Experiential learning as preparation for leadership: an exploration of the cognitive and physiological processes

Purpose: The objective of the study was to explore whether challenging experiences on development programmes would simulate leadership challenges and therefore stimulate the body’s autonomic nervous system response. We also aimed to determine whether increase in autonomic arousal would be related to learning, and/or moderated by personality variables. Design/methodology/approach: The research used heart rate monitors to measure heart rate continuously over a two-day simulated learning experience. This was used to calculate autonomic arousal which was taken to be the difference between resting heart rate measured during sleep (HR) and HR during critical incidents (ΔHR). We correlated this with self-reports of learning immediately after, and one month after, the programme to assess the impact of autonomic arousal on perceived learning, as well as with variety of psychometric measures. Findings: The research found significant correlations between (ΔHR) during critical incidents and perceived learning which were not related to personality type. The research also found a significant correlation between (ΔHR) and learning during a control event for individuals with ‘approach’ personalities. Research limitations/implications: Whilst a significant result was found, the sample size of 28 was small. The research also did not empirically assess the valence or intensity of the emotions experienced, and used only a self-report measure of learning. Future research should replicate the findings with a larger sample size, attempt to measure these emotional dimensions, as well as obtain perceptions of learning from direct reports and line managers. Practical implications: The findings from the research help clarify the mechanisms involved in the effectiveness of experiential learning, and contribute to our understanding of the influence of personality type on perceived learning from experiential methodologies. Such understanding has implications for Business Schools and learning and development professionals, suggesting that development experiences that challenge leaders are likely to result in learning that is longer-lasting. Originality/value: The research extends the literature regarding the value of learning through experience, the role of autonomic arousal on learning, and the impact of negative emotions on cognition. The research makes a unique contribution by exploring the impact of experience on arousal and learning in a simulated learning experience and over time, by demonstrating that simulated experiences induce emotional and physiological responses, and that these experiences are associated with increased learning

Influência do tratamento intensivo com suporte de peso corporal na função motora de crianças com paralisia cerebral

A aquisição da marcha sob o aspecto neuromotor da reabilitação vem a ser o principal desígnio do terapeuta durante a elaboração do plano de tratamento do paciente com paralisia cerebral, uma vez que a marcha representa não só um ganho da habilidade de locomover-se, mas também um conjunto de reações e padrões de movimento que auxiliam na função motora. Objetivo: Analisar os efeitos de um tratamento intensivo por meio do suporte de peso corporal em crianças com paralisia cerebral. Métodos: Participaram do estudo 10 crianças com paralisia cerebral, GMFCS nível IV ou V, idade entre 4 a 9 anos. Onde foram realizadas sessões diárias com suporte de peso corporal em esteira ergométrica com auxílio de terapeutas para executar o padrão de marcha mais próximo da normalidade, com pontos chaves em joelho e tornozelo com duração de 30 minutos de tratamento e intervalo de 24 horas, por um período de 10 dias. Para fins de avaliação pré e pós-intervenção, utilizando a escala de medição da função motora grossa GMFM, e da flexibilidade pelo Flexiteste. Resultados: Foi possível constatar um aumento relevante na função motora grossa dos sujeitos, onde o domínio Deitar e Rolar obteve maior pontuação, com um aumento de 10,77%. Sentar demonstrou aumento de 3,80%, Engatinhar e Ajoelhar 6,43% e o domínio Em Pé 3,45%. Relativo ao Flexiteste, a média entre os sujeitos relatou aumento expressivo de 4,2 pontos. Já em análise individual, percebe-se que 3 indivíduos obtiveram aumento de score de 6 pontos. Conclusão: Um protocolo intensivo de curta duração é capaz de trazer ganhos de flexibilidade e motores rápidos a crianças que possuem quadro de paralisia cerebral.The acquisition of gait under the neuromotor aspect of rehabilitation is the main goal of the therapist during the elaboration of the treatment plan of the patient with cerebral palsy, since gait represents not only a gain in the ability to move, but also a set of reactions and movement patterns that aid in motor function. Objective: To analyze the effects of intensive treatment by means of body weight support in children with cerebral palsy. Method: Ten children with cerebral palsy, GMFCS level IV or V, age between 4 and 9 years participated in the study. Where daily sessions were performed with body weight support on a treadmill with the help of therapists to perform the walking pattern closest to normal, with key points in the knee and ankle lasting 30 minutes of treatment and 24 hour intervals for one period of 10 days. For purposes of pre and post-intervention evaluation, using the GMFM gross motor function measurement scale, and Flexitest flexibility. Results: It was possible to observe a significant increase in the gross motor function of the subjects, where the lie down and roll domain obtained a higher score, with an increase of 10.77%. To sit demonstrated a 3.80% increase, Crawling and Kneeling 6.43% and the Standing Foot 3.45%. Relative to Flexitest, the mean between subjects reported a significant increase of 4.2 points. In the individual analysis, it was observed that 3 subjects had a 6-point score increase. Conclusions: An intensive short-duration protocol is capable of bringing flexibility gains and fast motor to children with cerebral palsy

