What Can I Do With a Doctoral Degree in Gerontology? Expanding Your Options

An endless number of career trajectories are possible for gerontologists. With a growing aging population, our skills and areas of expertise are of high value to numerous industries. The purpose of this study is to describe the professional development and career trajectories of alumni of U.S. doctoral gerontology programs obtained through the Gerontology Education Longitudinal Study (GELS). Specifically, the authors examine how professional identification, doctoral program career preparation, and perception of job prospects affect alumni decisions to pursue “traditional” (i.e., academic) versus “nontraditional” (i.e., non-academic) careers. Results from the GELS revealed a fairly even split in the alumni sample of careers in traditional and nontraditional settings. The decision to pursue a traditional versus nontraditional career was not significantly associated with personal identification, doctoral program career preparation, or perception of employment options. These results suggest that the skill set obtained in doctoral gerontology programs is useful and is in demand in a variety of careers; therefore, doctoral programs may want to consider tailoring training to meet students’ future career goals in both academic and non-academic settings.     

国有资产在科研机构中管理措施探讨

国有资产是科研机构不断获得生存与发展的物质基础保障,对国有资产的有效管理及运作是提升科研机构综合服务水平及基础工作质量的必要前提和重要保障,是维持单位正常运作的关键。国有资产的管理工作必须以服务于科研机构为最大前提。本文简要阐释当前我国科研机构在国有资产管理工作中存在的主要问题,以及关于加强科研机构国有资产市场化运作的相关分析和具体措施研究,以供参考。     

Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients With End-Stage Renal Disease

BackgroundIn patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), surgical aortic valve replacement is associated with higher early and late mortality, and adverse outcomes compared with patients without renal disease. Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) offers another alternative, but there are limited reported outcomes.ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to determine the outcomes of TAVR in patients with ESRD.MethodsAmong the first 72,631 patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) treated with TAVR enrolled in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS)/American College of Cardiology (ACC) TVT (Transcatheter Valve Therapies) registry, 3,053 (4.2%) patients had ESRD and were compared with patients who were not on dialysis for demographics, risk factors, and outcomes.ResultsCompared with the nondialysis patients, ESRD patients were younger (76 years vs. 83 years; p < 0.01) and had higher rates of comorbidities leading to a higher STS predicted risk of mortality (median 13.5% vs. 6.2%; p < 0.01). ESRD patients had a higher in-hospital mortality (5.1% vs. 3.4%; p < 0.01), although the observed to expected ratio was lower (0.32 vs. 0.44; p < 0.01). ESRD patients also had a similar rate of major vascular complications (4.5% vs. 4.6%; p = 0.86), but a higher rate of major bleeding (1.4% vs. 1.0%; p = 0.03). The 1-year mortality was significantly higher in dialysis patients (36.8% vs. 18.7%; p < 0.01).ConclusionsPatients undergoing TAVR with ESRD are at higher risk and had higher in-hospital mortality and bleeding, but similar vascular complications, when compared with those who are not dialysis dependent. The 1-year survival raises concerns regarding diminished benefit in this population. TAVR should be used judiciously after full discussion of the risk-benefit ratio in patients on dialysis.     

New insights into the effects of biomaterial chemistry and topography on the morphology of kidney epithelial cells

Increasing incidence of renal pathology in the western world calls for innovative research for the development of cell‐based therapies such as a bioartificial kidney (BAK) device. To fulfil the multitude of kidney functions, the core component of the BAK is a living membrane consisting of a tight kidney cell monolayer with preserved functional organic ion transporters cultured on a polymeric membrane surface. This membrane, on one side, is in contact with blood and therefore should have excellent blood compatibility, whereas the other side should facilitate functional monolayer formation. This work investigated the effect of membrane chemistry and surface topography on kidney epithelial cells to improve the formation of a functional monolayer. To achieve this, microtopographies were fabricated with high resolution and reproducibility on polystyrene films and on polyethersulfone‐polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PES‐PVP) porous membranes. A conditionally immortalized proximal tubule epithelial cell line (ciPTEC) was cultured on both, and subsequently, the cell morphology and monolayer formation were assessed. Our results showed that L‐dopamine coating of the PES‐PVP was sufficient to support ciPTEC monolayer formation. The polystyrene topographies with large features were able to align the cells in various patterns without significantly disruption of monolayer formation; however, the PES‐PVP topographies with large features disrupted the monolayer. In contrast, the PES‐PVP membranes with small features and with large spacing supported well the ciPTEC monolayer formation. In addition, the topographical PES‐PVP membranes were compatible as a substrate membrane to measure organic cation transporter activity in Transwell® systems. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

中医儿科临床辨病与辨证结合探析

中医儿科临床应用现代诊断手段,拓展传统中医四诊,将西医辨病与中医辨证相结合,有助于理解中医证候,全面了解疾病和判断预后,具有优化治疗方案的优势,还可开拓中医科研思维,同时指出对诊断不明确、疗效不确切的疾病适宜中医辨证论治。旨在将中医辨证与西医辨病相结合,如何取长补短,让患儿获得更好的疗效,是今后努力的方向。     

Development of aceclofenac nanovesicular system using biomaterial for transdermal delivery: physical characterization,ex vivo,in vivo,and anti-inflammatory studies

Context: Aceclofenac is an important NSAID; however, it causes GI disturbances whereas employing transdermal route would require permeation enhancer for systemic application, thereby causing skin damage. Ceramide 2 is a natural lipid having an important role in the maintenance of skin. Objective: Aceclofenac-loaded nanovesicles of ceramide-2, cholesterol, palmitic acid, and cholesteryl sulfate were formulated and analyzed for physical and biological properties. Materials and method: Film hydration method was used to prepare the vesicles and physical parameters, in vitro drug release and stability were evaluated. Then, they were formulated into gel and evaluated against a commercial formulation (CF) and gel-containing plain drug (CPG) for ex vivo, in vivo drug permeation, and anti-inflammatory activity. Results: The developed formulations showed best physical profile and ACV-1 gave 92.89% drug release in in vitro studies. Ex vivo studies showed drug permeation between 15.32–31.12?μg/cm², whereas CPG and CF released 0.47 and 2.81?μg/cm², respectively. ACVG-1 and CF showed C_max of 8.1 and 1.2?μg/ml at 8 and 4?h, respectively. ACVG-1 showed 11.6 times AUC than CF. ACVG-1 inhibited edema by 44% in first hour itself. Discussion: Ceramide 2 and palmitic acid played an important role in the formulation and promotes the drug permeation through stratum corneum and dermis. Ceramide content of the formulation also contributes towards stability and skin protection. Conclusion: The composition of the vesicle formulation performs an important role in physical properties and drug permeation, thereby producing an optimum formulation.     

Coalescence of Extracellular Matrix (ECM) from Porcine Urinary Bladder (UBM) with a Laser-Activated Chitosan-Based Surgical Adhesive

Abstract

Urinary bladder matrix (UBM) has been extensively investigated as a naturally occurring biomaterial in therapeutic applications for tissue repair or regeneration, while other strategies involve biopolymers such as chitosan for tissue reconstruction. The coalescence of UBM with chitosan has considerable potential in enhancing tissue reconstruction. Characterisation of a novel, laser-activated, chitosan-based, thin-film surgical adhesive with UBM in various morphologies showed that the films had increased surface rugosities and crystallinities (R_a approx. 0.83 um, approx. 12% crystallinity) when compared to the chitosan adhesive alone (R _a = 0.74 um, 7% crystallinity). Tensile strength of the films was significantly increased by the addition of UBM in particulate form (12.1–32.4 MPa). Furthermore, tissue adhesion strengths using these hybrid biomaterials were maintained at approx. 15 kPa compared to 3 kPa for fibrin glue. Histological analysis demonstrated that laser irradiation of the UBM-chitosan adhesive biomaterial caused no thermal damage to tissue. Examination of the cellular response at the material interface showed that 3T3 fibroblasts maintained their regular morphology with enhanced growth compared to films of both chitosan and its adhesive form. These results suggest that coalescence of UBM with a chitosan-based adhesive supports the development of biomaterial devices for sutureless wound closure that could enhance tissue repair and reconstruction.