Telomerase activity in plasma cell dyscrasias

Activation of telomerase is essential for in vitro cellular immortalization and tumorigenesis. In the present study, we investigated telomerase activation and its implications in plasma cell dyscrasias including monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), multiple myeloma (MM) and plasma cell leukaemia (PCL). All 5 patients with MGUS exhibited normal levels of telomerase activity in their plasma cells. Elevated telomerase activity was found in the samples from 21/27 patients with MM and 4/4 with PCL. In addition, 4 myeloma cell lines all expressed high levels of telomerase activity. The expression of telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) and telomerase RNA template (hTER) was positively associated with the levels of telomerase activity in MM/PCL. Tankyrase expression was upregulated, concomitant with the induction of hTERT and activation of telomerase in MM/PCL. The present findings indicate that MGUS cells may not be immortalized and that activation of telomerase plays a role in the malignant transformation from MGUS to MM. © 2001 Cancer Research Campaign http://www.bjcancer.co

Cellular immunotherapy using dendritic cells against multiple myeloma

Cellular therapy with dendritic cells (DCs) is emerging as a useful immunotherapeutic tool to treat multiple myeloma (MM). DC-based idiotype vaccination was recently suggested to induce idiotype-specific immune responses in MM patients. However, the clinical results so far have been largely disappointing, and the clinical effectiveness of such vaccinations in MM still needs to be demonstrated. DC-based therapies against MM may need to be boosted with other sources of tumor-associated antigens, and potent DCs should be recruited to increase the effectiveness of treatment. DCs with both high migratory capacity and high cytokine production are very important for effective DC-based cancer vaccination in order to induce high numbers of Th1-type CD4+ T cells and CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes. The tumor microenvironment is also important in the regulation of tumor cell growth, proliferation, and the development of therapeutic resistance after treatment. In this review, we discuss how the efficacy of DC vaccination in MM can be improved. In addition, novel treatment strategies that target not only myeloma cells but also the tumor microenvironment are urgently needed to improve treatment outcomes

Integrating Usability Work in the Development Process at a Consulting Firm

When needing software, using the services of an IT consulting rm is todaya common solution for companies nowadays. To make a system suited forthe intended users it is important to focus on usability.There are many dierent approaches possible to use when developinga usable system. The purpose of this study was to study if any of theapproaches, goal-directed design, could be used when a customer orders asolution from a consulting rm. This was to be studied through a case studywhich was conducted at the IT consulting rm Sigma. One of Sigma's customersis Toyota Material Handling Group which is a supplier of forkliftsand additional services like the online eet management platform ToyotaISite. The platform is about to be further developed by connecting it to amobile application with the purpose of making the platform more accessibleand ecient. The assignment in the case study was to develop a prototypefor this mobile application. This was done using the goal-centered design approach.Further, in order to understand the work at Sigma today, interviewswere conducted with developers at the company.The data collected led to an analysis about how Sigma and other similarIT consulting rms could use the goal-centered design approach when developingsoftware. The conclusion drawn was that parts of the method couldbe motivated to the customer and thereby be used in future projects, whilesome parts would be harder to motivate for the customer. The includedsteps were user research, context scenarios, requirements and high-delityprototyping. These conclusions can be used to integrate usability work inthe development process in the context of an IT consulting rm deliveringa system to a customer

Barnlitteratur och interkulturellt lärande i engelskundervisning -En undersökning av barnlitteraturen och värdegrunden i åk 4–6

The Swedish society is becoming more and more multicultural. This means that the classrooms today consist of students from various backgrounds and cultures. According to the Swedish curriculum for primary school, it should be a social and cultural meeting place for children from various backgrounds and cultures, so that they can learn to live together in harmony through their education. Many researchers around the world come to the conclusion that children’s literature can be used to teach topics such as culture and cultural awareness and to create intercultural learning. Despite this agreement, however, children’s literature is not frequently used in the English classroom in grades 4-6 in Sweden. The purpose of this study is to examine how English children’s literature can be used in grades 4-6 to teach the ethical values reflected in the Swedish curriculum, especially those that concern integration. I will look at selection criteria for children’s literature with the purpose to teach some of the ethical values from the Swedish curriculum in the second-language classroom. Two primary sources serve as examples: Anthony Browne, Voices in the park, and Patricia Polacco, Chicken Sunday. Through a final discussion of methods, such as Aidan Chambers’ book talk, I show how these books may indeed be used to integrate teaching of the fundamental values with English as a school subject

