Dyslexia:From diagnoses to theory

Dyslexia is generally considered to be a disorder of accurate and/or fluent word recognition and spelling and decoding abilities. However, theories about what causes dyslexia differ to a large extent which prevents international agreement about how dyslexia should be diagnosed. In this thesis, various aspects of diagnostic methods were investigated, and new methods were proposed. It was found that existing methods can be improved by using item scores instead of sum scores, by applying multiple classifications, and by carefully evaluating criteria of dyslexia. Furthermore, it was found that self-report statements provide more reliable diagnoses than test results, mainly because self-report statements do not depend on general intelligence and level of schooling. Additionally, a classification accuracy of 80% was found using anatomical brain imaging techniques. Some findings of this thesis are relevant for the interpretation of theoretical perspectives about dyslexia. First, a severity score of dyslexia showed two separate normal distributions for people with and without dyslexia. Second, it was found that dyslexia is characterised by at least six cognitive variables. Third, some of these variables showed significant correlations with various areas in the brain. Fourth, support was found for the idea that anatomical brain differences are mainly the result of individual differences in training. Based on the findings in this thesis, it was proposed that dyslexia may not be a disorder, but a perceptual variation, originating in the subcortex and with widespread effects on various areas in the cortex. Especially processes of inhibition may be impaired in people with dyslexia

Animal Teeth in a Late Mesolithic Woman’s Grave, Reconstructed as a Rattling Ornament on a Baby Pouch

In one of the Late Mesolithic graves at Skateholm, Sweden, dating from 5500–4800 BC, were buried a woman together with a newborn baby. Altogether 32 perforated wild boar (Sus scrofa) teeth and traces of red ochre pigment were found in this grave as well. These were interpreted by us as a rattling ornament decorating a baby pouch of leather coloured with red ochre. We made an experimental reconstruction and found out that the teeth function well as a rattle when moving the carrier. The reconstruction currently is on display in the European Music Archaeology Project’s travelling exhibition on archaeological instruments.Peer reviewe

A Singing Bone from the Convent Quarter of Medieval Turku, Finland. : Swedish or German Import, Baltic Influence or Variation on a Finnish Theme?

In this paper we investigate and interpret a sheep metatarsal excavated in the medieval Convent Quarter of Turku, Finland, dated from between the 13th to the 16th centuries CE. Three finger holes suggest that the pipe was a wind instrument, but it lacks parts such as a window and a lip or a sharp rim that would produce sound when blown. A reed was probably inserted in the man-made hole in the proximal end of the bone. As a reedpipe, the Turku find is similar to the läveri, or (if a horn bell was attached) to a lävikkö, both folk reed instruments from Finland for which records do not go back further than the 19th and 20th centuries. A second sheep metatarsal from Åland, Finland, with two finger holes, dating from the 11th century, may also be interpreted as a reedpipe. These two finds give evidence that reedpipes or hornpipes were played as early as the 11th century, and later in the 13th to the 16th centuries in this area of modern Finland. The Finnish folk reed instruments läveri and lävikkö, however, were traditionally made of wood, not of bone. Was the bone reedpipe an import from abroad, an instrument crossing borders (Turku in medieval times had many inhabitants from Germany and Sweden, and had frequent contacts with Baltic regions), or was the use of bone for the Turku reedpipe a variation on medieval Finnish instruments made of wood? Similar archaeological instruments from Germany, Sweden and the Baltic are not known, so an interpretation as a medieval bone version of Finnish folk reedpipes is tempting, but, as sources are sparse, not conclusive.Peer reviewe

Turun Luostarikorttelin laulava luu (AD 1250-1550)

Non peer reviewe

Ett blåsinstrument eller ett fiskeredskap? En experimentell synvinkel på ett mesolitiskt fågelben som påträffats i "nätfyndet från Antrea"

Det välkända mesolitiska nätfyndet från Antrea innehåller bl.a. ett föremål som är tillverkat av ett sångsvansben (Cygnys cygnus). Den ena ändan på detta rörformiga föremål har en u-formad skåra som påminner om munstycket till ett blåsinstrument. Denna studie tar upp fyndets funktion i ett nytt ljus genom att göra kopior och modeller av föremålet och genom att testa dem i praktiken. Kopiorna fungerar ypperligt som en rörflöjt och som en vasspipa, men små strukturella detaljer påvisar att den som tillverkade föremålet inte hade för avsikt att tillverka ett blåsinstrument. En mera trovärdig förklaring vore att den fungerade som ett fiskeredskap: för att fjälla fisk, avbarka träd eller för att reparera fisknät. Även om experimenten inte ger en entydig förklaring på föremålets funktion påvisar de att den tidigare tolkningen om föremålet som ett blåsinstrument eller flöjt är osannolik

