Not just another aspect of pleasure: Functionality as a distinct component of emotions

According to Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT, Ellis, 1985; Ellis & DiGiuseppe, 1993) functionality is the central criterion when distinguishing between adaptive and maladaptive emotions. Hereby, adaptive emotions signify appropriate responses to an eliciting event, whereas, maladaptive emotions signify inappropriate reactions. This research examines relevant characteristics of emotions (i.e., pleasure, arousal, duration, influence on life, and typicality) as potential predictors of functionality. In Study 1 (N= 96) using single item measures results indicated that pleasure and arousal had a significant predictive value on functionality, whereas the predictive value of the other dimensions was limited. Study 2 (N= 240) widely confirmed these results by using different psychometrically more reliable scales. In both studies all predictors explained less than 30% of the variance of functionality. Functionality should be regarded as a predominantly independent characteristic of emotions, which is partially associated with pleasure and arousal

Viral vectorology for gene therapy

Given the recent successes of in vivo gene therapy (for monogenetic diseases or oncolytic therapy), as well as the expanding search of ex-vivo gene therapy for cancer immunotherapy (ex, CAR-T), viral vectorology will need added R&D efforts for the next decade. As for mAbs, in the early nineties, the titers and quality of viruses as vectors are poor and thus costly to produce, requiring much improvement to substantially reduce costs of goods (COGs), similarly to what took place over the last two and a half decades, when mAb titers were improved over 70 times, through continuous process development. As for other areas of biotechnology, training is needed in basic understanding of molecular biology of the cell – virus interaction, analyticals and then upstream processes (in particular continuous – perfusion, as some viruses are highly labile) coupled with new ways of extraction and purification. Partnerships with companies developing the new tools, in particular based on single use options, while process development is carried out for early stage biotechnology companies, has been one of the back bones of iBET operation over the last twenty years. Thus, a discussion will be conducted on how “learning by doing” in R&D programmes, Ph.D.’s but also M.Sc., is critical to train those that will, hopefully, do for viral vectorology what took place recently for mAbs

Triggering secondary metabolite biosynthesis: exploring the effects of ionic liquids in fungal metabolism

Filamentous fungi are able to synthesise an array of small molecules (secondary metabolites), which are usually not essential for fungal growth but confer competitiveness. As a consequence, numerous secondary metabolites remain cryptic at the artificial conditions of cultivation in a research laboratory. Even in Aspergillus nidulans, one of the most well studied fungi, numerous metabolites remain unseen. Several strategies have been used to solve this knowledge gap, some of which require prior knowledge of genomic sequences, relying on manipulation of targeted genes encoding components of either secondary metabolism or regulatory pathways. Other approaches may be applied also in less well characterised strains, such as cultivation with other species/organisms or modification of the growth media composition. (...

Edukacja. Zaangażowanie między przeszłością, teraźniejszością i przyszłością

Education involves compromises, as well as balances, and involves pedagogical action by linking the world of doctrines with different realities (individuals, systems, representations). The teacher is not alone. He/she is made up of different layers that intertwine and make him/her a reflective element, fundamental for contemporary societies. When we talk about layers, we want to emphasize the importance of the multiple pedagogical, philosophical, social, historical, and cultural currents that affect teaching as well as social, reflective autonomous individuals, i.e. students. The layers that involve the professionalism of teachers come from different horizons (personal, academic, communities of practice) and have an influence on their actions. In this article there are presented some of the layers that affect the construction of the teaching profession centred on ethics, rigor, tradition and modernity. It is in this constant coming and going between the past and present, pedagogy is created in an increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world.Edukacja obejmuje kompromisy oraz równoważy i wykorzystuje działania pedagogiczne, łącząc świat doktryn z różnymi realiami (jednostki, systemy, reprezentacje). Nauczyciel nie jest sam. Składa się z różnych warstw, które przeplatają się i czynią z niego element refleksyjny, fundamentalny dla współczesnych społeczeństw. Mówiąc o warstwach, należy podkreślić znaczenie wielorakich nurtów pedagogicznych, fiozoficznych, społecznych, historycznych i kulturowych, które wpływają na nauczanie, a także społecznych, refleksyjnych, autonomicznych jednostek, czyli studentów. Warstwy angażujące profesjonalizm nauczycieli pochodzą z różnych horyzontów (osobistego, akademickiego, społeczności praktyków) i oddziałują na ich działania. W artykule przedstawiono niektóre z warstw, które wpływają na konstruowanie zawodu nauczyciela skoncentrowanego na etyce, rygorze, tradycji i nowoczesności. W tym nieustannym przechodzeniu między przeszłością a teraźniejszością pedagogika budowana jest w coraz bardziej niestabilnym, niepewnym, złożonym i niejednoznacznym świecie

