1,322 research outputs found
Die QualitÀt von LehrerInneneinschÀtzungen bei der Identifikation von hoher kognitiver LeistungsfÀhigkeit bei Kindern
Die vorliegende Studie beschĂ€ftigt sich mit der diagnostischen Kompetenz von österreichischen VolksschullehrerInnen sowie der Eignung von LehrerInnen-einschĂ€tzung, LehrerInnennomination und Peernomination (mit der Möglichkeit der Selbstnomination) zur Identifikation besonders leistungsfĂ€higer Kinder im mathematischen und sprachlichen Bereich. Zu diesem Zwecke wurden 219 SchĂŒlerInnen aus elf Klassen in Niederösterreich mit einem standardisierten Intelligenztestverfahren untersucht. Die jeweiligen KlassenlehrerInnen schĂ€tzten die LeistungsfĂ€higkeit aller Kinder anhand des EinschĂ€tzungsverfahrens ein. ZusĂ€tzlich nahmen die LehrkrĂ€fte und die SchĂŒlerInnen eine Nomination vor, in welcher sie die jeweils im mathematischen und sprachlichen Bereich besten SchĂŒlerInnen nennen sollten. Der Vergleich der Intelligenztestwerte mit den LehrerInneneinschĂ€tzungen zeigte einen mittleren Zusammenhang. AuĂerdem konnte eine ĂberschĂ€tzung des Klassenniveaus und eine leichte UnterschĂ€tzung der Streuung der LeistungsfĂ€higkeit innerhalb der Klassen festgestellt werden. Als geeignetstes Instrument zur Identifikation der besonders leistungsfĂ€higen Kinder im mathematischen Bereich stellte sich von den angewendeten Verfahren die LehrerInneneinschĂ€tzung heraus. Im sprachlichen Bereich zeigte sich ein Vorteil der Peernomination. Durch eine Kombination verschiedener Methoden konnte eine Erhöhung der korrekt identifizierten besonders LeistungsfĂ€higen erreicht werden. Es wird aufgrund der Ergebnisse dazu geraten, das Thema des Diagnostizierens mehr in die LehrerInnenausbildung zu integrieren
Chlorin Index: A new parameter for organic matter freshness in sediments
Total chlorins, comprising degradation products of chlorophyll, have been used recently to reconstruct paleoproductivity from marine sediment cores. Here, we report on a new index, the Chlorin Index (CI), that proves to be a helpful tool for rapidly estimating organic matter freshness in marine sediments. The CI is a ratio between the fluorescence intensity of a sediment extracted with acetone and treated with hydrochloric acid and the original sediment extract. It represents the ratio of chlorophyll and its degradation products deposited in the sediments that could still be chemically transformed and those that are inert to chemical attack. The ratio is lower in sediments that include freshly deposited phytoplankton material and higher in older, more degraded sediments. We measured this new parameter on surface sediments, and sediments from several short and a long sediment core from different oceanic settings. CI values range from 0.2 for chlorophyll a to 0.36â0.56 for fresh material deposited on the shelf off Namibia to values around 0.67 in sediments off Chile and Peru to values up to 0.97 for sediments in a deep core from the northeastern slope of the Arabian Sea. We have compared the CI to rates of bacterial sulfate reduction, as a direct measure of organic matter reactivity and to other degradation indices based on amino acid composition. We conclude that the CI is a reliable and simple tool for the characterization of organic material freshness in sediments in respect to its degradation state
Autophagie als adaptive Stressreaktion in der septischen Leber
Die zellulĂ€re Stressreaktion der Leber ist bei Sepsis unvollstĂ€ndig erforscht und entzieht sich daher weitgehend zielgerichteten therapeutischen AnsĂ€tzen, die auf biomolekularen Wirkmechanismen basieren; daher waren klinische Studien bisher weitgehend erfolglos. Insgesamt ist das Leberversagen Prognose-limitierend. Bei genauerer Betrachtung konnte festgestellt werden, dass eine gesteigerte Autophagie in Hepatozyten sowohl von septischen Patienten als auch in Tiermodellen zu verzeichnen ist. Des Weiteren wurde die Autophagie als ein protektiver Faktor identifiziert, der die Apoptoserate und irreversible Organ-dysfunktionen limitiert. Zur Zeit sind der Einfluss und das AusmaĂ der Autophagie in der Sepsis noch unzureichend erforscht. Wir untersuchten die Hypothese, ob die Autophagie bei Sepsis als adaptive Stressreaktion in der Leber differenzielle Expressionsmuster der Transkripte und Proteinmodifikationen in den stratifizierten Untersuchungsgruppen aufweist. Zudem wurde untersucht, ob insbesondere die frĂŒhe Autophagosombildung in den ersten 6 h der Sepsis prognoseentscheidend ist. ..
