Strategies for Preclinical Studies Evaluating the Biological Effects of an Accelerator-based BNCT System

This review discusses the strategies of preclinical studies intended for accelerator-based (AB)-boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) clinical trials, which were presented at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Workshop on Neutron Capture Therapy held from April 20 to 22, 2022. Clinical studies of BNCT have been conducted worldwide using reactor neutron sources, with most targeting malignant brain tumors, melanoma, or head and neck cancer. Recently, small accelerator-based neutron sources that can be installed in hospitals have been developed. AB-BNCT clinical trials for recurrent malignant glioma, head and neck cancers, high-grade meningioma, melanoma, and angiosarcoma have all been conducted in Japan. The necessary methods, equipment, and facilities for preclinical studies to evaluate the biological effects of AB-BNCT systems in terms of safety and efficacy are described, with reference to two examples from Japan. The first is the National Cancer Center, which is equipped with a vertical downward neutron beam, and the other is the University of Tsukuba, which has a horizontal neutron beam. The preclinical studies discussed include cell-based assays to evaluate cytotoxicity and genotoxicity, in vivo cytotoxicity and efficacy of BNCT, and radioactivation measurements

Kids digital lives in Covid-19 times. Digital practices, safety and well-being of the 6-12 years old. A qualitative study- National report- Spain

The study is a part of a larger qualitative study carried out across 16 European countries aimed at exploring experiences with digital technologies during the COVID-19 lockdown, e.g. smartphones, tablets, computers, TVs, video-games, etc. of children aged between 6 and 12 years and their parents' perceptions of these. The overall research questions are: How did children engage with digital technologies during the lockdown and how did this impact their well-being? and What were the parents' attitudes and behaviors towards the use of technology and how did the lockdown change these? These were addressed in five areas: uses, perceptions, changes and impact for the future. This national report of Spain is written based on data generated interviewing 10 families who have at least one child between 6 and 12 years of age, and the fieldwork was conducted in the Autonomous Communities of Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha, Galicia and Catalonia between June and December 2020. Although literature regarding technology in the life of children 6-12 is emerging in the Spanish context as a key focus as such, it is still very scarce, and the unforeseen nature of the lockdown provides a new area of research regarding the digital practices of children. We hope, therefore, that the presented results from the study will serve as a basis for larger EU studies on related topics and policy recommendations in Spain and beyond

DigiLitEY Research Methods Think Tank Report

This document reports the main discussion points arising from a two-day DigiLitEY COST Action Think Tank, where we invited leading researchers from across Europe who are specialists in young children's digital literacies. The aim was to share and debate perspectives in relation to current and future research challenges in this field of research. The discussion was held under three themes: 1) 'Methodological Challenges, Flexibility and Innovation’; 2) 'Public Engagement / Transference'; and 3) 'Inclusiveness.’ The group agreed to produce a collective publication based on the discussion held during the Think Tank, summarised in this report

Barriers to access early childhood education (0-3 years) for families at social risk: An analysis of family and professional discourses in five Spanish metropolitan areas

INTRODUCTION. It is well recognized internationally and in Spain that children from “vulnerable” family backgrounds participate less in quality early childhood education and care (ECEC). The objective of the article is to examine the barriers faced by families at social risk or in a situation of poverty for the enrollment of their 0 to 3 years old children in the first cycle of ECEC in different Spanish autonomous communities. METHOD. A qualitative study has been implemented in 2019 in five localities / metropolitan areas: Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, the Basque Country and Seville. We have carried out semi-structured interviews with 35 families and discussion groups or group interviews with 40 technicians-key informants. The collected data have been transcribed and analyzed within a qualitative-inductive analytical logic, in particular following thematic analysis as outlined by Braun and Clarke (2012, 2021). RESULTS. A wide range of factors that prevent access to ECEC 0-3 in Spain are identified, including organizational-bureaucratic, ideological, financial, and those related to issues of family mobility or the child-protection system. In addition, the importance of each of these barriers varies according to the socioeconomic level of the families. DISCUSSION. Our results coincide with other studies in organizing barriers into different categories but, at the same time, they suggest a more complex relationship between these elements, especially in relation to the socio-economic circumstances of the families.INTRODUCCIÓN. Está constatado a nivel internacional y en España que la infancia de entornos familiares "vulnerables" participa menos en una educación y atención a la primera infancia (EAPI) de calidad. El objetivo del artículo es examinar las barreras a las que se enfrentan las familias en riesgo social o en situación de pobreza para la matriculación de sus hijos de 0 a 3 años en el primer ciclo de EAPI en diferentes comunidades autónomas de España. MÉTODO. Estudio de corte cualitativo en 2019 en cinco localidades/áreas metropolitanas: Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, País Vasco y Sevilla. Se han realizado entrevistas semiestructuradas con 35 familias y grupos de discusión o entrevistas grupales con 40 técnicos-informantes clave. Los datos recogidos han sido transcritos y analizados dentro de una lógica analítica cualitativa-inductiva, en particular siguiendo el análisis temático pautado por Braun y Clarke (2012, 2021). RESULTADOS. Se identifican una amplia gama de factores que impiden el acceso a la EAPI 0-3 en España, incluyendo las organizativas-burocráticas, ideológicas, financieras y las que están relacionados con la movilidad familiar y otras vinculadas al sistema de protección infantil. Además, cada una de estas barreras cobra importancia de manera específica en relación con el nivel socioeconómico de las familias. DISCUSIÓN. Nuestros resultados comparten con otras investigaciones la organización de barreras en diferentes categorías pero, a su vez, nuestro análisis sugiere una relación más compleja entre estos elementos que depende, al menos, de las circunstancias socio-económicas de las familias

Las Fotografías como Herramienta de Investigación en los Estudios de la Infancia: Algunas Metáforas y Opciones Analíticas

This methodological paper discusses how photographs can be used in multi-layered data projects with children and families. We present photographs as a versatile low-fi digital artifact that can be used under a variety of research circumstances and critically discuss this particular visual tool in the context of the growing body of visual and multimodal research with children and families. The critical discussion draws on a series of research projects in which we have employed photographs (topics of the projects include family diversity or children's routines). The comparisons between projects highlights some of the procedural and analytical choices that are opened up when using photographs. In particular, we focus on two issues: (a) differences that emerge when materials are created by participants or are elicited by researchers, and; (b) the metaphors that are applied to interpret and work with photographs.En este artículo metodológico analizamos cómo las fotografías pueden ser utilizadas en proyectos de investigación con infancia y familias que usan diferentes clases de datos. Planteamos las fotografías como un artefacto digital the "baja fidelidad" ("low-fi") versátil que puede utilizarse bajo una variedad de condiciones de investigación y discutimos críticamente esta herramienta visual, particularmente en el contexto de la creciente investigación visual y multimodal con infancia y familias. La discusión crítica se basa en una serie de proyectos de investigación en los que hemos empleado fotografías (los temas de los proyectos incluyen diversidad familiar o rutinas de la infancia). La comparación entre los proyectos sirve para resaltar algunas de las opciones analíticas y procedimentales que se abren cuando se usan fotografías. Específicamente, nos centramos en dos cuestiones: (a) las diferencias que surgen cuando los materiales fotográficos son creados por los participantes o son provocados por la investigación y; (b) las metáforas que se aplican para interpretar y trabajar con fotografías

Domestic assemblages, early childhood and digital media

In this article, we introduce the notion of domestic assemblage as a tool to understand early childhood digital practices in the home. Our proposal draws from an ecological perspective of human development and urban studies from an ActorNetwork Theory perspective. We discuss the background of our concept and its advantages and limitations by building on three cases collected within the Spanish study of the “A Day in the Digital Lives of Children Aged 0-3” project. We use the empirical materials of this study, centered on the video recording of a full day of the life of a 0-3 year old child, to discuss two analytical paths: starting from the digital device to reconstruct domestic assemblages or starting from routines to unpack how they are assembled in relation to digital technologies in the home.En este artículo introducimos el constructo de ensamblaje doméstico como herramienta conceptual para comprender las prácticas digitales de la primera infancia en el hogar. Nuestra propuesta se nutre de una perspectiva ecológica del desarrollo humano y de los estudios de la ciudad desde la Teoría del Actor-Red. Discutimos el recorrido conceptual de nuestra propuesta, así como las ventajas y limitaciones del concepto a partir de tres casos recogidos dentro del estudio del estado español “Un Día en la Vida Digital de la Infancia 0-3”. Utilizamos los materiales empíricos de esta investigación, que tiene como eje la grabación en vídeo de un día completo de la vida de un niño/a de 0-3 años, para discutir dos recorridos analíticos: partir del dispositivo para reconstruir los ensamblajes domésticos o partir de las rutinas para desentrañar cómo se ensamblan en relación con las tecnologías digitales del hogar

Family Mediating Practices and Ideologies: Spanish and Portuguese Parents of Children Under Three and Digital Media in Homes

