Helping those damaged by priests in counseling : a case study in the Anglican Church

This research deals with the pain and rejection a woman suffered after having gone to her priest for counseling. She only wanted him to stop the abuse form her husband and to re-build her marriage through proper counseling. The priest promised to visit her but failed to do so. Instead, one Sunday during the Eucharistic service, she heard him preached about her situation. In his sermon, she was judged and condemned. This traumatized the woman immensely and as a result, she walked out of the church and has never returned. This research will propose a model for healing to all Caregivers in journeying with troubled souls. CopyrightDissertation (MA(Theol))--University of Pretoria, 2012.Practical TheologyUnrestricte

Graph Annotations in Modeling Complex Network Topologies

The coarsest approximation of the structure of a complex network, such as the Internet, is a simple undirected unweighted graph. This approximation, however, loses too much detail. In reality, objects represented by vertices and edges in such a graph possess some non-trivial internal structure that varies across and differentiates among distinct types of links or nodes. In this work, we abstract such additional information as network annotations. We introduce a network topology modeling framework that treats annotations as an extended correlation profile of a network. Assuming we have this profile measured for a given network, we present an algorithm to rescale it in order to construct networks of varying size that still reproduce the original measured annotation profile. Using this methodology, we accurately capture the network properties essential for realistic simulations of network applications and protocols, or any other simulations involving complex network topologies, including modeling and simulation of network evolution. We apply our approach to the Autonomous System (AS) topology of the Internet annotated with business relationships between ASs. This topology captures the large-scale structure of the Internet. In depth understanding of this structure and tools to model it are cornerstones of research on future Internet architectures and designs. We find that our techniques are able to accurately capture the structure of annotation correlations within this topology, thus reproducing a number of its important properties in synthetically-generated random graphs

Child height gain is associated with consumption of animal-source foods in livestock-owning households in Western Kenya

OBJECTIVE: To clarify the pathways between household livestock and child growth by assessing the relationships between consumption of animal-source foods (ASF) and child growth and evaluating the household livestock correlates of child consumption of ASF. DESIGN: We conducted a longitudinal cohort study of anthropometry and 3 d feeding recalls among children <5 years old between June 2014 and May 2015. In addition, we collected data on wealth, livestock ownership and livestock diseases in the same households. We used linear and negative binomial mixed models to evaluate the relationships between household livestock characteristics, reported consumption of ASF and child growth. SETTING: An 1800-household surveillance catchment area in Western Kenya within the structure of human and animal health surveillance systems. SUBJECTS: Children (n 874) <5 years old. RESULTS: Among children >6 months old, reported frequency of egg and milk consumption was associated with increased monthly height gain (for each additional report of consumption over 3 d: adjusted β (95% CI) = 0·010 (0·002, 0·019) cm/month and 0·008 (0·004, 0·013) cm/month, respectively). Poultry ownership was associated with higher reported frequency of egg, milk and chicken consumption (adjusted incidence rate ratio (95% CI) = 1·3 (1·2, 1·4), 1·4 (1·1, 1·6) and 1·3 (1·1, 1·4), respectively). Some livestock diseases were associated with lower reported frequency of ASF intake (livestock digestive Child growth diseases-adjusted incidence rate ratio (95% CI) = 0·89 (0·78, 1·00)). CONCLUSIONS: Child height gain was associated with milk and egg consumption in this cohort. ASF consumption was related to both household livestock ownership and animal health

Chronicles of Oklahoma

Notes and Documents, Chronicles of Oklahoma, Volume 52, Number 1, Spring 1974. It includes documents about celebrations, memorials, historical notes, notes about Oklahoma State University activities, the creation of a new award, an activities of the Oklahoma Historical Society

Thyroid Function and Perchlorate in Drinking Water: An Evaluation among California Newborns, 1998

Perchlorate (ClO(4)(−)) has been detected in groundwater sources in numerous communities in California and other parts of the United States, raising concerns about potential impacts on health. For California communities where ClO(4)(−) was tested in 1997 and 1998, we evaluated the prevalence of primary congenital hypothyroidism (PCH) and high thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels among the 342,257 California newborns screened in 1998. We compared thyroid function results among newborns from 24 communities with average ClO(4)(−) concentrations in drinking water > 5 μg/L (n = 50,326) to newborns from 287 communities with average concentrations ≤5 μg/L (n = 291,931). ClO(4)(−) concentrations obtained from the California Drinking Water Program provided source-specific data for estimating weighted average concentrations in community water. Fifteen cases of PCH from communities with average concentration > 5 μg/L were observed, with 20.4 expected [adjusted prevalence odds ratio (POR) = 0.71; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.40–1.19]. Although only 36% of all California newborns were screened before 24 hr of age in 1998, nearly 80% of newborns with high TSH were screened before 24 hr of age. Because of the physiologic postnatal surge of TSH, the results for newborns screened before 24 hr were uninformative for assessing an environmental impact. For newborns screened ≥24 hr, the adjusted POR for high TSH was 0.73 (95% CI, 0.40–1.23). All adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were controlled for sex, ethnicity, birth weight, and multiple birth status. Using an assessment of ClO(4)(−) in drinking water based on available data, we did not observe an association between estimated average ClO(4)(−) concentrations > 5 μg/L in drinking water supplies and the prevalence of clinically diagnosed PCH or high TSH concentrations

X-ray absorption spectroscopy systematics at the tungsten L-edge

A series of mononuclear six-coordinate tungsten compounds spanning formal oxidation states from 0 to +VI, largely in a ligand environment of inert chloride and/or phosphine, has been interrogated by tungsten L-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The L-edge spectra of this compound set, comprised of [W&lt;sup&gt;0&lt;/sup&gt;(PMe&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;)&lt;sub&gt;6&lt;/sub&gt;], [W&lt;sup&gt;II&lt;/sup&gt;Cl&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;(PMePh&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;)&lt;sub&gt;4&lt;/sub&gt;], [W&lt;sup&gt;III&lt;/sup&gt;Cl&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;(dppe)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;][PF&lt;sub&gt;6&lt;/sub&gt;] (dppe = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane), [W&lt;sup&gt;IV&lt;/sup&gt;Cl&lt;sub&gt;4&lt;/sub&gt;(PMePh&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;], [W&lt;sup&gt;V&lt;/sup&gt;(NPh)Cl&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;(PMe&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;], and [W&lt;sup&gt;VI&lt;/sup&gt;Cl&lt;sub&gt;6&lt;/sub&gt;] correlate with formal oxidation state and have usefulness as references for the interpretation of the L-edge spectra of tungsten compounds with redox-active ligands and ambiguous electronic structure descriptions. The utility of these spectra arises from the combined correlation of the estimated branching ratio (EBR) of the L&lt;sub&gt;3,2&lt;/sub&gt;-edges and the L&lt;sub&gt;1&lt;/sub&gt; rising-edge energy with metal Z&lt;sub&gt;eff&lt;/sub&gt;, thereby permitting an assessment of effective metal oxidation state. An application of these reference spectra is illustrated by their use as backdrop for the L-edge X-ray absorption spectra of [W&lt;sup&gt;IV&lt;/sup&gt;(mdt)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;(CO)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;] and [W&lt;sup&gt;IV&lt;/sup&gt;(mdt)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;(CN)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;]&lt;sup&gt;2–&lt;/sup&gt; (mdt&lt;sup&gt;2–&lt;/sup&gt; = 1,2-dimethylethene-1,2-dithiolate), which shows that both compounds are effectively W&lt;sup&gt;IV&lt;/sup&gt; species. Use of metal L-edge XAS to assess a compound of uncertain formulation requires: 1) Placement of that data within the context of spectra offered by unambiguous calibrant compounds, preferably with the same coordination number and similar metal ligand distances. Such spectra assist in defining upper and/or lower limits for metal Z&lt;sub&gt;eff&lt;/sub&gt; in the species of interest; 2) Evaluation of that data in conjunction with information from other physical methods, especially ligand K-edge XAS; 3) Increased care in interpretation if strong π-acceptor ligands, particularly CO, or π-donor ligands are present. The electron-withdrawing/donating nature of these ligand types, combined with relatively short metal-ligand distances, exaggerate the difference between formal oxidation state and metal Z&lt;sub&gt;eff&lt;/sub&gt; or, as in the case of [W&lt;sup&gt;IV&lt;/sup&gt;(mdt)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;(CO)&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;], add other subtlety by modulating the redox level of other ligands in the coordination sphere

