How Can Implementing Oral Language Strategies Support First Grade Struggling Readers?

The research question addressed in this project was, how can implementing oral language strategies support first grade struggling readers? In this project, action research was conducted in an urban first grade classroom with nine student participants. All of the student participants were categorized as first grade struggling readers and came from many different diverse backgrounds. During the research two oral language strategies were implemented during a four-week period with two reading groups. Pre and post assessments were given to monitor student progress and gauge the success of the strategy implementation. At the end of the four-week period, all students made gains in their oral language scores and their overall ability to read higher-level texts. The students in the research study also gained huge amounts of confidence in their reading, writing, and speaking. By the end of the implementation, all nine students were seeing themselves as meaning makers and successful readers

Assessment of the Measurement Procedure for Dimensional Metrology with X-ray Computed Tomography

X-ray computed tomography (CT) is a promising technology for quality assurance of industrial parts. However, computed tomography for dimensional metrology is a complex and indirect measurement procedure, whose results depend on a variety of influencing factors. To ensure that a measurement is traceable back to the basic SI units, a statement about the measurement uncertainty has to be given together with the actual measurement result. A generally accepted method for uncertainty evaluation is the use of calibrated workpieces. However, the influencing factors throughout the measurement procedure that contribute to the uncertainty are not quantified individually and remain unknown. The quality and reliability of the measurement, expressed in measurement uncertainty, hereby depends on hard- and software as well as user-set scan parameters. Not only scan parameters, such as current, tube voltage or exposure time, can influence the measurement results, but also surface determination and geometrical evaluation of the measured features add to the measurement uncertainty. In this contribution, the measurement procedure for metrological computed tomography is assessed and influencing factors throughout the different steps in the measurement procedure are identified as well as quantified. The approach is used to analyze the data quality of different measurements with a test object. The CT data are compared to tactile calibration data of the object and an experimental uncertainty evaluation is given

Quality Control in the Production Process of SMC Lightweight Material

The use of sheet molding compounds (SMC) in diverse applications requires different specific material properties for each type of finished parts. These material properties have to be assured by a reliable quality control, which does not only have to be performed for the prefabricated SMC itself but also during the production process of the semi-finished material. This is of high importance because quality fluctuations and defects can already occur during the production of the semi-finished SMC. This results in high scrap rates as well as machine failure and can additionally cause further problems in the following process steps. Hence, an inline quality control can help to establish objective quality criteria for semi-finished SMC and can enable controlled and stable production processes. Therefore, this paper deals with quality assurance in the production process of semi-finished sheet molding compounds. Air entrapping and fiber distribution are identified as two parameters that influence the quality of the semi-finished product significantly. In addition, the early detection of a pending carrier foil failure can help to establish a stable process. The focus of this paper lies on how various, individually adapted metrology systems can be used for the detection of the respective characteristics and integrated into the production process of the semi-finished SMC. In particular, optical systems, such as area scan cameras and laser stripe sensors as well as thermographic sensors are discussed and possibilities for application-related sensor data evaluation are shown. This helps to reduce the scrap rates of parts and to establish a further automated production process

Genome and low-iron response of an oceanic diatom adapted to chronic iron limitation

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Biogeochemical elemental cycling is driven by primary production of biomass via phototrophic phytoplankton growth, with 40% of marine productivity being assigned to diatoms. Phytoplankton growth is widely limited by the availability of iron, an essential component of the photosynthetic apparatus. The oceanic diatom Thalassiosira oceanica shows a remarkable tolerance to low-iron conditions and was chosen as a model for deciphering the cellular response upon shortage of this essential micronutrient. RESULTS: The combined efforts in genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics reveal an unexpected metabolic flexibility in response to iron availability for T. oceanica CCMP1005. The complex response comprises cellular retrenchment as well as remodeling of bioenergetic pathways, where the abundance of iron-rich photosynthetic proteins is lowered, whereas iron-rich mitochondrial proteins are preserved. As a consequence of iron deprivation, the photosynthetic machinery undergoes a remodeling to adjust the light energy utilization with the overall decrease in photosynthetic electron transfer complexes. CONCLUSIONS: Beneficial adaptations to low-iron environments include strategies to lower the cellular iron requirements and to enhance iron uptake. A novel contribution enhancing iron economy of phototrophic growth is observed with the iron-regulated substitution of three metal-containing fructose-bisphosphate aldolases involved in metabolic conversion of carbohydrates for enzymes that do not contain metals. Further, our data identify candidate components of a high-affinity iron-uptake system, with several of the involved genes and domains originating from duplication events. A high genomic plasticity, as seen from the fraction of genes acquired through horizontal gene transfer, provides the platform for these complex adaptations to a low-iron world

