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Abstract Background Splenectomy is associated with increased risk for bacteremia, due to impaired clearance of bloodborne agents and to altered phagocytosis and humoral immunity. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients at risk for splenectomy for a 13-year period to determine immunization coverage, and outcomes of those with and without splenectomy, and with or without receipt of influenza or pneumococcal vaccine. Methods Data were extracted from the provincial Medical Services Insurance database for insured services rendered by a physician for 1990-2002, and from the Vital Statistics Death database. The eligible cohort was selected based on diagnostic codes for hematologic conditions for which splenectomy might be considered, such as immune thrombocytopenia. Each patient was followed longitudinally from the date of first diagnosis until 31Dec2002, or death, or relocation out-of province. In addition, persons with splenectomy and no hematologic condition were identified and followed for 6 months post-surgery. Infectious illness rates per 100 person-years of observation and death rates were calculated with and without splenectomy. Death rates were determined using splenectomy status as a time-dependent covariate. The relationship between splenectomy and death according to immunization status was examined using Cox proportional hazard ratios. Results Of 38,812 persons in the cohort 427 subjects with a hematologic diagnosis had splenectomy and another 452 subjects without a hematologic diagnosis had this surgery. 72% were > 18 years of age. Pneumococcal immunization was recorded in 16.5% of asplenic patients overall, and was not associated with reduced risk of death in these persons (adjusted Hazard Ratio [HR] = 1.07, 95% CI 0.70 - 1.65). Influenza immunization was recorded in 53.1% of asplenic patients overall, and was associated with reduced risk of death (adjusted HR = 0.46, 0.33-0.62). No pneumococcal or influenza immunization was recorded in patients with a hematologic diagnosis without splenectomy. Infectious illness visits were higher among all patients who had a splenectomy than among those without a splenectomy (151 visits/100 person-years of observation in the post-splenectomy period vs. 120 visits/100 person-years; p < 0.0001). Conclusions In asplenic patients, influenza immunization is associated with a 54% reduced risk of death compared to unimmunized asplenic persons; no reduction in risk was demonstrated with (polysaccharide) pneumococcal vaccine. Vaccine coverage in the entire cohort was less than routinely recommended. Improved delivery of infection prevention programs to this population is warranted. Conjugate pneumococcal vaccines should be urgently studied in this immunocompromised population.

Agricultural mechanics instruction includes a broad array of machinery, structures, and technical systems, as well as a diverse workforce. Virtually every aspect of agriculture has a mechanics component and a large portion of secondary agriscience curriculum is devoted specifically to teaching agricultural mechanics. Further, the agricultural mechanics laboratory provides students with an opportunity to learn through authentic learning scenarios. The purpose of this research is to investigate Missouri high school agricultural mechanics students' safety knowledge and safety attitudes. Researchers identified an increase in female students enrolling in agricultural mechanics coursework. This study also concludes students perceive they receive minimal training, access, and/or use of hearing and air quality PPE. It was concluded the factors of age, gender, semesters of agricultural mechanics courses, and agricultural education district have limited ability to explain differences in in student's PPE knowledge or PPE comfort. Moreover, researchers identified implications of changing demographics on PPE design and usability, both in the laboratory and the workplace. Future research should be conducted regarding PPE design, transfer of perceptions, and what PPE is needed by both teachers and students.

Agricultural mechanics is a top career choice among secondary students enrolled in agricultural programs. Secondary agricultural mechanics teachers provide hands-on skill instruction with shielded metal arc welders, oxyfuel torches, and various hand tools in their agricultural mechanics laboratories. Preservice agriculture teachers have reported lack of preparation to adequately teach in this potentially dangerous environment. This qualitative case study explored the concerns of preservice teachers about teaching secondary students in the agricultural mechanics laboratory and how those concerns evolved over time. Researchers used a constructivist epistemology and open coding to identify and explore emergent themes. Three themes emerged from the data: 1) issues of trust and control in supervising laboratory students manifest themselves as a professional threat, 2) mechanics skill and supervisory skill development coincided with a change in focus toward student safety and learning, and 3) the agricultural mechanics laboratory provides unique instructional challenges and opportunities. Although each preservice teacher differed in their development, the authors identified persistent issues with agricultural mechanics skill knowledge and student trust.

The attrition rate for novice teachers can range between 20%-50% in the first five years. This problem has concerned researchers in school-based agricultural education because of the shortage of agriculture teachers and high demands of the job. Researchers narrowed down the reasons why teachers leave the profession including the role of self-efficacy. While self-efficacy of novice teachers in the classroom has been researched, general self-efficacy of novice teachers has not been examined. We investigated the influence of moving into a new community and adjusting to the new culture and social connections of the new community on the teacher's self-efficacy. The purpose was to determine if culture shock and social connectedness explained general self-efficacy of novice agriculture teachers. It was concluded that the construct of core beliefs and how people react internally to their community within the culture shock theory significantly explained a proportion of the variance in general self-efficacy. The findings implied that the culture distance experienced by a novice teacher in a new community could affect their general well-being and ability to accomplish their goals.

A high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS/MS) approach to the characterization of dialkyl tertiary amineN-oxides is presented. The methodology is based upon forming reconstructed ion current chromatograms (RICCs) of m/z values of product ions known to form through diagnostic losses from dialkyl tertiary amine-N-oxides. The diagnostic losses of N, N-dimethylhydroxylamine and N, N-diethylhydroxylamine were identified through the analysis of a structurally diverse library of compounds by ESI-low-energy collision-induced dissociation (CID)-MS/MS using quadrupole ion trap-mass spectrometry (QIT-MS) and quadrapole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (QqTOF-MS). The library consisted of dialkyl tertiary amine-containing commercially available pharmaceuticals, along with a number of model, synthetic N-oxides. The loss of the nitrogen-containing group was observed in 89% of the low-energy CID product ion spectra acquired using various collision energies. Further, the resultant product ions, formed through the loss of the nitrogen-containing group, were shown to be unstable because of the observation of second-generation dissociation. These observations regarding gas-phase ion chemistry could be useful to developers of in silico programs for fragmentation prediction by allowing the creation of improved algorithms and models for predicting dissociation. Using the information derived from the library analysis, the characterization methodology was developed and demonstrated using tetracaine. The approach is rapid, MS/MS platform independent, utilizes existing technology, and could be automated. Further, it is definitive and overcomes the limitations of other tools for N-oxide identification by localizing the site of oxidation. Thus, it provides a useful addition to the existing approaches for metabolite identification. 10.1021/ac902540b

Research has been conducted on the 2-hydroxy-6-keto-nona-2,4-diene 1,9-dioic acid 5,6-hydrolase from Escherichia coli. The catalytic mechanism of the enzyme has been examined.