Protection & regeneration of [beta]-cells: studies using the nod mouse

PhDDiabetes is a chronic disease affecting approximately 250 million people. To date, transplantation-based therapy is the therapy of choice; however, its success is hampered by the scarcity of transplantable human material. An alternative strategy is the promotion of regeneration in the pancreas. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), a subpopulation of bone marrow (BM) cells, can contribute to tissue repair in various pathological conditions via the formation of new blood vessels. In this thesis, I review and discuss the role and regenerative potential of EPCs in diabetes using non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice, a model of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Flow cytometry analyses of the EPC population in BM and blood of both diabetic and pre-diabetic NOD mice suggested that at the onset of diabetes, BM-derived EPCs are stimulated to enter the systemic circulation in response to signals from the pancreas. To further investigate the contribution of EPCs to β-cell regeneration, whole BM and cultured EPCs were transplanted into pre-diabetic and diabetic NOD mice soon after diabetes was diagnosed. Our data imply that BM cells from wild type mice administered before the onset of diabetes may have an effect in delaying β-cell destruction evidenced by glycaemic control, reduced inflammation and increased number of proliferating Ki-67+ Insulin+ cells. EPCs transplanted into early diabetic NOD mice had reduced inflammation and a higher survival rate compared to control mice that did not receive EPCs. I therefore believe that both BM and EPCs show great promise in regenerating the damaged pancreas of NOD mice. In addition to promoting endogenous β-cell regeneration using EPCs, I have investigated a strategy to protect β-cell death via apoptosis, using a protease peptide XG-102 developed by Xigen. Since apoptosis of β-cells is one of the putative mechanisms involved in the cascade of events leading to T1D, we tested XG-102, for prevention of β-cell loss in the NOD mouse. Treated mice had a larger number of islets and inflammation was less prevalent compared to control mice. Additionally, XG-102 treated mice showed better control of their blood glucose. In conclusion, both therapeutic strategies showed great promise in regenerating the damaged pancreas of NOD mice. While these strategies are still under further investigation, they offer encouragement in the quest for the treatment of early diabetes in the future

Urbanisation as a risk indicator for complex psychiatric disorders and forced admissions

Background To determine both prevalence and complexity of psychiatric disorders in the Amsterdam area in relation to other major cities and less urbanized areas in the Netherlands, and to assess whether this is related to higher levels of (coercive) admissions. Methods These associations were explored in a nationwide epidemiological study and the national admission register, and in a local study of the Amsterdam region examining health care use patterns. Results The admission rate for the whole of the Netherlands was twice as high in the group of most highly urbanized municipalities as in the group of least urbanized municipalities. The urban/rural variations in admission rates in the Netherlands are reflected in true psychiatric morbidity rates. The authors found an urban/rural difference in total annual prevalence figures for psychiatric disorders in the population. The difference was also found for the separate disorders, mood disorders and substance-induced disorders, but not for anxiety disorders. Both prevalence and complexity of psychopathology in terms of comorbidity and severity were significantly higher in Amsterdam compared to other larger cities in the Netherlands, as were the number of coercive admissions. Conclusion There is evidence regarding a link between urbanisation, the development of complex psychiatric disorders and the number of (forced) admissions to PICU's [1]

COLLABORATIVE AND SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING PROCESSES: A CASE STUDY IN MALAYSIAN CHEMISTRY PBL LESSON

Problem-based learning (PBL) provides students with the opportunity to conduct self-directed learning in collaborative groups, which are essential skills to meet challenges in the 21st century. This study aims to investigate the occurrence and types of collaborative and self-directed processes during problem analysis phase utilizing the FILA-MMS chart in Malaysia secondary school. Two out of five groups of students taught by a teacher in one PBL chemistry lesson was observed, audio-recorded and the verbatim were analyzed. The findings show that collaborative process and self-directed process occur in both groups. Collaborative processes occur by 79.1% and 78.9% in group 1 and group 2 respectively. Major collaborative processes observed in both groups are „question and answer‟, „co-construction‟ and „sharing of ideas or information‟. Self-directed processes occur by 18.3% and 12.9%. The main self-directed processes observed are „monitoring‟ and „directing‟. This study shows that there is a lack of self- directed learning skills among students, such as planning, reflection, evaluation of understanding, and managing information and resources. To enhance these skills among students, future PBL teachers are suggested to emphasize and model planning, reflection and evaluation processes in their lessons

Hotspot Zuidplaspolder: Climate adaptation in the Zuidplaspolder

Building at the lowest point in the Netherlands, in the Zuidplaspolder, is viewed as a challenge and not something that is impossible. The Xplorelab approach in the Hotspot Zuidplaspolder project is a combination of research, implementation of ideas into inspiring examples and evaluation

Mental health and urbanization: An investigation of urban-rural and inner-city differences in psychiatric morbidity

Dekker, J.J.M. [Promotor]Beekman, A.T. [Promotor]Schoevers, R.A. [Copromotor

AugmentedForearm: Exploring the design space of a display-enhanced forearm

Recent technical advances allow traditional wristwatches to be equipped with high processing power. Not only do they allow for glancing at the time, but they also allow users to interact with digital information. However, the display space is very limited. Extending the screen to cover the entire forearm is promising. It allows the display to be worn similarly to a wristwatch while providing a large display surface. In this paper we present the design space of a display-augmented forearm, focusing on two specific properties of the forearm: its hybrid nature as a private and a public display surface and the way clothing influences information display. We show a wearable prototypical implementation along with interactions that instantiate the design space: sleeve-store, sleeve-zoom, public forearm display and interactive tattoo

EyeRing: A Finger-Worn Input Device for Seamless Interactions with Our Surroundings

Finger-worn interfaces remain a vastly unexplored space for user interfaces, despite the fact that our fingers and hands are naturally used for referencing and interacting with the environment. In this paper we present design guidelines and implementation of a finger-worn I/O device, the EyeRing, which leverages the universal and natural gesture of pointing. We present use cases of EyeRing for both visually impaired and sighted people. We discuss initial reactions from visually impaired users which suggest that EyeRing may indeed offer a more seamless solution for dealing with their immediate surroundings than the solutions they currently use. We also report on a user study that demonstrates how EyeRing reduces effort and disruption to a sighted user. We conclude that this highly promising form factor offers both audiences enhanced, seamless interaction with information related to objects in the environment.Singapore University of Technology and Design. International Design Center (IDC grant IDG31100104A)Singapore University of Technology and Design. International Design Center (IDC grant IDD41100102A