Physician Assistant Program Goals: A Thematic Analysis.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to provide a descriptive analysis of the goals of the accredited physician assistant (PA) programs across the country in order to obtain a baseline understanding of their themes.

Methods: Initial review of the goals resulted in the identification of recurring themes. The goals were evaluated relative to meeting the requirements specified in Standard A3.

Interspecies Communication between Pathogens and Immune Cells via Bacterial Membrane Vesicles.

The production of extracellular vesicles is a universal mechanism for intercellular communication that is conserved across kingdoms. Prokaryotes secrete 50-250 nm membrane vesicles (MVs) in a manner that is regulated by environmental stress and is thought to promote survival. Since many types of host-derived stress are encountered during infection, this implies an important role for MV secretion in bacterial pathogenesis.