Efficacy and safety of the anti-IL-12/23 p40 monoclonal antibody, ustekinumab, in patients with active psoriatic arthritis despite conventional non-biological and biological anti-tumour necrosis factor therapy: 6-month and 1-year results of the phase 3, multicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised PSUMMIT 2 trial

Objective: Assess ustekinumab efficacy (week 24/week 52) and safety (week 16/week 24/week 60) in patients with active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) despite treatment with conventional and/or biological anti-tumour necrosis factor (TNF) agents. Methods: In this phase 3, multicentre, placebo-controlled trial, 312 adults with active PsA were randomised (stratified by site, weight (&#8804;100 kg/&#62;100 kg), methotrexate use) to ustekinumab 45 mg or 90 mg at week 0, week 4, q12 weeks or placebo at week 0, week 4, week 16 and crossover to ustekinumab 45 mg at week 24, week 28 and week 40. At week 16, patients with &#60;5% improvement in tender/swollen joint counts entered blinded early escape (placebo→45 mg, 45 mg→90 mg, 90 mg→90 mg). The primary endpoint was &#8805;20% improvement in American College of Rheumatology (ACR20) criteria at week 24. Secondary endpoints included week 24 Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index (HAQ-DI) improvement, ACR50, ACR70 and &#8805;75% improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI75). Efficacy was assessed in all patients, anti-TNF-naïve (n=132) patients and anti-TNF-experienced (n=180) patients. Results: More ustekinumab-treated (43.8% combined) than placebo-treated (20.2%) patients achieved ACR20 at week 24 (p&#60;0.001). Significant treatment differences were observed for week 24 HAQ-DI improvement (p&#60;0.001), ACR50 (p&#8804;0.05) and PASI75 (p&#60;0.001); all benefits were sustained through week 52. Among patients previously treated with &#8805;1 TNF inhibitor, sustained ustekinumab efficacy was also observed (week 24 combined vs placebo: ACR20 35.6% vs 14.5%, PASI75 47.1% vs 2.0%, median HAQ-DI change −0.13 vs 0.0; week 52 ustekinumab-treated: ACR20 38.9%, PASI75 43.4%, median HAQ-DI change −0.13). No unexpected adverse events were observed through week 60. Conclusions: The interleukin-12/23 inhibitor ustekinumab (45/90 mg q12 weeks) yielded significant and sustained improvements in PsA signs/symptoms in a diverse population of patients with active PsA, including anti-TNF-experienced PsA patients

Therapeutic targeting of the E3 ubiquitin ligase SKP2 in T-ALL

Timed degradation of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27^(Kip1) by the E3 ubiquitin ligase F-box protein SKP2 is critical for T-cell progression into cell cycle, coordinating proliferation and differentiation processes. SKP2 expression is regulated by mitogenic stimuli and by Notch signaling, a key pathway in T-cell development and in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL); however, it is not known whether SKP2 plays a role in the development of T-ALL. Here, we determined that SKP2 function is relevant for T-ALL leukemogenesis, whereas is dispensable for T-cell development. Targeted inhibition of SKP2 by genetic deletion or pharmacological blockade markedly inhibited proliferation of human T-ALL cells in vitro and antagonized disease in vivo in murine and xenograft leukemia models, with little effect on normal tissues. We also demonstrate a novel feed forward feedback loop by which Notch and IL-7 signaling cooperatively converge on SKP2 induction and cell cycle activation. These studies show that the Notch/SKP2/p27^(Kip1) pathway plays a unique role in T-ALL development and provide a proof-of-concept for the use of SKP2 as a new therapeutic target in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL)