Discrimination, Acculturation, Acculturative Stress, and Latino Psychological Distress: A Moderated-Mediational Model

Prior research has found that perceived discrimination is associated with adverse mental health outcomes among Latinos. However, the process by which this relationship occurs remains an understudied area. The present study investigated the role of acculturative stress in underlying the relationship between perceived discrimination and Latino psychological distress. Also examined was the ability of acculturation to serve as a moderator between perceived discrimination and acculturative stress. Among a sample of Latino adults (N = 669), moderated mediational analyses revealed that acculturative stress mediated the perceived discrimination-psychological distress relationship, and that the link between perceived discrimination and acculturative stress was moderated by Anglo behavioral orientation but not Latino behavioral orientation. The findings are discussed within a stress and coping perspective that identifies the psychological consequences associated with perceived discrimination and acculturative stress

A Study of the Collection and Sharing of Student Data with Virginia Universities

Data collection is a vital component in any organization in regards to keeping track of user activity, gaining statistics and improving the user experience, and user identification. While the underlying basis of data collection is understandable, the use of this data has to be closely regulated and documented. In many cases, the VCDPA (Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act) outlines the guidelines for data use, data controller responsibilities, and limitations however nonprofit organizations are exempt from compliance. Colleges and universities, although still held to some degree of limitation, range in permissiveness with what data they choose to collect and retain but more importantly how and who they share their data with. This study implemented the use of open-coding techniques to look into seventeen different public and private universities in the state of Virginia. Their privacy policies were looked over and compared to the guidelines of the VCDPA to see if Universities were to follow the Data Protection Act, would they uphold the assessments and guidelines. Each of the seventeen universities collected different information and had different policies about who they shared their data too, if at all. A rudimentary scale was created to put each University in a placement. A One on the scale showed that the University was very conservative with their data collection and did not allow any distribution of the University\u27s data to be shared or sold to third party companies. They followed the necessary laws from the government (i.e., turning over student documentation in the case of an investigation, etc) and reserved all other data for the University. A Five on the scale represented an extremely permissive policy that shared data with third-parties and that would violate the VCDPA guidelines if they were held against them. Finally, after all the information was gathered and organized, the question arose of Should nonprofit organizations be held to the same guidelines as for-profits and why? The findings draw attention to the gap in accountability between for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and highlight how some nonprofits have taken advantage of the deliberate inattention and freedoms given to them

Evaluation of the Effects of Low Temperature on the Anaerobic Digestion of Animal Wastes

The history of anaerobic sludge digestion has shown an ever increasing body of knowledge concerning the causes and operation of anaerobic organic wastes. Two of the earliest methods used in he anaerobic treatment of organicwastes were cesspools and septic tanks. The theory of the design of these units was based upon retaining the waste material and allowing it to undergo bacterial decomposition. An improvement in the anaerobic treatment process was made with the advent of the Imhoff tank. In this unit the sedimentation and digestion portions were separated so that the sludge digestion unit was not in contact with the incoming sewage. Imhoff tanks flowed the design criteria of providing enough volume to hold the sludge until it was decomposed or until it was discharged. The above processes were operated at the temperature established by the incoming waste material and the environmental conditions. It was observed that the waste was broken down faster in the summer than in the winter. Based on this knowledge many studies were undertaken to determine the optimum temperatures for the degredation of organic material under anaerobic conditions. The vast majority of these investigations wee in the mesophilic and thermophilic temperature ranges. This is understandable because ir is at these higher temperatures that the faster reduction of organic waste is accomplished. Some study is needed, however, to determine the rate of solids reduction in the cryophilic (below 10°C) and temperate (10°-28°C) zones. The animal waste lagoons in northern climate utilizes anaerobic processes in the stabilization of their organic waste material. The design criteria for those units gives little consideration to the solids reduction occurring in the bottom sludge layer of the lagoon. The seasonal and daily variation in air temperature made the problem of evaluating solids reduction even more acute. The variation in temperature of the lower sludge layers of an animal waste laggon does not have the extreme variation of the air temperature. The objective of this laboratory investigation was to study the anaerobic reduction of organic fecal material at temperature approximating those found in the sludge layers of animal waste lagoons in northern climates. These ambient temperatures are generally less than 25°C and in most cases are those temperatures that prevail for the ground water at the lagoon location

A response to Rome: lessons from pre- and post-publication data-sharing in the C. elegans research community

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In recent years numerous studies have undertaken to measure the impact of patents, material transfer agreements, data-withholding and commercialization pressures on biomedical researchers. Of particular concern is the theory that such pressures may have negative effects on academic and other upstream researchers. In response to these concerns, commentators in some research communities have called for an increased level of access to, and sharing of, data and research materials. We have been studying how data and materials are shared in the community of researchers who use the nematode <it>Caenorhabditis elegans </it>(<it>C. elegans</it>) as a model organism for biological research. Specifically, we conducted a textual analysis of academic articles referencing <it>C. elegans</it>, reviewed <it>C. elegans </it>repository request lists, scanned patents that reference <it>C. elegans </it>and conducted a broad survey of <it>C. elegans </it>researchers. Of particular importance in our research was the role of the <it>C. elegans </it>Gene Knockout Consortium in the facilitation of sharing in this community.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our research suggests that a culture of sharing exists within the <it>C. elegans </it>research community. Furthermore, our research provides insight into how this sharing operates and the role of the culture that underpins it.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The greater scientific community is likely to benefit from understanding the factors that motivate <it>C. elegans </it>researchers to share. In this sense, our research is a 'response' to calls for a greater amount of sharing in other research communities, such as the mouse community, specifically, the call for increased investment and support of centralized resource sharing infrastructure, grant-based funding of data-sharing, clarity of third party recommendations regarding sharing, third party insistence of post-publication data sharing, a decrease in patenting and restrictive material transfer agreements, and increased attribution and reward.</p

Increased indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase activity is associated with poor clinical outcome in adults hospitalized with influenza in the INSIGHT FLU003Plus study

BACKGROUND: Indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) mediated tryptophan (TRP) depletion has antimicrobial and immuno-regulatory effects. Increased kynurenine (KYN)-to-TRP (KT) ratios, reflecting increased IDO activity, have been associated with poorer outcomes from several infections. METHODS: We performed a case-control (1:2; age and sex matched) analysis of adults hospitalized with influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 with protocol-defined disease progression (died/transferred to ICU/mechanical ventilation) after enrollment (cases) or survived without progression (controls) over 60 days of follow-up. Conditional logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between baseline KT ratio and other metabolites and disease progression. RESULTS: We included 32 cases and 64 controls with a median age of 52 years; 41% were female, and the median durations of influenza symptoms prior to hospitalization were 8 and 6 days for cases and controls, respectively (P = .04). Median baseline KT ratios were 2-fold higher in cases (0.24 mM/M; IQR, 0.13-0.40) than controls (0.12; IQR, 0.09-0.17; P ≤ .001). When divided into tertiles, 59% of cases vs 20% of controls had KT ratios in the highest tertile (0.21-0.84 mM/M). When adjusted for symptom duration, the odds ratio for disease progression for those in the highest vs lowest tertiles of KT ratio was 9.94 (95% CI, 2.25-43.90). CONCLUSIONS: High KT ratio was associated with poor outcome in adults hospitalized with influenza A(H1N1)pdm09. The clinical utility of this biomarker in this setting merits further exploration. CLINICALTRIALSGOV IDENTIFIER: NCT01056185

Circulating microRNAs in sera correlate with soluble biomarkers of immune activation but do not predict mortality in ART treated individuals with HIV-1 infection: A case control study

Introduction: The use of anti-retroviral therapy (ART) has dramatically reduced HIV-1 associated morbidity and mortality. However, HIV-1 infected individuals have increased rates of morbidity and mortality compared to the non-HIV-1 infected population and this appears to be related to end-organ diseases collectively referred to as Serious Non-AIDS Events (SNAEs). Circulating miRNAs are reported as promising biomarkers for a number of human disease conditions including those that constitute SNAEs. Our study sought to investigate the potential of selected miRNAs in predicting mortality in HIV-1 infected ART treated individuals. Materials and Methods: A set of miRNAs was chosen based on published associations with human disease conditions that constitute SNAEs. This case: control study compared 126 cases (individuals who died whilst on therapy), and 247 matched controls (individuals who remained alive). Cases and controls were ART treated participants of two pivotal HIV-1 trials. The relative abundance of each miRNA in serum was measured, by RTqPCR. Associations with mortality (all-cause, cardiovascular and malignancy) were assessed by logistic regression analysis. Correlations between miRNAs and CD4+ T cell count, hs-CRP, IL-6 and D-dimer were also assessed. Results: None of the selected miRNAs was associated with all-cause, cardiovascular or malignancy mortality. The levels of three miRNAs (miRs -21, -122 and -200a) correlated with IL-6 while miR-21 also correlated with D-dimer. Additionally, the abundance of miRs -31, -150 and -223, correlated with baseline CD4+ T cell count while the same three miRNAs plus miR- 145 correlated with nadir CD4+ T cell count. Discussion: No associations with mortality were found with any circulating miRNA studied. These results cast doubt onto the effectiveness of circulating miRNA as early predictors of mortality or the major underlying diseases that contribute to mortality in participants treated for HIV-1 infection

Development and Validation of a Risk Score for Chronic Kidney Disease in HIV Infection Using Prospective Cohort Data from the D:A:D Study

Ristola M. on työryhmien DAD Study Grp ; Royal Free Hosp Clin Cohort ; INSIGHT Study Grp ; SMART Study Grp ; ESPRIT Study Grp jäsen.Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major health issue for HIV-positive individuals, associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Development and implementation of a risk score model for CKD would allow comparison of the risks and benefits of adding potentially nephrotoxic antiretrovirals to a treatment regimen and would identify those at greatest risk of CKD. The aims of this study were to develop a simple, externally validated, and widely applicable long-term risk score model for CKD in HIV-positive individuals that can guide decision making in clinical practice. Methods and Findings A total of 17,954 HIV-positive individuals from the Data Collection on Adverse Events of Anti-HIV Drugs (D:A:D) study with >= 3 estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) values after 1 January 2004 were included. Baseline was defined as the first eGFR > 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 after 1 January 2004; individuals with exposure to tenofovir, atazanavir, atazanavir/ritonavir, lopinavir/ritonavir, other boosted protease inhibitors before baseline were excluded. CKD was defined as confirmed (>3 mo apart) eGFR In the D:A:D study, 641 individuals developed CKD during 103,185 person-years of follow-up (PYFU; incidence 6.2/1,000 PYFU, 95% CI 5.7-6.7; median follow-up 6.1 y, range 0.3-9.1 y). Older age, intravenous drug use, hepatitis C coinfection, lower baseline eGFR, female gender, lower CD4 count nadir, hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) predicted CKD. The adjusted incidence rate ratios of these nine categorical variables were scaled and summed to create the risk score. The median risk score at baseline was -2 (interquartile range -4 to 2). There was a 1: 393 chance of developing CKD in the next 5 y in the low risk group (risk score = 5, 505 events), respectively. Number needed to harm (NNTH) at 5 y when starting unboosted atazanavir or lopinavir/ritonavir among those with a low risk score was 1,702 (95% CI 1,166-3,367); NNTH was 202 (95% CI 159-278) and 21 (95% CI 19-23), respectively, for those with a medium and high risk score. NNTH was 739 (95% CI 506-1462), 88 (95% CI 69-121), and 9 (95% CI 8-10) for those with a low, medium, and high risk score, respectively, starting tenofovir, atazanavir/ritonavir, or another boosted protease inhibitor. The Royal Free Hospital Clinic Cohort included 2,548 individuals, of whom 94 individuals developed CKD (3.7%) during 18,376 PYFU (median follow-up 7.4 y, range 0.3-12.7 y). Of 2,013 individuals included from the SMART/ESPRIT control arms, 32 individuals developed CKD (1.6%) during 8,452 PYFU (median follow-up 4.1 y, range 0.6-8.1 y). External validation showed that the risk score predicted well in these cohorts. Limitations of this study included limited data on race and no information on proteinuria. Conclusions Both traditional and HIV-related risk factors were predictive of CKD. These factors were used to develop a risk score for CKD in HIV infection, externally validated, that has direct clinical relevance for patients and clinicians to weigh the benefits of certain antiretrovirals against the risk of CKD and to identify those at greatest risk of CKD.Peer reviewe