Badania, internacjonalizacja i kształcenie nauczycieli w czasach pandemii – mikroetnograficzne badania

The need to reformulate teaching practices in the face of the methodological change related to COVID-19 forced educational researchers to shift the primary field of their research – the school and its actors – to a field still unknown to most, the virtual ground. The importance of listening to the subjects involved in the processes of learning of the teaching profession, with all the artefacts related to it – students, school space, principals, peers, families, and communities – forced the paradigm shift. Due to the pandemic, the ethnographic studies in education, rich in their interaction with the subjects, due to the pandemic, placed the researcher (participant observer) and the participant (subject involved and able to redirect the investigation) in a hybrid relationship in which physical presence began to be mediated and conditioned by the rules of the Ministries of Health of each country involved in the research. The physical presence of the researcher with the subjects, allows an understanding of their position in the space (classroom choreography) and their interaction/performance concerning the other (teacher, student, family, managers, community). This dynamic was altered by the impossibility of being present and by introducing the third interlocutor – a webcam used for online communications. Facing this challenge and bearing in mind the need to maintain the researcher’s relationship with the participants of the study, we share the research narrative provided so far. The aim of this paper is to observe/understand the influence of the pandemic on teaching practices, using different lenses to explore the hybrid interconnections. There were used microethnographic strategies in order to find out the opinions of the subjects involved in the research.Potrzeba przeformułowania praktyk nauczania w obliczu zmiany metodologii w efekcie pandemii COVID-19 zmusiła naukowców do przeniesienia ich podstawowego obszaru badań, czyli szkoły i jej aktorów, do dziedziny wciąż nieznanej większości – badań online. Znaczenie słuchania przedmiotów zaangażowanych w procesy uczenia się zawodu nauczyciela – ze wszystkimi artefaktami z nim związanymi: uczniami, przestrzenią szkolną, dyrektorami, rówieśnikami, rodzinami i społecznościami – wymusiło zmianę paradygmatu w badaniach. Badania etnograficzne w edukacji, bogate w interakcje z podmiotami, ze względu na pandemię umieściły badacza (uczestnika) i obserwowanego (podmiot zaangażowany i zdolny do przekierowania badania) w relacji hybrydowej, w której fizyczna obecność zaczęła być mediowana i uwarunkowana przepisami formułowanymi przez ministerstwa zdrowia każdego kraju zaangażowanego w badanie. Na terytorium każdego kraju badacze mają możliwość udania się na miejsce badania lub pozostania w domu. Fizyczna obecność badacza z badanymi pozwala zrozumieć ich pozycję w przestrzeni (choreografia w klasie) i ich interakcję/wydajność dotyczącą drugiego człowieka (nauczyciela, ucznia, rodziny, menedżerów, społeczności). Dynamika ta została zmieniona przez niemożność bycia obecnym i wejście na scenę tzw. trzeciego rozmówcy – kamery używanej do komunikacji online. W obliczu tego wyzwania i biorąc pod uwagę potrzebę utrzymania relacji badacza z przedmiotem badania, dzielimy się narracją uzyskaną w badaniach. Badania te miały na celu obserwację/zrozumienie wpływu pandemii na praktyki nauczania przy użyciu różnych metod w celu zbadania połączeń hybrydowych. Zastosowana metodologia ma charakter jakościowy. Autorzy wykorzystali w badaniach strategie mikroetnograficzne, aby uzyskać opinie osób badanych

The carbonatite-hosted apatite deposit of Jacupiranga, SE Brazil: styles of mineralization, ore characterization and association with mineral processing

