Self-Assembly and Conformation of Tetrapyridilporphyrin on the Ag(111) Surface

We present a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) study on the supramolecular ordering of tetrapyridyl-porphyrin (TPyP) molecules on Ag(111). Vapor deposition in a wide substrate temperature range reveals that TPyP molecules easily diffuse and self-assemble into large, highly ordered chiral domains. We identify two mirror-symmetric unit cells, each containing two differently oriented molecules. From an analysis of the respective arrangement it is concluded that lateral intermolecular interactions control the packing of the layer, while its orientation is induced by the coupling to the substrate. This finding is corroborated by molecular mechanics calculations. High-resolution STM images recorded at 15 K allow a direct identification of intramolecular features. This makes it possible to determine the molecular conformation of TPYP on Ag(111). The pyridyl groups are alternately rotated out of the porphyrin plane by an angle of 60°

Metodologias participativas: os media e a educação

"Livros LabCom. Pesquisas em comunicação"(Excerto) Este livro representa o corolário de mais de dois anos de trabalho num projeto de investigação ação-participação no qual a rádio e a internet se uniram para fomentar novos horizontes de cidadania, de diálogo e de aprendizagem fora da escola. Trata-se de uma coleção de textos com experiências e reflexões que ajudam a compreender melhor o potencial cívico e educativo de projetos que se apoiam nestas plataformas, que partilham estes objetivos de empoderamento social e que aplicam este tipo de metodologias. Efetivamente, as metodologias participativas podem facilitar processos de aprendizagem e de identificação positiva dos indivíduos envolvidos com os projetos (Brites et al., 2014a; Brites et al., 2014b; Santos et al., 2015), muito em especial quando é estimulada uma praxis e uma reflexão (Brites et al, 2014b; Brites et al. 2014c). A mediatização do mundo atual, consubstanciada em diversos formatos e com presença ubíqua, coadjuva o uso de ferramentas de mediatização que facilitam processos de integração, de cidadania e de ligação do individual ao colectivo

RadioActive Europe: promoting engagement, informal learning and employability of at risk and excluded people across Europe through internet radio and social media (RadioActive101)

RadioActive is an innovative education project that has developed and implemented a radical technology-enabled pedagogy to promote the inclusion, engagement and informal learning of excluded people, or those at-risk of exclusion, across Europe. It does this through harnessing primarily internet radio and also social media, or, as our motto states: "RadioActive101: Learning through radio, learning for life!" The project developed, implemented and is sustaining a pan-European Internet Radio platform, incorporating Web 2.0 ideas and features. This is linked to innovative community based pedagogies to address inclusion, employability and active citizenship in an original and exciting way, whilst recognising informal learning through electronic Open badges. The consortium was led by the University of East London (UK), with other partners from Portugal (CIMJ), Germany (UKL), the UK (Pontydysgu), Romania (ODIP) and Malta (KIC). These partners have direct links and ongoing collaborations with 13 primary Associate Partner organisations and a network of 39 mostly grass-roots organisations that facilitate access to the RadioActive101 participants, or 'radio-activists' as we define them. So the Associate Partners perform and deliver RadioActive 'on the ground' and are the vehicle for the learning experiences required for their production. These represent a particularly diverse range of groups and this was deliberate to allow us to test and refine our model, and show that it potentially works with virtually all excluded groups, and across Europe. We actively developed, implemented and ran five national RadioActive 'stations' (or hubs) that are accessible via the European Support Hub (ESH). Through making the radio shows the target groups (schools, vocational education, Higher Education, informal and adult education) are developing digital competencies and employability skills 'in vivo' that are transferable to the 21st Century workplace. These competencies and skills align with six of the EU Key Competencies for Lifelong Learning and we have developed a progression and accreditation model linking the key competencies to RadioActive activities and performances that are recognised through Open electronic 'badges'. These badges provide concrete recognition measures and represent proficiencies that are relevant to further education or employment in particular related to the knowledge and creative and digital industries. Evaluation findings were obtained through conducting a phased evaluation incorporating a full in depth ‘prototype’ evaluation in the UK during year one, a similar evaluation in Portugal and a smaller one in Germany in year two, that were followed by a broader and larger international survey of radio-activists (subjects) towards the end of the project. All these showed particularly positive and interesting results, such as the delivery of additional impact and value beyond the informal learning of technical and employability skills. Additionally, we found improvements in confidence, self-esteem and general self-efficacy of individuals, plus additional improvements in groups and organisations. It appears that once our excluded groups developed the confidence and competence to perform activities they often thought were beyond them, they seem then empowered, to learn many other things and to develop a number of key competencies. At the European and national levels we have produced an extensive amount of dissemination activities to make the RadioActive Europe project public and well known, and also won two additional funding awards towards the end of the project.Other exploitation activities include embedding locally and internationally, with the latter being realised through the establishment of an international Foundation that will also support and advise about funding models to support further expansion at the European level

RadioActive101 Practices

The RadioActive101 Practices publication is now complete (in both PDF and EPUB versions) following consultation with all our partners. The report contains many of the common practices developed and refined by participants and RadioActive researchers across this European partnership over the last two years. And there are several examples of the significant impact felt by some of the individuals who became ‘radio-activists’ along the way

Cannabinoid Receptor 2 Signaling Does Not Modulate Atherogenesis in Mice

BACKGROUND:Strong evidence supports a protective role of the cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB(2)) in inflammation and atherosclerosis. However, direct proof of its involvement in lesion formation is lacking. Therefore, the present study aimed to characterize the role of the CB(2) receptor in Murine atherogenesis. METHODS AND FINDINGS:Low density lipoprotein receptor-deficient (LDLR(-/-)) mice subjected to intraperitoneal injections of the selective CB(2) receptor agonist JWH-133 or vehicle three times per week consumed high cholesterol diet (HCD) for 16 weeks. Surprisingly, intimal lesion size did not differ between both groups in sections of the aortic roots and arches, suggesting that CB(2) activation does not modulate atherogenesis in vivo. Plaque content of lipids, macrophages, smooth muscle cells, T cells, and collagen were also similar between both groups. Moreover, CB(2) (-/-)/LDLR(-/-) mice developed lesions of similar size containing more macrophages and lipids but similar amounts of smooth muscle cells and collagen fibers compared with CB(2) (+/+)/LDLR(-/-) controls. While JWH-133 treatment reduced intraperitoneal macrophage accumulation in thioglycollate-elicited peritonitis, neither genetic deficiency nor pharmacologic activation of the CB(2) receptor altered inflammatory cytokine expression in vivo or inflammatory cell adhesion in the flow chamber in vitro. CONCLUSION:Our study demonstrates that both activation and deletion of the CB(2) receptor do not relevantly modulate atherogenesis in mice. Our data do not challenge the multiple reports involving CB(2) in other inflammatory processes. However, in the context of atherosclerosis, CB(2) does not appear to be a suitable therapeutic target for reduction of the atherosclerotic plaque

Educasting. Wie Podcasts in Bildungskontexten Anwendung finden

Das Wortgebilde "Educast" kombiniert Bildungs- bzw. Lernkontexte mit der Podcast-Technik. Beispiele für Educasts sind zum einen Vorlesungsmitschnitte in formalen Lernsituationen oder dokumentarisch orientierte (oft auch frei verfügbare) Audio- und Videoaufnahmen einzelner Events, die für Lehr- und Lernzwecke eingesetzt werden. Zum anderen findet die Erstellung von Podcasts in Bildungskontexten statt, mit dem Ziel der Förderung einer Medienkompetenz der Lernenden. Zunächst werden in diesem Kapitel Hinweise zur technischen Umsetzung von Educasts gegeben. Für pädagogische Kontexte sind didaktische und lerntheoretische Gestaltungsentscheidungen wesentlich. Daher wird die Nutzung von Educasts entsprechend verschiedener Lerntheorien erläutert sowie ihre didaktische Gestaltung in verschiedenen Lernszenarien mit Beispielen aus der Hochschule, Schule und außerschulischen Jugendbildung beschrieben, um die eigene Planung und Produktion von Educasts anzuregen. Ziel ist es, einen Blick über die traditionelle Instruktion hinaus zu wagen. Dabei wird die Nutzung von öffentlich verfügbarem Medienmaterial für Bildungskontexte aufgezeigt und erläutert wie Educasts im Sinne des konstruktivistischen Lernens von Lernenden selbst erstellt werden können. Als Gründe und Anlässe ihres Einsatzes werden abschließend Educast-Nutzungskontexte unter den Perspektiven von Medienkompetenzentwicklung, von selbstgesteuertem lebenslangem Lernen sowie von Lernen in institutionellen und nicht-institutionellen Kontexten veranschaulicht. (DIPF/Orig.