Sound tool or a fisherman’s tool? : An experimental approach to the Mesolithic bird bone artefact from the “Antrea net find”

The well-known Mesolithic net find of Antrea includes, among other things, an artefact made of whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus) bone. One end of this tubular artefact is equipped with an U-shaped notch, which resembles a kind of working edge or the blowing end of a wind instrument. This article aims to shed new light on the function of the artefact by making copies and type models, and testing them in practice. The copies perform well as a duct flute and a reed pipe, but small structural details suggest that the maker was not after a sound instrument. A more probable function for this kind of artefact would be a fisherman’s tool used for scaling fish, peeling bark or making and repairing nets. Although the experiments do not lead to an unequivocal identification of the artefact, it appears that its earlier suggested use as a flute or other kind of wind instrument is unlikely.Peer reviewe

Apoptosis-induced histone H3 methylation is targeted by autoantibodies in systemic lupus erythematosus

Objectives: In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) apoptotic chromatin is present extracellularly, which is most likely the result of disturbed apoptosis and/or insufficient removal. Released chromatin, modified during apoptosis, activates the immune system resulting in the formation of autoantibodies. A study was undertaken to identify apoptosis-induced histone modifications that play a role in SLE. Methods: The lupus-derived monoclonal antibody BT164, recently established by selection using apoptotic nucleosomes, was analysed by ELISA, western blot analysis and immunofluorescence staining using chromatin, cells, plasma and renal sections. Random peptide phage display and peptide inhibition ELISA were used to identify precisely the epitope of BT164. The reactivity of plasma samples from lupus mice and patients with SLE with the epitope of BT164 was investigated by peptide ELISA. Results: The epitope of BT164 was mapped in the N-terminal tail of histone H3 (27-KSAPAT-32) and included the apoptosis-induced trimethylation of K27. siRNA-mediated silencing of histone demethylases in cultured cells resulted in hypermethylation of H3K27 and increased nuclear reactivity of BT164. This apoptosis-induced H3K27me3 is a target for autoantibodies in patients and mice with SLE and is present in plasma and in glomerular deposits. Conclusion: In addition to previously identified acetylation of histone H4, H2A and H2B, this study shows that trimethylation of histone H3 on lysine 27 is induced by apoptosis and associated with autoimmunity in SLE. This finding is important for understanding the autoimmune response in SLE and for the development of translational strategies

Understanding the experience of initiating community-based physical activity and social support by people with serious mental illness: a systematic review using a meta-ethnographic approach

Background People with long-term serious mental illness live with severe and debilitating symptoms that can negatively influence their health and quality of life, leading to outcomes such as premature mortality, morbidity and obesity. An interplay of social, behavioural, biological and psychological factors is likely to contribute to their poor physical health. Participating in regular physical activity could bring symptomatic improvements, weight loss benefits, enhanced wellbeing and when undertaken in a community-based group setting can yield additional, important social support benefits. Yet poor uptake of physical activity by people with serious mental illness is a problem. This review will systematically search, appraise and synthesise the existing evidence that has explored the experience of community-based physical activity initiation and key features of social support within these contexts by adults with schizophrenia, bipolar affective disorder, major depressive disorder or psychosis using the meta-ethnography approach. This new understanding may be key in designing more acceptable and effective community-based group PA programmes that meet patients’ need and expectations. Methods This will be a systematic review of qualitative studies using the meta-ethnography approach. The following databases will be searched: ASSIA, CINAHL, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, Health Technology Assessment Database, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Sociological Abstracts, SPORTDiscus and Web of Science. Grey literature will also be sought. Eligible studies will use qualitative methodology; involve adults (≥18 years) with schizophrenia, bipolar affective disorder, major depressive disorder or psychosis; will report community-based group physical activity; and capture the experience of physical activity initiation and key features of social support from the perspective of the participant. Study selection and assessment of quality will be performed by two reviewers. Data will be extracted by one reviewer, tabled, and checked for accuracy by the second reviewer. The meta-ethnography approach by Noblit and Hare [1] will be used to synthesise the data. Discussion This systematic review is expected to provide new insights into the experience of community-based group physical activity initiation for adults who have a serious mental illness to inform person-centred improvements to the management of serious mental illness through physical activity. Registration The protocol has been registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) on 22/03/2017; http://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/display_record.asp?ID=CRD42017059948 (registration number CRD42017059948). Keywords Serious mental illness - Physical activity - Community - Social support - Exercise - Sport - Adults - Patient experience - Qualitative research - Meta-ethnography - Systematic revie