Bessenbach verbinden & anbinden durch Wege & Plätze für seine Bürger : Frischer Wind für unsere Gemeinde - Rückwind auf allen Wegen

Mit dem Wachsen der Gemeinde ging ein Wachsen des Individualverkehrs einher.Der Trend zu mehr Fahrzeugen hält im Moment noch an. Um dieses zukompensieren oder dem Trend sogar entgegenwirken zu können, müssenAlternativen geboten werden:Durch funktionale Fuß- und Radwege schafft man die Voraussetzungen fürumweltfreundliche und sozialverträgliche Mobilität ohne Auto.Mit attraktiven Wegen und Plätzen bietet man die Möglichkeit, seine Freizeitdirekt am Ort zu verbringen und zumindest zum Teil auf das Auto verzichten zukönnen.Leider lassen sich Funktionalität und Attraktivität nicht immer verbinden.Wo dies möglich ist, sollte es jedoch selbstverständlich sein, beiden Ansprüchengerecht zu werden.Weiter ist zu betonen, dass eine Vernetzung der Wege nicht im Widerspruch zurVernetzung von Naturräumen und Biotopstrukturen stehen muss. Sie könnendurchaus parallel verlaufen: ein Netz von Infotafeln an einem Wegenetz, das anBiotopen vorbeiführt.Hecken und Gehölze an den Grenzen zwischen Feldern und entlang von Wegenstellen oft gut vernetzte Biotope dar und sind gleichzeitig attraktiv für denErholungssuchenden. Ebenso werden die Auen von Gewässern als sehr schönempfunden. Auf das richtige Gleichgewicht zwischen Naturerlebnis für denMenschen einerseits und Schutz der Tiere und Pflanzen vor dem Menschenandererseits muss natürlich geachtet werden.Die Natur profitiert davon, wenn weniger mit dem Auto gefahren wird. Dies tutder Mensch am liebsten abseits der Straßen. Wenn Fußgänger und Radfahrereigene Wege benutzen, hat auch der Autofahrer einen Nutzen davon.Die Gesamtsituation in Bessenbach ist zwar nicht schlecht, jedoch durchausverbesserungswürdig und ausbaufähig.In meiner Arbeit habe ich Möglichkeiten dargestellt, wie die momentane Situationnach und nach verbessert werden kann und Bessenbach sich zu einer fußgängerundradfahrerfreundlichen Gemeinde – vielleicht sogar zu einer Prototypgemeindefür Fußgänger- und Radfahrerfreundlichkeit – entwickeln kann.Was die Werbung für Bessenbach angeht ist die Mitgliedschaft imTourismusverband Franken und der Touristeninformation Spessart-Main-Odenwald ein guter Anfang. Da damit ab 2006 Werbung für die Gemeindegemacht wird, sollte das umgekehrt auch einen zusätzlichen Ansporn für siedarstellen, Bessenbach im positiven Sinne zu entwickeln und von seiner bestenSeite zu zeigen.So soll meine Arbeit ihrem Titel entsprechend helfen, Bessenbach und seineBürger zu verbinden und anzubinden und seinen Bürgern den größtmöglichenNutzen bringen