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BACKGROUND: Large introductory lecture courses are frequently post-secondary students first formal interaction with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Grade outcomes in these courses are often disparate across student populations, which, in turn, has implications for student retention. This study positions such disparities as a manifestation of systemic inequities along the dimensions of sex, race/ethnicity, income, and first-generation status and investigates the extent to which they are similar across peer institutions. RESULTS: We examined grade outcomes in a selected set of early STEM courses across six large, public, research-intensive universities in the United States over ten years. In this sample of more than 200,000 STEM course enrollments, we find that course grade benefits increase significantly with the number of systemic advantages students possess at all six institutions. The observed trends in academic outcomes versus advantage are strikingly similar across universities despite the fact that we did not control for differences in grading practices, contexts, and instructor and student populations. The findings are concerning given that these courses are often students first post-secondary STEM experiences. CONCLUSIONS: STEM course grades are typically lower than those in other disciplines; students taking them often pay grade penalties. The systemic advantages some student groups experience are correlated with significant reductions in these grade penalties at all six institutions. The consistency of these findings across institutions and courses supports the claim that inequities in STEM education are a systemic problem, driven by factors that go beyond specific courses or individual institutions. Our work provides a basis for the exploration of contexts where inequities are exacerbated or reduced and can be used to advocate for structural change within STEM education. To cultivate more equitable learning environments, we must reckon with how pervasive structural barriers in STEM courses negatively shape the experiences of marginalized students. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40594-024-00474-7.

The recent anti-racist movements in the United States have inspired a national call for more research on the experiences of racially marginalized and minoritized students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. As researchers focused on promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, we contend that STEM education must, as a discipline, grapple with how analytic approaches may not fully support equity efforts. We discuss how researchers and educational practitioners should more critically approach STEM equity analyses and why modifying our approaches matters for STEM equity goals. Engaging with equity as a process rather than a static goal, we provide a primer of reflective questions to assist researchers with framing, analysis, and interpretation of student-level data frequently used to identify disparities and assess course-level and programmatic interventions. This guidance can inform analyses conducted by campus units such as departments and programs, but also across universities and the scientific community to enhance how we understand and address systemic inequity in STEM fields.

Collegiate mathematics instructors are moving away from traditional lecture-based teaching practices to accommodate the pedagogies that support more active student learning. As part of the movement, groupwork has been increasingly implemented. At the same time, mathematics classrooms have become increasingly diverse and also in the distribution of students' primary languages. In this report, we examine two students' experiences with groupwork in a collegiate mathematics course. What commonly binds these two students is that they each found themselves to be the only member of their respective groups who uses a different primary language from the other group members. After presenting the experiences, we provide instructional implications for group formation in linguistically heterogeneous classrooms.

The long‐term stability of soil carbon (C) is strongly influenced by organo‐mineral interactions. Iron (Fe)‐oxides can both inhibit microbial decomposition by providing physicochemical protection for organic molecules and enhance rates of C mineralization by serving as a terminal electron acceptor, depending on redox conditions. Restoration of floodplain hydrology in montane meadows has been proposed as a method of sequestering C for climate change mitigation. However, dissimilatory microbial reduction of Fe(III) could lead to C losses under increased reducing conditions. In this study, we explored variations in Fe‐C interactions over a range of redox conditions and in soils derived from two distinct parent materials to elucidate biochemical and microbial controls on soil C cycling in Sierra Nevada montane meadows. Soils derived from basalt showed greater rates of Fe(III)‐reduction at increasing soil moisture levels than granitic soils. Increases in Fe(III) reduction, however, were only associated with elevated rates of C mineralization in one basalt soil. Known Fe(III)‐reducing taxa were present in all samples but neither the relative abundance nor richness of Fe(III)‐reducers corresponded with measured rates of Fe(III) reduction. Under reducing conditions, Fe(III)‐reduction was only coupled to C mineralization in the soil with the greatest amount of Fe‐oxide bound C. However, Fe‐oxide ‐bound C was below theoretical limits for C sorption onto Fe‐oxides and not detectable in all soils. Overall, our