Elite Program Research Articles

Att balansera motstridiga ideal

Balancing between conflicting ideals. A study on ethical leadership, gender equality and diversity work in an upper secondary school. The aim of this article is to explore what characterizes principals’ ethical leadership in relation to gender- and diversity work at an upper secondary school distinguished by its elite program profile. Our main research interest is to investigate how principals describe and relate to the school’s equality work. The study’s theoretical understanding is founded in Starratt’s descriptions of ethical leadership. The study emanates from 12 in-depth individual and focus group interviews with a total of 47 individuals, both school staff and pupils. Our conclusion is that the principals’ stated mission is to communicate success and create a school for a selected group of students. Furthermore, this mission becomes part of the principals’ responsibility. This means that their presence and authenticity in the processes, as well as the requirements and expectations set by the school organizer, limit the opportunities for principals to achieve gender equality and diversity.

The impact of name, image, and likeness contracts on student-athlete college choice

ABSTRACT We estimate how ‘Name, Image, and Likeness’ (NIL) contracts affect NCAA football recruiting outcomes. We model recruiting as a multistage process, where schools make scholarship offers to athletes and then athletes choose a school based on their preferences over the offers received. We find that NIL values for athletes at a school are a significant predictor of recruits’ decisions to accept an offer. We test various counterfactual scenarios and conclude that NILs help Elite programs to attract talent with impacts similar to other program characteristics. It is unlikely that NILs alone could help other schools compete with the top programs.

Exploring Implementation Barriers of Elite Parasport Programs in National Parasport Organizations

Policy implementation has received attention from the literature. However, there has been a lack of research on the implementation barriers affecting elite parasport policies. In response to this literature gap, this research explored the perceptions of managers regarding aspects making the policy implementation processes more challenging in Brazilian parasport organizations. Focusing on elite programs, twenty-six managers of five national parasport organizations were interviewed. A qualitative research design accommodating exploratory objectives was adopted, and the obtained data were analyzed by thematic analysis. Only perceptions of barriers regarding the programs implemented for the Tokyo 2021 Paralympic Games cycle were considered. Parasport managers perceived that issues of funding, bureaucracy, specialized knowledge, accessibility, policies, culture, and influences from international parasport organizations were the major barriers affecting the effectiveness of their elite parasport programs. These results contributed to the sport literature with new information on aspects impacting the implementation of national elite parasport policies from a managerial perspective.

Assessing the potential of genetic resource introduction into elite germplasm: a collaborative multiparental population for flint maize

Key messageImplementing a collaborative pre-breeding multi-parental population efficiently identifies promising donor x elite pairs to enrich the flint maize elite germplasm.Genetic diversity is crucial for maintaining genetic gains and ensuring breeding programs’ long-term success. In a closed breeding program, selection inevitably leads to a loss of genetic diversity. While managing diversity can delay this loss, introducing external sources of diversity is necessary to bring back favorable genetic variation. Genetic resources exhibit greater diversity than elite materials, but their lower performance levels hinder their use. This is the case for European flint maize, for which elite germplasm has incorporated only a limited portion of the diversity available in landraces. To enrich the diversity of this elite genetic pool, we established an original cooperative maize bridging population that involves crosses between private elite materials and diversity donors to create improved genotypes that will facilitate the incorporation of original favorable variations. Twenty donor × elite BC1S2 families were created and phenotyped for hybrid value for yield related traits. Crosses showed contrasted means and variances and therefore contrasted potential in terms of selection as measured by their usefulness criterion (UC). Average expected mean performance gain over the initial elite material was 5%. The most promising donor for each elite line was identified. Results also suggest that one more generation, i.e., 3 in total, of crossing to the elite is required to fully exploit the potential of a donor. Altogether, our results support the usefulness of incorporating genetic resources into elite flint maize. They call for further effort to create fixed diversity donors and identify those most suitable for each elite program.

Place of residence and coach-athlete relationship predictdrop-out from competitivecross-country skiing.

