E2F4 regulates transcriptional activation in mouse embryonic stem cells independently of the RB family.

E2F transcription factors are central regulators of cell division and cell fate decisions. E2F4 often represents the predominant E2F activity in cells. E2F4 is a transcriptional repressor implicated in cell cycle arrest and whose repressive activity depends on its interaction with members of the RB family. Here we show that E2F4 is important for the proliferation and the survival of mouse embryonic stem cells. In these cells, E2F4 acts in part as a transcriptional activator that promotes the expression of cell cycle genes. This role for E2F4 is independent of the RB family. Furthermore, E2F4 functionally interacts with chromatin regulators associated with gene activation and we observed decreased histone acetylation at the promoters of cell cycle genes and E2F targets upon loss of E2F4 in RB family-mutant cells. Taken together, our findings uncover a non-canonical role for E2F4 that provide insights into the biology of rapidly dividing cells

The need for a more dynamic and ecological assessment of children experiencing barriers to learning to move towards inclusive education: a summary of results of the Daffodil project.

Although governments have recognized the need to make education more accessible to children with developmental disabilities and/or learning difficulties, many children remain excluded from participation in regular school settings, let alone receive adequate education. Though every country which ratified the United Nations (UN) 2006 Convention on the Rights of People with Disability has committed itself to inclusive education, there are many obstacles. One of them is the currently preferred way of assessing children with standardized, psychometric diagnostic tests, with a comparative and classifying purpose. This type of assessment, based on a medical impairment model and a static model of intelligence, results in reports which are sometimes not very useful for educational advice. This paper reports an overview of the results of the DAFFODIL project (Dynamic Assessment of Functioning and Oriented at Development and Inclusive Learning), created by a consortium of eight European partners in order to research more inclusive alternatives and suggest reforms to assessment and coaching procedures. It starts with a critical review of current assessment practices; then it presents criteria for good practices for assessing children with additional educational needs in a more dynamic, inclusion-oriented and contextual way. A Delphi procedure was used by 150 professionals and parents to develop a consensus for guidelines for assessment procedures oriented at mapping functional difficulties, context, interaction and possibilities for learning, with the objective to understanding learning processes, to develop more inclusive, challenging and suitable educational programmes and more useful recommendations for teachers, parents and rehabilitation staff

Existing opportunities to adapt the Rio Grande/Bravo Basin Water Resources Allocation Framework

The study of the Rio Grande/Bravo (RGB) Basin water allocation demonstrates how the United States (U.S.) and Mexico have consolidated a transboundary framework based on water sharing. However, the water supply no longer meets the ever-increasing demand for water or the expectations of different stakeholders. This paper explores opportunities for an enhanced management regime that will address past problems and better examine how to balance demands for a precious resource and environmental needs. Based on an overview of the RGB Basin context and the water allocation framework, as well as a discussion on stakeholders’ ability to achieve solutions, this paper explores three key questions: (1) Does the current binational water allocation framework meet current and future human and environmental needs? (2) How can the U.S.-Mexico water allocation framework be adapted to balance social and environmental water demands so it can support and preserve the RGB Basin ecosystem? (3) What are the main opportunities to be explored for expanding the U.S.-Mexico water resources allocation framework? The U.S.-Mexico water resources framework is subject to broad interpretation and may be adapted to the circumstances taking the fullest advantage of its flexibility. Policy recommendations highlight the existing flexibility of the binational framework, the potential to move forward with an ad hoc institutional arrangement, and the creation of political will to achieve change through stakeholders recommendations

Improving Clinical Prediction of Bipolar Spectrum Disorders in Youth.

This report evaluates whether classification tree algorithms (CTA) may improve the identification of individuals at risk for bipolar spectrum disorders (BPSD). Analyses used the Longitudinal Assessment of Manic Symptoms (LAMS) cohort (629 youth, 148 with BPSD and 481 without BPSD). Parent ratings of mania symptoms, stressful life events, parenting stress, and parental history of mania were included as risk factors. Comparable overall accuracy was observed for CTA (75.4%) relative to logistic regression (77.6%). However, CTA showed increased sensitivity (0.28 vs. 0.18) at the expense of slightly decreased specificity and positive predictive power. The advantage of CTA algorithms for clinical decision making is demonstrated by the combinations of predictors most useful for altering the probability of BPSD. The 24% sample probability of BPSD was substantially decreased in youth with low screening and baseline parent ratings of mania, negative parental history of mania, and low levels of stressful life events (2%). High screening plus high baseline parent-rated mania nearly doubled the BPSD probability (46%). Future work will benefit from examining additional, powerful predictors, such as alternative data sources (e.g., clinician ratings, neurocognitive test data); these may increase the clinical utility of CTA models further

