The Effects of Constant Time Delay in Teaching Recognition of Braille Words

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the use of a constant time delay procedure to teach core content words in braille to a student with a visual impairment. A multiple probe (conditions) across behaviors design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the training and follow-up sessions. The results showed the procedure was effective in teaching core content braille words within a resource setting and the student was able to generalize the information to an inclusive setting

31st Annual Meeting and Associated Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC 2016) : part two

Background The immunological escape of tumors represents one of the main ob- stacles to the treatment of malignancies. The blockade of PD-1 or CTLA-4 receptors represented a milestone in the history of immunotherapy. However, immune checkpoint inhibitors seem to be effective in specific cohorts of patients. It has been proposed that their efficacy relies on the presence of an immunological response. Thus, we hypothesized that disruption of the PD-L1/PD-1 axis would synergize with our oncolytic vaccine platform PeptiCRAd. Methods We used murine B16OVA in vivo tumor models and flow cytometry analysis to investigate the immunological background. Results First, we found that high-burden B16OVA tumors were refractory to combination immunotherapy. However, with a more aggressive schedule, tumors with a lower burden were more susceptible to the combination of PeptiCRAd and PD-L1 blockade. The therapy signifi- cantly increased the median survival of mice (Fig. 7). Interestingly, the reduced growth of contralaterally injected B16F10 cells sug- gested the presence of a long lasting immunological memory also against non-targeted antigens. Concerning the functional state of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), we found that all the immune therapies would enhance the percentage of activated (PD-1pos TIM- 3neg) T lymphocytes and reduce the amount of exhausted (PD-1pos TIM-3pos) cells compared to placebo. As expected, we found that PeptiCRAd monotherapy could increase the number of antigen spe- cific CD8+ T cells compared to other treatments. However, only the combination with PD-L1 blockade could significantly increase the ra- tio between activated and exhausted pentamer positive cells (p= 0.0058), suggesting that by disrupting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis we could decrease the amount of dysfunctional antigen specific T cells. We ob- served that the anatomical location deeply influenced the state of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes. In fact, TIM-3 expression was in- creased by 2 fold on TILs compared to splenic and lymphoid T cells. In the CD8+ compartment, the expression of PD-1 on the surface seemed to be restricted to the tumor micro-environment, while CD4 + T cells had a high expression of PD-1 also in lymphoid organs. Interestingly, we found that the levels of PD-1 were significantly higher on CD8+ T cells than on CD4+ T cells into the tumor micro- environment (p < 0.0001). Conclusions In conclusion, we demonstrated that the efficacy of immune check- point inhibitors might be strongly enhanced by their combination with cancer vaccines. PeptiCRAd was able to increase the number of antigen-specific T cells and PD-L1 blockade prevented their exhaus- tion, resulting in long-lasting immunological memory and increased median survival

Freshwater phytoplankton diversity: models, drivers and implications for ecosystem properties

Our understanding on phytoplankton diversity has largely been progressing since the publication of Hutchinson on the paradox of the plankton. In this paper, we summarise some major steps in phytoplankton ecology in the context of mechanisms underlying phytoplankton diversity. Here, we provide a framework for phytoplankton community assembly and an overview of measures on taxonomic and functional diversity. We show how ecological theories on species competition together with modelling approaches and laboratory experiments helped understand species coexistence and maintenance of diversity in phytoplankton. The non-equilibrium nature of phytoplankton and the role of disturbances in shaping diversity are also discussed. Furthermore, we discuss the role of water body size, productivity of habitats and temperature on phytoplankton species richness, and how diversity may affect the functioning of lake ecosystems. At last, we give an insight into molecular tools that have emerged in the last decades and argue how it has broadened our perspective on microbial diversity. Besides historical backgrounds, some critical comments have also been mad

Desflorestamento na amazônia brasileira: ação coletiva, governança e governabilidade em área de fronteira Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon: colective action, governance and governability in boundary areas

Este trabalho tem como objetivo analisar o papel das políticas de ocupação e o uso dos recursos naturais da Amazônia e identificar em que medida essas políticas podem afetar o comportamento de determinados grupos em relação ao desflorestamento da região. Para tanto, apresenta os conceitos de capital social, ação coletiva, governança e governabilidade utilizados para tentar explicar o comportamento de alguns atores presentes na área de influência da rodovia BR-163 (Cuiabá-Santarém). Os resultados alcançados indicam que as políticas de controle do desflorestamento somente conseguirão influenciar o comportamento dos atores da região se houver uma ação mais efetiva do Estado, por meio da utilização de mecanismos de regulamentação. Essa ação deve levar em conta as relações de poder local e o reflexo delas sobre as taxas de desflorestamento. Finalmente, fica claro que o estabelecimento de instrumentos e incentivos econômicos capazes de interferir em comportamentos eminentemente individuais também deve ser parte de uma política de desenvolvimento regional.<br>The text analyzes settlement policies and land use processes in the Brazilian Amazon rain forest region and their relation with the evolution of regional deforestation rates. For that purpose, the concepts of social capital, collective action and governance were used to explain practices and activities carried out by selected actors present in the area of influence of the BR-163 highway (Cuiabá-Santarém). Results indicate that the success of these policies depends on the State's effective presence in the region, by means of the deployment of regulatory instruments. Also, these actions have to consider local power relationships and how they reflect themselves in Amazon deforestation rates. Finally, it is shown that the establishment of economic mechanisms and incentives could contribute to changing actors' individual behavior