Nonprofits for cohesive cities : neighborhood characteristics, organizational practices, and their effects on social and systemic integration

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) contribute to vital neighborhoods by building communities of citizens and acting as intermediaries between citizens and organi- zations. We investigate how NPOs’ engagement in social and systemic integration is shaped by neighborhood char- acteristics, and how it relates to the organizational practices of managerialism and organizational democracy. We combine survey data with administrative data from a rep- resentative sample of NPOs in a major European city. To measure the effect of neighborhood on organizational integration, we separated the city into 7,840 grid cells characterized by population, per capita income, share of immigrant population, and density of organizations. Find- ings indicate that managerialism positively relates with systemic integration, as organizational democracy relates with social integration. Neighborhood characteristics, however, are not related with NPOs’ engagement inintegration. Our findings contribute to research on urban social cohesion by illuminating the interplay between NPOs’ organizing practices, local neighborhoods, and contributions to both forms of integration.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

A Comprehensive Transit Accessibility and Equity Dashboard

The TransitCenter Equity Dashboard tracks how well public transit systems in seven densely populated urban regions in the United States serve their riders and how changes to transit service affect riders over space, time, and cost constraints. The dashboard presents a series of charts and interactive maps that can be used to evaluate variations in transit accessibility and equity. It was created using publicly available data and primarily open-source software. All measures can be accessed by users seeking to conduct their own analyses. Results demonstrate differences in agency responses to COVID-19 as well as baseline transit service levels provided to different demographic groups

Physiological Notch Signaling Maintains Bone Homeostasis via RBPjk and Hey Upstream of NFATc1

Notch signaling between neighboring cells controls many cell fate decisions in metazoans both during embryogenesis and in postnatal life. Previously, we uncovered a critical role for physiological Notch signaling in suppressing osteoblast differentiation in vivo. However, the contribution of individual Notch receptors and the downstream signaling mechanism have not been elucidated. Here we report that removal of Notch2, but not Notch1, from the embryonic limb mesenchyme markedly increased trabecular bone mass in adolescent mice. Deletion of the transcription factor RBPjk, a mediator of all canonical Notch signaling, in the mesenchymal progenitors but not the more mature osteoblast-lineage cells, caused a dramatic high-bone-mass phenotype characterized by increased osteoblast numbers, diminished bone marrow mesenchymal progenitor pool, and rapid age-dependent bone loss. Moreover, mice deficient in Hey1 and HeyL, two target genes of Notch-RBPjk signaling, exhibited high bone mass. Interestingly, Hey1 bound to and suppressed the NFATc1 promoter, and RBPjk deletion increased NFATc1 expression in bone. Finally, pharmacological inhibition of NFAT alleviated the high-bone-mass phenotype caused by RBPjk deletion. Thus, Notch-RBPjk signaling functions in part through Hey1-mediated inhibition of NFATc1 to suppress osteoblastogenesis, contributing to bone homeostasis in vivo

Going Deeper: Metagenome of a Hadopelagic Microbial Community

The paucity of sequence data from pelagic deep-ocean microbial assemblages has severely restricted molecular exploration of the largest biome on Earth. In this study, an analysis is presented of a large-scale 454-pyrosequencing metagenomic dataset from a hadopelagic environment from 6,000 m depth within the Puerto Rico Trench (PRT). A total of 145 Mbp of assembled sequence data was generated and compared to two pelagic deep ocean metagenomes and two representative surface seawater datasets from the Sargasso Sea. In a number of instances, all three deep metagenomes displayed similar trends, but were most magnified in the PRT, including enrichment in functions for two-component signal transduction mechanisms and transcriptional regulation. Overrepresented transporters in the PRT metagenome included outer membrane porins, diverse cation transporters, and di- and tri-carboxylate transporters that matched well with the prevailing catabolic processes such as butanoate, glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism. A surprisingly high abundance of sulfatases for the degradation of sulfated polysaccharides were also present in the PRT. The most dramatic adaptational feature of the PRT microbes appears to be heavy metal resistance, as reflected in the large numbers of transporters present for their removal. As a complement to the metagenome approach, single-cell genomic techniques were utilized to generate partial whole-genome sequence data from four uncultivated cells from members of the dominant phyla within the PRT, Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Planctomycetes. The single-cell sequence data provided genomic context for many of the highly abundant functional attributes identified from the PRT metagenome, as well as recruiting heavily the PRT metagenomic sequence data compared to 172 available reference marine genomes. Through these multifaceted sequence approaches, new insights have been provided into the unique functional attributes present in microbes residing in a deeper layer of the ocean far removed from the more productive sun-drenched zones above

