Hydromorphological classification of Slovenian rivers

This paper provides an overview of hydromorphological and related classifications of rivers in Slovenia and elsewhere. The Rosgen classification is presented in greater detail; it was used in the study as the basis for developing the first Slovenian hydromorphological classification. A hydromorphological survey form was designed to classify rivers and used in the office and field survey of hydromorphological variables in the 95 river sections selected in Slovenia. In the river sections studied, hydromorphological types were identified by analyzing the co-occurrence of selected hydromorphological variables. This method was used to identify 10 hydromorphological types, for which the main hydromorphological features are presented in this paper. Based on the results of the first hydromorphological classification of Slovenian rivers, guidelines are provided for future work

Rab7b modulates autophagic flux by interacting with Atg4B

Autophagy (macroautophagy) is a highly conserved eukaryotic degradation pathway in which cytosolic components and organelles are sequestered by specialized autophagic membranes and degraded through the lysosomal system. The autophagic pathway maintains basal cellular homeostasis and helps cells adapt during stress; thus, defects in autophagy can cause detrimental effects. It is therefore crucial that autophagy is properly regulated. In this study, we show that the cysteine protease Atg4B, a key enzyme in autophagy that cleaves LC3, is an interactor of the small GTPase Rab7b. Indeed, Atg4B interacts and co‐localizes with Rab7b on vesicles. Depletion of Rab7b increases autophagic flux as indicated by the increased size of autophagic structures as well as the magnitude of macroautophagic sequestration and degradation. Importantly, we demonstrate that Rab7b regulates LC3 processing by modulating Atg4B activity. Taken together, our findings reveal Rab7b as a novel negative regulator of autophagy through its interaction with Atg4B

Binary Mixture Composed of Nematic Liquid Crystal and Carbon Nanotubes: A Theoretical Description

Based on the phenomenological model first presented by van der Schoot et al., which predicts the alignment of carbon nanotube (CNT) dispersions in thermotropic nematic liquid crystals, we present the extensive results concerning the phase diagram and the orientational properties of the mixture in this chapter

Linking disambiguation and retention in a developmental eye-tracking study with monolingual and multilingual children

The disambiguation effect, also referred to as process of elimination, occurs during word learning, whereby novel words are mapped onto new referents, precluding the application of a novel label to a familiar object. Prior studies showed that the emergence and use of disambiguation can be affected by children’s vocabulary growth and linguistic experience, such as growing up with more than one language. To test this, we investigated (a) whether monolingual and multilingual children disambiguated a novel word–object mapping, (b) whether they retained a trained, previously seen word–object mapping, (c) whether they retained the novel fast-mapped word–object mapping, and (d) whether and how age, English vocabulary size, and language background modulated disambiguation and retention. Lastly, we tested (e) whether children who disambiguated also retained better. Eye-tracking data from 18- to 30-month-old monolingual children (n = 43) and multilingual children (n = 40) were collected. A looking-while-listening paradigm with two objects included two familiar items, one novel item, and one trained item. Mixed-effect models reported that vocabulary size predicted the outcome of mapping and retention better than age. Monolingual children’s accuracy on disambiguation trials was high from the start, whereas multilingual children started to disambiguate later as their vocabulary grew. Only monolingual children performed above chance level on retaining the novel label. Lastly, the use of disambiguation improved retention for monolingual children but not for multilingual children. This research corroborates that disambiguation should be regarded as a mechanism facilitating default fast mapping rather than fully fledged learning. Vocabulary growth leading to an increase in disambiguation supports the notion that the disambiguation effect stems from prior episodes of learning

Lymphatic endothelial cells are a replicative niche for Mycobacterium tuberculosis

In extrapulmonary tuberculosis, the most common site of infection is within the lymphatic system, and there is growing recognition that lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) are involved in immune function. Here, we identified LECs, which line the lymphatic vessels, as a niche for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the lymph nodes of patients with tuberculosis. In cultured primary human LECs (hLECs), we determined that M. tuberculosis replicates both in the cytosol and within autophagosomes, but the bacteria failed to replicate when the virulence locus RD1 was deleted. Activation by IFN-γ induced a cell-autonomous response in hLECs via autophagy and NO production that restricted M. tuberculosis growth. Thus, depending on the activation status of LECs, autophagy can both promote and restrict replication. Together, these findings reveal a previously unrecognized role for hLECs and autophagy in tuberculosis pathogenesis and suggest that hLECs are a potential niche for M. tuberculosis that allows establishment of persistent infection in lymph nodes

