From Startup to Success: An Entrepreneurial Case Study

This research is a case study based on an entrepreneurship located in Henderson, Kentucky called HorseFeathers Gifts. HorseFeathers Gifts supplies handmade, vintage-inspired jewelry and accessories to customers all over the world. The case study documents the path taken by HorseFeathers Gifts’ owners, showing exactly how the entrepreneurship reached the successful position that it currently holds. Based on the case studies available and a review of the literature, it is apparent that no other case studies like this one exist. Information for this case was gathered by interviewing both owners of HorseFeathers Gifts. The interviews helped me to learn about the business’ story from the day it was first engendered until the present day. This case study displays the business’ processes, successes, and failures, and ultimately gives struggling or aspiring entrepreneurs advice on how to better their own chances of business survival

Family and Consumer Sciences Focus on the Human Dimension: The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program Example

The history of family and consumer sciences (FCS) and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) is discussed with an emphasis on the critical importance of the human dimension. EFNEP\u27s focus on people, education for change, accountability, strategic partnerships, and public value are highlighted as an example and model for Extension and FCS programs in general. Future FCS success and sustainability depends on ensuring continued attention to the human dimension, while also addressing workforce, societal, and technological developments.https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/extension_pubs/1251/thumbnail.jp

The construction of forensic knowledge in Victorian Yorkshire: Dr Thomas Scattergood and his casebooks, 1856-1897

Forensic medicine became a recognised discipline in the nineteenth century, growing alongside the medical and legal professions. Very few medical men taught or studied forensic medicine at the start of the nineteenth century but by the end it was an integral part of medical education, and forensic science had begun to emerge as a separate discipline. This chapter focuses on the forensic expertise and practice of Leeds–based doctor, toxicologist, and lecturer Thomas Scattergood (1826–1900). Alongside his teaching career, he researched forensic techniques and acted as a consultant and medico-legal witness in criminal cases across the north of England. Scattergood’s personal casebooks will be used as the starting point to explore the kinds of forensic techniques available in the second half of the nineteenth century. These volumes contain Scattergood’s compiled notes on a wide range of potential forensic clues, including blood splatters, the effects of fire, water, lightning and earth on the body, knife or blade injuries, strangulation, chemical decomposition of bodies and a variety of poisonings. Case studies from his notebooks illustrate the scientific developments made in forensic medicine in this period. The casebooks also provide insights into the range of individuals involved in the business of medico-legal practice. Beyond his Yorkshire College–based laboratory Scattergood engaged with coroners, policemen, lawyers, judges, postmen, farmers and other doctors, among others, and he therefore lies at the heart of our work to unravel the networks involved in Northern forensic investigations

The progestin receptor interactome in the female mouse hypothalamus: Interactions with synaptic proteins are isoform specific and ligand dependent

Progestins bind to the progestin receptor (PR) isoforms, PR-A and PR-B, in brain to influence development, female reproduction, anxiety, and stress. Hormone-activated PRs associate with multiple proteins to form functional complexes. In the present study, proteins from female mouse hypothalamus that associate with PR were isolated using affinity pull-down assays with glutathione S-transferase–tagged mouse PR-A and PR-B. Using complementary proteomics approaches, reverse phase protein array (RPPA) and mass spectrometry, we identified hypothalamic proteins that interact with PR in a ligand-dependent and isoform-specific manner and were confirmed by Western blot. Synaptic proteins, including synapsin-I and synapsin-II, interacted with agonist-bound PR isoforms, suggesting that both isoforms function in synaptic plasticity. In further support, synaptogyrin-III and synapsin-III associated with PR-A and PR-B, respectively. PR also interacted with kinases, including c-Src, mTOR, and MAPK1, confirming phosphorylation as an integral process in rapid effects of PR in the brain. Consistent with a role in transcriptional regulation, PR associated with transcription factors and coactivators in a ligand-specific and isoform-dependent manner. Interestingly, both PR isoforms associated with a key regulator of energy homeostasis, FoxO1, suggesting a novel role for PR in energy metabolism. Because many identified proteins in this PR interactome are synaptic proteins, we tested the hypothesis that progestins function in synaptic plasticity. Indeed, progesterone enhanced synaptic density, by increasing synapsin-I–positive synapses, in rat primary cortical neuronal cultures. This novel combination of RPPA and mass spectrometry allowed identification of PR action in synaptic remodeling and energy homeostasis and reveals unique roles for progestins in brain function and disease

