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Public health officials promoted COVID-19 vaccines to limit burdens placed on the U.S. healthcare system and end the pandemic. People in some closed religious communities refused to vaccinate and likely acquired temporary immunity through infection. This paper compares the death rates in Amish, Old Order Mennonites, and conservative Mennonite groups to a rate estimated for the U.S. population. Approximately two-thirds of the U.S. population was immunized against COVID-19, while few in the Amish/Mennonite community were. We find divergent patterns. Once vaccines became available, excess deaths declined in the general population and remained elevated among Amish and Mennonites. Vaccination campaigns must consider and value the cultural beliefs of closed religious communities to be effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amish and Mennonite (Plain) communities have increased prevalence of many recessively inherited disorders due to founder variants that can be identified using next-generation sequencing (NGS). We assessed newborn screening (NBS) utilization, prior genetic testing, and perceptions of genetic testing among Wisconsin Plain communities to guide implementation and utilization of a population-specific NGS gene panel testing. A mailed paper survey (N = 959) of demographics, NBS utilization, prior genetic testing, and preferences for categorical genetic disorder and defined clinical context testing was developed. Overall response rate was 39% (N = 378; 183 Amish, 193 Mennonite; 2 not Amish/Mennonite). Mennonites were more likely to respond in favor of carrier screening for metabolic disorders and other surgical conditions and less likely to respond in favor of asymptomatic testing for neurologic disorders and lethal disorders compared to Amish. Reported utilization of NBS was positively associated with stated interest in genetic testing for an asymptomatic child. Reported prior genetic testing was positively associated with stated interest in carrier screening and negatively associated with testing a symptomatic child. Although Plain community members share many common outward characteristics, our survey responses suggest diversity in their views of genetic testing and support laboratory methods that can be flexible to varied needs of individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dairying among Wisconsin's Amish and Old Order Mennonite farmers expanded through 2017, and by early 2018 Amish farms contained 12.9 percent of the state's total dairy herds of cows, goats, and sheep. Old Order Mennonite herds comprised 5.0 percent. Faced with a variety of challenges, Wisconsin lost 198 Amish herds between April 2018 and July 2020, yet its number of Old Order Mennonite herds grew. Together, these groups operated over half of the dairy farms within 59 of Wisconsin's towns in 2020. The paper examines the spatial patterns of expansion and contraction of Old Order dairying between 2012 and 2020, noting and explaining differences between the Amish and Mennonite farmers, as well as among the three conferences of Old Order Mennonites. Losses among the Amish were the greatest for can milk producers, yet 19 percent of Wisconsin's Amish dairy herds were on certified organic farms in 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by suing the church in state court. We trace power within and across these spheres of influence, showing how each party defined the situation according to institutional vectors of power. While one might expect the state to possess greater power in this situation, we demonstrate that ultimately neither party had total power, and both lost to some extent. This case study identifies the importance of viewing power as interactional, dynamic, and contextual. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The following paper was originally intended to publish as part of "Humanistic Leadership in Different Cultures: Defining the Field by Pushing Boundaries" guest edited by Pingping Fu, Ernst Von Kimakowitz, Michal Lemanski and Leigh Anne Liu. The publisher would like to inform readers that a special issue paper has been mistakenly published as part of a regular issue. This error was introduced as part of the editorial process, and the publisher sincerely apologizes for this error. [Extracted from the article]

Why do the North American Amish maintain high fertility when surrounding populations have nearly all completed the demographic transition? Using the same theoretical predictors and methods as a 1996 Population Studies paper, we explore fertility changes, specifically changes in mean parity, between 1988 and 2015 among one sizeable Amish population in Ohio. Findings suggest that wealth flow shifts (as measured by a decline in farming families) and institutional changes (reflected in Amish denominational gradations) help to explain a decline in mean parity from 5.3 to 4.85, while ideological pronatalism (represented by higher fertility among church leaders) helps to explain why fertility has not been more responsive to structural incentives to limit family size. While this restudy confirms the trend of a slow decline in Amish fertility, it also invites a more methodologically expansive inquiry into Amish fertility patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People who identify as members of religious communities, such as the Amish and Low German Mennonites, face challenges obtaining quality health care and engagement in research due in part to stereotypes that are conveyed through media and popular discourses. There is also a growing concern