Social science stereotypes of the Mexican American woman: policy implications for research.

PIP: Reviewing the social science literature on the Chicana or Mexican American woman reveals a tenaciously perpetuated stereotype in which she appears almost exclusively as a submissive maternal figure. This may be related to an on-going trend to support studies of interpersonal or cultural characteristics of Chicanas and a resistance to undertake evaluations of systemic discrimination against Mexican American women. Almost all such studies investigated lower class samples, thus confounding ethnicity with socioeconomic status. The size and selection of many of the samples are questionable for purposes of generalizing to the entire population. Because many concepts are not defined in behavioral terms, they are seldom assessed empirically. The main concern is to what extent social scientists and the media are dictating norms to the Chicano family and to what extent are social planners and educators being influenced by these images. Examples from 3 distinct areas of research conclude with interpretations of Mexican American women that differ considerably from those with a heavy emphasis on cultural values: 1) demographic analyses of the 1970 Public Use Samples of the census that acknowledge the disadvantaged economic position of Mexican Americans; 2) studies that are beginning to measure empirically the family dynamics of Mexican Americans; and 3) family planning studies that attempt to examine the interaction between health care delivery systems and Mexican American contraceptive behavior. Trained and experienced Chicana researchers are needed to offset the male orientation and ethnocentrism that have characterized the social sciences.^ieng

Desempenho e características de carcaças de cordeiros suplementados com diferentes níveis de resíduo de biodiesel / Performance and characteristics of lamb carcass supplemented with differents levels of biodiesel residues

Estudou-se a suplementação de dietas de cordeiros confinados com resíduo de biodiesel, utilizando-se 25 ovinos, SRD, machos, castrados, com média de peso de 20kg. O delineamento experimental foi de blocos ao acaso, com cinco repetições por tratamento e esquema de parcelas subdivididas para os dados de biometria. O experimento teve a duração de 70 dias. As dietas eram compostas de 34% de volumoso e 61% de concentrado, à base de milho, soja, minerais e 5% de óleo de dendê ou resíduo de biodiesel, em percentagens crescentes - zero, 25, 50, 75 e 100%. Os animais foram abatidos ao final do experimento para avaliação da carcaça. Foram observados efeitos significativos (P<0,05) de percentagem de inclusão do resíduo, para as variáveis de desempenho e biometria demonstrados nos efeitos lineares crescentes das equações de regressão, assim como para peso da carcaça quente (PCQ) -, com médias de 14; 15,92; 16,14; 16,42 e 18,02% - e peso da carcaça fria (PCF) -, com médias de 13,12; 14,78; 15,06; 15,70 e 17,25% -, para dietas com, respectivamente, 0, 25, 50, 100% de resíduo de biodiesel de dendê. A utilização de resíduo de biodiesel de dendê na alimentação de cordeiros em crescimento é alternativa para aumentar a densidade energética de suas dietas.

Diet supplementation with biodiesel residues of confined lambs, utilizing 25 sheep, without definite breed pattern (WDB), male, castrated, with average weight of 20kg was studied. The experimental design was random blocks, with 5 repetitions per treatment and a split plot scheme toward biometrics data. The experiment lasted 70 days. The diets were composed of 34% of roughage and 61% of concentrate, based on corn, soy, mineral and 5% of oil palm kernel or biodiesel residues, in increasing percentages - zero, 25, 50, 75 and 100%. The animals were slaughtered at the end of the experiment for carcass evaluation. Significant effects (P<0.05) of percentage inclusion of residues were observed for the performance and biometrics variables demonstrated in the crescent linear effect of the regression equations, as well as for the hot carcass weight (HCW) - with an average of 14; 15.92; 16.14; 16.42 and 18.02%; and the cold carcass weight (CCW) - with an average of 13.12; 14.78; 15.06; 15.70 and 17.25% for diets, respectively, containing 0, 25, 50, 75, 100% of palm kernel biodiesel residues. The palm kernel biodiesel residue utilization in feeding growing lambs is an alternative to increase the energetic density in their diets.

The ethical dimensions of cultural competence in border health care settings.

Through thematic stories of patient and provider interactions on the U.S.-Mexico border, this article challenges the commonly understood definition of culture. It explores areas of concern related to cultural competency and medical ethics. Stories outline issues related to communication and comprehension, use of interpreters, gender and sexual orientation, traditional health care practices, socioeconomic status, age, health care settings, and involvement of community representatives. Policy recommendations address language, continuity of care, and health care professions education.

Inhibition of the TEF/TEAD transcription factor activity by nuclear calcium and distinct kinase pathways.

Transcription enhancer factor (TEF/TEAD) is a family of four transcription factors that share a common TEA-DNA binding domain and are involved in similar cellular functions, such as cell differentiation and proliferation. All adult tissues express at least one of the four TEAD genes, so this family of transcription factors may be of widespread importance, yet little is known about their regulation. Here we examine the factors that regulate TEAD activity in CHO cells. RT-PCR indicated the presence of TEAD-1, TEAD-3, and both isoforms of TEAD-4, but not TEAD-2. Quantitative measurements showed that TEAD-4 is most abundant, followed by TEAD-3, then TEAD-1. We examined the relative effects of nuclear and cytosolic Ca(2+) on TEAD activity, since TEAD proteins are localized to the nucleus and since free Ca(2+) within the nucleus selectively regulates transcription in some systems. Chelation of nuclear but not cytosolic Ca(2+) increased TEAD activity two times above control. Inhibition of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) also increased TEAD activity, while cAMP decreased TEAD activity, and protein kinase C had no effect. Together, these results show that nuclear Ca(2+), MAPK, and cAMP each negatively regulate the activity of the TEAD transcription factor.