mRNA regulation in the "C. elegans" germ line

The C. elegans germ line relies heavily on post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression but the scale of mRNA regulation in the germ line is still unknown. Germ cells initially divide mitotically, they then enter meiosis and finally differentiate into oocytes. Transcription ceases during oogenesis and does not get reactivated until the early embryo. The oocyte-to-embryo transition (OET) encompassing oocyte maturation, fertilization and early embryogenesis, therefore solely depends on maternal factors. Maternal mRNA storage describes the repression and stabilization of these factors until they are needed. At the four-cell stage, somatic blastomeres become dependent on zygotic transcription and at the same time a subgroup of maternal mRNAs (class II maternal mRNAs) gets specifically degraded. Many developmental decisions in the germ line are regulated by RNA binding proteins (RBPs). A crucial regulator is the STAR domain protein GLD-1, which is expressed in the central gonad. GLD-1 regulates many of the developmental decisions in the germ line and loss of GLD-1 prevents oogenesis and leads instead to the development of a proliferative tumor. GLD-1 binds a large number of mRNAs, and is known to repress the translation of various transcripts but the mechanism by which it does so is unknown. We found that translation initiation of many germline mRNAs is repressed, and that GLD-1 globally represses translation initiation of its targets. Importantly, we revealed an additional role of GLD-1 in stabilizing a large number of its bound mRNAs, suggesting that GLD-1 plays a central role in maternal mRNA storage. While we could not detect an interaction between GLD-1 and translation initiation factors, we observed that GLD-1 associates with components of a conserved germline RNP complex. These components include the polyA binding protein (PABP), Y-box proteins, the Sm-like protein CAR-1 and the DDX6 helicase CGH-1, which has recently been implicated in maternal mRNA protection. Interestingly we found that while CGH-1 does not influence the translational repression of investigated GLD-1 targets, CGH-1 and GLD-1 stabilize a common set of transcripts. Remarkably, these co-regulated messages nearly exclusively encode for mRNAs that are required for the oocyte-to-embryo transition. We therefore propose a two-step model where GLD-1 binding prevents translation initiation and primes many targets for CGH-1-dependent mRNA stabilization, ultimately leading to mRNA storage

An interpretive study of nursing students’ experiences of caring for suicidal persons

Suicide is a worldwide public health problem. Although preparing nursing students to care for suicidal persons has been a standard part of nursing education for many years, nurses consistently report that they lack competencies in caring for this population of patients. The purpose of this phenomenological and hermeneutical study was to understand the experiences undergraduate nursing students had in regard to caring for suicidal persons. The aim of the study was to obtain insights into the basic preparation of students in the care of suicidal persons to inform pedagogical approaches pertaining to suicide and improve the nursing care for these individuals. Twelve senior nursing students were recruited for the study. Data were collected using in-depth, unstructured interviews. The study themes indicated that (a) when participants read about suicidal persons\u27 mental status and behavior in patient, records they initially feared interacting with and caring for these individuals; (b) participants\u27 abilities to gather information about suicide risk was influenced by how much patients talked with them about their suicidal tendencies; and (c) participants\u27 capacity to provide safe and therapeutic suicide prevention interventions was impacted by judicious critical thinking skills. Teaching strategies that align with the themes are provided

Decentering resources: A phenomenological study of interpretive pedagogies in patient education

The purpose of this interpretive phenomenological study was to document an innovative approach to teaching patient education where RN–Bachelor of Science in Nursing students, through an online course, learned and applied the interpretive pedagogies in patient education. The online course was the educational intervention which laid the groundwork of the study. Data were then collected from 9 of 18 students who took the course and agreed to participate. Interviews were audiotaped face to face or by telephone and transcribed and interpreted for meanings. Two themes that emerged for teaching patient education included “Decentering Resources: Listening Through Questioning” and “Decentering Resources: Empowering Through Questioning.” This study revealed that, as students learned the interpretive pedagogies, resources (brochures, handouts, videos, etc.) took on less importance in their patient education practice. They recognized how resources frequently impeded patient–nurse interactions in teaching and learning encounters. Once students understood that they were perhaps depending too much on resources, they began engaging in questioning practices where significant meanings of listening and empowering in patient education unfolded. This study encourages nurse educators to teach students interpretive pedagogies in patient education to promote pedagogical literacy, which preserves the time-honored tradition of working together with patients during teaching and learning encounters

Root uptake of lipophilic zinc-rhamnolipid complexes

This study investigated the formation and plant uptake of lipophilic metal-rhamnolipid complexes. Monorhamnosyl and dirhamnosyl rhamnolipids formed lipophilic complexes with copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), and zinc (Zn). Rhamnolipids significantly increased Zn absorption by Brassica napus var. Pinnacle roots in 65Zn-spiked ice-cold solutions, compared with ZnSO4 alone. Therefore, rhamnolipid appeared to facilitate Zn absorption via a nonmetabolically mediated pathway. Synchrotron XRF and XAS showed that Zn was present in roots as Zn-phytate-like compounds when roots were treated with Zn-free solutions, ZnSO4, or Zn-EDTA. With rhamnolipid application, Zn was predominantly found in roots as the Zn-rhamnolipid complex. When applied to a calcareous soil, rhamnolipids increased dry matter production and Zn concentrations in durum (Triticum durum L. cv. Balcali-2000) and bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. BDME-10) shoots. Rhamnolipids either increased total plant uptake of Zn from the soil or increased Zn translocation by reducing the prevalence of insoluble Zn-phytate-like compounds in roots

Cultivating interpretive thinking through enacting narrative pedagogy

Teachers and educational researchers in nursing have persisted in their attempts to teach students critical thinking and to evaluate the effectiveness of these efforts. Yet, despite the plethora of studies investigating critical thinking, there is a paucity of research providing evidence that teachers’ efforts improve students’ thinking. The purpose of this interpretive phenomenological study is to explicate how students’ thinking can be extended when teachers use Narrative Pedagogy. Specifically, the theme Cultivating Interpretive Thinking refers to how teachers’ use of Narrative Pedagogy moves beyond the critical thinking movement’s emphasis on analytical thinking (ie, problem solving). Cultivating Interpretive Thinking offers an innovative approach for teaching and learning thinking that attends to students’ embodied, reflective, and pluralistic thinking experiences. Teachers who cultivate interpretive thinking add complexity to students’ thinking to better prepare them for challenging, complex, and unpredictable clinical environments

Building a home for the science of nursing education: Developing the NLN web-based repository

Development of an NLN Repository To begin constructing the NLN repository, NERAC identified necessary tasks: 1 the development of a thesaurus - or word list - to index nursing education research literature; 2 the development of a format for the parts of the literature the electronic repository would contain (e.g., literature citations and abstracts); 3 devising a methodology for scanning the literature for new research in nursing education; and 4 developing methods for continually adding items to the electronic repository and refining the repository in ways that enhance its use (10). Despite these barriers, the task group is currently investigating converting the NLN Literature Search Database for use as an online resource for nurse educators that would permit ease of data entry and retrieval of useful information