The carbonatite-hosted apatite deposit of Jacupiranga is located in southeastern Brazil. The major styles of apatite mineralization are veins or veinlets, small pods or patches, disseminated apatite, and massive aggregates (locally). The concentration of apatite involves grinding of the carbonatite, removal of magnetite with a magnet drum, size classification with cyclones, and flotation to suppress carbonates and collect apatite. Samples of carbonatite were collected from more recent exposures of the mine and drill holes. This study utilized a variety of microscopy methods, namely transmitted and reflected light, cathodoluminescence (CL), and scanning electron microscopy (with wavelength-dispersive spectrometers for mineral compositions) --Abstract, page iii

Integrated strategies for the production, maturation and storage of functional cardiomyocytes derived from human pluripotent stem cells

The production of cardiomyocytes (CM) from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) holds great promise for cardiotoxicity drug testing, disease modeling and cardiac regeneration [1]. However, the complex nets of signalling pathways involved in cardiomyogenesis compromises the effectiveness of the existing differentiation protocols to reproducibly produce high-quality CM from hPSC (hPSC-CM). Produced hPSC-CM are immature compared with adult CMs, express typical fetal cardiac genes, have immature electrophysiological properties and use glucose as major energy source [2]. The applicability of hPSC-CM in the clinic/industry is also dependent on the development of efficient methods for worldwide shipment of these cells. In this study we aim to overcome these hurdles by devising an integrated strategy for scalable production, maturation and storage of functional hPSC-CM. hPSC (hiPSC and hESC lines) were cultured as aggregates in environmentally controlled bioreactors, where the necessary conditions to control stem cell fate are tightly tuned [3]. Dissolved oxygen and hydrodynamic forces were manipulated in order to improve CM differentiation yields [4]. CM differentiation was monitored using flow cytometry and qRT-PCR. Novel feeding strategies were tested aiming at improving hPSC-CM enrichment and maturation. We also evaluated the feasibility to cold store monolayers and aggregates of hPSC-CM using a clinical compatible preservation formulation. After storage the ultrastructure and functionality of the hPSC-CM were assessed by TEM and electrophysiology analyses. Our results showed that hypoxia and hydrodynamic forces affect cell differentiation towards functional CM. The bioreactor protocol herein described (i.e. the controlled hypoxic and specific hydrodynamic environment) improved PSC differentiation by enhancing culture homogeneity, process reproducibility, and CM productivities. Moreover, enhanced CM maturation was attained when hPSC-CM were cultured in glucose depleted media supplemented with fatty acids; hPSC-CM showed a more elongated structure with organized sarcomeric pattern and displayed higher expression of genes responsible for contraction, calcium handling and electrophysiology. Noteworthy, using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis and 13C labeled subtracts we showed that hPSC-CM use fatty acid β-oxidation as energy source, a typical feature of adult CMs. At the end, we showed that monolayers of hPSC-CM and cardiospheres can be stored up to 7 days at hypothermic conditions without compromising cell viability, morphology and electrophysiological properties. This work describes significant advances towards mass production of mature hPSC-CM and their short-term storage, meeting some of the needs of the cardiac regenerative medicine market and industrial field

Zastosowanie metod terapii tańcem/ruchem u dzieci z zaburzeniami ze spektrum autyzmu jako czynników ułatwiających kreatywny ruch i komunikację niewerbalną

In the article there were presented the results of research conducted among the children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), aged 4–7, in which there were used dance/movement therapy methods to promote creative movement and nonverbal communication. The research was based on works by different authors. They focused on the dynamics of development in childhood and dance/movement therapy in articulation with pedagogical methods for pupils with ASD. By observing and recording the sessions, it was possible to identify a qualitative evolution of nonverbal communication and creative movement in the participants. Based on the conducted research it was concluded that further studies using dance/movement therapy should be provided to identify and confirm the expansion and consistency of the evolution of creative movement.W artykule przedstawiono wyniki badań przeprowadzonych wśród dzieci z zaburzeniami ze spektrum autyzmu (ASD) w wieku 4–7 lat, w których zastosowano metody terapii tańcem/ruchem w celu promowania kreatywnego ruchu i komunikacji niewerbalnej. Badanie oparto na pracach różnych autorów, w tym odwołujących się do dynamiki rozwoju w dzieciństwie i terapii tańcem/ruchem w artykulacji metodami pedagogicznymi wprowadzonymi u uczniów z ASD. Obserwując i rejestrując sesje, można było zidentyfikować jakościową ewolucję niewerbalnej komunikacji i kreatywnego ruchu u uczestników. Na podstawie przeprowadzonych badań stwierdzono, że należy przeprowadzić dalsze badania z wykorzystaniem terapii tańcem/ruchem w celu zidentyfikowania i potwierdzenia ekspansji i spójności ewolucji ruchu twórczego

