St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Martin Luther on Monasticism

Actually, the study of the relationship between Luther and Bernard is an investigation into the Catholic Luther, a study of Luther\u27s medieval theological heritage. Although Luther reformed the church and reoriented its theology, he retained an appreciation for those Christian theologians and churchmen who had preceded him and were transmitting to him the faith once delivered to the saints. In the investigation of one or more aspects of the relationship between Luther and Bernard, one confronts an interesting illustration of Luther\u27s appreciation of the medieval Catholic tradition. The serious student of Luther must recognize that Luther basically approached the history of the Church and Christian thought with an evangelical perspective. Luther recognized that the theological tradition which he received through St. Bernard and many others did contain the light of Christ

Comparison of Perceived Needed Soft Skills of Undergraduate, Non-Traditional, Online Business Students to Employers’ Desired Soft Skills of Employees

Soft skills development contributes to life-long learning and may help develop resilience and retention for long-term career success. The purpose of this research is to ascertain if adult learners with work experience have the requisite soft skills to advance their careers post-graduation. Human resource professionals’ priorities during the hiring process are also evaluated. Two questionnaires were completed with 805 combined adult learners and human resource professionals. The study suggests the balance of work experience and business program curriculum is the right foundation, combined with hard skills knowledge, to adequately prepare students for the right level of professional qualifications

Noble Systems Inc.: Inside The Mind Of An Entrepreneur

This case illustrates the challenges faced by typical start-up businesses. The company has never earned a profit. Losses are being covered by cash infusions from angel investors. While significant business opportunities are present, the company doesnt have the money to pursue them all. Essentially, the case involves problems of growth, vision, potential, and management. The problems illustrated in the case can be analyzed using theories and approaches such as: SWOT analysis, financial analysis, business valuation, strategic human resource management, and strategic marketing/management. The case and Instructors Manual were written for undergraduate or MBA courses in strategic management. They can also be used in an entrepreneurship course if the instructor wishes to have a case that illustrates the strategic challenges associated with the decision whether to stay small and within the abilities of the founders, or to grow beyond their capabilities

La encuesta y el vínculo pedagógico emergente en la educación superior: Análisis de caso en Argentina y Suecia en el contexto de aislamiento provocado por la pandemia del COVID-19

The closure of educational institutions in response to the pandemic produced by COVID-19 has generated an intense debate over the teaching methods of contemporary societies. In the higher education sector, the analog/digital ensemble reflected in the conflation of the “forced virtualization” with the social isolation generates a new sociotechnical entity. In this context, the focus is put on surveying the students. Online surveys are an element of the asynchronous platforms for teaching and learning. Besides, there are specific applications that are free and provide the teachers with the ability to apply and process large amounts of information about their students quickly.The present cross-case analysis in two countries: Sweden (n=34) and Argentina (n=88), explores via an online survey, the students’ experiences of studying at the university during the pandemic. These two countries opted to virtualize higher-level activities although they followed different sanitary policies. This work explores the pedagogical relationships that emerge during the first months of the pandemic. The analysis of the students’ responses is grounded in an interpretive perspective in education, and a qualitative methodology. Taking a socio-material lens of such experiences, the analysis identifies material and motivational conditions of an emerging pedagogical relationship from the students’ perspectives in the contemporary context. El cierre de las instituciones educativas como respuesta a la pandemia producida por el COVID-19 ocasionó un intenso debate acerca de las formas de enseñar en las sociedades contemporáneas. En el caso de la educación superior, el ensamblaje entre analógico/digital, la “virtualización forzada” y el aislamiento social generaron un nuevo entorno sociotécnico. Este trabajo pone el foco en la encuesta al estudiantado con el fin de explorar el vínculo pedagógico que se desarrolla en el contexto de la pandemia. Las encuestas on-line son un elemento presente en gran parte de las plataformas asincrónicas. Además, existen distintas aplicaciones que en forma gratuita ponen a disposición de la docencia la posibilidad de relevar y procesar rápidamente grandes cantidades de información sobre sus estudiantes. En particular, se explora la experiencia de encuestar estudiantes universitarios durante los primeros meses de la pandemia en Suecia y Argentina (Suecia n=34 y Argentina n=88). En ambos países, más allá de contar con políticas sanitarias diferentes, se optó por la virtualización de las actividades del nivel superior. De este modo, este trabajo estudia los procesos de transformación que la educación superior atraviesa tanto a nivel local como internacional. Esta investigación se basa en una perspectiva interpretativa, y por lo tanto, se funda en una metodología cualitativa. El análisis contribuye a identificar algunas de las condiciones sociomateriales y motivacionales del encuestar como vínculo pedagógico en el escenario sociotécnico contemporáneo durante el inicio de la pandemia.

Severity-Related Changes of Bronchial Microbiome in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Bronchial colonization by potentially pathogenic microorganisms (PPMs) is often demonstrated in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), but culture-based techniques identify only a portion of the bacteria in mucosal surfaces. The aim of the study was to determine changes in the bronchial microbiome of COPD associated with the severity of the disease. The bronchial microbiome of COPD patients was analyzed by 16S rRNA gene amplification and pyrosequencing in sputum samples obtained during stable disease. Seventeen COPD patients were studied (forced expiratory volume in the first second expressed as a percentage of the forced vital capacity [FEV1%] median, 35.0%; interquartile range [IQR], 31.5 to 52.0), providing a mean of 4,493 (standard deviation [SD], 2,598) sequences corresponding to 47 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) (SD, 17) at a 97% identity level. Patients were dichotomized according to their lung function as moderate to severe when their FEV1% values were over the median and as advanced when FEV1% values were lower. The most prevalent phyla in sputum were Proteobacteria (44%) and Firmicutes (16%), followed by Actinobacteria (13%). A greater microbial diversity was found in patients with moderate-to-severe disease, and alpha diversity showed a statistically significant decrease in patients with advanced disease when assessed by Shannon (ρ = 0.528; P = 0.029, Spearman correlation coefficient) and Chao1 (ρ = 0.53; P = 0.028, Spearman correlation coefficient) alpha-diversity indexes. The higher severity that characterizes advanced COPD is paralleled by a decrease in the diversity of the bronchial microbiome, with a loss of part of the resident flora that is replaced by a more restricted microbiota that includes PPMs

