Becoming Bros : Hegemonic Masculinity and Peer Effects in the Hazing Rituals of College Fraternities

Although prevention efforts exist on many college campuses, hazing remains a continual threat to the well-being of students in social organizations. Acts of hazing committed by current group members vary in levels of emotional and physical harm to initiates. My research seeks potential risk factors for more relatively extreme forms of hazing, examining a link between the groups\u27 performance of masculinity and the severity of aggression and violence enacted by members in their hazing rituals. At a single university, I conducted thirteen interviews with brothers in four all-male social fraternities - two exhibiting low-level and two exhibiting moderate-level hazing behaviors. From this data, I identified three salient themes that contributed to differences in hazing severity: conceptual perceptions of hazing; performance of masculinities; and isolation from non-fraternity social life. In this paper, I explore these findings and offer recommendations for future hazing prevention efforts, especially those targeted toward college fraternities

Faculty Perceptions Of Moving A Face-To-Face Course To Online Instruction

This qualitative study explores the experiences of 10 faculty members who developed and taught an online course that they had previously taught in a face-to-face classroom.  The categories from the data analysis included planning, implementation, and reflection. Within the categories, eight themes emerged from the data. The themes addressed technological support received during online course development, time commitment of faculty, role of faculty member, instructional strategies used within the online course, adjustment of teaching in an online course, synchronous versus asynchronous instruction, faculty member confidence, and control. We drew three conclusions from faculty members’ experiences and perceptions

The Relationship Between Wort Sugar Concentration and Yeast Carbon Partitioning during Brewing Fermentations

High gravity (HG) and very high gravity (VHG) fermentations are increasingly attractive within the brewing industry as a means of optimizing process efficiency and energy-saving. However, the use of highly concentrated worts is concomitant with a number of biological stress factors that can impact on yeast quality and fermentation performance. In order to eliminate or reduce potentially detrimental effects, brewing yeast respond to their environment by shunting carbon into different metabolic end products, which assist in the protection of cells, but also impact on final ethanol yield. The purpose of this research was to investigate the impact of substrate sugar concentration on carbon partitioning in brewing fermentations. This was conducted using a series of laboratory-scale fermentations with worts of 13°P, 18°P and 24°P, pitched using lager and ale yeast strains. Fermentation performance was assessed with respect to the uptake of wort sugars and the production of key carbon-based metabolites, leading to a calculation of yeast central carbon flux. Analysis of carbon assimilation and dissimilation revealed that changes in intracellular trehalose, glycogen, higher alcohols and esters were observed, however the production of yeast biomass acted as the major trade-off with ethanol production. The data presented here shows for the first time the requirements of yeast populations during HG and VHG conditions and the factors that have a major impact on key performance indicators. This data has major significance for fermentation-based industries globally and is especially important for those sectors seeking to maximize yield from existing resources through high gravity fermentations

Tolerance of pentose utilising yeast to hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress.

BACKGROUND: Bioethanol fermentations follow traditional beverage fermentations where the yeast is exposed to adverse conditions such as oxidative stress. Lignocellulosic bioethanol fermentations involve the conversion of pentose and hexose sugars into ethanol. Environmental stress conditions such as osmotic stress and ethanol stress may affect the fermentation performance; however, oxidative stress as a consequence of metabolic output can also occur. However, the effect of oxidative stress on yeast with pentose utilising capabilities has yet to be investigated. RESULTS: Assaying for the effect of hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress on Candida, Pichia and Scheffersomyces spp. has demonstrated that these yeast tolerate hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress in a manner consistent with that demonstrated by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Pichia guillermondii appears to be more tolerant to hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress when compared to Candida shehatae, Candida succiphila or Scheffersomyces stipitis. CONCLUSIONS: Sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress increased in the presence of minimal media; however, addition of amino acids and nucleobases was observed to increase tolerance. In particular adenine increased tolerance and methionine reduced tolerance to hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress

Bioethanol Production from Brewers Spent Grains Using a Fungal Consolidated Bioprocessing (CBP) Approach.

