An analysis of the contributions of the National Science Foundation\u27s Research in Disabilities Education (in STEM) program to the education of students with disabilities in STEM post-secondary programs

In 1990, the National Task Force on Women, Minorities and the Handicapped in Science and Technology reported that the number of individuals with disabilities was seriously underrepresented in science and technology careers in the country. The National Task Force recommended that the U.S. Government establish and operate targeted programs to recruit, train, and retain people with disabilities for careers in these disciplines. This task force report included a series of recommendations to the NSF Director of the National Science Foundation related to how the NSF could increase participation of people with disabilities in the nation’s science and engineering enterprise. NSF’s programmatic response to promoting individuals with disabilities in STEM education and careers became the Research in Disabilities Education (RDE). The Research in Disabilities Education Synthesis Project (RDE-SP) at Kansas State University was a three-year syntheses research project to investigate and synthesize the contributions and accomplishments of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Research in Disabilities Education (RDE) program. The research questions of the project were related to postsecondary STEM education and students with disabilities. To answer these questions, the researchers examined a variety of information from the projects funded during the decade in question. Data sources included materials submitted by project PIs such as annual reports and evaluation reports, publications by PIs and Co-PIs, materials on the DO-IT/RDE site funded by RDE for dissemination of information about RDE projects, and qualitative and quantitative survey data. These data were synthesized and augmented by current literature in the field to answer the research questions. This poster will describe the study methodology and findings related to one of the research questions: What are common challenges faced by projects aiming to increase the participation of students with disabilities in STEM education at the postsecondary level? And what suggestions for solutions have come from RDE projects

Positive selection of mutations in the Helicobacter pylori katA 5′ untranslated region in a Mongolian Gerbil Model of gastric disease

To evaluate potential effects of gastric inflammation on Helicobacter pylori diversification and evolution within the stomach, we experimentally infected Mongolian gerbils with an H. pylori strain in which Cag type IV secretion system (T4SS) activity is controlled by a TetR/tetO system. Gerbils infected with H. pylori under conditions in which Cag T4SS activity was derepressed had significantly higher levels of gastric inflammation than gerbils infected under conditions with repressed Cag T4SS activity. Mutations in the 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of katA (encoding catalase) were detected in strains cultured from 8 of the 17 gerbils infected with Cag T4SS-active H. pylori and none of the strains from 17 gerbils infected with Cag T4SS-inactive H. pylori. Catalase enzymatic activity, steady-state katA transcript levels, and katA transcript stability were increased in strains with these single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) compared to strains in which these SNPs were absent. Moreover, strains harboring these SNPs exhibited increased resistance to bactericidal effects of hydrogen peroxide, compared to control strains. Experimental introduction of the SNPs into the wild-type katA 5′ UTR resulted in increased katA transcript stability, increased katA steady-state levels, and increased catalase enzymatic activity. Based on site-directed mutagenesis and modeling of RNA structure, increased katA transcript levels were correlated with higher predicted thermal stability of the katA 5′ UTR secondary structure. These data suggest that high levels of gastric inflammation positively select for H. pylori strains producing increased levels of catalase, which may confer survival advantages to the bacteria in an inflammatory gastric environment

Supporting Patients with Cancer after Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization

In the context of cancer, whether or not to choose pregnancy termination represents a difficult and multifaceted decision. In this editorial, members of The Oncologist editorial team attempt to contextualize the potential implications of the recent Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organizationfor patients with cancer.Experimentele farmacotherapi