Social Capital: A Key Ingredient in the Development of Physical Activity Leadership

Purpose: This research investigated how social capital relates to physical education (PE) teachers’ abilities to facilitate physical activity (PA) outside of PE class in their schools. Methods: Twenty-seven elementary PE teachers were interviewed. Data were analyzed using a multistep qualitative coding process ending in a cross-case analysis. Results: Among the three components of social capital (trustworthiness, norms, and information networks), positive norms around PE, and more broadly, PA, were most important for creating a physically active culture in schools. Trustworthiness was important, but less so than positive norms, and information networks were relatively unimportant for creating a culture of PA. Time was a limiting factor, because without it, PE teachers could not develop the social capital needed to promote PA. Conclusions: Becoming a PA leader is not just a function of will and motivation; rather, PE teachers must be supported with time and positive norms around PE and PA, which requires engagement of district and school leaders

The Effect of Hypervigilance on the Relationship Between Sexual Victimization and Gait

Two studies investigated the relationship between hypervigilance, vulnerable gait cues, and a history of sexual victimization. In Study 1 (N = 130), gait was coded for traits relating to vulnerability where half of the sample was unaware of being videotaped (Unaware condition) and the other half was aware (Aware condition) to induce hypervigilance (between-subjects design). Gait was associated with a history of victimization, but only in the Unaware condition. A mediation analysis found that perceived impact of victimization mediated the association between victimization and vulnerable gait. In Study 2, female university students (N = 62) were measured on their victimization history and hypervigilance. Walking styles of participants were coded for the presence of vulnerability cues in both an Unaware and Aware condition (within-subjects design). A regression analysis revealed an association between hypervigilance and a reduced change in walking style between the two conditions. More notably, hypervigilance was found to moderate the relationship between sexual victimization and vulnerable gait but not violent victimization and vulnerable gait. These results suggest that hypervigilance may be an adaptive response that reduces perceived vulnerability in sexually victimized women

Supplementary Material for: Apparent Diffusion Coefficient Signal Intensity Ratio Predicts the Effect of Revascularization on Ischemic Cerebral Edema

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) imaging is a biomarker of cytotoxic injury that predicts edema formation and outcome after ischemic stroke. It therefore has the potential to serve as a “tissue clock” to describe the extent of ischemic injury and potentially predict response to therapy. The goal of this study was to determine the relationship between baseline ADC signal intensity, revascularization, and edema formation. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We examined the ADC signal intensity ratio (ADCr) of the stroke lesion (defined as the baseline DWI hyperintense region) compared to the contralateral normal hemisphere in 65 subjects from the Mechanical Retrieval and Recanalization of Stroke Clots Using Embolectomy trial. The associations between ADCr, neurologic outcome, and cerebral edema were examined. Finally, we explored the interaction between baseline ADCr and vessel recanalization at day 7 on post-stroke edema. <b><i>Results:</i></b> We found that lower initial ADCr was associated with a worse outcome on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) at 90 days (52.2% of those with ADCr <64% were mRS 5–6 vs. 19.1% with ADCr ≥64%, <i>p =</i> 0.006). Those subjects with reconstitution of flow distal to the initial vessel occlusion showed greater normalization of ADCr on follow-up scan (increase in ADCr of 16.4 ± 2.07 vs. 1.99 ± 4.33%, <i>p =</i> 0.0039). In those patients with low baseline ADCr, successful revascularization was associated with reduced edema (median swelling volume 164 mL [interquartile range (IQR) 53.3–190 mL] vs. 20.7 mL [IQR 3.20–55.1 mL], <i>p =</i> 0.024). <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> This study reaffirms the association of ADCr with outcome after stroke, supports the idea that reperfusion may attenuate rather than enhance post-stroke edema, and indicates that the degree of edema with and without revascularization may be predicted by ADCr

Identification of proliferating cells in chicken embryos using 5-bromo- 2'-deoxyuridine immunohistochemical detection

Chicken embryos were incubated with BrdU, embedded in plastic resin, sectioned and screened immunohistochemically to identify proliferating cells in the neural tube and somites. Fixation in 4% paraformaldehyde for 1 h was essential for detecting specific colorimetric signals of BrdU incorporation into cells during the S phase of the cell cycle. Transverse sections of the neural tube showed that the nuclei of proliferating cells (BrdU positive) had a uniform and centralized distribution, whereas unstained nuclei were found only along the extremities of the neural tube. Transverse sections of differentiated somites showed proliferating cells in the scleratome and dermatome. However, no incorporation of BrdU was observed in myotomic cells, which give rise to axial skeletal muscle. In spite of their proximity, the dermatome and myotome showed marked differences in cell proliferation. The excellent preservation of morphological characteristics in the embryonic tissues facilitated identification of variations in BrdU incorporation.<br>Embriões de frango foram incubados na presença de BrdU e montados em resina plástica. A detecção de células em proliferação nos somitos e tubo neural foi feita através de anticorpos contra BrdU. Um ponto essencial para a otimização do método foi a fixação dos embriões por apenas uma hora em paraformaldeído a 4%. Análise de cortes transversais revelou que no tubo neural os núcleos marcados se posicionavam na região central. Cortes transversais em somitos diferenciados revelaram a presença de células em proliferação no dermátomo e esclerótomo, no entanto não foi observado nenhum sinal no miótomo. A metodologia aqui apresentada permitiu identificar com clareza e boa resolução as células em proliferação presentes em tecidos embrionários

Corporate communication in the management of innovation and change

Organizations seek to innovate in order to improve their effectiveness. There is, however, some confusion about what the concept of innovation actually refers to and what is involved in the process of innovation. Attempts to clarify the meaning and nature of organizational innovation and examines a number of key communication factors which innovators should take into account

Association of a functional variant downstream of TNFAIP3 with systemic lupus erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, MIM152700) is an autoimmune disease characterized by self-reactive antibodies resulting in systemic inflammation and organ failure. TNFAIP3, encoding the ubiquitin-modifying enzyme A20, is an established susceptibility locus for SLE. By fine mapping and genomic re-sequencing in ethnically diverse populations, we fully characterized the TNFAIP3 risk haplotype and identified a TT and gt;A polymorphic dinucleotide (deletion T followed by a T to A transversion) associated with SLE in subjects of European (P = 1.58 × 10-8, odds ratio = 1.70) and Korean (P = 8.33 × 10-10, odds ratio = 2.54) ancestry. This variant, located in a region of high conservation and regulatory potential, bound a nuclear protein complex composed of NF-?B subunits with reduced avidity. Further, compared with the non-risk haplotype, the haplotype carrying this variant resulted in reduced TNFAIP3 mRNA and A20 protein expression. These results establish this TT and gt;A variant as the most likely functional polymorphism responsible for the association between TNFAIP3 and SLE. © 2011 Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved