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Factors Associated with Pre-competition Anxiety in Ironman Triathletes
Get PDFPurpose: Pre-competition anxiety is a critical factor influencing endurance athletes, yet limited research has examined its predictors in Ironman triathletes. The purpose of this study was to explore how competition experience, type of training, and past adverse medical experiences are related to pre-competition anxiety at 7-day and 24-hour time points. Methods: A survey-based design assessed pre-competition anxiety in 144 Ironman triathletes using the Revised Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2R), which measures somatic anxiety, cognitive anxiety, and self-confidence. Independent variables included competition experience (total number of competitions and specific race history), type of training (percentage of outdoor vs. indoor training), and past adverse medical experiences (injuries requiring medical attention). Binary logistic regression analyses determined associations between these predictors and pre-competition anxiety levels, adjusting for participant characteristics. Results: At 7 days before competition (N = 136), competition experience was not significantly associated with somatic anxiety, cognitive anxiety, or self-confidence. However, type of training was significantly associated with higher odds of high somatic anxiety (aOR = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.00-1.04, p = 0.027), though it was not significantly associated with cognitive anxiety or self-confidence. Past adverse medical experiences did not significantly predict pre-competition anxiety. Athletes with three or more injuries showed a non-significant trend toward higher cognitive anxiety (aOR = 2.01, 95% CI: 0.79-5.11, p = 0.138). 24 hours before competition (N = 113), a greater number of total competitions was associated with lower cognitive anxiety (aOR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.94-0.99, p = 0.030). The total number of competitions was initially linked to lower somatic anxiety (OR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.94-0.99, p = 0.031), but this relationship became non-significant after adjusting for gender and income. A greater number of specific competitions was significantly associated with lower odds of high somatic anxiety (aOR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.84-0.97, p = 0.008) and lower cognitive anxiety (aOR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.86-0.98, p = 0.021). No significant associations were found for self-confidence. Unlike 7 days, outdoor training was not associated with somatic anxiety, cognitive anxiety, or self- confidence. Notably, athletes with three or more injuries had significantly lower odds of high somatic anxiety (OR = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.13-0.91, p = 0.033), though this association became marginally non-significant after adjustment (p = 0.057). Conclusion: Competition experience appears to protect against pre-competition anxiety, particularly 24 hours before a competition. Outdoor training was linked to higher somatic anxiety 7-days before competition but not at 24 hours. Contrary to expectations, a greater number of past adverse medical experiences were associated with lower somatic anxiety 24 hours before competition. This study is one of the first to examine these specific independent variables by pre-competition anxiety 7-days and 24-hours before competition in triathletes
MORE WAYS TO ACCOMPLISH MY DREAMS PERCEPTIONS OF BELONGING, INCLUSION, AND EXCLUSION HELD BY YOUNG ADULTS WITH INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES USING INTERPRETATIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS
Get PDFWhile inclusion of students with disabilities in general education settings has seen marked increases in the last 20 years, students with intellectual and developmental disabilities are still likely to continue to receive special education services in restrictive settings (such as pullout instruction, separate classes, or separate schools). In the discourse regarding the benefits of placement in any school setting, the perspectives of individuals with disabilities are underrepresented. The purpose of this dissertation study was to explore the lived experiences of young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, who provided critical insight regarding the circumstances in which students experience the phenomena of belonging, inclusion and exclusion in K-12 and postsecondary school settings. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to explore two research questions: What are the lived experiences of young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in a variety of school settings? What emotions and tensions emerge for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities as they reflect upon their lived experiences in inclusive and restrictive settings? Across a series of semi-structured interviews with seven participants who have intellectual and developmental disabilities, six themes emerged: I notice and learn different social rules in different classroom settings; belonging and exclusion can happen across all educational settings; special education instruction was useful, but I didn’t learn grade-level curriculum; I’m determined to learn; I want the good things in life; I want others to honor my humanity. In addition to a summary of these themes and corresponding findings, I offer suggestions for future research and implications for practice
P38 MAPK MEDIATES HIF-1Α STABILIZATION AND THE HYPOXIC RESPONSE IN LEIOMYOSARCOMA CELLS
Get PDFLeiomyosarcoma (LMS) is an aggressive subtype of soft tissue sarcoma (STS) characterized by high metastatic potential, poor clinical outcomes, and limited therapeutic options. Hypoxia is a defining feature of LMS tumors, contributing to tumor progression, therapy resistance, and angiogenesis. Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) is the master regulator of cellular adaptation to low oxygen conditions, promoting the expression of genes that drive angiogenesis, metabolism, and survival. However, the regulation of HIF-1α, the oxygen-sensitive subunit of HIF-1, in LMS is unexplored. The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways, including p38 MAPK, ERK, and JNK, are key stress-responsive kinases that modulate various cellular processes, yet their roles in regulating HIF-1α in LMS have not been investigated. This study investigates the role of p38 MAPK signaling in modulating HIF-1α expression, transcriptional activity, and angiogenic potential in LMS cells. Using leiomyosarcoma cell lines (SK-LMS-1 and SK-UT-1) and primary uterine smooth muscle cells (HUtSMC), this study demonstrates that p38 MAPK is essential for HIF-1α protein stability and its downstream gene expression under hypoxia. Amongst the MAPKs, pharmacological inhibition of p38 MAPK significantly reduces HIF-1α protein levels. This regulatory role of p38 MAPK is also important for the expression of hypoxia-inducible genes VEGFA, BNIP3, and IGFBP3 and hypoxia-induced endothelial cell growth and micro-vessel development, revealing a critical role of p38 MAPK in hypoxia-driven angiogenesis. Further analysis showed that p38 MAPK inhibition accelerates HIF-1α degradation independently of proteasomal activity, indicating an alternative stabilization mechanism beyond traditional oxygen-dependent regulation. Moreover, this study identifies LMS subtype-specific differences in HIF-1α regulation, with SK-UT-1 cells exhibiting lower HIF-1α expression and reduced angiogenic response to hypoxia, suggesting that some LMS tumors may bypass HIF-1 signaling. These findings emphasize the heterogeneity of LMS tumors and highlight p38 MAPK as a potential therapeutic target for disrupting hypoxia-driven tumor progression. While p38 MAPK inhibitors have been explored in cancer therapy, their efficacy in LMS remains unknown. By elucidating the role of p38 MAPK in hypoxic adaptation and tumor angiogenesis, this study provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms driving LMS progression and offers potential therapeutic strategies for targeting hypoxia-driven tumor growth
NONDOMINANT PARENT PERSPECTIVES ON FAMILY ENGAGEMENT IN RURAL SCHOOLS
Get PDFThis study sought to understand the perspective of nondominant parents in schools who have children in rural school districts concerning what educational leaders can do to increase family and parent engagement in schools and what makes engagement successful. In an effort to understand the perspectives of nondominant parents this study will addresses the following research questions: 1. How do parents of non-dominant students describe their opportunities to participate in school activities? 2. How do parents of non-dominant students describe their opportunities to participate in school leadership activities? 3. How do parents of non-dominant students characterize the ways school leaders seek parental engagement? 3a. What leadership actions are identified as most effective/welcoming? 3b. What leadership actions are identified as least effective/welcoming? Key findings of the study show that systemic implementation of leadership accelerants that include relationships, effective communication, outreach, and empowering leadership may increase parental engagement in schools with nondominant families. This study affirms the importance of educational leaders and the greater community working together with families and the community to create a meaningful family engagement program
Exploratory Investigation of Mathematics Engagement in Digitally Based Assessments Evidence from NAEP Process Data
Get PDFThe NAEP 2017 Mathematics Assessment Process Data was the center of this exploratory investigation, examining sources of validity evidence for using process data indicators to obtain a snapshot of students’ engagement in mathematics. The COVID-19 pandemic and remote education requirements made it substantially more difficult for teachers to assess their students’ engagement in mathematics. As technology and access to it improve, students will receive more access to digital assessments and digital learning environments. It is important to probe how student behaviors in digital assessment and learning environments could indicate the quality of their engagement. After fulfilling the requirements through the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), access was granted to work with the NAEP 2017 Mathematics Assessment Process Data. The dataset included 2,800 eighth-grade students. These process data variables were analyzed: theme state, zoom state, text-to-speech, draw, erase, highlight, scratchwork, eliminate a choice, un-eliminate a choice, clear (or remove) answer, equation editor, and calculator functions. In addition, data regarding their mathematics proficiency were included. Validity evidence was collected based on the framework detailed in the Standards (AERA et al., 2014). The analyses used to gather validity evidence included the following: descriptive statistics, principal components analysis (PCA), latent profile analysis (LPA), correlations, regressions, and crosstabs analyses. The rate at which students utilized different features varied greatly. There were four potential engagement components per item, and the total number of potential engagement components across all items was eight. These components also varied to a great extent in their correlations with and predictions of mathematics proficiency. This study made clear that engagement is more complicated than once thought and that item type and available features could result in different types of engagement per item
