Harvest of the Month Kits for Early Care and Education Settings

Research tells us that a young child’s food preferences develop within the first few years of life as an infant transitions from eating one food to a multitude of foods with varying flavor profiles.1 With the understanding of a young child’s influential years, early care facilities have the ability to target these young years and help influence dietary preferences in a healthy, engaging, and positive way. For my capstone project, four Harvest of the Month (HOTM) Kits will be created to be used in Early Care and Education settings with three-to-five-year-olds. These HOTM Kits will be correlated with Georgia’s Department of Education’s kindergarten through twelfth grade Harvest of the Month resources. Each kit will combine a locally grown Georgia fruit or vegetable, recipe to prepare the seasonal produce, nutritional activity to tie in learning, children’s literature connection, handout to send home, and a local procurement handout. The goal of these kits are to provide a hands-on learning experience to enhance children’s knowledge of fruits and vegetables through activities and literature connections, allow them an opportunity to try new fruits and vegetables through taste testing, and empower them in the kitchen through recipe creations

Extracellular Matrix Hydrogel Promotes Tissue Remodeling, Arteriogenesis, and Perfusion in a Rat Hindlimb Ischemia Model.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to examine acellular extracellular matrix based hydrogels as potential therapies for treating peripheral artery disease (PAD). We tested the efficacy of using a tissue specific injectable hydrogel, derived from decellularized porcine skeletal muscle (SKM), compared to a new human umbilical cord derived matrix (hUC) hydrogel, which could have greater potential for tissue regeneration because of its young tissue source age.BackgroundThe prevalence of PAD is increasing and can lead to critical limb ischemia (CLI) with potential limb amputation. Currently there are no therapies for PAD that effectively treat all of the underlying pathologies, including reduced tissue perfusion and muscle atrophy.MethodsIn a rodent hindlimb ischemia model both hydrogels were injected 1-week post-surgery and perfusion was regularly monitored with laser speckle contrast analysis (LASCA) to 35 days post-injection. Histology and immunohistochemistry were used to assess neovascularization and muscle health. Whole transcriptome analysis was further conducted on SKM injected animals on 3 and 10 days post-injection.ResultsSignificant improvements in hindlimb tissue perfusion and perfusion kinetics were observed with both biomaterials. End point histology indicated this was a result of arteriogenesis, rather than angiogenesis, and that the materials were biocompatible. Skeletal muscle fiber morphology analysis indicated that the muscle treated with the tissue specific, SKM hydrogel more closely matched healthy tissue morphology. Short term histology also indicated arteriogenesis rather than angiogenesis, as well as improved recruitment of skeletal muscle progenitors. Whole transcriptome analysis indicated that the SKM hydrogel caused a shift in the inflammatory response, decreased cell death, and increased blood vessel and muscle development.ConclusionThese results show the efficacy of an injectable ECM hydrogel alone as a potential therapy for treating patients with PAD. Our results indicate that the SKM hydrogel improved functional outcomes through stimulation of arteriogenesis and muscle progenitor cell recruitment

Population Pharmacokinetic Modeling To Estimate the Contributions of Genetic and Nongenetic Factors to Efavirenz Disposition

Efavirenz pharmacokinetics is characterized by large between-subject variability, which determines both therapeutic response and adverse effects. Some of the variability in efavirenz pharmacokinetics has been attributed to genetic variability in cytochrome P450 genes that alter efavirenz metabolism, such as CYP2B6 and CYP2A6. While the effects of additional patient factors have been studied, such as sex, weight, and body mass index, the extent to which they contribute to variability in efavirenz exposure is inconsistently reported. The aim of this analysis was to develop a pharmacometric model to quantify the contribution of genetic and nongenetic factors to efavirenz pharmacokinetics. A population-based pharmacokinetic model was developed using 1,132 plasma efavirenz concentrations obtained from 73 HIV-seronegative volunteers administered a single oral dose of 600 mg efavirenz. A two-compartment structural model with absorption occurring by zero- and first-order processes described the data. Allometric scaling adequately described the relationship between fat-free mass and apparent oral clearance, as well as fat mass and apparent peripheral volume of distribution. Inclusion of fat-free mass and fat mass in the model mechanistically accounted for correlation between these disposition parameters and sex, weight, and body mass index. Apparent oral clearance of efavirenz was reduced by 25% and 51% in subjects predicted to have intermediate and slow CYP2B6 metabolizer status, respectively. The final pharmacokinetic model accounting for fat-free mass, fat mass, and CYP2B6 metabolizer status was consistent with known mechanisms of efavirenz disposition, efavirenz physiochemical properties, and pharmacokinetic theory. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under identifier NCT00668395.

The COS-Dwarfs Survey: The Carbon Reservoir Around sub-L* Galaxies

We report new observations of circumgalactic gas from the COS-Dwarfs survey, a systematic investigation of the gaseous halos around 43 low-mass z $\leq$ 0.1 galaxies using background QSOs observed with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph. From the projected 1D and 2D distribution of C IV absorption, we find that C IV absorption is detected out to ~ 0.5 R$_{vir}$ of the host galaxies. The C IV absorption strength falls off radially as a power law and beyond 0.5 R$_{vir}$, no C IV absorption is detected above our sensitivity limit of ~ 50-100 m$\AA$. We find a tentative correlation between detected C IV absorption strength and star formation, paralleling the strong correlation seen in highly ionized oxygen for L~L* galaxies by the COS-Halos survey. The data imply a large carbon reservoir in the CGM of these galaxies, corresponding to a minimum carbon mass of $\gtrsim$ 1.2$\times 10^6$ $M_\odot$ out to ~ 110 kpc. This mass is comparable to the carbon mass in the ISM and more than the carbon mass currently in stars of these galaxies. The C IV absorption seen around these sub-L* galaxies can account for almost two-thirds of all $W_r$> 100 m$\AA$ C IV absorption detected at low z. Comparing the C IV covering fraction with hydrodynamical simulations, we find that an energy-driven wind model is consistent with the observations whereas a wind model of constant velocity fails to reproduce the CGM or the galaxy properties.Comment: 18 Pages, 11 Figures, ApJ 796 13

