Boekbesprekings - Book reviews

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Business Value Is not only Dollars - Results from Case Study Research on Agile Software Projects

Business value is a key concept in agile software development. This paper presents results of a case study on how business value and its creation is perceived in the context of agile projects. Our overall conclusion is that the project participants almost never use an explicit and structured approach to guide the value creation throughout the project. Still, the application of agile methods in the studied cases leads to satisfied clients. An interesting result of the study represents the fact that the agile process of many projects differs significantly from what is described in the agile practitioners’ books as best practices. The key implication for research and practice is that we have an incentive to pursue the study of value creation in agile projects and to complement it by providing guidelines for better client’s involvement, as well as by developing structured methods that will enhance the value-creation in a project

Tomato: a crop species amenable to improvement by cellular and molecular methods

Tomato is a crop plant with a relatively small DNA content per haploid genome and a well developed genetics. Plant regeneration from explants and protoplasts is feasable which led to the development of efficient transformation procedures. In view of the current data, the isolation of useful mutants at the cellular level probably will be of limited value in the genetic improvement of tomato. Protoplast fusion may lead to novel combinations of organelle and nuclear DNA (cybrids), whereas this technique also provides a means of introducing genetic information from alien species into tomato. Important developments have come from molecular approaches. Following the construction of an RFLP map, these RFLP markers can be used in tomato to tag quantitative traits bred in from related species. Both RFLP's and transposons are in the process of being used to clone desired genes for which no gene products are known. Cloned genes can be introduced and potentially improve specific properties of tomato especially those controlled by single genes. Recent results suggest that, in principle, phenotypic mutants can be created for cloned and characterized genes and will prove their value in further improving the cultivated tomato.

Can parasites adapt to pollutants? A multigenerational experiment with a Daphnia x Metschnikowia model system exposed to the fungicide tebuconazole

There is increasing evidence about negative effects of fungicides on non-target organisms, including parasitic species, which are key elements in food webs. Previous experiments showed that environmentally relevant concentrations of fungicide tebuconazole are toxic to the microparasite Metschnikowia bicuspidata, a yeast species that infects the planktonic crustacean Daphnia spp. However, due to their short-term nature, this and other experimental studies were not able to test if parasites could potentially adapt to these contaminants. Here, we tested if M. bicuspidata parasite can adapt to tebuconazole selective pressure. Infected D. magna lineages were reared under control conditions (no tebuconazole) and environmentally realistic tebuconazole concentrations, for four generations, and their performance was compared in a follow-up reciprocal assay. Additionally, we assessed whether the observed effects were transient (phenotypic) or permanent (genetic), by reassessing parasite fitness after the removal of selective pressure. Parasite fitness was negatively affected throughout the multigenerational exposure to the fungicide: prevalence of infection and spore load decreased, whereas host longevity increased, in comparison to control (naive) parasite lineages. In a follow-up reciprocal assay, tebuconazole-conditioned (TEB) lineages performed worse than naive parasite lineages, both in treatments without and with tebuconazole, confirming the cumulative negative effect of tebuconazole. The underperformance of TEB lineages was rapidly reversed after removing the influence of the selective pressure (tebuconazole), demonstrating that the costs of prolonged exposure to tebuconazole were phenotypic and transient. The microparasitic yeast M. bicuspidata did not reveal potential for rapid evolution to an anthropogenic selective pressure; instead, the long-term exposure to tebuconazole was hazardous to this non-target species. These findings highlight the potential environmental risks of azole fungicides on non-target parasit- This work was supported by the European Regional Development Fund (programmes COMPETE2020 and PT2020) and by National Funds (Portuguese Science Foundation - FCT, I.P.), through the strategic programmes UID/AMB/50017/2013 and UID/BIA/04050/2019 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007569), as well as by the research projects FunG-Eye (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029505) and EcoAgriFood (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000009). Part of the work presented here was developed during the PhD of Ana P. Cuco, who was supported by FCT (PhD grant SFRH/BD/81661/2011). JW was supported by Beethoven Life-1 grant from the German Science Foundation and Polish National Science Center (WO 1587/9-1). Nelson Abrantes is the recipient of an individual postdoctoral research contract (CEECIND/01653/2017)

Modelling thirty-day mortality in the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in an adult ICU

