Cwbr Author Interview: Nature\u27s Civil War: Common Soldiers And The Environment In 1862 Virginia

Interview with Kathryn Shively Meier, Assistant Professor of History at Virginia Commonwealth University Interviewed by Michael Frawley Civil War Book Review (CWBR): Today the Civil War Book Review is proud to speak with Kathryn Shively Meier, an Assistant professor of History at Virginia Commonwealth University, and discuss her recent book Nature\u27s Civil War: Common Soldiers and the Environment in 1862 Virginia. Thank you for joining us today. Kathryn Shively Meier (KM): Thank you for having me

Reflections from the Field: Creating an Elementary Living Learning Makerspace

This article features the creation of a makerspace in the elementary education (ELED) living and learning community (LLC) residence hall. This space was created based on the growing body of literature demonstrating the rise of makerspaces across learning environments as well as the need to expose pre-service teachers (PSTs) to early field experiences that integrate digital technologies and new media across the elementary curriculum. We provide a roadmap for others who aim to create makerspaces in conjunction with teacher preparation programs and living learning communities. We also reflect on ways to improve our process, recommending further research into the effectiveness of makerspaces as field experiences for students preparing for 21st century careers

War Stuff: The Struggle for Human and Environmental Resources in the American Civil War

In her new monograph, War Stuff, Joan E. Cashin argues that white Southern civilians lost the contest with the Confederate and Federal field armies over material and human resources. At first Unionists and secessionists generally cooperated with their respective armies to provide goods—chiefly food, timber, and housing—and services, such as labor and spying. In doing so, they drew upon the prewar “communalist” ethics of sharing, resource stewardship, and nature appreciation, which Cashin finds among antebellum white Southerners and Northerners alike

Perceptions of K-12 Teachers on the Cognitive, Affective, and Conative Functionalities of Gifted Students Engaged in Design Thinking

Gifted students are our nation’s natural resource of technological inventors and innovators, but oftentimes do not receive differentiated instruction in technology/engineering design learning environments. This is not negligence or lack of care by the instructor, but a national issue of not sufficiently providing pre- and in-service teachers with formal training opportunities in gifted education. The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of K-12 teachers, trained in gifted education pedagogy and the Design Thinking Model (DTM), after their gifted students engaged in design thinking activities. Fifteen K-12 educators of different content areas reflected in focus groups upon how their gifted students performed. Teachers noted cognitive, affective, and conative phenomena, such as development of 21st Century capabilities, externalizations of psychosocial behaviors (e.g., perfectionism, avoidance of failure, gifted underachievement), and strong motivations to solve problems for end-users. The researchers suggest that with the reality of educators unable to receive formal training in gifted education, developing an awareness of intrapersonal functionalities of gifted students engaged in design thinking can be a significant step toward providing supportive learning environments

Mutations in KCTD1 Cause Scalp-Ear-Nipple Syndrome

Scalp-ear-nipple (SEN) syndrome is a rare, autosomal-dominant disorder characterized by cutis aplasia of the scalp; minor anomalies of the external ears, digits, and nails; and malformations of the breast. We used linkage analysis and exome sequencing of a multiplex family affected by SEN syndrome to identify potassium-channel tetramerization-domain-containing 1 (KCTD1) mutations that cause SEN syndrome. Evaluation of a total of ten families affected by SEN syndrome revealed KCTD1 missense mutations in each family tested. All of the mutations occurred in a KCTD1 region encoding a highly conserved bric-a-brac, tram track, and broad complex (BTB) domain that is required for transcriptional repressor activity. KCTD1 inhibits the transactivation of the transcription factor AP-2 alpha (TFAP2A) via its BTB domain, and mutations in TFAP2A cause cutis aplasia in individuals with branchiooculofacial syndrome (BOFS), suggesting a potential overlap in the pathogenesis of SEN syndrome and BOFS. the identification of KCTD1 mutations in SEN syndrome reveals a role for this BTB-domain-containing transcriptional repressor during ectodermal development.National Institutes of Health National Human Genome Research InstituteLife Sciences Discovery FundWashington Research FoundationMassachusetts Gen Hosp, Cutaneous Biol Res Ctr, Charlestown, MA 02129 USAUniv Washington, Dept Pediat, Seattle, WA 98195 USAUniv Washington, Dept Genome Sci, Seattle, WA 98195 USAUniv Western Sydney Macarthur, Sch Med, Campbelltown, NSW 2560, AustraliaGenet Learning Disabil Serv, Newcastle, NSW 2298, AustraliaJohns Hopkins Univ, Sch Med, McKusick Nathans Inst Genet Med, Baltimore, MD 21205 USAUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Morphol & Genet, Clin Genet Ctr, BR-04021001 São Paulo, BrazilPontificia Univ Catolica Parana, Dept Internal Med, BR-1155 Curitiba, Parana, BrazilWestern Gen Hosp, South East Scotland Clin Genet Serv, Edinburgh EH4 2XU, Midlothian, ScotlandUniv Florence, Dept Genet & Mol Med, I-50132 Florence, ItalyHop Necker Enfants Malad, Dept Genet, INSERM, U781, F-75015 Paris, FranceUniv Paris Descartes Sorbonne Paris Cite, Inst Imagine, F-75015 Paris, FranceHop Cote Nacre, CHU Caen, Serv Genet, F-14033 Caen 9, FranceUniv Connecticut, Ctr Hlth, Dept Reconstruct Sci, Farmington, CT 06030 USABoston Childrens Hosp, Dept Plast & Oral Surg, Boston, MA 02115 USATreuman Katz Ctr Pediat Bioeth, Seattle Childrens Res Inst, Seattle, WA 98101 USAUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Morphol & Genet, Clin Genet Ctr, BR-04021001 São Paulo, BrazilNational Institutes of Health National Human Genome Research Institute: 1U54HG006493National Institutes of Health National Human Genome Research Institute: 1RC2HG005608National Institutes of Health National Human Genome Research Institute: 5RO1HG004316Life Sciences Discovery Fund: 2065508Life Sciences Discovery Fund: 0905001Web of Scienc