Patient involvement in psychological therapies for substance misuse: towards a personalised outcome measurement

Patient involvement with healthcare provision is limited, particularly in treatment outcomes measurement. This is even more critical in substance misuse treatment, where patients tend to be stigmatised and their perspectives devalued. There are calls for a paradigm shift towards a greater patient involvement and personalisation of outcome measurement in substance misuse treatment. Responding to such call, this project implemented an idiographic outcome measurement approach in substance misuse treatment, through the use of individualised patient-reported outcome measures (I-PROMS). Unlike the traditional nomothetic method, which relies on standardised measures with pre-set items, I-PROMS are tailor-made tools with items created by patients, in their own words. I-PROMS do not only increase patient involvement with outcome measurement, by asking patients to actively contribute for the generation of items, but also permit a personalisation of measurement by focusing on topics of relevance for each individual case. The findings of our five articles showed that patients welcomed the freedom provided by I-PROMS to express their personal concerns, mainly in the presence of their therapists. I-PROMS allowed the identification of qualitative information that standardised measures targeting general psychological distress and drug-related problems missed to capture. On psychometrics, I-PROMS produced good reliable scores but were not strongly correlated with standardised outcome measures. Overall, our project suggests that, in substance misuse treatment, I-PROMS are a potential strategy to successfully increase patient involvement with outcome measurement and to personalise the evaluation of treatment outcomes. The combined use of I-PROMS with standardised measures is recommended for optimal results.O envolvimento dos pacientes com a prestação de cuidados de saúde é limitado, em particular na avaliação dos resultados do tratamento. Esta situação torna-se mais crítica na área do tratamento para a dependência de substâncias, onde os pacientes tendem a ser estigmatizados e as suas perspectivas desvalorizadas. A comunidade científica tem apelado para uma mudança paradigmática no sentido de um maior envolvimento dos pacientes e uma maior personalização da avaliação do tratamento para a dependência de substâncias. Respondendo directamente a tal apelo, este projecto implementou uma estratégia idiográfica de avaliação do tratamento, através do uso de medidas individualizadas de avaliação dos seus resultados (I-PROMS, do inglês individualised patient-reported outcome measures). Contrariamente ao método tradicional nomotético, que se baseia em medidas estandardizadas com itens pré-definidos, as I-PROMS são instrumentos feitos à medida do paciente com itens criados por si, nas suas próprias palavras. As I-PROMS não só aumentam o envolvimento dos pacientes com a avaliação do tratamento, ao permitirem que os pacientes contribuam activamente para a criação dos itens, como também personalizam a avaliação ao atender aos aspectos que são relevantes para cada caso individual. Os resultados obtidos nos cinco artigos demonstram que os pacientes apreciam a liberdade dada pelas I-PROMS para expressar os seus problemas pessoais, principalmente na presença dos seus terapeutas. As I-PROMS possibilitaram a identificação de informação qualitativa que as medidas estandardizadas focadas no sofrimento psicológico ou na dependência de substâncias não conseguiram captar. A nível psicométrico, as I-PROMS produziram avaliações (scores) fiáveis para quantificar o sofrimento dos pacientes, mas não se correlacionaram fortemente com as medidas estandardizadas. Em suma, o nosso projecto sugere que, no tratamento para a dependência de substâncias, as I-PROMS são uma estratégia potencialmente bem-sucedida para aumentar o envolvimento dos pacientes com a avaliação do tratamento e para personalizar a avaliação dos seus resultados. O uso combinado de I-PROMS com medidas estandardizadas é recomendado para uma maior optimização dos resultados