Meritve vpliva vlage na toplotno prevodnost tkanin

The article presents the experimental results of the thermal conductivity of absorbent fabrics for increasing relative amount of water in the fabric. Measurements confirm that the effective thermal conductivity of fabrics at low moisture level is proportional to the relative amount of water absorbed in fabrics. With increasing relative amount of water in the fabric, effective thermal conductivity stabilizes around the value comparable with the thermal conductivity of water. The experimental results are compared with the theoretical linear model.V članku so predstavljeni rezultati meritev vpliva vlage na toplotno prevodnost vpojnih tkanin. Meritve potrjujejo, da se efektivna toplotna prevodnost tkanin z večanjem deleža vode sprva linearno povečuje. Pri večjih relativnih deležih vode v tkanini, meritve kažejo, da se efektivna toplotna prevodnost tkanin ustali okrog vrednosti primerljivi s toplotno prevodnostjo vode. Rezultati meritev primerjamo s teoretično napovedjo po linearnem modelu

Physics Learning in Primary and Secondary Schools with Computer Games—An Example — Angry Birds

In this paper, we discuss how we can make physics lessons more interesting with the use of information and communications technology (ICT). We explain why physics teachers need to be ICT competent and which ICT tools teachers can use to improve their lessons. Nowadays, many learners spend their free time playing computer games that use basic physics laws for game mechanics. One of our goals was to find out which computer games would be appropriate for learning physics and how to include those games in the learning process. We also show an example how to teach physics using the computer game Angry Birds, where we take into account primary and secondary school curriculum. Finally, we analyze how teaching physics with computer games affect students and what are the benefits and weaknesses using this method. In addition, we conduct a survey to gain insight on the opinion of physics teachers about the appropriateness of the computer game Angry Birds for teaching physics in elementary and high school. Surprisingly, the teachers find the game more appropriate for the teaching of physics in elementary school, despite of the fact that there are physics themes mostly from high school physics included in the game

Cathepsin K in lymphangioleiomyomatosis: LAM cell-fibroblast Interactions enhance protease activity by extracellular acidification

Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) is a rare disease in which clonal ‘LAM’ cells infiltrate the lungs and lymphatics. In association with recruited fibroblasts, LAM cells form nodules adjacent to lung cysts. It is assumed LAM nodule derived proteases lead to cyst formation although, this is uncertain. We profiled protease gene expression in whole lung tissue and observed cathepsin K was 40 fold over-expressed in LAM compared with control lungs (p≤0.0001). Immunohistochemistry confirmed cathepsin K protein in LAM nodules but not control lungs. Cathepsin K gene expression, protein and protease activity was detected in LAM associated fibroblasts but not the LAM cell line 621-101. In lung nodules, cathepsin K immune reactivity was predominantly co-localised with LAM associated fibroblasts. In vitro, extra-cellular cathepsin K activity was minimal at pH 7.5 but significantly enhanced in fibroblast cultures at pH 7 and 6. 621-101 cells reduced extracellular pH by 0.5 units over 24 hours. Acidification was dependent upon 621-101 cell mTOR activity and net hydrogen ion transporters, particularly sodium/bicarbonate co-transporters and carbonic anhydrases which were also expressed in LAM lung tissue. In LAM cell/fibroblast co-cultures, acidification paralleled cathepsin K activity and both were inhibited by sodium bicarbonate co-transporter (p≤0.0001) and carbonic anhydrase inhibitors (p=0.0021). Our findings suggest cathepsin K activity is dependent on LAM cell/fibroblast interactions and inhibitors of extracellular acidification may be potential therapies for LAM

A Contribution To Hydromorphological Typification of

In the following thesis the research of the hydromorphological (HM) reference conditions and\ud the subsequent HM typification is presented. The research was carried out on the selected\ud hydromorphological reference sections of the Slovene watercourses. Taking into account the\ud HM reference conditions and HM typifications already done across the world and following\ud the guidelines of the Water Frame Directive, the selected approach for the research was the\ud spatial strategy with field sampling. The research included 92 HM reference sections of\ud different watercourses, chosen according to the criteria for selecting such reference sites. The\ud HM variables gathering demanded the making of the HM reference record sheet that includes\ud both the variables acquired on the basis of the on and off site work. For making the inventory\ud we used the transect data gathering (Bizjak, 2003) that demands a list of 6 transects for every\ud HM reference site. The average section values that are the input data for the making of the\ud HM typification of the selected HM reference sites were then acquired from the transect\ud values. The first two levels of the Rosgen typification of watercourses (Rosgen, 1996) are\ud taken as the starting point for typification. With the co-appearance analysis and the use of the\ud geographic information system (software package ArcGIS v. 9) 9 hydromorphological types\ud of watercourses were identified. The research has shown that the HM types, identified on the\ud basis of the differences between the key geomorphic and morphological variables, typically\ud differ also on the level of more specific HM variables