Normal and abnormal development of visual functions in children

The human visual system goes through substantial changes during the first few months of postnatal life. The development of visual functions and structures occurs at different times and different rates. It has been a generally held belief that the development of visual functions and their critical period come to an end early in life. Most of the developmental data confirm this theory, although the findings sometimes are contradictory. Thus, our knowledge concerning visual development does not seem to be complete. The determination of exact timing of the different visual functions is relevant in children since a proved extended maturational timeframe can promote the trial of enhancement of visual abilities at a later age, up to puberty or beyond. There have already been suggestions for an extended developmental time span for some of the visual functions. Here we review the most relevant data with reference to the normal development of the eye, visual functions and visual pathways found in the literature and provide further evidence for the maturation and plasticity of visual functions after the age of 5 years

Distance learning as the new reality in tertiary education: a case study

The year 2020 was a horrible shock for both educators and students worldwide because of the COVID-19 disease. The whole educational process had to undergo cardinal changes in that it was forced to transition from face-to-face to online mode. Distance learning (DL) became the new reality in no time. This unusual situation prompted us to conduct research on what challenges it meant for tutors to cope with the new requirements. The main goal of our case study was to get insights into the altered daily routines of tutors and understand how the system functioned. Another objective of our survey was to provide a brief synthesis of distance learning, based on the academic literature. We have applied the qualitative research design, using a semi-structured interview as a research instrument for collecting data from the respondents. The research sample consisted of thirty-four college tutors teaching language and literature (English, German, Ukrainian, and Hungarian). The participants were requested to reply to eleven questions either online or face-to-face. The results proved how unexpected and difficult it was to move from the classroom to distance education. They emphasized how crucial digital literacy is for both instructors and students. One of the essential implications is that teachers must develop their digital skills in every possible way. The next stage of our research will be to investigate what impact DL has on teachers' and students' physical and psychological well-being

A Los Angeles és Duarte galaktóz-1-foszfát-uridil-transzferáz-variánsok allélgyakorisága a magyar populációban

Classical galactosaemia is an autosomal recessively inherited disorder caused by deficient activity of the enzyme galactose-1-phosphate uridyltransferase (GALT), which can be detected by newborn screening. The p.N314D mutation defines two variant forms of the GALT enzyme, the Los Angeles and Duarte, depending on the presence of additional base changes. Aim: The aim of our study was to analyze a healthy Hungarian population for the frequencies of the Los Angeles and Duarte galactose-1-phosphate uridyltransferase variant alleles. Methods: DNA samples from 100 subjects were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction, followed by digestion with restriction endonucleases. Results: The frequencies of the p.N314D, the Los Angeles and the Duarte variants were 11.5%, 2.5% and 9%, respectively. Conclusions: The allele frequencies of the Los Angeles and Duarte variant alleles in the Hungarian population correlate well with the allele frequencies in other healthy Caucasian populations

Environmental analysis of water and sediment samples in lake Mezőlak and Marcal river

Water quality and chemical conditions of sediment were analysed in this study in the case of two water bodies: Marcal River and Mezőlak Lakes. Three sampling points were designated for both the lakes and Marcal considering water flow directions. Of water and sediment samples taken from both water bodies nitate, ammonium, phosphate, sulphate, COD and heavy metal contents were determined. Vegetation cover, relief-geological and habitat features as well as environmental impacts were all taken into consideration during evaluation of the results. It has been found that nitrate and phosphate ion concentrations are below the threshold limits and that water is of good quality. In the case of COD effects of peat is traceable. Higher concentration of phosphate, nitrate and ammonium ion in Marcal River than in the lakes indicates anthropogenic impact. Heavy metal content of water and sediment proved to be lower than the threshold limit value and its concentration changes opposite to flow direction regarding river and lake sediments

Assessment of cardiometabolic risk among shift workers in Hungary

Aim: Shift workers may be at risk of different diseases. In order to assess cardiometabolic risk in shift workers, a cross-sectional study was performed among active workers. Methods: A total of 481 workers (121 men, 360 women) were investigated; most of them were employees in light industry (58.2%) or in public services (23.9%). Past medical history was recorded and physical examination was performed. Questionnaires were used to characterize daily activity. Fasting venous blood sample was collected for measuring laboratory parameters. Data from shift workers (n = 234, age: 43.9 ± 8.1 years) were compared to those of daytime workers (n = 247, age: 42.8 ± 8.5 years), men and women were analyzed separately. Results: In men, systolic blood pressure was higher in shift workers compared to daytime workers (133 ± 8 vs 126 ± 17 mmHg; p < 0.05). In women, weight (73.6 ± 15.5 vs 67.7 ± 13.2 kg; p < 0.001), body mass index (27.5 ± 5.7 vs 25.0 ± 4.3 kg/m2; p<0.001) and the prevalence rate of hypertension in the past medical history (24.4 vs 13.4%; p < 0.01) were higher in shift workers compared to daytime workers. In addition, the proportion of current smokers was higher (37.7 vs 21.7%; p < 0.001) and HDL-cholesterol level was lower (1.56 ± 0.32 vs 1.68 ± 0.36 mmol/l; p < 0.01) in female shift workers than in female daytime workers. Both in men and in women, rotating shift workers spent less time sleeping both on working days and on non-working days, spent less time with sport activity, drank more coffee and they spent less tim

Community Supported Agriculture as a Driver of Food-Related Well-Being

Background: There is a growing amount of research interest to understand the role of food in well-being. The demand for community supported agriculture (CSA), bringing people spatially, economically, and socially closer to food, is continuously expanding. CSAs play an important role in both sustainable agriculture practices and influencing consumers’ food-related practices, but yet have received little attention in well-being research. Methods: This study explores food-related well-being among CSA members by using an exploratory, qualitative research design and a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews. Results: The findings stress the relevance of psychological, social, and spiritual aspects of food-related well-being beyond the nutritional characteristics of food in CSA. Conclusion: The role of sustainable agriculture in contributing to food-related well-being becomes particularly evident based on consumers’ experiences. These results are important in convincing people that their food-related experiences belong to their perceived well-being as well as stimulating people to elevate their multidimensional expectations in relation to food

Rebiopszia és ismételt gefitinibkezeléssel elért remisszió tüdőrákban

The authors present a case of a 81-year-old non-smoker woman who was diagnosed with extended, bilateral bronchial adenocarcinoma in 2008. Two years later the tumor showed marked progression. EGFR sensitizing mutation (exon 19 deletion) was detected and gefitinib treatment was started in March 2010. After 12 months of spectacular and complete remission and 8 months of slow progression docetaxel therapy was applied and yielded partial remission. When progression redeveloped rebiopsy was performed and revealed EGFR exon 19 deletion again. Gefitinib retreatment was introduced in February 2013 and resulted in partial remission with excellent clinical status. In March, 2014 the patient is still on gefitinib treatment without any signs or symptoms of lung cancer but with very slow radiological progression. The authors overview the most important theoretical and practical questions regarding rebiopsy and retreatment in lung cancer with EGFR-TKI therapy

Az APRAE – egy franciaországi civil szervezet, amely elősegíti az AIDS-betegek társadalmi integrációját

Az APRAE-t a szociális ellátási rendszeren tátongó űr miatt hozták létre. Pályázati pénzekből – mind a civil társadalom, mind az állam forrásaira támaszkodva – tartja fenn magát