Grant Writing Tips for Translational Research.

All investigators face the same challenge-the highly competitive nature of the grant review process. Innovation alone is not enough to ensure grant-supported funding. Applied clinical research requires a diverse, collaborative team of investigators with specialized skills, a supportive clinical research environment, and access to clinical material.

Non-invasive hormonal characterization of the ovarian cycle, pregnancy, and seasonal anestrus of the female addra gazelle (Nanger dama ruficollis).

Non-invasive fecal hormone metabolite monitoring was used to characterize the estrous cycle, pregnancy, and seasonal anestrus of the critically endangered addra gazelle (Nanger dama ruficollis). With less than 250 animals remaining in the wild and ∼168 individuals managed in captivity, it is crucial to maintain sustainable populations. Progestogen and estrogen profiles were obtained from analysis of fecal samples collected approximately every other day, within varying intervals, over the course of 7 years (n = 8 adult females).

Determinants of bird conservation-action implementation and associated population trends of threatened species.

Conservation actions, such as habitat protection, attempt to halt the loss of threatened species and help their populations recover. The efficiency and the effectiveness of actions have been examined individually. However, conservation actions generally occur simultaneously, so the full suite of implemented conservation actions should be assessed.

Pretreatment of Addra gazelle (Nanger dama ruficollis) spermatozoa with cholesterol-loaded cyclodextrins improves cryosurvival.

Preserving genetic diversity of the critically endangered Addra gazelle (Nanger dama ruficollis) could be enhanced through the use of frozen-thawed sperm and artificial insemination. Our aim was to characterize Addra ejaculate traits and to assess the effects of cholesterol-loaded cyclodextrin (CLC) on sperm cryosurvival. Fresh ejaculates were treated with CLC (0, 0.

Perfluoroalkyl substances and endometriosis in US women in NHANES 2003-2006.

Exposure to endocrine-active perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), is nearly ubiquitous, but data on the association between PFASs and endometriosis diagnosis are limited. We aimed to examine the relationship between PFASs and endometriosis. Women aged 20-50 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2003-2006) were selected (n=753).

Mutations in gonadotropin-releasing hormone signaling pathway in two nIHH patients with successful pregnancy outcomes.

Background: Anomalous levels of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion result in a variety of reproductive phenotypes associated with infertility or subfertility. The normosmic isolated hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (nIHH) is due to a failure of either GnRH pulsatile secretion in hypothalamus or its reception in pituitary. The spectrum of nIHH-associated alterations continues to expand, especially when additional ethnic populations are investigated.

Teaching phonics to groups of middle school students with autism, intellectual disabilities and complex communication needs.

For students who have severe and multiple disabilities including intellectual disability, complex communication needs, physical and/or sensory disabilities, and autism, there are many barriers to literacy acquisition. The purpose of this study was to teach letter-sound correspondence to small groups of students with significant intellectual disabilities and comorbid communication disorders using the ALL (Accessible Literacy Learning) curriculum. The eight participants in this study, who ranged in age from 11 to 16 years of age and had primary diagnoses of cerebral palsy, autism, Rett syndrome, Down syndrome, and intellectual disability, were placed into four groups for instruction in phonics.

Beneficial Effects of Dry Needling for Treatment of Chronic Myofascial Pain Persist for 6 Weeks After Treatment Completion.

Background: Dry needling is an effective treatment for reducing pain associated with active myofascial trigger points (a-MTrPs) in the short term. The duration of the benefits of this treatment have not been fully assessed.

Objective: To determine whether the benefits of dry needling (DN) of a-MTrPs are sustained 6 weeks posttreatment.

Permutation Tests of Hierarchical Cluster Analyses of Carrion Communities and Their Potential Use in Forensic Entomology.

Forensic entomologists can use carrion communities' ecological succession data to estimate the postmortem interval (PMI). Permutation tests of hierarchical cluster analyses of these data provide a conceptual method to estimate part of the PMI, the post-colonization interval (post-CI). This multivariate approach produces a baseline of statistically distinct clusters that reflect changes in the carrion community composition during the decomposition process.

DrugGenEx-Net: a novel computational platform for systems pharmacology and gene expression-based drug repurposing.

Background: The targeting of disease-related proteins is important for drug discovery, and yet target-based discovery has not been fruitful. Contextualizing overall biological processes is critical to formulating successful drug-disease hypotheses. Network pharmacology helps to overcome target-based bottlenecks through systems biology analytics, such as protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks and pathway regulation.