Intraclonal genome diversity of Pseudomonas aeruginosa clones CHA and TB.
International audienceBACKGROUND: Adaptation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to different living conditions is accompanied by microevolution resulting in genomic diversity between strains of the same clonal lineage. In order to detect the impact of colonized habitats on P. aeruginosa microevolution we determined the genomic diversity between the highly virulent cystic fibrosis (CF) isolate CHA and two temporally and geographically unrelated clonal variants. The outcome was compared with the intraclonal genome diversity between three more closely related isolates of another clonal complex. RESULTS: The three clone CHA isolates differed in their core genome in several dozen strain specific nucleotide exchanges and small deletions from each other. Loss of function mutations and non-conservative amino acid replacements affected several habitat- and lifestyle-associated traits, for example, the key regulator GacS of the switch between acute and chronic disease phenotypes was disrupted in strain CHA. Intraclonal genome diversity manifested in an individual composition of the respective accessory genome whereby the highest number of accessory DNA elements was observed for isolate PT22 from a polluted aquatic habitat. Little intraclonal diversity was observed between three spatiotemporally related outbreak isolates of clone TB. Although phenotypically different, only a few individual SNPs and deletions were detected in the clone TB isolates. Their accessory genome mainly differed in prophage-like DNA elements taken up by one of the strains. CONCLUSIONS: The higher geographical and temporal distance of the clone CHA isolates was associated with an increased intraclonal genome diversity compared to the more closely related clone TB isolates derived from a common source demonstrating the impact of habitat adaptation on the microevolution of P. aeruginosa. However, even short-term habitat differentiation can cause major phenotypic diversification driven by single genomic variation events and uptake of phage DNA
Pseudomonas aeruginosa Genomic Structure and Diversity
The Pseudomonas aeruginosa genome (Gâ+âC content 65â67%, size 5.5â7âMbp) is made up of a single circular chromosome and a variable number of plasmids. Sequencing of complete genomes or blocks of the accessory genome has revealed that the genome encodes a large repertoire of transporters, transcriptional regulators, and two-component regulatory systems which reflects its metabolic diversity to utilize a broad range of nutrients. The conserved core component of the genome is largely collinear among P. aeruginosa strains and exhibits an interclonal sequence diversity of 0.5â0.7%. Only a few loci of the core genome are subject to diversifying selection. Genome diversity is mainly caused by accessory DNA elements located in 79 regions of genome plasticity that are scattered around the genome and show an anomalous usage of mono- to tetradecanucleotides. Genomic islands of the pKLC102/PAGI-2 family that integrate into tRNALys or tRNAGly genes represent hotspots of inter- and intraclonal genomic diversity. The individual islands differ in their repertoire of metabolic genes that make a large contribution to the pangenome. In order to unravel intraclonal diversity of P. aeruginosa, the genomes of two members of the PA14 clonal complex from diverse habitats and geographic origin were compared. The genome sequences differed by less than 0.01% from each other. One hundred ninety-eight of the 231 single nucleotide substitutions (SNPs) were non-randomly distributed in the genome. Non-synonymous SNPs were mainly found in an integrated Pf1-like phage and in genes involved in transcriptional regulation, membrane and extracellular constituents, transport, and secretion. In summary, P. aeruginosa is endowed with a highly conserved core genome of low sequence diversity and a highly variable accessory genome that communicates with other pseudomonads and genera via horizontal gene transfer
Recent advances in understanding Pseudomonas aeruginosa as a pathogen [version 1; referees: 3 approved]
The versatile and ubiquitous Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen causing acute and chronic infections in predisposed human subjects. Here we review recent progress in understanding P. aeruginosa population biology and virulence, its cyclic di-GMP-mediated switches of lifestyle, and its interaction with the mammalian host as well as the role of the type III and type VI secretion systems in P. aeruginosa infection
Neuropsychological Features of Patients with Spinocerebellar Ataxia (SCA) Types 1, 2, 3, and 6