Redox sensing by a Rex-family repressor is involved in the regulation of anaerobic gene expression in Staphylococcus aureus

An alignment of upstream regions of anaerobically induced genes in Staphylococcus aureus revealed the presence of an inverted repeat, corresponding to Rex binding sites in Streptomyces coelicolor. Gel shift experiments of selected upstream regions demonstrated that the redox-sensing regulator Rex of S. aureus binds to this inverted repeat. The binding sequence – TTGTGAAW4TTCACAA – is highly conserved in S. aureus. Rex binding to this sequence leads to the repression of genes located downstream. The binding activity of Rex is enhanced by NAD+ while NADH, which competes with NAD+ for Rex binding, decreases the activity of Rex. The impact of Rex on global protein synthesis and on the activity of fermentation pathways under aerobic and anaerobic conditions was analysed by using a rex-deficient strain. A direct regulatory effect of Rex on the expression of pathways that lead to anaerobic NAD+ regeneration, such as lactate, formate and ethanol formation, nitrate respiration, and ATP synthesis, is verified. Rex can be considered a central regulator of anaerobic metabolism in S. aureus. Since the activity of lactate dehydrogenase enables S. aureus to resist NO stress and thus the innate immune response, our data suggest that deactivation of Rex is a prerequisite for this phenomenon

Transcriptional adaptations during long-term persistence of Staphylococcus aureus in the airways of a cystic fibrosis patient

AbstractThe lungs of Cystic fibrosis (CF) patients are often colonized and/or infected by Staphylococcus aureus for years, mostly by one predominant clone. For long-term survival in this environment, S. aureus needs to adapt during its interactions with host factors, antibiotics, and other pathogens. Here, we study long-term transcriptional as well as genomic adaptations of an isogenic pair of S. aureus isolates from a single patient using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) and whole genome sequencing (WGS). Mimicking in vivo conditions, we cultivated the S. aureus isolates using artificial sputum medium before harvesting RNA for subsequent analysis. We confirmed our RNA-Seq data using quantitative real-time (qRT)-PCR and additionally investigated intermediate isolates from the same patient representing in total 13.2 years of persistence in the CF airways. Comparative RNA-Seq analysis of the first and the last (“late”) isolate revealed significant differences in the late isolate after 13.2 years of persistence. Of the 2545 genes expressed in both isolates that were cultivated aerobically, 256 genes were up- and 161 were down-regulated with a minimum 2-fold change (2f). Focusing on 25 highly (≥8f) up- (n=9) or down- (n=16) regulated genes, we identified several genes encoding for virulence factors involved in immune evasion, bacterial spread or secretion (e.g. spa, sak, and esxA). Moreover, these genes displayed similar expression trends under aerobic, microaerophilic and anaerobic conditions. Further qRT-PCR-experiments of highly up- or down-regulated genes within intermediate S. aureus isolates resulted in different gene expression patterns over the years. Using sequencing analysis of the differently expressed genes and their upstream regions in the late S. aureus isolate resulted in only few genomic alterations. Comparative transcriptomic analysis revealed adaptive changes affecting mainly genes involved in host-pathogen interaction. Although the underlying mechanisms were not known, our results suggest adaptive processes beyond genomic mutations triggered by local factors rather than by activation of global regulators

Operon structure of Staphylococcus aureus

In bacteria, gene regulation is one of the fundamental characteristics of survival, colonization and pathogenesis. Operons play a key role in regulating expression of diverse genes involved in metabolism and virulence. However, operon structures in pathogenic bacteria have been determined only by in silico approaches that are dependent on factors such as intergenic distances and terminator/promoter sequences. Knowledge of operon structures is crucial to fully understand the pathophysiology of infections. Presently, transcriptome data obtained from growth curves in a defined medium were used to predict operons in Staphylococcus aureus. This unbiased approach and the use of five highly reproducible biological replicates resulted in 93.5% significantly regulated genes. These data, combined with Pearson’s correlation coefficients of the transcriptional profiles, enabled us to accurately compile 93% of the genome in operon structures. A total of 1640 genes of different functional classes were identified in operons. Interestingly, we found several operons containing virulence genes and showed synergistic effects for two complement convertase inhibitors transcribed in one operon. This is the first experimental approach to fully identify operon structures in S. aureus. It forms the basis for further in vitro regulation studies that will profoundly advance the understanding of bacterial pathophysiology in vivo

Hypoxic regulation of neutrophil function and consequences for Staphylococcus aureus infection.

Staphylococcal infection and neutrophilic inflammation can act in concert to establish a profoundly hypoxic environment. In this review we summarise how neutrophils and Staphylococcus aureus are adapted to function under hypoxic conditions, with a particular focus on the impaired ability of hypoxic neutrophils to effect Staphylococcus aureus killing.This work was supported by a Wellcome Trust Research Training Fellowship awarded to K.M.L, Papworth Hospital Research and Development Department and the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre