This study examined whether the effects of student–faculty interaction on a range of student outcomes—i.e., college GPA, degree aspiration, integration, critical thinking and communication, cultural appreciation and social awareness, and satisfaction with college experience—vary by student gender, race, social class, and first-generation status. The study utilized data on 58,281 students who participated in the 2006 University of California Undergraduate Experience Survey (UCUES). The findings reveal differences in the frequency of student–faculty interaction across student gender, race, social class and first-generation status, and differences in the effects of student–faculty interaction (i.e., conditional effects) that depended on each of these factors except first-generation status. The findings provide implications for educational practice on how to maximize the educational efficacy of student–faculty interaction by minimizing the gender, race, social class, and first-generation differences associated with it.

Using cross-classified multilevel modeling, this study attempted to improve our understanding of the group-level conditional effects of student–faculty interaction by examining the function of academic majors in explaining the effects of student–faculty interaction on students’ academic self-concept. The study utilized data on 11,202 undergraduate students who completed both the 2003 Freshman Survey and the 2007 College Senior Survey at 95 baccalaureate institutions nationwide. The results show that the strength of the relationship between having been a guest in a professor’s home and students’ academic self-concept varies by academic major. Findings also suggest that some aspects of departmental climate, such as a racially more diverse student body and greater faculty accessibility, can possibly magnify the beneficial effects of student–faculty interaction. The study discusses the theoretical and practical implications of the findings.

Introduction. Most individuals infected with human immunodeficiency virus-1, in the absence of antiretroviral therapy, exhibit persistent virus replication and declining CD4+ cell numbers, and progress to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome within 10years o

This study used spatial analysis and modeling to develop practical screening tools to find suitable locations in Santa Cruz and northern Monterey Counties (adjacent to Monterey Bay) where there may be good opportunities to improve groundwater resources using distributed stormwater collection linked to managed aquifer recharge (DSC-MAR). New data sets and methods developed through this project are now available and can be applied by water managers, environmental stewards, and other public and private stakeholders. The study is the first comprehensive, regional effort to: (1) quantify and map suitability for DSC-MAR and (2) evaluate the supply of stormwater runoff in support of MAR. The first part of this project focused on quantifying and mapping spatial variations in suitability for infiltration and storage of excess surface water, using a geographic information system (GIS). Numerous datasets were acquired, processed, patched and combined to identify locations where there is alignment of properties that are most favorable for DSC-MAR. The assessment included surface and subsurface GIS coverages. Surface coverages (available for the full study region) provided an initial screening for MAR suitability and included parameters such as elevation, soil properties linked to infiltration, and bedrock geology (determining “presence or absence” of an underlying aquifer). Subsurface coverages (available only for certain areas within the project region) allowed for a more detailed assessment of opportunities to infiltrate and store stormwater runoff, and included hydrogeologic parameters such as the geometry (lateral extent, thickness) of aquifer and confining layers, transmissive and storage properties, the thickness of soil and rock layers above the shallowest aquifer, and recent changes in groundwater levels. The second part of this project focused on modeling basin runoff response, including spatial variations under a range of climate scenarios (dry, normal, wet), with models driven by historical precipitation data. We used an open source, process-based numerical model (Precipitation Runoff Modeling System – PRMS) to assess potential opportunities for stormwater collection, based on soil properties, vegetation cover, and other hydrologic properties within and among small hydrologic units (25-250 acres) throughout two drainage basins. Once the climate scenarios were developed and simulations were completed, we analyzed model-generated outputs with an emphasis on relations between precipitation and hillslope runoff, before this runoff reaches "blue line" streams. There are many opportunities in the study region locate and develop managed aquifer recharge projects that are supplied with stormwater runoff. More water can be collected during wet years, of course, but that simply emphasizes the importance of developing and running these kinds of projects so that benefits can be achieved under favorable hydrologic conditions. The products of this work (maps, datasets) should be used mainly for screening purposes, complemented by direct assessments on a site-by-site basis. Maps and datasets specific to each basin are available for public access (download) through the Resource Conservation District of Santa Cruz County’s website (http://www.rcdsantacruz.org/managed-aquifer-recharge). Results of this work have direct implications for this region, where communities must make do with limited local resources, but also may serve as a template for other parts of the state, where planning and implementation of new projects to improve the security and sustainability of groundwater resources is expected to be increasingly common.