A subtype-specific impairment of cognitive functions in spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) patients is still debated. Thirty-two SCA patients (SCA1, 6; SC2, 3; SCA3, 15; SCA6, 8) and 14 matched healthy controls underwent neuropsychological evaluation testing attention, executive functions, episodic and semantic memory, and motor coordination. Severity of ataxia was assessed with the Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia (SARA), nonataxia symptoms with the Inventory of Non-Ataxia Symptoms. Depressive symptoms were evaluated with the Beck Depression Inventory. The SARA scores of our SCA patients (range 1â19.5) indicated an overall moderate ataxia, most pronounced in SCA6 and SCA1. Mean number of nonataxia symptoms (range 0â2.2) were most distinct in SCA1 and nearly absent in SCA6. SCA1 performed poorer than controls in 33% of all cognitive test parameters, followed by SCA2, SCA3, and SCA6 patients (17%). SCA 1â3 patients presented mainly attentional and executive dysfunctions while semantic and episodic memory functions were preserved. Attentional and executive functions were partly correlated with ataxia severity and fine motor coordination. All patients exhibited mildly depressed mood. Motor and dominant hand functions were more predictive for depressed mood than cognitive measures or overall ataxia. Besides motor impairments in all patients, SCA patients with extracerebellar pathology (SCA 1â3) were characterized by poor frontal attentional and executive dysfunction while mild cognitive impairments in predominantly cerebellar SCA6 patients appeared to reflect mainly cerebellar dysfunction. Regarding the everyday relevance of symptoms, (dominant) motor hand functioning emerged as a marker for the patientâs mood
Interactive cohort exploration for spinocerebellar ataxias using synthetic cohort data for visualization
Motivation: Visualization of data is a crucial step to understanding and
deriving hypotheses from clinical data. However, for clinicians, visualization
often comes with great effort due to the lack of technical knowledge about data
handling and visualization. The application offers an easy-to-use solution with
an intuitive design that enables various kinds of plotting functions. The aim
was to provide an intuitive solution with a low entrance barrier for clinical
users. Little to no onboarding is required before creating plots, while the
complexity of questions can grow up to specific corner cases. To allow for an
easy start and testing with SCAview, we incorporated a synthetic cohort dataset
based on real data of rare neurological movement disorders: the most common
autosomal-dominantly inherited spinocerebellar ataxias (SCAs) type 1, 2, 3, and
6 (SCA1, 2, 3 and 6). Methods: We created a Django-based backend application
that serves the data to a React-based frontend that uses Plotly for plotting. A
synthetic cohort was created to deploy a version of SCAview without violating
any data protection guidelines. Here, we added normal distributed noise to the
data and therefore prevent re-identification while keeping distributions and
general correlations. Results: This work presents SCAview, an user-friendly,
interactive web-based service that enables data visualization in a clickable
interface allowing intuitive graphical handling that aims to enable data
visualization in a clickable interface. The service is deployed and can be
tested with a synthetic cohort created based on a large, longitudinal dataset
from observational studies in the most common SCAs
Focal glial activation coincides with increased BACE1 activation and precedes amyloid plaque deposition in APP[V717I] transgenic mice
BACKGROUND: Inflammation is suspected to contribute to the progression and severity of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Transgenic mice overexpressing the london mutant of amyloid precursor protein, APP [V717I], robustly recapitulate the amyloid pathology of AD. METHODS: Early and late, temporal and spatial characteristics of inflammation were studied in APP [V717I] mice at 3 and 16 month of age. Glial activation and expression of inflammatory markers were determined by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR. Amyloid deposition was assessed by immunohistochemistry, thioflavine S staining and western blot experiments. BACE1 activity was detected in brain lysates and in situ using the BACE1 activity kit from R&D Systems, Wiesbaden, Germany. RESULTS: Foci of activated micro- and astroglia were already detected at age 3 months, before any amyloid deposition. Inflammation parameters comprised increased mRNA levels coding for interleukin-1ÎČ, interleukin-6, major histocompatibility complex II and macrophage-colony-stimulating-factor-receptor. Foci of CD11b-positive microglia expressed these cytokines and were neighbored by activated astrocytes. Remarkably, ÎČ-secretase (BACE1) mRNA, neuronal BACE1 protein at sites of focal inflammation and total BACE1 enzyme activity were increased in 3 month old APP transgenic mice, relative to age-matched non-transgenic mice. In aged APP transgenic mice, the mRNA of all inflammatory markers analysed was increased, accompanied by astroglial iNOS expression and NO-dependent peroxynitrite release, and with glial activation near almost all diffuse and senile AÎČ deposits. CONCLUSION: The early and focal glial activation, in conjunction with upregulated BACE1 mRNA, protein and activity in the presence of its substrate APP, is proposed to represent the earliest sites of amyloid deposition, likely evolving into amyloid plaques
- âŠ