Prototype for a Regional Online Toxics Database

An interactive online computerized database for retrieval of chemical analytical information on volatile and extractable organic compounds, and the priority pollutant metals has been developed. Current information about samples from the Chesapeake Bay region in Virginia and Maryland are available. This database stores information on organic compounds in effluent, water, tissue, and sediment in a format which does place restrictions on the number of compounds per sample. It includes various QA/QC items as well as the analyst\u27s assessment of the validity of the data. A variety of keyed retrieval options permits selection of reporting format, and flagging of items exceeding selected limits of concentration. Application includes retrievals for use by managers, and by researchers in planning and interpreting environmental studies related to toxic chemicals.https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsbooks/1178/thumbnail.jp

Lubiprostone: evaluation of the newest medication for the treatment of adult women with constipation-predominant irritable bowel syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic disorder that affects primarily female patients and is thought also to afflict approximately 7%–10% of the population of the Western World. Although bowel habits may change over the course of years, patients with IBS are characterized according to their predominant bowel habit, constipation (IBS-C), diarrhea (IBS-D), or mixed type (IBS-M), and treatments are focused toward the predominant symptom. Current treatments for IBS-C have included fiber, antispasmodics, osmotic and stimulant laxatives, and the now severely limited 5-HT4 agonist tegaserod. No one agent has been universally successful in the treatment of this bothersome syndrome and the search for new agents continues. Lubiprostone (Amitiza®), a novel compound, is a member of a new class of agents called prostones and was approved for the treatment of chronic idiopathic constipation in 2006 at a dose of 24 μg twice daily and then in 2008 for the treatment of IBS-C in women only at a dose of 8 μg twice daily. Its purported mechanism is as a type 2 chloride channel activator, but recent evidence suggests that it may also work at the cystic fibrosis transport receptor. This article will compare the newly proposed mechanism of action of this compound to the purported mechanism and review the structure, pharmacology, safety, efficacy, and tolerability of this new therapeutic option. Clinical trial data leading to the approval of this agent for the treatment of IBS-C and the gender-based understanding of IBS, as well as this agent’s place among existing and emerging therapies, will be examined

Factors Impacting Student Success in a Graduate Neuroscience Course

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceived factors that occupational and physical therapy graduate students believed led to success in a clinical neuroscience course. A cross-sectional survey design was utilized from a convenience sample of Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) and Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students. There were 76 (42%) responses collected, comprised of 62 (82%) OTD students and 14 (18%) DPT students. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze all survey results. Results indicated that success in a graduate neuroscience course may be supported with prior science coursework. Success in a graduate neuroscience course may be supported with additional resources such as a tutor, visuals, and other supplementary materials. Occupational therapy programs may consider supporting a neuroscience course with additional resources in order to facilitate student success

Exploring Anatomy Coursework and Perceptions of Occupational Therapy Students: A Survey Study

Occupational therapy practitioners utilize their knowledge of human anatomy to understand underlying anatomical dysfunction and how it impacts occupational performance. However, anatomy is not a required standalone course within occupational therapy curricula. This may leave students at a disadvantage throughout occupational therapy programs, fieldwork, and as practitioners. The primary purpose of this study was to explore graduate level occupational therapy students’ previous anatomy undergraduate coursework, student perceived preparedness of anatomical knowledge, and their performance in a mandatory Analysis of Human Movement course within our university’s occupational therapy graduate programs. The secondary purpose was to determine student interest in a standalone online anatomy review course if one were offered at the start of program matriculation. Participants (n=87) completed a 14-item survey regarding demographics, prior anatomy coursework, perceived preparedness, and academic performance in a mandatory Analysis of Human Movement course. Descriptive statistics and a Pearson’s correlation were conducted. Data analysis revealed statistically significant correlations among several variables including perceived preparedness, and whether students felt they would have benefited from and participated in an online anatomy review course. No statistically significant correlations were found between academic performance and any other variable. Data analysis also revealed that regardless of prior anatomy coursework, perceived preparedness, and academic performance almost all participants (n=80; 92%) indicated that they would have benefited from and participated in an online anatomy review course. Though continued research is warranted, occupational therapy programs may consider the implementation of a standalone anatomy course to promote students’ academic and clinical success

Parametric Limitations on Discharge Performance in the Maryland Centrifugal Experiment

Inherent in any experiment is a set of bounding limitations. In the Maryland Centrifugal eXperiment (MCX) these limitations are manifest as restrictions upon discharge performance as defined by program goals. We therefore examine the multidimensional parameter space in which MCX operates so as to ascertain the performance boundaries along each of the variable axes. In as much as is possible, the variables are expressly decoupled in order to determine their unique effect upon discharge performance. This study has led to the following conclusions. First, the nascent cause of transitions within the MCX discharge from a higher voltage mode (H-mode) into a lower voltage mode (O-mode) appears to be consistent with the formation of a secondary breakdown within the vacuum vessel. These transitions have been shown to be mitigated by auspicious choice of insulator position and geometry. Second, the effect of variations to the radial extent of the discharge has been studied and a set of parametric dependencies determined. These show the MCX discharge to be diffusive in nature, and highly dependant upon radial extent. Thus leading to the conclusion that a minor increase to the midplane vessel extent should result in substantial performance enhancement. Finally, a global limitation to the MCX discharge has been discovered. It is manifest as an abrupt maximum attainable voltage across the plasma. This has been interpreted as a velocity limitation due to the direct relationship between plasma voltage and rotation velocity (v(phi) = Vp/aB). An examination of a discharge struck in a background helium environment, as opposed to the standard hydrogen backfill, has shown that this limit is consistent with Alfven's theory of a critical ionization velocity. While this limitation has been observed on the historic predecessors to MCX, there have also been cases where supercritical velocities have been achieved. Suggestions for facilitating access to this regime as well as projections for an enhanced iteration of the MCX device are listed

The Effect of Age-At-Release on Survival of Adoptive Parent-Reared Bobwhite Chicks

Translocation of wild northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus) to restore local populations is a viable conservation tool under some scenarios; however, the supply of wild bobwhites is limited. Bobwhites can be artificially propagated, as an alternative to translocation, using methods that mimic natural brood-rearing. The parent-rearing adoptive process (PRAP) uses wild-strain bobwhite adults to brood and foster newly hatched wild-strain chicks in outdoor aviaries that emulate a natural environment. Adoptive parent-reared bobwhites have higher survival rates than artificially-reared bobwhites but only a single age-of-release (i.e., 6-weeks) has been tested. We tested the effect of age-at-release (3, 6, and 9-weeks) on adoptive parent-reared chicks released on the same date in Hanna Hammock of Tall Timbers Research Station. All chicks were marked with patagial wing tags and a subset of the group received radio transmitters. The 3-week-olds (n = 25) received suture-style transmitters and 6-week-olds (n = 30) and 9-week-olds (n = 30) received necklace-style transmitters. Our adoptive parent-reared chicks had low survival rates over 3 months post-release, the 9-week age group had the highest overall survival rates which could portend that increased physiological development may aid in increasing the survivability of adoptive parent-reared bobwhites. The low survival rates across all 3 age classes calls into question the efficacy of the PRAP as a bobwhite restoration method. Our results do suggest that additional modifications to release age (\u3e 9-weeks) should be explored along with further modifications to the PRAP. Additional modifications include incorporating predator avoidance training, altering release dates, and changing nutritional regimes. These results should caution the bobwhite community to remain suspect when deriving conclusions about the PRAP until all process modifications have been fully evaluated by scientific research

Do slower life history strategies reduce sociodemographic sex differences?

This study examines the relations between sociodemographic sex differences and life history strategies in the populations of Mexican States. Sex differences in anatomy and behavior was measured with traits such as educational achievement, mortality, and morbidity. The data were obtained from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI) and sampled from thirty-one Mexican states and the Federal District (N = 32). An extension analysis was performed selecting only the sex ratio variables that had a correlation with the slow Life History factor greater than or equal to an absolute value of .25. A unit-weighted sex ratio factor was created using these variables. Across 32 Mexican states, the correlation between latent slow life history and sex ratio was .57 (p .05). These results are consistent with our hypothesis that slower life histories favor reduced sexual dimorphism in physiology and behavior among human subnational populations. The results of the study further understanding of variations in population sex differences, male-biased behaviors toward sexual equality, and the differences among subnational (regional) populations within the United States of Mexico.   DOI:10.2458/azu_jmmss_v6i1_chavarria_miner