Interprofessional Peer Teaching: Assistive Device Training and Medications Impacting Safe Ambulation

ABSTRACT Purpose: An interprofessional peer teaching activity was designed and implemented to provide students with an opportunity to practice interprofessional education collaborative (IPEC) competencies while improving student knowledge of assistive devices for gait and medications impacting safe ambulation. Method: During the activity, second year physical therapy students instructed third year pharmacy students in the accurate fit and counseling for use of canes, crutches, and walkers. Pharmacy students then demonstrated these skills and were checked off on their ability to accurately fit and instruct consumers on basic gait patterns. The pharmacy students in turn educated the physical therapy students about medications that impact safe ambulation and gait training. The activity was designed to meet the interprofessional competencies of roles and responsibilities, interprofessional communication, teams and teamwork, in addition to specific course objectives. Students completed a 15-item pre- and post-knowledge assessment and a perceptions survey to evaluate the effectiveness of the peer teaching activity. Results: Significant improvements in knowledge and performance were demonstrated following participation in the activity, and students reported positive perceptions of the activity and its impact on their learning about assistive devices and medications reviewed during the session. Our results indicate that physical therapy and pharmacy students can effectively teach each other and learn about assistive devices and medications impacting safe ambulation through an interprofessional peer teaching activity. Conclusion: Peer teaching across disciplines can help prepare students to communicate and collaborate with other healthcare providers

Limited sex-biased neural gene expression patterns across strains in zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Background: Male and female vertebrates typically differ in a range of characteristics, from morphology to physiology to behavior, which are influenced by factors such as the social environment and the internal hormonal and genetic milieu. However, sex differences in gene expression profiles in the brains of vertebrates are only beginning to be understood. Fishes provide a unique complement to studies of sex differences in mammals and birds given that fish show extreme plasticity and lability of sexually dimorphic characters and behaviors during development and even adulthood. Hence, teleost models can give additional insight into sexual differentiation. The goal of this study is to identify neurotranscriptomic mechanisms for sex differences in the brain. Results: In this study we examined whole-brain sex-biased gene expression through RNA-sequencing across four strains of zebrafish. We subsequently conducted systems level analyses by examining gene network dynamics between the sexes using weighted gene coexpression network analysis. Surprisingly, only 61 genes (approximately 0.4% of genes analyzed) showed a significant sex effect across all four strains, and 48 of these differences were male-biased. Several of these genes are associated with steroid hormone biosynthesis. Despite sex differences in a display of stress-related behaviors, basal transcript levels did not predict the intensity of the behavioral display. WGCNA revealed only one module that was significantly associated with sex. Intriguingly, comparing intermodule dynamics between the sexes revealed only moderate preservation. Further we identify sex-specific gene modules. Conclusions: Despite differences in morphology, physiology, and behavior, there is limited sex-biased neural gene expression in zebrafish. Further, genes found to be sex-biased are associated with hormone biosynthesis, suggesting that sex steroid hormones may be key contributors to sexual behavioral plasticity seen in teleosts. A possible mechanism is through regulating specific brain gene networks

Mule Deer Management in Southeastern Montana

In 1982, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region 7 implemented a five week regionwide general license either-sex plus additional antlerless B license harvest structure for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus).   This harvest strategy implemented three important changes from previous years. First, the regionwide harvest structure eliminated the use of small hunting districts and allows the law of diminishing returns to operate: hunters tend to avoid areas with low deer numbers and focus on areas with higher densities.  Second, general licenses were made either-sex, rather than antlered-only for mule deer.  Third, following natural population declines (e.g., due to severe natural stressors), biologists began increasing antlerless quotas soon after populations began to recover, rather than waiting until populations were at or above long-term averages.  This management system has maximized opportunity and flexibility for hunters while simplifying regulations and enforcement.  In the 30-plus years since implementation, Region 7 has seen a reduction in game damage complaints, and an increase in buck-to-doe ratios.  Mule deer populations and harvest have been stable long-term, and population fluctuations have decreased in magnitude.  This harvest strategy has produced similar results in both Region 7 as a whole (75% private lands) and on the Custer National Forest, a 436,000-ac block of public land

Subdomain Location of Mutations in Cardiac Actin Correlate with Type of Functional Change

Determining the molecular mechanisms that lead to the development of heart failure will help us gain better insight into the most costly health problem in the Western world. To understand the roles that the actin protein plays in the development of heart failure, we have taken a systematic approach toward characterizing human cardiac actin mutants that have been associated with either hypertrophic or dilated cardiomyopathy. Seven known cardiac actin mutants were expressed in a baculovirus system, and their intrinsic properties were studied. In general, the changes to the properties of the actin proteins themselves were subtle. The R312H variant exhibited reduced stability, with a Tm of 53.6°C compared to 56.8°C for WT actin, accompanied with increased polymerization critical concentration and Pi release rate, and a marked increase in nucleotide release rates. Substitution of methionine for leucine at amino acid 305 showed no impact on the stability, nucleotide release rates, or DNase-I inhibition ability of the actin monomer; however, during polymerization, a 2-fold increase in Pi release was observed. Increases to both the Tm and DNase-I inhibition activity suggested interactions between E99K actin molecules under monomer-promoting conditions. Y166C actin had a higher critical concentration resulting in a lower Pi release rate due to reduced filament-forming potential. The locations of mutations on the ACTC protein correlated with the molecular effects; in general, mutations in subdomain 3 affected the stability of the ACTC protein or affect the polymerization of actin filaments, while mutations in subdomains 1 and 4 more likely affect protein-protein interactions

Everolimus Exposure as a Predictor of Toxicity in Renal Cell Cancer Patients in the Adjuvant Setting: Results of a Pharmacokinetic Analysis for SWOG S0931 (EVEREST), a Phase III Study (NCT01120249).

BackgroundS0931 is assessing recurrence-free survival in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients randomized to receive everolimus (EVE) versus placebo for one year following nephrectomy. Due to a higher than expected dropout rate, we assessed EVE trough levels in the adjuvant setting to evaluate the relationship between EVE exposure and probability of toxicity.MethodsPatients received 10 mg daily EVE for nine 6-week cycles. Pre-dose whole blood samples were collected pre-cycle 2 and pre-cycle 3 and analyzed for EVE. Patients with pre-cycle 2 and/or pre-cycle 3 EVE results were used in the analysis. Patients were segregated into quartiles (Q) based on EVE levels and logistic regression was used to model the most common adverse event outcomes using EVE trough as a predictor. Hazard and odds ratios were adjusted for age, BMI and performance status.ResultsA total of 467 patients were included in this analysis. Quartiles normalized to an EVE dose of 10 mg/day were < 9.0, 9.0-12.9, 12.9-22.8, and > 22.8 ng/mL, respectively. EVE trough levels increased with increasing age (p < 0.001). Furthermore, EVE trough levels were higher in men than women (19.4 versus 15.4 ng/mL, p = 0.01). Risk of grade 2 + triglycerides was increased in Q2 and Q3 vs Q1 (OR = 2.08; p = 0.02 and OR = 2.63; p = 0.002). Risk of grade 2 + rash was increased in Q2 and Q4 vs Q1 (OR = 2.99; p = 0.01 and OR = 2.90; p = 0.02). There was also an increased risk of any grade 3 + tox in Q2 vs Q1 (OR = 1.71; p = 0.05).ConclusionsWe identified significant gender and age-related differences in EVE trough levels in patients receiving adjuvant treatment for RCC. Furthermore, our analysis identified significant associations between EVE exposure and probability of toxicity

Psychometric properties of leadership scales for health professionals : a systematic review