Introducing <i>C&RL</i>’s Generative AI Policy

As the use of generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) tools expands, journals, editors, review-ers, and authors continue to evaluate their practical and ethical applications within the broader research landscape. College & Research Libraries (C&RL) is no exception

Electronic structure of MgB2_2: X-ray emission and absorption studies

Measurements of x-ray emission and absorption spectra of the constituents of MgB$_2$ are presented. The results obtained are in good agreement with calculated x-ray spectra, with dipole matrix elements taken into account. The comparison of x-ray emission spectra of graphite, AlB$_2$, and MgB$_2$ in the binding energy scale supports the idea of charge transfer from $\sigma$ to $\pi$ bands, which creates holes at the top of the bonding $\sigma$ bands and drives the high-T$_c$Comment: final version as published in PR

Optimization of a high work function solution processed vanadium oxide hole-extracting layer for small molecule and polymer organic photovoltaic cells

We report a method of fabricating a high work function, solution processable vanadium oxide (V2Ox(sol)) hole-extracting layer. The atmospheric processing conditions of film preparation have a critical influence on the electronic structure and stoichiometry of the V2Ox(sol), with a direct impact on organic photovoltaic (OPV) cell performance. Combined Kelvin probe (KP) and ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (UPS) measurements reveal a high work function, n-type character for the thin films, analogous to previously reported thermally evaporated transition metal oxides. Additional states within the band gap of V2Ox(sol) are observed in the UPS spectra and are demonstrated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to be due to the substoichiometric nature of V2Ox(sol). The optimized V2Ox(sol) layer performance is compared directly to bare indium–tin oxide (ITO), poly(ethyleneoxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), and thermally evaporated molybdenum oxide (MoOx) interfaces in both small molecule/fullerene and polymer/fullerene structures. OPV cells incorporating V2Ox(sol) are reported to achieve favorable initial cell performance and cell stability attributes

GrassPlot v. 2.00 – first update on the database of multi-scale plant diversity in Palaearctic grasslands

Abstract: GrassPlot is a collaborative vegetation-plot database organised by the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) and listed in the Global Index of Vegetation-Plot Databases (GIVD ID EU-00-003). Following a previous Long Database Report (Dengler et al. 2018, Phyto- coenologia 48, 331–347), we provide here the first update on content and functionality of GrassPlot. The current version (GrassPlot v. 2.00) contains a total of 190,673 plots of different grain sizes across 28,171 independent plots, with 4,654 nested-plot series including at least four grain sizes. The database has improved its content as well as its functionality, including addition and harmonization of header data (land use, information on nestedness, structure and ecology) and preparation of species composition data. Currently, GrassPlot data are intensively used for broad-scale analyses of different aspects of alpha and beta diversity in grassland ecosystems

Clonal architecture of secondary acute myeloid leukemia defined by single-cell sequencing

Next-generation sequencing has been used to infer the clonality of heterogeneous tumor samples. These analyses yield specific predictions-the population frequency of individual clones, their genetic composition, and their evolutionary relationships-which we set out to test by sequencing individual cells from three subjects diagnosed with secondary acute myeloid leukemia, each of whom had been previously characterized by whole genome sequencing of unfractionated tumor samples. Single-cell mutation profiling strongly supported the clonal architecture implied by the analysis of bulk material. In addition, it resolved the clonal assignment of single nucleotide variants that had been initially ambiguous and identified areas of previously unappreciated complexity. Accordingly, we find that many of the key assumptions underlying the analysis of tumor clonality by deep sequencing of unfractionated material are valid. Furthermore, we illustrate a single-cell sequencing strategy for interrogating the clonal relationships among known variants that is cost-effective, scalable, and adaptable to the analysis of both hematopoietic and solid tumors, or any heterogeneous population of cells