that even when these groups are engaged in research, the guiding frameworks of the research fail to consider the sociocultural or historical relations of power, further skewing power imbalances inherent in the research relationship. This paper aims at discussing the uses of cultural safety in the context of health research and knowledge translation with groups of people that are associated with a specific religion. Research with the Amish and Low German Mennonites is provided as examples to illustrate the use of cultural safety in this context. From these examples, we discuss how the use of cultural safety, grounded in critical theoretical perspectives, offers new insight into health research with populations that are traditionally labeled as minority, vulnerable, or marginalized, especially when a dominant characteristic is a unique religious perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 1693 and 1700 a schism unfolded between the Anabaptists in Switzerland over the matter of biblical inerrancy and its implications for church discipline. The majority of Anabaptists sided with the Mennonite pastor Hans Reist, while a sizeable minority sided with Reist's erstwhile colleague Jakob Ammann. This split, known as the Amish Division, separated the Mennonites from Ammann's followers, who became known as the Amish. This paper will show that the split ultimately boiled down to the issue of whose interpretation of a cluster of texts--Matt 9:11, Matt 15:11, Matt 18:15-20, and 1 Cor 5:6-11--proved consistent with inerrancy. This article delineates the interpretations of both Reist and Ammann. The article concludes by using the Reist-Ammann disagreement to assess two exegetical methods frequently used by evangelicals, namely harmonization and subordination of less clear texts to more clear texts, in reconciling passages that appear opposed to one another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Though often perceived as static, Amish identity is subject to change. The mid-twentieth century was a period of notable change. The recent experience of World War II, American religious revival movements, and economic pressures all placed pressure upon Amish communities to adapt. This paper highlights the experience of the Amish community of Partridge, Kansas, where these pressures and widespread interest in mission work eventually led to a church division in the 1950s. This paper explores the contributing factors to that split and examines the reactions on both sides to the division.

Agriculture is one of the most hazardous industries in the United States. It is crucial to analyze the previously collected farm fatality data in Pennsylvania involving youth to identify fatality sources and to delineate prevention strategies to mitigate future occurrences. The Penn State Farm and Agricultural Injury Database was updated to include the Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) for source and event or exposure. Occupational and nonoccupational incidents were compared based on age groups, religious sect, source of injury, and the injury event or exposure. A total of 82 fatalities to youth under 20 years were identified. Youth under 5 years old had the highest fatality rate of 87.1 fatalities per 100,000 farm household youth per year. The percentages of occupational and nonoccupational fatalities were 30.5% and 62.2%, respectively. Three primary sources accounted for 76% of the 82 farm fatalities: vehicles, machinery, and structures and surfaces. The majority of fatally injured youth (78%) were Anabaptist. The Anabaptist youth were 7 times more likely to be involved in occupational incidents than the non-Anabaptist youth. Youth <10 years of age who were not alone at the time of the fatal incident accounted for about half of the deaths, indicating the peril of adults attempting to supervise youth in the workplace. This fatal injury analysis to youth has identified common fatality injury patterns and risk factors to youth. The data can be used to identify intervention strategies for youth and underserved populations (Anabaptists) and can be used to help motivate adults and parents to adopt safety practices to prevent future injury occurrences. This paper also helps to illustrate the value of state-based monitoring of farm injury to youth using methods available to many states and territories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This exhaustive review of Amish mental health conditions research suggests that studies are well-executed by methodological protocols but that (1) findings are inconsistent or limited in generalizability, (2) instrument validity remains contested, and (3) study investigation into Amish cultural-religious dynamics is limited. We present a case study from a sizeable Amish settlement finds that documents how competing ideologies – notably old Amish religious theology, the scientific-psychological, and the Evangelical Protestant – have generated Amish-internal controversies over defining and treating mental health conditions, suggesting that Amish mental health conditions research may produce inconsistent findings if not accounting for internal cultural-religious dynamics. Future research should include pre-study investigations into the targeted population's cultural and religious dynamics, consist of more nuanced case reports from therapists and psychiatrists, and include replication studies at different times and places, with deliberate attention to contextual factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses articles in the issue on topics including human movements, transportation and economic systems.

