Lent 3 • 1 Corinthians 1:18–31 • March 8, 2015 The Word of the Cross

The preacher has the wonderful opportunity in this text to invite his hearers to respond to Christ by believing the word of the cross and living according to it

Training Pastors as Steward Leaders

Knolhoff, Wayne J. “Training Pastors as Steward Leaders.” D. Min. MAP, Concordia Seminary—St. Louis, 2017. 187 pp. The major purpose of this project is to design training for pastors that will equip them to lead ongoing, intentional, systematic, whole life Biblical stewardship education in their congregations. Attention will be given to the biblical metaphor of steward as an appropriate image for pastors as they lead stewardship ministry. In addition, pastors will be encouraged to adopt the model of “steward leadership” as they function in every area of pastoral ministry. The central component of the research for this project is a stewardship assessment tool that was conducted using Survey Monkey. This online survey was sent to pastors in the Michigan, Missouri, and New England districts of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. The survey was designed to identify areas of stewardship ministry where pastors felt the need for additional encouragement, instruction, and resources. The training presented here seeks to connect pastors to their identity as steward in such a way that they relish their role as steward leader and joyfully lead their members to a fuller understanding of all that Christian stewardship means

Genome scan of Diabrotica virgifera virgifera for genetic variation associated with crop rotation tolerance

Crop rotation has been a valuable technique for control of Diabrotica virgifera virgifera for almost a century. However, during the last two decades, crop rotation has ceased to be effective in an expanding area of the US corn belt. This failure appears to be due to a change in the insect's oviposition behaviour, which, in all probability, has an underlying genetic basis. A preliminary genome scan using 253 amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP) markers sought to identify genetic variation associated with the circumvention of crop rotation. Samples of D. v. virgifera from east-central Illinois, where crop rotation is ineffective, were compared with samples from Iowa at locations that the behavioural variant has yet to reach. A single AFLP marker showed signs of having been influenced by selection for the circumvention of crop rotation. However, this marker was not diagnostic. The lack of markers strongly associated with the trait may be due to an insufficient density of marker coverage throughout the genome. A weak but significant general heterogeneity was observed between the Illinois and Iowa samples at microsatellite loci and AFLP markers. This has not been detected in previous population genetic studies of D. v. virgifera and may indicate a reduction in gene flow between variant and wild-type beetles

The Role of Contact and Empathy in Stigma toward Individuals with Mental Illness among Mental Health and Non-Mental Health Professionals

This study was designed to help identify the factors that predict people\u27s stigmatized attitudes toward individuals with mental illness. Corrigan (2002) suggested that stigmatized beliefs about individuals with mental illness may be detrimental to the potential recovery of these individuals, their self-esteem, empowerment, and their integration into society. One factor that has been found to reduce this stigma is personal contact with mentally ill individuals (Corrigan et al., 2002). Additionally, research has shown that empathy and principled moral reasoning are negatively correlated with prejudice, or stigma (McFarland, 2010). The current study examined level of contact, employment in a mental health profession, and four measures of empathy (macro perspective-taking, cognitive empathy, self-other awareness, and affective response) as potential predictors of stigmatized attitudes. A total of 159 participants, obtained through convenience sampling, completed an online survey that included demographic items (e.g., age, gender, and status as a mental health professional), the Day Mental Illness Scale (Day, Edgren, & Eshleman, 2007), the Hackler Level-of-Contact Items (Hackler, 2011), and the Segal Interpersonal and Social Empathy Index (Segal, Cimino, Gerdes, Harmon, & Wagaman, 2013). The results indicate that gender is significantly related to stigma toward mentally ill individuals; women tend to have less stigma toward individuals with mental illness. Macro perspective-taking and affective response are also significantly related to stigma toward mentally ill individuals; the more of these empathy levels that one has, the less stigma they have toward individuals with mentally ill individuals. Limitations of the study and directions for future research are discussed

Call Day 2013 Call Service

Call Day 2013 Call Service on Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at Concordia Seminary St. Louis.https://scholar.csl.edu/callday/1010/thumbnail.jp

