Increased Numbers of IL-7 Receptor Molecules on CD4+CD25−CD107a+ T-Cells in Patients with Autoimmune Diseases Affecting the Central Nervous System

BACKGROUND: High content immune profiling in peripheral blood may reflect immune aberrations associated with inflammation in multiple sclerosis (MS) and other autoimmune diseases affecting the central nervous system. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 46 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), 9 patients diagnosed with relapsing remitting MS (RRMS), 13 with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), 9 with other neurological diseases (OND) and well as 15 healthy donors (HD) were analyzed by 12 color flow cytometry (TCRalphabeta, TCRgammadelta, CD4, CD8alpha, CD8beta, CD45RA, CCR7, CD27, CD28, CD107a, CD127, CD14) in a cross-sectional study to identify variables significantly different between controls (HD) and patients (OND, RRMS, SPMS). We analyzed 187 individual immune cell subsets (percentages) and the density of the IL-7 receptor alpha chain (CD127) on 59 individual immune phenotypes using a monoclonal anti-IL-7R antibody (clone R34.34) coupled to a single APC molecule in combination with an APC-bead array. A non-parametric analysis of variance (Kruskal-Wallis test) was conducted in order to test for differences among the groups in each of the variables. To correct for the multiplicity problem, the FDR correction was applied on the p-values. We identified 19 variables for immune cell subsets (percentages) which allowed to segregate healthy individuals and individuals with CNS disorders. We did not observe differences in the relative percentage of IL-7R-positive immune cells in PBMCs. In contrast, we identified significant differences in IL-7 density, measured on a single cell level, in 2/59 variables: increased numbers of CD127 molecules on TCRalphabeta+CD4+CD25 (intermed) T-cells and on TCRalphabeta+CD4+CD25-CD107a+ T-cells (mean: 28376 Il-7R binding sites on cells from HD, 48515 in patients with RRMS, 38195 in patients with SPMS and 33692 IL-7 receptor binding sites on cells from patients with OND). CONCLUSION: These data show that immunophenotyping represents a powerful tool to differentiate healthy individuals from individuals suffering from neurological diseases and that the number of IL-7 receptor molecules on differentiated TCRalphabeta+CD4+CD25-CD107a+ T-cells, but not the percentage of IL-7R-positive cells, segregates healthy individuals from patients with neurological disorders

Troubles with the Internet: The dynamics of help at home

Despite advances in technology, nearly everyone experiences technical challenges using home computers and the Internet. In a field trial of household Internet usage, 89 % of 93 families needed support from a computer help desk in the 1st year they used the Internet. However, usually only the most technically involved members of the family requested external technical support, and this behavior was associated with other computer-related behaviors in the household. We explore the process by which a family member with comparatively high technical skill or enthusiasm, often a teenager, becomes the family guru, makes external support requests, and becomes the person in the family to whom others turn for technical help. The family guru benefits from this role, in-Sara Kiesler is Professor of Human–Computer Interaction at Carnegie Mellon University; she studies social and organizational aspects of technological change and communication systems. Bozena Zdaniuk is Data Management Coordinator for the Pittsburgh Mind Body Center at the University of Pittsburgh; she is a social psychologist working in health psychology and mental health. Vicki Lundmark is a sociologist and current Senior Research Scientis

Troubles With the Internet: The Dynamics Of . . .

Despite advances in technology, nearly everyone experiences technical challenges using home computers and the Internet. In a field trial of household Internet usage, 89% of 93 families needed support from a computer help desk in the 1st year they used the Internet. However, usually only the most technically involved members of the family requested external technical support, and this behavior was associated with other computer-related behaviors in the household. We explore the process by which a family member with comparatively high technical skill or enthusiasm, often a teenager, becomes the family guru

Funding Big Research With Small Money

This department highlights change management strategies that may be successful in strategically planning and executing organizational change initiatives. With the goal of presenting practical approaches helpful to nurse leaders advancing organizational change, content includes evidence-based projects, tools, and resources that mobilize and sustain organizational change initiatives. In this article, the guest authors introduce crowd sourcing as a strategy for funding big research with small money. Copyright © 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Building Research Infrastructure In Magnet® Hospitals: Current Status And Future Directions

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to describe the infrastructures supporting research in Magnet® hospitals. BACKGROUND Hospitals undertaking the journey toward Magnet designation must build research and evidence-based practice (EBP) infrastructures that support the infusion of research and EBP into clinical practice. METHODS An electronic survey was developed and distributed to the chief nursing officer or Magnet coordinator of all Magnet hospitals between June 10, 2015, and July 8, 2015. RESULTS Of the 418 Magnet hospitals invited, 249 responses (60%) were received. Resources dedicated to nursing research were difficult to isolate from those for EBP. Supporting clinical nurses\u27 time away from the bedside remains a challenge. Nearly half (44%) indicated that research is conducted within the nurses\u27 usual clinical hours, and 40% indicated that nurses participate on their own time. CONCLUSIONS Hospitals use a variety of resources and mentor arrangements to support research and EBP, often the same resources. More targeted resources are needed to fully integrate research into clinical practice