Zwitterionic self-assembly of L-methionine nanogratings on the Ag(111) surface

9The engineering of complex architectures from functional molecules on surfaces provides new pathways to control matter at the nanoscale. In this article, we present a combined study addressing the self-assembly of the amino acid L-methionine on Ag(111). Scanning tunneling microscopy data reveal spontaneous ordering in extended molecular chains oriented along high-symmetry substrate directions. At intermediate coverages, regular biomolecular gratings evolve whose periodicity can be tuned at the nanometer scale by varying the methionine surface concentration. Their characteristics and stability were confirmed by helium atomic scattering. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy and high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy data reveal that the L-methionine chaining is mediated by zwitterionic coupling, accounting for both lateral links and molecular dimerization. This methionine molecular recognition scheme is reminiscent of sheet structures in amino acid crystals and was corroborated by molecular mechanics calculations. Our findings suggest that zwitterionic assembly of amino acids represents a general construction motif to achieve biomolecular nanoarchitectures on surfaces.The engineering of complex architectures from functional molecules on surfaces provides new pathways to control matter at the nanoscale. In this article, we present a combined study addressing the self-assembly of the amino acid L-methionine on Ag(111). Scanning tunneling microscopy data reveal spontaneous ordering in extended molecular chains oriented along high-symmetry substrate directions. At intermediate coverages, regular biomolecular gratings evolve whose periodicity can be tuned at the nanometer scale by varying the methionine surface concentration. Their characteristics and stability were confirmed by helium atomic scattering. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy and high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy data reveal that the L-methionine chaining is mediated by zwitterionic coupling, accounting for both lateral links and molecular dimerization. This methionine molecular recognition scheme is reminiscent of sheet structures in amino acid crystals and was corroborated by molecular mechanics calculations. Our findings suggest that zwitterionic assembly of amino acids represents a general construction motif to achieve biomolecular nanoarchitectures on surfaces.reservedmixedA. SCHIFFRIN; A. RIEMANN; W. AUWARTER; Y. PENNEC; A. WEBER-BARGIONI; D. CVETKO; A. COSSARO; A. MORGANTE; JV. BARTHSchiffrin, A.; Riemann, A.; Auwarter, W.; Pennec, Y.; WEBER BARGIONI, A.; Cvetko, D.; Cossaro, A.; Morgante, Alberto; Barth, J. V

RADIOACTIVE101 - Practices

In keeping with the overarching RadioActive101 (RA101) spirit and ethos, this report is the product of collaborative and joined-up thinking from within the European consortium spread across five countries. As such, it is not simply a single voice reporting on the experiences and knowledge gained during the project. Rather it is a range of different voices, coming together to create a holistic picture. The reason for this is straightforward, because whilst RA101 engages those whose voices go unheard, the contexts in which this happens are unique to each partner country. It would not be possible to capture fully the rich and diverse experiences of each radio-activist in every country if this had been written from one country’s perspective. (DIPF/Orig.

Determination of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (Δ9-THCA-A) in whole blood and plasma by LC–MS/MS and application in authentic samples from drivers suspected of driving under the influence of cannabis

Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA-A) is the biosynthetic precursor of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in cannabis plants, and has no psychotropic effects. THCA-A can be detected in blood and urine, and several metabolites have been identified. THCA-A was also shown to be incorporated in hair by side stream smoke to a minor extent, but incorporation via blood stream or sweat seems unlikely. The detection of THCA-A in biological fluids may serve as a marker for differentiating between the intake of prescribed THC medication – containing only pure THC – and cannabis products containing THC besides THC-acid A and other cannabinoids. However, the knowledge about its usefulness in forensic cases is very limited. The aim of the present work was the development of a reliable method for THCA-A determination in human blood or plasma using LC–MS/MS and application to cases of driving under the influence of drugs. Fifty eight (58) authentic whole blood and the respective plasma samples were collected from drivers suspected of driving under the influence of cannabis from the region of Bern (Switzerland). Samples were first tested for THC, 11-OH-THC and THC-COOH, and then additionally for THCA-A. For this purpose, the existing LC–MS/MS method was modified and validated, and found to be selective and linear over a range of 1.0 to 200 ng/mL (the correlation coefficients were above 0.9980 in all validation runs). Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were 0.3 ng/mL and 1.0 ng/mL respectively. Intra- and inter-assay accuracy were equal or better than 90% and intra- and inter-assay precision were equal or better than 11.1%. The mean extraction efficiencies were satisfactory being equal or higher than 85.4%. THCA-A was stable in whole blood samples after 3 freeze/thaw cycles and storage at 4 °C for 7 days. Re-injection (autosampler) stability was also satisfactory. THC was present in all blood samples with levels ranging from 0.7 to 51 ng/mL. THCA-A concentrations ranged from 1.0 to 496 ng/mL in blood samples and from 1.4 to 824 ng/mL in plasma samples. The plasma:blood partition coefficient had a mean value of 1.7 (±0.21, SD). No correlation was found between the degree of intoxication or impairment stated in the police protocols or reports of medical examinations and the detected THCA-A-concentration in blood