Serum Paraoxonase (PON1) Activity in North-West Indian Punjabi’s with Acute Myocardial Infarction

Human serum paraoxonase-1 (PON1), an enzyme on HDL prevents oxidation of LDL thereby preventing the development of atherosclerosis. Studies done so far have lead to conflicting results. As studies are lacking in North-West Indian Punjabi’s, a distinct ethnic group with high incidence of coronary artery disease, we determined PONase activity in this population. It has been postulated that sudden lowering of serum PONase may lead to precipitation of acute myocardial infarction. We determined serum PONase activity and lipids in 100 patients each of AMI (within 24 h of onset), stable CAD and 100 age and sex matched healthy controls. These were again determined after 6 weeks in AMI patients. The mean serum PONase activity was lowest in AMI patients (23.26 U/ml) followed by stable CAD patients (102.0 U/ml) where as in controls was highest (179.8 U/ml). In patients with AMI, activity was significantly higher at 6 weeks as compared to that after acute event (49.39 %; p < 0.05). Sudden lowering of serum PONase activity in a population which already has lower activity may be one of the risk factors for development of AMI.     

Effect of Resveratrol and Nicotine on PON1 Gene Expression: In Vitro Study

Dietary and lifestyle factors have been shown to have a profound effect on paraoxonase-1 (PON1) activity. Cigarette smoke has been shown to inhibit its mass and activity where as resveratrol has been shown to enhance it. We exposed hepatoma derived cell line (HepG2) to resveratrol and nicotine in varying doses and measured PON1 enzymatic activity and PON1 gene expression. In addition, total protein content of HepG2 cells was also measured. Resveratrol in a dose of 15 μmol/l or above significantly increased the PON1 enzyme activity (p > 0.001) where as nicotine in a dose of 1 μmol/l or higher significantly reduced it (p < 0.05). The resveratrol in this dose also enhanced the PON1 gene expression whereas nicotine decreased it as compared to controls. However, the protein conent of cells was not changed suggesting that they were not cytotoxic in the doses used. Till date the antioxidant vitamins have shown disappointing results against LDL oxidation and cardiovascular protection. However, the effect of resveratrol on PON1 gene expression and activity was significant, suggesting increase in PON1 activity and enhanced gene expression may be its alternative mechanism for offering protection against cardiovascular disease and may be an potential pharmacological agent which can be used for this.     

Promoting toddlers' self-regulation and healthy eating habits among families living in poverty: A randomized controlled trial of Recipe 4 Success

The Recipe 4 Success preventive intervention targeted multiple factors critical to the health and well-being of toddlers living in poverty. This randomized controlled trial, which was embedded within Early Head Start home visits for 12 weeks, included 242 racially and ethnically diverse families (51% girls; toddler mean age = 2.58 years; data collected 2016–2019). Compared to parents in usual practice home visits, parents in Recipe 4 Success displayed greater sensitive scaffolding of toddlers' learning and more responsive food parenting practices (Cohen's d = .21–.30). Toddlers in Recipe 4 Success exhibited greater self-regulation and had healthier eating habits (Cohen's d = |.16–.35|). Results highlight the value of Recipe 4 Success in promoting parent and toddler behavior change that could have life-long benefits.     

Ethnic Identity and Acculturative Stress as Mediators of Depression in Students of Asian Descent

This study underscored the importance of addressing the well‐being of college students of Asian descent, because these students had higher rates of depression and lower positive feelings about their ethnic group compared with students of European descent, as measured by the Affirmation subscale of the Ethnic Identity Scale. Affirmation mediated the depression difference between these groups. Within the Asian group, affirmation and depression were inversely correlated, and this relationship was mediated by acculturative stress.     

Why Here and Why Now? Teacher Motivations for Unionizing in a New Orleans Charter School

The rigidity of teachers unions has been given as a primary reason for their lack of representation among America’s rapidly growing, although still relatively small, charter school sector. In the case of post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, the city rapidly converted from a union-backed teacher workforce to a largely nonunionized charter school workforce in the years following state takeover and charter conversion. This makes the recent emergence of two single-school unions in charter schools there worthy of study. As the teachers attempt to organize single-school unions in a nearly all charter school system, what are their motivations? This case study of one of New Orleans’ emerging charter school unions found that pay inequities, job insecurity, a lack of teacher voice in school-level decisions, and a culture of compliance, all motivated teachers to seek unionization. Teachers hoped to promote equity and teacher involvement with their union, but the organizing effort did strain some relationships, particularly those involving middle management.     

What is Knowledge in English and Where Does it Come From?

