Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Massachusetts Alliance On Teen Pregnancy: A Case Study Advocating For Pregnant And Parenting Teens In Massachusetts, Kassandra Petr

Capstone Collection

Teenage pregnancy emerged as a major social problem in the 1970’s; however, its frequency is by no means a recent social phenomenon. The appropriate age at which to marry, have sexual relations, conceive and give birth to a child has always been defined culturally. In the United States, this age has varied considerably across time, class, race, ethnicity, place, and gender. The presence and frequency of childbirth to teenage mothers has also varied over time with increased female education, the introduction of marriage later in life, as well as the legalization of abortions, to name a few. However, one thing …

Integrating Advanced Writing Content Into A Scholarly Inquiry In Nursing Course, Barbara L. Madleco

Faculty Publications

Since there are few data examining methods to help students learn to write in a scholarly manner, the purposes of this project were to (1) evaluate students’ learning of writing content integrated into a Scholarly Inquiry in Nursing course by examining differences in scores on a writing assessment taken at the beginning and end of the course; and (2) examine student confidence ratings relative to writing to see if it improved during the course. After obtaining IRB approval and informed consent, the CLIPS pre and post assessment mean scores of 82 students in a Scholarly Inquiry in Nursing course were …

A Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind, Dose-Escalation Study To Assess The Safety, Tolerability And Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics Of Single And Multiple Intravenous Infusions Of Azd9773 In Patients With Severe Sepsis And Septic Shock, Peter E. Morris, Brian Zeno, Andrew C. Bernard, Xiangning Huang, Shampa Das, Timi Edeki, Steven G. Simonson, Gordon R. Bernard

Surgery Faculty Publications

INTRODUCTION: Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), an early mediator in the systemic inflammatory response to infection, is a potential therapeutic target in sepsis. The primary objective of this study was to determine the safety and tolerability of AZD9773, an ovine, polyclonal, anti-human TNF-α Fab preparation, in patients with severe sepsis. Secondary outcomes related to pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) parameters.

METHODS: In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter Phase IIa study, patients were sequentially enrolled into five escalating-dose cohorts (single doses of 50 or 250 units/kg; multiple doses of 250 units/kg loading and 50 units/kg maintenance, 500 units/kg loading and 100 units/kg maintenance, …

Prescriptions For Excellence In Health Care Winter 2011 Dowload Full Pdf

Prescriptions for Excellence in Health Care Newsletter Supplement

No abstract provided.

Animal Models For Human Disease – Reflections From An Animal Researcher’S Perspective, Imke Tammen

Between the Species

Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCL) are a group of lethal inherited neurodegenerative disorders in humans and many animal species. Critical reflections on a range of ethical issues concerning NCL have been instigated by my research on sheep and cattle affected with NCL, the claim that these sheep and cattle are useful models for the disease in humans, and engagement with families and support groups. My reflections on moral status of animals and validity of animal models are outlined in this paper.

Quantitative Cherenkov Emission Spectroscopy For Tissue Oxygenation Assessment, Johan Axelsson, Adam K. Glaser, David J. Gladstone, Brian W. Pogue

Dartmouth Scholarship

Measurements of Cherenkov emission in tissue during radiation therapy are shown to enable estimation of hemoglobin oxygen saturation non-invasively, through spectral fitting of the spontaneous emissions from the treated tissue. Tissue oxygenation plays a critical role in the efficacy of radiation therapy to kill tumor tissue. Yet in-vivo measurement of this has remained elusive in routine use because of the complexity of oxygen measurement techniques. There is a spectrally broad emission of Cherenkov light that is induced during the time of irradiation, and as this travels through tissue from the point of the radiation deposition, the tissue absorption and scatter …

The Quandary Of Denial In The Huntington’S Disease Community (Part Ii), Kenneth P. Serbin

At Risk for Huntington's Disease

No abstract provided.

Union Royale Belge De Sociétés De Football Association Asbl V. Jean-Marc Bosman: The Evolution Of Labor Law In Professional Soccer And Its Implication, Marvin Smith

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

No abstract provided.

A Monitoring And Evaluation Plan For The Core Competencies Of Skilled Birth Attendants In Nepal, Roberta Goldstein

Capstone Collection

The purpose of this capstone is to present a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) plan of the core competencies, for Skilled Birth Attendants (SBA) of Nepal. The World Health Organization has laid out 10 specific skills that assess a SBAs competency. Nepal presently lacks any formal process for monitoring quality assurance of its SBAs and therefore has no measurement of their effectiveness. This Capstone proposes a simple M&E plan to begin the process of quality measurement, using a recent follow-up study done by the Nepali government, other articles and the experiences of the author. The tools included in this Capstone are …

Trpv1 Antagonists May Exacerbate Sepsis In Aged Mice: Should We Be Nervous?, Zenaide M.N. Quezado, Arpad Szallasi

Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Loss Of Αt-Catenin Alters The Hybrid Adhering Junctions In The Heart And Leads To Dilated Cardiomyopathy And Ventricular Arrhythmia Following Acute Ischemia., Jifen Li, Steven Goossens, Jolanda Van Hengel, Erhe Gao, Lan Cheng, Koen Tyberghein, Xiying Shang, Riet De Rycke, Frans Van Roy, Glenn L Radice

Center for Translational Medicine Faculty Papers

It is generally accepted that the intercalated disc (ICD) required for mechano-electrical coupling in the heart consists of three distinct junctional complexes: adherens junctions, desmosomes and gap junctions. However, recent morphological and molecular data indicate a mixing of adherens junctional and desmosomal components, resulting in a 'hybrid adhering junction' or 'area composita'. The α-catenin family member αT-catenin, part of the N-cadherin-catenin adhesion complex in the heart, is the only α-catenin that interacts with the desmosomal protein plakophilin-2 (PKP2). Thus, it has been postulated that αT-catenin might serve as a molecular integrator of the two adhesion complexes in the area composita. …

Dog Ownership During Pregnancy, Maternal Activity, And Obesity: A Cross-Sectional Study, Carri Westgarth, Jihong Liu, Jon Heron, Andrew R. Ness, Peter Bundred, Rosalind M. Gaskell, Alexander J. German, Sandra Mccune, Susan Dawson

Faculty Publications

The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) is an observational study of 14273 UK pregnant singleton mothers in 1990/1991. We examined outcomes of self report of strenuous activity (hours per week) at 18 and 32 weeks of gestation, hours spent in leisure-time physical activities and types, and pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI); overweight status was defined as pre-pregnancy BMI$25 and obesity BMI$30. Pet ownership and activity data were reported for 11,466 mothers. Twenty-five percent of mothers owned at least one dog. There was a positive relationship between participation in activity at least once a week and dog ownership …

Regulation Of A Duplicated Locus: Drosophila Sloppy Paired Is Replete With Functionally Overlapping Enhancers., Miki Fujioka, James B Jaynes

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Faculty Papers

In order to investigate regulation and redundancy within the sloppy paired (slp) locus, we analyzed 30 kilobases of DNA encompassing the tandem, coordinately regulated slp1 and slp2 transcription units. We found a remarkable array of stripe enhancers with overlapping activities surrounding the slp1 transcription unit, and, unexpectedly, glial cell enhancers surrounding slp2. The slp stripe regulatory region generates 7 stripes at blastoderm, and later 14 stripes that persist throughout embryogenesis. Phylogenetic analysis among drosophilids suggests that the multiplicity of stripe enhancers did not evolve through recent duplication. Most of the direct integration among cis-regulatory modules appears to be simply additive, …

Catecholamines In The Bed Nucleus Of The Stria Terminalis Reciprocally Respond To Reward And Aversion, Robert A. Wheeler

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Background

Traditionally, norepinephrine has been associated with stress responses, whereas dopamine has been associated with reward. Both of these catecholamines are found within the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), a brain relay nucleus in the extended amygdala between cortical/limbic centers, and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Despite this colocalization, little is known about subsecond catecholamine signaling in subregions of the BNST in response to salient stimuli.

Methods

Changes in extracellular catecholamine concentration in subregions of the BNST in response to salient stimuli were measured within the rat BNST with fast-scan cyclic voltammetry at carbon-fiber microelectrodes.

Results

A discrete subregional distribution …

'A Lion In The House' Module For Health Care Education: Pediatric End-Of-Life Case Studies, Julia Reichert, Dean Parmelee, Steve Bognar, Karen Durgans, Melissa Godoy

Medical Education Faculty Publications

Justin's Story is part of Pediatric End-of-Life Case Studies, one of seven teaching modules drawn from the Emmy Award-winning documentary, A Lion in the House. A Lion in the House portrays an unprecedented, intimate look at the realities of childhood cancer through the journeys of five families and their professional caregivers over the course of 6 years. Justin's Story provides a forum for open-ended discussion and consideration of compassionate approaches for navigating pediatric end-of-life. It offers content that is unpredictable and not always best practice. Learners reflect on the complex impact of childhood cancer on Justin, his family, and …

Method For Treating Hair Growth Disorders, Such As Female Pattern Alopecia, And Compositions Useful Therefore, Elaine L. Jacobson, Myron K. Jacobson, Hyuntae Kim, Donna L. Coyle, William R. Coyle

Graduate Center for Nutritional Sciences Faculty Patents

The invention relates to formulations useful in treating hair disorders, improving the health of hair, increasing hair growth, and in increasing the niacin content of hair follicles. Nicotinic acid alkyl esters having a straight chain alkyl group of from 1 to 22 methylene units, preferably from 6 to 16 methylene units, and most preferably from 8 to 14 methyl units, may be used, alone or in combinations for treating these conditions.

Dynamics Of Substrate Interactions In Trna (M1g37) Methyltransferase: Implications For Drug Discovery, Maria Kiouppis Palesis

Theses and Dissertations

The bacterial enzyme t-RNA (m1G37) methyltransferase (TrmD) is an ideal anti-microbial drug target since it is found in all eubacteria, serves an essential role during protein synthesis, and shares very little sequence or structural homology with its eukaryotic counterpart, Trm5. TrmD, a homodimeric protein, methylates the G37 nucleotide of tRNA using S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) as the methyl donor and thus enables proper codon-anticodon alignment during translation. The two deeply buried binding sites for SAM seen in X-ray crystallography suggest that significant conformational changes must occur for substrate binding and catalytic turnover. Results from molecular dynamics simulations implicate a flexible loop region …

The Role Of Calcineurin In Dendritic Remodeling And Epileptogenesis In A Rat Model Of Traumatic Brain Injury, John Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic brain injury (TBI), a leading cause of death and disability in the United States, causes potentially preventable damage in part through the dysregulation of neural calcium levels. This dysregulation likely affects the activity of the calcium-sensitive phosphatase, calcineurin, with serious implications for neural function. To test this possibility, the present study characterized the role of calcineurin in a rat model of brain trauma, the lateral fluid percussion injury model. Golgi-Cox histochemistry revealed an acute post-TBI loss and delayed overgrowth of dendritic spines on principal cortical cells. The spine loss appeared to require calcineurin activity, since administering a calcineurin inhibitor, …

Download Entire Issue- Jefferson Interprofessional Education And Care Newsletter, Winter, 2012, Volume 3, Issue 2

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

Download entire issue- Jefferson Interprofessional Education and Care Newsletter, Winter, 2012, Volume 3, Issue 2.

Download Entire Issue- Jefferson Interprofessional Education And Care Newsletter, Summer, 2011, Volume 3, Issue 1.

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

Download entire issue: Jefferson Interprofessional Education and Care Newsletter

Summer 2011, Volume 3, Issue 1.

Upcoming Faculty And Staff Development Programs

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

• Interprofessional Education and Care Practicum
• Manuscript Writing Workshop (2011-2012)
• Collaborating Across Borders III
• Save the Date! - Interprofessional Care for the 21st Century: Redefining Education and Practice

Announcements

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

Announcements including:

• Congratulations to JCIPE’s Spring 2011 Interprofessional Education and Care Practicum Pilot AwardRecipients
• Jefferson Award for Excellence in Interprofessional Education
• Health Mentors Program

Developing A Tool To Assess Students' Attitudes Toward Chronic Illness, Jon Veloski

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

The goals of many interprofessional programs involvechanging students' attitudes. Jefferson Attitudes towardChronic Illness Survey (Jefferson CIS), which has beenused to assess the attitudes of perceptions toward chronicillness care of nearly 2,000 Jefferson students since 2007,provides a case study of some of the best practices used todevelop a credible tool to evaluate attitudinal changefollowing curricula designed to improve chronic illnesscare skills. Previous work demonstrates that healthprofessionals and students often report negative biasestowards care of those with chronic illness or disability.1,2,3 Although the details are available elsewhere,4 thefollowing highlights key methods and representativefindings from the initial validation study for the Survey.

Providing For The Medical And Social Needs Of Newly Resettled Refugees In Philadelphia, Amy Szajna, Marc Altshuler, Kevin Scott

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

According to Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) data,Pennsylvania received 2,155 refugees during the 2009 fiscalyear.1 The primary countries of origin of these refugees wereBurma, Bhutan, and Iraq. The number of refugees whoresettled to Philadelphia County in 2009 totaled 597 persons.The nationalities of the refugees who resettled to PhiladelphiaCounty are representative of state statistics.

Selected Interprofessional Activities At The University Clinical Skills & Simulation Center, John Duffy

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

Interprofessional simulation has been a mainstay of a Jefferson education for almost a decade. Since the opening of the Hamilton Building in 2007, opportunities for interprofessional simulation have grown exponentially at the University. In response to this rapid growth, an Interprofessional Simulation Curriculum Committee (ISCC) was established by Dr. Michael Vergare, Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs in 2010. Committee members include representatives from nursing, medicine, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and pharmacy. The overarching goal of the ISCC is to promote and support the development of interprofessional education via simulation as a teaching/ learning strategy for faculty and students on …

From The Editors, Molly A. Rose, Rn, Phd, Christine A. Arenson, Md

Collaborative Healthcare: Interprofessional Practice, Education and Evaluation (JCIPE)

Welcome to the latest edition of the Jefferson Interprofessional Education and Care Newsletter. We are pleased to describe the launch of two reports essential to interprofessional education and practice in the United States that occurred on May 11, 2011: Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice and Team-Based Competencies, Building a Shared Foundation for Education and Clinical Practice. The first report, Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice, was produced by an expert panel convened in 2009 by the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC), a unique partnership of six associations - the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the American Association …

Incentivized Hiv Testing--Is It Needed And Effective? Developing An Evaluation Tool, Dawn Spellman

Capstone Collection

The following is a case study of agencies in Seattle, WA who provide HIV testing followed by an evaluation tool for the agencies to determine the role of incentivizing HIV testing. Some agencies I interviewed provide incentives for the testing and others do not.

This Capstone will focus on six agencies currently providing HIV testing and provides a tool for agencies to use to attempt to answer the following question: In the face of reduced funding for HIV prevention and a mandate to continue to push for increasingly getting more Men who have Sex with Men (MSM) tested for HIV, …

Public Health Spending, Preventable Outcomes, And Medical Cost Offsets: Questions For Health Reform, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

Uncertainty continues to surround the health and economic effects that can be expected from increased federal spending on public health and prevention strategies. Recent research provides some insight into the question of whether spending on public health strategies can offset the need for future spending on medical care.

Biophysical Characterization Of A Riboflavin-Conjugated Dendrimer Platform For Targeted Drug Delivery, Amanda B. Witte, Christine M. Timmer, Jeremy J. Gam, Seok Ki Choi

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

The present study describes the biophysical characterization of generation-five poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers conjugated with riboflavin (RF) as a cancer-targeting platform. Two new series of dendrimers were designed, each presenting the riboflavin ligand attached at a different site (isoalloxazine at N-3 and d-ribose at N-10) and at varying ligand valency. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used to determine the binding activity for riboflavin binding protein (RfBP) in a cell-free solution. The ITC data shows dendrimer conjugates have K D values of ≥465 nM on a riboflavin basis, an affinity ∼93-fold lower than that of free riboflavin. …

Biophysical Characterization Of A Riboflavin-Conjugated Dendrimer Platform For Targeted Drug Delivery, Amanda B. Witte, Christine M. Timmer, Jeremy J. Gam, Seok Ki Choi

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

The present study describes the biophysical characterization of generation-five poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers conjugated with riboflavin (RF) as a cancer-targeting platform. Two new series of dendrimers were designed, each presenting the riboflavin ligand attached at a different site (isoalloxazine at N-3 and d-ribose at N-10) and at varying ligand valency. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used to determine the binding activity for riboflavin binding protein (RfBP) in a cell-free solution. The ITC data shows dendrimer conjugates have K D values of ≥465 nM on a riboflavin basis, an affinity ∼93-fold lower than that of free riboflavin. …