Visualization and Quantification of the Laser-Induced Art of TiO2 by Photoexcitation of Adsorbed Dyes

Dye-pretreated anatase TiO2 films, commonly used as photoanodes in dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC), were utilized as a model system to investigate the laser-induced anatase to rutile phase transformation (ART), using N719 dye, N749 dye, D149 dye, and MC540 dye as photo-sensitizers. The visible lasers (532 and 785 nm) used for Raman spectroscopy were able to transform pure anatase into rutile at the laser spot when excitation of the dye sensitizer caused an electron injection from the excited state of the dye molecule into the conduction band of the TiO2. The three dyes with carboxylic acid anchor groups (N719, N749 and D149 dyes) experienced ART upon dye excitation; diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFTS) and Raman spectra validated that these dyes were chemisorbed to the semiconductor surface. The MC540 dye with a sulfonic acid anchor group did not experience ART and the DRIFTS and Raman spectra were inconclusive about the chemisorption of this dye to the TiO2. A TiO2 calibration curve and percent rutile contour plots developed for this project are able to quantify the amount of rutile created at the surface of the samples. These improved chemical images which map rutile concentration help to visualize how ART propagates from the center of the laser spot to the surroundings. Factors such as visible light absorption and anchor groups that covalently bind to the semiconductor play a key role in effective laser induced ART

Contribution of diet to the composition of the human gut microbiota

This paper is part of the Proceedings from the 2013 ENGIHR Conference in Valencia, Spain. More papers from this supplement can be found at http://www.microbecolhealthdis.net Microbial Ecology in Health & Disease 2015. © 2015 Daniela Graf et al. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Unported License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), permitting all non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors acknowledge the support of the European Science Foundation (ESF), in the framework of the Research Networking Programe, The European Network for Gastrointestinal Health Research.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Specific wheat fractions influence hepatic fat metabolism in diet-induced obese mice

Low whole grain consumption is a risk factor for the development of non-communicable diseases such as type 2 diabetes. Dietary fiber and phytochemicals are bioactive grain compounds, which could be involved in mediating these beneficial effects. These compounds are not equally distributed in the wheat grain, but are enriched in the bran and aleurone fractions. As little is known on physiological effects of different wheat fractions, the aim of this study was to investigate this aspect in an obesity model. For twelve weeks, C57BL/6J mice were fed high-fat diets (HFD), supplemented with one of four wheat fractions: whole grain flour, refined white flour, bran, or aleurone. The different diets did not affect body weight, however bran and aleurone decreased liver triglyceride content, and increased hepatic n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) concentrations. Furthermore, lipidomics analysis revealed increased PUFA concentration in the lipid classes of phosphatidylcholine (PC), PC-ether, and phosphatidylinositol in the plasma of mice fed whole grain, bran, and aleurone supplemented diets, compared to refined white flour. Furthermore, bran, aleurone, and whole grain supplemented diets increased microbial alpha-diversity, but only bran and aleurone increased the cecal concentrations of short-chain fatty acids. The effects on hepatic lipid metabolism might thus at least partially be mediated by microbiota-dependent mechanisms

L’INSEGNAMENTO DELLA LINGUA E DELLA CULTURA ITALIANA IN CORSI “BLENDED” E ONLINE

Questo articolo inizia con una discussione del contributo delle nuove tecnologie Web 2.0 alla creazione e alla condivisione di conoscenze, e di come queste tecnologie abbiamo influenzato il modo in cui i nostri studenti imparano, il modo in cui noi insegniamo e la missione dei nostri programmi, specialmente negli Stati Uniti dove insegno. Segue l’analisi di un’iniziativa del nostro Dipartimento di Italianistica al Wellesley College per rispondere a questi cambiamenti: la creazione di un corso online di lingua e cultura italiana offerto in vari contesti, vale a dire come corso estivo SPOC (Small Private Online Course); come corso “blended”a Wellesley College e al MIT, e come MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) sulla piattaforma edX. L’articolo si conclude con alcune proposte concrete per rafforzare i nostri programmi: queste includono la creazione di una piattaforma per condividere il nostro materiale didattico (digitale e non), per valutare i nostri programmi e i risultati raggiunti dagli studenti.Teaching “blended” and online italian language and culture coursesThis article begins with a discussion of the contribution of new Web 2.0 technologies in the creation and sharing of knowledge, and how these technologies have affected the way in which our students learn, the way we teach and the mission of our programs, especially in the US where I teach. This is followed by analysis of an initiative of the Department of Italian Studies at Wellesley College in response to these changes: the creation of an online Italian culture and language course offered in various contexts, i.e. as a summer SPOC (Small Private Online Course) course; as a “blended” course at Wellesley College and MIT, and as a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) on the EDX platform. The article concludes with some concrete proposals to strengthen these programs. These include the creation of a platform to share educational materials (digital and otherwise) and to evaluate the programs and results of the students

eKompetenz in den Regionalen Arbeitsvermittlungszentren des Kantons Bern

Inhaltsverzeichnis: 1 Einleitung – das Wichtigste im Überblick; 2 Gesellschaftliche und politische Rahmenbedingungen; 2.1 Begriffsdefinitionen; 2.2 Von der Industrie- zur Informationsgesellschaft; 2.3 Strategie des Bundes für eine Informationsgesellschaft Schweiz; 2.4 Forschungsstand zur Medien- und IKT-Nutzung in der Schweiz; 2.5 Regionale Arbeitsvermittlungszentren und ihre Kunden; 3 Empirische Studie I: Befragung der Klientel und Mitarbeitenden; 3.1 Ziel und Fragestellung; 3.2 Datenerhebung und Stichprobe; 3.3 Ergebnisse; 3.4 Fazit; 4 Empirische Studie II: Design Forschung; 4.1 Ausgangslage; 4.2 Fragebogen; 4.3 Flankierende Design Forschung; 4.4 Ausblick; 5 Weiterbildungskonzept; 5.1 Ausgangslage; 5.2 Arbeitsmarktliche Massnahmen BECO; 5.3 Die Resultate der BFH-Studie unter dem Blickwinkel der Förderung der Internet-Kompetenz; 5.4 Informationsgesellschaft Schweiz und Fördermassnahmen; 5.5 Kritik an Fördermassnahmen zur Überwindung der digitalen Spaltung; 5.6 Förderung der Internet-Kompetenz durch Schulung und Medienräume; 5.7 Fazit und Erwägungen; 6 Prototyp; 6.1 Einleitung Geschäftsprozess/Webapplikation; 6.2 Internetseite www.treffpunkt-arbeit.ch versus SSI-Terminal; 6.3 Ziel und Ablauf der Prototyperstellung; 6.4 Geschäftsprozess "Stellensuche von Arbeitslosen"; 6.5 SSI-Terminal; 6.6 Anforderungen für Prototyp; 6.7 Umsetzung Prototyp; 7 Literaturverzeichnis ; Anhan

Nachhaltige Vergütung der B-Zentren für Seltene Erkrankungen in Deutschland – Status quo und Lösungsansätze

Background: To ensure specialized care of patients with rare diseases, numerous centres for rare diseases were funded over the past few years. The reimbursement of patients’ ambulatory care in hospitals, however, is characterized by a plurality of forms of care and payment. There is some evidence of deficits in the reimbursement of care of patients suffering from a rare disease from studies on individual rare diseases. Objectives: To investigate current forms of care provision and reimbursement of centres for rare diseases and to develop future approaches for sustainable compensation. Materials and methods: Initially, centres for rare diseases in Germany were asked to provide information about their forms of care and reimbursement using questionnaires. Subsequently, two focus group interviews and one expert interview with representatives from centres for rare diseases, health insurance, health politics and patients were conducted to discuss current and future meritocratic forms of care provision and reimbursement. The data were evaluated using content analysis. Results and conclusions: Thirty-nine centres for rare diseases participated in the questionnaire survey. Of those, 38% receive a flat fee/allowance for university outpatient departments, the amount of which varies notably, and 41% obtain a mixed payment comprising an allowance for university outpatient departments and other forms of reimbursement. An under-recovery of costs in centres for rare diseases and its impact on patient care were mentioned in the interviews. In this context, a need to further develop forms of care provision and reimbursement has been identified. Participants prefer a special flat fee/allowance for rare diseases that covers the time-consuming care for patients with rare diseases. © 2022, The Author(s).Hintergrund: Um eine spezialisierte Versorgung von Menschen mit seltenen Erkrankungen (sE) zu gewährleisten, wurden zahlreiche Zentren für Seltene Erkrankungen (ZSE) gegründet. Für die ambulante Behandlung von Betroffenen in Krankenhäusern steht dabei eine Vielzahl von Versorgungs- und Vergütungsformen zur Verfügung. Studien zu einzelnen sE ergaben bereits Hinweise auf Defizite in Bezug auf eine kostendeckende Vergütung der ZSE. Ziel der Arbeit: Untersuchung der aktuellen Versorgungs- und Vergütungsstrukturen in den ZSE und die Entwicklung von Ansätzen für zukünftige nachhaltige Vergütungsstrukturen. Material und Methoden: Mittels Fragebogenerhebung wurden zunächst ZSE in Deutschland zu ihrer Versorgungs- und Vergütungsform befragt. Im Rahmen zweier Fokusgruppen- und eines Experteninterviews mit Vertreter:innen der ZSE, der Kostenträger, der Gesundheitspolitik sowie Patient:innen wurden im Anschluss die aktuellen Versorgungs- und Vergütungsformen, Möglichkeiten der zukünftigen Gestaltung der Versorgung von Menschen mit sE sowie Ansätze für eine leistungsorientierte Vergütung diskutiert. Das Material wurde inhaltsanalytisch nach Kuckartz ausgewertet. Ergebnisse und Diskussion: 39 Zentren beteiligten sich an der Fragebogenerhebung. 38 % dieser Zentren werden über eine Pauschale für Hochschulambulanzen (HSA) vergütet, deren Höhe stark variiert. 41 % weisen eine Mischvergütung aus HSA-Pauschale und weiteren Vergütungsformen auf. In den Interviews wurde eine Unterdeckung der Kosten in den ZSE mit Auswirkungen auf die Patientenversorgung benannt und zur Sicherstellung einer nachhaltigen Versorgung Handlungsbedarf zur Weiterentwicklung der Vergütungsstrukturen festgestellt. Eine „Sonderpauschale für sE“, die den besonderen zeitlichen Bedarf in der Versorgung von Menschen mit sE abbildet, wurde als möglicher nachhaltiger Vergütungsansatz präferiert