Scholars and activists have called for a recognition of a "third way" of farming which is beyond the binary between organic and conventional agriculture and instead represents a spectrum of practices. In this paper, we ask if the way Plain (conservative Amish and Mennonite) farmers manage antibiotic use and natural remedies is an example of these middle paths. Antibiotic use in managing herd health is a practice with significant environmental and health implications. Regulations and use patterns may enhance potential bifurcation between conventional and organic production in the US compared to the European context. The data for this study were collected through semi-structured interviews with 29 Plain dairy producers and nine veterinary health professionals in Michigan and Pennsylvania. Interviews focused on attitudes and behavior around herd health and possible connections to family healthcare management. Overall, our results indicate that the Plain farmers, especially the Amish, combined minimal antibiotics with a mixture of natural remedies. This indicates that delineations between organic and conventional agriculture and natural healthcare and mainstream healthcare may be more nuanced and complex than has been characterized in previous literature. • Amish and Mennonite dairy farmers offer an example of "middle paths" in managing antibiotic use. • Amish and Mennonite dairy farmers use a "third way" between organic and conventional management. • Amish and Mennonite dairy farmers combine antibiotics and natural remedies for animal health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to calls for more theoretically informed attention to gender in sociological studies of religious phenomena (Avishai, Jafar, and Rinaldo 2015; Charlton 2015; Cornwall 2009), this paper conceptualizes religion as a gendered institution (Avishai 2016a) in an examination of religious exit from a conservative Christian group, namely, the Amish. The present study identifies gender variation in individuals' motivations for exit and considers how gendered religious ideologies, gendered placement in religious organizational structures, and gendered religious practices explain this variation. Based on analysis of qualitative interviews with fiftynine former Amish adults, I find that concerns about gender inequity motivated some respondents, almost entirely women, to leave. Men's and women's other motivations for exit appear more similar on the surface, but closer examination reveals variation by gender. Analysis reveals that the intersection of religion and gender in the Amish context differently shaped men's and women's religious realities and, therefore, colored in some way all of their reasons for leaving. These results suggest that most of the previous research on religious exit, which either overlooks gender entirely (e.g., Altemeyer and Hunsberger 1997; Kraybill, Johnson-Weiner, and Nolt 2013; Shaffir 1997; Smith 2011) or conceives of it narrowly, with little attention to gender theory (e.g., Cottee 2015; Hurst and McConnell 2010; Roozen 1980; Vargas 2012), has misrepresented gender variation in motivations for exit and failed to provide adequate explanation for differences identified. Considering the multiple dimensions through which the institutions of religion and gender intersect allows for a deeper understanding of religious phenomena and provides insights into the ways in which gender is produced and reproduced within religious groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing preservice teachers with a strong understanding of culturally relevant pedagogy should be a priority for all teacher education programs. Although much focus is placed on diversity in urban areas, diverse classrooms are found in all education settings. This paper demonstrates how a rural opportunity expanded the cultural awareness and culturally responsive teaching of four preservice special education teachers. Knowledge shared between teachers in an Old Order Mennonite community and these preservice teachers resulted in growth for all participants. Through immersion with the Mennonite community, four key themes emerged: (a) culturally relevant communication, (b) goal setting, (c) culturally sensitive curriculum materials, and (d) creation of a classroom to match the students' needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: An important measure of brain health is the integrity of white matter connectivity structures that link brain regions. Studies have found an association between poorer sleep quality and decreased white matter integrity. Stress is among the strongest predictors of sleep quality. This study aimed to evaluate the association between sleep quality and white matter and to test if the relationship persisted after accounting for stress. White matter microstructures were measured by diffusion tensor imaging in a population of Old Order Amish/Mennonite (N = 240). Sleep quality was determined by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Current stress levels were measured by the perceived stress scale. Exposure to lifetime stress was measured by the lifetime stressor inventory. Microstructures of four white matter tracts: left and right anterior limbs of internal capsule, left anterior corona radiata, and genu of corpus callosum were significantly correlated with sleep quality (all p ≤ 0.001). The current stress level was a significant predictor of sleep quality (p ≤ 0.001) while lifetime stress was not. PSQI remained significantly associated with white matter integrity in these frontal tracts (all p < 0.01) after accounting for current stress and lifetime stress, while current and lifetime stress were not significant predictors of white matter in any of the four models. Sleep quality did not have any substantial mediation role between stress and white matter integrity. Sleep quality was significantly associated with several frontal white matter tracts that connect brain structures important for sleep regulation regardless of current or past stress levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake. The results indicate higher group and individual closure levels are positively related to having unvaccinated children and vaccine hesitancy. Perceptions of vaccine effectiveness partially explain these associations. Healthcare providers should consider constructing culturally competent programs to reach closed communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The eclectic collection of Christian traditions and communities that may be considered Free Church, and the decentralized structures of these Christian communities, result in Free Church worship practices that are difficult to predict. I then explore two movements that have shaped worship in Free Church traditions in recent decades, and consider four scholarly approaches to Free Church worship. When considering liturgical renewal in retrospect in Free Church traditions, it is crucial to recognize that significant work remains to be done in decolonizing Free Church worship in ways that empower all individuals in congregations to draw deeply on local culture in shaping local practice that can challenge oppressive structures. The overlapping traits that characterize the Free Church family of Christian traditions contribute to the unpredictable nature of Free Church worship, and the multiplicity of free-spirited ways that liturgical renewal can emerge and develop. [Extracted from the article]

This paper examines the position of international human rights law towards missionary or proselytizing activities with a special focus on the American context. By evaluating UN legal acts such as the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 1960 Arcot Krishnaswami Study and the 1981 Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief and the American Convention of Human Rights, it investigates the extent to which such activities fall within the scope of the right to free speech and to freedom of religion for religious organizations (corporate freedom of religion). This is exemplified by looking at two Evangelical religious organizations founded for the purpose of luring away groups of believers from their original religious communities: "Mission to Amish People", targeting the Amish People, and "Jews for Jesus", aimed at the Jewish community. The clash of one religious community which considers mission a fundamental element of its religion (as many Evangelical churches do) with a religious community who is highly skeptical about mission (such as the Amish or Jews) constitute the extreme test case of the right to free speech and to corporate freedom of religion. Given the highly various importance which mission can play in different religions, the article suggests to solve each case individually by carefully examining the content of each religious doctrine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying the genetic determinants of inter-individual variation in lipid species (lipidome) may provide deeper understanding and additional insight into the mechanistic effect of complex lipidomic pathways in CVD risk and progression beyond simple traditional lipids. Previous studies have been largely population based and thus only powered to discover associations with common genetic variants. Founder populations represent a powerful resource to accelerate discovery of previously unknown biology associated with rare population alleles that have risen to higher frequency due to genetic drift. We performed a genome-wide association scan of 355 lipid species in 650 individuals from the Amish founder population including 127 lipid species not previously tested. To the best of our knowledge, we report for the first time the lipid species associated with two rare-population but Amish-enriched lipid variants: APOB_rs5742904 and APOC3_rs76353203. We also identified novel associations for 3 rare-population Amish-enriched loci with several sphingolipids and with proposed potential functional/causal variant in each locus including GLTPD2_rs536055318, CERS5_rs771033566, and AKNA_rs531892793. We replicated 7 previously known common loci including novel associations with two sterols: androstenediol with UGT locus and estriol with SLC22A8/A24 locus. Our results show the double power of founder populations and detailed lipidome to discover novel trait-associated variants. A GWAS of 355 lipid species in the Old Order Amish founder population reveals associations between Amish-enriched loci and several sphingolipids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines well-documented benefits of widespread access to contraceptives with a number of religious exemptions and religious accommodations to the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) contraceptive mandate. Topics include Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) wide ranging effects indirectly inhibits social growth and encourages inherent sexism; and contraceptives are excluded under their particular healthcare plan to obtain a job with health insurance.

"Excess deaths" is a means to estimate the lethality of COVID-19 (directly and indirectly). Assessing "excess death" in closed religious communities provides information on how COVID-19 impacted these communities. We use obituary information published in an Amish/Mennonite newspaper to examine excess death among the Amish/Mennonites in 2020. Our results indicate the Amish/Mennonite excess death rates are similar to the national trends in the USA. The excess death rate for Amish/Mennonites spiked with a 125% increase in November 2020. The impact of COVID-19 on this closed religious community highlights the need to consider religion to stop the spread of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Old Order Amish are the fastest growing religious subpopulation in the United States. The Amish population, most recently estimated at 340,000, is expected to double in size during the next 20 years. While still relatively few in number, their growing population and increasing interaction with American society will likely result in more Amish individuals seeking mental health treatment. Despite the call for culturally competent mental health professionals, this population has been underrepresented in the psychotherapy literature. To the best of the author's knowledge, this article is the first known attempt to review the ethical considerations that may arise when working with members of the Old Order Amish. This article uses the American Psychological Association's Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct to frame the discussion of ethical mental health treatment with Amish individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plain community people (Amish and Mennonites) have increased risk of having recessive genetic disorders. This study was designed to assess the rate of referral of Plain people to genetic services at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. Medical records of Plain patients from a 1‐year time period were reviewed. Data collected included demographic information, clinical presentation, referral for genetic services, and diagnosis. Of the 303 patients, 102 (33.7%) had a clinical presentation suggestive of a genetic disorder, yet only 32 of those 102 patients (31.4%) had been evaluated by the division of Medical Genetics. These data indicate that less than half of Plain patients with a clinical presentation suggestive of a genetic disorder had been referred to the division of Medical Genetics for a formal evaluation. Now that under‐referral of Plain patients has been confirmed, providers can be educated in order to increase referrals for genetic services and facilitate positive healthcare outcomes for the Plain Community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect congregational exit in geographically-based congregations. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine how familial ties and place of employment affect congregational exit in geographically-based congregations. Drawing on social network and residential mobility research, this study hypothesizes that having parents and/or adult children in the same congregation and having minor children decreases the likelihood of congregational exit and working farther away from the congregation increases it. Methods: This study draws on longitudinal archival data from one Amish congregation in the Holmes County Ohio Settlement. It tests the hypotheses using logistic regression models. Results: The results show that having one's parents/adult children in the congregation and working close to the congregation are associated with a reduced likelihood of congregational exit. Having minor children in one's household is not associated with congregational exit. Conclusions and Implications: This is one of the first studies to consider how geographical requirements for congregational membership has implications for congregational exit. Given the results, congregations may be able to increase member retention by creating multigenerational ministries that support extended families and by advertising in local places of employment. As occupations increasingly shift to being primarily outside the home, Amish congregations in particular may experience more member turnover and membership instability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work we develop a novel algorithm for reconstructing the genomes of ancestral individuals, given genotype or sequence data from contemporary individuals and an extended pedigree of family relationships. A pedigree with complete genomes for every individual enables the study of allele frequency dynamics and haplotype diversity across generations, including deviations from neutrality such as transmission distortion. When studying heritable diseases, ancestral haplotypes can be used to augment genome-wide association studies and track disease inheritance patterns. The building blocks of our reconstruction algorithm are segments of Identity-By-Descent (IBD) shared between two or more genotyped individuals. The method alternates between identifying a source for each IBD segment and assembling IBD segments placed within each ancestral individual. Unlike previous approaches, our method is able to accommodate complex pedigree structures with hundreds of individuals genotyped at millions of SNPs. We apply our method to an Old Order Amish pedigree from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, whose founders came to the United States from Europe during the early 18th century. The pedigree includes 1338 individuals from the past 12 generations, 394 with genotype data. The motivation for reconstruction is to understand the genetic basis of diseases segregating in the family through tracking haplotype transmission over time. Using our algorithm thread, we are able to reconstruct an average of 224 ancestral individuals per chromosome. For these ancestral individuals, on average we reconstruct 79% of their haplotypes. We also identify a region on chromosome 16 that is difficult to reconstruct—we find that this region harbors a short Amish-specific copy number variation and the gene HYDIN. thread was developed for endogamous populations, but can be applied to any extensive pedigree with the recent generations genotyped. We anticipate that this type of practical ancestral reconstruction will become more common and necessary to understand rare and complex heritable diseases in extended families. Author summary: When analyzing complex heritable traits, genomic data from many generations of an extended family increases the amount of information available for statistical inference. However, typically only genomic data from the recent generations of a pedigree are available, as ancestral individuals are deceased. In this work we present an algorithm, called thread, for reconstructing the genomes of ancestral individuals, given a complex pedigree and genomic data from the recent generations. Previous approaches have not been able to accommodate large datasets (both in terms of sites and individuals), made simplifying assumptions about pedigree structure, or did not tie reconstructed sequences back to specific individuals. We apply thread to a complex Old Order Amish pedigree of 1338 individuals, 394 with genotype data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Amish collective objection to high school education and refusal to comply with compulsory schooling laws can be interpreted with a religious-club-good framework. According to the religious-club interpretation, the Amish use the restriction on secular education as a religious prohibition and sacrifice to improve the welfare of sect members. I exploit the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Wisconsin vs. Yoder, which exempts Amish children from compulsory high school education, as a policy shock to test several key predictions of the religious-club explanations. The evidence suggests that the successful restriction on high school education helped the Amish sect exclude individuals with low religious participation, lower members' shadow cost of time, and grow the sect through higher fertility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An understanding of private landowner's perceptions can guide decisions about conservation in rural landscapes. However, mailed surveys that evaluate landowner views are increasingly plagued by falling response rates and nonresponse bias. Using survey data from research conducted in the Midwestern United States in 2007 and 2017, we adapted a framework for testing nonresponse bias across demographics, attitudes, and land-use practices inferred from aerial imagery. We compared respondents and nonrespondents, early and late-respondents, low- and high-interest respondents, and our sample and published data. Across all comparisons, we found little consistent evidence of nonresponse bias, except a possible under-sampling of Amish landowners and conflicting results on gender. Many discrepancies were likely related to the sampling methodology. Because comparisons yielded conflicting results, we recommend that researchers engaged in survey research with rural communities use multiple methods to triangulate nonresponse bias to determine whether subgroups of rural populations are under-sampled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) has been associated with endothelial dysfunction, an early marker of cardiovascular risk. Our aim was to extend this research to a genetically homogenous, geographically stable rural population using location-specific moving-average air pollution exposure estimates indexed to the date of endothelial function measurement.Methods: We measured endothelial function using brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) in 615 community-dwelling healthy Amish participants. Exposures to PM < 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and PM < 10 μm (PM10) were estimated at participants' residential addresses using previously developed geographic information system-based spatio-temporal models and normalized. Associations between PM exposures and FMD were evaluated using linear mixed-effects regression models, and polynomial distributed lag (PDL) models followed by Bayesian model averaging (BMA) were used to assess response to delayed effects occurring across multiple months.Results: Exposure to PM10 was consistently inversely associated with FMD, with the strongest (most negative) association for a 12-month moving average (- 0.09; 95% CI: - 0.15, - 0.03). Associations with PM2.5 were also strongest for a 12-month moving average but were weaker than for PM10 (- 0.07; 95% CI: - 0.13, - 0.09). Associations of PM2.5 and PM10 with FMD were somewhat stronger in men than in women, particularly for PM10.Conclusions: Using location-specific moving-average air pollution exposure estimates, we have shown that 12-month moving-average estimates of PM2.5 and PM10 exposure are associated with impaired endothelial function in a rural population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

