Amyloids - A functional coat for microorganisms

Amyloids are filamentous protein structures ~10 nm wide and 0.1–10 µm long that share a structural motif, the cross-β structure. These fibrils are usually associated with degenerative diseases in mammals. However, recent research has shown that these proteins are also expressed on bacterial and fungal cell surfaces. Microbial amyloids are important in mediating mechanical invasion of abiotic and biotic substrates. In animal hosts, evidence indicates that these protein structures also contribute to colonization by activating host proteases that are involved in haemostasis, inflammation and remodelling of the extracellular matrix. Activation of proteases by amyloids is also implicated in modulating blood coagulation, resulting in potentially life-threatening complications.

A study of transitional virtual environments

Due to real world physical constraints (e.g. walls), experimenting a virtual reality phenomenon implies transitional issues from one virtual environment (VE) to another. This paper proposes an experiment which studies the relevance of smooth and imperceptible transitions from a familiar and pleasurable virtual environment to a similar workplace as a mean to avoid traumatic experiences in VR for trainees. Specifically, the hereby work assumes that the user conciousness regarding virtual environment transitions is a relevant indicator of positive user experience during those. Furthermore, serious games taking place in purely virtual environments have the advantage of coping with various workplace configurations and tasks that the trainee can practice. However, the virtual world of serious games should be carefully designed in order to avoid traumatic experiences for trainees. The results presented stem from an empirical evaluation of user experience conducted with 80 volunteers. This evaluation shows that more than one-third of the participants did not even notice the VE global change

Perceived indoor environment and occupants’ comfort in European “modern” office buildings: The OFFICAIR study

Indoor environmental conditions (thermal, noise, light, and indoor air quality) may affectworkers’ comfort, and consequently their health and well-being, as well as their productivity.This study aimed to assess the relations between perceived indoor environment and occupants’comfort, and to examine the modifying effects of both personal and building characteristics.Within the framework of the European project OFFICAIR, a questionnaire survey was administered to7441 workers in 167 “modern” office buildings in eight European countries (Finland, France, Greece,Hungary, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain). Occupants assessed indoor environmentalquality (IEQ) using both crude IEQ items (satisfaction with thermal comfort, noise, light, and indoorair quality), and detailed items related to indoor environmental parameters (e.g., too hot/coldtemperature, humid/dry air, noise inside/outside, natural/artificial light, odor) of their officeenvironment. Ordinal logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the relations betweenperceived IEQ and occupants’ comfort. The highest association with occupants’ overall comfort wasfound for “noise”, followed by “air quality”, “light” and “thermal” satisfaction. Analysis of detailedparameters revealed that “noise inside the buildings” was highly associated with occupants’ overallcomfort. “Layout of the offices” was the next parameter highly associated with overall comfort.The relations between IEQ and comfort differed by personal characteristics (gender, age, and theEffort Reward Imbalance index), and building characteristics (office type and building’s location).Workplace design should take into account both occupant and the building characteristics in order toprovide healthier and more comfortable conditions to their occupants.Indoor Environmen