The formation of epithelial tissues requires both the generation of apical-basal polarity and the coordination of this polarity between neighbouring cells to form a central lumen. During de novo lumen formation, vectorial membrane transport contributes to

Unlabelled

Regulation of mRNA splicing, a critical and tightly regulated cellular function, underlies the majority of proteomic diversity and is frequently disrupted in disease. Using an integrative genomics approach, we combined both genomic data and exon-level transcriptome data in two somatic tissues (cerebella and peripheral ganglia) from a transgenic mouse model of neuroblastoma, a tumor that arises from the peripheral neural crest. Here, we describe splicing quantitative trait loci associated with differential splicing across the genome that we use to identify genes with previously unknown functions within the splicing pathway and to define de novo intronic splicing motifs that influence splicing from hundreds of bases away. Our results show that these splicing motifs represent sites for functional recurrent mutations and highlight novel candidate genes in human cancers, including childhood neuroblastoma.

Significance

Somatic mutations with predictable downstream effects are largely relegated to coding regions, which comprise less than 2% of the human genome. Using an unbiased in vivo analysis of a mouse model of neuroblastoma, we have identified intronic splicing motifs that translate into sites for recurrent somatic mutations in human cancers.

Background

Histologic features of idiopathic non-cirrhotic portal hypertension (INCPH) may overlap with those without INCPH. Recently, these features have been recognized as part of the larger spectrum of porto-sinusoidal vascular disease (PSVD). We assessed interobserver agreement on histologic features that are commonly associated with INCPH and studied whether a provision of relevant clinical history improves interobserver agreement.

Methods

The examined histologic features include lobular (such as anisocytosis, nodular regeneration, sinusoidal dilatation, increased parenchymal draining veins, and incomplete fibrous septa) and portal tract changes (such as paraportal shunting vessel(s), portal tract remnant, increased number of portal vessels, and obliterative portal venopathy). Thirty-four archived liver samples from patients with (group A) and without (group B) INCPH were retrieved. A total of 90 representative images of lobules (L) and portal tracts (P) were distributed among 9 liver pathologists blinded to true clinical history. Each pathologist answered multiple choice questions based on the absence (Q1) or presence (Q2) of clinical history of portal hypertension. Fleiss' kappa coefficient analysis (unweighted) was performed to assess interobserver agreement on normal versus abnormal diagnosis, in L and P, based on Q1 and Q2.

Results

The kappa values regarding normal versus abnormal diagnosis were 0.24, 0.24, 0.18 and 0.18 for L-Q1, L-Q2, P-Q1, and P-Q2, respectively. With true clinical history provided, the kappa values were L- 0.32, P-0.17 for group A and L-0.12, P-0.14 for group B. Four pathologists changed their assessments based on the provided history. Interobserver agreement on the interpretation of L and P as normal versus abnormal was slight to fair regardless of provision of clinical history.

Conclusions

Our findings indicate that the histologic features of INCPH/PSVD are not limited to patients with portal hypertension and are subject to significant interobserver variation.

Synthetic biology has developed sophisticated cellular biosensors to detect and respond to human disease. However, biosensors have not yet been engineered to detect specific extracellular DNA sequences and mutations. Here, we engineered naturally competent Acinetobacter baylyi to detect donor DNA from the genomes of colorectal cancer (CRC) cells, organoids, and tumors. We characterized the functionality of the biosensors in vitro with coculture assays and then validated them in vivo with sensor bacteria delivered to mice harboring colorectal tumors. We observed horizontal gene transfer from the tumor to the sensor bacteria in our mouse model of CRC. This cellular assay for targeted, CRISPR-discriminated horizontal gene transfer (CATCH) enables the biodetection of specific cell-free DNA.

The development of targeted therapeutics for neuroblastoma, the third most common tumor in children, has been limited by a poor understanding of growth signaling mechanisms unique to the peripheral nerve precursors from which tumors arise. In this study, we combined genetics with gene-expression analysis in the peripheral sympathetic nervous system to implicate arginase 1 and GABA signaling in tumor formation in vivo. In human neuroblastoma cells, either blockade of ARG1 or benzodiazepine-mediated activation of GABA-A receptors induced apoptosis and inhibited mitogenic signaling through AKT and MAPK. These results suggest that ARG1 and GABA influence both neural development and neuroblastoma and that benzodiazepines in clinical use may have potential applications for neuroblastoma therapy.