De novo mutations (DNMs), or mutations that appear in an individual despite not being seen in their parents, are an important source of genetic variation whose impact is relevant to studies of human evolution,genetics, and disease. Utilizing high-coverage whole-genome sequencing data as part of the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) Program, we called 93,325 single-nucleotide DNMs across 1,465 trios from an array of diverse human populations, and used them to directly estimate and analyze DNM counts, rates, and spectra. We find a significant positive correlation between local recombination rate and local DNM rate, and that DNM rate explains a substantial portion (8.98 to 34.92%, depending on the model) of the genome-wide variation in population-level genetic variation from 41K unrelated TOPMed samples. Genome-wide heterozygosity does correlate with DNM rate, but only explains <1% of variation. While we are underpowered to see small differences, we do not find significant differences in DNM rate between individuals of European, African, and Latino ancestry, nor across ancestrally distinct segments within admixed individuals. However, we did find significantly fewer DNMs in Amish individuals, even when compared with other Europeans, and even after accounting for parental age and sequencing center. Specifically, we found significant reductions in the number of CA and TC mutations in the Amish, which seem to underpin their overall reduction in DNMs. Finally, we calculated near-zero estimates of narrow sense heritability (h2), which suggest that variation in DNM rate is significantly shaped by nonadditive genetic effects and the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article I explore use patterns and perceptions of cellphone and smartphone use among Old Order Amish and Ultra-Orthodox Jewish women with participant observations, interviews, and a survey. My findings show that although they differ in their cellphone use (the Amish mostly do not use them and the Ultra-Orthodox only use those deemed to be "kosher"), they concur in their nonuse of smartphones – they see the smartphone as impure. Both view smartphones as undermining social relations and community by distracting users away from friends and family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key points: The pathogenic mechanism and the neuromuscular reflex‐related phenotype (e.g. tremors accompanied by clonus) of Amish nemaline myopathy, as well as of other recessively inherited TNNT1 myopathies, remain to be clarified.The truncated slow skeletal muscle isoform of troponin T (ssTnT) encoded by the mutant TNNT1 gene is unable to incorporate into myofilaments and is degraded in muscle cells.By contrast to extrafusal muscle fibres, spindle intrafusal fibres of normal mice contain a significant level of cardiac TnT and a low molecular weight splice form of ssTnT. Intrafusal fibres of ssTnT‐knockout mice have significantly increased cardiac TnT.Rotarod and balance beam tests have revealed abnormal neuromuscular co‐ordination in ssTnT‐knockout mice and a blunted response to a spindle sensitizer, succinylcholine.The loss of ssTnT and a compensatory increase of cardiac TnT in intrafusal nuclear bag fibres may increase myofilament Ca2+‐sensitivity and tension, impairing spindle function, thus identifying a novel mechanism for the development of targeted treatment. A nonsense mutation at codon Glu180 of TNNT1 gene causes Amish nemaline myopathy (ANM), a recessively inherited disease with infantile lethality. TNNT1 encodes the slow skeletal muscle isoform of troponin T (ssTnT). The truncated ssTnT is unable to incorporate into myofilament and is degraded in muscle cells. The symptoms of ANM include muscle weakness, atrophy, contracture and tremors accompanied by clonus. An ssTnT‐knockout (KO) mouse model recapitulates key features of ANM such as atrophy of extrafusal slow muscle fibres and increased fatigability. However, the neuromuscular reflex‐related symptoms of ANM have not been explained. By isolating muscle spindles from ssTnT‐KO and control mice aiming to examine the composition of myofilament proteins, we found that, in contrast to extrafusal fibres, intrafusal fibres contain a significant level of cardiac TnT and the low molecular weight splice form of ssTnT. Intrafusal fibres from ssTnT‐KO mice have significantly increased cardiac TnT. Rotarod and balance beam tests revealed impaired neuromuscular co‐ordination in ssTnT‐KO mice, indicating abnormality in spindle functions. Unlike the wild‐type control, the beam running ability of ssTnT‐KO mice had a blunted response to a spindle sensitizer, succinylcholine. Immunohistochemistry detected ssTnT and cardiac TnT in nuclear bag fibres, whereas fast skeletal muscle TnT was detected in nuclear chain fibres, and cardiac α‐myosin was present in one of the two nuclear bag fibres. The loss of ssTnT and a compensatory increase of cardiac TnT in nuclear bag fibres would increase myofilament Ca2+‐sensitivity and tension, thus affecting spindle activities. This mechanism provides an explanation for the pathophysiology of ANM, as well as a novel target for treatment. Key points: The pathogenic mechanism and the neuromuscular reflex‐related phenotype (e.g. tremors accompanied by clonus) of Amish nemaline myopathy, as well as of other recessively inherited TNNT1 myopathies, remain to be clarified.The truncated slow skeletal muscle isoform of troponin T (ssTnT) encoded by the mutant TNNT1 gene is unable to incorporate into myofilaments and is degraded in muscle cells.By contrast to extrafusal muscle fibres, spindle intrafusal fibres of normal mice contain a significant level of cardiac TnT and a low molecular weight splice