Higher cognitive ability buffers stress-related depressive symptoms in adolescent girls

Stress has been shown to have a causal effect on risk for depression. We investigated the role of cognitive ability as a moderator of the effect of stressful life events on depressive symptoms and whether this varied by gender. Data were analyzed in two adolescent data sets: one representative community sample aged 11–12 years (n = 460) and one at increased familial risk of depression aged 9–17 years (n = 335). In both data sets, a three-way interaction was found whereby for girls, but not boys, higher cognitive ability buffered the association between stress and greater depressive symptoms. The interaction was replicated when the outcome was a diagnosis of major depressive disorder. This buffering effect in girls was not attributable to coping efficacy. However, a small proportion of the variance was accounted for by sensitivity to environmental stressors. Results suggest that this moderating effect of cognitive ability in girls is largely attributable to greater available resources for cognitive operations that offer protection against stress-induced reductions in cognitive processing and cognitive control which in turn reduces the likelihood of depressive symptomatology

Psychosis risk candidate ZNF804A localizes to synapses and regulates neurite formation and dendritic spine structure

BackgroundVariation in the gene encoding zinc finger binding protein 804A (ZNF804A) is associated with schizophrenia (SCZ) and bipolar disorder (BP). Evidence suggests that ZNF804A is a regulator of gene transcription and is present in nuclear and extranuclear compartments. However, a detailed examination of ZNF804A distribution and its neuronal functions has yet to be performed.MethodsThe localization of ZNF804A protein was examined in neurons derived from human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs), human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) or in primary rat cortical neurons. Additionally, siRNA-mediated knockdown of ZNF804A was conducted to determine its role in neurite formation, maintenance of dendritic spine morphology and responses to activity-dependent stimulations.ResultsEndogenous ZNF804A protein localized to somato-dendritic compartments and co-localized with the putative synaptic markers in young neurons derived from hNPCs and hiPSCs. In mature rat neurons, Zfp804A, the homolog of ZNF804A, was present in a subset of dendritic spines and co-localized with synaptic proteins in specific nanodomains, as determined by superresolution microscopy. Interestingly, knockdown of ZNF804A attenuated neurite outgrowth in young neurons, an effect potentially mediated by reduced neuroligin-4 (NLGN4) expression. Furthermore, knockdown of ZNF804A in mature neurons resulted in the loss of dendritic spine density, and impaired responses to activity-dependent stimulation.ConclusionsThese data reveal a novel subcellular distribution for ZNF804A within somato-dendritic compartments and a nanoscopic organisation at excitatory synapses. Moreover, our results suggest that ZNF804A plays an active role in neurite formation, maintenance of dendritic spines and activity-dependent structural plasticity

Pyruvate Carboxylase Is Critical for Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Proliferation

