Condom Use among Young African American Men: Implications for Planning Interventions

Condom Use among Young African American Men: Implications for Planning Interventions Sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, continue to present significant public health problems affecting young people in the United States, especially African Americans. While African Americans make up about 12% of the U.S. population, in 2010 they accounted for 44% of new HIV infections in 2010 and 48% of all persons living with AIDS in 2007. The 2010 data shows that of these new cases, 38% occurred among African American males ages 13-24 years old. Correct condom use remains a challenge in this population and efforts to increase condom use among minority males has been a formidable challenge. This paper reports the results of formative research conducted in order to guide the development of an intervention to increase consistent, effective condom use for young African American males. Methods: A snowball sampling approach was used to recruit participants. African American males, ages 18-24, who self-reported as sexually active were eligible to participate in one of four focus groups or one of six individual interviews. All study events were conducted at community locations. Each event was audiotaped and notes were taken. Analysis was performed using using NVivo-9. The coding strategy included emic and etic codes and a coding tree was developed which was used to identify themes. Results: A total of 36 African American males between the ages of 18-24 (mean 20.7 years) took part. In general, participants felt condom use was highly influenced by contextual factors including partner interest, partner communication, length of relationship and trust. Condom use was also influenced by a sense of invincibility and being caught up in the moment. Notably, most sexual activity occurred outside of a relationship, most often within the party scene or as quickly arranged hook-ups. Analysis: In order to ensure maximum impact on the development of the intervention, the results from this formative phase were viewed through the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change (TTM) and most participants would be described as being in the pre-contemplation or contemplation stages of behavioral change. While all participants expressed some understanding of the risks of unprotected sex, many did not connect risks to consequences. While the data did not indicate that condom use behavior was likely to change in the short-term (less than 6 months), several participants were contemplating making a change. Discussion: The snowball sampling approach allowed us to understand the participants’ social network and allowed us to consider social influences as well as about individual attitudes and beliefs. In the TTM frame, interventions designed for this population need to include contemplators and pre-contemplators and should focus on modification of cognition, affect and behaviors. Our research also shows that several of the underlying assumptions of TTM are at odds with the framework within which sex often occurs for this population and condom use decisions are highly influenced by the social context. In light of the results, the intervention placed condom use into a health promotion context. It combines group activities and one-on-one interaction. Group activities can impact shared values and beliefs and, thus, the intervention builds social support for behavior changes while addressing individual capacity

Identification and Characterization of Novel Mutations in the Human Gene Encoding the Catalytic Subunit Calpha of Protein Kinase A (PKA)

The genes PRKACA and PRKACB encode the principal catalytic (C) subunits of protein kinase A (PKA) Cα and Cβ, respectively. Cα is expressed in all eukaryotic tissues examined and studies of Cα knockout mice demonstrate a crucial role for Cα in normal physiology. We have sequenced exon 2 through 10 of PRKACA from the genome of 498 Norwegian donors and extracted information about PRKACA mutations from public databases. We identified four interesting nonsynonymous point mutations, Arg45Gln, Ser109Pro, Gly186Val, and Ser263Cys, in the Cα1 splice variant of the kinase. Cα variants harboring the different amino acid mutations were analyzed for kinase activity and regulatory (R) subunit binding. Whereas mutation of residues 45 and 263 did not alter catalytic activity or R subunit binding, mutation of Ser109 significantly reduced kinase activity while R subunit binding was unaltered. Mutation of Cα Gly186 completely abrogated kinase activity and PKA type I but not type II holoenzyme formation. Gly186 is located in the highly conserved DFG motif of Cα and mutation of this residue to Val was predicted to result in loss of binding of ATP and Mg2+, which may explain the kinetic inactivity. We hypothesize that individuals born with mutations of Ser109 or Gly186 may be faced with abnormal development and possibly severe disease

2016 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1003/thumbnail.jp

Spiritual attitudes and visitor motivations at the Beltane Fire Festival, Edinburgh.

Outside the peak season for tourism to Edinburgh, Scotland, during the evening of April 30th, visitors attend a festival with ancient Celtic overtones. Frequently, the evening is cold and windy. Our objectives are to: identify motivations for attending the festival; trial questionnaire items on spiritual attitude; and assess whether spirituality might be relevant in assessing visitor intentions. The method of investigation involved exploration and confirmation phases to test structures in distinct subsamples. Further, a strict approach was applied to identify factors that had theoretical value. Spirituality attitude is found to be a factor, as well as the motivations of cultural adventure and escape. Given the nature of the event, the time of year and composition of the audience, encouraging repeat visitation and using this to develop and manage Edinburgh's tourism strategy has potential. Recommendations are made to management

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Theaters and opera houses of Colonel James M. Wood, theatrical architect, 1868-1903

The purpose of this study is to identify and describe the nineteenth-century theatrical structures designed by Colonel J. M. Wood between the years 1868 and 1903. The study concentrates on communities located in the Midwest and on the West Coast. The emphasis of the study is upon recording significant information regarding the auditorium design, stage facilities and methods of illumination in the theatres designed by Colonel J. M. Wood. In order to understand the world that this man worked in, Chapter One will examine the conditions in American theatre and American theatre architecture prior to 1868. Chapters Two through Four will identify and describe twenty-two of the theatres built or designed by Wood between 1868 and 1903. It is hoped that this study will add to our knowledge about the history of the physical theatre in the nineteenth century and bring this forgotten architect to the attention of theatre scholarsTheatre and Danc

Curcumin inhibits aggregation of alpha-synuclein

Aggregation of amyloid-beta protein (A beta) is a key pathogenic event in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Curcumin, a constituent of the Indian spice Turmeric is structurally similar to Congo Red and has been demonstrated to bind A beta amyloid and prevent further oligomerization of A beta monomers onto growing amyloid beta-sheets. Reasoning that oligomerization kinetics and mechanism of amyloid formation are similar in Parkinson's disease (PD) and AD, we investigated the effect of curcumin on alpha-synuclein (AS) protein aggregation. In vitro model of AS aggregation was developed by treatment of purified AS protein (wild-type) with 1 mM Fe3+ (Fenton reaction). It was observed that the addition of curcumin inhibited aggregation in a dose-dependent manner and increased AS solubility. The aggregation-inhibiting effect of curcumin was next investigated in cell culture utilizing catecholaminergic SH-SY5Y cell line. A model system was developed in which the red fluorescent protein (DsRed2) was fused with A53T mutant of AS and its aggregation examined under different concentrations of curcumin. To estimate aggregation in an unbiased manner, a protocol was developed in which the images were captured automatically through a high-throughput cell-based screening microscope. The obtained images were processed automatically for aggregates within a defined dimension of 1-6 mu m. Greater than 32% decrease in mutant alpha-synuclein aggregation was observed within 48 h subsequent to curcumin addition. Our data suggest that curcumin inhibits AS oligomerization into higher molecular weight aggregates and therefore should be further explored as a potential therapeutic compound for PD and related disorders