Wandering Souls: Protestant Migrations in America, 1630–1865

Review of: "Wandering Souls: Protestant Migrations in America, 1630–1865," by S. Scott Rohrer

Community Projects in a Senior Capstone Course

Working in groups, students in a senior-level capstone class completed service learning projects addressing specific needs of community agencies. Students were generally positive about the extent to which course objectives were met and assignments were valuable for their learning. Students were also generally positive about the value of service learning, indicating that the class helped them become more interested in solving community problems and that they gained a better understanding and appreciation of civic engagement

The banality of education policy : Discipline as extensive evil in the neoliberal era

Funding The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this articlePeer reviewedPostprin

The effect of the Cox-maze procedure for atrial fibrillation concomitant to mitral and tricuspid valve surgery

ObjectivesAtrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with less favorable outcomes in patients undergoing mitral valve and tricuspid valve surgery. Despite growing evidence on the potential benefits of surgical ablation for AF there is significant variability among surgeons in treatment of AF. The purpose of our study was to assess the effect of the Cox-maze procedure on operative and follow-up outcomes.MethodsIn our prospective study, patients who underwent isolated mitral valve or mitral valve+tricuspid valve surgery without history of AF (n = 506), with untreated AF (n = 75), or with Cox-maze procedure (n = 236) were included (N = 817). Sinus rhythm was captured according to Heart Rhythm Society guidelines. Patients who underwent the Cox-maze procedure were propensity score matched to patients without history of AF resulting in 208 pairs of patients.ResultsOperative outcomes were comparable after propensity score matching (Cox-maze procedure vs no AF) stroke/transient ischemic attack (0.5% vs 0.5%; P = 1.00), renal failure (2.9% vs 1.4%; P = .34), and operative mortality (1.4% vs 1.4%; P = 1.00). High return to sinus rhythm was documented at 6, 12, and 24 months (92%, 91%, and 86%, respectively) as well as sinus rhythm off antiarrhythmic drugs (79%, 84%, and 82%, respectively). Incidence of embolic stroke in patients who underwent Cox-maze procedure was 1.7% (4 out of 232 patients) and 5.1 cases per 1000 person-years. No difference in 4-year cumulative survival between propensity score-matched groups (91.9% vs 86.9%; log rank, 1.67; P = .20), but higher for patients who underwent Cox-maze procedure versus patients with untreated AF (hazard ratio, 2.47; P = .048). Higher additive European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (odds ratio, 1.40; P < .001) and limited surgeon experience with Cox-maze procedure (odds ratio, 3.60; P < .001) were significant predictors for failure to perform Cox-maze procedure.ConclusionsIn our center, 76% of patients undergoing mitral valve or mitral valve+tricuspid valve surgery experiencing AF underwent concomitant Cox-maze procedure, which is considerably higher than the national average. No increased morbidity was associated with the Cox-maze procedure with the benefit of very low thromboembolic rate. These results suggest the need for performance-based education for AF surgical ablation to achieve optimal outcomes

Three-kinase inhibitor combination recreates multipathway effects of a geldanamycin analogue on hepatocellular carcinoma cell death

Multitarget compounds that act on a diverse set of regulatory pathways are emerging as a therapeutic approach for a variety of cancers. Toward a more specified use of this approach, we hypothesize that the desired efficacy can be recreated in terms of a particular combination of relatively more specific (i.e., ostensibly single target) compounds. We test this hypothesis for the geldanamycin analogue 17-Allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17AAG) in hepatocellular carcinoma cells, measuring critical phosphorylation levels that indicate the kinase pathway effects correlating with apoptotic responsiveness of the Hep3B cell line in contrast to the apoptotic resistance of the Huh7 cell line. A principal components analysis (PCA) constructed from time course measurements of seven phosphoprotein signaling levels identified modulation of the AKT, IκB kinase, and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 pathways by 17AAG treatment as most important for distinguishing these cell-specific death responses. The analysis correctly suggested from 17AAG-induced effects on these phosphoprotein levels that the FOCUS cell line would show apoptotic responsiveness similarly to Hep3B. The PCA also guided the inhibition of three critical pathways and rendered Huh7 cells responsive to 17AAG. Strikingly, in all three hepatocellular carcinoma lines, the three-inhibitor combination alone exhibited similar or greater efficacy to 17AAG. We conclude that (a) the PCA captures and clusters the multipathway phosphoprotein time courses with respect to their 17AAG-induced apoptotic responsiveness and (b) we can recreate, in a more specified manner, the cellular responses of a prospective multitarget cancer therapeutic.National Institute of General Medical Sciences (U.S.). Cell Decision Processes CenterNational Cancer Institute (U.S.). Integrative Cancer Biology ProgramMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Presidential FellowshipNational Institutes of Health (U.S.

CRAF Autophosphorylation of Serine 621 Is Required to Prevent Its Proteasome-Mediated Degradation

The CRAF protein kinase regulates proliferative, differentiation, and survival signals from activated RAS proteins to downstream effectors, most often by inducing MEK/ERK activation. A well-established model of CRAF regulation involves RAS-mediated translocation of CRAF to the plasma membrane, where it is activated by a series of events including phosphor-ylation. Here we have discovered a new mode of regulation that occurs prior to this step. By creating a kinase-defective version of CRAF in mice or by use of the RAF inhibitor sorafenib, we show that CRAF must first undergo autophosphorylation of serine 621 (S621). Autophosphorylation occurs in cis, does not involve MEK/ERK activation, and is essential to ensure the correct folding and stability of the protein. In the absence of S621 phosphorylation, CRAF is degraded by the proteasome by mechanisms that do not uniquely rely on the E3 ubiquitin ligase CHIP

“Publishing Is Mystical”: The Latinx Caucus Bibliography, Top-Tier Journals, and Minority Scholarship

In 2014, members of the NCTE/CCCC Latinx Caucus began contributing citations to a shared Google Document (GDoc) that suggested a relatively significant contribution of scholarship to the field of Rhetoric and Composition studies. Scholars of color have argued that rhetoric and composition scholarship fails to represent diversity in academic publications (Baca; Banks; Jones Royster; Pimentel; Ruíz). This study examines statistical data arrived at through analysis of the NCTE/CCCC Latinx Caucus Bibliography, with survey and interview data from Latinx scholars providing important context about publishing for people of color

Reliability of an injury scoring system for horses

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a need for a system to record external injuries in a standardised and simple way. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop and validate a system for injury recording in horses and to test its reliability and feasibility under field conditions.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Injuries were classified into five categories according to severity. The scoring system was tested for intra- and inter-observer agreement as well as agreement with a 'golden standard' (diagnosis established by a veterinarian). The scoring was done by 43 agricultural students who classified 40 photographs presented to them twice in a random order, 10 days apart. Attribute agreement analysis was performed using Kendall's coefficient of concordance (Kendall's <it>W</it>), Kendall's correlation coefficient (Kendall's τ) and Fleiss' kappa. The system was also tested on a sample of 100 horses kept in groups where injury location was recorded as well.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Intra-observer agreement showed Kendall's <it>W </it>ranging from 0.94 to 0.99 and 86% of observers had kappa values above 0.66 (substantial agreement). Inter-observer agreement had an overall Kendall's <it>W </it>of 0.91 and the mean kappa value was 0.59 (moderate). Agreement for all observers versus the 'golden standard' had Kendall's τ of 0.88 and the mean kappa value was 0.66 (substantial). The system was easy to use for trained persons under field conditions. Injuries of the more serious categories were not found in the field trial.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The proposed injury scoring system is easy to learn and use also for people without a veterinary education, it shows high reliability, and it is clinically useful. The injury scoring system could be a valuable tool in future clinical and epidemiological studies.</p