Physiological Concepts Research Articles

Correlational Literature Review On Urvi and Bahavi Marma with Special Reference to Urvi Avedhya Sira

Ayurveda's physiological and anatomical concepts are among the unique features of Ayurveda therapeutics. The concepts of Sharira, such as Sira (Vein), Snayu (Ligaments), Srotas (Channels), Peshi (Muscles), Marma (Vital points), etc., and their relation with Sharira Dosha, can help in understanding pathophysiology given Ayurveda. While studying these, it is essential to understand their exact structure and location. Marma's are the vital spots in the human body means any injury to that point can lead to symptoms like pain, blood loss, deformity, and death. Concepts like Marma and Sira Sharir are very important and have many contributions while treating patients. Hence, knowing this particular part's exact structure and location is essential in treating related diseases. So, this review study aims to determine the exact structure of Urvi and Bahavi Marma w.s.r Urvi Sira. The objectives of this study are to determine the exact location and structure and to evaluate the correlation between Urvi and Bahavi Marma w.s.r Urvi Sira with the help of all available relevant literature from Ayurvedic Samhita, modern science, and journals.

Re-creating an introductory physiology unit in the Core Concepts form - helping students to think like a physiologist.

This article showcases the redesign of an introductory undergraduate vertebrate physiology unit at Murdoch University (BMS107) to promote student mastery of six Core Concepts of Physiology (1). Concepts were selected for their suitability in an introductory physiology unit and their ability to scaffold advanced physiology learning. Innovative curricular and pedagogical approaches were employed to 1) create a Core Concepts structure, 2) sell the Core Concepts approach to students, 3) foreground Core Concepts in learning materials, 4) actively engage students with Core Concepts, 5) revise and 6) assess Core Concepts understanding.Median student marks and overall satisfaction with the unit were unaffected by introduction of a Core Concepts approach. Notably, though, there was a 14% increase in student agreement with the statement "I received feedback that helped me to learn". The challenge of Core Concepts approach was articulated by students, but these novice learners also recognized Core Concepts as a mechanism to focus their understanding of physiology and promote critical thinking. For teaching staff, a Core Concepts approach was a re-invigorating opportunity to apply their expertise to the teaching of introductory physiology. We propose that a strong Core Concepts emphasis, while challenging, is highly rewarding for staff and provides students with a "disciplinary passport", that better prepares them to progress in diverse courses and professions.

Unpacking and validating the "cell membrane" core concept of physiology by an Australian team.

A task force of physiology educators from 25 Australian universities generated an Australia-wide consensus on seven core concepts for physiology curricula. One adopted core concept was "cell membrane," defined as "Cell membranes determine what substances enter or leave the cell and its organelles. They are essential for cell signaling, transport, and other cellular functions." This concept was unpacked by a team of 3 Australian physiology educators into 4 themes and 33 subthemes arranged in a hierarchical structure up to 5 levels deep. The four themes related to defining the cell membrane, cell membrane structure, transport across cell membranes, and cell membrane potentials. Subsequently, 22 physiology educators with a broad range of teaching experience reviewed and assessed the 37 themes and subthemes for importance for students to understand and the level of difficulty for students on a 5-point Likert scale. The majority (28) of items evaluated were rated as either Essential or Important. Theme 2: cell membrane structure was rated as less important than the other three themes. Theme 4: membrane potential was rated most difficult, while theme 1: defining cell membranes was rated as the easiest. The importance of cell membranes as a key aspect of biomedical education received strong support from Australian educators. The unpacking of the themes and subthemes within the cell membrane core concept provides guidance in the development of curricula and should facilitate better identification of the more challenging aspects within this core concept and help inform the time and resources required to support student learning.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The "cell membrane" core concept was unpacked by a team of Australian physiology educators into a conceptual framework to provide guidance for students and educators. Key themes in the cell membrane core concept were cell membrane definition and structure, transport across cell membranes, and membrane potentials. Australian educators reviewing the framework identified cell membrane as an essential yet relatively simple core concept, suggesting that this is well-placed in foundational physiology courses across a diverse range of degrees.

