Teaching Philosophy based on We-Experience:: A New Approach and Four Teaching Concepts

In this paper, we present a new approach to teaching philosophy based on so-called “we-experiences” (in short: TWEEX). The novelty of this approach, which bears on the concept of “we-experience” from Social Ontology and Phenomenology, is that it connects contents directly to shared classroom experience. After discussing its theoretical background, we illustrate the TWEEX approach by presenting four teaching concepts that can be adapted to different teaching contexts. They deal with the following topics: mindfulness and philosophy (ancient philosophy), the nature of scientific theories (philosophy of science), freedom of speech (political philosophy), and boredom (aesthetics, existential philosophy)

Inside/Outside : Post-Synthetic Modification of the Zr-Benzophenonedicarboxylate Metal–Organic Framework

The Zr-based metal–organic framework, Zr-bzpdc-MOF, contains the photoreactive linker molecule benzophenone-4,4'-dicarboxylate (bzpdc) which imparts the possibility for photochemical post-synthetic modification. Upon irradiation with UV light, the keto group of the benzophenone moiety will react with nearly every C-H bond-containing molecule. Within this paper, we further explore the photochemical reactivity of the Zr-bzpdc-MOF, especially with regard to which restrictions govern internal versus external reactions. We show that apart from reactions with C-H bond-containing molecules, the MOF reacts also with water. By studying the reactivity versus linear alcohols we find a clear delineation in that shorter alcohol molecules (up to butanol as a borderline case) react with photoexcited keto groups throughout the whole crystals whereas longer ones react only with surface-standing keto groups. In addition, we show that with the alkanes n-butane to n-octane, the reaction is restricted to the outer surface. We hypothesize that the reactivity of the Zr-bzpdc-MOF versus different reagents depends on the accessibility of the pore system which in turn depends mainly on the size of the reagents and on their polarity. The possibility to direct the post-synthetic modification of the Zr-bzpdc-MOF (selective modification of the whole pore system versus surface modification) gives additional degrees of freedom in the design of this metal–organic framework for shaping and for applications. © 2020 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA

Expression of different L1 isoforms of Mastomys natalensis papillomavirus as mechanism to circumvent adaptive immunity

Although many high-risk mucosal and cutaneous human papillomaviruses (HPVs) theoretically have the potential to synthesize L1 isoforms differing in length, previous seroepidemiological studies only focused on the short L1 variants, co-assembling with L2 to infectious virions. Using the multimammate mouse Mastomys coucha as preclinical model, this is the first study demonstrating seroconversion against different L1 isoforms during the natural course of papillomavirus infection. Intriguingly, positivity with the cutaneous MnPV was accompanied by a strong seroresponse against a longer L1 isoform, but to our surprise, the raised antibodies were non-neutralizing. Only after a delay of around 4 months, protecting antibodies against the short L1 appeared, enabling the virus to successfully establish an infection. This argues for a novel humoral immune escape mechanism that may also have important implications on the interpretation of epidemiological data in terms of seropositivity and protection of PV infections in general.Fil: Fu, Yingying. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Cao, Rui. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Schäfer, Miriam. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Stephan, Sonja. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Braspenning Wesch, Ilona. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Schmitt, Laura. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Bischoff, Ralf. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Müller, Martin. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Schäfer, Kai. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Vinzon, Sabrina Eugenia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Rösl, Frank. German Cancer Research Center; AlemaniaFil: Hasche, Daniel. German Cancer Research Center ; Alemani

Towards New Robust Zn(II) Complexes for the Ring-Opening Polymerization of Lactide Under Industrially Relevant Conditions

The synthesis of bio-based and biodegradable plastics is a hot topic in research due to growing environmental problems caused by omnipresent plastics. As a result, polylactide, which has been known for years, has seen a tremendous increase in industrial production. Nevertheless, the manufacturing process using the toxic catalyst Sn(Oct)2 is very critical. As an alternative, five zinc acetate complexes have been synthesized with Schiff base-like ligands that exhibit high activity in the ring-opening polymerization of non-purified lactide. The systems bear different side arms in the ligand scaffold. The influence of these substituents has been analyzed. For a detailed description of the catalytic activities, the rate constants kapp and kp were determined using in-situ Raman spectroscopy at a temperature of 150 °C. The polymers produced have molar masses of up to 71 000 g mol−1 and are therefore suitable for a variety of applications. Toxicity measurements carried out for these complexes proved the nontoxicity of the systems. © 2019 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA

Rab31 expression levels modulate tumor-relevant characteristics of breast cancer cells

