Needs-based family support – Perception, structures and challenges in practical implementation

such as low-threshold access to services. Beside structural framework conditions in context of family support, the question arises as to what extent the subjective perception of preventive family support is one more aspect of utilisation and to what extent preventive family support actually matches the needs of families. This Study asks as well what connotations and attitudes do families have regarding family support services? How important do families consider these offers and what are their needs? Based on a mixed-methods design, the Citizens’ Survey on Family Support was conducted by means of a standardised questionnaire in combination with interviews of family support users and non-users in order to elaborate deeper meaning structures through the qualitative analysis method of grounded theory. Summary survey results point out that family support in Germany includes a wide range of offers, which can promote a broad array of familial interests and competences, but not all families, diverse as they are, feel consciously addressed – or else they see obstacles to using family services. Our qualitative results point out that ‘family support’ as a term is neither clearly identified nor properly understood by many citizens – or else it has different connotations. However, those families who do use the services – within the framework of transitioning to parenthood – feel supported in their psychosocial adaptations and regulatory processes. In relation to results and as compared to other EU countries, practical implications for further developments in family support approaches are discussed

Comprehensive transcriptome analysis of the highly complex Pisum sativum genome using next generation sequencing

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The garden pea, <it>Pisum sativum</it>, is among the best-investigated legume plants and of significant agro-commercial relevance. <it>Pisum sativum </it>has a large and complex genome and accordingly few comprehensive genomic resources exist.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We analyzed the pea transcriptome at the highest possible amount of accuracy by current technology. We used next generation sequencing with the Roche/454 platform and evaluated and compared a variety of approaches, including diverse tissue libraries, normalization, alternative sequencing technologies, saturation estimation and diverse assembly strategies. We generated libraries from flowers, leaves, cotyledons, epi- and hypocotyl, and etiolated and light treated etiolated seedlings, comprising a total of 450 megabases. Libraries were assembled into 324,428 unigenes in a first pass assembly.</p> <p>A second pass assembly reduced the amount to 81,449 unigenes but caused a significant number of chimeras. Analyses of the assemblies identified the assembly step as a major possibility for improvement. By recording frequencies of Arabidopsis orthologs hit by randomly drawn reads and fitting parameters of the saturation curve we concluded that sequencing was exhaustive. For leaf libraries we found normalization allows partial recovery of expression strength aside the desired effect of increased coverage. Based on theoretical and biological considerations we concluded that the sequence reads in the database tagged the vast majority of transcripts in the aerial tissues. A pathway representation analysis showed the merits of sampling multiple aerial tissues to increase the number of tagged genes. All results have been made available as a fully annotated database in fasta format.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We conclude that the approach taken resulted in a high quality - dataset which serves well as a first comprehensive reference set for the model legume pea. We suggest future deep sequencing transcriptome projects of species lacking a genomics backbone will need to concentrate mainly on resolving the issues of redundancy and paralogy during transcriptome assembly.</p

Modified bibenzimidazole ligands as spectator ligands in photoactive molecular functional Ru-polypyridine units? Implications from spectroscopy

The photophysical properties of Ruthenium-bipyridine complexes bearing a bibenzimidazole ligand were investigated. The nitrogens on the bibenzimidazole-ligand were protected, by adding either a phenylene group or a 1,2-ethandiyl group, to remove the photophysical dependence of the complex on the protonation state of the bibenzimidazole ligand. This protection results in the bibenzimidazole ligand contributing to the MLCT transition, which is experimentally evidenced by (resonance) Raman scattering in concert with DFT calculations for a detailed mode assignment in the (resonance) Raman spectra

BRICS, the southern model, and the evolving landscape of development assistance: Toward a new taxonomy

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Comparative proteomics of chloroplasts envelopes from bundle sheath and mesophyll chloroplasts reveals novel membrane proteins with a possible role in C4-related metabolite fluxes and development

