Proportional Reasoning Instruction: A Cognitively Guided Approach to Professional Development

Content-specific cognitively guided instruction (CGI) professional development programs have been shown to lead to positive changes in instruction in the elementary grades. This paper presents the results of a study that investigates how teachers use new knowledge gained from a CGI professional development workshop, on proportional reasoning in the middle grades, to inform their instructional decisions. Four teachers’ instruction and their rationales for their instructional decisions were examined before and after the workshop intervention. All four teachers’ instruction changed to become more cognitively guided

Changes in One Teacher\u27s Proportional Reasoning Instruction after Participating in a CGI Professional Development Workshop

This study examined how one teacher used research-based knowledge of how adolescents think about proportions. Observations, interviews, document collection, and a workshop intervention were utilized. The design of the workshop was inspired by the cognitively guided instruction studies and its purpose was to explore the research findings on adolescents\u27 thinking about proportions. An individual case study was created to describe the teacher\u27s instruction related to proportion concepts, rationales for instructional decisions, beliefs, and changes in all of these areas after participating in the workshop intervention. The case presented here shows positive changes in the teacher\u27s instruction and beliefs after the workshop

Prospective Teachers\u27 Considerations During the Lesson Planning Process

This paper presents an action research project completed in a mathematics methods course for prospective elementary school teachers. The goal was to determine if instructional practices were effective at preparing teachers to use students’ thinking to inform instructional decisions. The teachers’ ability to predict students’ strategies and the teachers’ considerations during the planning process were investigated. The teachers selected a task involving the comparison of ratios, anticipated students’ strategies for completing the task, and explained their rationale. The prospective teachers effectively predicted students’ strategies; however, those student strategies were not a consideration during the task selection process for the majority

Nature Connectedness Moderates the Effect of Nature Exposure on Explicit and Implicit Measures of Emotion

Previous research indicates that both short-term and long-term exposure to natural environments is associated with higher levels of emotional well-being. However, less research has examined whether person-related factors may impact the salutogenic effects of nature. In the current study, we examined whether trait-level nature connectedness moderates the effect of exposure to nature on explicit and implicit measures of affect. Participants (n = 89) completed baseline measurements of trait nature connectedness and affective state. Approximately two weeks later, participants viewed a lab-based immersive simulation of either a natural or built environment and then again completed measures of affective state. Findings indicated that trait nature connectedness moderated the effect of nature on affect, with more positive outcomes of nature exposure observed among those high in nature connectedness. These findings suggest that interacting with nature may be especially beneficial for those who already feel a strong sense of connectedness to the natural environment

Designing a functional rice muffin formulated with prebiotic oligosaccharides and sugar reduction

Innovation of pastry products towards higher nutritional and commercial value remains a challenge to the growing field of healthy food. In this study, the prebiotic supplementation and sugar reduction were explored in a widely consumed pastry product with a low level of innovation. The prebiotic potential of commercial agave inulin and galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) was evaluated and compared by an in vitro model using human fecal inocula. Rice muffins containing 100% of sugar or 75% of sugar supplemented with 0.8% GOS were produced and compared with commercial rice muffins regarding their physical and textural properties. GOS fermentation led to the highest production of lactate and short-chain fatty acids, besides the most significant reduction of the final pH value and of the ammonia and methane production. Inulin presented a higher selectivity towards Lactobacillaceae (51 ± 1% of all), while GOS are more efficient to stimulate Bifidobacteriaceae growth (65 ± 7% of all).This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 unit and BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER000004) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte; COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684), FoSynBio (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029549) and NewFood (NORTE-01-0246-FEDER000043). CA and BBC acknowledge their grants (UMINHO/BPD/4/2019 and SFRH/BD/132324/2017) from FCT. RM acknowledges the financial support to the Xunta de Galicia and FEDER by the project (EDD431B 2019/01).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Esophageal diverticulum: a case report

Esophagic diverticulum’s are a rare entity. The prevalence in the world population is reported to be less than 1%. They are generally diagnosed incidentally, have a higher peak of prevalence in the fifth decade of life, affecting men and women equally. The most common esophageal diverticula are epiphrenic and the main symptom is usually dysphagia. A case of a 74-year-old female with diagnosis of epiphrenic esophageal diverticulum is reported, which is treated with conservative management. The objective of this study was to describe a clinical case of esophageal diverticulum, as well as its etiology, clinical presentation, and therapeutic conduct. The screening of these patients must be focused on what the literature indicates, symptomatic patients with long-term evolution, the treatment will be surgical and with minimally invasive techniques so clinical evolution will be more favorable, reducing possible complications

Contributions of h- and Na+ /K+ pump currents to the generation of episodic and continuous rhythmic activities

