I want to be my own person: the meaning-making and psychosocial processes of legacy students at Bucknell University

This study examined the meaning-making and psychosocial processes of five female legacy students at Bucknell University, each of whom having had at least one parent graduate from the institution. With a research philosophy, design, and methodology rooted in qualitative inquiry and phenomenology, inductive data analysis led to three primary categories that underscored legacy identity development. The first, Paradox of Influence and Identity, revealed through six themes nuanced experiences of separation-individuation. Second, Teaching and Learning, comprised of five themes, illuminated the impact of family — and of Bucknell parent alumni in particular — on their children’s internal working models. Lastly, Bucknell — the Environmental Contextand the five themes grouped therein highlighted the contributions of University community members, and of the campus culture and climate itself, to the co-construction of psychosocial formation. A tentative outline of grounded theory was offered, which explored categorical relationships; Paradox of Influence and Identity emerged as thedominant phenomenon, informing and being reinforced by the data of Teaching and Learning and Bucknell — the Environmental Context. Provisional intervention strategies for student affairs practice, in the contexts of academics, residential life, and career development, were discussed. Further, triangulated research is needed to substantiate and evolve the findings and theoretical model of this thesis.

Impact of the CTLA-4/CD28 axis on the processes of joint inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis

OBJECTIVE: The importance of the costimulatory molecules CD28 and CTLA-4 in the pathologic mechanism of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been demonstrated by genetic associations and the successful clinical application of CTLA-4Ig for the treatment of RA. This study was undertaken to investigate the role of the CTLA-4/CD28 axis in the local application of CTLA-4Ig in the synovial fluid (SF) of RA patients. METHODS: Quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to analyze the expression of proinflammatory and antiinflammatory cytokines in ex vivo fluorescence-activated cell sorted CTLA-4+ and CTLA-4- T helper cells from the peripheral blood and SF of RA patients. T helper cells were also analyzed for cytokine expression in vitro after the blockade of CTLA-4 by anti-CTLA-4 Fab fragments or of B7 (CD80/CD86) molecules by CTLA-4Ig. RESULTS: CTLA-4+ T helper cells were unambiguously present in the SF of all RA patients examined, and they expressed increased amounts of interferon-γ (IFNγ), interleukin-17 (IL-17), and IL-10 as compared to CTLA-4- T helper cells. The selective blockade of CTLA-4 in T helper cells from the SF in vitro led to increased levels of IFNγ, IL-2, and IL-17. The concomitant blockade of CD28 and CTLA-4 in T helper cells from RA SF by CTLA-4Ig in vitro resulted in reduced levels of the proinflammatory cytokines IFNγ and IL-2 and increased levels of the antiinflammatory cytokines IL-10 and transforming growth factor β. CONCLUSION: Our ex vivo and in vitro results demonstrate that the CTLA-4/CD28 axis constitutes a drug target for not only the systemic, but potentially also the local, application of the costimulation blocking agent CTLA-4Ig for the treatment of RA.

Low-lying excited states and nonradiative processes of 9-methyl-2-aminopurine

he UV spectrum of the adenine analogue 9-methyl-2-aminopurine (9M-2AP) is investigated with one- and two-color resonant two-photon ionization spectroscopy at 0.3 and 0.05 cm−1 resolution in a supersonic jet. The electronic origin at 32 252 cm−1 exhibits methyl torsional subbands that originate from the 0A′′1 (l = 0) and 1E ″ (l = ±1) torsional levels. These and further torsional bands that appear up to 000+230 cm−1 allow to fit the threefold (V 3) barriers of the torsional potentials as ∣∣V′′3∣∣=50 cm−1 in the S 0 and ∣∣V′3∣∣=126 cm−1 in the S 1 state. Using the B3LYP density functional and correlated approximate second-order coupled cluster CC2 methods, the methyl orientation is calculated to be symmetric relative to the 2AP plane in both states, with barriers of V′′3=20 cm−1 and V′3=115 cm−1. The 000 rotational band contour is 75% in-plane (a/b) polarized, characteristic for a dominantly long-axis 1ππ* excitation. The residual 25% c-axis polarization may indicate coupling of the 1ππ* to the close-lying 1 nπ* state, calculated at 4.00 and 4.01 eV with the CC2 method. However, the CC2 calculated 1 nπ oscillator strength is only 6% of that of the 1ππ* transition. The 1ππ* vibronic spectrum is very complex, showing about 40 bands within the lowest 500 cm−1. The methyl torsion and the low-frequency out-of-plane ν′1 and ν′2 vibrations are strongly coupled in the 1ππ* state. This gives rise to many torsion-vibration combination bands built on out-of-plane fundamentals, which are without precedence in the 1ππ* spectrum of 9H-2-aminopurine [S. Lobsiger, R. K. Sinha, M. Trachsel, and S. Leutwyler, J. Chem. Phys.134, 114307 (2011)]. From the Lorentzian broadening needed to fit the 000 contour of 9M-2AP, the 1ππ* lifetime is τ ⩾ 120 ps, reflecting a rapid nonradiative transition.

Running the Gauntlet: Inhibitory Effects of Algal Turfs on the Processes of Coral Recruitment

Mortality of corals is increasing due to bleaching, disease and algal overgrowth. In the Caribbean, low rates of coral recruitment contribute to the slow or undetectable rates of recovery in reef ecosystems. Although algae have long been suspected to interfere with coral recruitment, the mechanisms of that interaction remain unclear. We experimentally tested the effects of turf algal abundance on 3 sequential factors important to recruitment of corals: the biophysical delivery of planktonic coral larvae, their propensity to settle, and the availability of microhabitats where they survive. We deployed coral settlement plates inside and outside damselfish Stegastes spp. gardens and cages. Damselfish aggression reduced herbivory from fishes, and cages became fouled with turf algae, both locally increasing algal biomass surrounding the plates. This reduced flushing rates in nursery microhabitats on the plate underside, limiting larvae available for settlement. Coral spat settled preferentially on an early successional crustose coralline alga Titanoderma prototypum but also on or near other coralline algae, biofilms, and calcareous polychaete worm tubes. Post-settlement survival was highest in the fully grazed, lowest algal biomass treatment, and after 27 mo 'spat' densities were 73 % higher in this treatment. The 'gauntlet' refers to the sequence of ecological processes through which corals must survive to recruit. The highest proportion of coral spat successfully running the gauntlet did so under conditions of low algal biomass resulting from increased herbivory. If coral recruitment is heavily controlled at very local scales by this gauntlet, then coral reef managers could improve a reef's recruitment potential by managing for reduced algal biomass.

The adherence to initial processes of care in elderly patients with acute venous thromboembolism.

BACKGROUND We aimed to assess whether elderly patients with acute venous thromboembolism (VTE) receive recommended initial processes of care and to identify predictors of process adherence. METHODS We prospectively studied in- and outpatients aged ≥65 years with acute symptomatic VTE in a multicenter cohort study from nine Swiss university- and non-university hospitals between September 2009 and March 2011. We systematically assessed whether initial processes of care, which are recommended by the 2008 American College of Chest Physicians guidelines, were performed in each patient. We used multivariable logistic models to identify patient factors independently associated with process adherence. RESULTS Our cohort comprised 950 patients (mean age 76 years). Of these, 86% (645/750) received parenteral anticoagulation for ≥5 days, 54% (405/750) had oral anticoagulation started on the first treatment day, and 37% (274/750) had an international normalized ratio (INR) ≥2 for ≥24 hours before parenteral anticoagulation was discontinued. Overall, 35% (53/153) of patients with cancer received low-molecular-weight heparin monotherapy and 72% (304/423) of patients with symptomatic deep vein thrombosis were prescribed compression stockings. In multivariate analyses, symptomatic pulmonary embolism, hospital-acquired VTE, and concomitant antiplatelet therapy were associated with a significantly lower anticoagulation-related process adherence. CONCLUSIONS Adherence to several recommended processes of care was suboptimal in elderly patients with VTE. Quality of care interventions should particularly focus on processes with low adherence, such as the prescription of continued low-molecular-weight heparin therapy in patients with cancer and the achievement of an INR ≥2 for ≥24 hours before parenteral anticoagulants are stopped.

Ethnic Diversity, Social Trust and the Moderating Role of Integration Policy

Increasing ethnic diversity and whether or not it impacts on trust are highly debated topics. Numerous studies report a negative relationship between diversity and trust, particularly in the US. A growing body of follow-up studies examined the extent to which these findings can be transferred to Europe, but the results remain inconclusive. Moving beyond the discussion of the mere existence or absence of diversity effects on trust, this study is concerned with the moderation of this relationship: It addresses the neglected role of subnational integration policies influencing diversity’s impact on trust. Empirical tests not only indicate that integration policies moderate the relationship, but also suggest that the influence of policies varies substantively according to the specific policy aspect under consideration.