An Examination of Collectivist Cultural Orientation Among Middle Eastern College Students of Different Gender, Generation Status, and Academic Class Standing

The purpose of this study was to examine the levels of collectivist cultural orientation among Middle Eastern college students of differing academic class levels, generation status, and gender. In Spring 2003 and 2004 semesters, Middle Eastern students from the University of Maryland (N = 92; 43 men, 49 women; average age of 20.7 years) completed the Middle Eastern Values Scale (MVS), a modified version of the Asian Values Scale (AVS), developed by the author. The overall results showed no significant differences (p >.05) for all three hypotheses, indicating that collectivist cultural orientation among Middle Eastern students does not differ by academic class level, generation status, and gender. This lack of findings may infer that a collectivist cultural orientation among the Middle Eastern students in this study is somewhat consistent, and is not shaped by gender roles, immigration status, and maturity during college

The Laryngeal-Modular Skin Retractor

Self-retaining skin retractors provide an open and wide surgical window during procedures without the need for additional manual retraction from OR staff. These devices are prevalent across a variety of surgeries, but in our area of interest, laryngectomy procedures, there are no current devices available on the market. Therefore, the extensive amount of skin and muscle tissue must be retracted manually by the surgical assistants. Laryngectomies are a very lengthy procedure. Therefore, the surgical assistants can become fatigued, increasing the probability of human error when manually retracting these tissues. The goal of our device is to provide a viable solution that will retract the skin and muscle tissues without compromising the surgical window for the physicians so that surgical assistants would be allowed to aid in other components of the procedure. Our device will reduce the amount of operating room time and lower the cost of expenses, for both the hospital and the patient

Identifying Drivers for the Development of Virtual Social Networks in Identifying Entrepreneurial Opportunities

The current research was conducted with the aim of identifying the effective drivers for the development of virtual social networks in identifying entrepreneurial opportunities. Virtual social networks, as a network of human communication, include WhatsApp, Instagram, Google Plus, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and other platforms that include many opportunities in the field of entrepreneurship. The research was applied in terms of its purpose, and in terms of the nature and method of data collection, it was analytical-exploratory and of a mixed approach, in which Content analysis method was used in the qualitative part, and the MicMac method was used in the quantitative part. The intended sample in the qualitative section includes 9 experts, and in the quantitative section, it includes 20 experts who are proficient in the subject, who were selected by snowball sampling. The method of data collection in the qualitative part included library studies and interviews, and in the quantitative part it included the MicMac questionnaire. At the stage of library studies and interviews, 18 primary variables were identified, and 16 variables were used for quantitative analysis by adjusting the opinions of experts. After analyzing the data obtained from the MicMac questionnaire, 10 variables were determined as effective drivers. The results show that the most effective factor include; The size of virtual social networks and the presence of business contacts in virtual social networks and the least effective variable include; Transfer of information and existence of information resources in virtual social network

Effects of halofenate and probenecid on serum lipids and uric acid in hyperlipidemic, hyperuricemic adults

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/117081/1/cpt1977223340.pd

The effect of Ku on telomere replication time is mediated by telomere length but is independent of histone tail acetylation

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Biomimetic Composite Chitosan-Clay Films to Direct Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell and Osteoblast Spread Area and Morphology

Advances in engineering complex tissues that can mimic native tissue functions hold enormous promise in biomedicine. Treatment of bone disorders and injuries often requires bone-tissue engineering at the chondral interface. In this study, our research group is exploring the use of chitosan, a hydrophilic glucosamine polymer which can minimize cell adhesion, and Laponite„¢, a clay which has been shown to improve homogeneity across a film surface, to construct nanocomposites as interfacial films to improve osteointegration on titanium alloy substrates. Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) were seeded atop our samples to assess cell-material interactions. Fluorescence microscopy was used to visualize actin and cell nuclei. Film morphologies were assessed via atomic force microscopy (AFM). Cell area and circularity were determined using automated functions in CellProfiler„¢. Investigations of film surface morphology with AFM have demonstrated homogeneous film formation. Significant size and shape differences were observed between hMSCs seeded atop Cs, Cs-Lap, and Lap surfaces without a corresponding difference in number of cells. Most notably, hMSCs atop chitosan-containing films adopt budding morphologies that depart from the typical elongated morphology observed on rigid 2D substrates. The respective contributions of chitosan and LaponiteTM to film and cell behavior is a focus of ongoing work and may enable tunability of advanced cell functions toward bone regenerative applications

Purification and characterization of proteins required for the assembly of a sequence-specific complex at a yeast origin of replication

Previous work from our laboratory has demonstrated that three distinct DNA-binding activities, in crude form, are necessary for the ATP-dependent assembly of a specific and stable multiprotein complex at a yeast origin of replication (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA. 1992. 89(23): 11156–60.). One of these three activities is the known replication enhancer protein ABF1. In this work we show the purification to homogeneity of the activity referred to as OBF2, and the partial purification of the other unknown factor, CBF. The purified OBF2 is a heterodimer composed of two polypeptides with apparent molecular mass values of 65 and 80 kDa. Purified OBF2 not only binds DNA but also supports the formation of a CBF-containing complex at essential sequences within the ARS121 origin of replication. Interestingly, OBF2 binds tightly and nonspecifically to both duplex DNA and single-stranded DNA. The interaction with duplex DNA occurs at the double-stranded DNA termini. The requirement of OBF2 for the formation of the sequence-specific protein complex at ARS121 is not satisfied by the binding of OBF2 to the DNA termini only. ^ Amino terminal sequencing of the 65 kDa subunit has revealed that this polypeptide is identical to the previously identified Hdf1 peptide, a yeast homolog of the small subunit of the mammalian Ku autoantigen. Although the potential involvement of Ku in DNA metabolic events has previously been proposed, this is the first requirement for a Ku-like protein in the assembly of a protein complex at essential sequences within a eukaryotic origin of replication. ^ Although the CBF activity has not yet been purified to homogeneity, it shares some of the physical and biochemical properties of the origin recognition complex (ORC), a six subunit protein known to interact with essential sequences at a variety of yeast origins (Nature. 1992. 357(6374): 128–134.). The potential significance of the multiprotein complex that we have formed in vitro is discussed in relation to the known activities of the Ku-like proteins as well as the function of protein-DNA complexes at chromosomal origins of replication.