There remains a clear deficiency in recruiting middle school students in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine fields, especially for those students entering physiology from ...underrepresented backgrounds. A large part of this may be arising from a disconnect between how science is typically practiced at a collegiate and K-12 level. Here, we have envisioned mitochondria and their diverse subcellular structures as an involver for middle school students. We present the framework for a workshop that familiarizes students with mitochondria, employing three-dimensional visual-spatial learning and real-time critical thinking and hypothesis forming. This workshop had the goal of familiarizing middle school students with the unique challenges the field currently faces and better understanding the actuality of being a scientist through critical analysis including hypothesis forming. Findings show that middle school students responded positively to the program and felt as though they had a better understanding of mitochondria. Future implications for hands-on programs to involve underrepresented students in science are discussed, as well as potential considerations to adapt it for high school and undergraduate students.
Here we employ a workshop that utilizes blended and tactile learning to teach middle schoolers about mitochondrial structure. By creating an approachable and fun workshop that can be utilized for middle school students, we seek to encourage them to join a career in physiology.
Identity matters in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) because it can affect an individual's long-term sense of belonging, which may in turn affect their persistence ...in STEMM. Early K-12 science classes often teach students about the foundational discoveries of the field, which have been predominately made, or at least published, by White men. This homogeneity can leave underrepresented individuals in STEMM feeling isolated, and underrepresented K-12 students may feel as though they cannot enter STEMM fields. This study aimed to examine these feelings of inclusivity in STEMM through an interactive workshop that asked middle schoolers to identify scientists from images of individuals with various racial and gender identities. We found that a plurality of students had a positive experience discussing diversity in science and recognizing underrepresented individuals as scientists.
We observed positive sentiments from middle school students following a workshop that showcased diversity in science. This workshop uniquely encourages students to recognize that physiologists and scientists today are much more diverse than textbooks typically demonstrate and can be adapted for middle schoolers, high schoolers, and college students.
Abstract
Despite efforts to increase diversity, a glaring underrepresentation of minorities (URM) persists in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Graduate school ...can be a stressful step in the STEM pipeline, especially for students previously unaware of the structure and challenges of postgraduate education. To promote successful minority participation in STEM and prepare prospective students for the impending challenges of applying for and attending graduate school, we developed a workshop based on the mentoring and fostering of a champion-oriented mindset entitled, “The Trials and Tribulations of Graduate School: How Do You Make an Impact?.” Students from the HBCU Winston-Salem State University attended the workshop, and a pre/post—a 10-point Likert scale-based survey was administered. The questions used in this seminar were newly designed by the authors as program evaluations. The results suggest that the workshop was well-received by the students and provided information that they considered helpful to help navigate the graduate school process.
This piece utilized a mixed study approach, which summarizes the workshop and informs institutions and key leaders on how to promote underrepresented minority (URM) participation in STEM and prepare these students for the challenges presented in graduate school.
The mechanisms that can restore biological activity of mutant p53 are an area of high interest given that mutant p53 expression is observed in one third of prostate cancer. Here we demonstrate that ...Id4, an HLH transcriptional regulator and a tumor suppressor, can restore the mutant p53 transcriptional activity in prostate cancer cells.
Id4 was over-expressed in prostate cancer cell line DU145 harboring mutant p53 (P223L and V274F) and silenced in LNCaP cells with wild type p53. The cells were used to quantitate apoptosis, p53 localization, p53 DNA binding and transcriptional activity. Immuno-precipitation/-blot studies were performed to demonstrate interactions between Id4, p53 and CBP/p300 and acetylation of specific lysine residues within p53.
Ectopic expression of Id4 in DU145 cells resulted in increased apoptosis and expression of BAX, PUMA and p21, the transcriptional targets of p53. Mutant p53 gained DNA binding and transcriptional activity in the presence of Id4 in DU145 cells. Conversely, loss of Id4 in LNCaP cells abrogated wild type p53 DNA binding and transactivation potential. Gain of Id4 resulted in increased acetylation of mutant p53 whereas loss of Id4 lead to decreased acetylation in DU145 and LNCaP cells respectively. Id4 dependent acetylation of p53 was in part due to a physical interaction between Id4, p53 and acetyl-transferase CBP/p300.
Taken together, our results suggest that Id4 regulates the activity of wild type and mutant p53. Id4 promoted the assembly of a macromolecular complex involving CBP/P300 that resulted in acetylation of p53 at K373, a critical post-translational modification required for its biological activity.
