Using teacher action research to promote constructivist learning environments in South Africa

The primary focus was to assist South African teachers to become reflective practitioners in their daily mathematics classroom teaching. The study involved a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods. Quantitative data were collected using the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) to assess learners' perceptions of the emphasis on constructivism in the classroom environment. In the first phase of the study, the CLES was administered to 1 864 learners in 43 classes and analysed to determine whether the CLES is valid and reliable for use in South Africa. As well, descriptive analysis was used to generate graphical profiles of learners' perceptions of the actual and preferred learning environment for each class. During the second 12-week intervention phase, two teachers used the profiles to assist them to develop strategies aimed at improving the constructivist orientation of their classroom learning environments. The teachers implemented strategies and maintained a daily journal as a means of reflecting on their teaching practices. At the end of the 12 weeks, the CLES was re-administered to learners to determine whether their learners' perceptions of the constructivist emphasis in their classroom learning environments had changed. South African Journal of Education Vol.24(4) 2004: 245-25

Maternal mental health and economic autonomy in lowland rural Nepal

Background and objectives In patrilocal societies, married women typically co-reside with their parents-in-law, who may act in their son’s reproductive interests. These relationships may shape maternal mental health and autonomy. Few studies have examined these dynamics from an evolutionary perspective. Theoretically, marital kin may increase their fitness by increasing maternal investment or by reducing paternity uncertainty. We explored how co-residence with parents-in-law and husband is associated with maternal outcomes to evaluate whether marital kin provide support or constraint. Methodology We analysed data from 444 households in rural lowland Nepal. Maternal mental health was assessed by General Health Questionnaire. Logistic regression models investigated whether, relative to mothers living with both husband and parents-in-law, those co-resident with other combinations of relatives had poorer mental health and lower household economic autonomy (decision-making, bargaining power), adjusting for socio-economic confounders. Results Co-residence with husband only, or neither husband nor parents-in-law, was associated with higher odds of mothers reporting feeling worthless and losing sleep but also earning income and making household expenditure decisions. Husband co-residence was associated with overall maternal distress but also with less unpaid care work and greater decision-making responsibility. There were no differences in maternal outcomes for mothers living with parents-in-law only, relative to those living with both husbands and parents-in-law. Conclusions and implications Co-residence of parents-in-law and husbands was associated with contrasting patterns of maternal mental health and economic autonomy. We suggest that different marital kin place different economic demands on mothers, while restricting their autonomy in different ways as forms of ‘mate-guarding’

The Role of Protein Crystallography in Defining the Mechanisms of Biogenesis and Catalysis in Copper Amine Oxidase

Copper amine oxidases (CAOs) are a ubiquitous group of enzymes that catalyze the conversion of primary amines to aldehydes coupled to the reduction of O2 to H2O2. These enzymes utilize a wide range of substrates from methylamine to polypeptides. Changes in CAO activity are correlated with a variety of human diseases, including diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer’s disease, and inflammatory disorders. CAOs contain a cofactor, 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ), that is required for catalytic activity and synthesized through the post-translational modification of a tyrosine residue within the CAO polypeptide. TPQ generation is a self-processing event only requiring the addition of oxygen and Cu(II) to the apoCAO. Thus, the CAO active site supports two very different reactions: TPQ synthesis, and the two electron oxidation of primary amines. Crystal structures are available from bacterial through to human sources, and have given insight into substrate preference, stereospecificity, and structural changes during biogenesis and catalysis. In particular both these processes have been studied in crystallo through the addition of native substrates. These latter studies enable intermediates during physiological turnover to be directly visualized, and demonstrate the power of this relatively recent development in protein crystallography

American dipper Cinclus mexicanus in Venezuela

Volume: 115Start Page: 191End Page: 19

Fast-response proteomics by accelerated in-gel digestion of proteins

Kinetics of in-gel digestion of proteins by modified and native trypsins was studied by MALDI TOF mass spectrometry using O-18- labeled peptides as internal standards. The effect of the temperature, enzyme concentration, digestion time, and surface area of gel pieces on the yield of digestion products was characterized. Based on the kinetic data, we developed a protocol that enabled the identification of gel-separated proteins with 30-min digestion time without compromising the peptide yield and the sensitivity compared to conventional protocols that typically rely upon overnight enzymatic cleavage. The accelerated digestion protocol was tested in identification of more than 120 proteins from budding and fission yeasts at the subpicomole level

Fast-response proteomics by accelerated in-gel digestion of proteins

Kinetics of in-gel digestion of proteins by modified and native trypsins was studied by MALDI TOF mass spectrometry using O-18- labeled peptides as internal standards. The effect of the temperature, enzyme concentration, digestion time, and surface area of gel pieces on the yield of digestion products was characterized. Based on the kinetic data, we developed a protocol that enabled the identification of gel-separated proteins with 30-min digestion time without compromising the peptide yield and the sensitivity compared to conventional protocols that typically rely upon overnight enzymatic cleavage. The accelerated digestion protocol was tested in identification of more than 120 proteins from budding and fission yeasts at the subpicomole level

Early stages of pediatric bipolar disorder: retrospective analysis of a Czech inpatient sample

Michal Goetz,1 Tomas Novak,2 Marie Vesela,1 Zdenek Hlavka,3 Martin Brunovsky,2 Michal Povazan,4 Radek Ptacek,5 Antonin Sebela21Department of Child Psychiatry, Second Faculty of Medicine, Motol University Hospital, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic; 2National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany and Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic; 3Department of Probability and Mathematical Statistics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic; 4Children’s Department, Bohnice Psychiatric Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic; 5Department of Psychiatry, First Faculty of Medicine, General Teaching Hospital, Charles University in Prague, Czech RepublicBackground: Approximately 30%–60% of adults diagnosed with bipolar disorder (BD) report onset between the ages 15 and 19 years; however, a correct diagnosis is often delayed by several years. Therefore, investigations of the early features of BD are important for adequately understanding the prodromal stages of the illness.Methods: A complete review of the medical records of 46 children and adolescents who were hospitalized for BD at two psychiatric teaching centers in Prague, Czech Republic was performed. Frequency of BD in all inpatients, age of symptom onset, phenomenology of mood episodes, lifetime psychiatric comorbidity, differences between very-early-onset (<13 years of age) and early-onset patients (13–18 years), and differences between the offspring of parents with and without BD were analyzed.Results: The sample represents 0.83% of the total number of inpatients (n=5,483) admitted during the study period at both centers. BD often started with depression (56%), followed by hypomania (24%) and mixed episodes (20%). The average age during the first mood episode was 14.9 years (14.6 years for depression and 15.6 years for hypomania). Seven children (15%) experienced their first mood episode before age 13 years (very early onset). Traumatic events, first-degree relatives with mood disorders, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder were significantly more frequent in the very-early-onset group vs the early-onset group (13–18 years) (P≤0.05). The offspring of bipolar parents were significantly younger at the onset of the first mood episode (13.2 vs 15.4 years; P=0.02) and when experiencing the first mania compared to the offspring of non-BD parents (14.3 vs 15.9 years; P=0.03). Anxiety disorders, substance abuse, specific learning disabilities, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder were the most frequent lifetime comorbid conditions.Conclusion: Clinicians must be aware of the potential for childhood BD onset in patients who suffer from recurrent depression, who have first-degree relatives with BD, and who have experienced severe psychosocial stressors.Keywords: children, adolescents, inpatient