Wilks, J. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2022

Gut commensal bacteria enhance pathogenesis of a tumorigenic murine retrovirus

The influence of the microbiota on viral transmission and replication is well appreciated. However, its impact on retroviral pathogenesis outside of transmission/replication control remained unknown. Using Murine Leukemia Virus (MuLV), we found that some commensal bacteria promoted the development of leukemia induced by this retrovirus. The promotion of leukemia development by commensals was due to suppression of the adaptive immune response through upregulation of several negative regulators of immunity. These negative regulators included Serpinb9b and Rnf128, which are associated with a poor prognosis of some spontaneous human cancers. Upregulation of Serpinb9b was mediated by sensing of bacteria by NOD1/NOD2/RIPK2 pathway. This work describes a novel mechanism by which the microbiota enhances tumorigenesis within gut-distant organs and points at potential new targets for cancer therapy.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2021

Students Attitudes Surrounding STEM: A Social Cognitive Career Theory Instrument for High School

To broaden participation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), we must understand the factors that shape perspectives and beliefs around career selection. Good measurement of these factors is crucial to quantify how effectively educational interventions impact student attitudes towards STEM. Adolescents are particularly suited for quantifying intervention efficacy because students build their identities during these formative years and make important career choices. To better quantify intervention efficacy at the high school level, we developed an instrument entitled Student Attitudes Surrounding STEM (SASS), which builds upon the social cognitive career theory (SCCT) framework for understanding career selection. Questionnaire responses were collected from 932 high school students and split into samples of 400 for exploratory factor analysis and 532 for confirmatory factor analysis. The 37 questions clustered into six factors: Self-Efficacy-Experience, Self-Efficacy-Academic, Outcome Expectations, Interests, Negative Perceptions of Scientists, and Career Awareness. Adequate construct validity for the factors indicated in the SASS model was suggested by the fit indices and theoretical considerations. Furthermore, the analyses supported criterion validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. This tool represents a novel integration of three latent variables into SCCT: Negative Perceptions of Scientists, Career Awareness, and an experience factor for Self-Efficacy.

scientific communication and education↗