”Kukaan lapsi ei käyttäydy haastavasti tarkoituksella, vaan kaikelle löytyy selittävä tekijä.”:varhaiskasvatuksen ammattilaisten kokemuksia haastavista kasvatustilanteista

Tiivistelmä. Varhaiskasvatusikäisten lasten haastavasta käyttäytymisestä on uutisoitu viime vuosina paljon ja haastavat kasvatustilanteet kuormittavat työntekijöitä. Haluamme tutkia aihetta sen ajankohtaisuuden ja tärkeyden vuoksi. Haastavaksi koetun käyttäytymisen taustalla on usein lapsen sosioemotionaalinen tuen tarve, joka voi ilmetä eksternalisoivasti ja internalisoivasti. Tässä tutkimuksessa lapsen haastavalla käyttäytymisellä tarkoitetaan aggressiivista, uhmakasta, levotonta ja vetäytyvää käyttäytymistä. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena on selvittää, millaisia kokemuksia varhaiskasvatuksen ammattilaisilla on haastavista kasvatustilanteista. Haluamme tutkia, miten lasten haastavaksi koettu käyttäytyminen ilmenee, mitä tekijöitä sen taustalla koetaan olevan sekä millaista tukea varhaiskasvatuksen ammattilaiset kokevat tarvitsevansa työssään kohdatessaan haastavia kasvatustilanteita. Pohjustamme tutkimusta kuvaamalla lapsen sosioemotionaalista kehitystä ja siihen liittyvää tuen tarpeen ilmenemistä sekä ammattilaisen roolia näissä tilanteissa. Tutkimus on toteutettu monimenetelmäisesti hyödyntäen sekä laadullista että määrällistä tutkimusotetta mahdollisimman monipuolisten tulosten saavuttamiseksi. Tutkimusaineisto kerättiin sähköisen kyselylomakkeen avulla ja se koostuu varhaiskasvatuksen ammattilaisten (n=74) kokemuksiin perustuvista vastauksista. Laadullinen aineisto analysoitiin sisällönanalyysiä käyttäen, minkä lisäksi määrällinen aineisto koostettiin vertailemalla aineiston frekvenssi- ja prosenttijakaumia. Tutkimuksen mukaan enemmistö varhaiskasvatuksen ammattilaisista kohtaa haastavia kasvatustilanteita päivittäin tai lähes joka päivä. Vastaajien kokemusten perusteella levotonta käyttäytymistä kohdataan selkeästi eniten. Tulosten mukaan haastavia kasvatustilanteita esiintyy eri konteksteissa, joista yleisimmäksi koettiin siirtymätilanteet. Niiden taustalla vaikuttavat yksilö- ja ympäristötekijöitä, kuten lapsen tuen tarve, perhetilanne, ammattilaisen osaaminen ja asenne sekä resurssitekijät. Ammattilaisten kokemusten mukaan haastaviin kasvatustilanteisiin tarvitaan monenlaista tukea.“No child behaves in a challenging way without a reason, there is an explanatory factor for everything.” : early childhood professionals’ experiences of challenging behaviour of children in early childhood education. Abstract. The challenging behaviour of children in early childhood education has been in the news a lot in recent years and challenging situations are a burden on early childhood education professionals. We want to research this topic because of its topicality and importance. Challenging behaviour is often driven by a child’s need for socio-emotional support, which can manifest itself in externalising and internalising ways. In this study, challenging behaviour in children is defined as aggressive, defiant, agitated and withdrawn behaviour. The aim of the study is to explore the experiences of early childhood professionals in challenging situations. We want to explore how children’s behaviour is perceived as challenging, what factors are perceived to be behind it and what support early childhood professionals feel they need in their work when faced with challenging educational situations. We base our research on a description of children’s socio-emotional development and the related need for support, as well as the role of professionals in these situations. The research is multi-methodological, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods to achieve the most diverse results possible. The research material was collected through an electronic questionnaire and consists of responses based on the experiences of early childhood education professionals (n=74). The qualitative data were analysed using content analysis, and the quantitative data were compiled by comparing frequency and percentage distributions of the data. According to the results of the survey, the majority of early childhood professionals face challenging educational situations every day or almost every day. Based on the experiences of the respondents, agitated behaviour is by far the most common. According to the results, these situations occur in a variety of settings, the most common of which was perceived as transitional situations. These are driven by individual and environmental factors such as the child’s need for support, the family situation, the professional’s skills and attitude, and resources. Professionals’ experience shows that a wide range of support is needed in challenging situations in early childhood education