results suggest that "what's there" in terms of soil chemistry may be a more important driver of C mineralization coupled to Fe(III) reduction than "who's there" in the microbial community. Plain Language Summary: The ability of soils to sequester and store carbon may depend, in large part, on associations between soil minerals and carbon molecules. Iron is associated with some of the oldest and most persistent soil carbon. However, in saturated soils microbial utilization of iron can lead to the loss of soil carbon. In this study, we explored how microbial utilization of iron under different soil moisture levels impacts rates of soil carbon loss and whether geologic differences in parent material or microbial community composition explain patterns between sites. To test this, we incubated soils from basalt and granitic parent material at different levels of soil moisture and tested rates of iron utilization and carbon decomposition. Differences in parent material impacted microbial utilization of iron but increases in iron utilization were only coupled to soil carbon decomposition in one soil. Iron reducing bacteria were present in all soils, regardless of rates of iron utilization, and differences in microbial community composition did not impact rates of iron utilization or soil carbon decomposition. Overall, our results suggest that site‐specific soil chemistry may impact iron‐carbon interactions more than microbial community composition or parent material. Key Points: Differences in parent material were associated with differences in rates of Fe(III) reduction but not C mineralizationMixotrophic ability of many Fe(III)‐reducers may partially explain the lack of pattern observedSoil chemistry may exert stronger controls over dissimilatory Fe(III)‐reduction than microbial community composition [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Humanistic geographers distinguish between space and place: "What begins as undifferentiated space becomes place as we get to know it better and endow it with value" [19, page 6]. In this essay, we seek to demonstrate how mathematics education researchers and mathematics instructors may find space and place illuminating for understanding important aspects of students' learning experiences during the coronavirus pandemic -- and possibly beyond. Specifically, after introducing the terms and relating them to the context of a university mathematics class, we exemplify how home and class places collided for three undergraduate mathematics students forced to deal with the abrupt transition to online education. We conclude by discussing implications of attending to space and place for designers and researchers of (pandemic) online instruction and make connections to how the pandemic and attending to space and place can serve as a catalyst for reshaping undergraduate mathematics education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collegiate mathematics instructors are moving away from traditional lecture-based teaching practices to accommodate the pedagogies that support more active student learning. As part of the movement, groupwork has been increasingly implemented. At the same time, mathematics classrooms have become increasingly diverse and also in the distribution of students' primary languages. In this report, we examine two students' experiences with groupwork in a collegiate mathematics course. What commonly binds these two students is that they each found themselves to be the only member of their respective groups who uses a different primary language from the other group members. After presenting the experiences, we provide instructional implications for group formation in linguistically heterogeneous classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many of the challenges facing children now are a function of changing times, including increase in urbanization, political violence, changing family forms, and in some areas decreased supplies of adequate food. This review focuses particularly on those changes in which children are the victims and which induce new threats for them, rather than on problems such as child disability or mental illness. The outcome variables of interest in this paper are dimensions of children's psychosocial development, including cognitive development, psychological adjustment and aggression, whereas the companion paper in this issue (Caldwell P., Child survival: vulnerability and resilience in adversity in the European past and the contemporary Third World, Soc. Sci. Med.) [1] focuses on physical aspects of children's development. The risks that are hurdles in the process of development of a young child begin from conception and carry on into later life. To address them all would be impossible; thus, in order to do justice to the issues at hand, we have chosen those risks that, in our view, are important in a child's psychosocial development in developing countries. This paper will thus provide a discussion of the concepts of risk and resilience, then apply these concepts to the analysis of three examples of risk faced by children today: nutritional threats (e.g. malnutrition due to decline in breastfeeding); family dynamics and types of family forms (e.g. child fostering and non-traditional families); and experiences of violence (domestic or political). In each case, the same four questions will be addressed: what are the consequences of the risk factor for children, what are the etiologies and conditions of risk, are there any children who seem to cope with the risk factor successfully and what are some of the protective factors, and what interventions or programs would help support these children? Keywords - child development, vulnerability, resilience, malnutrition, violence toward children

Research in West Africa has begun to document the phenomenon of child fostering although little attention has focussed on other types of non-maternal child care arrangements and their impact on child health. Evidence from a sample of 77 weaned children under five in rural Mall found that over one third (35%) of children were not the prime responsibility of both their biological parents. Nineteen per cent (N = 15) of the sample were formally fostered children, known as sukaabe bambaabe, who lived neither with their biological mothers nor with their biological fathers. Others lived under flexible or semi-permanent non-maternal care arrangements both within and outside the agnatic family. Factors precipitating fostering are outlined and are divided into: (i) those under which the child is fostered away from its biological family through force of circumstance; and (ii) those under which the child is actively requested by its foster mother. Rather than fostering providing a universal option for over-burdened mothers with too many or too closely-spaced children, the field evidence shows that the movement of children within and between households is rigorously controlled by the female social hierarchy. Children are transferred in a uni-directional fashion from the care of their low status biological mothers to high status foster mothers. Their transfer serves to visibly reinforce socio-political power differentials between these women who are at different stages of the female life-cycle and in different sets of household circumstances. Economic factors are not associated with the decision to keep the child or to foster it away, but do appear to determine whether the children living under non-maternal care are fostered out under a structured or unstructured fostering arrangement. Contrary to findings in other West African settings, fostering per se has little impact on children's nutritional outcomes as measured by their weight-for-age Z-Scores, probably because the use of surrogate or sibling caretakers is common in this environment even for children who are the full responsibility of their biological mothers. The context of the fostering, however, does influence fostered children's nutritional status. Those children who were requested by their foster mothers had better nutritional outcomes than those who were fostered in by force of circumstance. It is concluded that the concept of 'maternal and child health' and the 'maternal-child' dyad around which both health interventions and demographic evaluations are centred, may not always be appropriate in areas of high fostering prevalence. Key words - child fostering, women's status, women's health, Fulani

Background: Agroforestry, the intentional integration of trees or other woody perennials with crops or livestock in production systems, is being widely promoted as a conservation and development tool to help meet the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals. Donors, governments, and nongovernmental organizations have invested significant time and resources into developing and promoting agroforestry policies and programs in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs) worldwide. While a large body of literature on the impacts of agroforestry practices in LMICs is available, the social‐ecological impacts of agroforestry interventions is less well‐studied. This knowledge gap on the effectiveness of agroforestry interventions constrains possibilities for evidence‐based policy and investment decisions to advance sustainable development objectives. Objectives: The primary objective of this Campbell systematic review was to synthesize the available evidence on the impacts of agroforestry interventions in LMICs on agricultural productivity, ecosystem services, and human well‐being. The secondary objectives were to identify key pathways through which agroforestry interventions lead to various outcomes and how the interventions affect different sub‐groups of the population. Search Methods: This review is based on a previously created evidence and gap map (EGM) of studies evaluating the impacts of agroforestry practices and interventions on agricultural productivity, ecosystem services, and human well‐being. We included published and unpublished literature in the English language covering the period between 2000 and October 20, 2017. We searched six academic databases and 19 organization websites to identify potentially relevant studies. The search was conducted for our EGM in mid‐2017, and we did not conduct an additional search for this systematic review. Selection Criteria: We included randomized control trials (RCTs) and quasi‐experimental studies assessing the effect of an agroforestry intervention on at least one outcome measure of agricultural productivity, ecosystem services, or human well‐being for farmers and their farmland in LMICs. Agroforestry interventions include any program or policy designed to promote and support the adoption or maintenance of agroforestry practices, which include trees on farms, silvopasture, shade‐grown crops, and homegardens with trees, among others. Moreover, the studies needed to include a nonagroforestry comparator, such as conventional agriculture or forestry systems or a before‐after comparison. Data Collection and Analysis: We used a standardized data extraction spreadsheet to extract details about each included study. We also used a standardized form to assess risk of bias for each of the included studies in this SR. Meta‐analysis techniques were used to combine and synthesize effect