Control of Keratinocyte Division In Vitro

Aqueous extracts of newborn rat epidermis inhibit mitosis of cultivated keratinocytes obtained from guinea pigs and humans. The mitotic activity of cultivated human keratinocytes and fibroblasts obtained from the uninvolved skin of subjects with psoriasis is similar to the mitotic activity of these cells obtained from involved psoriatic skin. This observation is consistent with the model of repression of mitotic activity in normal skin and a derepression of mitotic activity in psoriatic epidermis. Extracts of liver also inhibit mitosis of guinea pig keratinocytes. Cultivated keratinocytes do not exhibit the same specificity of inhibition by epidermal extracts that has been reported for surviving fragments of mouse ear

Effort testing in dementia assessment: a systematic review

Objective: Interpretation of neuropsychological test data is only valid when appropriate effort has been exerted. Research, however, suggests that neuropsychologists do not always formally test for effort and that this may especially be the case in the context of dementia assessment. This review systematically examined the literature that has investigated the use of both purpose-built and embedded effort-sensitive indices in dementia, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and healthy control samples. The aim was to determine which tests of effort are most sensitive to suboptimal effort and least sensitive to the type of cognitive impairment seen in dementia. Methods: A systematic search of databases was conducted to October 2017. There was no start date. Results: Twenty-five studies were included for review. The studies were divided into two categories according to methodology. One category of studies (n = 5) was reviewed using a tailored methodological quality rating checklist whilst the remaining studies (n = 20) were reviewed using the Crowe Critical Appraisal Tool (CCAT). Conclusions: The results of this review suggest that PVTs which take a hierarchical approach to effort testing such as the WMT, MSVT, and NV-MSVT are preferable for use with older adults who are under investigation for possible dementia. These tests go above and beyond the traditional pass/fail approach of more traditional tests of effort because they allow the examiner to analyze the examinee’s profile of scores. The methodological limitations and challenges involved in this field of research are discussed

Teachers’ Social Media Use and Its Legal Implications

As society becomes increasingly dependent on technology, school leaders must navigate the evolution of websites, resources, and platforms, including social media, as part of their responsibility to facilitate a safe and productive learning environment for students. This article reviews both constitutional and case law as a means of informing educational leaders of their rights and duties, as well as providing a foundation upon which effective K-12 social media policies and practices for educators can be built. Specifically, we offer an analysis of landmark cases involving the First Amendment and free speech, the delicacy around teachers’s roles as both public employees and private citizens, and recent court cases involving social media use. Additionally, we propose guidelines around social media use, compiled from both practitioners in the field and relevant literature

Elevating Joy In Education Through An Investigation Of How Teachers And School Leaders Make Learning Joyful

Joy in education is an underexplored construct that could serve as the key ingredient to cultivate positive learning environments and inspire innovation. The purpose of this study was to determine how joy might flow to students and what teacher efforts, instructional decisions, and administrative supports might influence the level of joy in the classroom. The central research question was, how do schools and teachers foster joy in their students? This research was explored from a strengths-based, positive perspective with theoretical foundations in organizational flourishing and positive psychology. This study used a survey research design with a school district that was in the midst of a multi-year initiative on joy. Survey data were collected from 178 elementary school teachers from 21 schools about the perceived level of joy in their classrooms and schools, their levels of joy, teacher efforts, instructional decisions, and administrative supports received. The results showed that the perceived level of joy in the classroom correlated most strongly with the teacher’s level of joy, with a variety of teacher efforts and instructional decisions that correlate positively with perceived joy in the classroom. The strongest administrative support for the teacher’s joy was supporting teachers’ self-care. Instructional decisions to allow students to collaborate and offer opportunities for an in-depth exploration of the content contributed independently to the prediction of the classroom’s perceived level of joy. This study serves as an invitation to educators to experiment with a variety of strategies to find what makes learning a joyful endeavor in their classrooms