This chapter seeks to gain an understanding of how parents accompany their very young children aged under three into ‘digital society’ by examining their mediating practices and ideologies regarding the children’s digital activities. It draws on diverse data (observations/video-recordings and interviews with parents at home) from cases of five middle-class family children in Spain and Portugal. The data was collected in 2017 following the protocol developed for A Day in the Digital Lives of 0-3 Year-Olds [Gillen et al. 2019 A day in the digital lives of children aged 0-3. Full report: DigiLitEY ISCH COST Action 1410 Working Group 1: Digital Literacy in Homes and Communities. http://www.research.lancs.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/-(19b42af9-7828-4950-afca-69fdce62702e).html.]. We problematise the complex relationship between parental beliefs, self-perceptions and actual practices regarding the place of digital technologies in children’s lives and development. We do so by examining mediation as an emergent process in which family members co-create the interactional ecologies [Kyratzis and Johnson (Linguistics and Education 41:1–6, 2017); Erickson (Discourse, learning, and schooling. Cambridge University Press, 1996)], and by seeing mediation as a set of strategies within family routines [Livingstone (Computers in Human Behavior, 23:920–941, 2007)]. Specifically, we analyse mediation at the levels of the digital media ecology/environment in the home [Plowman (Interacting with Computers 27:36–46, 2015)], the actual digital media activities and mediation practices, and the parents’ broader media ideologies and beliefs on technologies [Gershon (Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 20:283–293, 2010)], to explore the relations and contradictions between these levels

Experimental model of chronic pancreatitis, a review - Does it really exist?

Experimental model of pancreatitis is mandatory for elucidating the pathobiology of the disease and also to see the response of a novel treatment. In addition, the need for an animal model of chronic pancreatitis is further strengthened by the relative inaccessibility and paucity of the human pancreatitis tissue. Whereas various models of acute pancreatitis and also of exocrine pancreatic tumor have been described, chronic pancr-eatitis has not been consistently reproduced in experimental animals. Many researchers attempted to establish an experimental model of chronic pancreatitis either by partially obstructing the drainage of pancreatic secretion in dogs and cats or by feeding alcohol to dogs and rats with and without temporary occlusion of the biliopancreatic duct or by surgically inducing ischaemia in the pancreas of the dogs. But, none of these models is identical with human disease. A consistently reproducible model of human chronic pancr-eatitis probably does not exist. In this expanding era of molecular biology which promises us to enhance greatly our understanding of this disease, a right experimental model of chronic pancreatitis is still in progress.疾患の実験モデルの作成は,その疾患の病因,病態の解明,さらに治療法の開発のために重要である｡筆者らの一人は厚生省難治性膵疾患調査研究班の班員として,慢性膵炎の病態の解明や治療法の開発に関する研究を行っており,その研究の一環として,慢性膵炎の実験モデルの作成を現在行っている｡そこで,これまで報告されている慢性膵炎の実験モデルについて概要を報告した｡種々の動物や方法でヒト慢性膵炎に病因,病態,組織像が類似するモデルの作成が試みられてきたが,そのすべてが合致するような慢性膵炎モデルは確 立されてはいない｡近年の分子生物学的研究の進歩は著しく,実験モデルへの応用が種々なされている現在,より簡便で再現性のある慢性膵炎モデルの作成が望まれるところである

Space and practices:Engagement of children under 3 with tablets and televisions in homes in Spain, Sweden and England

Young children’s engagements with digital technologies form part of their emergent everyday literacy practices. The study reported here derives from the pan-European study ‘A Day in the Digital Lives of Children aged 0-3’. The methodology was centred on the videoing of an entire day’s experiences of a child aged under 3, together with a reflective interview with the parents and inventories related to digital access, skills and activities of the child. In this paper, we look at three children in Spain, Sweden and England, respectively. We examine our data through three prisms. (1) Spatio-temporal: We consider the children’s engagements in terms of their appropriation of space, in relationships with others in the home and the intimate geographies of young children’s digital literacies. (2) Parental discourse: We use the tensions and contradictions for families framework to examine the selection and monitoring of digital literacies. (3) Practice: Drawing on the first two prisms, we zoom into how children engage with tablet devices and television. Our research demonstrates richness, diversity and agency in these young children’s practices with technologies. We propose the concept of living-room assemblage as an analytical metaphor to understand the macrohabitats of young children’s digital literacies and practices, which emerge as multi-layered, creative and co-occurring with other family activities.Our analysis also explores the challenges presented to parents and the ways in which they navigate tensions and contradictions in their media and digital environments, which are condensed in family practices and discourses around tablets and television

Studying the media education practices of young children at home: Methodological lessons from a cross-national qualitative study on digital activities at home

Do you remember 2010? Our phones had become smart, a new category of media technology, which would take the name of the “tablet”, was about to radically change the way in which we engage with digital media. Within a few years, these devices were adopted massively in Western countries and beyond. The secrets of their success reside in some, at that time, original assets like touch screen technology, portability, and versatility (Straker et al., 2018; Marsh, 2020). The then-new digital devices appealed not only to adults but increasingly to younger children