Background: The important role of leaders in the translation of health research is acknowledged in the implementation science literature. However, the accurate measurement of leadership traits and behaviours in health professionals has not been directly addressed. This review aimed to identify whether scales which measure leadership traits and behaviours have been found to be reliable and valid for use with health professionals. Methods: A systematic review was conducted. MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane, CINAHL, Scopus, ABI/ INFORMIT and Business Source Ultimate were searched to identify publications which reported original research testing the reliability, validity or acceptability of a leadership-related scale with health professionals. Results: Of 2814 records, a total of 39 studies met the inclusion criteria, from which 33 scales were identified as having undergone some form of psychometric testing with health professionals. The most commonly used was the Implementation Leadership Scale (n = 5) and the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (n = 3). Of the 33 scales, the majority of scales were validated in English speaking countries including the USA (n = 15) and Canada (n = 4), but also with some translations and use in Europe and Asia, predominantly with samples of nurses (n = 27) or allied health professionals (n = 10). Only two validation studies included physicians. Content validity and internal consistency were evident for most scales (n = 30 and 29, respectively). Only 20 of the 33 scales were found to satisfy the acceptable thresholds for good construct validity. Very limited testing occurred in relation to test-re-test reliability, responsiveness, acceptability, cross-cultural revalidation, convergent validity, discriminant validity and criterion validity. Conclusions: Seven scales may be sufficiently sound to be used with professionals, primarily with nurses. There is an absence of validation of leadership scales with regard to physicians. Given that physicians, along with nurses and allied health professionals have a leadership role in driving the implementation of evidence-based healthcare, this constitutes a clear gap in the psychometric testing of leadership scales for use in healthcare implementation research and practice

2020 State of Open at the University of Colorado Boulder: An Update on Open Access Practices Based on Data from 2019

Using data from 2019, this report is the second annual update to the &ldquo;State of Open at the University of Colorado Boulder: A Baseline Analysis of Open Access Practices from 2012 to 2018&rdquo;: ​https://doi.org/10.25810/vprn-v113​. It includes analyses of open access (OA) journal publishing, OA repository usage, and open data practices by researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder). Data used to produce this report can be found here: ​https://doi.org/10.25810/p5fa-y621​. Key findings from this report include: 9.95% of all articles published in 2019 by CU Boulder authors were published in full OA journals, which is up slightly from 9.63% in 2018; In 2019, the CU Boulder Libraries OA Fund funded author fees totalling $100,588.42 for 65 journal articles published by CU Boulder authors in full OA journals (up from$91,041.36 for 57 articles in 2018); As of January 2020, there were 11,426 OA items in the CU Scholar institutional repository (up from 10,638 at the time of the previous report), and these items were downloaded a total of 760,400 times in 2019 (up from 625,325 in 2018); In the annual Faculty Report of Professional Activities (FRPA), faculty reported 65 published data sets in 2019 (up from 56 in 2018) with 44 of these citations including Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) (up from 34 in 2018) and 56 identifying a formal data repository (reported for the first time in this report); The Libraries and its partners registered 197 DataCite DOIs for published data sets in 2019 (up from 112 in 2018). </div

2022 State of Open at the University of Colorado Boulder: An Update on Open Access Practices Based on Data from 2021

Using data from 2021, this report is the fourth annual update to the &ldquo;State of Open at the University of Colorado Boulder: A Baseline Analysis of Open Access Practices from 2012 to 2018&rdquo;: https://doi.org/10.25810/vprn-v113. It includes analyses of open access (OA) article publishing activities, OA repository usage, and data publishing practices by researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder). Data used to produce this report can be found here: https://doi.org/10.25810/tt4b-9v88 Key findings from this report include: 62% of articles published in 2021 by CU Boulder authors are available via some type of OA (Gold, Green, Hybrid, or Bronze) (up from 60% at the time of the 2020 report); In 2021, the CU Boulder Libraries OA Fund funded author fees totaling $89,761 for 53 journal articles published by CU Boulder authors in full OA journals (up from$57,769 for 34 journal articles in 2020); At the end of 2021, there were 13,791 OA items in the CU Scholar institutional repository (up from 11,810 in 2020), and these items were downloaded a total of 39,393 times in 2021 (down from 43,236 in 2020); In the annual Faculty Report of Professional Activities (FRPA), faculty reported 92 published data sets in 2021 (up from 65 in 2020) with 76 of these citations including Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) (up from 50 in 2020) and 68 citations identifying a formal data repository (up from 54 in 2020); The Libraries and its partners registered 416 DataCite DOIs for published data sets in 2021 (up from 320 in 2020).</p