An alphavirus genus-specific nested RT-PCR was used for screening, and positive pools were confirmed by sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. We collected 64,603 mosquitoes from 11 genera, of which 39,035 females were tested. Overall, 1462 mosquito pools were tested, of which 21 were positive for alphaviruses. Sindbis (61.9%, N = 13) and Middelburg (28.6%, N = 6) viruses were the most prevalent. Ndumu virus was detected in two pools (9.5%, N = 2). No chikungunya positive pools were identified. Arboviral activity was concentrated in peri-urban, rural, and conservation areas. A range of Culicidae species, including Culex univittatus, Cx. pipiens s.l., Aedes durbanensis, and the Ae. dentatus group, were identified as potential vectors. These findings confirm the active circulation and distribution of alphaviruses in regions where human or animal infections were identified in South Africa.publishersversionpublishe

A Case-Control Study of Trace-Element Status and Lung Cancer in Appalachian Kentucky

Appalachian Kentucky (App KY) leads the nation in lung cancer incidence and mortality. Trace elements, such as As, have been associated with lung cancers in other regions of the country and we hypothesized that a population-based study would reveal higher trace element concentrations in App KY individuals with cancer compared to controls. Using toenail and drinking water trace element concentrations, this study investigated a possible association between lung cancer incidence and trace-element exposure in residents of this region. This population-based case-control study had 520 subjects, and 367 subjects provided toenail samples. Additionally, we explored the relationship between toenail and fingernail trace-element concentrations to determine if fingernails could be used as a surrogate for toenails when patients are unable to provide toenail samples. We found that, contrary to our initial hypothesis, trace element concentrations (Al, As, Cr, Mn, Co, Fe, Ni, Cu, Se, and Pb) were not higher in cancer cases than controls with the exception of Zn where concentrations were slightly higher in cases. In fact, univariate logistic regression models showed that individuals with lower concentrations of several elements (Al, Mn, Cr, and Se) were more likely to have lung cancer, although only Mn was significant in multivariate models which controlled for confounding factors. While drinking water concentrations of Al, Cr and Co were positively related to cancer incidence in univariate models, only Co remained significant in multivariate models. However, since the drinking water concentrations were extremely low and not reflected in the toenail concentrations, the significance of this finding is unclear. We also found that fingernail concentrations were not consistently predictive of toenail concentrations, indicating that fingernails should not be used as surrogates for toenails in future studies

Extracellular ATP released by osteoblasts is a key local inhibitor of bone mineralisation

Previous studies have shown that exogenous ATP (>1µM) prevents bone formation in vitro by blocking mineralisation of the collagenous matrix. This effect is thought to be mediated via both P2 receptor-dependent pathways and a receptor-independent mechanism (hydrolysis of ATP to produce the mineralisation inhibitor pyrophosphate, PPi). Osteoblasts are also known to release ATP constitutively. To determine whether this endogenous ATP might exert significant biological effects, bone-forming primary rat osteoblasts were cultured with 0.5-2.5U/ml apyrase (which sequentially hydrolyses ATP to ADP to AMP + 2Pi). Addition of 0.5U/ml apyrase to osteoblast culture medium degraded extracellular ATP to <1% of control levels within 2 minutes; continuous exposure to apyrase maintained this inhibition for up to 14 days. Apyrase treatment for the first 72 hours of culture caused small decreases (≤25%) in osteoblast number, suggesting a role for endogenous ATP in stimulating cell proliferation. Continuous apyrase treatment for 14 days (≥0.5U/ml) increased mineralisation of bone nodules by up to 3-fold. Increases in bone mineralisation were also seen when osteoblasts were cultured with the ATP release inhibitors, NEM and brefeldin A, as well as with P2X1 and P2X7 receptor antagonists. Apyrase decreased alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) activity by up to 60%, whilst increasing the activity of the PPi-generating ecto-nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterases (NPPs) up to 2.7-fold. Both collagen production and adipocyte formation were unaffected. These data suggest that nucleotides released by osteoblasts in bone could act locally, via multiple mechanisms, to limit mineralisation

The ocean sampling day consortium

Ocean Sampling Day was initiated by the EU-funded Micro B3 (Marine Microbial Biodiversity, Bioinformatics, Biotechnology) project to obtain a snapshot of the marine microbial biodiversity and function of the world’s oceans. It is a simultaneous global mega-sequencing campaign aiming to generate the largest standardized microbial data set in a single day. This will be achievable only through the coordinated efforts of an Ocean Sampling Day Consortium, supportive partnerships and networks between sites. This commentary outlines the establishment, function and aims of the Consortium and describes our vision for a sustainable study of marine microbial communities and their embedded functional traits

Altered Metabolism and Persistent Starvation Behaviors Caused by Reduced AMPK Function in Drosophila

Organisms must utilize multiple mechanisms to maintain energetic homeostasis in the face of limited nutrient availability. One mechanism involves activation of the heterotrimeric AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a cell-autonomous sensor to energetic changes regulated by ATP to AMP ratios. We examined the phenotypic consequences of reduced AMPK function, both through RNAi knockdown of the gamma subunit (AMPKγ) and through expression of a dominant negative alpha (AMPKα) variant in Drosophila melanogaster. Reduced AMPK signaling leads to hypersensitivity to starvation conditions as measured by lifespan and locomotor activity. Locomotor levels in flies with reduced AMPK function were lower during unstressed conditions, but starvation-induced hyperactivity, an adaptive response to encourage foraging, was significantly higher than in wild type. Unexpectedly, total dietary intake was greater in animals with reduced AMPK function yet total triglyceride levels were lower. AMPK mutant animals displayed starvation-like lipid accumulation patterns in metabolically key liver-like cells, oenocytes, even under fed conditions, consistent with a persistent starved state. Measurements of O2 consumption reveal that metabolic rates are greater in animals with reduced AMPK function. Lastly, rapamycin treatment tempers the starvation sensitivity and lethality associated with reduced AMPK function. Collectively, these results are consistent with models that AMPK shifts energy usage away from expenditures into a conservation mode during nutrient-limited conditions at a cellular level. The highly conserved AMPK subunits throughout the Metazoa, suggest such findings may provide significant insight for pharmaceutical strategies to manipulate AMPK function in humans