Autismikirjon lapsen tukeminen varhaiskasvatuksessa

Tiivistelmä. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on eritellä millä tavoin autismikirjo ilmenee ja tuoda esiin erilaisia autismikirjon lapsen tukemisen keinoja varhaiskasvatuksessa. Haluamme lisätä varhaiskasvatuksen opettajien tietoisuutta autismikirjosta sekä tukimenetelmistä, jotka sopivat käytettäväksi varhaiskasvatuksen kontekstissa lasten kanssa, joilla on autismikirjon piirteitä tai saatu diagnoosi. Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys rakentuu neljästä pääkäsitteestä, joita ovat autismikirjo, lapsen tukeminen varhaiskasvatuksessa, autismikirjon lapsen tukeminen sekä yhteistyö osana lapsen tukea. Autismikirjon kappaleessa syvennymme diagnoosiin ja autismikirjoon kuuluviin piirteisiin. Lisäksi käsittelemme autismikirjon historiaa ja sen nykytilaa, autismikirjon ilmenemistä ja esiintyvyyttä sekä nostamme esiin mielenteorian yhteyden autismiin. Tutkimuksessamme tuomme esiin varhaiskasvatuksen kehityksen ja oppimisen tukemisen keinoja sekä erilaisia menetelmiä tukea autismikirjon lasta varhaiskasvatuksessa. Avaamme myös yhteistyön merkitystä osana lapsen tukemista. Tutkimus on luonteeltaan laadullinen tutkimus ja se on toteutettu kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena. Kuvailevan kirjallisuuskatsauksen avulla tarkoituksenamme on tarjota lukijalle yleiskatsaus käsiteltävästä aiheesta. Tutkimuksen pohjalta päädyimme johtopäätökseen siitä, että autismikirjon oireiden ja tuen tarpeiden vaihdellessa yksilöllisesti, varhaiskasvatukseen tarvitaan tietoa erilaisista tukimenetelmistä. Aiemman kirjallisuuden ja tutkimusten pohjalta tutkimukseemme valikoitui kolme tukemisen menetelmää, joita ovat puhetta tukevat ja korvaavat menetelmät, arjen strukturointi ja vahvuuksien huomiointi. Tuomme esiin myös muita autismikirjon lapsen tukemiseen soveltuvia kuntoutusmenetelmiä, joita voidaan käyttää varhaiskasvatuksessa

Palmitate and thapsigargin have contrasting effects on ER membrane lipid composition and ER proteostasis in neuronal cells

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is an organelle that performs several key functions such as protein synthesis and folding, lipid metabolism and calcium homeostasis. When these functions are disrupted, such as upon protein misfolding, ER stress occurs. ER stress can trigger adaptive responses to restore proper functioning such as activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR). In certain cells, the free fatty acid palmitate has been shown to induce the UPR. Here, we examined the effects of palmitate on UPR gene expression in a human neuronal cell line and compared it with thapsigargin, a known depletor of ER calcium and trigger of the UPR. We used a Gaussia luciferase-based reporter to assess how palmitate treatment affects ER proteostasis and calcium ho-meostasis in the cells. We also investigated how ER calcium depletion by thapsigargin affects lipid membrane composition by performing mass spectrometry on subcellular fractions and compared this to palmitate. Sur-prisingly, palmitate treatment did not activate UPR despite prominent changes to membrane phospholipids. Conversely, thapsigargin induced a strong UPR, but did not significantly change the membrane lipid composition in subcellular fractions. In summary, our data demonstrate that changes in membrane lipid composition and disturbances in ER calcium homeostasis have a minimal influence on each other in neuronal cells. These data provide new insight into the adaptive interplay of lipid homeostasis and proteostasis in the cell.Peer reviewe

PLS3 sequencing in childhood-onset primary osteoporosis identifies two novel disease-causing variants

The Summary Altogether 95 children with primary bone fragility were screened for variants in PLS3, the gene underlying X-linked osteoporosis. Two children with multiple peripheral and spinal fractures and low BMD had novel disease-causing PLS3 variants. Children with milder phenotypes had no pathogenic variants. PLS3 screening is indicated in childhood-onset primary osteoporosis. Introduction The study aimed to determine the role of pathogenic PLS3 variants in children's bone fragility and to elucidate the associated phenotypic features. Methods Two cohorts of children with bone fragility were screened for variants in PLS3, the gene underlying X-linked osteoporosis. Cohort I comprised 31 patients with childhood-onset primary osteoporosis of unknown etiology. Cohort II comprised 64 children who had sustained multiple fractures but were otherwise healthy. Clinical and radiological data were reviewed. Peripheral blood DNA was Sanger sequenced for coding exons and flanking intronic regions of PLS3. Results In two patients of cohort I, where other common genetic causes had been excluded, we identified two novel disease-causing PLS3 variants. Patient 1 was a male with bilateral femoral fractures at 10 years, low BMD (Z-score -4.1; 18 years), and multiple vertebral compression fractures. He had a novel nonsense variant in PLS3. Patient 2 was a girl with multiple long bone and vertebral fractures and low BMD (Z-score -6.6 at 6 years). She had a de novo missense variant in PLS3; whole exome sequencing and array-CGH identified no other genetic causes. Iliac crest bone biopsies confirmed low-turnover osteoporosis in both patients. In cohort II, no pathogenic PLS3 variants were identified in any of the subjects. Conclusion Two novel disease-causing variants in PLS3 were identified in a boy and a girl with multiple peripheral and spinal fractures and very low BMD while no pathogenic variants were identified in children with less severe skeletal fragility. PLS3 screening is warranted in male and female patients with childhood-onset primary osteoporosis.Peer reviewe

Adrenal androgens versus cortisol for primary aldosteronism subtype determination in adrenal venous sampling