size estimates for the outcomes measures that had sufficient data. We used a random effects models for the meta‐analyses and use Hedge's g (difference in means divided by the pooled standard deviation) to report effect size estimates. The outcomes without enough evidence for meta‐analysis were discussed narratively. Main Results: We identified 11 studies across nine countries, all of which used quasi‐experimental methods. Overall, the quality of the evidence base was assessed as being low. Studies were rated as having high or critical risk of bias if they failed to convincingly address more than one of the main potential sources of bias, namely selection bias, group equivalence, and spillover effects. Given the low number of studies and the high risk of bias of the evidence base, the results of this SR are limited and should be considered a baseline for future work. The results of the meta‐analysis for impacts on yields indicated that agroforestry interventions overall may lead to a large, positive impact on yield (Hedge's g = 1.16 [−0.35, 2.67] (p = .13)), though there was high heterogeneity in the results (I2 = 98.99%, τ2 = 2.94, Q(df = 4)  = 370.7). There were positive yield impacts for soil fertility replenishment practices, including incorporating trees in agricultural fields and improved fallow practices in fields where there are severe soil fertility issues. In other cases, incorporating trees into the production system reduced productivity and took land out of production for conservation benefits. These systems generally used an incentive provision scheme to economically offset the reductions in yields. The result of the meta‐analysis on income suggests that agroforestry interventions overall may lead to a small, positive impact on income (Hedge's g = 0.12 [−0.06, 0.30] (p = .20)), with moderately high heterogeneity in the results (I2 = 75.29%, τ2 = 0.04, Q(df = 6) = 19.16). In cases where improvement yields were reported, there were generally attendant improvements in income. In the cases where payments were provided to offset the potential loss in yields, incomes also generally improved, though there were mixed results for the certification programs and the tenure security permitting scheme. One program, which study authors suggested may have been poorly targeted, had negative yield impacts. There was not enough comparable evidence to quantitatively synthesize the impacts of agroforestry interventions on nutrition and food security outcomes, though the results indicted positive or neutral impacts on dietary diversity and food intake were likely. Surprisingly, there was little evidence on the impacts of agroforestry interventions on environmental outcomes, and there was no consistency of environmental indicator variables used. However, what has been studied indicates that the environmental benefits are being achieved to at least some extent, consistent with the broader literature on agroforestry practices. The evidence base was insufficient to evaluate the interaction between environmental and social impacts. Several studies explicitly considered variable impacts across different population sub‐groups, including differential impacts on small‐holders versus large‐holders, on woman‐headed households versus male‐headed households, and on richer groups versus poorer groups. Small‐holder farmers typically experienced the most positive effect sizes due to the agroforestry interventions. Women and poorer groups had mixed outcomes relative to men and richer households, highlighting the importance of considering these groups in intervention design. Authors' Conclusions: There is limited evidence of the impacts of agroforestry interventions, restricting our ability to draw conclusions on the effect sizes of different intervention types. The existing evidence forms a baseline for future research and highlights the importance of considering equity and socio‐economic factors in determining suitable intervention design. Some key implications for practice and policy include investing in programs that include pilot programs, funding for project evaluation, and that address key equity issues, such as targeting to smallholders, women, poor, and marginalized groups. Funding should also be given to implementing RCTs and more rigorous quasi‐experimental impact evaluations of agroforestry interventions over longer time‐periods to collect robust evidence of the effectiveness of various schemes promoting agroforestry practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving symbiotic nitrogen fixation would reduce reliance on synthetic fertilizers, but establishment of effective bacterial strains is hampered due to competition by indigenous, less effective rhizobia. This study investigated the origins, diversity, and competitiveness of Sinorhizobium meliloti (syn. Ensifer meliloti) strains isolated from root nodules of alfalfa (lucerne; Medicago sativa L.) grown in soils that had not been in alfalfa cultivation for over 30 years. Sets of PCR primers were developed to identify Sinorhizobium spp. and to identify strains with virD4, the defining gene for a type IV secretion system (T4SS), which has been implicated in increasing strain competitiveness for nodule colonization of M. truncatula, an annual species closely related to alfalfa. A collection of S. meliloti isolates was made from nodules of field-grown plants and from seeds used for establishing field plots that had been inoculated with rhizobia by the manufacturer prior to packaging. Diversity among strains was examined by repetitive element palindromic PCR (rep-PCR) DNA fingerprinting using the BOXA1R primer. Strains originating from the seed inoculant could not be detected in nodules, even in the first year of alfalfa establishment, which were occupied exclusively by indigenous rhizobia originating from soil. Field strains were very diverse within and among field sites, and genetically distinct from inoculant strains. Approximately 33% of field strains were positive for virD4, a component of the T4SSb gene cluster, which putatively mobilizes effector proteins across the bacterial cell envelop into the host cell. Strains with virD4, the presence of which suggests that they have a functional T4SS, had more rapid nodulation kinetics than did those lacking virD4. These results provide additional support for the role of the S. meliloti T4SS in competitiveness for nodule occupancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ecological processes that influence biogeographical patterns of microorganisms are actively debated. To investigate how such patterns emerge during ecosystem succession, we examined the biogeochemical drivers of bacterial community assembly in soils over two environmentally distinct, recently deglaciated chronosequences separated by a distance of more than 1300 km. Our results show that despite different geographic, climatic, and soil chemical and physical characteristics at the two sites, soil bacterial community structure and decomposer function converged during plant succession. In a comparative analysis, we found that microbial communities in early succession soils were compositionally distinct from a diverse group of mature forest soils, but that the differences between successional soils and mature soils decreased from early to late stages of succession. Overall differences in bacterial community composition between sites were explained by soil pH. However, within-site successional patterns – leading to community convergence across sites at the latest stage of succession – were explained by alternate factors such as soil organic carbon and soil organic matter chemistry, which were correlated to bacterial community structure across both glacial and mature forest soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern agriculture often relies on large inputs of synthetic fertilizers to maximize crop yield potential, yet their intensive use has led to nutrient losses and impaired soil health. Alternatively, manure amendments provide plant available nutrients, build organic carbon, and enhance soil health. However, we lack a clear understanding of how consistently manure impacts fungal communities, the mechanisms via which manure impacts soil fungi, and the fate of manure-borne fungi in soils. We assembled soil microcosms using five soils to investigate how manure amendments impact fungal communities over a 60-day incubation. Further, we used autoclaving treatments of soils and manure to determine if observed changes in soil fungal communities were due to abiotic or biotic properties, and if indigenous soil communities constrained colonization of manure-borne fungi. We found that manure amended soil fungal communities diverged from nonamended communities over time, often in concert with a reduction in diversity. Fungal communities responded to live and autoclaved manure in a similar manner, suggesting that abiotic forces are primarily responsible for the observed dynamics. Finally, manure-borne fungi declined quickly in both live and autoclaved soil, indicating that the soil environment is unsuitable for their survival. IMPORTANCE Manure amendments in agricultural systems can impact soil microbial communities via supplying growth substrates for indigenous microbes or by introducing manure-borne taxa. This study explores the consistency of these impacts on soil fungal communities and the relative importance of abiotic and biotic drivers across distinct soils. Different fungal taxa responded to manure among distinct soils, and shifts in soil fungal communities were driven largely by abiotic factors, rather than introduced microbes. This work demonstrates that manure may have inconsistent impacts on indigenous soil fungi, and that abiotic properties of soils render them largely resistant to invasion by manureborne fungi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ecological mechanisms driving community succession are widely debated, particularly for microorganisms. While successional soil microbial communities are known to undergo predictable changes in structure concomitant with shifts in a variety of edaphic properties, the causal mechanisms underlying these patterns are poorly understood. Thus, to specifically isolate how nutrients – important drivers of plant succession – affect soil microbial succession, we established a full factorial nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilization plot experiment in recently deglaciated (∼3 years since exposure), unvegetated soils of the Puca Glacier forefield in Southeastern Peru. We evaluated soil properties and examined bacterial community composition in plots before and one year after fertilization. Fertilized soils were then compared to samples from three reference successional transects representing advancing stages of soil development ranging from 5 years to 85 years since exposure. We found that a single application of +NP fertilizer caused the soil bacterial community structure of the three-year old soils to most resemble the 85-year old soils after one year. Despite differences in a variety of soil edaphic properties between fertilizer plots and late successional soils, bacterial community composition of +NP plots converged with late successional communities. Thus, our work suggests a mechanism for microbial succession whereby