OPEN COMMUNITY HEALTH: WORKSHOP REPORT

This report summarizes key outcomes from a workshop on open community health conducted at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in April 2018. Workshop members represented research and practice communities across Citizen Science, Open Source, and Wikipedia. The outcomes from the workshop include (1) comparisons among these communities, (2) how a shared understanding and assessment of open community health can be developed, and (3) a taxonomical comparison to begin a conversation between these communities that have developed disparate languages

Charity Retailing in the UK: A Managerial Capabilities Perspective

Nonprofit organizations are venturing into commercial activities due to the intense competition for the limited government funds and declining availability of donor funds for third sector organizations that address social problems. Charity retailing, a popular choice of commercial activity for nonprofit organization, has filled vacant premises in the high streets of the small towns and suburbs of large cities in the UK. Successful charity retail operation requires distinctive capabilities necessary to manage organizations’ resources in commercial environment. Using sixty in-depth elite interviews, we introduce the concept of managerial capabilities for charity retailing. Research propositions and management implications are discussed

Circulating and PBMC Lp-PLA2 Associate Differently with Oxidative Stress and Subclinical Inflammation in Nonobese Women (Menopausal Status)

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to determine the association of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A(2) (Lp-PLA(2)) activity in circulation and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with inflammatory and oxidative stress markers in nonobese women and according to menopausal status. Lp-PLA(2) activity, a marker for cardiovascular risk is associated with inflammation and oxidative stress. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Eighty postmenopausal women (53.0±4.05 yr) and 96 premenopausal women (39.7±9.25 yr) participated in this study. Lp-PLA(2) activities, interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and IL-1β in plasma as well as in PBMCs were measured. Plasma ox-LDL was also measured. Postmenopausal women demonstrated higher circulating levels of ox-LDL and IL-6, as well as IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β in PBMCs, than premenopausal women. In both groups, plasma Lp-PLA(2) activity positively correlated with Lp-PLA(2) activity in PBMCs and plasma ox-LDL. In premenopausal women, Lp-PLA(2) activities in plasma and PBMCs positively correlated with IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β in PBMCs. In postmenopausal women, plasma ox-LDL positively correlated with PBMC cytokine production. In subgroup analysis of postmenopausal women according to plasma ox-LDL level (median level: 48.715 U/L), a significant increase in Lp-PLA(2) activity in the plasma but not the PBMCs was found in the high ox-LDL subgroup. Plasma Lp-PLA(2) activity positively correlated with unstimulated PBMC Lp-PLA(2) activity in the low ox-LDL subgroup (r = 0.627, P<0.001), whereas in the high ox-LDL circulating Lp-PLA(2) activity positively correlated with plasma ox-LDL (r = 0.390, P = 0.014) but not with Lp-PLA(2) activity in PBMCs. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The lack of relation between circulating Lp-PLA(2) activity and Lp-PLA(2) activity in PBMCs was found in postmenopausal women with high ox-LDL. This may indicate other sources of circulating Lp-PLA(2) activity except PBMC in postmenopausal women with high ox-LDL. We also demonstrated that circulating Lp-PLA(2) and PBMC secreted Lp-PLA(2) associate differently with markers of oxidative stress and sub clinical inflammation in nonobese women, particularly according to the menopausal states

Quantitative Proteomic Analysis of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation by 8-Plex iTRAQ Labelling

Analysis of gene expression to define molecular mechanisms and pathways involved in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) proliferation and differentiations has allowed for further deciphering of the self-renewal and pluripotency characteristics of hESC. Proteins associated with hESCs were discovered through isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ). Undifferentiated hESCs and hESCs in different stages of spontaneous differentiation by embryoid body (EB) formation were analyzed. Using the iTRAQ approach, we identified 156 differentially expressed proteins involved in cell proliferation, apoptosis, transcription, translation, mRNA processing, and protein synthesis. Proteins involved in nucleic acid binding, protein synthesis, and integrin signaling were downregulated during differentiation, whereas cytoskeleton proteins were upregulated. The present findings added insight to our understanding of the mechanisms involved in hESC proliferation and differentiation

