Biomedical subjects

R L Dukes

Publications and source records attributed to R L Dukes.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1998

Modifications in protein binding to upstream sequences of the sea urchin cytoplasmic actin gene CyIIa in comparison to its linked neighbors, CyI and CyIIb.

The sequences corresponding to regions upstream of the ATG and transcription start site of the CyIIa cytoplasmic actin gene of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus were determined and compared to the genomically linked CyI and CyIIb actin genes. Sites of protein-DNA interaction in the CyIIa upstream sequences were identified by DNase I footprinting. The similarity between CyIIa and CyI (and CyIIb) upstream sequences was limited and included a consensus octamer sequence, serum response element (SRE) and some short sequences within the proximal promoter region. The octamer sequence was found to bind protein. A single DNase I hypersensitive site was detected within the SRE and to two flanking nucleotides, but otherwise, the SRE did not appear to be protected. This is in contrast to strong protein binding to the CyIIb SRE. A region in the CyIIa gene with limited identity to the functionally significant protein binding site D in CyI also did not bind protein. Four additional sites of protein-DNA interaction were identified in CyIIa upstream sequences. One of these is similar to a protein binding site previously located in the CyI upstream sequences, whereas the others appear to be unique. These data indicate that the CyIIa upstream sequences differ extensively from those of CyI. The pattern of CyIIa expression is likely a consequence of these alternations in DNA sequence and protein-DNA interactions.

Actins↗

PubMed1997

Long-term impact of Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.). Results of a 6-year follow-up.

The long-term effectiveness of Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) was assessed by contrasting drug use and other D.A.R.E.-related attitudinal latent variables among 356 twelfth-grade students who had received the program in the 6th grade with 264 others who did not receive it. A prior study of these subjects when they were in 9th grade had shown no significant differences. A follow-up survey in 12th grade assessed central D.A.R.E. concepts such as self-esteem, police bonds, delay of experimentation with drugs, and various forms of drug use. Although the authors found no relationship between prior D.A.R.E. participation and later alcohol use, cigarette smoking, or marijuana use in 12th grade, there was a significant relationship between earlier D.A.R.E. participation and less use of illegal, more deviant drugs (e.g., inhalants, cocaine, LSD) in a development sample but not in a validation sample. Findings from the two studies suggest a possible sleeper effect for D.A.R.E. in reference to the use of harder drugs, especially among teenage males.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Three-year follow-up of Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.).

The long-term effectiveness of D.A.R.E. was assessed by contrasting 9th-grade students who received the program in the 6th grade with others who did not receive the program. Of 38 elementary schools eligible for D.A.R.E. programs, 21 received the program and 17 did not. A follow-up survey assessed central D.A.R.E. concepts such as self-esteem, resistance to peer pressure, delay of experimentation with drugs, and drug use. Employing latent variables to represent the concepts, no significant differences were found between D.A.R.E. participants and controls. The authors discuss attenuation of effects and the generally antidrug context of schools.

Child↗

PubMed1995

Prejudice toward persons living with a fatal illness.

Vignettes depicting a person living with a fictitious fatal illness were presented to 222 undergraduates. Manipulated variables in a completely randomized 3 x 2 x 2 factorial design were method of transmission of the illness (genetic/contagious/infectious), the population likely to become ill (anyone/primarily marginal persons), and the amount of suffering (little/much). Subjects reported on perceptions of ease of transmission of the illness, danger of contact with the ill person, blame, support of sanction, and social distance. Multivariate analysis of covariance showed that the manipulated variables affected the dependent variables considered together. Greatest prejudice was shown toward persons suffering greatly from an infectious illness that affected primarily marginal persons. Results are discussed relative to HIV.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed1994

The impact of ethgender on self-esteem among adolescents.

This study examined the impact of ethgender, the combination of race and gender, on global and public domain aspects of adolescent self-esteem. Using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and a 3-item index, differences were observed among 10 ethgenders. Black and Hispanic males had the highest levels of global self-esteem, and Asian and Native American Females had the lowest. On public domain components white and black males had the highest scores, and Asian and Native American females had the lowest. Females (except blacks) had lower levels of both global and public domain self-esteem than did males.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Effects of witness characteristics on the perception and reportage of child abuse.

Vignettes depicting the physical mistreatment, psychological mistreatment and neglect of children were used in an experimental design to test for bias in perception and reportage of child abuse. Subjects were 160 jurors and 176 child protective service (CPS) and police personnel. Jurors born before 1945 were less critical of such mistreatment than those born later. Female jurors pledged to report mistreatment more often than did male jurors, and they pledged to report the abuse of a female victim more often than a male victim. The other groups did not show this bias in reporting. Findings might explain discrepancies between studies of the incidence of child abuse and reportage of it.

Attitude↗

PubMed1991

Stereotypes of pilots and apprehension about flying with them: a study of commercial aviation scenarios.

This study explored the effects of gender, experience, and performance of a commercial aviation pilot on concern of passengers about flying with him or her. It used scenarios that represented two aspects of pilot behavior: skill and judgment. We cast 112 adult subjects in the role of passengers. They read vignettes that described their captain and the flight in a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial design (male or female, newly promoted or veteran captain, strong or weak performance). Results showed that of the three manipulated variables, only pilot performance had a statistically significant main effect upon apprehension about making a continuation flight with the pilot (F = 41.52; p less than or equal to 0.001 for the skill scenario and F = 41.73; p less than or equal to 0.001 for the judgment scenario). Statistical interactions showed that the level of passenger concern was not based entirely on pilot performance. For instance, on the skill scenario, when a female pilot performed well, her rating was higher than that of an equally performing male, but when she performed poorly, her rating was lower than his (F = 5.38; p less than or equal to 0.02).

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Epidemiologic differences between chlamydia and gonorrhea.

To assess the prevalence, demographics, and transmission patterns of genital chlamydia infection, we screened 3,078 patients, and compared identified cases (N = 511) to gonorrhea cases (N = 291) diagnosed in the same setting. Chlamydia cases were younger and more likely to be White than their gonorrhea counterparts. Chlamydia cases were distributed diffusely; geographic overlap between the two diseases was only about 40 percent. Gonococcal coinfection was noted in less than 10 percent of patients with chlamydia. Nearly half of men with chlamydia and four-fifths of women were asymptomatic and most cases were identified through screening or contact tracing. Populations at high risk for chlamydia are seemingly different from those for gonorrhea. Differences may be due to control interventions (active for gonorrhea, passive for chlamydia). Chlamydia case reporting and control initiatives are recommended.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1989

The effects of school, family, self-concept, and deviant behaviour on adolescent suicide ideation.

In this study of a population of junior and senior high school students in a mid-sized, Western city, adolescent emotional and ideological disparity with parents and disparity between the importance the adolescent placed on academic achievement and satisfaction with academic achievement were linked to suicide ideation through the intervening variables of self-esteem, purpose in life, and two forms of deviant behaviour--alcohol use and eating disorder. Self-confidence and the deviant behaviours of delinquency and drug use did not prove to be meaningful intervening variables.

Achievement↗

PubMed1989

An experimental study of gender and situation in the perception and reportage of child abuse.

This study examined the effects of gender, situation, and characteristics of witnesses in the perception and reportage of child abuse. Three scenarios representing themes of neglect, psychological, and physical abuse were evaluated by 144 nonprofessionals not mandated by law to report child abuse. The variables of gender and age of the child, gender of parent, and whether or not the abuse was precipitated by an act of the child were systematically manipulated to produce a 2 X 2 X 2 X 2 X 3 randomized design. Some demographic data on subjects were treated as covariates. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed on the data. No gender bias in subject's evaluations of victim or perpetrator was discovered. Female subjects viewed the scenarios more critically than did males. Younger subjects were less critical of mistreatment than were older subjects. Perception of the mistreatment as serious was not a good predictor of subsequent official reporting. The scenario involving physical abuse was rated as serious by 86.1% of the subjects, but only 39.5% of these subjects indicated that they would have reported it. Subjects indicated the highest rate of reporting for the neglect scenario which they rated as less serious than physical abuse. These results suggest that official reports are unreliable as an indicator of the incidence of abuse.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Disease transmission by heterosexual men with gonorrhea: an empiric estimate.

In Colorado Springs, Colorado, between January and June 1981, approximately 400 cases of gonorrhea in heterosexual men generated approximately 200 "spread" cases in women. The ratio of spread cases to index cases (0.5) is an empiric measure of the reproductive rate for the disease, i.e., the rate at which an infected person replaces himself. Although a reproductive rate of less than one theoretically should produce extinction of the disease, the rate derived from these data is shown to be a weighted average of the rates in symptomatic men (0.31), subsymptomatic men (0.79), and asymptomatic men (1.30). Approximately 35% of gonorrhea transmitted by men may be attributed to the asymptomatic group, which constitutes 10-15% of the infected population. If the observations in this community are applied to the nation as a whole, we estimate that approximately 1.7 million cases of gonorrhea occurred in 1981, as compared with the 990,864 cases actually occurred in 1981, as compared with the 990,864 cases actually reported. This estimate is close to those usually quoted but differs in gender composition. Whereas the observed male-to-female ratio is 1.48:1, the predicted ratio, based on estimates of reproductive rates in subgroups, is 0.8. This analysis supports the theoretical notion that the endemicity of gonorrhea is maintained by heightened transmission within small groups, and it suggests that underdetection is more important than underreporting in the assessment of the "true" incidence of this infection.

Colorado↗