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Phd-kurs ved NTNU-bibliotekene – en utviklingshistorieVi vil se nærmere på ide/opplegg, organisering, gjennomføring og erfaringer fra forskjellige kurs for phd-kandidater ved NTNU-biblioteket: Kurs for humanister og samfunnsvitere, kurs for medisinere og kurs for kandidater innen teknologi og naturvitenskap (mest sivilingeniører), avholdt på forskjellige campuser og av forskjellige undervisere. Å mestre avansert søking og databehandling blir bare mer og mer sentralt for forskning, selv om det varierer fra disiplin til disiplin. Vi vil gjennomgå egen erfaring, fagmiljøenes behov og hva forskning viser om behovet for informasjonskompetanse-undervisning av PhD-kandidater, med fokus på forskjellige vitenskapers informasjonskompetanse. Krav om at forskning skal være original, bygge på tidligere forskning og de muligheter som vi har fått til å behandle mye større mengder data enn før (e-science) innebærer at kursholderne må være svært oppdatert og ha spisskompetanse i de enkelte baser og verktøy. Dessuten er plagiering og kildevurdering viktige og aktuelle tema.             Kursene krever høy kompetanse hos kursholderne og det beste er å utnytte de forskjellige kompetansene som finnes i biblioteket slik at kursene blir et resultat av team-arbeid. I tillegg trekkes andre fagfolk inn (forskningsetikk, akademisk skriving m.m). De organisatoriske utfordringene og markedsføring av kursene blir også viktige når vi arrangerer slike kurs. Undervisningstilbudet blir evaluert fortløpende, og vi ønsker å sette fokus på erfaringsutveksling og praktisk gjennomføring i tillegg til å se på innholdet i våre kurs

PIAS1 interacts with FLASH and enhances its co-activation of c-Myb

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>FLASH is a huge nuclear protein involved in various cellular functions such as apoptosis signalling, NF-κB activation, S-phase regulation, processing of histone pre-mRNAs, and co-regulation of transcription. Recently, we identified FLASH as a co-activator of the transcription factor c-Myb and found FLASH to be tightly associated with active transcription foci. As a huge multifunctional protein, FLASH is expected to have many interaction partners, some which may shed light on its function as a transcriptional regulator.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To find additional FLASH-associated proteins, we performed a yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) screening with FLASH as bait and identified the SUMO E3 ligase PIAS1 as an interaction partner. The association appears to involve two distinct interaction surfaces in FLASH. We verified the interaction by Y2H-mating, GST pulldowns, co-IP and ChIP. FLASH and PIAS1 were found to co-localize in nuclear speckles. Functional assays revealed that PIAS1 enhances the intrinsic transcriptional activity of FLASH in a RING finger-dependent manner. Furthermore, PIAS1 also augments the specific activity of c-Myb, and cooperates with FLASH to further co-activate c-Myb. The three proteins, FLASH, PIAS1, and c-Myb, are all co-localized with active RNA polymerase II foci, resembling transcription factories.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We conclude that PIAS1 is a common partner for two cancer-related nuclear factors, c-Myb and FLASH. Our results point to a functional cooperation between FLASH and PIAS1 in the enhancement of c-Myb activity in active nuclear foci.</p

Do virtual patients prepare medical students for the real world? Development and application of a framework to compare a virtual patient collection with population data

Background: An important aspect of virtual patients (VPs), which are interactive computer-based patient scenarios, is authenticity. This includes design aspects, but also how a VP collection represents a patient population and how a patient is presented in a VP scenario. Therefore, our aim was to analyze VP scenarios integrated into the combined internal medicine and surgery curriculum at the University of Munich (LMU) and compare the results with data from the population in Germany. Method: We developed a coding framework with four main categories: patient data, patient representation, diagnoses, and setting. Based on the framework we analyzed 66 VP and compared the results with data from the German healthcare system. Results: Especially in the categories of patient data and patient representation, the VPs presented an unrealistic image of the real world;topics such as unemployment, disability, or migration background were almost non-existent. The diagnoses of the VPs and the onset of diseases were comparable with the healthcare data. Conclusions: An explanation for the lack of representativeness of the patient data and representation might be a trend to create VPs based on fictional patient stories with VP authors trying to minimize complexity and cognitive load for the students. We suggest raising awareness among VP authors concerning personalized representations of patients without overwhelming their students. Our framework can support educators to assess the authenticity and diversity of a VP collection

Time delays in PG1115+080: new estimates

We report new estimates of the time delays in the quadruple gravitationally lensed quasar PG1115+080, obtained from the monitoring data in filter R with the 1.5-m telescope at the Maidanak Mountain (Uzbekistan, Central Asia) in 2004-2006. The time delays are 16.4 days between images C and B, and 12 days between C and A1+A2, with image C being leading for both pairs. The only known estimates of the time delays in PG1115 are those based on observations by Schechter et al. (1997) -- 23.7 and 9.4 days between images C and B, C and A1+A2, respectively, as calculated by Schechter et al., and 25 and 13.3 days as revised by Barkana (1997) for the same image components with the use of another method. The new values of time delays in PG 1115+080 may be expected to provide larger estimates of the Hubble constant thus decreasing a diversity between the H_0 estimates taken from gravitationally lensed quasars and with other methods.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRAS Letter

The Performance of Private Equity Funds: Does Diversification Matter?