Mindful Parenting and Parents' Emotion Expression: Effects on Adolescent Risk Behaviors.

Mindful parenting is associated with greater adjustment and fewer behavior problems in children and adolescents. However, the mechanisms by which mindful parenting functions to mitigate risk in adolescence is not well understood. This study investigated parent emotional expression as a potential mechanism in the relationship between low mindful parenting and adolescent risk behaviors.

Differential Arc expression in the hippocampus and striatum during the transition from attentive to automatic navigation on a plus maze.

The strategies utilized to effectively perform a given task change with practice and experience. During a spatial navigation task, with relatively little training, performance is typically attentive enabling an individual to locate the position of a goal by relying on spatial landmarks. These (place) strategies require an intact hippocampus.

Maternal knowledge, outcome expectancies and normative beliefs as determinants of cessation of exclusive breastfeeding: a cross-sectional study in rural Kenya.

Background: Despite the importance of multiple psychosocial factors on nutrition-related behavior, very few studies have explored beyond the role of mothers' knowledge and perception of child-focused outcomes on the duration of exclusive breastfeeding in Africa. Our objective was to determine the relationships among mothers' knowledge, outcome expectancies, normative beliefs, and cessation of exclusive breastfeeding in rural Kenya.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 400 mothers of children, 0-24 months old, in rural Kenya.

Relations among motor, social, and cognitive skills in pre-kindergarten children with developmental disabilities.

Despite the comorbidity between motor difficulties and certain disabilities, limited research has examined links between early motor, cognitive, and social skills in preschool-aged children with developmental disabilities. The present study examined the relative contributions of gross motor and fine motor skills to the prediction of improvements in children's cognitive and social skills among 2,027 pre-kindergarten children with developmental disabilities, including specific learning disorder, speech/language impairment, intellectual disability, and autism spectrum disorder. Results indicated that for pre-kindergarten children with developmental disabilities, fine motor skills, but not gross motor skills, were predictive of improvements in cognitive and social skills, even after controlling for demographic information and initial skill levels.

Distribution and determinants of young child feeding practices in the East African region: demographic health survey data analysis from 2008-2011.

We utilized the most recent Demographic Health Survey data to explore the distribution of feeding practices and examine relationships between complementary feeding and socio-demographic and health behaviour indicators in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. We based our analysis on complementary dietary diversity scores calculated for children 6-23 months old. Geographically, Kenya displayed clear division of children's diet diversity scores across its regions, unlike Uganda and Tanzania.

Amyloid beta modulation of neuronal network activity in vitro.

In vitro assays offer a means of screening potential therapeutics and accelerating the drug development process. Here, we utilized neuronal cultures on planar microelectrode arrays (MEA) as a functional assay to assess the neurotoxicity of amyloid-β 1-42 (Aβ42), a biomolecule implicated in the Alzheimer׳s disease (AD). In this approach, neurons harvested from embryonic mice were seeded on the substrate-integrated microelectrode arrays.

Web-Based Study for Improving Mammography Among Korean American Women.

Web-based culture-specific interventions for Korean American (KA) women to improve mammography utilization are not available. An established intervention developed to improve mammography utilizations for Korean American (KA) women was tested via the Web for its efficacy, feasibility, and acceptability. A randomized controlled trial, with a pretest-posttest control group design, was conducted with 136 KA women and their spouses.

Automated detection of retinal disease.

Nearly 4 in 10 Americans with diabetes currently fail to undergo recommended annual retinal exams, resulting in tens of thousands of cases of blindness that could have been prevented. Advances in automated retinal disease detection could greatly reduce the burden of labor-intensive dilated retinal examinations by ophthalmologists and optometrists and deliver diagnostic services at lower cost. As the current availability of ophthalmologists and optometrists is inadequate to screen all patients at risk every year, automated screening systems deployed in primary care settings and even in patients' homes could fill the current gap in supply.

Erratum to: Korean American Women and Mammogram Uptake.

Erratum to: J Immigrant Minority Health, DOI 10.1007/s10903-015-0164-6. The names of two of the authors (Eunice E.

Korean American Women and Mammogram Uptake.

A high percentage of Korean American (KA) women have never had a mammogram, which puts them at greater risk for late-stage breast cancer. The aim of this study was to compare health beliefs and spousal support about breast cancer and screening between KA women with and without a history of mammogram completion. Cross-sectional data were obtained from 428 non-adherent married KA women.