Anti-idiotypic immunity in multiple myeloma and monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance

Monoclonal gammopathies such as multiple myeloma (MM) and monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) are lymphoproliferative B cell diseases. B cells/plasma cells produce the monoclonal immunoglobulin (Ig) which can be detected in plasma and/or urine. Such Ig have unique variable regions of the heavy and light chains and may be regarded as tumour-specific antigens and as such potential targets for immune regulation of the tumour cell clone, by anti-idiotype (Id) immune reactions. The production of anti-Id Ab against the M-component by primary B cell lines of Epstein-Barr virus transformed PBMC was analysed in patients with MM and MGUS. Patients with advanced disease (MM stage III) had a low and patients with MM stage I and MGUS a high production of such anti-ld Ab (p<0.0 1). Anti-Id B cells were studied in patients with MM, MGUS and in healthy controls using an ELISPOT assay. All patients had B cells producing Ab to F(ab+)2 fragments of autologous and allogeneic M-components. There was no difference between patients with MM and MGUS with regard to the number of B cells producing Ab against autologous M-component. MGUS and MM patients had autoreactive B cells more frequently than alloreactive B cells (p<0.00 1). The number of alloreactive B cells did not differ between patients and controls. T cells reactive with F(ab+)2 fragments of autologous and allogeneic M-components were analysed in patients with MM, MGUS and in healthy controls using an ELISPOT assay. In patients, the number of T cells that were stimulated by autologous M-component was higher (p<0.01), than the number of cells activated by allogeneic Ig. Subpopulations of Id-reactive T cells were defined by demonstrating Th cells with different cytokine-secreting patterns after stimulation by F(ab+)2 fragments of autologous M-components using ELISPOT assays. ThI -type cells (secreting IFN-y and IL-2) were more frequent in patients with a low tumour burden. Th2-type cells (secreting IL-4) dominated in patients with MM stage II-III. The T cell response was MHC class II-restricted. Id-reactive T cells were also demonstrated in MM and MGUS patients with 3H-thymidine-incorporation. The proliferation of cells was higher when stimulating PBMC with F(ab+ )2 fragments of autologous M-component (p<0.05) than with allogeneic M-components. Injection of autologous M-component suspended in alum into five MM patients induced an in vitro Id-specific response in both T and B cells. The response was reduced during repeated immunisations. In conclusion, the results indicate a presence of immunity against Id determinants on monoclonal Ig. Ab, B and T cells with reactivity against F(ab+)2 fragments of autologous M-components exist in both MM and MGUS. Their presence in these disorders may indicate a regulatory function. These findings form a basis for further studies aiming at identifying new ways to enhance a specific anti-tumour response in MM

Integrating Usability Work in the Development Process at a Consulting Firm

When needing software, using the services of an IT consulting rm is todaya common solution for companies nowadays. To make a system suited forthe intended users it is important to focus on usability.There are many dierent approaches possible to use when developinga usable system. The purpose of this study was to study if any of theapproaches, goal-directed design, could be used when a customer orders asolution from a consulting rm. This was to be studied through a case studywhich was conducted at the IT consulting rm Sigma. One of Sigma's customersis Toyota Material Handling Group which is a supplier of forkliftsand additional services like the online eet management platform ToyotaISite. The platform is about to be further developed by connecting it to amobile application with the purpose of making the platform more accessibleand ecient. The assignment in the case study was to develop a prototypefor this mobile application. This was done using the goal-centered design approach.Further, in order to understand the work at Sigma today, interviewswere conducted with developers at the company.The data collected led to an analysis about how Sigma and other similarIT consulting rms could use the goal-centered design approach when developingsoftware. The conclusion drawn was that parts of the method couldbe motivated to the customer and thereby be used in future projects, whilesome parts would be harder to motivate for the customer. The includedsteps were user research, context scenarios, requirements and high-delityprototyping. These conclusions can be used to integrate usability work inthe development process in the context of an IT consulting rm deliveringa system to a customer

Sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att möta våldsutsatta kvinnor inom primärvården -en litteraturstudie.

