This study focused on the undergraduate course that covers
basic
topics in general, organic, and biological (GOB) chemistry at a mid-sized
state university in the western United States. The central objective
of the research was to identify the main topics of GOB chemistry relevant
to the clinical practice of nursing. The collection of data was based
on open-ended interviews of both nursing and chemistry teaching faculty
and nursing graduate students with clinical practice experience. From
the resulting interview transcripts, three categories emerged: (i)
topics that are important, having a direct application in nursing
clinical practice; (ii) topics that are foundational, facilitating
understanding of important topics, but are not directly important
in nursing clinical practice; and (iii) topics that are not important,
having no direct application and significance in nursing clinical
practice. With the data collected, a list of clinically relevant chemistry
topics was developed. Information from this study can assist GOB chemistry
instructors to better understand which topics to emphasize in their
teaching. Representatives of the two cultures, the disciplines of
chemistry and nursing, agree that a good understanding of chemistry,
with clinical implications, is important for a practicing nurse.
Lipid microdomains are ordered regions on the plasma membrane of cells, rich in cholesterol and sphingolipids, ranging in size from 10 to 200 nm in diameter. These lipid-ordered domains may serve as platforms to facilitate colocalization of intracellular signaling proteins during agonist-induced signal transduction. It is hypothesized that fish oil will disrupt the lipid microdomains, increasing spatial distribution of these lipid-ordered domains and lateral mobility of the prostaglandin (PG) F2α (FP) receptors in bovine luteal cells. The objectives of this study were to examine the effects of fish oil on (1) the spatial distribution of lipid microdomains, (2) lateral mobility of FP receptors, and (3) lateral mobility of FP receptors in the presence of PGF2α on the plasma membrane of bovine luteal cells in vitro. Bovine ovaries were obtained from a local abattoir and corpora lutea were digested using collagenase. In experiment 1, lipid microdomains were labeled using cholera toxin subunit B Alexa Fluor 555. Domains were detected as distinct patches on the plasma membrane of mixed luteal cells. Fish oil treatment decreased fluorescent intensity in a dose-dependent manner (P < 0.01). In experiment 2, single particle tracking was used to examine the effects of fish oil treatment on lateral mobility of FP receptors. Fish oil treatment increased microdiffusion and macrodiffusion coefficients of FP receptors as compared to control cells (P < 0.05). In addition, compartment diameters of domains were larger, and residence times were reduced for receptors in fish oil–treated cells (P < 0.05). In experiment 3, single particle tracking was used to determine the effects of PGF2α on lateral mobility of FP receptors and influence of fish oil treatment. Lateral mobility of receptors was decreased within 5 min following the addition of ligand for control cells (P < 0.05). However, lateral mobility of receptors was unaffected by addition of ligand for fish oil–treated cells (P > 0.10). The data presented provide strong evidence that fish oil causes a disruption in lipid microdomains and affects lateral mobility of FP receptors in the absence and presence of PGF2α.
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