Production of bioethanol from brewers spent grains (BSG) using consolidated bioprocessing (CBP) is reported. Each CBP system consists of a primary filamentous fungal species, which secretes the enzymes required to deconstruct biomass, paired with a secondary yeast species to ferment liberated sugars to ethanol. Interestingly, although several pairings of fungi were investigated, the sake fermentation system (A. oryzae and S. cerevisiae NCYC479) was found to yield the highest concentrations of ethanol (37 g/L of ethanol within 10 days). On this basis, 1 t of BSG (dry weight) would yield 94 kg of ethanol using 36 hL of water in the process. QRT-PCR analysis of selected carbohydrate degrading (CAZy) genes expressed by A. oryzae in the BSG sake system showed that hemicellulose was deconstructed first, followed by cellulose. One drawback of the CBP approach is lower ethanol productivity rates; however, it requires low energy and water inputs, and hence is worthy of further investigation and optimisation

Physiological and transcriptomic response of Saccharomyces pastorianus to cold storage

Removal of yeast biomass at the end of fermentation, followed by a period of storage before re-inoculation into a subsequent fermentation, is common in the brewing industry. Storage is typically conducted at cold temperatures to preserve yeast quality, a practice which has unfavourable cost and environmental implications. To determine the potential for alleviating these effects, the transcriptomic and physiological response of Saccharomyces pastorianus strain W34/70 to standard (4°C) and elevated (10°C) storage temperatures was explored. Higher temperatures resulted in increased expression of genes associated with the production and mobilisation of intracellular glycogen, trehalose, glycerol and fatty acids, although these observations were limited to early stages of storage. Intracellular trehalose and glycerol concentrations were higher at 4°C than at 10°C, as a consequence of the cellular response to cold stress. However, significant changes in glycogen degradation or cellular fatty acid composition did not occur between the two sets of populations, ensuring that cell viability remained consistent. It is anticipated that this data may lead to changes in standard practice for handling yeast cultures, without compromising yeast quality. This work has significance not only for the brewing industry, but also for food and biofuel sectors requiring short term storage of liquid yeast

The impact of hop bitter acid and polyphenol profiles on the perceived bitterness of beer

Thirty-four commercial lager beers were analysed for their hop bitter acid, phenolic acid and polyphenol contents. Based on analytical data, it was evident that the beers had been produced using a range of different raw materials and hopping practices. Principal Components Analysis was used to select a sub-set of 10 beers that contained diverse concentrations of the analysed bitter compounds. These beers were appraised sensorially to determine the impacts of varying hop acid and polyphenolic profiles on perceived bitterness character. Beers high in polyphenol and hop acid contents were perceived as having ‘harsh’ and ‘progressive’ bitterness, whilst beers that had evidently been conventionally hopped were ‘sharp’ and ‘instant' in their bitterness. Beers containing light-stable hop products (tetrahydro-iso-α-acids) were perceived as ‘diminishing’, ‘rounded’ and ‘acidic’ in bitterness. The hopping strategy adopted by brewers impacts on the nature, temporal profile and intensity of bitterness perception in beer

The effect of consumption context on consumer hedonics, emotional response and beer choice

The context of a consumer test affects participant response. Data collected in a sensory laboratory is likely to have little predictive value of consumer experience in real-life situations. This study determined the effects of context on consumer response to two commercial beers. Regular beer consumers (n=100) rated liking and emotional response using ten beer-specific emotion categories for two beers (Lager and Ale) under three different conditions: (1) a sensory testing facility (Lab), (2) a natural consumption environment (Bar) and (3) using an evoked context (Evoked). Their choice of product to take home was also recorded. Overall results showed significant product differentiation for liking (F (99, 2, 1) = 8.46, p = 0.004) and product choice (Q (1, N = 100) = 4.85, p = 0.028) in the Bar but not in the Lab or Evoked context. Emotional variables highlighted significant product differentiation (p < 0.05) but more so in the Bar than in the Lab or Evoked context. However, clustering participants on liking revealed three distinct clusters differing in sensitivity to context. Two clusters showed opposing but consistent preference for one of the two products regardless of context. The third cluster was more influenced by context, showing a more discriminating response in the Bar. These findings showed that consumers differ in their degree of context-sensitivity and the extent to which evoking a context gives similar results to a real environment. They also highlighted the importance of segmentation and confirmed the added insights gained by measuring emotional response compared to liking

111In-BnDTPA-F3: an Auger electron-emitting radiotherapeutic agent that targets nucleolin

INTRODUCTION: The F3 peptide (KDEPQRRSARLSAKPAPPKPEPKPKKAPAKK), a fragment of the human high mobility group protein 2, binds nucleolin. Nucleolin is expressed in the nuclei of normal cells but is also expressed on the membrane of some cancer cells. The goal was to investigate the use of 111In-labeled F3 peptide for Auger electron-targeted radiotherapy. METHODS: F3 was labeled with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) for confocal microscopy and conjugated to p-SCN-benzyl-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (BnDTPA) for labeling with 111In to form 111In-BnDTPA-F3. MDA-MB-231-H2N (231-H2N) human breast cancer cells were exposed to 111In-BnDTPA-F3 and used in cell fractionation, γH2AX immunostaining (a marker of DNA double-strand breaks), and clonogenic assays. In vivo, biodistribution studies of 111In-BnDTPA-F3 were performed in 231-H2N xenograft-bearing mice. In tumor growth delay studies, 111In-BnDTPA-F3 (3 μg, 6 MBq/μg) was administered intravenously to 231-H2N xenograft-bearing mice once weekly for 3 weeks. RESULTS: Membrane-binding of FITC-F3 was observed in 231-H2N cells, and there was co-localization of FITC-F3 with nucleolin in the nuclei. After exposure of 231-H2N cells to 111In-BnDTPA-F3 for 2 h, 1.7% of 111In added to the medium was membrane-bound. Of the bound 111In, 15% was internalized, and of this, 37% was localized in the nucleus. Exposure of 231-H2N cells to 111In-BnDTPA-F3 (1 μM, 6 MBq/μg) resulted in a dose-dependent increase in γH2AX foci and in a significant reduction of clonogenic survival compared to untreated cells or cells exposed to unlabeled BnDTPA-F3 (46 ± 4.1%, 100 ± 1.8%, and 132 ± 7.7%, respectively). In vivo, tumor uptake of 111In-BnDTPA-F3 (3 μg, 6 MBq/μg) at 3-h post-injection was 1% of the injected dose per gram (%ID/g), and muscle uptake was 0.5%ID/g. In tumor growth delay studies, tumor growth rate was reduced 19-fold compared to untreated or unlabeled BnDTPA-F3-treated mice (p = 0.023). CONCLUSION: 111In-BnDTPA-F3 is internalized into 231-H2N cells and translocates to the nucleus. 111In-BnDTPA-F3 has a potent cytotoxic effect in vitro and an anti-tumor effect in mice bearing 231-H2N xenografts despite modest total tumor accumulation

Perceived bitterness character of beer in relation to hop variety and the impact of hop aroma

The impact of hop variety and hop aroma on perceived beer bitterness intensity and character was investigated using analytical and sensory methods. Beers made from malt extract were hopped with 3 distinctive hop varieties (Hersbrucker, East Kent Goldings, Zeus) to achieve equi-bitter levels. A trained sensory panel determined the bitterness character profile of each singly-hopped beer using a novel lexicon. Results showed different bitterness character profiles for each beer, with hop aroma also found to change the hop variety-derived bitterness character profiles of the beer. Rank-rating evaluations further showed the significant effect of hop aroma on selected key bitterness character attributes, by increasing perceived harsh and lingering bitterness, astringency, and bitterness intensity via cross-modal flavour interactions. This study advances understanding of the complexity of beer bitterness perception by demonstrating that hop variety selection and hop aroma both impact significantly on the perceived intensity and character of this key sensory attribute