Development of a Human Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic (PBPK) Toolkit for Environmental Pollutants

Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models can be used to determine the internal dose and strengthen exposure assessment. Many PBPK models are available, but they are not easily accessible for field use. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) has conducted translational research to develop a human PBPK model toolkit by recoding published PBPK models. This toolkit, when fully developed, will provide a platform that consists of a series of priority PBPK models of environmental pollutants. Presented here is work on recoded PBPK models for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and metals. Good agreement was generally obtained between the original and the recoded models. This toolkit will be available for ATSDR scientists and public health assessors to perform simulations of exposures from contaminated environmental media at sites of concern and to help interpret biomonitoring data. It can be used as screening tools that can provide useful information for the protection of the public

Vivência e práticas para uma alimentação saudável na merenda escolar da rede municipal de Araguatins - TO

Trabalho apresentado no II Congresso Nacional do PROJETO RONDON, realizado em Florianópolis, SC, no período de 23 a 25 de setembro de 2015 - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina.A Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional significa garantir, a todos, condições de acesso a alimentos básicos de qualidade, em quantidade suficiente, com base em práticas alimentares saudáveis, contribuindo, assim, para uma existência digna com desenvolvimento integral da pessoa humana. Este trabalho busca fazer uma reflexão sobre a realidade vivenciada pela equipe participante do Projeto Rondon, Operação Itacaíunas que atuou no município de Araguatins-TO. Com as oficinas oferecidas por ambas as Universidades no município e também por meio das refeições oferecidas no alojamento da equipe no período da Operação, percebeu-se a necessidade de uma abordagem mais efetiva sobre o alto consumo de açúcar, sal e gordura e seus reflexos na saúde. No contexto da promoção das práticas alimentares saudáveis, estavam programadas duas oficinas direcionadas para as merendeiras da rede municipal de ensino. Uma das oficinas visava apresentar as Boas Práticas de Manipulação de Alimentos para que fossem aplicadas no preparo da merenda escolar de forma a minimizar o risco de contaminações. A segunda apontava alternativas para o aproveitamento, de forma atrativa e nutritiva, de partes de alimentos normalmente descartados, além de apresentar novas alternativas para enriquecer o cardápio da merenda escolar. Percebeu-se também, por meio da oficina de higiene bucal, que muitas crianças e adultos apresentavam problemas de cárie dentária, possivelmente em consequência dos hábitos de alimentação. A partir da problemática vivenciada pela equipe, se discutiu a necessidade em ampliar as oficinas propostas às merendeiras e inserir, além dos alunos da área de alimentos, alunos da área de odontologia, medicina e farmácia, com o objetivo de conscientizar a respeito destes hábitos alimentares. Para que a atividade fosse mais efetiva foram apresentados alguns alimentos comerciais amplamente consumidos, e juntamente a sua embalagem foram apresentadas embalagens contento a quantidade de açúcar ou sal contida neste alimento. Assim, as oficinas foram expandidas e atuaram alunos de ambas as Universidades de forma integrada e interdisciplinar. Esta estratégia foi aplicada para que ocorra uma construção de práticas alimentares saudáveis na merenda escolar a partir da conscientização das merendeiras, que estão diretamente envolvidas neste processo. Finalmente, foi observado que nos dias seguintes à oficina o teor de açúcar contido nos alimentos fornecidos no alojamento da equipe foi menor. Também foi observado que nos momentos de intervalo das oficinas foi disponibilizado café sem açúcar, atitude esta que foi voluntária por parte das merendeiras envolvidas

Common genetic variants in the CLDN2 and PRSS1-PRSS2 loci alter risk for alcohol-related and sporadic pancreatitis

Pancreatitis is a complex, progressively destructive inflammatory disorder. Alcohol was long thought to be the primary causative agent, but genetic contributions have been of interest since the discovery that rare PRSS1, CFTR, and SPINK1 variants were associated with pancreatitis risk. We now report two significant genome-wide associations identified and replicated at PRSS1-PRSS2 (1×10-12) and x-linked CLDN2 (p < 1×10-21) through a two-stage genome-wide study (Stage 1, 676 cases and 4507 controls; Stage 2, 910 cases and 4170 controls). The PRSS1 variant affects susceptibility by altering expression of the primary trypsinogen gene. The CLDN2 risk allele is associated with atypical localization of claudin-2 in pancreatic acinar cells. The homozygous (or hemizygous male) CLDN2 genotype confers the greatest risk, and its alleles interact with alcohol consumption to amplify risk. These results could partially explain the high frequency of alcohol-related pancreatitis in men – male hemizygous frequency is 0.26, female homozygote is 0.07

Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain

ience, this issue p. eaap8757 Structured Abstract INTRODUCTION Brain disorders may exhibit shared symptoms and substantial epidemiological comorbidity, inciting debate about their etiologic overlap. However, detailed study of phenotypes with different ages of onset, severity, and presentation poses a considerable challenge. Recently developed heritability methods allow us to accurately measure correlation of genome-wide common variant risk between two phenotypes from pools of different individuals and assess how connected they, or at least their genetic risks, are on the genomic level. We used genome-wide association data for 265,218 patients and 784,643 control participants, as well as 17 phenotypes from a total of 1,191,588 individuals, to quantify the degree of overlap for genetic risk factors of 25 common brain disorders. RATIONALE Over the past century, the classification of brain disorders has evolved to reflect the medical and scientific communities' assessments of the presumed root causes of clinical phenomena such as behavioral change, loss of motor function, or alterations of consciousness. Directly observable phenomena (such as the presence of emboli, protein tangles, or unusual electrical activity patterns) generally define and separate neurological disorders from psychiatric disorders. Understanding the genetic underpinnings and categorical distinctions for brain disorders and related phenotypes may inform the search for their biological mechanisms. RESULTS Common variant risk for psychiatric disorders was shown to correlate significantly, especially among attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder (MDD), and schizophrenia. By contrast, neurological disorders appear more distinct from one another and from the psychiatric disorders, except for migraine, which was significantly correlated to ADHD, MDD, and Tourette syndrome. We demonstrate that, in the general population, the personality trait neuroticism is significantly correlated with almost every psychiatric disorder and migraine. We also identify significant genetic sharing between disorders and early life cognitive measures (e.g., years of education and college attainment) in the general population, demonstrating positive correlation with several psychiatric disorders (e.g., anorexia nervosa and bipolar disorder) and negative correlation with several neurological phenotypes (e.g., Alzheimer's disease and ischemic stroke), even though the latter are considered to result from specific processes that occur later in life. Extensive simulations were also performed to inform how statistical power, diagnostic misclassification, and phenotypic heterogeneity influence genetic correlations. CONCLUSION The high degree of genetic correlation among many of the psychiatric disorders adds further evidence that their current clinical boundaries do not reflect distinct underlying pathogenic processes, at least on the genetic level. This suggests a deeply interconnected nature for psychiatric disorders, in contrast to neurological disorders, and underscores the need to refine psychiatric diagnostics. Genetically informed analyses may provide important "scaffolding" to support such restructuring of psychiatric nosology, which likely requires incorporating many levels of information. By contrast, we find limited evidence for widespread common genetic risk sharing among neurological disorders or across neurological and psychiatric disorders. We show that both psychiatric and neurological disorders have robust correlations with cognitive and personality measures. Further study is needed to evaluate whether overlapping genetic contributions to psychiatric pathology may influence treatment choices. Ultimately, such developments may pave the way toward reduced heterogeneity and improved diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders

Effect of Challenge Dose and Route on Transmission of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) Virus Infection

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is believed to be highly infectious because of the rapid spread of the virus through populations of domestic swine throughout the world. However, no information is available on the minimum infectious dose of PRRSV. In our experiment, 10 groups of pigs were inoculated with five different quantities of PRRSV via two different routes: intramuscular and intranasal. The presence of virus in serum and early immune response of pigs were monitored for 21 days. We found that 10 or fewer virions were sufficient to achieve infection. No significant difference in the level of immune response of pigs to PRRSV infection was observed among different treatment groups. However, intramuscular exposure appeared to induce a more uniform immune response compared to intranasal exposure. These results confirmed that PRRSV is highly infectious; a fact that should be taken into consideration when designing strategies for control of PRRSV.</p

Diet Quality Influences the Occurrence of Food Aversions in Women Undergoing Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer

Food aversions in women undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer may be linked to oxidative stress and gastrointestinal consequences underlying it, and diet possibly plays a role in this association. This follow-up study included 73 women with breast cancer treated in Florianopolis City, Brazil. Dietary antioxidant capacity&ndash;DaC (mmol/d), diet quality&ndash;Brazilian Healthy Eating Index Revised (BHEI-R score), and oxidative stress biomarkers were accessed before the treatment, and women were asked if they developed food aversions during adjuvant chemotherapy. Red meat was the main aversion-causing food reported (37.9%, n = 9). There was no difference in DaC, BHEI-R score, or oxidative stress biomarkers between women with no food aversion occurrence and those showing food aversions. A logistic regression adjusted model showed that women exhibiting higher BHEI-R scores were 1.08 times more likely to not develop food aversions during adjuvant chemotherapy (p = 0.041). In summary, this innovative investigation showed that diet quality before adjuvant chemotherapy may influence the non-occurrence of food aversion. Considering this, the result opens new areas for early nutritional interventions, focusing on reducing the occurrence of food aversions and consequently benefiting women with breast cancer by having better outcomes in oncologic treatment