changes in resource availability drive shifts in community composition, supporting a role for nutrient colimitation in primary succession. These results suggest that nutrients alone, independent of other edaphic factors that change with succession, act as an important control over soil microbial community development, greatly accelerating the rate of succession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We tested the efficacy of four different commonly used solvents (acetone, ethanol, dimethyl sulfoxide, methanol) for the extraction of chla from biological soil crusts of three different successional stages (dark, intermediate, and light). Our results indicate that a double extraction technique is necessary in order to achieve chla recovery in the range of 76–87 percent. For all crust types, ethanol and dimethyl sulfoxide extracted the greatest amount of chla using a two-extraction efficiency calculation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Qualitative research among young people and other community members in rural Mali elicited knowledge and attitudes with regard to HIV/AIDS. Findings indicated that rumours concerning methods of infection are likely to increase the stigmatization of those with the disease. The most frequently stated mode of transmission involved urinating in a place where someone with AIDS had already urinated. Shared clothes, food and water were seen as sources of infection. Both children and teachers recommended that people with AIDS be isolated. Even talking to them would lead to a risk of infection. Discriminatory views were likely to have been reinforced by parents and community elders who possessed the same misinformation. The notion that AIDS results from sexual encounters between young women and dogs belonging to white people in Côte d'Ivoire was also widespread. These discourses may reflect perceived xenophobia and risk to migrants associated with current tensions between the two countries, together with misgivings about Western sexual liberalism. A holistic educational programme is proposed to address not simply HIV/AIDS, but the social context in which infection occurs, with view to combating stigma and discrimination associated with not just HIV but also with migration in this setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the discrepancy between the recommendations of international authorities concerning breastfeeding and the practices of a significant proportion of women all over the world who discontinue breastfeeding because of the reported insufficiency of their milk. Our review of the evidence on the insufficient milk syndrome suggests that the phenomenon is inextricably linked to the construction of family, gender and motherhood at different historical times and in different parts of the world, and that the prevention of early discontinuation of breastfeeding requires a better understanding of these issues in their historical and cultural context. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Manure amendments are a common soil amendment in forage and row cropping systems used to provide plant-available nutrients, build soil organic matter, and enhance soil health. Many of the benefits of manure applications are thought to be driven via their impacts on soil microbial communities. However, manure amendments may also introduce potential undesirable microbes (pathogens, or those with antibiotic resistance elements) to soils. Despite the widespread use of manure amendments and their importance in agricultural systems, the forces governing the assembly of bacterial communities in soil in response to manure amendments are poorly characterized, limiting our ability to predict their impacts on soil communities. We constructed soil microcosms using five soils from different locations to investigate the impacts of liquid dairy manure on bacterial communities. Moreover, we used combinations of autoclaved liquid dairy manure and soils to determine the roles of abiotic and biotic factors in the response of indigenous soil communities to manure and the fate of manure-borne bacteria. Bacterial amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) that responded to manure amendment were largely dependent on soil origin. Initial shifts in soil communities after manure amendment were driven by the introduction of manure-borne taxa. However, introduced taxa died off rapidly while some indigenous taxa increased in relative abundance over time. Introduced taxa died off even in the absence of indigenous microbiota, suggesting that the soil abiotic environment is a strong barrier to colonization by manure-borne bacteria. Finally, autoclaved manure amended to soil elicited a similar response from indigenous soil microbes as did live manure, indicating that organic matter, nutrients, or other physiochemical factors associated with manure amendments are responsible for changes in indigenous soil populations. • Responses of soil bacteria to liquid dairy manure amendment depended on soil origin. • Manure-born bacteria declined rapidly after introduction to soil. • Soil abiotic factors largely limited the establishment of manure-borne taxa. • Indigenous soil bacteria were promoted by abiotic factors associated with manure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article cites a research study which found that phosphorus is the nutrient most limiting plants and microbial primary producers in the Central Andes and central Alaska. It combined field and microcosm studies of both plant and microbial primary producers for the purpose of the study. Phosphorus accelerates the rate of succession for plants and for microbial phototrophs.

As tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) exercise a plethora of pro-tumor and immune evasive functions, novel strategies targeting TAMs to inhibit tumor progression have emerged within the current arena of cancer immunotherapy. Activation of the mannose receptor 1 (Mrc1; CD206) is a recent approach that recognizes immune suppressive CD206high M2-like TAMs as a drug target. Ligation of CD206 both induces reprogramming of CD206high TAMs towards a pro-inflammatory phenotype and selectively triggers apoptosis in these cells. CD206-activating therapeutics are currently limited to the linear, 10mer peptide RP-182, 1, which is not a drug candidate. Here we sought to identify a better suitable candidate for future clinical development by synthesizing and evaluating a series of RP-182 analogues. Surprisingly, fatty acid derivative 1a (RP-182-PEG3-K(palmitic acid)) not only showed improved stability but also increased affinity to the CD206 receptor through enhanced interaction with a hydrophobic binding motif of CD206. Peptide 1a showed superior in vitro activity in cell-based assays of macrophage activation which was restricted to CD206high M2-polarized macrophages. Improvement of responses was disproportionally skewed towards improved induction of phagocytosis including cancer cell phagocytosis. 1a reprogrammed the immune landscape in genetically engineered murine KPC pancreatic tumors towards increased innate immune surveillance and improved tumor control, and effectively suppressed tumor growth of murine B16 melanoma allografts.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted comprehensive abortion care provision. To maintain access to services while keeping individuals safe from infection, many organisations adapted their programmes. We conducted a programme evaluation to examine service adaptations implemented in Bolivia, Mali, Nepal, and the occupied Palestinian territory. Our programme evaluation used a case study approach to explore four programme adaptations through 14 group and individual interviews among 16 service providers, facility managers and representatives from supporting organisations. Data collection took place between October 2021 and January 2022. We identified adaptations to comprehensive abortion care services in relation to provision, health information systems and counselling, and referrals. Four overarching strategies emerged: (1) the use of digital technologies, (2) home and community outreach, (3) health worker optimisation, and (4) further consideration of groups in vulnerable situations. In Bolivia, the use of a messaging application increased access to confidential gender-based violence support and comprehensive abortion care. In Mali, the adoption of digital approaches created timely and complete data reporting and trained members of the community served as "interlocutors" between the communities and providers. In Nepal, an interim law expanded medical abortion provision to pharmacies, and home visits complemented facility-based services. In the occupied Palestinian territory, the use of a hotline and social media expanded access to quick and reliable information, counselling, referrals, and post-abortion care. Adaptations to comprehensive abortion care service delivery to mitigate disruptions to services during the COVID-19 pandemic may continue to benefit service quality of care, access to care, routine monitoring, as well as inclusivity and communication in the longer term.

This qualitative study from Burkina Faso explores community-level perceptions of family planning (FP) service quality among FP users and non-users. It examines how perspectives on service quality may influence women's motivation to seek modern methods from health facilities. For this study, twenty focus group discussions were undertaken with non-users and current users of modern FP including unmarried, sexually active women ages 15-19 and 20-24 and ever married women ages 15-24 and 25+ in Bobo Dioulasso and Banfora, Burkina Faso. The findings demonstrate that respondents prioritized a welcoming environment, positive provider-client exchanges, the full provision of information (especially about side-effects), a pain-free experience, a short waiting time, and privacy and confidentiality. Poor service quality did not, in general, reduce women's demand or need to use a FP method. Some women who were reluctant to use formal health services used a non-facility-based method (calendar method, withdrawal, condoms or abstinence). Importantly, many unmarried, younger women and adolescents, who were more likely to be stigmatized by providers, exhibited agency by proactively seeking a method despite the potential for a negative experience. They prioritized their health and wellbeing over and above any interpersonal barriers they were likely to encounter. Incorporating strategies to improve the quality of FP services based on locally defined elements of quality should be a specific programmatic goal. These strategies can be identified through quality assessments employing a woman-centered lens. Women who visit facilities can be encouraged to share their positive experiences with their networks to improve community-level perspectives of facility quality. Improving service quality can attract new users, especially adolescents, and retain those who have already adopted a FP method. Through these multi-pronged actions, women's (and community) expectations and experience of quality can improve. This, in turn, may lead to greater client satisfaction and associated higher FP prevalence., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Castle et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

The recent anti-racist movements in the United States have inspired a national call for more research on the experiences of racially marginalized and minoritized students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. As researchers focused on promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, we contend that STEM education must, as a discipline, grapple with how analytic approaches may not fully support equity efforts. We discuss how researchers and educational practitioners should more critically approach STEM equity analyses and why modifying our approaches matters for STEM equity goals. Engaging with equity as a process rather than a static goal, we provide a primer of reflective questions to assist researchers with framing, analysis, and interpretation of student-level data frequently used to identify disparities and assess course-level and programmatic interventions. This guidance can inform analyses conducted by campus units such as departments and programs, but also across universities and the scientific community to enhance how we understand and address systemic inequity in STEM fields.