Relating multivariate shapes to genescapes using phenotype-biological process associations for craniofacial shape.

Realistic mappings of genes to morphology are inherently multivariate on both sides of the equation. The importance of coordinated gene effects on morphological phenotypes is clear from the intertwining of gene actions in signaling pathways, gene regulatory networks, and developmental processes underlying the development of shape and size. Yet, current approaches tend to focus on identifying and localizing the effects of individual genes and rarely leverage the information content of high-dimensional phenotypes. Here, we explicitly model the joint effects of biologically coherent collections of genes on a multivariate trait - craniofacial shape - in a sample of n = 1145 mice from the Diversity Outbred (DO) experimental line. We use biological process Gene Ontology (GO) annotations to select skeletal and facial development gene sets and solve for the axis of shape variation that maximally covaries with gene set marker variation. We use our process-centered, multivariate genotype-phenotype (process MGP) approach to determine the overall contributions to craniofacial variation of genes involved in relevant processes and how variation in different processes corresponds to multivariate axes of shape variation. Further, we compare the directions of effect in phenotype space of mutations to the primary axis of shape variation associated with broader pathways within which they are thought to function. Finally, we leverage the relationship between mutational and pathway-level effects to predict phenotypic effects beyond craniofacial shape in specific mutants. We also introduce an online application that provides users the means to customize their own process-centered craniofacial shape analyses in the DO. The process-centered approach is generally applicable to any continuously varying phenotype and thus has wide-reaching implications for complex trait genetics

The UMBRELLA SIOP-RTSG 2016 Wilms tumour pathology and molecular biology protocol

On the basis of the results of previous national and international trials and studies, the Renal Tumour Study Group of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP–RTSG) has developed a new study protocol for paediatric renal tumours: the UMBRELLA SIOP–RTSG 2016 protocol (the UMBRELLA protocol). Currently, the overall outcomes of patients with Wilms tumour are excellent, but subgroups with poor prognosis and increased relapse rates still exist. The identification of these subgroups is of utmost importance to improve treatment stratification, which might lead to reduction of the direct and late effects of chemotherapy. The UMBRELLA protocol aims to validate new prognostic factors, such as blastemal tumour volume and molecular markers, to further improve outcome. To achieve this aim, large, international, high-quality databases are needed, which dictate optimization and international harmonization of specimen handling and comprehensive sampling of biological material, refine definitions and improve logistics for expert review. To promote broad implementation of the UMBRELLA protocol, the updated SIOP–RTSG pathology and molecular biology protocol for Wilms tumours has been outlined, which is a consensus from the SIOP–RTSG pathology panel

Prognostic Factors for Wilms Tumor Recurrence: A Review of the Literature

In high-income countries, the overall survival of children with Wilms tumors (WT) is ~90%. However, overall, 15% of patients experience tumor recurrence. The adverse prognostic factors currently used for risk stratification (advanced stage, high risk histology, and combined loss of heterozygosity at 1p and 16q in chemotherapy-naïve WTs) are present in only one third of these cases, and the significance of these factors is prone to change with advancing knowledge and improved treatment regimens. Therefore, we present a comprehensive, updated overview of the published prognostic variables for WT recurrence, ranging from patient-, tumor- and treatment-related characteristics to geographic and socioeconomic factors. Improved first-line treatment regimens based on clinicopathological characteristics and advancing knowledge on copy number variations unveil the importance of further investigating the significance of biological markers for WT recurrence in international collaborations