Effects of Reflective Insrtuctional Strategy on Students’ Performance in Cell Physiology Concepts among Senoir Secondary Schools in Zaria

The study investigated Effect of Reflective Instructional Strategy on students’ performance in Cell-Physiology Concepts among Senior Secondary Students in Zaria. Quasi-experimental pretest, post test control group design. The population comprised of one thousand two hundred and twenty five Biology SS11 students from 11 public Senior Secondary Schools in Zaria metropolis. A sample of 137 students from two schools was randomly selected. The study involves two groups- experimental and a control group. The experimental group was taught Cell Physiology using Reflective Instructional Strategy while the control group was exposed to the same concept using Conventional Method. One instrument was used for data collection Namely Cell-Physiology Performance Test. The instrument was duly validated and have reliability coefficient of 0.87, using Pearson Product Moment Correlation statistic. Two research questions and two null hypotheses were formulated and answered using Mean and Standard deviation statistics and Independent Samples t-test at alpha 0.05 level of significance. The major findings reveals a significant difference between mean academic performance scores in favor of the experimental group. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others, that workshops, seminars and conferences should be organised for Biology teachers on the use of Reflective Instructional among secondary schools in Zaria metropolis.

New Strategies Show Promise for Concussion

New Strategies Show Promise for Concussion

What a Difference in Pressure Makes! A Framework Describing Undergraduate Students' Reasoning about Bulk Flow Down Pressure Gradients.

Pressure gradients serve as the key driving force for the bulk flow of fluids in biology (e.g., blood, air, phloem sap). However, students often struggle to understand the mechanism that causes these fluids to flow. To investigate student reasoning about bulk flow, we collected students' written responses to assessment items and interviewed students about their bulk flow ideas. From these data, we constructed a bulk flow pressure gradient reasoning framework that describes the different patterns in reasoning that students express about what causes fluids to flow and ordered those patterns into sequential levels from more informal ways of reasoning to more scientific, mechanistic ways of reasoning. We obtained validity evidence for this bulk flow pressure gradient reasoning framework by collecting and analyzing written responses from a national sample of undergraduate biology and allied health majors from 11 courses at five institutions. Instructors can use the bulk flow pressure gradient reasoning framework and assessment items to inform their instruction of this topic and formatively assess their students' progress toward more scientific, mechanistic ways of reasoning about this important physiological concept.

Pathophysiology and treatment of adults with arrhythmias in the emergency department, part 1: Atrial arrhythmias.

This article, the first in a 2-part review, aims to reinforce current literature on the pathophysiology of cardiac arrhythmias and various evidence-based treatment approaches and clinical considerations in the acute care setting. Part 1 of this series focuses on atrial arrhythmias. Arrhythmias are prevalent throughout the world and a common presenting condition in the emergency department (ED) setting. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia worldwide and expected to increase in prevalence. Treatment approaches have evolved over time with advances in catheter-directed ablation. Based on historic trials, heart rate control has been the long-standing accepted outpatient treatment modality for AF, but the use of antiarrhythmics is often still indicated for AF in the acute setting, and ED pharmacists should be prepared and poised to help in AF management. Other atrial arrhythmias include atrial flutter (AFL), atrioventricular nodal reentry tachycardia (AVNRT), and atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (AVRT), which warrant distinction due to their unique pathophysiology and because each requires a different approach to utilization of antiarrhythmics. Atrial arrhythmias are typically associated with greater hemodynamic stability than ventricular arrhythmias but still require nuanced management according to patient subset and risk factors. Since antiarrhythmics can also be proarrhythmic, they may destabilize the patient due to adverse effects, many of which are the focus of black-box label warnings that can be overreaching and limit treatment options. Electrical cardioversion for atrial arrhythmias is generally successful and, depending on the setting and/or hemodynamics, often indicated. Atrial arrhythmias arise from a variety of mechanisms, and appropriate treatment depends on various factors. A firm understanding of physiological and pharmacological concepts serves as a foundation for exploring evidence supporting agents, indications, and adverse effects in order to provide appropriate care for patients.

Foundations in physiology: an introductory course using the core concepts.

