Search

While mental health issues have always been part of the landscape of youth work, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought them into sharp relief. For nearly 30 years, The Clubhouse Network has provided young people from low-income communities with a safe out-of-school setting in which to explore, experiment, and express themselves through technology. In the process, they gain a stronger sense of self while developing marketable technology and life skills. Furthermore, the Clubhouse learning model helps young people deal with some of the real pain in their lives. This article explores how three Clubhouses around the globe (in Colombia, New Zealand, and Nevada) provide unique opportunities to address adolescent vulnerabilities and provide trauma-informed care, and what others can learn from their experience.

The rise of antimicrobial-resistant bacterial infections is a crucial health concern in the 21st century. In particular, antibiotic-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes difficult-to-treat infections associated with high morbidity and mortality. Unfortunately, the number of effective therapeutic interventions against antimicrobial-resistant P. aeruginosa infections continues to decline. Therefore, discovery and development of alternative treatments are necessary. Here, we present pre-clinical efficacy studies on an anti-P. aeruginosa therapeutic monoclonal antibody. Using hybridoma technology, we generated a monoclonal antibody and characterized its binding to P. aeruginosa in vitro using ELISA and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy. We also characterized its function in vitro and in vivo against P. aeruginosa. The anti-P. aeruginosa antibody (WVDC-5244) bound P. aeruginosa clinical strains of various serotypes in vitro, even in the presence of alginate exopolysaccharide. In addition, WVDC-5244 induced opsonophagocytic killing of P. aeruginosa in vitro in J774.1 murine macrophage, and complement-mediated killing. In a mouse model of acute pneumonia, prophylactic administration of WVDC-5244 resulted in an improvement of clinical disease manifestations and reduction of P. aeruginosa burden in the respiratory tract compared to the control groups. This study provides promising pre-clinical efficacy data on a new monoclonal antibody with therapeutic potential for P. aeruginosa infections.

Abstract Background and Aims Labels designed to communicate critical information are paramount for the safe and effective use of over‐the‐counter medications; in recognition of this, the content and formatting of over the counter (OTC) labels sold in interstate commerce has been regulated for decades. Yet, available studies suggest that consumers frequently rely on limited information during decision making, failing to access the information required in the Drug Facts Label. This is particularly important for older consumers, who are at greater risk for adverse reactions to medicines. In two experiments we objectively evaluate how novel label designs that employ highlighting and a warning label placed on the package's front impact older consumers' attention to, and use of, critical information. Methods In Experiment 1, 68 OTC patients (65+) engaged with a computer‐based task answering yes/no scenario‐based questions about a drug's appropriateness. In Experiment 2, 63 OTC patients (65+) conducted a forced‐choice task where one of two drugs presented on a computer screen was appropriate for a provided scenario while the other was not. Both tasks required participants to access and use critical label information (i.e., warnings or active ingredients) to respond correctly. Dependent variables analyzed were the proportion of correct responses and time to correct response. Results Highlighting or placing critical information on the front of the package significantly improved response accuracy and time to correct response in Experiment 1 as compared to responses utilizing the standard label. For Experiment 2, participants were faster and more accurate when critical information was highlighted. Conclusions Results provide direct measures of the efficacy of novel labeling strategies. This information is relevant for regulations which dictate label design in ways that enhance ease and safety of use of medications for older adults.

Appreciative inquiry (AI) is an alternative approach to action research that moves participants beyond problem solving and builds on existing strengths as the participants co-construct a positive vision of the future and move toward that vision through collaborative inquiry. Ph.D. students enrolled in a doctoral seminar on AI (who also are co-authors of the article) facilitated three separate AI projects. This article describes the AI projects, carried out at the school, district, and university levels, and identifies doctoral students' experiences and perceptions as first-time facilitators of AI. The authors also make recommendations to others considering or initiating AI in educational settings.

"Circuits and Electronics" (6.002x), which began in March 2012, was the first MOOC developed by edX, the consortium led by MIT and Harvard. Over 155,000 students initially registered for 6.002x, which was composed of video lectures, interactive problems, online laboratories, and a discussion forum. As the course ended in June 2012, researchers began to analyze the rich sources of data it generated. This article describes both the first stage of this research, which examined the students' use of resources by time spent on each, and a second stage that is producing an in-depth picture of who the 6.002x students were, how their own background and capabilities related to their achievement and persistence, and how their interactions with 6.002x's curricular and pedagogical components contributed to their level of success in the course.

"Troubled-persons industries" have been created to ensure that troubled people (to themselves or others) are brought into "the stream of 'adjusted citizens'" (Gusfield, [Gusfield, J. R., 1989], p. 433). At the crossroad is Mad Studies. This article seeks to resolve the inner tension felt by one troubled-persons-industry professional, as he reflects on what he and higher education professions can learn from Mad Studies.

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the use of video and other technology tools to support professional learning. A growing body of evidence shows how these tools are improving teachers' practice (Borko, Jacobs, Eiteljorg, & Pittman, 2008; Grant & Kline, 2010; van Es & Sherin, 2010). However, there has been less focus on the potential of technology tools to bring promising and proven professional development models to scale. This article looks at how eight grantees of the Investing in Innovation Fund (i3) are using video and other technology tools to strengthen, scale, and sustain their instructional coaching models.

BackgroundFor transgender people, reaching transgender (trans)-specific developmental milestones, including recognizing and expressing one's identity, plays an integral role in overall health, wellbeing, and the pursuit of gender affirmation. Yet trans people continue to face minority stressors, including structural violence (i.e., discrimination, violence, and stigma), which may interfere with the achievement of these milestones. Among trans women specifically, however, potential associations between gender developmental milestones and structural violence are not well characterized in the literature. In a sample of Filipinx (i.e., an inclusive term for describing non-binary genders in the Philippines) trans women who are sexually active with men (trans-WSM), we thus sought to: (a) describe the mean ages at which gender developmental milestones occur and (b) examine the associations between structural violence and mean ages at which at which Filipinx trans-WSM experience trans-specific developmental milestones.MethodsUsing data from Project #ParaSaAtin, an online survey of Filipinx trans-WSM (n = 139), we mapped age-estimates per trans-specific milestones and then tested whether structural violence is associated with the mean age at which trans women experience trans-specific developmental milestones.ResultsOverall, participants who reported higher levels of discrimination, stigma, and violence also experienced a later age for nearly each milestone (i.e., initial self-awareness of transfeminine identity, transfeminine expression in private, transfeminine expression in public, first consensual oral/vaginal/anal sex with a cisgender male partner, first consensual oral/vaginal/anal sex with a cisgender male partner as a trans women, and hormone integration) (all p-values ConclusionResults are consistent with psychological literature outlining a temporal sequence of developmental milestones among young trans-WSM. For young trans-WSM in the Philippines, data from this study demonstrate significant associations between structural violence and the achievement of developmental milestones. These findings highlight the need for trauma-informed, strengths-based programming and institutional policies that measure and mitigate anti-trans violence.

Abstract Introduction: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an increasing cause of chronic liver disease that accompanies obesity and the metabolic syndrome. Excess fructose consumption can initiate or exacerbate NAFLD in part due to a consequence of impaired hepatic fructose metabolism. Preclinical data emphasized that fructose-induced altered gut microbiome, increased gut permeability, and endotoxemia play an important role in NAFLD, but human studies are sparse. The present study aimed to determine if two weeks of excess fructose consumption significantly alters gut microbiota or permeability in humans. Methods: We performed a pilot double-blind, cross-over, metabolic unit study in 10 subjects with obesity (body mass index [BMI] 30–40 mg/kg/m2). Each arm provided 75 grams of either fructose or glucose added to subjects’ individual diets for 14 days, substituted isocalorically for complex carbohydrates, with a 19-day wash-out period between arms. Total fructose intake provided in the fructose arm of the study totaled a mean of 20.1% of calories. Outcome measures included fecal microbiota distribution, fecal metabolites, intestinal permeability, markers of endotoxemia, and plasma metabolites. Results: Routine blood, uric acid, liver function, and lipid measurements were unaffected by the fructose intervention. The fecal microbiome (including Akkermansia muciniphilia), fecal metabolites, gut permeability, indices of endotoxemia, gut damage or inflammation, and plasma metabolites were essentially unchanged by either intervention. Conclusions: In contrast to rodent preclinical findings, excess fructose did not cause changes in the gut microbiome, metabolome, and permeability as well as endotoxemia in humans with obesity fed fructose for 14 days in amounts known to enhance NAFLD.