Make your voice heard and tune your ears for a global orchestra

Many people still think that sounding like a native speaker together with correct grammar and perfect vocabulary are the main elements of successful international communication. There have been countless situations when people did not speak up because they feared that their noticeable accent features could be considered as a low level of expertise and that this could result into social, educational, and professional disadvantages or even discrimination. How is English mostly used by international communication partners and what information about them is available? Who is responsible for misunderstandings or communication breakdown? Based on secondary analysis of researchers in the areas of (business) English as a lingua franca and sociolinguistics, the relationship between accent and authenticity as well as identity and intelligibility will be clarified. Moreover, the Common European framework of reference for languages: Learning, teaching, assessment (CEFR, 2001) and the CEFR Companion Volume (2020) can be regarded as an ideal framework for educators and employers to increase employability by developing a (B)ELF mindset. This will not only raise awareness of a person’s plurilingual and pluricultural repertoire, but also challenge certain attitudes, beliefs, and intercultural appropriateness. Despite the close relationship between language and culture and its huge impact on constructing ourself and the other, accent prejudice and linguistic racism have often been neglected and should be added to the map of diversity and inclusion, as they are crucial for our sense of belonging and wellbeing

Mutational Escape in HIV-1 CTL Epitopes Leads to Increased Binding to Inhibitory Myelomonocytic MHC Class I Receptors

Escape mutations in HIV-1 cytotoxic T cell (CTL) epitopes can abrogate recognition by the TCR of HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells, but may also change interactions with alternative MHC class I receptors. Here, we show that mutational escape in three HLA-A11-, B8- and B7- restricted immunodominant HIV-1 CTL epitopes consistently enhances binding of the respective peptide/MHC class I complex to Immunoglobulin-like transcript 4 (ILT4), an inhibitory myelomonocytic MHC class I receptor expressed on monocytes and dendritic cells. In contrast, mutational escape in an alternative immunodominant HLA-B57-restricted CTL epitope did not affect ILT4-mediated recognition by myelomonocytic cells. This suggests that in addition to abrogating recognition by HIV-1-specific CD8 T cells, mutational escape in some, but not all CTL epitopes may mediate important immunoregulatory effects by increasing binding properties to ILT4, and augmenting ILT4-mediated inhibitory effects of professional antigen-presenting cells.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant R01 AI078799)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant P01 AI074415)Doris Duke Charitable Foundatio

Disentangling Extrinsic from Intrinsic Biological Phenomena

Facial skin ageing is caused by intrinsic and extrinsic mechanisms. Intrinsic ageing is highly related to chronological age. Age related skin changes can be measured using clinical and biophysical methods. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether and how clinical characteristics and biophysical parameters are associated with each other with and without adjustment for chronological age. Twenty-four female subjects of three age groups were enrolled. Clinical assessments (global facial skin ageing, wrinkling, and sagging), and biophysical measurements (roughness, colour, skin elasticity, and barrier function) were conducted at both upper cheeks. Pearson’s correlations and linear regression models adjusted for age were calculated. Most of the measured parameters were correlated with chronological age (e.g., association with wrinkle score, ) and with each other (e.g., residual skin deformation and wrinkle score, ). After statistical adjustment for age, only few associations remained (e.g., mean roughness () and luminance (),  , ). Chronological age as surrogate marker for intrinsic ageing has the most important influence on most facial skin ageing signs. Changes in skin elasticity, wrinkling, sagging, and yellowness seem to be caused by additional extrinsic ageing

Effects of loading and prophylactic dressings on the sacral and heel skin: An exploratory cross‐over trial

Pressure ulcers/injuries are caused by sustained loading and deformation of skin and underlying soft tissues. Prophylactic dressings are recommended as an adjunct to other preventive measures such as repositioning and offloading. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of prophylactic soft silicone multi-layered foam dressings on the skin structure and function of the two most common pressure areas, sacrum and heel, with and without loading. An exploratory randomised cross-over trial using intra-individual comparisons was conducted. Eight healthy volunteers (mean age 27.5 years) were assigned to three groups and either spent 2.5 hours on a standard hospital mattress lying in supine position with and without dressings or spent 2.5 hours with dressings applied but without loading. Skin temperature, stratum corneum, and epidermal hydration increased in all groups irrespective of wearing a dressing and/or loading. Mean roughness decreased at the heels. Reactive hyperaemia and the release of interleukin 1 alpha were associated with loading only. Results suggest that the occlusive effects of dressings are similar or only slightly greater than those observed with non-loading or loading without dressings. Thus, a dressing does not cause additional irritation or skin changes during loading but it may reduce the inflammatory response

Lebenslanges Lernen (in) der Pastoral?

Für die Pastoraltheologie ist es nicht selbstverständlich, sich mit Lernprozessen zu befassen – undschon gar nicht mit solchen, die sich über die gesamte Lebensspanne erstrecken. Dabei beinhaltetdiese Aufgabe eine doppelte Chance: Zum einen kommen Frauen und Männer in der zweiten Lebenshälfteund besonders im höheren und hohen Alter mit ihren spezifischen Entwicklungsherausforderungenund Lernweisen in den Blick. Zum anderen erweitert sich die Frage nach lebenslangem Lernenin der Pastoral um eine Besinnung auf eine „das Leben“ lernende Pastoral.Practical theology is often not accustomed to dealing with learning processes, least of all with thosethat last a lifetime. This challenge for lifelong learning, however, bears a twofold chance: First, it takesinto view women and men in the second half of their lifespan and particularly in old and oldest agewith its specific challenges of development and ways of learning. Second, the focus on lifelonglearning processes challenges the field of pastoral care to become a type of pastoral care that „learnslife“

Dry skin and the use of leave-on products in nursing care: A prevalence study in nursing homes and hospitals

Aims: To describe the prevalence of dry skin in nursing homes and hospitals and to describe relationships between topical skincare interventions and dry skin. Design: Two multicentre descriptive cross-sectional prevalence studies. Methods: The studies were performed in German nursing homes and hospitals in 2015 and 2016. Data were collected by trained nurses based on a standardized data collection form. The severity of dry skin was measured using the Overall Dry Skin Score. Results: In total, 1,662 nursing home residents and 1,486 hospital patients participated. The prevalence of dry skin was 41.2% in nursing homes and 55.2% in hospitals. In case of skincare dependency, the proportions of participants with dry skin were higher, particularly in hospitals (70.2%). In both institutions, the application of leave-on products increased when dry skin was present but remained lower in hospitals. Considering the high amount of skin dryness in skincare-dependent participants, interventions seem not to be successful. Results indicate a need for skincare improvement in future