As one element of an extensive revision to program curriculum, the Integrative Physiology and Health Science Department at a small, private, liberal arts institution developed a novel introductory course for the major, focusing specifically on the "core concepts" of physiology. Intended to provide the initial step in explicit scaffolding for student success and, ultimately, transfer of knowledge across the curriculum, development and assessment of the first offering of the course were completed. In the fall of 2021, IPH 131: Foundations in Physiology was launched. The specific core concepts covered were as follows: causality, scientific reasoning, physics/chemistry, structure-function, homeostasis, flow-down gradients, cell membrane, energy, cell-cell communication, and interdependence/integration. To assess student learning, the Phys-MAPS (Measuring Achievement and Progress in Science for Physiology) assessment tool was administered to students during the first week of class and again in the final week of the semester. Average scores revealed significant learning gains by the end of the semester (0.497 ± 0.058 vs. 0.538 ± 0.108 correct as a proportion of the total number of questions, P = 0.0096). While a modest gain in learning outcomes, these data provide early evidence that a course specifically addressing the core concepts of physiology can be an appropriate introduction to the physiology curriculum.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This article will detail the development and implementation of an introductory course using the "core concepts." Specifics of course design, assessment, and challenges encountered will be presented for those interested in this approach.

Unpacking and validating the 'Integration' Core Concept of Physiology by an Australian team.

Consensus was reached on seven core concepts of physiology using the Delphi method, including 'Integration' outlined by the descriptor, 'Cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems interact to create and sustain life' This Core Concept was unpacked by a team of three Australian physiology educators into hierarchical levels, identifying five themes and ten sub-themes, up to one level deep. The unpacked core concept was then circulated amongst twenty-five experienced physiology educators for comments and to rate both level of importance and level of difficulty for each theme and sub-theme. Data were analysed using a one-way ANOVA to compare between and within themes. The main theme 'The body is organised within a hierarchy of structures, from atoms to molecules, cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems' almost universally rated as 'Essential' Interestingly, the main theme, also rated between 'Slightly Difficult' to 'Not Difficult', which was significantly different from all other sub-themes. There were two separate subsets of themes in relation to importance, with three themes rating between 'Essential' and 'Important', and the two other themes rating as 'Important'. Two subsets in difficulty of the main themes were also identified. While many core concepts can be taught concurrently, Integration requires application of prior knowledge, with expectation that learners should be able to apply concepts from cell-cell communication, homeostasis and structure and function, prior to understanding the overall Integration core concept. As such, themes from the Integration core concept should be taught within the endmost semesters of a Physiology program.

Unpacking the "movement of substances" core concept of physiology by an Australian team.

Australia-wide consensus was reached on seven core concepts of physiology. The "movement of substances" core concept with the descriptor "the movement of substances (ions or molecules) is a fundamental process that occurs at all levels of organization in the organism" was unpacked by a team of three Australian physiology educators from the Delphi Task Force into hierarchical levels. There were 10 themes and 23 subthemes arranged in a hierarchy, some 3 levels deep. Using a 5-point Likert scale, the unpacked core concept was then rated for level of importance for students to understand (ranging from 1 = Essential to 5 = Not Important) and level of difficulty for students (ranging from 1 = Very Difficult to 5 = Not Difficult) by the 23 physiology educators from different Australian universities, all with a broad range of teaching and curriculum experience. Survey data were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA to compare between and within concept themes. The main themes all were rated on average as important. There was a wide range of difficulty ratings and more variation for this concept compared with the other core concepts. This may in part be due to the physical forces such as gravity, electrochemistry, resistance, and thermodynamics that underpin this concept, which in themselves are inherently complex. Separation of concepts into subthemes can help prioritize learning activities and time spent on difficult concepts. Embedding of core concepts across curricula will allow commonality and consistency between programs of study and inform learning outcomes, assessment, and teaching and learning activities.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This article unpacks the core concept of the "movement of substances" within the body, with the aim to produce a resource that will help guide the teaching of physiology at tertiary education institutes in Australia. The concept introduces fundamental knowledge of the factors that drive substance movement and then applies them in physiological contexts.