By offering a close reading and interpretation of one conversation between four Year 8 pupils about Robert Swindell’s Stone Cold, I aim to address questions of what might count as knowledge in English and to suggest how it might develop not only out of the qualities of a text, but from particular social relations and a set of pedagogic choices. I argue for a refocusing of attention away from the ‘acquisition’ of ‘cultural capital’ or ‘powerful disciplinary knowledge’ by individual pupils, towards the cultural resources and cultural productivity of pupils and teachers. I go on to suggest that serious consideration of such conversations as evidence of learning poses a significant challenge to dominant theories and research methodologies that locate knowledge and ability within the minds of individual pupils. Instead, my reading of this classroom interaction suggests the creative potential of discussion in diverse, urban classrooms to contribute to a fuller account of learning that pays proper attention to its roots in the social and affective realms. Crucially, part of my argument is that classrooms such as the one in which the conversation took place offer unique opportunities and conditions for the development of a pedagogy that both draws on and negotiates difference and is therefore culturally productive in a wider sense.     

A model for the effective engagement of all stakeholders in engineering education and its pilot implementation

Methodologies for engineering learning and teaching (MELT) approach aims to enhance the attractiveness of education through science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) among young people, while promoting awareness of future careers in these areas. To this end, students’ expectations are considered within university programmes, aiming to an increased engagement in STEM careers. To accomplish these goals, a new and integrated approach (MELT) is presented, involving the main stakeholders in both scientific education and society. An education framework is presented, providing guidelines for an improved collaborative approach to STEM education in the future. Results from the pilot implementation of MELT are presented, from a small-scale education parliament prototype. From these initial stage and results, it is seen that there is a need for a proper alignment of expectations from all involved stakeholders, concerning the engineering education towards society’s demands.     

I still wanna be an engineer! Women,education and the engineering profession

Women's low enrolment in post-school engineering degrees continues to be a problem for engineering faculties and the profession generally. A qualitative interview-based study of Australian women engineers across the range of engineering disciplines showed the relevance of success in math and science at school to their enrolling in engineering at university. However, for a significant number of the women the positive self-image connected with school success was not maintained by their workplace experience. Using a mixed methods approach, further investigations of the attitudes and experiences of working engineers at three large firms suggest that engineering workplaces continue to be uneasy environments for professional women. Particular issues for women working as professional engineers are identified in this paper and some educational strategies are suggested in order to better prepare engineers for an inclusive and participatory professional life.     

Internalizing symptoms of gifted and non-gifted elementary-age students: A comparative validity study using the Internalizing Symptoms Scale for Children

As part of the validation research process for a new self-report social-emotional test for children, internalizing social-emotional symptoms (e.g., depression, anxiety, social withdrawal, somatic complaints, positive and negative affectivity) of a group of elementary-age gifted students (n = 65) were contrasted with those of a carefully matched (by gender and age) comparison group of non-gifted students (n = 65). Subjects completed the Internalizing Symptoms Scale for Children (ISSC) (Merrell & Walters, 1996), a self-report measure of internalizing symptoms, affect, and cognition. The gifted students reported significantly fewer internalizing symptoms than did the comparison group. An analysis of critical items separating the two groups indicated that the gifted students differed most substantially from their non-gifted peers on ISSC items that relate to self-efficacy and perceived self-importance. Although these types of self-perceptions are considered to be a peripheral rather than a central component of specific internalizing disorders, it is hypothesized that their positive presence in children may act as a “buffering” factor, possibly insulating children from insults to their social-emotional functioning that may lead to the development of internalizing forms of psychopathology. The results of this investigation are discussed in terms of their relationship to conflicting previous research in this area, to future research needs in the study of social-emotional symptoms and development of gifted children, and in terms of the construct validity evidence for the ISSC. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Sustainable support: a case of the role and deployment of teaching assistants implementing a unique early literacy intervention

The role and deployment of teaching assistants (TAs) (paraprofessionals) have changed significantly over the past decade; TAs in England hold greater responsibilities in terms of their wider role in classrooms and, specifically, in relation to their support for children with literacy difficulties in a primary school context. The impact of their role has been both questioned and challenged; nevertheless, in relation to literacy support, their role is widely valued by schools, and evidence exists that there is a positive impact on attainment. This paper reports on a case study of an early literacy intervention implemented by TAs which, it is argued, provides a positive model of TA deployment and literacy intervention implementation. It is also argued that this model of intervention offers a scaffold to the TAs themselves, who are then far better placed to scaffold the literacy learning of children with individual needs.