Search

Easy access to the internet allows adolescents to share humor, such as memes, via social media. This quasi-experimental study investigated whether there was a difference in the number of memes comprehended on an assessment test among adolescents who were typically developing, adolescents who were deaf or hard of hearing, and adolescents with language disorders. It also sought to determine if the meme's picture, whether related to the text or unrelated, contributed to adolescents' comprehension. Participants were given a short reading screening and a multiple-choice test of meme comprehension. Adolescents who were typically developing out-performed adolescents who were deaf or hard of hearing or who had language disorders. Supporting pictures did not appear to aid in meme comprehension. Findings from this study suggest the need for professionals to include direct instruction of humor when working with adolescents who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have language disorders.

Educating students who are deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) is complex; compounding this complexity is the situation in rural areas, where the incidence levels are lower, students are more spread out, and the availability of specialty staff is more limited. The purpose of this mixed-methods action research study was to examine the impact of a collaborative consultation (CC) service delivery model on the knowledge and self-efficacy of school professionals who serve students who are D/HH in rural areas. A case study research design was used on a team of 3 school professionals from a rural school in the Upper Midwest. Findings indicated that CC increased the knowledge and self-efficacy of school professionals serving rural D/HH students. Implications for social change pertain to education administrators, inservice educators, and D/HH students.

BackgroundThe International Parkinson and Movement Disorders Society criteria for mild cognitive impairment in PD need validation. The objectives of this present study were to evaluate prognostic validity of level I (abbreviated) International Parkinson and Movement Disorders Society mild cognitive impairment in PD criteria for development of PD dementia and compared them with level II (comprehensive) criteria.MethodsWe analyzed data from 8 international studies (1045 patients) from our consortium that included baseline data on demographics, motor signs, depression, detailed neuropsychological testing, and longitudinal follow-up for conversion to Parkinson's disease dementia. Survival analysis evaluated their contribution to the hazard of Parkinson's disease dementia.ResultsLevel I mild cognitive impairment in PD, increasing age, male sex, and severity of PD motor signs independently increased the hazard of Parkinson's disease dementia. Level I and level II mild cognitive impairment in PD classification had similar discriminative ability with respect to the time to Parkinson's disease dementia.ConclusionsLevel I mild cognitive impairment in PD classification independently contributes to the hazard of Parkinson's disease dementia. This finding supports the prognostic validity of the abbreviated mild cognitive impairment in PD criteria. © 2019 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

BackgroundNumerous neuropsychological tests and test versions are used in Parkinson's disease research, but their relative capacity to detect mild cognitive deficits and their comparability across studies are unknown. The objective of this study was to identify neuropsychological tests that consistently detect cognitive decline in PD across studies.MethodsData from 30 normed neuropsychological tests across 20 international studies in up to 2908 nondemented PD patients were analyzed. A subset of 17 tests was administered to up to 1247 healthy controls. A 2-step meta-analytic approach using standardized scores compared performance in PD with normative data.ResultsPooled estimates of the differences between PD and site-specific healthy controls identified significant cognitive deficits in PD patients on 14 test scores across 5 commonly assessed cognitive domains (attention or working memory, executive, language, memory, and visuospatial abilities), but healthy control performance was statistically above average on 7 of these tests. Analyses based on published norms only, as opposed to direct assessment of healthy controls, showed high between-study variability that could not be accounted for and led to inconclusive results.ConclusionsNormed neuropsychological tests across multiple cognitive domains consistently detect cognitive deficits in PD when compared with site-specific healthy control performance, but relative PD performance was significantly affected by the inclusion and type of healthy controls versus the use of published norms only. Additional research is needed to identify a cognitive battery that can be administered in multisite international studies and that is sensitive to cognitive decline, responsive to therapeutic interventions, and superior to individual cognitive tests. © 2018 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

The past two decades have seen unprecedented changes to the field of deaf education. Several factors including technological advances and educational policy have resulted in the inclusion of the majority of students who are deaf or hard of hearing in the general education classroom with various levels of support services. Consequently, the role of the professional educator of the deaf has changed to the itinerant teaching model as the primary service delivery system in deaf education in the nation today. Because this role for teachers of the deaf is evolving, ongoing research is necessary to identify emerging trends, successes, and potential barriers to ensure effective service provision to students who are deaf or hard of hearing. This study sought to obtain a current picture of the roles and responsibilities of the itinerant teacher of the deaf (ITOD) via an electronic survey conducted through postings on a well-known professional website. Participants were 267 itinerant teachers of the deaf. Survey results support previous findings that lack of awareness of the needs of this population of students and lack of time due to increasing caseloads are barriers to service provision. Teachers reported being better prepared for the itinerant role in their preservice program than in past studies, and the use of mentorship appears to be an emerging teacher support strategy. Results supported the adequacy of the itinerant model in supporting students who are above, at, or within 6 months of grade level expectations, with increasing concerns about the ability to provide adequate levels of support to students in inclusive settings with greater educational delays via the itinerant model. Implications for these findings for the field as well as potential questions for future research on this topic are discussed.

