Sexuality and Disability in Rehabilitation Counseling Curricula: Rehabilitation Counselor Educators’ Attitudes, Comfort, and Knowledge

Purpose: To examine the attitudes, knowledge, and comfort levels of rehabilitation counselor educators towards sexuality and disability, and to determine if significant differences exist within variables. Method: Data was collected from a sample of rehabilitation counselor educators (N=27) via an internet-based survey. The Knowledge, Comfort, Approach and Attitudes towards Sexuality Scale (KCAASS) and demographic questionnaire was disseminated to collect data. A MANOVA was conducted to examine if there was a relationship among the variables of attitudes, knowledge, comfort, age, gender, and ethnicity. Results: Results indicates educators having high comfort levels and positive attitudes towards sexuality and disability. The mean for knowledge was low indicating a lower level of knowledge of sexuality and disability. Results indicate that there was no variance among the means of the categorical variables. The only variation that existed within the categorical variables was the gender of the participant. Conclusion: Further research is warranted to examine the specific needs of educators, students, and graduate programs, as well as exploring differences based upon institutional settings. Future qualitative research in sexuality and disability may also generate testimonials and theories from the perspective of students and educators in expressing their needs. The inclusion of human sexuality within various academic levels of rehabilitation education is warranted to increase competence of both students and educators. Keywords: Sexuality, Rehabilitation, and Counselor Educatio

Platelet-derived growth factor stimulates Src-dependent mRNA stabilization of specific early genes in fibroblasts.

The Src family of protein-tyrosine kinases (SFKs) participates in a variety of signal transduction pathways, including promotion of cell growth, prevention of apoptosis, and regulation of cell interactions and motility. In particular, SFKs are required for the mitogenic response to platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF). However, it is not clear whether there is a discrete SFK-specific pathway leading to enhanced gene expression or whether SFKs act to generally enhance PDGF-stimulated gene expression. To examine this, we treated quiescent NIH3T3 cells with PDGF in the presence or absence of small molecule inhibitors of SFKs, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), and MEK1/2. Global patterns of gene expression were analyzed by using Affymetrix Gene-Chip arrays, and data were validated by using reverse transcription-PCR and ribonuclease protection assay. We identified a discrete set of immediate early genes induced by PDGF and inhibited in the presence of the SFK-selective inhibitor SU6656. A subset of these SFK-dependent genes was induced by PDGF even in the presence of the MEK1/2 inhibitor U0126 or the PI3K inhibitor LY294002. By using ribonuclease protection assays and nuclear run-off assays, we further determined that PDGF did not stimulate the rate of transcription of these SFK-dependent immediate early genes but rather promoted mRNA stabilization. Our data suggest that PDGF regulates gene expression through an SFK-specific pathway that is distinct from the Ras-MAPK and PI3K pathways, and that SFKs signal gene expression by enhancing mRNA stability.Peer reviewe

Participation in the Georgia Food for Health program and cardiovascular disease risk factors: A longitudinal observational study

Abstract Objective To assess the relationship between program attendance in a produce prescription program and changes in cardiovascular risk factors. Design The Georgia Food for Health (GF4H) program provided 6 monthly nutrition education sessions, 6 weekly cooking classes, and weekly produce vouchers. Participants became program graduates attending at least 4 of the 6 of both the weekly cooking classes and monthly education sessions. We used a longitudinal, single-arm approach to estimate the association between the number of monthly program visits attended and changes in health indicators. Setting GF4H was implemented in partnership with a large safety-net health system in Atlanta, GA. Participants 331 participants living with or at-risk of chronic disease and food insecurity were recruited from primary care clinics. Over three years, 282 participants graduated from the program. Results After adjusting for program site, year, participant sex, age, race & ethnicity, SNAP participation, and household size, we estimated that each additional program visit attended beyond 4 visits was associated with a 0.06 kg/m2 reduction in BMI (95% CI: -0.12, -0.01; p=0.02), a 0.37 inch reduction in waist circumference (95% CI: -0.48, -0.27; p<0.001), a 1.01 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure (95% CI: -1.45, -0.57; p<0.001), and a 0.43 mmHg reduction in diastolic blood pressure (95% CI: -0.69, -0.17; p=0.001). Conclusions Each additional cooking and nutrition education visit attended beyond the graduation threshold was associated with modest but significant improvements in cardiovascular disease risk factors, suggesting that increased engagement in educational components of a produce prescription program improves health outcomes

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Increasing frailty is associated with higher prevalence and reduced recognition of delirium in older hospitalised inpatients: results of a multi-centre study

Purpose: Delirium is a neuropsychiatric disorder delineated by an acute change in cognition, attention, and consciousness. It is common, particularly in older adults, but poorly recognised. Frailty is the accumulation of deficits conferring an increased risk of adverse outcomes. We set out to determine how severity of frailty, as measured using the CFS, affected delirium rates, and recognition in hospitalised older people in the United Kingdom. Methods: Adults over 65 years were included in an observational multi-centre audit across UK hospitals, two prospective rounds, and one retrospective note review. Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), delirium status, and 30-day outcomes were recorded. Results: The overall prevalence of delirium was 16.3% (483). Patients with delirium were more frail than patients without delirium (median CFS 6 vs 4). The risk of delirium was greater with increasing frailty [OR 2.9 (1.8–4.6) in CFS 4 vs 1–3; OR 12.4 (6.2–24.5) in CFS 8 vs 1–3]. Higher CFS was associated with reduced recognition of delirium (OR of 0.7 (0.3–1.9) in CFS 4 compared to 0.2 (0.1–0.7) in CFS 8). These risks were both independent of age and dementia. Conclusion: We have demonstrated an incremental increase in risk of delirium with increasing frailty. This has important clinical implications, suggesting that frailty may provide a more nuanced measure of vulnerability to delirium and poor outcomes. However, the most frail patients are least likely to have their delirium diagnosed and there is a significant lack of research into the underlying pathophysiology of both of these common geriatric syndromes

Perceptions of Body Figure Attractiveness Among African American Male College Students

Historically, females who had large body figures and considered overweight were seen as the epitome of beauty within the African American culture. More specifically, African American females with large body figures were perceived by African American males as smart, sexy, employable, desirable, wanted, marriatable, and rulers of their households. However, as African American males acculturate into the dominate culture via their college attendance, their perceptions of body figure attractiveness may begin to change towards perceptions that are similar to those of the dominate culture. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine African American male college students’ perceptions of body figure attractiveness. Participants in this study consisted of 227 African American male college students between 18 and 31 years of age from two Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and two Traditionally White Institutions (TWIs) across the Southeast and Northeast regions of the United States. Findings from this study revealed that African American male college students’ perceptions of body figure attractiveness are changing towards those similar of the dominant culture. Thus, implications are discussed relative to the potential influence in which African American males’ perceived body figure attractiveness may have on African American females