The Short Isoform of the CEACAM1 Receptor in Intestinal T Cells Regulates Mucosal Immunity and Homeostasis via Tfh Cell Induction

Carcinoembryonic antigen cell adhesion molecule like I (CEACAM1) is expressed on activated T cells and signals through either a long (L) cytoplasmic tail containing immune receptor tyrosine based inhibitory motifs, which provide inhibitory function, or a short (S) cytoplasmic tail with an unknown role. Previous studies on peripheral T cells show that CEACAM1-L isoforms predominate with little to no detectable CEACAM1-S isoforms in mouse and human. We show here that this was not the case in tissue resident T cells of intestines and gut associated lymphoid tissues which demonstrated predominant expression of CEACAM1-S isoforms relative to CEACAM1-L isoforms in human and mouse. This tissue resident predominance of CEACAM1-S expression was determined by the intestinal environment where it served a stimulatory function leading to the regulation of T cell subsets associated with generation of secretory IgA immunity, the regulation of mucosal commensalism, and defense of the barrier against enteropathogens

Necessity of Hippocampal Neurogenesis for the Therapeutic Action of Antidepressants in Adult Nonhuman Primates

Rodent studies show that neurogenesis is necessary for mediating the salutary effects of antidepressants. Nonhuman primate (NHP) studies may bridge important rodent findings to the clinical realm since NHP-depression shares significant homology with human depression and kinetics of primate neurogenesis differ from those in rodents. After demonstrating that antidepressants can stimulate neurogenesis in NHPs, our present study examines whether neurogenesis is required for antidepressant efficacy in NHPs. MATERIALS/METHODOLOGY: Adult female bonnets were randomized to three social pens (N = 6 each). Pen-1 subjects were exposed to control-conditions for 15 weeks with half receiving the antidepressant fluoxetine and the rest receiving saline-placebo. Pen-2 subjects were exposed to 15 weeks of separation-stress with half receiving fluoxetine and half receiving placebo. Pen-3 subjects 2 weeks of irradiation (N = 4) or sham-irradiation (N = 2) and then exposed to 15 weeks of stress and fluoxetine. Dependent measures were weekly behavioral observations and postmortem neurogenesis levels.Exposing NHPs to repeated separation stress resulted in depression-like behaviors (anhedonia and subordinance) accompanied by reduced hippocampal neurogenesis. Treatment with fluoxetine stimulated neurogenesis and prevented the emergence of depression-like behaviors. Ablation of neurogenesis with irradiation abolished the therapeutic effects of fluoxetine. Non-stressed controls had normative behaviors although the fluoxetine-treated controls had higher neurogenesis rates. Across all groups, depression-like behaviors were associated with decreased rates of neurogenesis but this inverse correlation was only significant for new neurons in the anterior dentate gyrus that were at the threshold of completing maturation.We provide evidence that induction of neurogenesis is integral to the therapeutic effects of fluoxetine in NHPs. Given the similarity between monkeys and humans, hippocampal neurogenesis likely plays a similar role in the treatment of clinical depression. Future studies will examine several outstanding questions such as whether neuro-suppression is sufficient for producing depression and whether therapeutic neuroplastic effects of fluoxetine are specific to antidepressants

Mutations in PIEZO2 Cause Gordon Syndrome, Marden-Walker Syndrome, and Distal Arthrogryposis Type 5

Gordon syndrome (GS), or distal arthrogryposis type 3, is a rare, autosomal-dominant disorder characterized by cleft palate and congenital contractures of the hands and feet. Exome sequencing of five GS-affected families identified mutations in piezo-type mechanosensitive ion channel component 2 (PIEZO2) in each family. Sanger sequencing revealed PIEZO2 mutations in five of seven additional families studied (for a total of 10/12 [83%] individuals), and nine families had an identical c.8057G>A (p.Arg2686His) mutation. The phenotype of GS overlaps with distal arthrogryposis type 5 (DA5) and Marden-Walker syndrome (MWS). Using molecular inversion probes for targeted sequencing to screen PIEZO2, we found mutations in 24/29 (82%) DA5-affected families and one of two MWS-affected families. The presence of cleft palate was significantly associated with c.8057G>A (Fisher’s exact test, adjusted p value < 0.0001). Collectively, although GS, DA5, and MWS have traditionally been considered separate disorders, our findings indicate that they are etiologically related and perhaps represent variable expressivity of the same condition

Using satellite remote sensing and household survey data to assess human health and nutrition response to environmental change

Climate change and degradation of ecosystem services functioning may threaten the ability of current agricultural systems to keep up with demand for adequate and inexpensive food and for clean water, waste disposal and other broader ecosystem services. Human health is likely to be affected by changes occurring across multiple geographic and time scales. Impacts range from increasing transmissibility and the range of vectorborne diseases, such as malaria and yellow fever, to undermining nutrition through deleterious impacts on food production and concomitant increases in food prices. This paper uses case studies to describe methods that make use of satellite remote sensing and Demographic and Health Survey data to better understand individual-level human health and nutrition outcomes. By bringing these diverse datasets together, the connection between environmental change and human health outcomes can be described through new research and analysis