The Complexities of Mechanical Ventilation: Toppling the Tower of Babel.

The exponential increase in the complexity of ventilator technology has created a growing knowledge gap that hinders education, research, and ultimately the quality of patient care. This gap is best addressed with a standardized approach to educating clinicians, just as education for basic and advanced life support classes is standardized. We have developed such a program, called Standardized Education for Ventilatory Assistance (SEVA), based on a formal taxonomy for modes of mechanical ventilation. The SEVA program is a progressive system of 6 sequential courses starting from an assumption of no prior knowledge and proceeding to full mastery of advanced techniques. The vision of the program is to provide a unique platform for standardizing training by unifying the concepts of physics, physiology, and technology of mechanical ventilation. The mission is to use both online and in-person simulation-based instruction that has both self-directed and instructor-led components to elevate the skills of health care providers to the mastery level. The first 3 levels of SEVA are free and open to the public. We are developing mechanisms to offer the other levels. Spinoffs of the SEVA program include a free smartphone app that classifies virtually all modes on all ventilators used in the United States (Ventilator Mode Map), a free biweekly online training sessions focusing on waveform interpretation (SEVA-VentRounds), and modifications to the electronic health care record system for entering and charting ventilator orders.

Unpacking the renal system component of the 'Structure and Function' Core Concept of Physiology by an Australian team.

Australia-wide consensus was reached on seven core concepts of physiology, one of which was 'Structure and Function' with the descriptor 'Structure and function are intrinsically related to all levels of the organism. In all physiological systems the structure from a microscopic level to an organ level dictates its function'. As a framework for the Structure and Function core concept, the renal system was unpacked by a team of five Australian Physiology educators from different universities and with extensive teaching experience into hierarchical levels, with five themes and twenty-five sub-themes up to 3 levels deep. Within Theme 1, the structures that comprise the renal system were unpacked. Within Theme 2, the physiological processes within the nephron such as filtration, reabsorption, and secretion were unpacked. Within Theme 3, the processes involved in micturition were unpacked. In Theme 4, the structures and processes involved in regulating renal blood flow and glomerular filtration were unpacked; and within Theme 5, the role of the kidney in red blood cell production was unpacked. Twenty-one academics rated the difficulty and importance of each theme/subtheme and results were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA. All identified themes were validated as 'essential' to 'important'/'moderately important' and rated between 'difficult' to 'not difficult'. A similar framework consisting of Structure, Physiological processes, Physical processes and Regulation can be used to unpack other body systems. Unpacking of the body systems will provide a list of what students should be taught in curricula across Australian universities and inform assessment and learning activities.

Unpacking and validating the "cell-cell communication" core concept of physiology by an Australian team.

An Australia-wide consensus was reached on seven core concepts of physiology, one of which was cell-cell communication. Three physiology educators from a "core concepts" Delphi task force "unpacked" this core concept into seven different themes and 60 subthemes. Cell-cell communication, previously unpacked and validated, was modified for an Australian audience to include emerging knowledge and adapted to increase student accessibility. The unpacked hierarchical framework for this core concept was rated by 24 physiology educators from separate Australian universities, using a five-point scale for level of importance for student understanding (ranging from 1 = Essential to 5 = Not Important) and level of difficulty (ranging from 1 = Very Difficult to 5 = Not Difficult). Data were analyzed with the Kruskal-Wallis test with Dunn's multiple comparison test. The seven themes were rated within a narrow range of importance (1.13-2.4), with ratings of Essential or Important, and statistically significant differences between the themes (P < 0.0001, n = 7). The variance for the difficulty rating was higher than for importance, ranging from 2.15 (Difficult) to 3.45 (between Moderately Difficult and Slightly Difficult). Qualitatively, it was suggested that some subthemes were similar and that these could be grouped. However, all themes and subthemes were ranked as Important, validating this framework. Once finalized and adopted across Australian universities, the unpacked core concept for cell-cell communication will enable the generation of tools and resources for physiology educators and improvements in consistency across curricula.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Seven core concepts, including cell-cell communication, were identified by an Australian Delphi task force of physiology educators. The previously "unpacked" concept was adapted for Australian educators and students to develop a framework with seven themes and 60 subthemes. The framework was successfully validated by the original Delphi panel of educators and will provide a valuable resource for teaching and learning in Australian universities.

Mapping the Core Concepts of Physiology Across Australian University Curricula.

Core concepts in physiology, designed by physiology educators to promote improved learning and teaching, have existed for over a decade. This study aimed to investigate the extent to which a set of 15 core concepts of physiology (derived by a USA team) are reflected in the Learning Outcomes (LOs) of units (subjects) comprising physiology majors in Australian universities. From publicly accessible online information, we identified 17 Australian universities that offered a physiology major for undergraduate degree students and downloaded 788 LOs from the 166 units that comprised the majors. Each LO was blindly mapped against the 15 core concepts by eight physiology educators from three Australian universities. Additionally, text matching software was employed to match keywords and phrases, (identified as descriptors of the 15 core concepts) against the LOs. The frequency of individual words and two-word phrases for each core concept was calculated and ranked. There was variability in rating LOs for the same university amongst academic mappers, nevertheless, many of the 15 core concepts did not appear to be adequately covered in the LOs. Two core concepts most matched manually were in the top three most mapped by the software. These were, from most common, Structure/function and Interdependence. Our findings suggest a lack of alignment of LOs with the current set of core concepts across Australian physiology curricula. This highlights the need for Australia-wide agreement on a set of core concepts in physiology as the first step in collaboratively improving assessment and learning and teaching practice in physiology.

An animal physiology Pressbook (OER) creation process, a synergistic collaboration with undergraduates and faculty

OERs or Open Educational Resources have shown to reduce financial barriers in undergraduates by providing low cost or no cost textbooks. However, the potential OER textbooks available for a three-hundred level Biological Sciences and Natural Sciences majors Animal Physiology course (BIOLA310) at UAA do not align with the foundation of this course’s structure of homeostasis and core concepts in physiology. Thus an OER Pressbook was created by a former BIOLA310 undergraduate student for future students that mapped the course outline, utilizing the essential core concepts of Homeostasis, Systems Integration, and Scientific reasoning. This study explores current attitudes regarding OER usage of undergraduates enrolled in BIOLA310 as compared to undergraduates that were enrolled in Fall 2021 BIOLA310, when there was not an official OER textbook. Anonymous demographic data, including first generation student and pell grant status will be collected for all participants to explore any potential differences in OER impression based on student resources. Data will also be collected regarding the informational component of the OER pressbook that students engage with the most. Hypothesis: Students connected more directly with the material of the undergraduate created Pressbook OER’s, as compared to a previous version of instructor curated OER materials in Fall 2021, due to low cost, the information presented from a near peer, and how the textbook was designed for the course. Data will be collected by an anonymous qualtrics survey to protect the identity of the volunteers. Pressbooks, the web host of the Animal Physiology OER gathers Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and tracks relevant metrics, to compare student perception of use to actual use of the materials. Data will be analyzed to assess usage evaluated by financial barriers and perceived inclination due to the OER being designed by a fellow student. Supporting student learning from diverse perspectives, OER’s created with content expert faculty and undergraduate student interpretation might increase OER availability. By lowering the barrier of OER creation, then potentially more curated resources are created that resonate with near peer learning that will increase the diversity of learning viewpoints to support undergraduate students. Research reported in this publication was supported by an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under grant number P20GM103395. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2023 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Voices from Beyond: Physiology, Sentience, and the Uncanny in Eighteenth-Century French Literature by Scott M. Sanders

