The lowa farmer and world war II

World War II is the biggest fact in the Iowa farm situation. Though Iowa is far removed from air bombing and submarine torpedoing, it is on the battle front so far as economic and social effects of the war are concerned. Iowa’s commercial agriculture underwent terrific strain during and following World War I, and the pressures arising out of World War II promise to be similar, although less severe. It is the purpose of this report to estimate what some of these pressures will be. An understanding of the social and economic forces at work is necessary before plans can be made and action taken to ease the shock of war. The experience of the earlier war helps us to understand these forces, but that experience must be interpreted in light of the changed situation today

Substance Use Disorders Among First- and Second-Generation Immigrant Adults in the United States: Evidence of an Immigrant Paradox?

A growing number of studies have examined the “immigrant paradox” with respect to the use of licit and illicit substances in the United States. However, there remains a need for a comprehensive examination of the multigenerational and global links between immigration and substance use disorders among adults in the United States

Direct Evidence that Bevacizumab, an Anti-VEGF Antibody, Up-regulates SDF1 , CXCR4, CXCL6, and Neuropilin 1 in Tumors from Patients with Rectal Cancer

Clinical studies converge on the observation that circulating cytokines are elevated in most cancer patients by anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy. However, the source of these molecules and their relevance in tumor escape remain unknown. We examined the gene expression profiles of cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophages in tumor biopsies before and 12 days after monotherapy with the anti-VEGF antibody bevacizumab in patients with rectal carcinoma. Bevacizumab up-regulated stromal cell-derived factor 1alpha (SDF1alpha), its receptor CXCR4, and CXCL6, and down-regulated PlGF, Ang1, and Ang2 in cancer cells. In addition, bevacizumab decreased Ang1 and induced neuropilin 1 (NRP1) expression in tumor-associated macrophages. Higher SDF1alpha plasma levels during bevacizumab treatment significantly associated with distant metastasis at three years. These data show that VEGF blockade up-regulates inflammatory pathways and NRP1, which should be evaluated as potential targets for improving anti-VEGF therapy

Ecological Invasion, Roughened Fronts, and a Competitor's Extreme Advance: Integrating Stochastic Spatial-Growth Models

Both community ecology and conservation biology seek further understanding of factors governing the advance of an invasive species. We model biological invasion as an individual-based, stochastic process on a two-dimensional landscape. An ecologically superior invader and a resident species compete for space preemptively. Our general model includes the basic contact process and a variant of the Eden model as special cases. We employ the concept of a "roughened" front to quantify effects of discreteness and stochasticity on invasion; we emphasize the probability distribution of the front-runner's relative position. That is, we analyze the location of the most advanced invader as the extreme deviation about the front's mean position. We find that a class of models with different assumptions about neighborhood interactions exhibit universal characteristics. That is, key features of the invasion dynamics span a class of models, independently of locally detailed demographic rules. Our results integrate theories of invasive spatial growth and generate novel hypotheses linking habitat or landscape size (length of the invading front) to invasion velocity, and to the relative position of the most advanced invader.Comment: The original publication is available at www.springerlink.com/content/8528v8563r7u2742

Best practices in research mentoring in clinical science.

The growth of clinical science as a field depends on the work of engaged mentors nurturing future generations of scientists. Effective research mentoring has been shown to predict positive outcomes, including greater scholarly productivity, reduced attrition, and increased satisfaction with training and/or employment, which ultimately may enhance the quality of the clinical-science research enterprise. Barriers to effective research mentoring, however, pose significant challenges for both mentees and mentors, as well as for labs, training programs, and/or departments. We discuss some key issues as they apply to clinical-science mentoring and note how they are affected across different developmental levels (undergraduate, postbaccalaureate, doctoral, internship, postdoctoral associates, and early career faculty). Although we do not proclaim expertise on these issues-and have struggled with them in our own careers-we believe an open discussion around best mentoring practices will enhance our collective effectiveness and help mentees and our field to flourish. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)

A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial for a Multi-Level, Clinic-Based Smoking Cessation Program with Women in Appalachian Communities: Study Protocol for the Break Free Program