The current study investigated whether factors such as living residence, the coach-athlete working alliance, goal orientation, and intrinsic motivation could explain drop-out, and whether these factors differed between athletes included in the elite- vs. general sport programs during high school years. In total 257 cross-country skiers, graduated from three different Norwegian Top Sport schools during the period from 2015 to 2019, were recruited to retrospectively investigate their experiences related to the time period when they participated in programs for cross-country skiing at high school. In total 116 of these athletes completed an online survey including validated and standardized instruments for the assessment of the coach-athlete working alliance (CAWAI), goal orientation (GO), perceived satisfaction with their performances (PAP) and intrinsic motivation (IM). The results showed that 84% of the athletes had dropped out from cross-country skiing, while 16% were still active. The highest ranked fixed statements of causes for drop-out was "a natural choice" (3.79 ± 1.11), "priority of education or work" (3.61 ± 1.30), "lack of motivation" (3.49 ± 1.28), "negative performance development" (3.46 ± 1.18), and "challenges with health" (3.25 ± 1.54). There were significant differences between active and drop-out in scores for reciprocity between the coaches' and the athletes' perceptions of goals (CAWAI-goal; 5.87 ± .98 vs. 5.07 ± 1.15; p = .004), the coach-athlete relationship bond (CAWAI-bond; 6.08 ± .91 vs. 5.07 ± 1.38; p = .001), and tasks chosen to reach the defined goals (CAWAI-task; 5.61 ± .92 vs. 4.90 ± 1.09; p = .006). Furthermore, active athletes had higher mastery orientation (22.11 ± 2.88 vs. 20.00 ± 3.74; p = .010). A hierarchical binary logistic regression analysis showed that place of residence and the coach-athlete working alliance were significant predictors of drop-out while mastery and performance goal orientation or intrinsic motivation were not significant. All five predictors explained 23% of the variability in drop out from cross-country skiing. Overall, 58% and 42% of the athletes participated in the elite and general programs for cross-country skiing during high school, respectively. The athletes that took part in the elite programs reported significantly stronger coach-athlete working alliances (CAWAI-sum; 14.46±3.10 vs. 14.28±3.37; p = .000), higher mastery orientation (21.19±3.50 vs. 19.36±3.66; p = .008), and performance satisfaction (PAP; 19.17±5.98 vs. 15.69±5.19; p = .001) compared to the athletes attending general programs. The results are discussed in terms of existing knowledge on how place of residence, the coach-athlete working alliance, goal orientation, performances, and motivation might impact drop-out in cross-country skiing.

Improving the use of plant genetic resources to sustain breeding programs’ efficiency

Genetic progress of crop plants is required to face human population growth and guarantee production stability in increasingly unstable environmental conditions. Breeding is accompanied by a loss in genetic diversity, which hinders sustainable genetic gain. Methodologies based on molecular marker information have been developed to manage diversity and proved effective in increasing long-term genetic gain. However, with realistic plant breeding population sizes, diversity depletion in closed programs appears ineluctable, calling for the introduction of relevant diversity donors. Although maintained with significant efforts, genetic resource collections remain underutilized, due to a large performance gap with elite germplasm. Bridging populations created by crossing genetic resources to elite lines prior to introduction into elite programs can manage this gap efficiently. To improve this strategy, we explored with simulations different genomic prediction and genetic diversity management options for a global program involving a bridging and an elite component. We analyzed the dynamics of quantitative trait loci fixation and followed the fate of allele donors after their introduction into the breeding program. Allocating 25% of total experimental resources to create a bridging component appears highly beneficial. We showed that potential diversity donors should be selected based on their phenotype rather than genomic predictions calibrated with the ongoing breeding program. We recommend incorporating improved donors into the elite program using a global calibration of the genomic prediction model and optimal cross selection maintaining a constant diversity. These approaches use efficiently genetic resources to sustain genetic gain and maintain neutral diversity, improving the flexibility to address future breeding objectives.

Who Gets Hired at the Top? The Academic Caste System Theory in the Planning Academy

This study is the first to examine detailed faculty demographics and impacts of elite hiring networks in the planning academy. Institutional prestige significantly shapes faculty placements. Nearly half of planning faculty graduated from Berkeley, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Cornell, and University of North Carolina (UNC)-Chapel Hill. Faculty are predominantly hired in similar or lower ranking programs with little upward mobility, after accounting for demographics and program factors. While race and gender did not have a significant relationship to placements, the findings demonstrate how status-based inequities are perpetuated through elite programs and constrain faculty representation.

Optical magnetic multimodality imaging of plectin-1-targeted imaging agent for the precise detection of orthotopic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in mice.

SummaryBackgroundPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a lethal malignancy worldwide, and the precise detection is challenging currently. Magnetic particle imaging (MPI) is suitable for imaging deep and internal PDAC tumours because of its high sensitivity and unlimited imaging depth. The purpose of this study was to utilize the MPI, in combination with fluorescence molecular imaging (FMI) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to advance the in vivo precise detection of PDAC xenografts.MethodsThe PDAC targeted plectin-1 peptide and IRDye800CW were conjugated to the superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (PTP-Fe3O4-IRDye800CW) for the PDAC-targeting triple-modality imaging. Subcutaneous and orthotopic PDAC mouse models were established. FMI, MPI, and MRI were performed for dynamic and quantitative observation of PDAC tumours. Histological staining analyses were used for ex vivo validation.FindingsPTP-Fe3O4-IRDye800CW nanoparticles possessed great triple-modality imaging performance and specific targeting to plectin-1 expressed on PDAC cells. For in vivo multi-modality imaging of orthotopic PDAC models, the PTP-Fe3O4-IRDye800CW nanoparticles demonstrated higher specificity, even distribution, and longer retention effects in tumours for over 7 d compared with Con-Fe3O4-IRDye800CW nanoparticles. (MPI, 2d post-injection: PTP-Fe3O4-IRDye800CW: 85.72% ± 1.53% vs. Con-Fe3O4-IRDye800CW: 74.41% ± 1.91%, **P < 0.01 (Student's t test)). Ex vivo histological and Prussian blue stainings were performed to validate the distribution of probes.InterpretationThese data demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing MPI for in vivo PDAC imaging and complement with FMI/MRI for a precise and comprehensive in vivo characterization of PDAC. This may benefit PDAC patients for precise diagnosis and guidance of therapy.FundingThis study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 62027901, 82071896, 81871422, 81871514, 81227901), Ministry of Science and Technology of China under Grant No. 2017YFA0205200, 2017YFA0700401, Beijing Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 7212207), Elite Program of Dong Cheng District of Beijing (2020-dchrcpyzz-28), and Peking University Third Hospital (BYSYZD2019018, and jyzc2018-02).

Programa de internado junior en la Facultad de Medicina de la Universidad de La Sabana, una experiencia en coterminalidad y flexibilidad curricular

Current education and training systems seek to train competent and comprehensive professionals; For the Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad de la Sabana, it is essential that its graduates become general practitioners capable of performing effectively and efficiently in the world. This is why it has developed the Junior Internship Program as a co-terminal and flexible strategy for the Medicine curriculum. Allowing them to carry out elective rotations in the areas of their preference through the Junior Internship figure. This program is divided into two: the Junior Elite program and the Junior General program, for both programs it is necessary to meet the admission criteria.

Abstract 2092: Effects of Yi Sui Granules, an herbal medicine, on MDS/AML: Similar to decitabine or other mechanisms

Abstract Objective Yi Sui Granules (YSG) has been clinically used and proved efficacious in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) for 25 years, however, its mechanism remains unclear. This study is to evaluate the effects of YSG on DNA methylation of AML/MDS. Methods and Results From cytotoxicity assays using CCK-8 method, we found out YSG inhibited SKM-1, HL-60, K-562 and CEM cells in a dose-dependent manner with an IC50 of 1.173±0.165 mg/ml, 1.70±0.2 mg/ml, 2.85±0.05 mg/ml, 1.70±0.2 mg/ml respectively. In vivo, decitabine inhibited tumor growth in terms of tumor volume and tumor weight but led to significant weight loss of SKM-1 xenographed BALB/c-nu mice. While YSG (50.69%) showed similar tumor weight inhibition rate to decitabine (56.64%) without side effects including body weight loss. To explore its mechanism, we discovered that DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) expression was significantly down-regulated(P&amp;lt;0.05) and SFRP5 gene was demethylated(P&amp;lt;0.01) after treated with either YSG or decitabine using RT-PCR, western blot and bisulfite amplicon sequencing methods. Furthermore, we found significant up-regulation of SFRP5 expression(P&amp;lt;0.05), down-regulation of Wnt3a protein(P&amp;lt;0.05) and β-catenin expression(P&amp;lt;0.05), as well as down-regulation of C-myc(P&amp;lt;0.05) and CyclinD1 expression(P&amp;lt;0.05) in decitabine group and YSG group. Equally interestingly, survival benefits were observed in YSG high-dose group but not in Decitabine group(P&amp;lt;0.05). Conclusion Similar to decitabine, YSG's suppression of SKM1 tumor may be related to the inhibition of DNMT1 expression, de-methylation of SFRP5 and up-regulation of SFRP5 expression, preventing Wnt3a from binding to Frizzled receptors, therefore inhibiting the abnormal activation of Wnt signaling, and down-regulating its target gene expression including C-myc and CyclinD1. Unlike decitabine, YSG prolong overall survival though other mechanisms, which will be further investigated in our future research. Corresponding Author: Jing Wang and Xinyi Chen, Address: No.5 Haiyuncang, Dongcheng District, Beijing, 100700, China; Email: Jing.Wang@bucm.edu.cn and chenxinyi0729@126.comAcknowledgement: This work was supported by the Young Scientist Fund (81503575) and Key Program (81630080) of National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Golden Bridge Project of Beijing Association for Science and Technology(ZZ20059) and the Elite Program of Dongcheng district of Beijing (2020-dchrcpyzz-38). Citation Format: Jing Wang, Chong Gao, Elizabeth Gullen, Jieya Wu, Xiaoyuan Zhang, Xinyi Chen. Effects of Yi Sui Granules, an herbal medicine, on MDS/AML: Similar to decitabine or other mechanisms [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 2092.

