Beyond Conventional Boundaries: Advancing Equity and Inclusivity in Educational Supervision

This special issue of the Journal of Educational Supervision, Cases in Critical Supervision within School Contexts, critically examines educational supervision models, highlighting their limitations in fostering equity and inclusivity. As greater attention and awareness of diverse identities and experiences becomes more common in schools there also needs to be acknowledgement of how supervision is experienced by educators and enacted by instructional supervisors. We argue for a paradigm shift towards more empathetic and diverse supervisory practices that consider the varied backgrounds and needs of students. Throughout this special issue, researchers propose innovative approaches that prioritize collaboration, understanding, and the recognition of the unique potential of every teacher, educator, and student. Empowered with a willingness and an awareness of how educational experiences can be experienced differently, researchers suggest supervisory models to transform educational environments into spaces where all students, especially those from marginalized groups, can thrive

Acute effect of cigarette smoking on the coronary circulation: Constriction of epicardial and resistance vessels

AbstractObjectives. This study was performed to determine the acute effect of cigarette smoking on proximal and distal epicardial condult and coronary resistance vessels.Background. Cigarette smoking causes constriction of epicardial arteries and a decrease in coronary blood flow in patients with coronary artery disease, despite an increase in myocardial oxygen demand. The role of changes in resistance vessel tone in the acute coronary hemodynamic effect of smoking has not been examined.Methods. Twenty-four long-term smokers were studied during cardiac catheterization after vasoactive medications had been discontinued. The effect of smoking one cigerette 10 to 15 mm long on proximal and distal conduit vessel segments was assessed before and immediately after smoking and at 5, 15 and 30 min after smoking (n = 8). To determine the effect of smoking on resistance vessels, coronary flow velocity was measured in a nonobstructed artery with a 3F intracoronary Doppler catheter before and for 5 min after smoking (n = 8). Eight patients were studied without smoking to control for spontaneous changes in conduit arterial diameter (n = 5) and vessel tone (n = 3).Results. The average diameter of proximal coronary artery segments decreased from 2.56 ± 0.12 mm (mean ± SEM) before smoking to 2.41 ± 0.09 mm 5 min after amoking (−5 ± 2%, p < 0.05). Distal coronary diameter decreased from 1.51 ± 0.07 to 1.39 ± 0.06 mm (−8 ± 2%, p < 0.01). Marked focal vasoconstriction after smoking was observed in two patients. Coronary diameter returned to baseline by 30 min after smoking. There was no change in vessel diameter in control patients. Despite a significant increase in the heart rate-mean arterial pressure product, coronary flow velocity decreased by 7 ± 4% (p < 0.05) and coronary vascular increased by 21 ± 4% (p < 0.01) 5 min after smoking. There was no change in these variables in the control subjects.Conclusions. Smoking causes immediate constrictioin of proximal and distil epicardial coronary arteries and an increase in coronay resistance vessel tone despite an increase in myocardial oxygen demand. These acute coronary hemodynamic effects may contribute to the adverse cardiovascular consequences of cigarette smoking

First experience in human beings with a permanently implantable intrasac pressure transducer for monitoring endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms

ObjectivesEndovascular stent graft repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) prevents rupture by excluding the aneurysm sac from systemic arterial pressure. Current surveillance protocols after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) follow secondary markers of sac pressurization, namely, endoleak and sac enlargement. We report the first clinical experience with the use of a permanently implantable, ultrasound-activated remote pressure transducer to measure intrasac pressure after EVAR.MethodsOver 7 months, 14 patients underwent EVAR of an infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm with implantation of an ultrasound-activated remote pressure transducer fixed to the outside of the stent graft and exposed to the excluded aortic sac. Twelve patients received modular bifurcated stent grafts, and 2 patients received aortouniiliac devices. Intrasac pressures were measured directly with an intravascular catheter and by the remote sensor at stent-graft deployment. Follow-up sac pressures were measured with a remote sensor and correlated with systemic arterial pressure at every follow-up visit. Mean follow-up was 2.6 ±1.9 months.ResultsExcellent concordance was found between catheter-derived and transducer-derived intrasac pressssure intraoperatively. Pulsatile waveforms were seen in all functioning transducers at each evaluation interval. One implant ceased to function at 2 months of follow-up. In 1 patient a type I endoleak was diagnosed on 1-month computed tomography (CT) scans; 3 type II endoleaks were observed. Those patients with complete exclusion of the aneurysm on CT scans had a significant difference in systemic and sac systolic pressures initially (P < .001) and at 1 month (P < .001). Initial sac diastolic pressures were higher than systemic diastolic pressures (P < .001). The ratio of systemic to sac systolic pressure increased over time in those patients with complete aneurysm exclusion (P < .001). Four of 6 patients with no endoleak and greater than 1-month follow-up had diminution of sac systolic pressure to 40 mm Hg or less by 3 months.ConclusionThis is the first report of a totally implantable chronic pressure transducer to monitor the results of EVAR in human beings. Aneurysm exclusion leads to gradual diminution of sac pressure over several months. Additional clinical follow-up will be necessary to determine whether aneurysm sac pressure monitoring can replace CT in the long-term surveillance of patients after EVAR

Architectural Features of Streetscapes and Aging in Cameron County, Texas: Preliminary Results

The impact of architectural features in urban settings reveals priorities for its residents and the integration of social and natural environments. It has been estimated that 23% of global deaths to the environments in which people live. We aim to characterize the most prevalent architectural features of Cameron County, Texas streetscapes and analyze their role in health promotion and healthy aging

Do Genetic Variants Modify the Effect of Smoking on Risk of Preeclampsia in Pregnancy?