Underrepresented faculty have higher burnout rates and lower grant attainment rates when compared with their non-minority counterparts. Many in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and ...medicine (STEMM) disciplines, including underrepresented individuals, often have difficulty dedicating time to the writing process, with trainees often being relegated to laboratory tasks in their training years, resulting in a lack of practice in academic writing. Notably, past studies have shown that grant attainment rates of underrepresented individuals are lower than their majority counterparts. Here, we sought to consider a mechanism targeted to underrepresented individuals, although applicable to everyone, to help overcome traditional barriers to writing in STEMM. The authors have hosted a writing accountability group (WAG) that uniquely provides a format focused on physical activity and different forms of writing to strengthen both career development and award/funding attainment. Our objectives were to evaluate this unique format, thus creating a resource for individuals and institutions to learn about WAGs and expand upon the framework to formulate their own WAG. To do this, we performed a small pilot study (n = 21) to investigate attitudes towards the WAG. We present the results of a survey conducted among underrepresented WAG participants, which spanned different career stages and was highly diverse demographically. Our results show that following attendance of our WAG, individuals did not note a significant change in scales pertaining to John Henryism (high-effort coping), resilience, sense of belonging, or grit. However, significant increases were noted in the self-perceived ability to handle stress, confidence in applying for awards, appreciation for mentoring, and satisfaction of WAGs. Taken together, the results of this study suggest that our unique WAG format can have some positive results as a career and writing development opportunity and may be able to support underrepresented individuals in attaining funding at higher education institutions.
Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC) programs are aimed to increase diversity in science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine (STEMM) fields. However, limited programs and eligibility ...requirements limit the students who may apply to similar programs. At Winston-Salem State University, we piloted a series of workshops, collectively termed Project Strengthen, to emulate some of the key aspects of MARC programs. Following the workshop, Project Strengthen students showed a significant increase in their understanding of essential educational development skills, such as writing personal statements, applying to graduate school, studying for the GRE, and seeking summer internships. This suggests Project Strengthen may be a potential lower cost comparable option than MARC to make up for current deficiencies in preparedness for graduate school. We also provide educational materials from Project Strengthen, including a clear framework for this seminar series, six ready-made PowerPoints to share with trainees that have been demonstrated to be effective.
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•Project Strengthen improves minority graduate school preparedness at a low cost•Project Strengthen is similar to the Maximizing Access to Research Careers program•Need for other low-cost programs to increase minority student retention•All workshops included in Project Strengthen are available for future use here
Social sciences; Education
The RNA Exosome and Human Disease Fasken, Milo B; Morton, Derrick J; Kuiper, Emily G ...
Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.),
2020, Letnik:
2062
Journal Article
The evolutionarily conserved RNA exosome is a multisubunit ribonuclease complex that processes and/or degrades numerous RNAs. Recently, mutations in genes encoding both structural and catalytic ...subunits of the RNA exosome have been linked to human disease. Mutations in the structural exosome gene EXOSC2 cause a distinct syndrome that includes retinitis pigmentosa, hearing loss, and mild intellectual disability. In contrast, mutations in the structural exosome genes EXOSC3 and EXOSC8 cause pontocerebellar hypoplasia type 1b (PCH1b) and type 1c (PCH1c), respectively, which are related autosomal recessive, neurodegenerative diseases. In addition, mutations in the structural exosome gene EXOSC9 cause a PCH-like disease with cerebellar atrophy and spinal motor neuronopathy. Finally, mutations in the catalytic exosome gene DIS3 have been linked to multiple myeloma, a neoplasm of plasma B cells. How mutations in these RNA exosome genes lead to distinct, tissue-specific diseases is not currently well understood. In this chapter, we examine the role of the RNA exosome complex in human disease and discuss the mechanisms by which mutations in different exosome subunit genes could impair RNA exosome function and give rise to diverse diseases.
Castration‐resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) is the emergence of prostate cancer cells that have adapted to the androgen‐depleted environment of the prostate. In recent years, targeting multiple ...chaperones and co‐chaperones (e.g., Hsp27, FKBP52) that promote androgen receptor (AR) signaling and/or novel AR regulatory mechanisms have emerged as promising alternative treatments for CRPC. We have shown that inactivation of inhibitor of differentiation 4 (ID4), a dominant‐negative helix loop helix protein, promotes de novo steroidogenesis and CRPC with a gene expression signature that resembles constitutive AR activity in castrated mice. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanism through which loss of ID4 potentiates AR signaling. Proteomic analysis between prostate cancer cell line LNCaP (L+ns) and LNCaP lacking ID4 (L(−)ID4) revealed elevated levels of Hsp27 and FKBP52, suggesting a role for these AR‐associated co‐chaperones in promoting constitutively active AR signaling in L(−)ID4 cells. Interestingly, protein interaction studies demonstrated a direct interaction between ID4 and the 52‐kDa FK506‐binding protein (FKBP52) in vitro, but not with AR. An increase in FKBP52‐dependent AR transcriptional activity was observed in L(−)ID4 cells. Moreover, pharmacological inhibition of FKBP52‐AR signaling, by treatment with MJC13, attenuated the tumor growth, weight, and volume in L(−)ID4 xenografts. Together, our results demonstrate that ID4 selectively regulates AR activity through direct interaction with FKBP52, and its loss, promotes CRPC through FKBP52‐mediated AR signaling.
Androgen receptor (AR) signaling plays a critical role in the progression of prostate cancer. Here, we demonstrate that loss of ID4, an important tumor suppressor that is epigenetically silenced in prostate cancer, promotes castration‐resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) by potentiating FKBP52‐AR signaling. Thus, targeting FKBP52–AR interaction with small‐molecule inhibitor MJC13 blocks tumor growth in an in vivo CRPC model.
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