Tackling Obesity in Aged-Care Homes : The Effects of Environmental Cues

Peer reviewedPostprin

Avoiding Seeking Help in the Classroom: Who and Why?

Why do some students avoid seeking help in the classroom when they need it? When students do not seek the help they need, they put themselves at a disadvantage for learning. We discuss how students' personal motivational characteristics relate to their avoidance of help seeking. In particular, we discuss our work regarding perceived academic and social competence and achievement- and social-goal orientations. We also discuss how various dimensions of the classroom context relate to help avoidance. Specifically, we discuss rules and norms of classrooms as well as our work examining the achievement goal structure and social climate of classrooms. We conclude by discussing how new developments in achievement goal theory distinguishing between approach- and avoidance-goal orientations might add to psychologists' understanding of help avoidance. We also consider how students' strivings for autonomy and different aspects of the social climate might be incorporated into theories of students' help avoidance behavior.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44450/1/10648_2004_Article_292341.pd

Hepatocyte growth factor mediates enhanced wound healing responses and resistance to transforming growth factor-β1-driven myofibroblast differentiation in oral mucosal fibroblasts

Oral mucosal wounds are characterized by rapid healing with minimal scarring, partly attributable to the “enhanced” wound healing properties of oral mucosal fibroblasts (OMFs). Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a pleiotropic growth factor, with potential key roles in accelerating healing and preventing fibrosis. HGF can exist as full-length or truncated (HGF-NK), NK1 and NK2 isoforms. As OMFs display elevated HGF expression compared to dermal fibroblasts (DFs), this study investigated the extent to which HGF mediates the preferential cellular functions of OMFs, and the influence of pro-fibrotic, transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) on these responses. Knockdown of HGF expression in OMFs by short-interfering RNA (siHGF) significantly inhibited OMF proliferative and migratory responses. Supplementation with exogenous TGF-β1 also significantly inhibited proliferation and migration, concomitant with significantly down-regulated HGF expression. In addition, knockdown abrogated OMF resistance to TGF-β1-driven myofibroblast differentiation, as evidenced by increased α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) expression, F-actin reorganisation, and stress fibre formation. Responses were unaffected in siHGF-transfected DFs. OMFs expressed significantly higher full-length HGF and NK1 levels compared to patient-matched DFs, whilst NK2 expression was similar in both OMFs and DFs. Furthermore, NK2 was preferentially expressed over NK1 in DFs. TGF-β1 supplementation significantly down-regulated full-length HGF and NK1 expression by OMFs, while NK2 was less affected. This study demonstrates the importance of HGF in mediating “enhanced” OMF cellular function. We also propose that full-length HGF and HGF-NK1 convey desirable wound healing properties, whilst fibroblasts preferentially expressing more HGF-NK2 readily undergo TGF-β1-driven differentiation into myofibroblasts

Confinement of Skyrmions in Nanoscale FeGe Device-like Structures

Skyrmion-based devices have been proposed as a promising solution for low-energy data storage. These devices include racetrack or logic structures and require skyrmions to be confined in regions with dimensions comparable to the size of a single skyrmion. Here we examine skyrmions in FeGe device shapes using Lorentz transmission electron microscopy to reveal the consequences of skyrmion confinement in a device-like structure. Dumbbell-shaped elements were created by focused ion beam milling to provide regions where single skyrmions are confined adjacent to areas containing a skyrmion lattice. Simple block shapes of equivalent dimensions were also prepared to allow a direct comparison with skyrmion formation in a less complex, yet still confined, device geometry. The impact of applying a magnetic field and varying the temperature on the formation of skyrmions within the shapes was examined. This revealed that it is not just confinement within a small device structure that controls the position and number of skyrmions but that a complex device geometry changes the skyrmion behavior, including allowing skyrmions to form at lower applied magnetic fields than in simple shapes. The impact of edges in complex shapes is observed to be significant in changing the behavior of the magnetic textures formed. This could allow methods to be developed to control both the position and number of skyrmions within device structures

Myofibroblasts: function, formation, and scope of molecular therapies for skin fibrosis

Myofibroblasts are contractile, α-smooth muscle actin-positive cells with multiple roles in pathophysiological processes. Myofibroblasts mediate wound contractions, but their persistent presence in tissues is central to driving fibrosis, making them attractive cell targets for the development of therapeutic treatments. However, due to shared cellular markers with several other phenotypes, the specific targeting of myofibroblasts has long presented a scientific and clinical challenge. In recent years, myofibroblasts have drawn much attention among scientific research communities from multiple disciplines and specialisations. As further research uncovers the characterisations of myofibroblast formation, function, and regulation, the realisation of novel interventional routes for myofibroblasts within pathologies has emerged. The research community is approaching the means to finally target these cells, to prevent fibrosis, accelerate scarless wound healing, and attenuate associated disease-processes in clinical settings. This comprehensive review article describes the myofibroblast cell phenotype, their origins, and their diverse physiological and pathological functionality. Special attention has been given to mechanisms and molecular pathways governing myofibroblast differentiation, and updates in molecular interventions