Manandhar-Shrestha K, Tamot B, Pratt EPS, et al. Comparative proteomics of chloroplasts envelopes from bundle sheath and mesophyll chloroplasts reveals novel membrane proteins with a possible role in C4-related metabolite fluxes and development. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2013;4: 65.As the world population grows, our need for food increases drastically. Limited amounts of arable land lead to a competition between food and fuel crops, while changes in the global climate may impact future crop yields. Thus, a second "green revolution will need a better understanding of the processes essential for plant growth and development. One approach toward the solution of this problem is to better understand regulatory and transport processes in C4 plants. C4 plants display an up to 10-fold higher apparent CO2 assimilation and higher yields while maintaining high water use efficiency. This requires differential regulation of mesophyll (M) and bundle sheath (BS) chloroplast development as well as higher metabolic fluxes of photosynthetic intermediates between cells and particularly across chloroplast envelopes. While previous analyses of overall chloroplast membranes have yielded significant insight, our comparative proteomics approach using enriched BS and M chloroplast envelopes of Zea mays allowed us to identify 37 proteins of unknown function that have not been seen in these earlier studies. We identified 280 proteins, 84% of which are known/predicted to be present in chloroplasts. Seventy-four percent have a known or predicted membrane association. Twenty-one membrane proteins were 2-15 times more abundant in BS cells, while 36 of the proteins were more abundant in M chloroplast envelopes. These proteins could represent additional candidates of proteins essential for development or metabolite transport processes in C4 plants. RT-PCR confirmed differential expression of 13 candidate genes. Chloroplast association for seven proteins was confirmed using YFP/GFP labeling. Gene expression of four putative transporters was examined throughout the leaf and during the greening of leaves. Genes for a PIC-like protein and an ER-AP-like protein show an early transient increase in gene expression during the transition to light. In addition, PIC gene expression is increased in the immature part of the leaf and was lower in the fully developed parts of the leaf, suggesting a need for/incorporation of the protein during chloroplast development

A remote secondary binding pocket promotes heteromultivalent targeting of DC-SIGN

Dendritic cells (DC) are antigen-presenting cells coordinating the interplay of the innate and the adaptive immune response. The endocytic C-type lectin receptors DC-SIGN and Langerin display expression profiles restricted to distinct DC subtypes and have emerged as prime targets for next-generation immunotherapies and anti-infectives. Using heteromultivalent liposomes copresenting mannosides bearing aromatic aglycones with natural glycan ligands, we serendipitously discovered striking cooperativity effects for DC-SIGN+ but not for Langerin+ cell lines. Mechanistic investigations combining NMR spectroscopy with molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations led to the identification of a secondary binding pocket for the glycomimetics. This pocket, located remotely of DC-SIGN’s carbohydrate bindings site, can be leveraged by heteromultivalent avidity enhancement. We further present preliminary evidence that the aglycone allosterically activates glycan recognition and thereby contributes to DC-SIGN-specific cell targeting. Our findings have important implications for both translational and basic glycoscience, showcasing heteromultivalent targeting of DCs to improve specificity and supporting potential allosteric regulation of DC-SIGN and CLRs in general

Queering Development? The Unsettling Geographies of South–South Cooperation

This paper deploys queer theory as a way of approaching South–South Cooperation (SSC). It examines the ways in which Southern development partners are not simply up-ending the long-standing spatialities, imaginaries and identities (re)produced through the mainstream international development regime, but queering terminologies and definitions, while presenting themselves in fluid ways, enrolling different identities and attributes in different places and to different audiences. At the same time, a queer lens reveals the (re)inscription of gendered, sexualised and racialised identities and hierarchies through the relationships, intimacies and practices of SSC. The paper proposes that queer theory can offer productive insights into the complex and compelling phenomenon of SSC, and the transgressive challenges to the postcolonial hierarchies and binaries of “traditional” international development

Domestication syndrome is investigated by proteomic analysis between cultivated cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) and its wild relatives

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) wild relatives remain a largely untapped potential for genetic improvement. However, the domestication syndrome phenomena from wild species to cultivated cassava remain poorly understood. The analysis of leaf anatomy and photosynthetic activity showed significantly different between cassava cultivars SC205, SC8 and wild relative M. esculenta ssp. Flabellifolia (W14). The dry matter, starch and amylose contents in the storage roots of cassava cultivars were significantly more than that in wild species. In order to further reveal the differences in photosynthesis and starch accumulation of cultivars and wild species, the globally differential proteins between cassava SC205, SC8 and W14 were analyzed using 2-DE in combination with MALDI-TOF tandem mass spectrometry. A total of 175 and 304 proteins in leaves and storage roots were identified, respectively. Of these, 122 and 127 common proteins in leaves and storage roots were detected in SC205, SC8 and W14, respectively. There were 11, 2 and 2 unique proteins in leaves, as well as 58, 9 and 12 unique proteins in storage roots for W14, SC205 and SC8, respectively, indicating proteomic changes in leaves and storage roots between cultivated cassava and its wild relatives. These proteins and their differential regulation across plants of contrasting leaf morphology, leaf anatomy pattern and photosynthetic related parameters and starch content could contribute to the footprinting of cassava domestication syndrome. We conclude that these global protein data would be of great value to detect the key gene groups related to cassava selection in the domestication syndrome phenomena