form of ssTnT. Intrafusal fibres of ssTnT‐knockout mice have significantly increased cardiac TnT.Rotarod and balance beam tests have revealed abnormal neuromuscular co‐ordination in ssTnT‐knockout mice and a blunted response to a spindle sensitizer, succinylcholine.The loss of ssTnT and a compensatory increase of cardiac TnT in intrafusal nuclear bag fibres may increase myofilament Ca2+‐sensitivity and tension, impairing spindle function, thus identifying a novel mechanism for the development of targeted treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Produce auctions are local aggregation points that facilitate access for small-scale fruit, flower and vegetable farmers to wholesale buyers from a broader geography. Buyers purchase lots from multiple farmers to fulfill wholesale demand and then retail the product to the consumers. Sales are held multiple times per week to create a consistent supply for buyers and a regular market for the farmers. With over 70 produce auctions located in eastern North America, this is a growing trend of intermediated markets. Currently, there are six active produce auctions in New York State, with two more in planning stages. Produce auctions have a positive economic impact on the communities in which they are located, as well as on those who sell and/or buy at the auction. Community values inherent to these populations contribute to the success of produce auctions as an intermediated market. As the auction market channel continues to grow, buyer and consumer education on the benefits of local auctions is important. As these auctions are based in horse-and-buggy communities, extension education needs to be tailored to Amish and Mennonite populations. Auction houses, as well as farmers, will need to stay current with federal food safety regulations and market-based requirements to remain competitive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article informs about the medicine and society perspective on black magic and other systems of belief. Topics discussed include Community Orientation Programme involved household surveys, collecting nutrition and anthropometric data; and urban backgrounds found many cultural perspectives, customs and traditions difficult to comprehend; and improve the lives of rural folk, reduce poverty and overcome cultural obstacles to health.

Affordable farmland has been a major factor fueling population growth among the horseand-buggy driving population in New York. To better understand this relationship, we used a directory of local Amish church leadership to approximate the location of nearly all New York Old Order church districts from 1999 to 2015. The centroid of all addresses associated with each district's leadership was matched to New York farmland sales transactions within a 10-mile radius from the same period. We then conducted a trend analysis of farmland prices with and without Amish influence in four regions of New York state. We find that having a nearby Amish district was associated with lower prices at the state level but not necessarily the region level, and prices generally grew at a similar but slightly lower rate for farmland with nearby Amish districts. In some regions, farmland with a higher density of nearby Amish districts experienced higher growth in sale prices. Further, soil quality of transacted parcels doesn't have a consistent relationship with proximity of an Amish district. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Amish and Old Order and Conservative Mennonite (i.e., Plain) farmers increase their presence in the agricultural sector, it is crucial for public sector agricultural professionals to effectively work with them to mediate nonpoint source pollution and address issues like the hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico. However, there is a dearth of research on how public sector agricultural professionals can better work with Plain producers on environmental management. There are also few training resources for those working with this key, yet hard to reach, population. Additionally, due to their religious doctrines, Plain communities strive to live apart from the “world” and may be discouraged from working with government entities and attending non-Plain people events. This study analyzes interview data from 23 Amish farmers in one region of Indiana and 18 public sector agricultural professionals from a variety of backgrounds and geographies in areas of the U.S. with heavy Plain populations. Public sector agricultural professionals identified some key agronomic challenges on Plain farms related to issues like poor pasture and manure management as well as socio-cultural challenges such as restrictions on electronic and phone communication. Educators should design outreach strategies that take into consideration that faith convictions and conservation concerns may vary greatly based on the specificities of the particular Plain church group. By better understanding this population and how to work with them, public sector agricultural professionals can more effectively work towards addressing environmental problems with this under-served group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the author's perspectives on the concept of Deborah Brandt of accumulating literacies. She mentions that the foundational work of Brandt influenced her autoethnographic work with the Amish and her family's five generations, exploring the concept of heritage literacy. The author offers quilting practice in her family being developed from their Amish heritage with technological developments.