A Way Out of No Way: Racial and Ethnic Minority Nursing Students' COVID-19 Experiences.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic presented undergraduate racial and ethnic minority nursing students with unprecedented educational restrictions as their communities were also affected disproportionately by COVID-19. This study explored the lived experiences of racial and ethnic minority nursing students in the southeastern United States during the pandemic. METHOD: Semistructured interviews using a qualitative framework and methodology of post-intentional phenomenology were conducted with one Muslim, one multiracial, and three Black nursing student participants. Data were analyzed in an iterative process using poststructural concepts of lines, rhizomes, and space. RESULTS: Students experienced abrupt challenging changes and isolation with the onset of pandemic restrictions. Barriers created by the pandemic and by routine educational experiences were met by creating alternate pathways to maintain forward progress. CONCLUSION: Undergraduate racial and ethnic minority nursing students experienced pandemic restrictions within a larger context of their lived experiences. Nurse educators can use these experiences to create better relationships between these students and nursing education. [J Nurs Educ. 2022;61(8):483-487.].

Impostor Phenomenon in Undergraduate Nursing Students: A Pilot Study of Prevalence and Patterns.

BACKGROUND: Impostor phenomenon (IP) is an experience of doubt in personal ability and a sense that achievements are fraudulent, resulting in increased psychological distress. This pilot study explored the prevalence and pattern of IP in baccalaureate nursing students related to gender, level in program, and racial identity. METHOD: A convenience sample of prelicensure baccalaureate nursing students (n = 150) was surveyed using the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS). RESULTS: The mean CIPS score was 60.13 (range, 26-92). Patterns observed across gender, level in program, or racial identity did not differ significantly. However, frequent to intense feelings of impostorism were reported by 48.7% of students, and 92% reported at least moderate IP characteristics. CONCLUSION: Many students in this study reported IP experiences, indicating risk for negative effects such as anxiety and lack of confidence. Further study in this population and specifically among minority nursing students is needed. [J Nurs Educ. 2021;60(6):329-332.].

The ALPK1/TIFA/NF-κB axis links a bacterial carcinogen to R-loop-induced replication stress.

Exposure of gastric epithelial cells to the bacterial carcinogen Helicobacter pylori causes DNA double strand breaks. Here, we show that H. pylori-induced DNA damage occurs co-transcriptionally in S-phase cells that activate NF-κB signaling upon innate immune recognition of the lipopolysaccharide biosynthetic intermediate ß-ADP-heptose by the ALPK1/TIFA signaling pathway. DNA damage depends on the bi-functional RfaE enzyme and the Cag pathogenicity island of H. pylori, is accompanied by replication fork stalling and can be observed also in primary cells derived from gastric organoids. Importantly, H. pylori-induced replication stress and DNA damage depend on the presence of co-transcriptional RNA/DNA hybrids (R-loops) that form in infected cells during S-phase as a consequence of ß-ADP-heptose/ ALPK1/TIFA/NF-κB signaling. H. pylori resides in close proximity to S-phase cells in the gastric mucosa of gastritis patients. Taken together, our results link bacterial infection and NF-κB-driven innate immune responses to R-loop-dependent replication stress and DNA damage.

Optimizing capacity utilization by large scale 3000 L perfusion in seed train bioreactors.

Increasing capacity utilization and lowering manufacturing costs are critical for pharmaceutical companies to improve their competitiveness in a challenging environment. Development of next generation cell lines, improved media formulations, application of mature technologies and innovative operational strategies have been deployed to improve yields and capacity utilization. This article describes a large-scale perfusion strategy for the N-1 seed train bioreactor that was successfully applied to achieve higher inoculation cell densities in the production culture. The N-1 perfusion at 3,000-L scale, utilizing a inclined settler, achieved cell densities of up to 158 × 10(5) cell mL(-1) at perfusion rates of 2950 L day(-1) and a retention efficiency of >85%. This approach increased inoculation cell densities and decreased cultivation times by ~20% in a CHO-based, fed-batch antibody manufacturing process while providing comparable culture performance, productivity, and product quality. The strategy therefore yielded significant increase in capacity utilization and concomitant cost improvement in a large scale cGMP facility. Details of the strategy, the cell retention device, and the cell culture performance are described in this article.