Aufklärung der Mechanismen und Entwicklung von therapeutischen Konzepten zur Verbesserung der Wundheilung mit nicht-invasiven physikalische Therapieansätzen

Zusammenfassung in deutscher SpracheAbweichender Titel nach Übersetzung der Verfasserin/des VerfassersKumulative Dissertation aus drei Artikeln1-2 % of all people suffer from chronic wounds once in a lifetime. Advanced age, chronic underlying diseases (e.g. diabetes mellitus, vascular diseases) and factors such as restricted mobility and infections are the most common causes of a disrupted healing process. The rapidly increasing number of antibiotic resistances and the associated lack of effective treatment strategies further aggravate the problem.Biophysical therapeutic methods have gained popularity and trust in the past decades through numerous positive reports from preclinical and clinical studies. Enabling a combination of promoting wound healing and fighting infections, phototherapy plays a special role within this field. By irradiation with light, especially in the red and infrared range, photobiomodulation (PBM) stimulates many molecular mechanisms, which in turn stimulate processes relevant to wound healing, such as cell proliferation, cell migration and vascularization. However, by activating photoactive substances, so-called photosensitizers, light can also have a destructive effect on cells. Therefore, in addition to its use in tumor treatment, antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) is more and more used for the fight against infections.The first part of this work deals with the effects and the underlying mechanisms of PBM on wound-relevant cell lines, challenged by hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) and nutrient deprivation to simulate a wound environment. It was demonstrated that 10 min of pulsed red LED (light-emitting diode) light irradiation significantly increased the proliferation of fibroblasts and myoblasts. The effects were associated with elevated oxygen flux, ATP (adenosine triphosphate) levels and ROS (reactive oxygen species) concentrations.To be able to test alternative therapeutic options for fighting infection under conditions as realistic as possible, the second part of this thesis was dedicated to the development of an infection wound model in mice that reflects the wound situation of immunocompromised patients. The precise dosing of immunosuppressant and polymicrobial, fecal suspension led to an established wound infection and wound healing was significantly impaired. The wounds were analyzed by the measurement of wound size, microbiological swabs and grading on a developed wound score scale.The third part of this work focused on the extensive testing of aPDT. In vitro, bacteria were treated in suspension culture and in more wound-relevant assays on agar surface and in fibrin matrix. In a subsequent in vivo study, the prior established infection wound9model was used to test the effect of aPDT. In vitro, a strong dependency of aPDT on the treatment environment was shown and partially caused a markedly diminished efficacy. In vivo, a two-times application of aPDT showed significantly improved and faster wound healing compared to the untreated, infected wounds, graded by both, quantitative wound size and qualitative parameters based on clinical observation of wound parameters.In summary, phototherapy and especially the use of red LED light showed a high potential in the stimulation of wound healing and in infection control. These results contribute to further knowledge important for the advancement of treatment protocols to reach the highest benefit for affected patients in the future.10

Creating a leader : the visual representation of leadership in civil rights protests