Objective: We examined if measurement of adrenal androgens adds to subtype diagnostics of primary aldosteronism (PA) under cosyntropin-stimulated adrenal venous sampling (AVS).Design: A prospective pre-specified secondary endpoint analysis of 49 patients with confirmed PA, of whom 29 underwent unilateral adrenalectomy with long-term follow-up.Methods: Concentrations of androstenedione, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS) were measured during AVS in addition to aldosterone and cortisol. Subjects with lateralisation index (LI) of ≥4 were treated with unilateral adrenalectomy, and the immunohistochemical subtype was determined with CYP11B2 and CYP11B1 stains. The performance of adrenal androgens was evaluated by receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analyses in adrenalectomy and medical therapy groups.Results: During AVS, the correlations between cortisol and androstenedione, DHEA and DHEAS for LI and selectivity index (SI) were highly significant. The right and left side SIs for androstenedione and DHEA were higher (p Conclusions: Under cosyntropin-stimulated AVS, the measurement of androstenedione and DHEA did not improve the cannulation selectivity. The performance of cortisol and adrenal androgens are confirmatory but not superior to cortisol-based results in lateralisation diagnostics of PA.</p

Interactions Between Policy Effects, Population Characteristics and the Tax-Benefit System: An Illustration Using Child Poverty and Child Related Policies in Romania and the Czech Republic

We investigate the impact of the Romanian and Czech family policy systems on the poverty risk of families with children. We focus on separating out the effects of policy design itself and size of benefits from the interaction between policies and population characteristics. We find that interactions between population characteristics, the wider tax benefit system and child related policies are pervasive and large. Both population characteristics and the wider tax-benefit environment can dramatically alter the antipoverty effect of a given set of policies

Functional characterization of the trans-membrane domain interactions of the Sec61 protein translocation complex beta-subunit

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In eukaryotic cells co- and post-translational protein translocation is mediated by the trimeric Sec61 complex. Currently, the role of the Sec61 complex β-subunit in protein translocation is poorly understood. We have shown previously that in <it>Saccharomyces cerevisiae </it>the trans-membrane domain alone is sufficient for the function of the β-subunit Sbh1p in co-translational protein translocation. In addition, Sbh1p co-purifies not only with the protein translocation channel subunits Sec61p and Sss1p, but also with the reticulon family protein Rtn1p.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We used random mutagenesis to generate novel Sbh1p mutants in order to functionally map the Sbh1p trans-membrane domain. These mutants were analyzed for their interactions with Sec61p and how they support co-translational protein translocation. The distribution of mutations identifies one side of the Sbh1p trans-membrane domain α-helix that is involved in interactions with Sec61p and that is important for Sbh1p function in protein translocation. At the same time, these mutations do not affect Sbh1p interaction with Rtn1p. Furthermore we show that Sbh1p is found in protein complexes containing not only Rtn1p, but also the two other reticulon-like proteins Rtn2p and Yop1p.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results identify functionally important amino acids in the Sbh1p trans-membrane domain. In addition, our results provide additional support for the involvement of Sec61β in processes unlinked to protein translocation.</p

Allelic Variants of Melanocortin 3 Receptor Gene (MC3R) and Weight Loss in Obesity: A Randomised Trial of Hypo-Energetic High- versus Low-Fat Diets

INTRODUCTION: The melanocortin system plays an important role in energy homeostasis. Mice genetically deficient in the melanocortin-3 receptor gene have a normal body weight with increased body fat, mild hypophagia compared to wild-type mice. In humans, Thr6Lys and Val81Ile variants of the melanocortin-3 receptor gene (MC3R) have been associated with childhood obesity, higher BMI Z-score and elevated body fat percentage compared to non-carriers. The aim of this study is to assess the association in adults between allelic variants of MC3R with weight loss induced by energy-restricted diets. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This research is based on the NUGENOB study, a trial conducted to assess weight loss during a 10-week dietary intervention involving two different hypo-energetic (high-fat and low-fat) diets. A total of 760 obese patients were genotyped for 10 single nucleotide polymorphisms covering the single exon of MC3R gene and its flanking regions, including the missense variants Thr6Lys and Val81Ile. Linear mixed models and haplotype-based analysis were carried out to assess the potential association between genetic polymorphisms and differential weight loss, fat mass loss, waist change and resting energy expenditure changes. RESULTS: No differences in drop-out rate were found by MC3R genotypes. The rs6014646 polymorphism was significantly associated with weight loss using co-dominant (p = 0.04) and dominant models (p = 0.03). These p-values were not statistically significant after strict control for multiple testing. Haplotype-based multivariate analysis using permutations showed that rs3827103-rs1543873 (p = 0.06), rs6014646-rs6024730 (p = 0.05) and rs3746619-rs3827103 (p = 0.10) displayed near-statistical significant results in relation to weight loss. No other significant associations or gene*diet interactions were detected for weight loss, fat mass loss, waist change and resting energy expenditure changes. CONCLUSION: The study provided overall sufficient evidence to support that there is no major effect of genetic variants of MC3R and differential weight loss after a 10-week dietary intervention with hypo-energetic diets in obese Europeans