Stark cell stabilization of a CO(2) laser

Studies have been conducted of the frequency stabilization of the output from a Sylvania 941 Carbon Dioxide laser by active comparison with a Stark-tuned NH(2)D line center in an absorption cell. A dithered Stark voltage gave a peak-detection correction signal fed back to a PZT mounted laser resonator mirror to control the cavity optical length. Operation of an integrator incorporated in the feedback loop to improve the system stability has been investigated. A method was demonstrated of using the integrator to locate the desired laser vibronic transition by scanning the laser through its spectral signature prior to initiation of servo operation. An unexpected discontinuity in the absorption lineshape of a Stark-tunable cell was discovered which made the cell unsuitable for generation of the feedback signal. A new and more versatile Stark cell was designed for test and evaluation of cell plate configuration and fabrication.http://archive.org/details/starkcellstabili00knolLieutenant, United States NavyApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Stromal senescence establishes an immunosuppressive microenvironment that drives tumorigenesis

Age is a significant risk factor for the development of cancer. However, the mechanisms that drive age-related increases in cancer remain poorly understood. To determine if senescent stromal cells influence tumorigenesis, we develop a mouse model that mimics the aged skin microenvironment. Using this model, here we find that senescent stromal cells are sufficient to drive localized increases in suppressive myeloid cells that contributed to tumour promotion. Further, we find that the stromal-derived senescence-associated secretory phenotype factor interleukin-6 orchestrates both increases in suppressive myeloid cells and their ability to inhibit anti-tumour T-cell responses. Significantly, in aged, cancer-free individuals, we find similar increases in immune cells that also localize near senescent stromal cells. This work provides evidence that the accumulation of senescent stromal cells is sufficient to establish a tumour-permissive, chronic inflammatory microenvironment that can shelter incipient tumour cells, thus allowing them to proliferate and progress unabated by the immune system

Genes, gene flow and adaptation of Diabrotica virgifera virgifera

Diabrotica virgifera virgifera has emerged as a major pest of cultivated maize, due to a combination of its high capacity to inflict economic damage, adaptability to pest management techniques and invasiveness. This review presents a survey of the current state of knowledge about the genetics of D. v. virgifera. In addition, the tools and resources currently available to Diabrotica geneticists are identified, as are areas where knowledge is lacking and research should be prioritized. A substantial amount of information has been published concerning the molecular phylogenetic relationships of D. v. virgifera to other chrysomelids. There is a growing literature focused on the population genetics and evolution of the species. Several adaptations to anthropogenic selection pressure have been studied, with resistance to synthetic insecticides providing some particularly well-characterized examples. A notable deficiency is a lack of studies directed toward the formal genetics of D. v. virgifera

Microarray analysis yields candidate markers for rotation resistance in the western corn rootworm beetle, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera

As pest species may evolve resistance to chemical controls, they may also evolve resistance to cultural control methods. Yearly rotation of corn (Zea mays) with another crop interrupts the life cycle of the western corn rootworm beetle (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera, Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), but behavioral resistance to crop rotation is now a major problem in the Midwest of the USA. Resistant adult females exhibit reduced fidelity to corn as a host and lay their eggs in the soil of both corn and soybean (Glycine max) fields. Behavioral assays suggest that the adaptation is related to increased locomotor activity, but finding molecular markers has been difficult. We used microarray analysis to search for gene expression differences between resistant and wild-type beetles. Candidates validated with real-time polymerase chain reaction exhibit predicted patterns from the microarray in independent samples across time and space. Many genes more highly expressed in the rotation-resistant females have no matches to known proteins, and most genes that were more lowly expressed are involved in antimicrobial defense

Fibrosis Induced by Resident Macrophages Has Divergent Roles in Pancreas Inflammatory Injury and PDAC

Tissue-resident macrophages (TRMs) are long-lived cells that maintain locally and can be phenotypically distinct from monocyte-derived macrophages. Whether TRMs and monocyte-derived macrophages have district roles under differing pathologies is not understood. Here, we showed that a substantial portion of the macrophages that accumulated during pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer in mice had expanded from TRMs. Pancreas TRMs had an extracellular matrix remodeling phenotype that was important for maintaining tissue homeostasis during inflammation. Loss of TRMs led to exacerbation of severe pancreatitis and death, due to impaired acinar cell survival and recovery. During pancreatitis, TRMs elicited protective effects by triggering the accumulation and activation of fibroblasts, which was necessary for initiating fibrosis as a wound healing response. The same TRM-driven fibrosis, however, drove pancreas cancer pathogenesis and progression. Together, these findings indicate that TRMs play divergent roles in the pathogenesis of pancreatitis and cancer through regulation of stromagenesis