Physiological and Environmental Factors Influencing Pacific Salmon Fitness in a Changing Climate
Get PDFPacific salmon are becoming increasingly threatened by the impacts of climate change, but because each species exhibits different life history strategies, their adaptive capacities may vary. In the marine environment, sea surface temperatures are increasing by 2-4 degrees C°, ocean currents are shifting, and carbon dioxide absorption rates are increasing. Cumulatively, these marine shifts are impacting thermal regimes which drive primary productivity, and the dynamics of predator-prey interactions, while Carbon Dioxide absorption is leading to deterioration of the outer shell of plankton and benthos species, both of which are important food sources for salmon. Similarly, in the freshwater environment, changes in climate regimes are driving earlier peak stream flow, increasing water temperatures, and creating more hypoxic river and lake conditions. The factors which contribute to the resilience of the fish to shifts in both marine and freshwater environments are generally split into four categories- metabolism, hormonal, behavior, and the immune response. Cumulatively, the plasticity in these important physiological mechanisms provides buffer to both natural and anthropogenic stressors. Many of these are not well understood, particularly across different salmon species. In this thesis, the metabolic rate and egg size of two different Pacific salmon embryos is analyzed to provide further insight into the critical developmental period which often experiences high mortality. Our findings show that the mothers genetic effect contributes most to metabolism early on in development, and towards hatching both maternal and paternal contribution are more evenly distributed, and while egg size may have some effect on metabolic rate, it is not the main contributor in our study. Another main contributor to salmon health and resilience is the microbial community within the innate immune system which functions to provide as a host for symbiotic bacteria and keep out pathogens. We analyzed the mucus of three different salmonid species to characterize microbiome communities within the mucus in the adult migration. Our findings showed that microbiome communities differ in geographically distinct populations of the coho salmon, and that in our sockeye and steelhead populations, the microbiome may be relatively well-equipped to keep out bacteria from the environment early on in, although it was evident that shifts in the microbiome seemed to be associated with environmental and morphological changes in salmon close to spawning. Additionally, evidence showed that marine derived bacteria are being transported via the fishes mucus. Our findings provide insight into the important physiological mechanisms which influence salmon health and the adaptive capacity to environmental stressors
Petrogenesis of the Columbia River Basalts Crustal Processing and Mantle Source Lithologies
Get PDFThe mid-Miocene Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG), a part of the broader Yellowstone Hotspot province in the northwestern United States, is the best studied continental flood basalt province in the world. Ongoing study of the CRBG nonetheless continues to offer a more thorough understanding of the origin and evolution of flood basalt provinces worldwide. To that end, I focus on the buildup and peak of eruptive activity for the group, which is represented by the Imnaha and Grande Ronde Basalts. These two formations share close physical and geochemical associations, suggesting closely related magma systems or different phases of a shared magma system. I investigate the mantle source lithologies for lavas from the Imnaha, Steens and Picture Gorge Basalts, which contain the most primitive lavas in the CRBG. These lavas exhibit trace element enrichments and depletions, correlated with highly variable Ni contents in olivine phenocrysts, that vary systematically by formation and lava chemical type. The variations are attributed to a range of mantle source lithologies from peridotite to pyroxenite. Individual Imnaha lavas each contain distinct Ni signatures, recorded in olivine, that preserve signals imparted at the source, indicating that the Imnaha magma system existed as a network of largely isolated dikes and sills. I carry out thermodynamic simulations which confirm an earlier hypothesis for the origin of the Grande Ronde Basalt by assimilation and fractional crystallization while imposing additional conditions, particularly wallrock temperatures elevated well above a normal geothermal gradient, and a major role for bulk assimilation (stoping). The conditions fit well within a model of a dike-and-sill network that, after repeated additions of heat and basalt melt, coalesces into an integrated magma system. I estimate the magmatic conditions for the Imanha and early Grande Ronde Basalts as recorded by olivine, pyroxene, and plagioclase using an array of mineral-liquid thermometers, barometers and hygrometers in conjunction with a large geochemical database for the CRBG. Pyroxene-based crystallization pressures are dominantly <4 kbar, suggesting mid- to shallow-crustal storage conditions, consistent with earlier estimates and the thermodynamic simulations. Plagioclase-based estimates suggest Imnaha and Grande Ronde magmas were relatively water poor (<1 wt. %), whereas olivine-based estimates suggest higher water contents, up to 4.72 wt. %. While primitive water rich magmas may have existed deeper in the system, consistency between pyroxene andplagioclase results argue for water-poor magmas during pre-eruptive storage
COVID-19 Pandemic Effects Maternal Substance Use, Distress, and Infant Temperament
Get PDFThe COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented societal changes aimed at containing the spread of the novel disease. These changes were not without consequence, as extant literature demonstrates an increase in psychological distress, higher rates of anxiety and depression, and a decrease in the overall quality of life, resulting from the pandemic and related restrictions. Mothers were not exempt from the detrimental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, experiencing higher rates of substance use since the onset of the pandemic, as well as increased levels of stress and psychological difficulties. Increases in maternal substance use and psychological difficulties have cascading effects on infant socioemotional development, with maternal substance use being linked with temperamental reactivity in infants and internalizing and externalizing problems at age 5. Additionally, maternal internalizing disorders are linked to higher levels of infant negative emotionality, more distress proneness, and emotional dysregulation. This project has two primary aims: (1) compare the pre- and post- COVID-19 substance use rates in pregnant women; and (2) examine the links between substance use, maternal mental health, and infant temperament outcomes in the context of COVID-19 effects. To address the first aim, independent sample t-tests were conducted to compare pre and post COVID-19 substance use rates. If the individual substance use frequency is low, the overall level of risk indicators provided by the ASSIST will be used for comparison across the timepoints. To address the second aim, hierarchical multiple regressions were utilized to examine COVID-19 as a moderator, expected to exacerbate the effects of substance use and maternal internalizing symptoms on infant temperament outcomes. Our independent-samples t-test showed a significantly higher mean total substance use score in the COVID condition, as well as significantly higher scores on alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis consumption. The findings from our moderation analyses revealed that maternal depression significantly interacted with COVID-19 exposure in predicting infant RCO, with a stronger negative impact of depression observed in the COVID-19 group. Follow-up analyses with the RCO subscales were conducted, demonstrating that maternal depression during COVID-19 was specifically linked to lowersoothability, whereas in the pre COVID-19 group, higher depression was marginally associated with greater soothability
Portable 3D-Printed Paper Microfluidic System with a Smartphone Reader for Fast and Reliable Copper Ion Monitoring
Get PDFCopper ions (Cu2+) are the third most essential transition metal ions critical to human health. Rapid detection of Cu2+ in water and biological fluids is of significant importance. In this study, we develop a sensitive multi-channel paper microfluidic device integrated with a 3D-printed smartphone-based colorimetric reader for the rapid detection of Cu2+. A novel rhodamine derivative, 1-(N,N-dichloromethine) amino-4-rhodamine B hydrazine-benzimide (RBCl), exhibiting high selectivity and sensitivity to Cu2+, was synthesized and applied as the detection reagent. The interaction mechanism between RBCl and Cu2+ was investigated, revealing a structural transition from a colorless spirolactam (closed-ring) to an open-ring amide structure, resulting in a pink color upon Cu2+ binding. A multi-channel paper microfluidic device with eight detection zones was fabricated, enabling the simultaneous analysis of eight samples. To enhance portability and quantification, a 3D-printed smartphone colorimetric reader was integrated, providing a rapid and efficient detection platform. The system achieved highly specific Cu2+ detection within 2 min, with a detection limit as low as 1.51 ng/mL, meeting water monitoring standards in most countries. Excellent recoveries were demonstrated in real samples, including tap water, river water, blood serum, and urine diluent. This integrated paper microfluidic system is highly sensitive and specific, offering a promising solution for water quality monitoring and health assessment through its rapid sample-to-answer capability
DATASET: Intertidal Microcosms of Wave-Swept Rocky Shores: Ecological and Physiological Insights From a Uniquely Stressful Environment
No full textDataset to accompany manuscript of the same name submitted to Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Includes measures of body temperature over the anterior-posterior axis of individual intertidal mussels (Mytilus californianus)