Anabolic biosynthesis requires precursors supplied by the Krebs cycle, which in turn requires anaplerosis to replenish precursor intermediates. The major anaplerotic sources are pyruvate and glutamine, which require the activity of pyruvate carboxylase (PC) and glutaminase 1 (GLS1), respectively. Due to their rapid proliferation, cancer cells have increased anabolic and energy demands; however, different cancer cell types exhibit differential requirements for PC- and GLS-mediated pathways for anaplerosis and cell proliferation. Here, we infused patients with early-stage non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with uniformly 13C-labeled glucose before tissue resection and determined that the cancerous tissues in these patients had enhanced PC activity. Freshly resected paired lung tissue slices cultured in 13C6-glucose or 13C5,15N2-glutamine tracers confirmed selective activation of PC over GLS in NSCLC. Compared with noncancerous tissues, PC expression was greatly enhanced in cancerous tissues, whereas GLS1 expression showed no trend. Moreover, immunohistochemical analysis of paired lung tissues showed PC overexpression in cancer cells rather than in stromal cells of tumor tissues. PC knockdown induced multinucleation, decreased cell proliferation and colony formation in human NSCLC cells, and reduced tumor growth in a mouse xenograft model. Growth inhibition was accompanied by perturbed Krebs cycle activity, inhibition of lipid and nucleotide biosynthesis, and altered glutathione homeostasis. These findings indicate that PC-mediated anaplerosis in early-stage NSCLC is required for tumor survival and proliferation

Parental Home-Based Pulse Oximetry Monitoring For Adults With Intellectual Disabilities At Risk Of Serious Respiratory Problems Including Covid-19: A Brief Report

BackgroundPeople with intellectual disabilities (ID) are at high risk of developing respiratory health issues. The COVID-19 pandemic has compounded this, with serious consequences, and for some, death. Despite home-based oxygen saturation monitoring being recommended for people with ID, there is a stark lack of evidence in the literature on its feasibility.MethodWe conducted 3-day baseline home-based oxygen saturation monitoring, using pulse oximeters, with eight parents of nine adults with ID in Scotland. Two eligible parents also completed a further 2 weeks of monitoring, and returned an evaluation questionnaire on its feasibility.ResultsBaseline mean readings for eight adults with ID were within the normal range (%Sp02 ≥ 95), and for another one 94%. Fluctuations over the 3-day assessment period were experienced by six of these individuals. However, these variations were within limits which are not dangerous (lowest reading 92%), implying that parental home-based pulse oximetry monitoring is likely to be safe for adults with ID. The two parents who completed the evaluation found home-based pulse oximetry monitoring to be easy/very easy to do, and effective/very effective.ConclusionsThis is the first research study, albeit with a very small sample, to report on the potential feasibility of parental home-based pulse oximetry monitoring for adults with ID. Home-based pulse oximetry monitoring appears to be safe in adults with ID at risk of developing serious respiratory problems, and not difficult for their parents to do. There is an urgent need to replicate this work, using a larger sample, to promote home-based respiratory health monitoring more widely for people with ID

Parental Home-Based Pulse Oximetry Monitoring For Adults With Intellectual Disabilities At Risk Of Serious Respiratory Problems Including Covid-19: A Brief Report

BackgroundPeople with intellectual disabilities (ID) are at high risk of developing respiratory health issues. The COVID-19 pandemic has compounded this, with serious consequences, and for some, death. Despite home-based oxygen saturation monitoring being recommended for people with ID, there is a stark lack of evidence in the literature on its feasibility.MethodWe conducted 3-day baseline home-based oxygen saturation monitoring, using pulse oximeters, with eight parents of nine adults with ID in Scotland. Two eligible parents also completed a further 2 weeks of monitoring, and returned an evaluation questionnaire on its feasibility.ResultsBaseline mean readings for eight adults with ID were within the normal range (%Sp02 ≥ 95), and for another one 94%. Fluctuations over the 3-day assessment period were experienced by six of these individuals. However, these variations were within limits which are not dangerous (lowest reading 92%), implying that parental home-based pulse oximetry monitoring is likely to be safe for adults with ID. The two parents who completed the evaluation found home-based pulse oximetry monitoring to be easy/very easy to do, and effective/very effective.ConclusionsThis is the first research study, albeit with a very small sample, to report on the potential feasibility of parental home-based pulse oximetry monitoring for adults with ID. Home-based pulse oximetry monitoring appears to be safe in adults with ID at risk of developing serious respiratory problems, and not difficult for their parents to do. There is an urgent need to replicate this work, using a larger sample, to promote home-based respiratory health monitoring more widely for people with ID