Single-Cell RNA-Seq Reveals LGALS1 and LAG3 as Novel Drivers of Ibrutinib Resistance in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Background: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a highly heterogeneous malignant lymphoproliferative B-cell disorder that can be treated using ibrutinib, a Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor. However, the ibrutinib resistance of CLL patients has caused widespread concerns, necessitating the development of novel treatment strategies. Methods: Here, we identified lectin galactoside-binding soluble 1 (LGALS1) and lymphocyte-activating gene 3 (LAG3) as potential markers for ibrutinib-resistant CLL using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), and the results were validated in an ibrutinib-resistant CLL cell line (MEC1-IR) and primary cells from CLL patients. Marker-gene expression was detected while functional analyses were conducted with or without OTX008, a selective Galectin-1 inhibitor. ScRNA-seq revealed that the biological features, gene expression profiles, and clonal signatures of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from patients with ibrutinib-resistant CLL were distinct from those displayed by PBMCs from ibrutinib-sensitive patients. Findings: A close correlation between LGALS1 and LAG3 expression was observed and these factors were found to be highly expressed in ibrutinib-resistant CLL, with diagnostic and prognostic stratification, indicating that they may serve as drivers of ibrutinib-resistant CLL. Concordantly, LGALS1 and LAG3 expression was higher in ibrutinib-resistant CLL cells and primary cells, and OTX008 suppressed proliferation and induced apoptosis in both cells. Interpretation: LGALS1 and LAG3 gene panel is promising indicator of ibrutinib-sensitivity and prognosis marker of CLL. LGALS1 inhibitor OTX008 is effective in CLL patients, both those naive to and those resistant to ibrutinib. This work highlights the pathogenic mechanism and represents a novel therapeutic target for CLL. Funding Statement: This work was supported by grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant #81720108002, 81970146, 81770166, 81972358 and 91959113), Key Research & Development Program of Jiangsu Province (Grant #BE2017733), Basic Research Program of Jiangsu Province (Grant #BK20180036), Jiangsu Province’s Medical Elite Programme (Grant #ZDRCA2016022), Project of National Key Clinical Specialty, Jiangsu Provincial Special Program of Medical Science (Grant #BE2017751), Six Top Talent Project of Jiangsu Province (Grant #WSN-001). Declaration of Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Ethics Approval Statement: Human sample study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants.

Revenue-expense versus asset-liability model

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to analyse the impact of two different financial reporting models (revenue-expense vs asset-liability) on several earnings attributes.Design/methodology/approachThe analysis compares the earnings attributes of non-financial private firms using the Italian generally accepted accounting principles (Italian GAAP, based on a revenue-expense model) with those of the Italian non-financial private firms voluntarily adopting the international financial reporting standards (IFRS, based on the asset-liability model). To address major methodological concerns, the research design is based on a single-country analysis and on three different samples as follows: firms voluntarily adopting IFRS; a matched sample of Italian GAAP firms; Italian GAAP firms belonging to the Elite programme, and therefore, comparable to the IFRS adopters in terms of incentives towards financial reporting transparency.FindingsThe results show that firms reporting under a revenue-expense model are characterized by a stronger revenue-expense matching degree, along with higher earnings’ persistence, earnings’ predictability and conditional conservatism than firms adopting an asset-liability model. In addition, contrary to the expectations, Italian GAAP firms do not present smoother earnings and do not report greater abnormal accruals than IFRS adopters do. Overall, the findings suggest that the switch from a revenue-expense model to an asset-liability model negatively affects several earnings attributes of non-financial private companies, shedding new light on the drawbacks associated with the adoption of the IFRS accounting model.Originality/valueThis study addresses a theme characterized by sparse research efforts, adding new insights to the debate on the decline in the quality of earnings and on the drawbacks associated with the adoption of the IFRS accounting model.

Reflection on the Cultivation Process of the Top Talents in “Elite Program for Senior High School Students”: Taking the 2019 Elite Program Summer Camp as an Example

Reflection on the Cultivation Process of the Top Talents in “Elite Program for Senior High School Students”: Taking the 2019 Elite Program Summer Camp as an Example

Design and Implementation of the Bachelor with Honors Program at TU Wien

This note outlines the Bachelor with Honors (BHons) program of the Faculty of Informatics at TU Wien, the very first honors program shaped according to American standards at an Austrian university. Besides the usual excellence goals of such programs, a main driver for its creation was exposing gifted students to scientific research very early in their academic careers to hopefully prevent them from accepting industry jobs before doing a Ph.D. Main design challenges were broad accessibility for all top students, demanding and fully transparent admission and completion rules, and dealing with severe resource constraints for running the program. Main implementation challenges were the need to convince other Faculties at TU Wien that the BHons would not jeopardize the existing Bologna-type study programs and to overcome certain reservations against such “elite programs” in general. Substantial efforts eventually convinced the senate of TU Wien to approve the program, which was started in January 2018. Albeit still in the bootstrapping phase, we are happy to say that the program has developed very well so far.

The Impacts of Zanubrutinib on Immune Cells in Patients with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma

Ibrutinib, a first-generation Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor, could improve immunity of relapsed or refractory (R/R) chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (CLL/SLL) patients. Whether zanubrutinib, a second-generation BTK inhibitor, has similar effects as ibrutinib remains to be determined. Dynamics of number and immunophenotype of immune cells during zanubrutinib treatment in 25 R/R CLL/SLL patients were examined by flow cytometry and blood routine tests. The expression intensity of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) on total CD4+, total CD8+ and T helper cells, and cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 on total CD4+ (P=0.010) and regulatory T cells (P<0.05) reduced after treatment (P<0.05). There were significant differences in expression intensity of CD19 (P<0.01), C-X-C chemokine receptor type 5 (CXCR5) (P<0.01) and CD49d (P<0.05) on B cells before and after treatment. Down-regulation of PD-1 on T cells and CXCR5 and CD19 on B cells were observed in nearly all patients after zanubrutinib treatment. The number of B cells and programmed death-ligand 1 expression down-regulated, especially in the young, CLL, normal spleen, normal I²2-macroglobulin (I²2-MG), abnormal lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and normal tumor protein 53 subgroups, while CD49d expression tended to decrease in the male, old, CLL, splenomegaly, abnormal I²2-MG and abnormal LDH subgroups after zanubrutinib treatment. These findings suggest that zanubrutinib can regulate immunity primarily by improving T cell exhaustion, inhibiting suppressor cells and disrupting CLL cells migration through down-regulation of adhesion/homing receptors. Furthermore, favorable changes in cell number and immunophenotype were preferably observed in patients without adverse prognostic factors. Funding: This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (81370657, 81470328, 81470329, 81600130, 81770166, 81720108002), Jiangsu Province’s Medical Elite Programme (ZDRCA2016022), Project of National Key Clinical Specialty, National Science & Technology Pillar Program (2014BAI09B12), Jiangsu Provincial Special Program of Medical Science (BL2014086 and BE2017751) and National Science and Technology Major Project (2018ZX09734-007). Declaration of Interest: No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed. Ethical Approval: This study was approved by the hospital ethics committee and all patients were provided informed consent according to the Helsinki Declaration of 1975.

Novel Treatment of Hypertension by Specifically Targeting E2F for Restoration of Endothelial Dihydrofolate Reductase and eNOS Function Under Oxidative Stress

We have shown that hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) downregulates tetrahydrobiopterin salvage enzyme DHFR (dihydrofolate reductase) to result in eNOS (endothelial NO synthase) uncoupling and elevated blood pressure. Here, we aimed to delineate molecular mechanisms underlying H2O2 downregulation of endothelial DHFR by examining transcriptional pathways hypothesized to modulate DHFR expression, and effects on blood pressure regulation of targeting these novel mechanisms. H2O2 dose and time dependently attenuated DHFR mRNA and protein expression and enzymatic activity in endothelial cells. Deletion of E2F‐binding sites, but not those of Sp1, abolished H2O2 attenuation of DHFR promoter activity. Overexpression of E2F1/2/3a activated DHFR promoter at baseline and alleviated the inhibitory effect of H2O2 on DHFR promoter activity. H2O2 treatment diminished mRNA and protein expression of E2F1/2/3a, whereas overexpression of E2F isoforms increased DHFR protein levels. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay indicated direct binding of E2F1/2/3a to the DHFR promoter, which was weakened by H2O2. E2F1 RNA interference attenuated DHFR protein levels, whereas its overexpression elevated tetrahydrobiopterin levels and tetrahydrobiopterin/dihydrobiopterin ratios in vitro and in vivo. In Ang II (angiotensin II)‐infused mice, adenovirus‐mediated overexpression of E2F1 markedly abrogated blood pressure to control levels, by restoring endothelial DHFR function to improve NO bioavailability and vasorelaxation. Bioinformatic analyses confirmed a positive correlation between E2F1 and DHFR in human endothelial cells and arteries and downregulation of both by oxidized phospholipids. In summary, endothelial DHFR is downregulated by H2O2 transcriptionally via an E2F‐dependent mechanism, and that specifically targeting E2F1/2/3a to restore DHFR and eNOS function may serve as a novel therapeutic option for the treatment of hypertension.Support or Funding InformationThis study was supported by National Institute of Health National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Grants HL077440 (HC), HL088975 (HC), HL108701 (HC, DGH), HL119968 (HC), an American Heart Association Established Investigator Award (EIA) 12EIA8990025 (HC), and an AHA Postdoctoral Fellowship Award 14POST20380966 (QL), an AHA Postdoctoral Fellowship Award 14POST20380995 (YXZ) and a Guangdong Elite Program for Visiting Graduate Student JY201222 (HL). We thank Dr. Gustavo Leone (The Ohio State University, USA) for kindly providing uspBabe‐Hygro‐E2F1 (pBH‐E2F1), pBH‐E2F2, pBHE2F3a, pBH‐E2F7 and pBH‐E2F8 plasmids. We thank Dr. Xiangming Ding (UCLA, USA) and Dr. Yibin Wang (UCLA, USA) for generous gifts of pGL3 basic luciferase reporter plasmid and pRLrenilla luciferase reporter plasmid, respectively. We also thank Dr. Alan Pollack (University of Miami, USA) for the generous gift of adenoviral vector constructs incorporating full‐length E2F1 or firefly luciferase.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Evaluating an English Elite Program in Taiwan Using the CIPP Model

To promote English language learning, universities in Taiwan have been setting up traditional and online English language self-study centers. English honors or elite programs are also being established to offer advanced training of the English language to students. A private university in northern Taiwan established the English Elite Program in 2008, providing courses in three different sections through traditional and distance learning modes. The distance learning courses aim to reduce students’ difficulties with conflicting schedules between the courses in their own departments and the program courses. In this study, the researchers evaluate the Elite Program using the Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) model. Data were collected from program documents, questionnaires, classroom observations, graduates’ academic scores, and interviews of the instructors and graduates who received the program certificate. This study is helpful for program designers, teachers, students, and university administrators of this type of program and other similar foreign-language programs. This study also provides useful recommendations for universities planning to establish a similar program, particularly with the inclusion of distance learning courses.

A Progression Education Mode for "Elite Program for Senior High School Students"

A Progression Education Mode for "Elite Program for Senior High School Students"

Gemcitabine-oxaliplatin plus rituximab (R-GemOx) as first-line treatment in elderly patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: a single-arm, open-label, phase 2 trial

The combination of rituximab, gemcitabine, and oxaliplatin (R-GemOx) has shown high efficacy with a low toxicity profile in elderly patients with relapsed and refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and feasibility of the R-GemOx regimen as a first-line treatment in elderly patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. In this single-arm, open-label, phase 2 clinical trial, we enrolled patients with previously untreated, histologically confirmed, CD20-positive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, aged 70 years or older, or aged 60-69 years with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status score of 2 or greater. Patients were recruited from Jiangsu Province Hospital (Jiangsu Sheng, China). The R-GemOx regimen was administered intravenously: rituximab 375 mg/m2 on day 0; gemcitabine 1 g/m2 on day 1; and oxaliplatin 100 mg/m2 on day 1. The cycle was repeated every 14 days. Six cycles were planned if the patient achieved at least partial remission after the interim assessment. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients who achieved an overall response at the end of treatment (defined as complete response plus partial response). Analyses were done by intention to treat. The trial is ongoing but no longer recruiting patients. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01670370. Between Aug 22, 2012, and Dec 31, 2015, 60 patients were enrolled and included in the study. The median age of the patients was 75 years (IQR 70-80) and 27 (45%) patients had a poor performance status with an ECOG score of 2 or greater. 45 (75%) patients achieved an overall response at the end of the treatment, with 28 (47%) achieving a complete response. Common grade 3-4 adverse events were haematological toxicities (thrombocytopenia in five [8%] patients, anaemia in four [7%], and neutropenia in nine [15%]) and gastrointestinal complications (nausea in five [8%] patients, vomiting in three [5%], and diarrhoea in one [2%]). No treatment-related deaths were reported. The R-GemOx regimen shows high efficacy and safety as a front-line treatment in an elderly patient subpopulation and might be a therapeutic option for management of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in elderly patients. National Natural Science Foundation of China, Jiangsu Province's Medical Elite Programme, Project of National Key Clinical Specialty, National Science & Technology Pillar Program, Jiangsu Provincial Special Program of Medical, and National Science and Technology Major Project.

THE PROBLEMS WITH THE COLLEGE ELITE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN CHINA

INTRODUCTION:The main mission for colleges is to educate and develop talents for the industry and country. It conducts education for both the elite and the mass (Trow, 1973). This is especially the case for research universities, which has the duty to nurture innovative scholars, highly trained managers, and high quality all-rounded talents. Colleges have to train all-rounded talents who can meet the demands of both the international and national markets.From the end of the 19th century to the start of the 20th century, China's higher education industry has experienced lot of changes (Li, 2014). It has gone through century of exploration and development. China is currently heading toward the direction of transforming itself into an innovative country. Under such circumstances, colleges are not only base for training talents; it also plays an impor tant role in the construction of an innovative state (Cao, 2014). Thus, it is important for colleges to continuously innovate on their education system to ensure that they can train talents who meet the demands of the ever -changing market.To meet the market's demand for both mass education and elite education, Chinese universities have started series of elite programs targeted at gifted students. These universities require all fresh intakes of the year to take part in an examination, and they will enroll the group of best students of the cohort in the elite education program. These students will then go through an educational curriculum that is different from the other students who are not enrolled in the program.Hitherto, there is lack of empirical research that investigates the effectiveness of such programs. Thus in this research, we aimed to investigate the soundness of the prevailing elite education curriculum in China, and we aimed to give recommendations for colleges to consider for their future elite programs management. Toward this end, we conducted case study research on one of the China's top universities in the Jiangsu Province. In specific, we conducted case study research on their elite education program, which is known as the Cultura l Foundation Strengthening Program (hereafter, CFSP; also known as wen-qiang-ban in Chinese). We believed that the findings of this research have important implications for college elite education programs in general, and we believe that it can provide the scientific bases for future educational management policies.LITERATURE REVIEW:In this section, we will review the Western and Chinese elite education program literature. We divided this section into three parts: what defines elite education program; what has went wrong in elite education program; and what can we do to elite education program.What Defines Elite Education Program?China's education system has experienced lot of changes in the recent decades (Li, 2014). To meet the country's increasingly diverse market demands, the Chinese universities provide both elite educati on and mass education. By elite education, we refer to the selective education system that is based on the aim to develop the knowledge, skill, ability, and ethics of gifted college students (Liu, 2003). And by gifted college we refer to the group of top performers in batch of college intake. Elite education system is popular in higher education institutions (Trow, 1973).Elite education program is different from the mass education program in two aspects: its pedagogy and ideology. In Wu and Chen (2008), the authors reviewed the systems of college elite education program. The authors found that such programs have the common goals of pursuing excellence and nurturing high -quality talents. Renowned universities in China have based their pedagogy, educational system, and management system on this common goal. They believe in the need to strengthen the knowledge foundations of reduce the degree of specialization of and customize curriculums according to the needs of students, and the need for a broad curriculum to build solid knowledge foundation for students. …