Effect of water, sanitation, and hygiene on the prevention of trachoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Trachoma is the world's leading cause of infectious blindness. The World Health Organization (WHO) has endorsed the SAFE strategy in order to eliminate blindness due to trachoma by 2020 through "surgery," "antibiotics," "facial cleanliness," and "environmental improvement." While the S and A components have been widely implemented, evidence and specific targets are lacking for the F and E components, of which water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) are critical elements. Data on the impact of WASH on trachoma are needed to support policy and program recommendations. Our objective was to systematically review the literature and conduct meta-analyses where possible to report the effects of WASH conditions on trachoma and identify research gaps. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, MedCarib, Lilacs, REPIDISCA, DESASTRES, and African Index Medicus databases through October 27, 2013 with no restrictions on language or year of publication. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they reported a measure of the effect of WASH on trachoma, either active disease indicated by observed signs of trachomatous inflammation or Chlamydia trachomatis infection diagnosed using PCR. We identified 86 studies that reported a measure of the effect of WASH on trachoma. To evaluate study quality, we developed a set of criteria derived from the GRADE methodology. Publication bias was assessed using funnel plots. If three or more studies reported measures of effect for a comparable WASH exposure and trachoma outcome, we conducted a random-effects meta-analysis. We conducted 15 meta-analyses for specific exposure-outcome pairs. Access to sanitation was associated with lower trachoma as measured by the presence of trachomatous inflammation-follicular or trachomatous inflammation-intense (TF/TI) (odds ratio [OR] 0.85, 95% CI 0.75-0.95) and C. trachomatis infection (OR 0.67, 95% CI 0.55-0.78). Having a clean face was significantly associated with reduced odds of TF/TI (OR 0.42, 95% CI 0.32-0.52), as were facial cleanliness indicators lack of ocular discharge (OR 0.42, 95% CI 0.23-0.61) and lack of nasal discharge (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.52-0.72). Facial cleanliness indicators were also associated with reduced odds of C. trachomatis infection: lack of ocular discharge (OR 0.40, 95% CI 0.31-0.49) and lack of nasal discharge (OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.37-0.76). Other hygiene factors found to be significantly associated with reduced TF/TI included face washing at least once daily (OR 0.76, 95% CI 0.57-0.96), face washing at least twice daily (OR 0.85, 95% CI 0.80-0.90), soap use (OR 0.76, 95% CI 0.59-0.93), towel use (OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.53-0.78), and daily bathing practices (OR 0.76, 95% CI 0.53-0.99). Living within 1 km of a water source was not found to be significantly associated with TF/TI or C. trachomatis infection, and the use of sanitation facilities was not found to be significantly associated with TF/TI. CONCLUSIONS: We found strong evidence to support F and E components of the SAFE strategy. Though limitations included moderate to high heterogenity, low study quality, and the lack of standard definitions, these findings support the importance of WASH in trachoma elimination strategies and the need for the development of standardized approaches to measuring WASH in trachoma control programs

Pediatric Cancer Genetics Research and an Evolving Preventive Ethics Approach for Return of Results after Death of the Subject

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/115941/1/jlme12295.pd

Free Your Mind-Unlock Your Inner Creativity

Creativity is a major factor in many careers, subjects, and disciplines. Although many people first assume engineering to be a field of study that does not require any creativity, it is actually an essential tool for successful engineers. The mark of a truly accomplished engineer is the ability to problem-solve effectively; in other words, to generate creative solutions. Although the goal as engineers is to become more creative throughout one’s career, is it even possible to gain creativity? Is creativity an innate quality, or a learned one? Since the engineering process demands creativity, we looked into how creativity can be improved, and how exactly it is used in the engineering design process. We surveyed engineering freshman students to determine how they view themselves and how important they think creativity is in relation to engineering. We then conducted research to see what creativity means to different people, how one can improve creativity according to various theories, and how creative processes have been used in past engineering projects. We presented this information to all sections of a second-semester engineering freshman course and surveyed the students at the beginning and end of the lecture to see how their views changed. We evaluated this data to discover if students perceive creativity as learned or innate and how it affects their idea on engineering. The students showed an improvement in awareness of the importance of creativity in engineering and how often it is used. Many did not change their opinion of themselves with regard to creativity but some actually ranked themselves lower after the presentation, presumably because they realized the extent of how creative some people are, especially in regard to engineering. The other data we analyzed was student responses to short questions. We asked students what qualities they associate with creative people and the most commonly used words were “thinks outside of the box,” “innovative,” “confident,” and “open minded.” We also asked what the best techniques for improving creativity within a group are. The most common answers were “different backgrounds,” “different ideas,” “being comfortable,” and “diversity.” These answers mirrored the overall message we attempted to portray throughout our presentation to a fair degree

Introducing GLUSEEN: A New Open Access and Experimental Network in Urban Soil Ecology

Peer reviewe

Evaluation of a peer coach-led intervention to improve pain symptoms (ECLIPSE): Rationale, study design, methods, and sample characteristics

Chronic pain is prevalent, costly, and a leading cause of disability. Pain self-management (i.e., employing self-management strategies including behavioral modifications) is an effective, evidence-based treatment. However, implementation and delivery of a pain self-management model is challenging because of time and resources. Peer supported pain self-management offers a promising approach to implementing pain self-management programs using fewer clinical resources. Evaluation of a Peer Coach-Led Intervention for the Improvement of Pain Symptoms (ECLIPSE) is a randomized controlled trial testing effectiveness of peer coach-delivered pain self-management intervention versus controls receiving a class on pain and pain self-management. ECLIPSE is a Hybrid Type 1 study testing effectiveness while examining implementation factors. ECLIPSE enrolled 215 veterans randomly assigned to the peer coaching (N = 120) or control (N = 95) arm. The peer coaching intervention lasts 6 months, with patient-peer coach pairs instructed to talk twice per month. Coaches attend initial training, are provided a detailed training manual, and attend monthly booster sessions. Outcomes are assessed at baseline, 6 months, and 9 months. The primary outcome is overall pain (intensity and interference), measured by the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI). Secondary outcomes are self-efficacy, social support, pain catastrophizing, patient activation, health-related quality of life, and health care utilization. To maximize implementation potential of pain self-management, innovative delivery methods are needed that do not require additional resources from healthcare teams. A novel and promising approach is a peer-coaching model, in which patients who are successfully managing their pain offer information, ongoing support, and advice to other patients with pain