Publisher's copy made available with the permission of the publisher © Australian Society of AnaesthetistsVariables predicting thirty-day outcome from Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) were analysed using Cox regression structured for time-varying covariates. Over a three-year period, 1996-1998, consecutive patients with ARDS (bilateral chest X-ray opacities, PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio of <200 and an acute precipitating event) were identified using a prospective computerized data base in a university teaching hospital ICU. The cohort, 106 mechanically ventilated patients, was of mean (SD) age 63.5 (15.5) years and 37% were female. Primary lung injury occurred in 45% and 24% were postoperative. ICU-admission day APACHE II score was 25 (8); ARDS onset time from ICU admission was 1 day (median: range 0-16) and 30 day mortality was 41% (95% CI: 33%-51%). At ARDS onset, PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio was 92 (31), 81% had four-quadrant chest X-ray opacification and lung injury score was 2.75 (0.45). Average mechanical ventilator tidal volume was 10.3 ml/ predicted kg weight. Cox model mortality predictors (hazard ratio, 95% CI) were: APACHE II score, 1.15 (1.09-1.21); ARDS lag time (days), 0.72 (0.58-0.89); direct versus indirect injury, 2.89 (1.45-5.76); PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio, 0.98 (0.97-0.99); operative versus non-operative category, 0.24 (0.09-0.63). Time-varying effects were evident for PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio, operative versus non-operative category and ventilator tidal volume assessed as a categorical predictor with a cut-point of 8 ml/kg predicted weight (mean tidal volumes, 7.1 (1.9) vs 10.7 (1.6) ml/kg predicted weight). Thirty-day survival was improved for patients ventilated with lower tidal volumes. Survival predictors in ARDS were multifactorial and related to patient-injury-time interaction and level of mechanical ventilator tidal volume.J. L. Moran, P. J. Solomon, V. Fox, M. Salagaras, P. J. Williams, K. Quinlan, A. D. Berstenhttp://www.aaic.net.au/Article.asp?D=200332

The Future of Psychopharmacological Enhancements: Expectations and Policies

The hopes and fears expressed in the debate on human enhancement are not always based on a realistic assessment of the expected possibilities. Discussions about extreme scenarios may at times obscure the ethical and policy issues that are relevant today. This paper aims to contribute to an adequate and ethically sound societal response to actual current developments. After a brief outline of the ethical debate concerning neuro-enhancement, it describes the current state of the art in psychopharmacological science and current uses of psychopharmacological enhancement, as well as the prospects for the near future. It then identifies ethical issues regarding psychopharmacological enhancements that require attention from policymakers, both on the professional and on the governmental level. These concern enhancement research, the gradual expansion of medical categories, off-label prescription and responsibility of doctors, and accessibility of enhancers on the Internet. It is concluded that further discussion on the advantages and drawbacks of enhancers on a collective social level is still needed

Loss of Grem1-lineage chondrogenic progenitor cells causes osteoarthritis

Published online: 31 October 2023Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterised by an irreversible degeneration of articular cartilage. Here we show that the BMP-antagonist Gremlin 1 (Grem1) marks a bipotent chondrogenic and osteogenic progenitor cell population within the articular surface. Notably, these progenitors are depleted by injury-induced OA and increasing age. OA is also caused by ablation of Grem1 cells in mice. Transcriptomic and functional analysis in mice found that articular surface Grem1-lineage cells are dependent on Foxo1 and ablation of Foxo1 in Grem1-lineage cells caused OA. FGFR3 signalling was confirmed as a promising therapeutic pathway by administration of pathway activator, FGF18, resulting in Grem1-lineage chondrocyte progenitor cell proliferation, increased cartilage thickness and reduced OA. These findings suggest that OA, in part, is caused by mechanical, developmental or age-related attrition of Grem1 expressing articular cartilage progenitor cells. These cells, and the FGFR3 signalling pathway that sustains them, may be effective future targets for biological management of OA.Jia Q. Ng, Toghrul H. Jafarov, Christopher B. Little, Tongtong Wang, Abdullah M. Ali, YanMa, Georgette A. Radford, Laura Vrbanac, Mari Ichinose, Samuel Whittle, David J. Hunter, Tamsin R. M. Lannagan, Nobumi Suzuki, JarradM. Goyne, Hiroki Kobayashi, Timothy C. Wang, David R. Haynes, Danijela Menicanin, Stan Gronthos, Daniel L. Worthley, Susan L. Woods and Siddhartha Mukherje

Stress testing and non-invasive coronary angiography in patients with suspected coronary artery disease: time for a new paradigm

Diagnosis and management of coronary artery disease represents major challenges to our health care system, affecting millions of patients each year. Until recently, the diagnosis of coronary artery disease was possible only through cardiac catheterization and invasive coronary angiography. To avoid the risks of an invasive procedure, stress testing is often employed for an initial assessment of patients with suspected coronary artery disease, serving as a gatekeeper for cardiac catheterization. With the emergence of non-invasive coronary angiography, the question arises if such a strategy is still sensible, particularly, in view of only a modest agreement between stress testing results and the presence of coronary artery disease established by cardiac catheterization. Much data in support of the diagnostic accuracy and prognostic value of non-invasive coronary angiography by computed tomography have emerged within the last few years. These data challenge the role of stress testing as the initial imaging modality in patients with suspected coronary artery disease. This article reviews the clinical utility, limitations, as well as the hazards of stress testing compared with non-invasive coronary artery imaging by computed tomography. Finally, the implications of this review are discussed in relation to clinical practice