Reviewed by: Voices from Beyond: Physiology, Sentience, and the Uncanny in Eighteenth-Century French Literature by Scott M. Sanders Logan J. Connors Sanders, Scott M. Voices from Beyond: Physiology, Sentience, and the Uncanny in Eighteenth-Century French Literature. UP of Virginia, 2022. ISBN 978-0-813-94733-4. Pp. 236. In this book, Scott Sanders shows that the material, embodied voice (vocal folds, fibers, tissue, etc.) played an important role in eighteenth-century theories of human sound and its emotional qualities. At first glance, this goal seems modest, but Sanders' book is also a study of how the voice and its mechanisms informed core Enlightenment debates on sensibility, sentience, identity, Cartesianism, vitalism, and more. At the crux of Sanders' study is the tripartite notion of the "sentimental voice," the "vitalist voice," and the "uncanny voice"—all three of which show in different ways that eighteenth-century authors "represented the voice as both a physiological organ and a sound" (180). Sentimental voices (chapters 1 and 2) were windows into a person's character or, as Sanders writes in an analysis of Rousseau's novels and polemics, "organs through which it was possible to modify and improve a person's mental and emotional well-being" (169). Vitalist voices, which were also linked to the body of the speaker or singer, developed "out of a physiological model" where organs, connective tissue, and other material sources interact with each other to produce sound (107). Sanders describes vitalist voices (mostly in chapters 3 and 4) in Diderot's scientific translations, novels, and philosophical dialogues. Sanders situates Diderot's Le neveu de Rameau at the heart of eighteenth-century physiological debates. Sanders shows that understanding the "diaphragmatic" voice—an internal organ in a constellation of physical systems and intellectual faculties—is key to comprehending Enlightenment models of mind-body interaction. Lastly, the uncanny voice, discussed in chapter five, differs from the sentimental and the vitalist voices in that it "does not serve as a guarantor of the speaker's physiological temperament." Instead, uncanniness separates voice from the "physiological truth" of the speaker or singer (139). Sanders' discussion of the uncanny voice is contextualized by a clever reading of Jacques Cazotte's Le diable amoureux—a supernatural novel and attack against philosophe positions on sensibility, rationality, and identification. Sanders tackles challenging primary source materials, including eighteenth-century scientific discoveries about which, perhaps, most students of the period's literature and music know little. A less elegant writer would lose readers in discussions about vocal fold anatomy or the differences between "iatromechanical and vitalist approaches to sentience" (90). But Sanders' prose is jargon-free, light, and fluid. Like the encyclopédistes in his study, Sanders uses literature, music, and art to describe difficult physiological and epistemological concepts to a more general readership. Voices from Beyond is a breathtakingly thorough but readable account of voice in eighteenth-century French literature and thought. More than that, it proves that adopting new perspectives and approaches, notably voice studies, can revive seminal French literary texts as well as more obscure examples of the Enlightenment and its critique. [End Page 200] Logan J. Connors University of Miami (FL) Copyright © 2023 American Association of Teachers of French

PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL UNDERSTANDING OF RASAVAHA SROTO DUSHTI IN THE CURRENT SCENARIO: A REVIEW

Srotasa are channels or pores that nourish the whole body and are responsible for some particular function with respect to specific body parts. The Ayurveda Samhitas described anatomical and physiological concepts of Srotasa broadly. Srotasa mainly regulates the process of circulation in the human body. The Srotasa not only perform various functions, but a disturbance in Srotasa may also impart some pathological manifestation. Therefore it is essential to understand the physiological concepts of Srotasa. This article presents the Ayurveda perspective of Rasa vaha Srotasa and their physiological considerations.

Unpacking the homeostasis core concept in physiology: an Australian perspective.

Australia-wide consensus was reached on seven core concepts of physiology, which included homeostasis, a fundamental concept for students to understand as they develop their basic knowledge of physiological regulatory mechanisms. The term homeostasis is most commonly used to describe how the internal environment of mammalian systems maintains relative constancy. The descriptor "the internal environment of the organism is actively regulated by the responses of cells, tissues, and organs through feedback systems" was unpacked by a team of three Australian Physiology educators into 5 themes and 18 subthemes arranged in a hierarchy. Using a five-point Likert scale, the unpacked concept was rated by 24 physiology educators from 24 Australian Universities for level of importance and level of difficulty for students. Survey data were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA to compare between and within concept themes and subthemes. There were no differences in main themes for level of importance, with all ratings between essential or important. Theme 1: the organism has regulatory mechanisms to maintain a relatively stable internal environment, a process known as homeostasis was almost unanimously rated as essential. Difficulty ratings for unpacked concept themes averaged between slightly difficult and moderately difficult. The Australian team concurred with published literature that there are inconsistencies in the way the critical components of homeostatic systems are represented and interpreted. We aimed to simplify the components of the concept so that undergraduates would be able to easily identify the language used and build on their knowledge.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The homeostasis core concept of physiology was defined and unpacked by an Australian team with the goal of constructing a resource that will improve learning and teaching of this core physiology concept in an Australian Higher Education context.

