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With the growing recognition of the prevalence and impact of adverse childhood experiences, building trauma-informed service systems is critical. Although there are many online resources to help school systems become more trauma informed, how much they meet the needs of educators is not well understood. To help schools implement trauma-informed practices (TIPS) to support both educators (all school-based certificated staff) and students, a partnership among a California research university, a local foundation, and three school districts was developed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The partnership envisioned a three-phase study to determine the feasibility, acceptability, and outcomes of an intervention supporting TIPS. First, two local districts were engaged in a mixed method needs assessment to explore educators' wellbeing and use of trauma-informed resources. Input from district-level advisory committees guided a needs assessment that informed the development of trainings to (1) help administrators best support their staff, and (2) teach educators how to best support themselves and their students with traumatic stress and related symptoms. Second, researchers curated freely available resources to develop a 3-module administrator training and an 8-module teacher training. Finally, university-based psychologists and teacher educators delivered the curricula in two school districts and the university's teacher education program. Researchers implemented a pretest-posttest evaluation design and gathered in-session feedback after each module. Results indicated that participants found the sessions helpful and relevant and they had greater knowledge of TIPS. Future directions include scaling up implementation, understanding outcomes from multiple perspectives, and integrating follow-up activities to help with skill retention.

Abstract: With the growing recognition of the prevalence and impact of adverse childhood experiences, building trauma-informed service systems is critical. Although there are many online resources to help school systems become more trauma informed, how much they meet the needs of educators is not well understood. To help schools implement trauma-informed practices (TIPS) to support both educators (all school-based certificated staff) and students, a partnership among a California research university, a local foundation, and three school districts was developed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The partnership envisioned a three-phase study to determine the feasibility, acceptability, and outcomes of an intervention supporting TIPS. First, two local districts were engaged in a mixed method needs assessment to explore educators’ wellbeing and use of trauma-informed resources. Input from district-level advisory committees guided a needs assessment that informed the development of trainings to (1) help administrators best support their staff, and (2) teach educators how to best support themselves and their students with traumatic stress and related symptoms. Second, researchers curated freely available resources to develop a 3-module administrator training and an 8-module teacher training. Finally, university-based psychologists and teacher educators delivered the curricula in two school districts and the university’s teacher education program. Researchers implemented a pretest–posttest evaluation design and gathered in-session feedback after each module. Results indicated that participants found the sessions helpful and relevant and they had greater knowledge of TIPS. Future directions include scaling up implementation, understanding outcomes from multiple perspectives, and integrating follow-up activities to help with skill retention.

Researchers from across the four United States Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Centers (BRCs) engaged in a microbiome workshop that focused on identifying challenges and collaboration opportunities to better understand bioenergy-relevant plant–microbe interactions. The virtual workshop included hands-on educational sessions and a keynote address on current best practices in microbiome science and community microbiome standards, as well as breakout sessions aimed at identifying microbiome-related data and measurements that should be prioritized, opportunities for and barriers to integrating plant metabolites to microbiome research, and strategies for more effectively integrating microbiome data and processes into existing models. Based on participant discussion, key findings of the workshop were the need to prioritize scaling data sharing across BRCs and the broader research community and securing collaborative infrastructure in the areas of microbiome-ecosystem modeling and molecular plant–microbe interactions. This workshop review highlights additional main findings from this event, to encourage cross-site and more holistic metaanalyses while promoting wide scientific community engagement across plant microbiome sciences.

Given the increasing number of individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), there is a critical need to develop programs that facilitate positive behavior outcomes during the transition to adulthood. Furthermore, many adults with ASD do not have access to intervention programs due to remote locations, lack of qualified personnel, and/or long waitlists. This study, conducted within the context of a combined multiple baseline and changing criterion design, examined the use of videoconferencing (VC) to provide intervention from a remote location. Results showed that following intervention participants were able to independently perform the targeted skills and all targeted skills maintained during follow-up probes. All participants rated the intervention highly and said that they would recommend the intervention to others. These results are discussed in relation to potential avenues to increase access to services for individuals with ASD, particularly in remote and underserved areas, using VC.

Abstract: Tunicates comprising a wide variety of different species synthesize antimicrobial peptides as important effector molecules of the innate immune system. Recently, two putative gene families coding for antimicrobial peptides were identified in the expressed sequence tag database of the tunicate Ciona intestinalis. Two synthetic peptides representing the cationic core region of one member of each of the families displayed potent antibacterial and antifungal activities. Moreover, the natural peptides were demonstrated to be synthesized and stored in distinct hemocyte types. Here, we investigated the presence of these natural peptides, namely Ci-MAM-A and Ci-PAP-A, in the tunic of C. intestinalis considering that the ascidian tunic is a body surface barrier exposed to constant microbial assault. Furthermore, as the tunic may represent a major route of entry for pathogen invasion after its damage we monitored the location of these peptides upon a local inflammatory-like reaction induced by injection of foreign cells. Using immunocytochemistry and electron microscopy both peptides were localized to the tunic and were massively present in granulocytes of inflamed tissue. Conclusively, antimicrobial peptides may constitute a chemical barrier within the tunic of urochordates. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Problem: The metabolic syndrome is a constellation of risk factors thought to indicate increased risk for type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Clinical utility of the metabolic syndrome lies in identifying patients at risk of T2DM and CVD and motivating them to reduce underlying risks. However, there appears to be a paradoxical difference in the incidence and prevalence of the metabolic syndrome when comparing African Americans to other population groups. This study is meant to examine capability of detecting metabolic syndrome among minority individuals in a community-based sample. Methods: Relevant measures were collected from 107 community-members at a community-based event. Means for measures were calculated, as were estimates of the sample likely to have metabolic syndrome based on ATP-III criteria. Results: Participants had a mean age of 49.5 years. Various proportions of the sample reflected components of the metabolic syndrome using ATP-III criteria, including high blood pressure (59.6%), elevated waist circumference (49.3%), elevated triglyceride levels (33.7%), elevated fasting blood glucose levels (28.6%) and reduced HDL-C (26.7%). Prevalence of metabolic syndrome was considered for 71 (66.35%) of the sample with adequate data; 28.17% presented with three or more of the ATP-III components. Conclusions: There is a need for a primary prevention intervention among minority community-members. An intensive lifestyle intervention to address all of the metabolic risk factors simultaneously, including an atherogenic diet, weight loss, increased physical activity and smoking cessation is preferable rather than only pharmacologic treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]