Use of adaptive learning technology to promote self-directed learning in a pharmacists’ patient care process course

Objective. To evaluate student changes in self-directed learning (SDL) in a Pharmacists’ Patient Care Process (PPCP) course using adaptive learning technology (ALT). Methods. The Pharmacists’ Patient Care Process was delivered using traditional teaching methods in fall 2018 and ALT in spring 2019. First-year student pharmacists were surveyed three times throughout the academic year on SDL factors. Focus groups were conducted at the end of the spring semester to identify perceptions of course delivery. Multilevel linear modeling and qualitative content analysis were used to evaluate survey responses and focus group feedback, respectively. Results. Ninety-two of 106 students completed all three surveys. Scores on stress management and examination management increased from the beginning to the end of the academic year. Scores on seminar (lecture) learning proficiency, procrastination management, and time management decreased from the beginning to the end of the year. Assignment management and comprehension competence trends varied from the end of the first semesters to the end of the second semester. Themes identified from the focus groups were student learning preferences, semester comparisons, value, and technology. Conclusion. Student pharmacists struggled with the integration of ALT into their previously established study routines. Focus groups helped add context to students’ SDL scores. Although significant differences were found between some SDL factors, it was not possible to conclude that implementation of ALT improved SDL

Maternal and nourishment factors interact to influence offspring developmental trajectories in social wasps

The social and nutritional environments during early development have the potential to affect offspring traits, but the mechanisms and molecular underpinnings of these effects remain elusive. We used Polistes fuscatus paper wasps to dissect how maternally controlled factors (vibrational signals and nourishment) interact to induce different caste developmental trajectories in female offspring, leading to worker or reproductive (gyne) traits. We established a set of caste phenotype biomarkers in P. fuscatus females, finding that gyne-destined individuals had high expression of three caste-related genes hypothesized to have roles in diapause and mitochondrial metabolism. We then experimentally manipulated maternal vibrational signals (via artificial ‘antennal drumming’) and nourishment levels (via restricted foraging). We found that these caste-related biomarker genes were responsive to drumming, nourishment level or their interaction. Our results provide a striking example of the potent influence of maternal and nutritional effects in influencing transcriptional activity and developmental outcomes in offspring

Anti-Roll Bar for SAE Baja Vehicle

This report explores the need to improve the Zips Baja vehicle handling performance. This will be achieved by designing an anti-roll bar system for the rear suspension of the Zips Baja vehicle to decrease the turning radius of the vehicle. The project develops specific goals to achieve increased performance, goes through the engineering design cycle to create a prototype, evaluate its effectiveness, optimize the design through several iterations, and design a final solution. After sub-functions have been determined, conceptual ideas for completing all sub-functions were evaluated and a conceptual design was selected to proceed into the embodiment design phase. Once the embodiment design was completed, calculations detailing the theory of an anti-roll bar were explored and applied. These calculations showed evidence the anti-roll bar would be successful in achieving the goal of increased performance, but further verification was needed to establish a relationship between anti-roll bar characteristics and performance. A prototype system was made and then subjected to testing to establish the necessary relationship between anti-roll bar characteristics and vehicle performance. After field testing, a second iteration of the system was produced to improve on the initial prototype. The final product resulted in satisfying the goals that were initially set

Prescribing trends of proton pump inhibitors, antipsychotics and benzodiazepines of medicare part d providers

Background: Proton pump inhibitors, benzodiazepines, and antipsychotics are considered potentially inappropriate medications in older adults according to the American Geriatric Society Beers Criteria, and deprescribing algorithms have been developed to guide use of these drug classes. The objective of this study was to describe the number of beneficiaries prescribed these medications, provider specialty and regional trends in prescribing, and the aggregate costs for these claims in Medicare Part D. Methods: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study using publicly available Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data: Part D Prescriber data for years 2013–2019. Descriptive statistics and the Cochrane-Armitage test were used to summarize the trends. Results: Overall, 30.1%, 25.6%, 4.6% of Medicare Part D beneficiaries had a proton pump inhibitor, benzodiazepine, and antipsychotic claim in 2013, respectively. These rates decreased to 27.5%, 17.5%, 4.1% in 2019 (p-value \u3c 0.0001). However, the number of standardized 30-day claims increased from 63 million in 2013 to 84 million in 2019 for proton pump inhibitors, remained steady for benzodiazepines and slightly increased (10 million to 13 million) for antipsychotics. Total aggregate costs decreased by almost $1.5 billion for proton pump inhibitor,$100 million for benzodiazepine, and $700 million for antipsychotic from 2013 to 2019 (p-value \u3c 0.0001). Almost 93% of gastroenterologists prescribed a proton pump inhibitor, and 60% of psychiatrists prescribed benzodiazepines and antipsychotics all seven years. The Other region had the highest percentage of providers prescribing all three classes and the highest number of standardized 30-day benzodiazepine claims. Conclusions: The overall rate of use of proton pump inhibitors, benzodiazepines, and antipsychotics decreased from 2013–2019 among Medicare Part D beneficiaries. Despite the increase in raw number of standardized 30-day claims, the costs decreased which is likely due to generics made available. These prescribing trends may aid in identifying and targeting potential deprescribing interventions

Different axes of environmental variation explain the presence vs. extent of cooperative nest founding associations in Polistes paper wasps

Ecological constraints on independent breeding are recognised as major drivers of cooperative breeding across diverse lineages. How the prevalence and degree of cooperative breeding relates to ecological variation remains unresolved. Using a large data set of cooperative nesting in Polistes wasps we demonstrate that different aspects of cooperative breeding are likely to be driven by different aspects of climate. Whether or not a species forms cooperative groups is associated with greater short‐term temperature fluctuations. In contrast, the number of cooperative foundresses increases in more benign environments with warmer, wetter conditions. The same data set reveals that intraspecific responses to climate variation do not mirror genus‐wide trends and instead are highly heterogeneous among species. Collectively these data suggest that the ecological drivers that lead to the origin or loss of cooperation are different from those that influence the extent of its expression within populations.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113673/1/ele12488.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113673/2/ele12488_am.pd

Functional Characterization of HLA-G+ Regulatory T Cells in HIV-1 Infection

Regulatory T cells represent a specialized subpopulation of T lymphocytes that may modulate spontaneous HIV-1 disease progression by suppressing immune activation or inhibiting antiviral T cell immune responses. While the effects of classical CD25hi FoxP3+ Treg during HIV-1 infection have been analyzed in a series of recent investigations, very little is known about the role of non-classical regulatory T cells that can be phenotypically identified by surface expression of HLA-G or the TGF-β latency-associated peptide (LAP). Here, we show that non-classical HLA-G-expressing CD4 Treg are highly susceptible to HIV-1 infection and significantly reduced in persons with progressive HIV-1 disease courses. Moreover, the proportion of HLA-G+ CD4 and CD8 T cells was inversely correlated to markers of HIV-1 associated immune activation. Mechanistically, this corresponded to an increased ability of HLA-G+ Treg to reduce bystander immune activation, while only minimally inhibiting the functional properties of HIV-1-specific T cells. Frequencies of LAP+ CD4 Treg were not significantly reduced in HIV-1 infection, and unrelated to immune activation. These data indicate an important role of HLA-G+ Treg for balancing bystander immune activation and anti-viral immune activity in HIV-1 infection and suggest that the loss of these cells during advanced HIV-1 infection may contribute to immune dysregulation and HIV-1 disease progression

Proteins in soy might have a higher role in cancer prevention than previously expected: soybean protein fractions are more effective MMP-9 inhibitors than non-protein fractions, even in cooked seeds

The search for anticancer MMP-9 inhibitors (MMPIs) in food products has become a major goal for research. MMPIs in soy have been related only to saponins and isoflavones, but recently, low specific protein fractions in soybeans were shown to reduce MMP-9 activity as well. The present work aimed at comparing the MMPI potential of protein fractions (P) and non-protein fractions (NP) isolated from soybean seeds, before and after soaking and cooking, mimicking dietary exposures. Reverse and substrate zymography, as well as a fluoregenic DQ gelatin assay were used to evaluate MMP-9 activities. Colon cancer cell migration and proliferation was also tested in HT29 cells. Regarding MMP-9 inhibition, proteins in soy presented IC50 values 100 times lower than non-protein extracts, and remained active after cooking, suggesting that proteins may be more effective MMP-9 inhibitors than non-protein compounds. Using the determined IC50 concentrations, NP fractions were able to induce higher inhibitions of HT29 cell migration and proliferation, but not through MMP-9 inhibition, whilst protein fractions were shown to specifically inhibit MMP-9 activity. Overall, our results show that protein fractions in soybeans might have a higher role in soy-related cancer prevention as MMPIs than previously expected. Being nontoxic and active at lower concentrations, the discovery of these heat-resistant specific MMPI proteins in soy can be of significant importance for cancer preventive diets, particularly considering the increasing use of soy proteins in food products and the controversy around isoflavones amongst consumersinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio