Characterizing Mouse LINE-1 5’UTR Antisense Promoter Activities

Mice are often the model of choice for genomic research because of their high similarity to the human genome and relatively easy maintenance. Thus, understanding the mechanisms and principles of their genome is vital to advancing our knowledge about human biology. Long interspersed elements type 1 (LINE-1s or L1s) are transposable elements within mammalian DNA. Promoter activities have been identified for the human L1 5’ untranslated region (5’UTR) in both the sense and antisense orientation, but it was previously unknown if mouse L1 5’UTRs have antisense promoter activity. The goal of my project was to uncover mouse L1 5’UTR promoter activity in the antisense orientation. Various mouse L1 5’UTR promoters were designed in the antisense orientation. The promoter constructs were transfected into NIH/3T3 mouse fibroblast cells, and the promoter activity was quantitatively assessed by a dual-luciferase assay. The results showed promoter activity in the antisense orientation. Like the human genome, mouse L1s display both sense and antisense promoter activities revealing a further similarity between the two species

OurStory: Leveraging College Admission Essays to Reframe Beliefs and Shape Positive Personal Narratives in African-American Adolescents

The stories we tell can shape our lives and our experiences. Unfortunately, many African American adolescents are often subjected to stereotypes and one-sided deficit narratives that can become self-fulfilling prophecies undermining their achievement, aspirations, and well-being. However, the college admission process offers an intervention opportunity to help these students tell a different story—their story. In this paper, the author presents an analysis of the threats and opportunities inherent in the college-admission process and a literature review on topics aligned to three pillars—beliefs, belonging, and becoming. The paper concludes with the application plan for an intervention that leverages the college admission essay and essay-writing process to reframe beliefs and shape positive personal narratives. Inspired by research from narrative psychology, social psychology, and positive psychology, OurStory challenges dominant deficit narratives and aims to improve academic outcomes, college matriculation rates, and adolescent flourishing and well-being

Implementation of SBAR tool in a Rural Hospital

Introduction: Patient handovers between healthcare providers during shift change or unit and interfacility transfers are a vulnerable time for inadequate communication. To ensure a handover is concise, healthcare organizations must implement and educate their staff on evidence-based communication tools. Methods: SBAR is a communication tool commonly used during a handover. SBAR allows for a steady flow of report and a reduction of information missed. When nurses use SBAR, the efficiency of their report improves and handover time is decreased. By decreasing interfacility handover time, patients may be transferred to higher levels of care faster. By receiving more advanced care faster, patient safety may be enhanced. Gaps: There is a gap in the literature regarding SBAR report to interfacility transfer teams and decreased information is available comparing SBAR to other communication tools. Recommendations for Practice: Implementation of the SBAR tool during interfacility patient handover may reduce transfer times and improve patient safety. The SBAR template must be customized to meet the needs of those utilizing it. It takes a team effort with solid leadership to implement and sustain the SBAR tool on a nursing unit

The Effects of Selected Football Drills on Agility

Modern era football with pursuit defenses and multiple offenses has confronted coaches with the problem of developing agile football players. Complex defensive and offensive patterns demand that a considerable amount of the daily practice time be devoted to the improvement of the agility of the athlete. The purpose of this study was to determine and evaluate the effects of an agility, employing an agility maze, two man sled, and reaction drills. Limitations: no attempt was made to regulate sleep, diet, and regular living habits of the subjects, length of the agility training program was five times per week for a three week period, previous experience of the subjects with testing procedures was not considered, the sampling was small due to the limited number of subjects available to the writer, control over outside physical activities was not entirely limited. Subjects remained in assigned physical education classes and were allowed to complete their present intramural activity

Invertebrate Neurophysiology: Testing the Efficacy of Natural Insecticides

Insecticides are widely used in agriculture. While there are several classes of synthetic insecticides that are highly effective against insects, there is data suggesting that these compounds are also toxic to non-target species. However, compounds like caffeine have been shown to act as natural insecticides. Here we investigate the effects of a wellknown class of insecticides, pyrethroids, as well as natural compounds such as caffeine. Since insecticides work at the level of the nervous system we propose to measure neural activity in crickets (Acheta Domestica) after exposure to synthetic and naturally occurring insecticides. Here we show our approach and preliminary experiments which demonstrate successful neuron recordings from the cricket

Impulse

Features:[Page] 2 Expo proves to be vital recruiting tool[Page] 4 Bridge designers span indoor river[Page] 5 EET, MNET students learn from the experts[Page] 6 BattleBot team creates new, manner battling robotCollege: [Page] 10 Solberg Hall set to open its historic doors once more[Page] 12 Activated Guard members awaken campus to Iraqi conflict[Page] 16 College writes new software engineering degreeStudents: [Page] 18 ME students design 65-foot tower at Kirby Science Center[Page] 22 Engineers Without Borders created to help needy areas 22[Page] 23 Students form CEO, a new entrepreneurship group [Page] 24 The ASCE chapter earns a clean sweep of the Regents awards[Page] 25 Dynamic Doer lives up to award\u27s nameFaculty: [Page] 26 Nadim Wehbe directs equipping of high-bay structures lab[Page] 27 New civil engineering head experienced with accreditation[Page] 28 Former Deere worker named as department head[Page] 29 A familiar name, Dennis Helder, heads new departmentAlumni: [Page] 32 Forsyth directs major efforts at the National Severe Storm Lab[Page] 34 Holt, Madden, Weaver named distinguished engineers[Page] 35 Phonathon cashes in on contactsContributors: [Page] 36-38 Dean\u27s Club[Page] 39-48 Donorshttps://openprairie.sdstate.edu/coe_impulse/1018/thumbnail.jp

Crafting a Curriculum to Promote Adolescent Flourishing Through Photography

SeeingHappy, a nonprofit organization that seeks to use photography to enhance happiness and flourishing, tasked a team from the University of Pennsylvania to develop a well- being curriculum targeting adolescents. This curriculum, Happiness + photography, is rooted in evidence that suggests engagement in the arts and humanities, specifically photography, contributes to well-being through a variety of mechanisms, namely: creating, connecting, noticing, reframing, and storytelling. In addition to targeting adolescent students, the curriculum is geared toward educators for use in the classroom. Experiential learning and personal reflection are central in each lesson plan. With this curriculum in hand, SeeingHappy is positioned to develop further insights about the connections between photography, happiness, and human flourishing, and to make meaningful contributions to the emerging field of the positive humanities

Experience-Induced Interocular Plasticity of Vision in Infancy

Animal model studies of amblyopia have generally concluded that enduring effects of monocular deprivation (MD) on visual behavior (i.e., loss of visual acuity) are limited to the deprived eye, and are restricted to juvenile life. We have previously reported, however, that lasting effects of MD on visual function can be elicited in adulthood by stimulating visuomotor experience through the non-deprived eye. To test whether stimulating experience would also induce interocular plasticity of vision in infancy, we assessed in rats from eye-opening on postnatal day (P) 15, the effect of pairing MD with the daily experience of measuring thresholds for optokinetic tracking (OKT). MD with visuomotor experience from P15 to P25 led to a ~60% enhancement of the spatial frequency threshold for OKT through the non-deprived eye during the deprivation, which was followed by loss-of-function (~60% below normal) through both eyes when the deprived eye was opened. Reduced thresholds were maintained into adulthood with binocular OKT experience from P25 to P30. The ability to generate the plasticity and maintain lost function was dependent on visual cortex. Strictly limiting the period of deprivation to infancy by opening the deprived eye at P19 resulted in a comparable loss-of-function. Animals with reduced OKT responses also had significantly reduced visual acuity, measured independently in a discrimination task. Thus, experience-dependent cortical plasticity that can lead to amblyopia is present earlier in life than previously recognized