Increased brain activation during working memory processing after pediatric mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

Purpose: The neural substrate of post-concussive symptoms following the initial injury period after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in pediatric populations remains poorly elucidated. This study examined neuropsychological, behavioral, and brain functioning in adolescents post-mTBI to assess whether persistent differences were detectable up to a year post-injury. Methods: Nineteen adolescents (mean age 14.7 years) who experienced mTBI 3–12 months previously (mean 7.5 months) and 19 matched healthy controls (mean age 14.0 years) completed neuropsychological testing and an fMRI auditory-verbal N-back working memory task. Parents completed behavioral ratings. Results: No between-group differences were found for cognition, behavior, or N-back task performance, though the expected decreased accuracy and increased reaction time as task difficulty increased were apparent. However, the mTBI group showed significantly greater brain activation than controls during the most difficult working memory task condition. Conclusion: Greater working memory task-related activation was found in adolescents up to one year post-mTBI relative to controls, potentially indicating compensatory activation to support normal task performance. Differences in brain activation in the mTBI group so long after injury may indicate residual alterations in brain function much later than would be expected based on the typical pattern of natural recovery, which could have important clinical implications

The COS-Halos Survey: Physical Conditions and Baryonic Mass in the Low-Redshift Circumgalactic Medium

We analyze the physical conditions of the cool, photoionized (T $\sim 10^4$ K) circumgalactic medium (CGM) using the COS-Halos suite of gas column density measurements for 44 gaseous halos within 160 kpc of $L \sim L^*$ galaxies at $z \sim 0.2$. These data are well described by simple photoionization models, with the gas highly ionized (n$_{\rm HII}$/n$_{\rm H} \gtrsim 99\%$) by the extragalactic ultraviolet background (EUVB). Scaling by estimates for the virial radius, R$_{\rm vir}$, we show that the ionization state (tracked by the dimensionless ionization parameter, U) increases with distance from the host galaxy. The ionization parameters imply a decreasing volume density profile n$_{\rm H}$ = (10$^{-4.2 \pm 0.25}$)(R/R$_{\rm vir})^{-0.8\pm0.3}$. Our derived gas volume densities are several orders of magnitude lower than predictions from standard two-phase models with a cool medium in pressure equilibrium with a hot, coronal medium expected in virialized halos at this mass scale. Applying the ionization corrections to the HI column densities, we estimate a lower limit to the cool gas mass M$_{\rm CGM}^{\rm cool} > 6.5 \times 10^{10}$ M$_{\odot}$ for the volume within R $<$ R$_{\rm vir}$. Allowing for an additional warm-hot, OVI-traced phase, the CGM accounts for at least half of the baryons purported to be missing from dark matter halos at the 10$^{12}$ M$_{\odot}$ scale.Comment: 19 pages, 12 Figures, and a 37-page Appendix with 36 additional figures. Accepted to ApJ June 21 201

Ethanol Activation of Protein Kinase A Regulates GABAA Receptor Subunit Expression in the Cerebral Cortex and Contributes to Ethanol-Induced Hypnosis

Protein kinases are implicated in neuronal cell functions such as modulation of ion channel function, trafficking, and synaptic excitability. Both protein kinase C (PKC) and A (PKA) are involved in regulation of γ-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptors through phosphorylation. However, the role of PKA in regulating GABAA receptors (GABAA-R) following acute ethanol exposure is not known. The present study investigated the role of PKA in the effects of ethanol on GABAA-R α1 subunit expression in rat cerebral cortical P2 synaptosomal fractions. Additionally, GABA-related behaviors were examined. Rats were administered ethanol (2.0–3.5 g/kg) or saline and PKC, PKA, and GABAA-R α1 subunit levels were measured by western blot analysis. Ethanol (3.5 g/kg) transiently increased GABAA-R α1 subunit expression and PKA RIIβ subunit expression at similar time points whereas PKA RIIα was increased at later time points. In contrast, PKC isoform expression remained unchanged. Notably, lower ethanol doses (2.0 g/kg) had no effect on GABAA-R α1 subunit levels, although PKA type II regulatory subunits RIIα and RIIβ were increased at 10 and 60 min when PKC isozymes are also known to be elevated. To determine if PKA activation was responsible for the ethanol-induced elevation of GABAA-R α1 subunits, the PKA antagonist H89 was administered to rats prior to ethanol exposure. H89 administration prevented ethanol-induced increases in GABAA-R α1 subunit expression. Moreover, increasing PKA activity intracerebroventricularly with Sp-cAMP prior to a hypnotic dose of ethanol increased ethanol-induced loss of righting reflex (LORR) duration. This effect appears to be mediated in part by GABAA-R as increasing PKA activity also increased the duration of muscimol-induced LORR. Overall, these data suggest that PKA mediates ethanol-induced GABAA-R expression and contributes to behavioral effects of ethanol involving GABAA-R