Under embargo until: 2022-11-28Objective Maternal smoking is associated with as much as a 50% reduced risk of preeclampsia, despite increasing risk of other poor pregnancy outcomes that often co-occur with preeclampsia, such as preterm birth and fetal growth restriction. Researchers have long sought to understand whether this perplexing association is biologically based, or a result of noncausal mechanisms. We examined whether smoking-response genes modify the smoking-preeclampsia association to investigate potential biological explanations. Study Design We conducted a nested case–control study within the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Birth Cohort (1999–2008) of 2,596 mother–child dyads. We used family-based log-linear Poisson regression to examine modification of the maternal smoking-preeclampsia relationship by maternal and fetal single nucleotide polymorphisms involved in cellular processes related to components of cigarette smoke (n = 1,915 with minor allele frequency ≥10%). We further investigated the influence of smoking cessation during pregnancy. Results Three polymorphisms showed overall (p < 0.001) multiplicative interaction between smoking and maternal genotype. For rs3765692 (TP73) and rs10770343 (PIK3C2G), protection associated with smoking was reduced with two maternal copies of the risk allele and was stronger in continuers than quitters (interaction p = 0.02 for both loci, based on testing 3-level smoking by 3-level genotype). For rs2278361 (APAF1) the inverse smoking-preeclampsia association was eliminated by the presence of a single risk allele, and again the trend was stronger in continuers than in quitters (interaction p = 0.01). Conclusion Evidence for gene–smoking interaction was limited, but differences by smoking cessation warrant further investigation. We demonstrate the potential utility of expanded dyad methods and gene–environment interaction analyses for outcomes with complex relationships between maternal and fetal genotypes and exposures.acceptedVersio

Measurement of the Atmospheric Muon Charge Ratio at TeV Energies with MINOS

The 5.4 kton MINOS far detector has been taking charge-separated cosmic ray muon data since the beginning of August, 2003 at a depth of 2070 meters-water-equivalent in the Soudan Underground Laboratory, Minnesota, USA. The data with both forward and reversed magnetic field running configurations were combined to minimize systematic errors in the determination of the underground muon charge ratio. When averaged, two independent analyses find the charge ratio underground to be 1.374 +/- 0.004 (stat.) +0.012 -0.010(sys.). Using the map of the Soudan rock overburden, the muon momenta as measured underground were projected to the corresponding values at the surface in the energy range 1-7 TeV. Within this range of energies at the surface, the MINOS data are consistent with the charge ratio being energy independent at the two standard deviation level. When the MINOS results are compared with measurements at lower energies, a clear rise in the charge ratio in the energy range 0.3 -- 1.0 TeV is apparent. A qualitative model shows that the rise is consistent with an increasing contribution of kaon decays to the muon charge ratio.Comment: 16 pages, 17 figure

Measurement of neutrino velocity with the MINOS detectors and NuMI neutrino beam

The velocity of a ~3 GeV neutrino beam is measured by comparing detection times at the near and far detectors of the MINOS experiment, separated by 734 km. A total of 473 far detector neutrino events was used to measure (v-c)/c=5.12.910-5 (at 68% C.L.). By correlating the measured energies of 258 charged-current neutrino events to their arrival times at the far detector, a limit is imposed on the neutrino mass of mnu&lt;50 MeV/c2 (99% C.L.)

Selection of Inhibitor-Resistant Viral Potassium Channels Identifies a Selectivity Filter Site that Affects Barium and Amantadine Block

BACKGROUND:Understanding the interactions between ion channels and blockers remains an important goal that has implications for delineating the basic mechanisms of ion channel function and for the discovery and development of ion channel directed drugs. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We used genetic selection methods to probe the interaction of two ion channel blockers, barium and amantadine, with the miniature viral potassium channel Kcv. Selection for Kcv mutants that were resistant to either blocker identified a mutant bearing multiple changes that was resistant to both. Implementation of a PCR shuffling and backcrossing procedure uncovered that the blocker resistance could be attributed to a single change, T63S, at a position that is likely to form the binding site for the inner ion in the selectivity filter (site 4). A combination of electrophysiological and biochemical assays revealed a distinct difference in the ability of the mutant channel to interact with the blockers. Studies of the analogous mutation in the mammalian inward rectifier Kir2.1 show that the T-->S mutation affects barium block as well as the stability of the conductive state. Comparison of the effects of similar barium resistant mutations in Kcv and Kir2.1 shows that neighboring amino acids in the Kcv selectivity filter affect blocker binding. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:The data support the idea that permeant ions have an integral role in stabilizing potassium channel structure, suggest that both barium and amantadine act at a similar site, and demonstrate how genetic selections can be used to map blocker binding sites and reveal mechanistic features