Bakgrund: Våld mot kvinnor, ett globalt problem som drabbar alla oavsett religion, social status eller tillgång till pengar. Det beräknas att 35% av alla världens kvinnor över 18 år någon gång blivit utsatta i form av fysiskt eller sexuellt våld. Av dessa 35% har majoriteten blivit utsatta i det som ska vara deras trygga miljö, i hemmet, av någon de älskar. När kvinnan kommer i kontakt med sjukvården kan sjuksköterskans kunskap och hjälp vara kvinnans sista hopp. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att möta våldsutsatta kvinnor inom primärvården. Metod: Studien är en litteraturstudie med en integrerad analys som bygger på 5 kvalitativa och 4 kvantitativa artiklar. Artiklarna är tagna från databaserna Cinahl och Pubmed, det vill säga två omvårdnadsdatabaser. Resultat: I resultatet identifierades tre huvudkategorier: sjuksköterskans personliga påverkan, strategier och tidsbrist, respektive fem underkategorier: stöd inom teamet, sjuksköterskans utbildning, skapa förtroendefulla relationer, oro för egen säkerhet samt rädsla för ämnet.  Slutsats: Brist på utbildning, rädsla för ämnet och tidsbrist var olika faktorer som lyftes som hinder att utreda våldsutsatta kvinnor. Eftersom sjuksköterskor har en viktig position gällande att identifiera våldsutsatta kvinnor krävs ytterligare kunskap för att stärka kompetensen samt skapa goda förutsättningar till förtroendefulla relationer

Integrating Usability Work in the Development Process at a Consulting Firm

When needing software, using the services of an IT consulting rm is todaya common solution for companies nowadays. To make a system suited forthe intended users it is important to focus on usability.There are many dierent approaches possible to use when developinga usable system. The purpose of this study was to study if any of theapproaches, goal-directed design, could be used when a customer orders asolution from a consulting rm. This was to be studied through a case studywhich was conducted at the IT consulting rm Sigma. One of Sigma's customersis Toyota Material Handling Group which is a supplier of forkliftsand additional services like the online eet management platform ToyotaISite. The platform is about to be further developed by connecting it to amobile application with the purpose of making the platform more accessibleand ecient. The assignment in the case study was to develop a prototypefor this mobile application. This was done using the goal-centered design approach.Further, in order to understand the work at Sigma today, interviewswere conducted with developers at the company.The data collected led to an analysis about how Sigma and other similarIT consulting rms could use the goal-centered design approach when developingsoftware. The conclusion drawn was that parts of the method couldbe motivated to the customer and thereby be used in future projects, whilesome parts would be harder to motivate for the customer. The includedsteps were user research, context scenarios, requirements and high-delityprototyping. These conclusions can be used to integrate usability work inthe development process in the context of an IT consulting rm deliveringa system to a customer

Sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att möta våldsutsatta kvinnor inom primärvården -en litteraturstudie.

Bakgrund: Våld mot kvinnor, ett globalt problem som drabbar alla oavsett religion, social status eller tillgång till pengar. Det beräknas att 35% av alla världens kvinnor över 18 år någon gång blivit utsatta i form av fysiskt eller sexuellt våld. Av dessa 35% har majoriteten blivit utsatta i det som ska vara deras trygga miljö, i hemmet, av någon de älskar. När kvinnan kommer i kontakt med sjukvården kan sjuksköterskans kunskap och hjälp vara kvinnans sista hopp. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att möta våldsutsatta kvinnor inom primärvården. Metod: Studien är en litteraturstudie med en integrerad analys som bygger på 5 kvalitativa och 4 kvantitativa artiklar. Artiklarna är tagna från databaserna Cinahl och Pubmed, det vill säga två omvårdnadsdatabaser. Resultat: I resultatet identifierades tre huvudkategorier: sjuksköterskans personliga påverkan, strategier och tidsbrist, respektive fem underkategorier: stöd inom teamet, sjuksköterskans utbildning, skapa förtroendefulla relationer, oro för egen säkerhet samt rädsla för ämnet.  Slutsats: Brist på utbildning, rädsla för ämnet och tidsbrist var olika faktorer som lyftes som hinder att utreda våldsutsatta kvinnor. Eftersom sjuksköterskor har en viktig position gällande att identifiera våldsutsatta kvinnor krävs ytterligare kunskap för att stärka kompetensen samt skapa goda förutsättningar till förtroendefulla relationer