Ovarian damage from chemotherapy and current approaches to its protection

BACKGROUND: Anti-cancer therapy is often a cause of premature ovarian insufficiency and infertility since the ovarian follicle reserve is extremely sensitive to the effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. While oocyte, embryo and ovarian cortex cryopreservation can help some women with cancer-induced infertility achieve pregnancy, the development of effective methods to protect ovarian function during chemotherapy would be a significant advantage.OBJECTIVE AND RATIONALE: This paper critically discusses the different damaging effects of the most common chemotherapeutic compounds on the ovary, in particular, the ovarian follicles and the molecular pathways that lead to that damage. The mechanisms through which fertility-protective agents might prevent chemotherapy drug-induced follicle loss are then reviewed.SEARCH METHODS: Articles published in English were searched on PubMed up to March 2019 using the following terms: ovary, fertility preservation, chemotherapy, follicle death, adjuvant therapy, cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, doxorubicin. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied to the analysis of the protective agents.OUTCOMES: Recent studies reveal how chemotherapeutic drugs can affect the different cellular components of the ovary, causing rapid depletion of the ovarian follicular reserve. The three most commonly used drugs, cyclophosphamide, cisplatin and doxorubicin, cause premature ovarian insufficiency by inducing death and/or accelerated activation of primordial follicles and increased atresia of growing follicles. They also cause an increase in damage to blood vessels and the stromal compartment and increment inflammation. In the past 20 years, many compounds have been investigated as potential protective agents to counteract these adverse effects. The interactions of recently described fertility-protective agents with these damage pathways are discussed.WIDER IMPLICATIONS: Understanding the mechanisms underlying the action of chemotherapy compounds on the various components of the ovary is essential for the development of efficient and targeted pharmacological therapies that could protect and prolong female fertility. While there are increasing preclinical investigations of potential fertility preserving adjuvants, there remains a lack of approaches that are being developed and tested clinically

Array-CGH and breast cancer

The introduction of comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) in 1992 opened new avenues in genomic investigation; in particular, it advanced analysis of solid tumours, including breast cancer, because it obviated the need to culture cells before their chromosomes could be analyzed. The current generation of CGH analysis uses ordered arrays of genomic DNA sequences and is therefore referred to as array-CGH or matrix-CGH. It was introduced in 1998, and further increased the potential of CGH to provide insight into the fundamental processes of chromosomal instability and cancer. This review provides a critical evaluation of the data published on array-CGH and breast cancer, and discusses some of its expected future value and developments

Marker-Assisted Selection for Biotic Stress Resistance in Peanut

Peanut is the second-most important legume grown worldwide. Cultivated peanut is a disomic tetraploid, 2n—4x—40, with limited genetic diversity due to a genetic bottleneck in formation of the polyploid from ancestors A. duranensis and A. ipaensis. Consequently, resistance_to biotic stresses is limited in the cultigen; however, wild species possess strong resistances. Transfer o f these resistances is hindered by differences o f ploidy, but production o f synthetic amphidiploids, coupled with use o f molecular markers, enables efficient gene transfer. Marker maps have been made from interspecific crosses, and SSR-based maps from cultivated parents have been developed recently. At least 410 resistance gene analogues have been identified. The first markers for biotic stress tolerance were for root-knot nematode resistance and introgressed from one A. cardenasii chromosome. These and improved markers have been used for marker-assisted backcrossing, contributing to release of three cultivars. Additional QTLs have been identified since. Early and late leafspots cause significant yield losses worldwide, and resistance depends on multiple genes. Using interspecific populations, five resistance QTLs for early leafspot were identified using greenhouse inoculations, and five QTLs for late leafspot were identified using detached leaf assays. Using cultivated species populations, 28 QTLs were identified for LLS resistance; all but one were minor QTLs; the major QTL was donated by an interspecific introgression line parent. Rust often occurs alongside leafspots, and rust resistance was characterized as one major QTL, plus several smaller QTLs. Marker-assisted backcrossing o f this major QTL has been performed into different populations. QTLs for resistance to other biotic stresses have been identified, namely to groundnut rosette virus, Sclerotinia blight, afiatoxin contamination, aphids, and tomato spotted wilt virus. Marker-assisted breeding is still in early stages, and development o f more rapid and inexpensive markers from transcriptome and genome sequencing is expected to accelerate progress