This paper is the first systematic analysis of the impact of diversification on the performance of private equity funds. A unique data set allows the exact evaluation of diversification across the dimensions financing stages, industries, and countries. Very different levels of diversification can be observed across sample funds. While some funds are highly specialized others are highly diversified. The empirical results show that the rate of return of private equity funds declines with diversification across financing stages, but increases with diversification across industries. Accordingly, the fraction of portfolio companies which have a negative return or return nothing at all, increase with diversification across financing stages. Diversification across countries has no systematic effect on the performance of private equity funds

PG 1115+080: variations of the A2/A1 flux ratio and new values of the time delays

We report the results of our multicolor observations of PG 1115+080 with the 1.5-m telescope of the Maidanak Observatory (Uzbekistan, Central Asia) in 2001-2006. Monitoring data in filter R spanning the 2004, 2005 and 2006 seasons (76 data points) demonstrate distinct brightness variations of the source quasar with the total amplitude of almost 0.4 mag. Our R light curves have shown image C leading B by 16.4d and image (A1+A2) by 12d that is inconsistent with the previous estimates obtained by Schechter et al. in 1997 - 24.7d between B and C and 9.4d between (A1+A2) and C. The new values of time delays in PG 1115+080 must result in larger values for the Hubble constant, thus reducing difference between its estimates taken from the gravitational lenses and with other methods. Also, we analyzed variability of the A2/A1 flux ratio, as well as color changes in the archetypal "fold" lens PG 1115+080. We found the A1/A2 flux ratio to grow during 2001-2006 and to be larger at longer wavelengths. In particular, the A2/A1 flux ratio reached 0.85 in filter I in 2006. We also present evidence that both the A1 and A2 images might have undergone microlensing during 2001-2006, with the descending phase for A1 and initial phase for A2. We find that the A2/A1 flux ratio anomaly in PG 1115 can be well explained both by microlensing and by finite distance of the source quasar from the caustic fold.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, 8 tables, Accepted for publication in MNRA

Sex steroid hormones and epilepsy: Effects of hormonal replacement therapy on seizure frequency of postmenopausal women with epilepsy—A systematic review

Background and purpose: Hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) is used for symptomatic treatment of menopause. Some evidence suggests a proconvulsant effect of estrogen and an anticonvulsant role of progesterone. Thus, the use of exogenous sex steroid hormones might influence the course of epilepsy in peri- and postmenopausal women with epilepsy (WWE). We conducted a systematic review on the impact of HRT on the frequency of seizures of WWE. Methods: PubMed and Scopus were searched for articles published from inception until August 2022. Abstracts from the past 5 years from the European Academy of Neurology and European Epilepsy Congresses were also reviewed. Article reference lists were screened, and relevant articles were retrieved for consultation. Interventional and observational studies on WWE and animal models of estrogen deficiency were included. Critical appraisal was performed using the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials and ROBINS-E tool. Results: Of 497 articles screened, 13 studies were included, including three human studies. One cross-sectional study showed a decrease in seizure frequency in WWE using combined HRT, a case–control study showed an increase in comparison with controls, and a randomized clinical trial found a dose-dependent increase in seizure frequency in women with focal epilepsy taking combined HRT. Ten studies addressing the impact of HRT in rat models were also included, which showed conflicting results. Conclusions: There is scarce evidence of the impact of HRT in WWE. Further studies should evaluate the harmful potential, and prospective registries are needed for monitoring this population

Expiratory airflow in late adolescence and early adulthood in individuals born very preterm or with very low birthweight compared with controls born at term or with normal birthweight : a meta-analysis of individual participant data

Background Maximal expiratory airflow peaks early in the third decade of life, then gradually declines with age. The pattern of airflow through adulthood for individuals born very preterm (at 2499 g) or at term. Methods We did a meta-analysis of individual participant data from cohort studies, mostly from the pre-surfactant era. Studies were identified through the Adults born Preterm International Collaboration and by searching PubMed and Embase (search date May 25, 2016). Studies were eligible if they reported on expiratory flow rates beyond 16 years of age in individuals born very preterm or with very low birthweight, as well as controls born at term or with normal birthweight. Studies with highly selected cohorts (eg, only participants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia) or in which few participants were born very preterm or with very low birthweight were excluded. De-identified individual participant data from each cohort were provided by the holders of the original data to a central site, where all the data were pooled into one data file. Any data inconsistencies were resolved by discussion with the individual sites concerned. Individual participant data on expiratory flow variables (FEV1, forced vital capacity [FVC], FEV1/FVC ratio, and forced expiratory flow at 25-75% of FVC [FEF25-75%]) were converted to Z scores and analysed with use of generalised linear mixed models in a one-step approach. Findings Of the 381 studies identified, 11 studies, comprising a total of 935 participants born very preterm or with very low birthweight and 722 controls, were eligible and included in the analysis. Mean age at testing was 21 years (SD 3.4; range 16-33). Mean Z scores were close to zero (as expected) in the control group, but were reduced in the very preterm or very low birthweight group for FEV1 (-0.06 [SD 1.03] vs -0.81 [1.33], mean difference -0.78 [95% CI -0.96 to -0.61], p Interpretation Individuals born very preterm or with very low birthweight are at risk of not reaching their full airway growth potential in adolescence and early adulthood, suggesting an increased risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in later adulthood. Copyright (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe