Carlisle Indian Industrial School

The Carlisle Indian School (1879–1918) was an audacious educational experiment. Capt. Richard Henry Pratt, the school’s founder and first superintendent, persuaded the federal government that training Native children to accept the white man’s ways and values would be more efficient than fighting deadly battles. The result was that the last Indian war would be waged against Native children in the classroom.More than 10,500 children from virtually every Native nation in the United States were taken from their homes and transported to Pennsylvania. Carlisle provided a blueprint for the federal Indian school system that was established across the United States and served as a model for many residential schools in Canada. The Carlisle experiment initiated patterns of dislocation and rupture far deeper and more profound and enduring than its initiators ever grasped.Carlisle Indian Industrial School offers varied perspectives on the school by interweaving the voices of students’ descendants, poets, and activists with cutting-edge research by Native and non-Native scholars. These contributions reveal the continuing impact and vitality of historical and collective memory, as well as the complex and enduring legacies of a school that still touches the lives of many Native Americans

Molecular characterization of serotype O foot-andmouth disease virus from pigs: Implications for multispecies approach to disease control in Uganda

In Uganda, where foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) control is mainly done through vaccination, constant monitoring of outbreaks and phylogenetic studies are important in designing effective disease control strategies. These efforts however, have mainly concentrated on cattle since they are the main visible disease hosts. In this study, the molecular characteristics of the VP1 coding sequences of the pigderived FMD virus and its phylogenetic relationship with other historical Ugandan FMD virus sequences are determined. Sixty seven samples were collected from three districts of south western Uganda and subjected to RT-PCR. Partial VP1 capsid protein coding sequences of 12 positive samples were amplified and sequenced using serotype specific primers. Eight sequences were successfully obtained, all of which were from domestic pigs. All samples were confirmed as belonging to serotype O using BLAST search. Phylogenetic analysis of the test sequences with selected sequences, showed a close relatedness (average of 3.77% pair-wise distance) to viruses isolated from central and western Uganda in the years 2005 and 2006 from cattle. These results show that domestic pigs in the western region of Uganda have been infected with the same circulating strain of FMDV and play a potentially important role in FMD maintenance and spread.Keywords: Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), pig-derived FMDV sequence, persistence, domestic pigsAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(19), pp. 2547-255

Interventions for preventing falls in people with multiple sclerosis.

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (Intervention). The aim of this review is to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions designed to reduce the rate of falls in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Specific objectives include comparing the effectiveness of single, multiple and multifactorial interventions designed to reduce the rate of falls in people with MS

Occupation recorded on certificates of death compared with self-report: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Abstract Background Death certificates are a potential source of sociodemographic data for decedents in epidemiologic research. However, because this information is provided by the next-of-kin or other proxies, there are concerns about validity. Our objective was to assess the agreement of job titles and occupational categories derived from death certificates with that self-reported in mid and later life. Methods Occupation was abstracted from 431 death certificates from North Carolina Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study participants who died between 1987 and 2001. Occupations were coded according to 1980 Bureau of Census job titles and then grouped into six 1980 census occupational categories. This information was compared with the self-reported occupation at midlife as reported at the baseline examination (1987–89). We calculated percent agreement using standard methods. Chance-adjusted agreement was assessed by kappa coefficients, with 95% confidence intervals. Results Agreement between death certificate and self-reported job titles was poor (32%), while 67% of occupational categories matched the two sources. Kappa coefficients ranged from 0.53 for technical/sales/administrative jobs to 0.68 for homemakers. Agreement was lower, albeit nonsignificant, for women (kappa = 0.54, 95% Confidence Interval, CI = 0.44–0.63) than men (kappa = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.54–0.69) and for African-Americans (kappa = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.34–0.61) than whites (kappa = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.57–0.69) but varied only slightly by educational attainment. Conclusion While agreement between self- and death certificate reported job titles was poor, agreement between occupational categories was good. This suggests that while death certificates may not be a suitable source of occupational data where classification into specific job titles is essential, in the absence of other data, it is a reasonable source for constructing measures such as occupational SES that are based on grouped occupational data

Evaluations of the effectiveness of a web-based graduate epidemiology course

An online epidemiology course was developed, implemented, and evaluated for graduate nursing students through the collaborative efforts of nursing faculty and information, education, and instructional design staff of the library at a health sciences university. This epidemiology course is a core curriculum course for graduate nursing students. The course was piloted with 14 students (one student in Romania); the initial online offering ran concurrently with a traditional classroom section. Extensive evaluation data were collected and analyzed to compare the effectiveness of the classroom and distance-learning formats. Areas of evaluation included objective measures, such as midterm and final examination scores and content analysis comparisons, as well as subjective ratings by the students of time commitments, course objectives, technical aspects of the web-based course, areas of satisfaction or dissatisfaction, and self-confidence regarding epidemiology and computer skills. Recommendations for course development, implementation, and evaluation for similar distance-learning courses will be included

Recommendations for a core outcome set for measuring standing balance in adult populations: a consensus-based approach

