Nachhaltige Effekte aus der COVID-bedingten Online-Lehre?! Didaktik-Boost für die Digitalisierung der Lehre

Im Fokus der vorliegenden Arbeit steht die Frage, welche Elemente der pandemiebedingten Online-Lehre aus Sicht der Lehrenden nachhaltig im Hochschulalltag verankert werden sollen. Mittels einer Online-Umfrage wurden Lehrende der Fachhochschule Oberösterreich diesbezüglich befragt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich die Lehrenden weiterhin digital-gestützte Lehre vorstellen können, bevorzugt als Blended Learning. Für die nachhaltige Implementierung digitaler Lehrelemente bedarf es Voraussetzungen auf organisatorischer wie individueller Ebene. (DIPF/Orig.

The Development of an Online Psycho-Education and Cognitive-Behavioural Intervention Program ‘Step Up’ for Young People to Combat Cyberbullying

The overall study aim was to develop and evaluate an intervention that seeks to help young people deal with cyberbullying. An online intervention (Step Up) was created based on an existing school-based program with proven efficacy. The first study describes the development of Step Up as well as a trial that assessed the feasibility and acceptability. This study gathered qualitative feedback about the young people’s experience of the program, and assessed the practicality of the assessment battery. A short form of the PECK (Personal Experiences Checklist) a measure assessing a young person’s experience of being bullied was constructed using item response theory, and its structure confirmed with confirmatory factor analysis. Feedback from the feasibility study was used to refine the intervention and make it was highly user-friendly. A wait-list randomised controlled trial was planned and commenced, but then abandoned due to a lack of school recruitment. Instead, a single group pre-post-follow-up design was implemented as a pilot study to test the efficacy of Step Up. It was hypothesized that people who completed the program would report: less experience with cyberbullying; less emotional problems; and positive changes in self-compassion. Sixty-eight young people completed the pilot study, including a short-term follow-up assessment. The results show largely positive changes on the measures, but the conclusions are limited by the lack of a control group. In conclusion, preliminary evidence is provided to support the effectiveness of an online intervention targeting cyberbullying in reducing reported bullying and emotional symptoms, and increasing self-compassion. The current study provides a foundation for an initial contribution to the range of anti-bullying interventions required to make the online world a safer place

The Lipase/Amylase Ratio (LAR) in Peripheral Blood Might Represent a Novel Prognostic Marker in Patients with Surgically Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic enzymes might play a pivotal role in the pathophysiology and prognosis of pancreatic cancer. The aim of this study is to investigate the lipase/amylase ratio (LAR), representing a marker previously used in the differentiation of pancreatitis, as a potential prognostic marker in pancreatic cancer. Data from 157 surgically treated patients with ductal pancreatic adenocarcinoma and 351 patients with metastatic disease were evaluated retrospectively. Cancer-specific survival (CSS) was considered the endpoint of the study. After applying Kaplan–Meier curve analysis, uni- and multivariate Cox regression models were calculated to evaluate the prognostic relevance of LAR. An elevated LAR at diagnosis of localized pancreatic cancer was significantly associated with higher CA19-9 levels (p < 0.05). In univariate analysis, we observed an increased LAR as a significant factor for lower CSS in localized pancreatic cancer patients (HR = 1.63; 95% CI = 1.12–2.36; p = 0.01), but not in metastatic patients (HR = 1.12; 95% CI = 0.87–1.43; p = 0.363). In multivariate analysis, including age, gender, tumor stage, Karnofsky Performance Status, tumor grade, administration of chemotherapy and the LAR, an increased LAR was confirmed to represent an independent prognostic factor regarding CSS (HR = 1.81; 95% CI = 1.17–2.77; p = 0.007) in localized pancreatic cancer patients. In conclusion, our study identified the LAR as an independent prognostic factor in surgically treated pancreatic cancer patients

Interleukin-10 improves stroke outcome by controlling the detrimental Interleukin-17A response

Background!#!Lymphocytes have dichotomous functions in ischemic stroke. Regulatory T cells are protective, while IL-17A from innate lymphocytes promotes the infarct growth. With recent advances of T cell-subtype specific transgenic mouse models it now has become possible to study the complex interplay of T cell subpopulations in ischemic stroke.!##!Methods!#!In a murine model of experimental stroke we analyzed the effects of IL-10 on the functional outcome for up to 14 days post-ischemia and defined the source of IL-10 in ischemic brains based on immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, and bone-marrow chimeric mice. We used neutralizing IL-17A antibodies, intrathecal IL-10 injections, and transgenic mouse models which harbor a deletion of the IL-10R on distinct T cell subpopulations to further explore the interplay between IL-10 and IL-17A pathways in the ischemic brain.!##!Results!#!We demonstrate that IL-10 deficient mice exhibit significantly increased infarct sizes on days 3 and 7 and enlarged brain atrophy and impaired neurological outcome on day 14 following tMCAO. In ischemic brains IL-10 producing immune cells included regulatory T cells, macrophages, and microglia. Neutralization of IL-17A following stroke reversed the worse outcome in IL-10 deficient mice and intracerebral treatment with recombinant IL-10 revealed that IL-10 controlled IL-17A positive lymphocytes in ischemic brains. Importantly, IL-10 acted differentially on αβ and γδ T cells. IL-17A producing CD4!##!Conclusions!#!Taken together, our data indicate a key function of IL-10 in restricting the detrimental IL-17A-signaling in stroke and further supports that IL-17A is a therapeutic opportunity for stroke treatment

Replacement of brain-resident myeloid cells does not alter cerebral amyloid-beta deposition in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease

Immune cells of myeloid lineage are encountered in the Alzheimer’s disease (AD) brain, where they cluster around amyloid-β plaques. However, assigning functional roles to myeloid cell subtypes has been problematic, and the potential for peripheral myeloid cells to alleviate AD pathology remains unclear. Therefore, we asked whether replacement of brain-resident myeloid cells with peripheral monocytes alters amyloid deposition in two mouse models of cerebral β-amyloidosis (APP23 and APPPS1). Interestingly, early after repopulation, infiltrating monocytes neither clustered around plaques nor showed Trem2 expression. However, with increasing time in the brain, infiltrating monocytes became plaque associated and also Trem2 positive. Strikingly, however, monocyte repopulation for up to 6 mo did not modify amyloid load in either model, independent of the stage of pathology at the time of repopulation. Our results argue against a long-term role of peripheral monocytes that is sufficiently distinct from microglial function to modify cerebral β-amyloidosis. Therefore, myeloid replacement by itself is not likely to be effective as a therapeutic approach for AD