Evaluating the effectiveness of KooLKIDS : an interactive social emotional learning program for Australian primary school children

The effectiveness of universal social emotional learning (SEL) programs are dependent on the incorporation of best practice principles, including an evaluative component. In the present study, the effects of a best practice, teacher-led SEL program was examined with 854 children aged 8–12 years. KooLKIDS uses an interactive multimedia format and animated character to help children develop their emotion regulation capacities, social and friendship skills, empathy and compassion for others, and self-esteem. A quasi-experimental waitlist-control design was used to examine the impact of KooLKIDS on social and emotional competence, behavioral and emotional problems, academic achievement and effort. Hierarchical linear modeling demonstrated significant increases in social and emotional competence, and reductions in internalizing and externalizing problems in children post KooLKIDS program in the intervention group. The findings suggest that KooLKIDS has strong potential as a teacher-led, classroom-based, structured program for enhancing children's social and emotional learning

A theoretical model of inflammation- and mechanotransduction- driven asthmatic airway remodelling

Inflammation, airway hyper-responsiveness and airway remodelling are well-established hallmarks of asthma, but their inter-relationships remain elusive. In order to obtain a better understanding of their inter-dependence, we develop a mechanochemical morphoelastic model of the airway wall accounting for local volume changes in airway smooth muscle (ASM) and extracellular matrix in response to transient inflammatory or contractile agonist challenges. We use constrained mixture theory, together with a multiplicative decomposition of growth from the elastic deformation, to model the airway wall as a nonlinear fibre-reinforced elastic cylinder. Local contractile agonist drives ASM cell contraction, generating mechanical stresses in the tissue that drive further release of mitogenic mediators and contractile agonists via underlying mechanotransductive signalling pathways. Our model predictions are consistent with previously described inflammation-induced remodelling within an axisymmetric airway geometry. Additionally, our simulations reveal novel mechanotransductive feedback by which hyper-responsive airways exhibit increased remodelling, for example, via stress-induced release of pro-mitogenic and procontractile cytokines. Simulation results also reveal emergence of a persistent contractile tone observed in asthmatics, via either a pathological mechanotransductive feedback loop, a failure to clear agonists from the tissue, or a combination of both. Furthermore, we identify various parameter combinations that may contribute to the existence of different asthma phenotypes, and we illustrate a combination of factors which may predispose severe asthmatics to fatal bronchospasms

Pleural pressure from abdominal to pulmonary rib cage: sweep of the lung border

Pleural pressure was measured by a capsule placed in the superior part of right 8th or 9th intercostal space of dogs in left lateral posture. Transit of lung border was observed through endothoracic fascia at sides of the capsule. During inspiration the capsule membrane faced sequentially: diaphragm, lung border, lung; vice versa during expiration. Pressure on the diaphragm at end expiration was -5.3 +/- 0.5 cm H2O, reflecting outward recoil of the rib cage. At transit of lung border during inspiration (bor. I) a marked negative pressure spike occurred; a smaller spike occurred at expiratory transit (bor. E). These spikes should reflect pleural liquid pressure at lung border. At bor. I lung volume and radial displacement of rib 9 or 10 were greater during active than passive ventilation, whereas at bor. E they were similar under both conditions. Hence, during spontaneous inspiration displacement of lung border lags behind lung and rib expansion. Speed of lung border (assessed from duration of negative spike) ranged from 0.8 to 2.3 cm/sec during spontaneous breathing. On average it was similar at bor. I and bor. E, while air flow was greater at bor. I