Standing balance is imperative for mobility and avoiding falls. Use of an excessive number of standing balance measures has limited the synthesis of balance intervention data and hampered consistent clinical practice.To develop recommendations for a core outcome set (COS) of standing balance measures for research and practice among adults.A combination of scoping reviews, literature appraisal, anonymous voting and face-to-face meetings with fourteen invited experts from a range of disciplines with international recognition in balance measurement and falls prevention. Consensus was sought over three rounds using pre-established criteria.The scoping review identified 56 existing standing balance measures validated in adult populations with evidence of use in the past five years, and these were considered for inclusion in the COS.Fifteen measures were excluded after the first round of scoring and a further 36 after round two. Five measures were considered in round three. Two measures reached consensus for recommendation, and the expert panel recommended that at a minimum, either the Berg Balance Scale or Mini Balance Evaluation Systems Test be used when measuring standing balance in adult populations.Inclusion of two measures in the COS may increase the feasibility of potential uptake, but poses challenges for data synthesis. Adoption of the standing balance COS does not constitute a comprehensive balance assessment for any population, and users should include additional validated measures as appropriate.The absence of a gold standard for measuring standing balance has contributed to the proliferation of outcome measures. These recommendations represent an important first step towards greater standardization in the assessment and measurement of this critical skill and will inform clinical research and practice internationally

Tankyrase represses autoinflammation through the attenuation of TLR2 signaling

Dysregulation of Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling contributes to the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. Here, we provide genetic evidence that tankyrase, a member of the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) family, negatively regulates TLR2 signaling. We show that mice lacking tankyrase in myeloid cells developed severe systemic inflammation with high serum inflammatory cytokine levels. We provide mechanistic evidence that tankyrase deficiency resulted in tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of TLR2 and show that phosphorylation of tyrosine 647 within the TIR domain by SRC and SYK kinases was critical for TLR2 stabilization and signaling. Last, we show that the elevated cytokine production and inflammation observed in mice lacking tankyrase in myeloid cells were dependent on the adaptor protein 3BP2, which is required for SRC and SYK activation. These data demonstrate that tankyrase provides a checkpoint on the TLR-mediated innate immune response

Evaluation of a Multidrug Assay for Monitoring Adherence to a Regimen for HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis in a Clinical Study, HIV Prevention Trials Network 073

ABSTRACT Daily oral tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF)-emtricitabine (FTC) is a safe and effective intervention for HIV preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP). We evaluated the performance of a qualitative assay that detects 20 antiretroviral (ARV) drugs (multidrug assay) in assessing recent PrEP exposure (detection limit, 2 to 20 ng/ml). Samples were obtained from 216 Black men who have sex with men (208 HIV-uninfected men and 8 seroconverters) who were enrolled in a study in the United States evaluating the acceptability of TDF-FTC PrEP (165 of the uninfected men and 5 of the seroconverters accepted PrEP). Samples from 163 of the 165 HIV-uninfected men who accepted PrEP and samples from all 8 seroconverters were also tested for tenofovir (TFV) and FTC using a quantitative assay (detection limit for both drugs, 0.31 ng/ml). HIV drug resistance was assessed in seroconverter samples. The multidrug assay detected TFV and/or FTC in 3 (1.4%) of the 208 uninfected men at enrollment, 84 (40.4%) of the 208 uninfected men at the last study visit, and 1 (12.5%) of the 8 seroconverters. No other ARV drugs were detected. The quantitative assay confirmed all positive results from the multidrug assay and detected TFV and/or FTC in 9 additional samples (TFV range, 0.65 to 16.5 ng/ml; FTC range, 0.33 to 14.6 ng/ml). Resistance mutations were detected in 4 of the 8 seroconverter samples. The multidrug assay had 100% sensitivity and specificity for detecting TFV and FTC at drug concentrations consistent with daily PrEP use. The quantitative assay detected TFV and FTC at lower levels, which also might have provided protection against HIV infection

Regular breakfast consumption and type 2 diabetes risk markers in 9- to 10-year-old children in the child heart and health study in England (CHASE): a cross-sectional analysis.

BACKGROUND: Regular breakfast consumption may protect against type 2 diabetes risk in adults but little is known about its influence on type 2 diabetes risk markers in children. We investigated the associations between breakfast consumption (frequency and content) and risk markers for type 2 diabetes (particularly insulin resistance and glycaemia) and cardiovascular disease in children. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 4,116 UK primary school children aged 9-10 years. Participants provided information on breakfast frequency, had measurements of body composition, and gave fasting blood samples for measurements of blood lipids, insulin, glucose, and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c). A subgroup of 2,004 children also completed a 24-hour dietary recall. Among 4,116 children studied, 3,056 (74%) ate breakfast daily, 450 (11%) most days, 372 (9%) some days, and 238 (6%) not usually. Graded associations between breakfast frequency and risk markers were observed; children who reported not usually having breakfast had higher fasting insulin (percent difference 26.4%, 95% CI 16.6%-37.0%), insulin resistance (percent difference 26.7%, 95% CI 17.0%-37.2%), HbA1c (percent difference 1.2%, 95% CI 0.4%-2.0%), glucose (percent difference 1.0%, 95% CI 0.0%-2.0%), and urate (percent difference 6%, 95% CI 3%-10%) than those who reported having breakfast daily; these differences were little affected by adjustment for adiposity, socioeconomic status, and physical activity levels. When the higher levels of triglyceride, systolic blood pressure, and C-reactive protein for those who usually did not eat breakfast relative to those who ate breakfast daily were adjusted for adiposity, the differences were no longer significant. Children eating a high fibre cereal breakfast had lower insulin resistance than those eating other breakfast types (p for heterogeneity <0.01). Differences in nutrient intakes between breakfast frequency groups did not account for the differences in type 2 diabetes markers. CONCLUSIONS: Children who ate breakfast daily, particularly a high fibre cereal breakfast, had a more favourable type 2 diabetes risk profile. Trials are needed to quantify the protective effect of breakfast on emerging type 2 diabetes risk. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary