Asymmetric trehalose analogues to probe disaccharide processing pathways in mycobacteria

The uptake and metabolism of the disaccharide trehalose by Mycobacterium tuberculosis is essential for the virulence of this pathogen. Here we describe the chemoenzymatic synthesis of new azido-functionalised asymmetric trehalose probes that resist degradation by mycobacterial enzymes and are used to probe trehalose processing pathways in mycobacteria

Chronic Illness in Children and Adolescents: Research on the Impact on Their Siblings

poster abstractChronic illness affects over 7 million children and adolescents (i.e., children) in the United States with significant stress to their family members. Although a great deal of research has described the impact of chronic illness on family members, these studies focused on mothers. Siblings of children with chronic illness have received less attention. Before interventions can be developed to address the stress on siblings, we must first understand their experiences and needs related to living with children with chronic illness. The purpose of this project is to evaluate current research on the impact of children’s chronic illness on their siblings. We conducted a search of the literature using: Key words, siblings and children combined with chronic illness, physical illness, developmental disorder, or mental disorder to search articles in PsychINFO, CINAHL, and Web of Science databases. We did not limit searches by date but excluded dissertations and non-English language publications. We analyzed the total number of articles, purpose, and findings regarding impact of chronic illness on siblings. Results of the search yielded 431 on chronic illness. Of these 152, 119, and 44 articles were on physical illness, developmental disorder, and mental disorder respectively. Analyses led to inclusion of 97 articles on chronic illness, 53 articles on physical illness, 15 articles on developmental disorders, and four articles on mental disorder. Impact on siblings is mostly negative and includes emotional problems such as envy, fear, anxiety, anger, resentment, loneliness, and sadness; behaviors problems such as physical aggression, poor school performance and peer relationships. These factors as well as poor communication and knowledge deficits about the illness impact the siblings’ adjustment to chronic illness in children. Further, mental disorders are underrepresented in the literature on chronic illness and the impact on siblings. Research is needed to understand how children’s mental disorders impact their siblings

Impact of Disruptive Behavior Disorder on Siblings Living with Affected Adolescents

poster abstractDisruptive behavior disorder (DBD) is a mental disorder that includes Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder. DBD affects 10% of adolescents in the United States with significant stress on the entire family. Research has described the impact of chronic illness on family members but have focused mostly on primary caregivers or mothers. Even fewer studies considered DBD and how it impacts siblings. Before interventions can be developed to address the impact on siblings, we must first understand the experiences they have as a result of living with an adolescent with DBD. The aim of this report was to describe the impact on siblings who live with adolescents with DBD. The report is part of a larger qualitative descriptive study about experiences and needs of family member of adolescents with DBD. The samples for this report were 16 siblings who were 9 to 23 years, 75% male, and 75% Black. We interview siblings in their homes; audio recorded and transcribed all data. Three researchers conducted content analysis of their narratives. We grouped the data into four topics: positive impact, negative impact, interventions and/or coping mechanisms used to address impact, and what the siblings need for support. Siblings said (1) stress, blanket punishment, planned or desired activity disruption, and physical attack as negative impact; avoidance, utilization of anger management techniques, and reacting with violence as coping mechanisms; (3) the adolescents need more treatment, the family members need better communication, financial assistance, and more time together. Siblings did not describe any positive impact of DBD. Our findings reinforce the negative impact on siblings of adolescents with DBD; adds to the literature by its inclusion of a large African American sample; and supports nurses’ role in assessing the impact of DBD on siblings of the affected adolescents

Paving Pathways: shaping the Public Health workforce through tertiary education

Public health educational pathways in Australia have traditionally been the province of Universities, with the Master of Public Health (MPH) recognised as the flagship professional entry program. Public health education also occurs within the fellowship training of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine, but within Australia this remains confined to medical graduates. In recent years, however, we have seen a proliferation of undergraduate degrees as well as an increasing public health presence in the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector. Following the 2007 Australian Federal election, the new Labour government brought with it a refreshing commitment to a more inclusive and strategic style of government. An important example of this was the 2020 visioning process that identified key issues of public health concern, including an acknowledgment that it was unacceptable to allocate less than 2% of the health budget towards disease prevention. This led to the recommendation for the establishment of a national preventive health agency (Australia: the healthiest country by 2020 National Preventative Health Strategy, Prepared by the Preventative Health Taskforce 2009). The focus on disease prevention places a spotlight on the workforce that will be required to deliver the new investment in health prevention, and also on the role of public health education in developing and upskilling the workforce. It is therefore timely to reflect on trends, challenges and opportunities from a tertiary sector perspective. Is it more desirable to focus education efforts on selected lead issues such as the "obesity epidemic", climate change, Indigenous health and so on, or on the underlying theory and skills that build a flexible workforce capable of responding to a range of health challenges? Or should we aspire to both? This paper presents some of the key discussion points from 2008 - 2009 of the Public Health Educational Pathways workshops and working group of the Australian Network of Public Health Institutions. We highlight some of the competing tensions in public health tertiary education, their impact on public health training programs, and the educational pathways that are needed to grow, shape and prepare the public health workforce for future challenges