The pandemic coronavirus infectious disease (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is rapidly spreading across the globe. In this issue of theJCI, Chen and colleagues compared the clinical and immunological characteristics between moderate and severe COVID-19. The authors found that respiratory distress on admission is associated with unfavorable outcomes. Increased cytokine levels (IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-[alpha]), lymphopenia (in [CD4.sup.+] and [CD8.sup.+] T cells), and decreased IFN-[gamma] expression in [CD4.sup.+] T cells are associated with severe COVID-19. Overall, this study characterized the cytokine storm in severe COVID-19 and provides insights into immune therapeutics and vaccine design., A rapidly expanding pandemic In early December 2019, several local health facilities first reported pneumonia cases of unknown origin in Wuhan, China. This new coronavirus infectious disease (COVID-19), caused by [...]

Expression levels of the lactate-H+ cotransporter MCT4 (also known as SLC16A3) and its chaperone CD147 (also known as basigin) are upregulated in breast cancers, correlating with decreased patient survival. Here, we test the hypothesis that MCT4 and CD147 favor breast cancer invasion through interdependent effects on extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation. MCT4 and CD147 expression and membrane localization were found to be strongly reciprocally interdependent in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Overexpression of MCT4 and/or CD147 increased, and their knockdown decreased, migration, invasion and the degradation of fluorescently labeled gelatin. Overexpression of both proteins led to increases in gelatin degradation and appearance of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-generated collagen-I cleavage product reC1M, and these increases were greater than those observed upon overexpression of each protein alone, suggesting a concerted role in ECM degradation. MCT4 and CD147 colocalized with invadopodia markers at the plasma membrane. They also colocalized with MMP14 and the lysosomal marker LAMP1, as well as partially with the autophagosome marker LC3, in F-actindecorated intracellular vesicles. We conclude that MCT4 and CD147 reciprocally regulate each other and interdependently support migration and invasiveness of MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Mechanistically, this involves MCT4-CD147-dependent stimulation of ECM degradation and specifically of MMP-mediated collagen-I degradation. We suggest that the MCT4-CD147 complex is co-delivered to invadopodia with MMP14. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) is the world’s fifth most important grain crop, and is a widely consumed staple in subtropical semi-arid regions of Africa and Asia. Biofortification of sorghum by increasing mineral micronutrient (especially iron and zinc) and protein concentration is of widespread interest. Here, we report profiling of a panel of 95 sorghum accessions of wide diversity for concentration of eight minerals (Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, P, S, and Zn), crude protein, and digestibility. Accessions were chosen from a prior large-scale screen for protein concentration (2882 accessions). The extreme high (10 accessions) and low (19 accessions) protein lines were selected, and 66 accessions also included that are in an association mapping panel. We observed a normal distribution of grain size, digestibility, and mineral concentrations, in most cases with a range of >2-fold. Several minerals showed strong positive correlations with protein concentration, suggesting that mineral and protein density in grain can be improved together. Several minerals were positively correlated, (i.e. Fe and Zn), suggesting that improving accumulation of one of these minerals might also result in increases in others. None of the mineral or protein concentrations were correlated with digestibility. Therefore, sorghum breeders can likely select for improved digestibility independently of mineral or crude protein concentration. Sufficient diversity is present in sorghum germplasm to breed for increased seed mineral and protein. Association mapping may allow identification of specific genes that can be used in transgenic approaches to develop lines with higher accumulation of nutrients in grain.

The itinerant teaching model is the most common service delivery method for students who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) in the United States. Itinerant teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing (ITODHHs) may serve several school buildings and travel extensive distances. Substantial literature exists regarding ITODHHs; however, a notable gap exists regarding parent perceptions of itinerant teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing (ITODHH) services for their children in the US. Modelled after work completed in Australia, the current study examined parent perceptions of ITODHH services for their children who were DHH. Results indicated that most parents were mostly satisfied with the ITODHH services and offered specific suggestions for improvement. Implications of these results for service delivery and attending to family-school partnerships are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the importance of transmembrane transporter proteins in facilitating essential physiological functions in living cells. It explains the various mechanisms by which molecules are transported across biological membranes, including simple diffusion, specialized channels, and active transport. The article also highlights the role of ATPases in regulating these transport processes and provides examples of specific transporters, such as the Na+/K+ ATPase and dopamine transporter. The article concludes by summarizing the different topics covered in this special issue, which aim to advance our understanding of the molecular mechanisms and regulatory factors of transmembrane transporter proteins. [Extracted from the article]

Background: The COVID‐19 pandemic was a global health and economic crisis. In the early phase of the pandemic, studies found that populations were reporting lower levels of mental well‐being and high levels of distress and worry. This study investigated potential protective and risk factors such as sociodemographics and psychological factors such as adaptation/coping. Methods: Two convenience samples from Norway and Denmark were recruited during the early phase of the first lockdown in May 2020 using snowball sampling primarily by social media. Measures included the Patient Health Questionnaire‐4 (PHQ‐4) for screening anxiety and depression, COVID‐19 distress, and coping strategies applied during the lockdown. Descriptive analyses were applied as well as bivariate correlations for associations between coping and mental health measures. Results: Levels of anxiety and depression were not alarmingly high, but being young, single, and female constituted a higher risk for poorer mental health. Applying positive reframing strategies was negatively associated with poor mental health and high COVID‐19 stress, whereas distraction coping strategies were positively correlated with poor mental health and high COVID‐19 stress. Conclusion: Applying positive reframing as a coping strategy may constitute a protective factor for mental health in the early phase of a crisis such as a pandemic. This knowledge may inform public health agencies on how to promote mental health in similar situations in the future. However, longitudinal and qualitative studies are needed to investigate the long‐term effects of the different coping strategies applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]