Layers of Influence in Educational Reform: A Comparison between China and Europe

I began this project worried that states no longer contributed to the direction of educational reform. I thought I would find that global economic forces, the integration of labor markets and the statistical assessment of these relationships were determining the direction of reform. What I found was that national models of education, institutional structures, and their supporting political ideologies still greatly influenced policy. Nevertheless, it is still important to consider the pressure exuded by the integration of the global labor force. My research focusing on China and Europe revealed that different states translated global labor market pressures into educational reform according to long standing state ideas about the role of education and the influence of state institutions. In other words, both institutions and state ideologies still matter, but need to be viewed as influenced by increasingly common technocratic and external economic pressures

Study of internal stresses in a TWIP steel analyzing transient and permanent softening during reverse shear tests.

Recent Bauschinger-type tests conducted on a twinning-induced plasticity (TWIP) steel highlights the important contribution of internal stresses to work hardening [1]. Along this line we present Bauschinger experiments in a Fe-22Mn wt.%-0.6C wt.% TWIP steel. The mechanical behaviour upon load reversal shows transient and permanent softening effects. Determination of the internal stress from the magnitude of the permanent softening yields a contribution to work hardening of the order of 20%. Analysis of the transient softening, during strain reversal, indicates that internal stress are consistent with reported data on high carbon spheroidized steels.Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support by the German Research Foundation within the framework of the SFB 761 ‘‘steel ab initio’’ and the CICYT grant MAT2009-14452 awarded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.Peer reviewe

Semi Mature Blood Dendritic Cells Exist in Patients with Ductal Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma Owing to Inflammatory Factors Released from the Tumor

Background: Much evidence exists regarding the fact that blood DCs, both myeloid DCs (MDCs) and plasmacytoid DCs (PDCs), are negatively affected in different types of cancer, with both reduced numbers and impaired functionality. Functional impairment of DCs in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), may contribute to the poor clinical outcome. The aim of this study was to examine the effects PDAC had on blood DCs and elucidate the underlying mechanism responsible for the DC impairment. Methodology/Principal Findings: We examined the systemic influence PDAC exerted on blood DCs by ex vivo measuring numerous activation and maturation markers expressed on these cells. Furthermore, the effect patient plasma and the inflammatory factors CXCL8 and PGE(2) had on purified MDCs and PDCs from healthy donors was assessed and compared to the DCs existing in PDAC patients. We found a partial maturation of the blood MDCs and PDCs in PDAC patients with significantly enhanced expression of CD83, CD40, B7H3, PDL-1, CCR6, and CCR7 and decreased expression of ICOSL, and DCIR. These changes lead to impairment in their immunostimulatory function. Furthermore, chronic pancreatitis gave rise to DCs with similar semi-mature phenotype as seen in PDAC. Low expression of ICOSL was associated with poor prognosis. We found that the mechanism underlying this semi-maturation of DCs was inflammatory factors existing in the PDAC patients plasma. Of note, PGE2, which is elevated PDAC patient plasma, was one contributing factor to the changes seen in MDCs and PDCs phenotype. Conclusion/Significance: Our findings point to a role for the systemic inflammation in transforming blood MDCs and PDCs into semi-mature cells in PDAC patients and we show a correlation between maturation status and clinical outcome. Thus, means to preserve a functional blood DC compartment in PDAC patients by diminishing the inflammation could facilitate their ability to control the disease and improve survival.Original Publication: Vegard Tjomsland, Anna Spångeus, Per Sandström, Kurt Borch, Davorka Messmer and Marie Larsson, Semi Mature Blood Dendritic Cells Exist in Patients with Ductal Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma Owing to Inflammatory Factors Released from the Tumor, 2010, PLOS ONE, (5), 10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0013441 Licensee: Public Library of Science (PLoS) http://www.plos.org/</p

New challenges to improve organic bread wheat production in Europe

The total organic area in the EU-27 had an annual average growth rate of nearly 15% from 1998 to 2006 with winter wheat being the most important cereal crop. Wheat yield in organic farming is around 30% to 70% of yield of conventional farming but higher premia for organic wheat may to some extent compensate for this. Bread wheat is grown in a variety of crop rotations and farming systems and four basic organic crop production systems have been defined. Nitrogen deficiency and weed infestation are considered to be the most serious threat in organic wheat production. Organic wheat producers will have to fulfil the technological needs of bakers although the requirements differ widely from small artisan bakers to large enterprises handling the organic bread processing. To maintain and expand organic wheat production, there is a need to control weed population, manage nitrogen nutrition and maintain crop diversity in the cropping system. In order to obtain a share in the premium price of organic wheat products, farmers may involve in further processing and marketing

Effect of the Ti-6Al-4V alloy specimens crystal lattice curvature within surface layers on fatigue failure mechanisms

In the present work the role of the crystal lattice curvature in fatigue failure of Ti-6Al-4V alloy specimens was discussed. The effect of the specimens ultrasonic treatment and further electrolytic hydrogenation on their fatigue properties was revealed. It was found that the crystal lattice curvature resulted in the fatigue durability increase due to a grain boundary sliding at the boundaries of strongly dispersed phases as well as the decrease one by reason of the brittle intermetallic phase of Ti3Al precipitation or the stabilization by hydrogen of the strong BCC ß phase depending on the Ti-6Al-4V specimens structure and phase composition

The Desmoplastic Stroma Plays an Essential Role in the Accumulation and Modulation of Infiltrated Immune Cells in Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma

Tumor microenvironment is composed of tumor cells, fibroblasts, and infiltrating immune cells, which all work together and create an inflammatory environment favoring tumor progression. The present study aimed to investigate the role of the desmoplastic stroma in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) regarding expression of inflammatory factors and infiltration of immune cells and their impact on the clinical outcome. The PDAC tissues examined expressed significantly increased levels of immunomodulatory and chemotactic factors (IL-6, TGFβ, IDO, COX-2, CCL2, and CCL20) and immune cell-specific markers corresponding to macrophages, myeloid, and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (DCs) as compared to controls. Furthermore, short-time survivors had the lowest levels of DC markers. Immunostainings indicated that the different immune cells and inflammatory factors are mainly localized to the desmoplastic stroma. Therapies modulating the inflammatory tumor microenvironment to promote the attraction of DCs and differentiation of monocytes into functional DCs might improve the survival of PDAC patients

Pathology-related mutation A7526G (A9G) helps in the understanding of the 3D structural core of human mitochondrial tRNA(Asp).

More than 130 mutations in human mitochondrial tRNA (mt-tRNA) genes have been correlated with a variety of neurodegenerative and neuromuscular disorders. Their molecular impacts are of mosaic type, affecting various stages of tRNA biogenesis, structure, and/or functions in mt-translation. Knowledge of mammalian mt-tRNA structures per se remains scarce however. Primary and secondary structures deviate from classical tRNAs, while rules for three-dimensional (3D) folding are almost unknown. Here, we take advantage of a myopathy-related mutation A7526G (A9G) in mt-tRNA(Asp) to investigate both the primary molecular impact underlying the pathology and the role of nucleotide 9 in the network of 3D tertiary interactions. Experimental evidence is presented for existence of a 9-12-23 triple in human mt-tRNA(Asp) with a strongly conserved interaction scheme in mammalian mt-tRNAs. Mutation A7526G disrupts the triple interaction and in turn reduces aspartylation efficiency.letterresearch support, non-u.s. gov't2009 Aug2009 06 17importe

Технологическая подготовка производства деталей жатки для уборки зерновых культур с разработкой технологического процесса механической обработки детали подвеска КЗР 1502603 и алгоритма оптимизации процесса магнитно-электрического шлифования покрытий

The interplay between the tumor cells and the surrounding stroma creates inflammation, which promotes tumor growth and spread. The inflammation is a hallmark for pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and is to high extent driven by IL-1α. IL-1α is expressed and secreted by the tumor cells and exerting its effect on the stroma, i.e. cancer associated fibroblasts (CAF), which in turn produce massive amount of inflammatory and immune regulatory factors. IL-1 induces activation of transcription factors such as nuclear factor-κβ (NF-κβ), but also activator protein 1 (AP-1) via the small G-protein Ras. Dysregulation of Ras pathways are common in cancer as this oncogene is the most frequently mutated in many cancers. In contrast, the signaling events leading up to the expression of IL-1α by tumor cells are not well elucidated. Our aim was to examine the signaling cascade involved in the induction of IL-1α expression in PDAC. We found p38MAPK, activated by the K-Ras signaling pathway, to be involved in the expression of IL-1α by PDAC as blocking this pathway decreased both the gene and protein expression of IL-1α. Blockage of the P38MAPK signaling in PDAC also dampened the ability of the tumor cell to induce inflammation in CAFs. In addition, the IL-1α autocrine signaling regulated the migratory capacity of PDAC cells. Taken together, the blockage of signaling pathways leading to IL-1α expression and/or neutralization of IL-1α in the PDAC microenvironment should be taken into consideration as possible treatment or complement to existing treatment of this cancer.Funding Agencies|Swedish Research Council|AI52731|VINNMER (Vinnova)||Medical Research Council of Southeast Sweden||Swedish Society of Medicine||</p