Soil nutrient amendments are recognized for their potential to improve microbial activity and biomass in the soil. However, the specific selective impacts of carbon amendments on indigenous microbiomes and their metabolic functions in agricultural soils remain poorly understood. We investigated the changes in soil chemical characteristics and phenotypes of Streptomyces communities following carbon amendments to soil. Mesocosms were established with soil from two field sites varying in soil organic matter content (low organic matter, LOM; high organic matter, HOM), that were amended at intervals over nine months with low or high dose solutions of glucose, fructose, malic acid, a mixture of these compounds, or water only (non-amended control). Significant shifts in soil chemical characteristics and antibiotic inhibitory capacities of indigenous Streptomyces were observed in response to carbon additions. All high dose carbon amendments consistently increased soil total carbon, while amendments with malic acid decreased soil pH. In LOM soils, higher frequencies of Streptomyces inhibitory phenotypes of the two plant pathogens, Streptomyces scabies and Fusarium oxysporum , were observed in response to soil carbon additions. Additionally, to determine if shifts in Streptomyces functional characteristics correlated with microbiome composition, we investigated whether shifts in functional characteristics of soil Streptomyces correlated with composition of soil bacterial communities, analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Regardless of dose, community composition differed significantly among carbon-amended and non-amended soils from both sites. Carbon type and dose had significant effects on bacterial community composition in both LOM and HOM soils. Relationships among microbial community richness (observed species number), diversity, and soil characteristics varied among soils from different sites. These results suggest that manipulation of soil resource availability has the potential to selectively modify the functional capacities of soil microbiomes, and specifically to enhance pathogen inhibitory populations of high value to agricultural systems., (Copyright © 2020 Dundore-Arias, Castle, Felice, Dill-Macky and Kinkel.)

Microorganisms are vital in mediating the earth's biogeochemical cycles; yet, despite our rapidly increasing ability to explore complex environmental microbial communities, the relationship between microbial community structure and ecosystem processes remains poorly understood. Here, we address a fundamental and unanswered question in microbial ecology: 'When do we need to understand microbial community structure to accurately predict function?' We present a statistical analysis investigating the value of environmental data and microbial community structure independently and in combination for explaining rates of carbon and nitrogen cycling processes within 82 global datasets. Environmental variables were the strongest predictors of process rates but left 44% of variation unexplained on average, suggesting the potential for microbial data to increase model accuracy. Although only 29% of our datasets were significantly improved by adding information on microbial community structure, we observed improvement in models of processes mediated by narrow phylogenetic guilds via functional gene data, and conversely, improvement in models of facultative microbial processes via community diversity metrics. Our results also suggest that microbial diversity can strengthen predictions of respiration rates beyond microbial biomass parameters, as 53% of models were improved by incorporating both sets of predictors compared to 35% by microbial biomass alone. Our analysis represents the first comprehensive analysis of research examining links between microbial community structure and ecosystem function. Taken together, our results indicate that a greater understanding of microbial communities informed by ecological principles may enhance our ability to predict ecosystem process rates relative to assessments based on environmental variables and microbial physiology.