BACKGROUND: The cervical cancer burden is high among women living in Appalachia. Cigarette smoking, a cervical cancer risk factor, is also highly prevalent in this population. This project aims to increase smoking cessation among women living in Appalachia by embedding a smoking cessation program within a larger, integrated cervical cancer prevention program. METHODS: The broader program, the Take CARE study, is a multi-site research collaborative designed to address three risk factors for cervical cancer incidence and mortality: tobacco use, human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, and cervical cancer screening. Break Free is a primary care clinic-based implementation program that aims to promote smoking cessation among female smokers in Appalachia by standardizing clinical practice protocols. Break Free includes: (1) implementation of a tobacco user identification system in the Electronic Health Record, (2) clinic staff and provider training on the Ask, Advise and Refer (AAR) model, (3) provider implementation of AAR to identify and treat women who want to quit smoking within the next 6 months, (4) facilitated access to cessation phone counseling plus pharmacotherapy, and (5) the bundling of Break Free tobacco cessation with HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening interventions in an integrated approach to cervical cancer prevention. The study spans 35 Appalachian health clinics across 10 healthcare systems. We aim to enroll 51 adult female smokers per health system (total N = 510). Baseline and follow-up data will be obtained from participant (provider and patient) surveys. The primary outcome is self-reported 12-month point prevalence abstinence among enrolled patients. All randomized patients are asked to complete follow-up surveys, regardless of whether they participated in tobacco treatment. Data analysis of the primary aims will follow intent-to-treat methodology. Secondary outcomes will assess program implementation and cost effectiveness. DISCUSSION: Addressing high tobacco use rates is critical for reducing cervical cancer morbidity and mortality among women living in Appalachia. This study evaluates the implementation and effectiveness of a smoking cessation program in increasing smoking cessation among female smokers. If results demonstrate effectiveness and sustainability, implementation of this program into other health care clinics could reduce both rates of smoking and cervical cancer. Trial registration NCT04340531 (April 9, 2020)

General statistical scaling laws for stability in ecological systems

Ecological stability refers to a family of concepts used to describe how systems of interacting species vary through time and respond to disturbances. Because observed ecological stability depends on sampling scales and environmental context, it is notoriously difficult to compare measurements across sites and systems. Here, we apply stochastic dynamical systems theory to derive general statistical scaling relationships across time, space, and ecological level of organisation for three fundamental stability aspects: resilience, resistance, and invariance. These relationships can be calibrated using random or representative samples measured at individual scales, and projected to predict average stability at other scales across a wide range of contexts. Moreover deviations between observed vs. extrapolated scaling relationships can reveal information about unobserved heterogeneity across time, space, or species. We anticipate that these methods will be useful for cross-study synthesis of stability data, extrapolating measurements to unobserved scales, and identifying underlying causes and consequences of heterogeneity

Engaging fringe stakeholders in business and society research: applying visual participatory research methods

Business and society (B&S) researchers, as well as practitioners, have been critiqued for ignoring those with less voice and power (e.g. women, non-literate or indigenous peoples) often referred to as ‘fringe stakeholders’. Existing methods used in B&S research often fail to address issues of meaningful participation, voice and power, especially in developing countries. In this article we stress the utility of visual participatory research (VPR) methods in B&S research to fill this gap. Through a case study on engaging Ghanaian cocoa farmers on gender inequality issues we explore how VPR methods may be used by researchers to achieve more inclusive, and thus more credible, stakeholder research that can improve decision-making within businesses. Furthermore, we argue that ingrained social and environmental problems tackled by B&S research and the unique context in which they occur may open up new opportunities to develop participatory visual methods for social change

New Assembly, Reannotation and Analysis of the Entamoeba histolytica Genome Reveal New Genomic Features and Protein Content Information

Entamoeba histolytica is an anaerobic parasitic protozoan that causes amoebic dysentery. The parasites colonize the large intestine, but under some circumstances may invade the intestinal mucosa, enter the bloodstream and lead to the formation of abscesses such amoebic liver abscesses. The draft genome of E. histolytica, published in 2005, provided the scientific community with the first comprehensive view of the gene set for this parasite and important tools for elucidating the genetic basis of Entamoeba pathogenicity. Because complete genetic knowledge is critical for drug discovery and potential vaccine development for amoebiases, we have re-examined the original draft genome for E. histolytica. We have corrected the sequence assembly, improved the gene predictions and refreshed the functional gene assignments. As a result, this effort has led to a more accurate gene annotation, and the discovery of novel features, such as the presence of genome segmental duplications and the close association of some gene families with transposable elements. We believe that continuing efforts to improve genomic data will undoubtedly help to identify and characterize potential targets for amoebiasis control, as well as to contribute to a better understanding of genome evolution and pathogenesis for this parasite

Expression of the VEGF and angiopoietin genes in endometrial atypical hyperplasia and endometrial cancer

Angiogenesis is critical for the growth and metastasis of endometrial cancer and is therefore an important therapeutic target. Vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) is a key molecule in angiogenesis, but the identification of related molecules and the angiopoietins suggests a more complex picture. We investigated the presence of transcripts for VEGF-A, VEGF-B, VEGF-C, VEGF-D, Angiopoietin-1 and Angiopoietin-2 in benign endometrium, atypical complex hyperplasia (ACH) and endometrioid endometrial carcinoma using in situ hybridisation. We confirmed the presence of VEGF-A mRNA in the epithelial cells of cancers examined (13 out of 13), but not in benign endometrium or ACH. We also demonstrate, using quantitative polymerase chain reaction, that levels of VEGF-B mRNA are significantly lower in endometrial cancer than benign endometrium. We conclude that loss of VEGF-B may contribute to the development of endometrial carcinoma by modulating availability of receptors for VEGF-A