BACKGROUND: Rab proteins constitute a large family of monomeric GTP-binding proteins that regulate intracellular vesicle transport. Several Rab proteins, including rab31, have been shown to affect cancer progression and are related with prognosis in various types of cancer including breast cancer. Recently, the gene encoding rab31 was found to be overexpressed in estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer tissue. In a previous study we found a significant association of high rab31 mRNA expression with poor prognosis in node-negative breast cancer patients. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the impact of rab31 (over)-expression on important aspects of tumor progression in vitro and in vivo. METHODS: Breast cancer cells displaying low (MDA-MB-231) or no (CAMA-1) endogenous rab31 expression were stably transfected with a rab31 expression plasmid. Batch-transfected cells as well as selected cell clones, expressing different levels of rab31 protein, were analyzed with regard to proliferation, cell adhesion, the invasive capacity of tumor cells, and in vivo in a xenograft tumor model. Polyclonal antibodies directed to recombinantly expressed rab31 were generated and protein expression analyzed by immunohistochemistry, Western blot analysis, and a newly developed sensitive ELISA. RESULTS: Elevated rab31 protein levels were associated with enhanced proliferation of breast cancer cells. Interestingly, weak to moderate overexpression of rab31 in cell lines with no detectable endogenous rab31 expression was already sufficient to elicit distinct effects on cell proliferation. By contrast, increased expression of rab31 in breast cancer cells led to reduced adhesion towards several extracellular matrix proteins and decreased invasive capacity through Matrigel(TM). Again, the rab31-mediated effects on cell adhesion and invasion were dose-dependent. Finally, in a xenograft mouse model, we observed a significantly impaired metastatic dissemination of rab31 overexpressing MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells to the lung. CONCLUSIONS: Overexpression of rab31 in breast cancer cells leads to a switch from an invasive to a proliferative phenotype as indicated by an increased cell proliferation, reduced adhesion and invasion in vitro, and a reduced capacity to form lung metastases in vivo

Therapy Dogs as a Crisis Intervention After Traumatic Events? – An Experimental Study

Animal-assisted therapy has been proposed as a treatment adjunct for traumatized patients. In animal-assisted crisis response, dogs are used directly after a traumatic event to reduce stress and anxiety. However, to date there are few controlled studies investigating the effects of therapy dogs on PTSD symptoms and to our knowledge there is no study investigating the effects of a therapy dog intervention directly after a traumatic event. In this study, 60 healthy female participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups: after exposure to a “traumatic” film clip (trauma-film paradigm), one group of participants interacted with a friendly dog for 15 min, another group of participants watched a film clip showing a person interacting with a friendly dog and the last group was instructed to relax. Participants who had interacted with the dog after the film reported lower anxiety levels, less negative affect, and more positive affect after the intervention as compared to the other two groups. However, the participants who interacted with the dog showed a smaller decrease in physiological arousal after the traumatic film clip compared to both other groups. There were no differences in intrusion symptoms between the three groups. Our results show that dogs are able to lessen subjectively experienced stress and anxiety after a “traumatic” stress situation

Tuning a robust system: N,O Zinc Guanidine Catalysts for the ROP of Lactide

Non-toxic, highly-active and robust complexes are the holy grail as ideal green catalysts for the polymerisation of biobased and biodegrable polylactide. Four new zinc guanidine complexes [ZnCl2(TMG4NMe2asme)], [ZnCl2(TMG5Clasme)], [ZnCl2(TMG5Measme)] and [ZnCl2(TMG5NMe2asme)] with different electron-donating and electron-withdrawing groups on aromatic backbone of the ligand have been synthesised. Ligands are derived from low-cost commercially available compounds and have been converted in a three- or four-step synthesis into the desired ligand in good yields. The compounds have been fully characterised and tested in the ROP of rac-LA in the melt under industrially relevant conditions. The complexes are based on the recently published structure [ZnCl2(TMGasme)] which has shown high activity in the polymerisation of lactide at 150 °C. Different substituents in the para-position to the guanidine moiety significantly increase the polymerisation rate whereas positioning substituents in meta-position causes no change in the reaction rate. With molecular weights over 71 000 g mol-1, the best catalyst produces polymer for several industrial applications and its polymerisation rate approaches the one of Sn(Oct)2. The robust systems are able to polymerise non-purified lactide. The initiation of the polymerisation is suggested to occur by impurities in the monomer

Handbuch methodischer Grundfragen zur Masterplan-Erstellung - Kommunale Masterpläne für 100 % Klimaschutz

Masterplan-Kommunen sind die Vorreiter unter den Klimaschutzkommunen und müssen über das bisher in der Breite bereits Begonnene hinausgehen. Sie stehen vor großen strukturellen und finanziellen Herausforderungen, aber auch vor großen Chancen. Die Chancen ergeben sich insbesondere für ein verbessertes und lebenswerteres Umfeld in der Kommune und damit auch für eine gesteigerte Lebensqualität. Die Einbindung aller Akteure in der Kommune, innerhalb und außerhalb der Verwaltung, ist ein wichtiger Baustein auf dem Weg zum Ziel „Null Emissionen“. Vor allem die Einbindung der Wirtschaft vor Ort und der Bürgerinnen und Bürger ist essenziell, wenn eine Transformation angestoßen und umgesetzt werden soll. Das Handbuch unterstützt die Masterplan-Kommunen mit der vorliegenden methodischen Herangehensweise auf ihrem Weg