In dieser Arbeit wurden Bilder und einzelne Szenen von Protesten der Graphic Novels March I und March II von John Lewis, Andrew Aydin und Nate Powell sowie Stuck Rubber Baby von Howard Cruse hinsichtlich ihrer visuellen Darstellung von Führungspersonen innerhalb des Civil Rights Movements analysiert. Für die Analyse wurde eine Kombination aus semiologischen Ansätzen und der Filmanalyse angewendet, um herauszufinden, ob einzelne führende Figuren die Massen der Bewegung überschatten und weshalb diese Figuren überhaupt als führend angesehen werden. Des Weiteren wurden mögliche Methoden, welche bestimmte Elemente oder Charaktere hervorheben, sowie die Beziehung zwischen Führungspersonen und den Menschenmengen berücksichtigt.Die Bilder und Sequenzen wurden hinsichtlich fünf Kategorien analysiert und der Hauptfokus lag auf den Graphic Novels von Lewis et al. Stuck Rubber Baby wurde als Bezugspunkt und Vergleich verwendet, um die verschiedenen Möglichkeiten der Repräsentation dieses Themas aufzuzeigen. Weitere wichtige Punkte der Analyse waren, die autobiografischen Aspekte der Werke zu berücksichtigen sowie einen kurzen Überblick über den historischen Kontext, in welchem die Geschichten eingebettet sind, zu bieten.Die Analyse zeigte auf, dass die untersuchten Graphic Novels Techniken und Methoden teilen, die ein Element oder einen Charakter als den wichtigsten und auffallendsten einer Darstellung determinieren. Dennoch behandeln die analysierten Werke das Thema Führung auf unterschiedliche Art und Weise. Während die March Reihe vorwiegend auf ein paar wenige führende Charaktere fokussiert ist, dabei die Massen vernachlässigt und dadurch den Eindruck vermittelt, dass die Menschenmengen weniger wichtig seien, zelebriert Stuck Rubber Baby viel eher die Macht der Massen und der Gemeinschaft als führende Kraft.In this thesis, I have conducted an analysis of several images from the graphic novels March I and March II by John Lewis et al as well as Stuck Rubber Baby by Howard Cruse in order to examine the visual representation of leadership in the protest scenes of these books. A combination of semiological approaches and film analysis was used to find out whether there are any individual leading figures overshadowing the masses of the movement and, if so, in which way the depiction of these central figures makes the audience perceive them as leaders. Furthermore, any key features and possible recurring techniques of putting emphasis on certain elements or characters as well as the relation of the leading figures to the masses of people were taken into account.The images and sequences were analysed according to five categories and the main focus lies on the graphic novels by Lewis et al. Stuck Rubber Baby was used as a point of reference and comparison in order to illustrate the various possibilities of perspectives with regard to this topic. Taking into account the autobiographical aspects of these graphic novels and the issues that may come up thereby were of significant importance in my analysis. Furthermore, this thesis includes a short overview of the historical context in which the stories are embedded. The analysis revealed that there are techniques that can be found in all of the graphic novels and that determine one element or character of an image as the most significant or most prominent one. However, the analysed graphic novels deal with the topic of leadership in a rather different way. While the March series mostly focuses on a few leading characters and neglects the masses and, thus, transmits a feeling of insignificance with regard to the crowd, Stuck Rubber Baby celebrates the power of the masses and community rather than leadership as a driving force.vorgelegt von Lisa KarnerZusammenfassung in Deutsch und EnglischKarl-Franzens-Universität Graz, Diplomarbeit, 2019(VLID)367448

Successful Strategies for Serving Diverse Populations

Unique insights of key delivery staff and successful delivery strategies used to overcome cultural barriers were obtained through intensive interviews with fifty staff members. Participants in the study were identified as knowledgeable staff members by project coordinators. An open-ended qualitative methodology was used to interview staff members about barriers they faced in delivering services to new populations and strategies that were used to address these barriers. Fifty interviews were completed. Of those, forty-two interviewees were frontline staff members and eight were hands-on administrators. Fifteen of these staff members worked in programs that were targeted to urban dwelling Latino families and ten served urban African-Americans. Of the twenty-five staff members who worked in programs targeted to rural populations, eight worked to provide respite to African-American families while four served rural Latinos. The remaining thirteen interviewees served rural families of all ethnic groups. Interviews were tape recorded for accuracy and later transcribed. Emergent themes include: successful vs. unsuccessful service efforts, diversity of caregivers within ethnic groups, staff members\u27 perceptions of their clients, staffing patterns, cultural views of Alzheimer\u27s disease, service use in general, and government assistance. Concrete examples from staff members\u27 experiences are used to illustrate these themes

Resistance of Bacteria toward 475 nm Blue Light Exposure and the Possible Role of the SOS Response

The increase in antibiotic resistance represents a major global challenge for our health systems and calls for alternative treatment options, such as antimicrobial light-based therapies. Blue light has shown promising results regarding the inactivation of a variety of microorganisms; however, most often, antimicrobial blue light (aBL) therapy is performed using wavelengths close to the UV range. Here we investigated whether inactivation was possible using blue light with a wavelength of 475 nm. Both Gram-positive and -negative bacterial strains were treated with blue light with fluences of 7.5–45 J/cm2. Interestingly, only some bacterial strains were susceptible to 475 nm blue light, which was associated with the lack of RecA, i.e., a fully functional DNA repair mechanism. We demonstrated that the insertion of the gene recA reduced the susceptibility of otherwise responsive bacterial strains, indicating a protective mechanism conveyed by the bacterial SOS response. However, mitigating this pathway via three known RecA inhibiting molecules (ZnAc, curcumin, and Fe(III)-PcTs) did not result in an increase in bactericidal action. Nonetheless, creating synergistic effects by combining a multitarget therapy, such as aBL, with an RecA targeting treatment could be a promising strategy to overcome the dilemma of antibiotic resistance in the future