Authors acknowledge studentships from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC-PGS-D: SS); Alberta Innovates (AIHS: SS and AL); Hotchkiss Brain Institute (SS and AL); and the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (LY). This research was supported by grants from the Canadian Institute of Health Research (PW); an NSERC Discovery grant (PW); and National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke 1 R21 NS111355 (GC and Ronald L. Calabrese).Developing spinal motor networks produce a diverse array of outputs, including episodic and continuous patterns of rhythmic activity. Variation in excitability state and neuromodulatory tone can facilitate transitions between episodic and continuous rhythms; however, the intrinsic mechanisms that govern these rhythms and their transitions are poorly understood. Here, we tested the capacity of a single central pattern generator (CPG) circuit with tunable properties to generate multiple outputs. To address this, we deployed a computational model composed of an inhibitory half-center oscillator (HCO). Following predictions of our computational model, we tested the contributions of key properties to the generation of an episodic rhythm produced by isolated spinal cords of the newborn mouse. The model recapitulates the diverse state-dependent rhythms evoked by dopamine. In the model, episodic bursting depended predominantly on the endogenous oscillatory properties of neurons, with Na+/K+ ATPase pump (IPump) and hyperpolarization-activated currents (Ih) playing key roles. Modulation of either IPump or Ih produced transitions between episodic and continuous rhythms and silence. As maximal activity of IPump decreased, the interepisode interval and period increased along with a reduction in episode duration. Decreasing maximal conductance of Ih decreased episode duration and increased interepisode interval. Pharmacological manipulations of Ih with ivabradine, and IPump with ouabain or monensin in isolated spinal cords produced findings consistent with the model. Our modeling and experimental results highlight key roles of Ih and IPump in producing episodic rhythms and provide insight into mechanisms that permit a single CPG to produce multiple patterns of rhythmicity.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Novel Graphene Electrode for Retinal Implants: An in vivo Biocompatibility Study

Evaluating biocompatibility is a core essential step to introducing a new material as a candidate for brain-machine interfaces. Foreign body reactions often result in glial scars that can impede the performance of the interface. Having a high conductivity and large electrochemical window, graphene is a candidate material for electrical stimulation with retinal prosthesis. In this study, non-functional devices consisting of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) graphene embedded onto polyimide/SU-8 substrates were fabricated for a biocompatibility study. The devices were implanted beneath the retina of blind P23H rats. Implants were monitored by optical coherence tomography (OCT) and eye fundus which indicated a high stability in vivo up to 3 months before histology studies were done. Microglial reconstruction through confocal imaging illustrates that the presence of graphene on polyimide reduced the number of microglial cells in the retina compared to polyimide alone, thereby indicating a high biocompatibility. This study highlights an interesting approach to assess material biocompatibility in a tissue model of central nervous system, the retina, which is easily accessed optically and surgically.This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 785219 (GrapheneCore2) and No. 881603 (GrapheneCore3). DN has received funding from the doctoral school of Cerveau, cognition, comportement (3C) of Sorbonne Université. SP was also supported by the French state funds managed by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche within the Programme Investissements d’Avenir, LABEX LIFESENSES (ANR-10-LABX-65) and IHU FOReSIGHT (ANR-18-IAHU-0001). This work has made use of the Spanish ICTS Network MICRONANOFABS partially supported by MICINN and the ICTS ‘NANBIOSIS,’ more specifically by the Micro-NanoTechnology Unit of the CIBER in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN) at the IMB-CNM

Association of myostatin, a cytokine released by muscle, with inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis

Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Fondo de Investigacion en Salud, FIS/IMSS/PROT/MD16/1565Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text Myostatin is a cytokine produced and released by myocytes that might have an outstanding role not only in muscle wasting during cachexia but also in inflammation. Herein we explore the association between myostatin levels and inflammatory parameters in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). One hundred twenty-seven women without rheumatic diseases and 84 women with a diagnosis of RA were assessed in a cross-sectional study. Outcomes reflecting the activity of the arthritis including Disease Activity Score (DAS28-ESR) and impairment in functioning by the Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index were assessed in RA. We obtained Skeletal muscle mass index (SMI), fat-free mass index (FFMI), and fat mass index using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Serum myostatin was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Myostatin levels were correlated with disease activity and parameters of muscle mass. The SMI was lower and concentration of myostatin was higher in RA patients than in controls (P = .008 and P < .001, respectively). Myostatin significantly positively correlated with C-reactive protein (rho = 0.48, P < .001), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (rho = 0.28, P = .009), and DAS28-ESR (rho = 0.22, P = .04), and negatively correlated with SMI (rho = −0.29, P = .008), (FFMI) (rho = −0.24, P = .027). In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, levels of myostatin remained associated with disease activity in RA (P = .027). In our study, myostatin was associated with disease activity in RA patients, suggesting a mechanistic link between myostatin, muscle wasting and inflammation in RA

Ubiquitous neurocognitive dysfunction in familial adenomatous polyposis: proof-of-concept of the role of APC protein in neurocognitive function

Background: Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by germline mutations in the APC gene. Patients with FAP have multiple extraintestinal manifestations that follow a genotype-phenotype pattern; however, few data exist characterizing their cognitive abilities. Given the role of the APC protein in development of the central nervous system, we hypothesized that patients with FAP would show differences in cognitive functioning compared to controls. Methods: Matched case-control study designed to evaluate cognitive function using the Test of Nonverbal Intelligence-4, the Bateria III Woodcock-Munoz, and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functions-Adult. Twenty-six individuals with FAP (mean age = 34.2 +/- 15.0 years) and 25 age-gender and educational level matched controls (mean age = 32.7 +/- 13.8 years) were evaluated. Results: FAP-cases had significantly lower IQ (p = 0.005). Across all tasks of the Bateria III Woodcock-Munoz, FAP-cases performed significantly lower than controls, with all of the summary scores falling in the bottom quartile compared to controls (p \u3c 0.0001). Patients with FAP scored within the deficient range for Long-Term Retrieval and Cognitive Fluency. Conclusion: APC protein has an important role in neurocognitive function. The pervasive nature of the observed cognitive dysfunction suggests that loss or dysfunction of the APC protein impacts processes in cortical and subcortical brain regions. Additional studies examining larger ethnically diverse cohorts with FAP are warranted