Reconstruction of former glacier surface topography from archive oblique aerial images

Archive oblique aerial imagery offers the potential to reconstruct the former geometry of valley glaciers and other landscape surfaces. Whilst the use of Structure-from-Motion (SfM) photogrammetry with multiview stereopsis (MVS) to process small-format imagery is now well established in the geosciences, the potential of the technique for extracting topographic data from archive oblique aerial imagery is unclear. Here, SfM-MVS is used to reconstruct the former topography of two high-Arctic glaciers (Midtre and Austre Lovénbreen, Svalbard, Norway) using three archive oblique aerial images obtained by the Norwegian Polar Institute in 1936. The 1936 point cloud was produced using seven LiDAR-derived ground control points located on stable surfaces in proximity to the former piedmont glacier termini. To assess accuracy, the 1936 data set was compared to a LiDAR data set using the M3C2 algorithm to calculate cloud-to-cloud differences. For stable areas (such as nonglacial surfaces), vertical differences were detected between the two point clouds (RMS M3C2 vertical difference of 8.5 m), with the outwash zones adjacent to the assessed glacier termini showing less extensive vertical discrepancies (94% of M3C2 vertical differences between ±5 m). This research highlights that historical glacier surface topography can be extracted from archive oblique aerial imagery, but accuracy is limited by issues including the lack of camera calibration, the quality and resolution of the archive imagery, and by the identification of suitable ground control. To demonstrate the value of historical glacier surfaces produced using oblique archive imagery, the reconstructed glacier surface topography is used to investigate evidence of a potential former surge front at the high-Arctic valley glacier, Austre Lovénbreen - a glacier identified to have potentially exhibited surge-type behaviour during the Neoglacial. A surface bulge of ~15–20 m is resolved on the 1936 model; however, when compared with the now deglaciated former subglacial topography, a surge origin for the surface feature becomes unclear. The processed 1936 oblique imagery was also used to produce orthorectified nadir aerial imagery, from which structural mapping was undertaken: this adds to the existing 1948–1995 structural map series for these glaciers. This research demonstrates the potential of SfM-MVS for reconstructing historical glacier surfaces, which is important for aiding our understanding of former glacier dynamics and enabling the rapid assessment of glacier change over time

Ice-cored moraine degradation mapped and quantified using an unmanned aerial vehicle: a case study from a polythermal glacier in Svalbard

Ice-cored lateral–frontal moraines are common at the margins of receding high-Arctic valley glaciers, but the preservation potential of these features within the landform record is unclear. Recent climatic amelioration provides an opportunity to study the morphological evolution of these landforms as they de-ice. This is important because high-Arctic glacial landsystems have been used as analogues for formerly glaciated areas in the mid-latitudes. This study uses SfM (Structure-from-Motion) photogrammetry and a combination of archive aerial and UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) derived imagery to investigate the degradation of an ice-cored lateral–frontal moraine at Austre Lovénbreen, Svalbard. Across the study area as a whole, over an 11-year period, the average depth of surface lowering was − 1.75 ± 0.89 m. The frontal sections of the moraine showed low or undetectable rates of change. Spatially variable rates of surface lowering are associated with differences in the quantity of buried ice within the structure of the moraine. Morphological change was dominated by surface lowering, with limited field evidence of degradation via back-wastage. This permits the moraine a greater degree of stability than previously observed at other sites in Svalbard. It is unclear whether the end point will be a fully stabilised ice-cored moraine, in equilibrium with its environment, or an ice-free lateral–frontal moraine complex. Controls on geomorphological change (e.g. topography and climate) and the preservation potential of the lateral–frontal moraine are discussed. The methods used by this research also demonstrate the potential value of SfM photogrammetry and unmanned aerial vehicles for monitoring environmental change and are likely to have wider applications in other geoscientific sub-disciplines

The Etiology of Science Performance: Decreasing Heritability and Increasing Importance of the Shared Environment From 9 to 12 Years of Age

During childhood and adolescence, increases in heritability and decreases in shared environmental influences have typically been found for cognitive abilities. A sample of more than 2,500 pairs of twins from the Twins Early Development Study was used to investigate whether a similar pattern would be found for science performance from 9 to 12 years. Science performance was based on teacher-assessed U.K. National Curriculum standards. Science at 9 years showed high heritability (64%) and modest shared environmental (16%) estimates. In contrast to the expected developmental pattern, heritability was significantly lower at 12 years (47%) and shared environmental influences were significantly higher (32%). Understanding what these increasingly important shared environmental influences are could lead to interventions that encourage engagement in science throughout the lifespan