Low Dietary Fiber Intake Links Development of Obesity and Lupus Pathogenesis

Changed dietary habits in Western countries such as reduced fiber intake represent an important lifestyle factor contributing to the increase in inflammatory immune-mediated diseases. The mode of action of beneficial fiber effects is not fully elucidated, but short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) and gut microbiota have been implicated. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of dietary fiber on lupus pathology and to understand underlying mechanisms. Here, we show that in lupus-prone NZB/WF1 mice low fiber intake deteriorates disease progression reflected in accelerated mortality, autoantibody production and immune dysregulation. In contrast to our original assumption, microbiota suppression by antibiotics or direct SCFA feeding did not influence the course of lupus-like disease. Mechanistically, our data rather indicate that in low fiber-fed mice, an increase in white adipose tissue mass, fat-inflammation and a disrupted intestinal homeostasis go along with systemic, low-grade inflammation driving autoimmunity. The links between obesity, intestinal leakage and low-grade inflammation were confirmed in human samples, while adaptive immune activation predominantly correlated with lupus activity. We further propose that an accelerated gastro-intestinal passage along with energy dilution underlies fiber-mediated weight regulation. Thus, our data highlight the often-overlooked effects of dietary fiber on energy homeostasis and obesity prevention. Further, they provide insight into how intricately the pathologies of inflammatory immune-mediated conditions, such as obesity and autoimmunity, might be interlinked, possibly sharing common pathways

SARS-CoV-2 Omicron is an immune escape variant with an altered cell entry pathway

Vaccines based on the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 are a cornerstone of the public health response to COVID-19. The emergence of hypermutated, increasingly transmissible variants of concern (VOCs) threaten this strategy. Omicron (B.1.1.529), the fifth VOC to be described, harbours multiple amino acid mutations in spike, half of which lie within the receptor-binding domain. Here we demonstrate substantial evasion of neutralization by Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 variants in vitro using sera from individuals vaccinated with ChAdOx1, BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273. These data were mirrored by a substantial reduction in real-world vaccine effectiveness that was partially restored by booster vaccination. The Omicron variants BA.1 and BA.2 did not induce cell syncytia in vitro and favoured a TMPRSS2-independent endosomal entry pathway, these phenotypes mapping to distinct regions of the spike protein. Impaired cell fusion was determined by the receptor-binding domain, while endosomal entry mapped to the S2 domain. Such marked changes in antigenicity and replicative biology may underlie the rapid global spread and altered pathogenicity of the Omicron variant

The CoDiNOS trial protocol: an international randomised controlled trial of intravenous sildenafil versus inhaled nitric oxide for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension in neonates with congenital diaphragmatic hernia

INTRODUCTION: Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a developmental defect of the diaphragm that impairs normal lung development, causing pulmonary hypertension (PH). PH in CDH newborns is the main determinant for morbidity and mortality. Different therapies are still mainly based on 'trial and error'. Inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) is often the drug of first choice. However, iNO does not seem to improve mortality. Intravenous sildenafil has reduced mortality in newborns with PH without CDH, but prospective data in CDH patients are lacking. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: In an open label, multicentre, international randomised controlled trial in Europe, Canada and Australia, 330 newborns with CDH and PH are recruited over a 4-year period (2018-2022). Patients are randomised for intravenous sildenafil or iNO. Sildenafil is given in a loading dose of 0.4 mg/kg in 3 hours; followed by continuous infusion of 1.6 mg/kg/day, iNO is dosed at 20 ppm. Primary outcome is absence of PH on day 14 without pulmonary vasodilator therapy and/or absence of death within the first 28 days of life. Secondary outcome measures include clinical and echocardiographic markers of PH in the first year of life. We hypothesise that sildenafil gives a 25% reduction in the primary outcome from 68% to 48% on day 14, for which a sample size of 330 patients is needed. An intention-to-treat analysis will be performed. A p-value (two-sided) <0.05 is considered significant in all analyses. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval has been granted by the ethics committee in Rotterdam (MEC-2017-324) and the central Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (NL60229.078.17) in the Netherlands. The principles of the Declaration of Helsinki, the Medical Research Involving Human Subjects Act and the national rules and regulations on personal data protection will be used. Parental informed consent will be obtained. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NTR6982; Pre-results