“A Delicate Equilibrium of the Most Complex Sort”

This article examines the intertidal ecological research of the commercial lab owner and popular science writer Edward F. Ricketts, best known as the prototype for John Steinbeck’s character “Doc” in the novel Cannery Row (1945). Ricketts’s friendship with Steinbeck and unconventional philosophical style have regrettably overshadowed his scientific work, particularly his novel faunal zonation surveys of the North American Pacific littoral in the 1930s and 1940s. These surveys resulted in a landmark handbook, Between Pacific Tides (1939), designed for novices and specialists alike. Ricketts’s work demonstrates how the place of ecological investigation (Billick and Price)—here Monterey Bay’s pounding surf, storm-tossed debris, eclectic bohemianism, and the collaborative energies at Hopkins Marine Station—“imprinted” West Coast animal ecology. At first, Ricketts adopted the physiological methods and conceptions of ecological holism he had learned at the University of Chicago under mentor Warder C. Allee in the early 1920s. Allee had conducted his investigations of intertidal organisms in the relatively placid bays and estuaries at the Woods Hole research center on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Allee envisioned animal aggregations as higher-order societies guided by “unconscious cooperation” and evolving toward a climax state. Yet Ricketts found that physiochemical factors, such as temperature and salinity, could not explain the distribution of organisms amid the Pacific’s far more precarious rough-and-tumble surf, nor could they account for fierce competition among organisms. Rejecting Allee’s cooperative metaphors, Ricketts came to see community structure as an unintended result of tidepool invertebrates’ Darwinian struggle to occupy resource niches—a “set of sieves” that transferred nourishment from one part of the aggregation to the next, binding it together in interlocking food webs. Through dialogue with Steinbeck about the implications of modern physics during their Sea of Cortez voyage (1940), Ricketts developed a “unified field hypothesis” to conceptualize the dynamic interwovenness created by transfers of metabolic energy. Yet Steinbeck ultimately held fast to a super-organismic understanding of ecological holism—a hierarchical relationship between constituents and the whole that underlays the novelist’s idea of the human “phalanx” in Grapes of Wrath and other works. The article offers new insights about the ecological origins of Steinbeck and Ricketts’s disputes over “non-teleological” reasoning and the pair’s divergent understandings of nature, society, and progressive politics.

Identification of global transcriptional variations in human PBMCs two months post heat injury helps categorization heat tolerant or heat intolerant phenotypes.

Thermal intolerance may limit activity in hostile environments. Following heat illness two physiologically distinct phenotypes evolve: Heat Tolerant (HT) and Heat Intolerant (HI). The recognition that heat illness alters gene expression justified revisiting the established physiological concept of HI. We used a DNA microarray to examine the global transcriptional response in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (PMBCs) from HI and HT phenotypes, categorized 2-mo post heat injury using a functional physiological Heat Tolerance Test (HTT, 40°C)-Recovery (R, 24°C) protocol. The impact of recurrent heat stress was studied in vitro using PBMCs from controls (participants with no history of heat injury), HI and HT (categorized by functional HTT) with a customized NanoString array. There were significant differences under basal conditions between the HI and HT. HI were more immunological alerted. Almost no shared genes were found between end-HTT and recovery phases, suggesting vast cellular plasticity. In HI, mitochondrial function was dysregulated, canonical pathways associated with exercise endurance-NRF2 and insulin were downregulated, while AMPK and PPAR were upregulated. HT exhibited reciprocal responses, suggesting that energy dysregulation found in HI interfered with performance in the heat. The endoplasmic-reticulum stress response was also suppressed in HI. In vitro HTT (43°C) abolished differences between HI and HT PBMCs including the HSPs genes, while controls showed profound HSPs upregulation.