Paving Pathways: shaping the Public Health workforce through tertiary education

Public health educational pathways in Australia have traditionally been the province of Universities, with the Master of Public Health (MPH) recognised as the flagship professional entry program. Public health education also occurs within the fellowship training of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine, but within Australia this remains confined to medical graduates. In recent years, however, we have seen a proliferation of undergraduate degrees as well as an increasing public health presence in the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector

Australian SMEs: Waste sent to landfill

Landfill waste has a negative impact on the environment and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are believed to be significant contributors. There is little government or scholarly research, however, quantifying the collective volume of waste SMEs send to landfill. The limited studies instead measure total volumes (landfill and recycling combined) and/or do not distinguish between specific waste streams (e.g. wood) and subcategories (e.g. dust). This paper contributes to knowledge by reconceptualising SME waste into subcategories and by measuring landfill volumes. It presents findings from 404 Australian SMEs which found that, in descending order, cardboard, paper, plastic wrap, wood dust and particleboard were the subcategories these SMEs sent to landfill in the greatest volumes. It also argues that this reconceptualisation and associated data collection protocols have the potential to enable scholars and policymakers to determine the waste subcategories to which SMEs contribute most, formulate targeted interventions and research/evaluate environmental outcomes

The Effects of Modularity on Cascading Failures in Complex Engineering Systems

To design engineering systems that have improved reliability, it is important to understand what kind of system faults they will be susceptible to. Mitigation strategies are important to ensuring the performance of these engineering systems. Understanding how the modularity of complex engineering systems affects the risk of devastating failures such as cascading failures can help enable engineers to implement strategies in the design phase to increase reliability. The extent to which decreased system modularity propagates the spread of a cascading failure is unknown. This study analyzes how modularity in complex engineering systems affects resistance to the spread of cascading failures. In this research, synthetic networks are used to represent component models at differing degrees of modularity. These synthetic networks are then infected through epidemic spreading models that model cascading failures. The loss of functionality is determined by the percent of diseased nodes in the system, and the influence of the initial node is measured by eigenvector centrality. Increased modularity is associated with the improved ability of a system to inhibit the propagation of cascading failures over time through failure isolation within a module, measured by percent infected in the system, in comparison to less modular systems (p < 0.001). This finding indicates that the structural design of complex engineering systems could be crucial to increasing reliability in design with reference to cascading failures. Key Words: Complex engineering systems, modularity, cascading failure

Grade 1 spondylolisthesis and interspinous device placement: removal in six patients and analysis of current data

This is the published version. Information that is created by or for the US government on this site is within the public domain. Public domain information on the National Library of Medicine (NLM) Web pages may be freely distributed and copied. However, it is requested that in any subsequent use of this work, NLM be given appropriate acknowledgment.In the treatment of patients with Grade 1 spondylolisthesis, the use of interspinous devices has been controversial for nearly a decade. Several authors have suggested that Grade 1 spondylolisthesis be considered a contraindication for interspinous device placement. Methods: We removed interspinous devices in six symptomatic Grade 1 spondylolisthesis patients and analyzed pertinent literature. Results: All six patients reported an improvement in symptoms following device removal and subsequent instrumented fusion. One patient who had not been able to walk due to pain regained the ability to walk. Several articles were identified related to spondylolisthesis and interspinous devices. Conclusions: Regarding patients receiving interspinous devices for symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis, several high-quality studies have failed to demonstrate a statistical difference in outcomes between patients with or without Grade 1 spondylolisthesis. Nevertheless, surgeons should have a high degree of suspicion when considering use of interspinous devices in this patient population

Lessons Learned During Turbulent Times to Weather and Thrive in the Storm of COVID-19

This article describes the lessons learned by our university during the global healthcare crisis of COVID-19. It highlights the agile solutions employed to continue learning under extraordinary circumstances. While we have captured the stories that allowed our students to power through this tumultuous period if they so desired, these lessons may also provide guidance to other higher education institutions not only for the current turbulent times, but also enhance their ability to pause and pivot by utilizing agile management to weather this and future storms