Systemic Dosing of Thymosin Beta 4 before and after Ischemia Does Not Attenuate Global Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Pigs

The use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and aortic cross-clamping causes myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (I-RI) and can lead to reduced postoperative cardiac function. We investigated whether this injury could be attenuated by thymosin beta 4 (TB4), a peptide which has showed cardioprotective effects. Pigs received either TB4 or vehicle and underwent CPB and aortic cross-clamping for 60 min with cold intermittent blood-cardioplegia and were then followed for 30 h. Myocardial function and blood flow was studied by cardiac magnetic resonance and PET imaging. Tissue and plasma samples were analyzed to determine the amount of cardiomyocyte necrosis and apoptosis as well as pharmacokinetics of the peptide. In vitro studies were performed to assess its influence on blood coagulation and vasomotor tone. Serum levels of the peptide were increased after administration compared to control samples. TB4 did not decrease the amount of cell death. Cardiac function and global myocardial blood flow was similar between the study groups. At high doses a vasoconstrictor effect on mesentery arteries and a vasodilator effect on coronary arteries was observed and blood clot firmness was reduced when tested in the presence of an antiplatelet agent. Despite promising results in previous trials the cardioprotective effect of TB4 was not demonstrated in this model for global myocardial I-RI.Peer reviewe

Theoretical approaches for enhancing IS-related learning in organizations

Organizational change and learning processes are often related to the development of information systems (IS). The theoretical groundings for management and organizational learning should be recognized in order to foster learning via IS. Learning theories must be examined for quaranteeing a feasible scientific ground for design of learning, education and development processes. In this paper Kolb's research on experiential learning provides an excellent view of how people learn through experience. Models for understanding the social reality of people are required to understand the cultural and social qualities of the working environment. The cultural context of learning should be noted, learning should be learner-centered, not teacher- or material-centered. The key word is mediation. We can ask, what are we mediating and how? Cognitive theories in addition to theories about cultural mediation set us a new approach for developing IS and re-organizing organizational activities. An attempt..

Towards a framework for creative online collaboration: a research on challenges and context

The OnCreate project was initiated by ten universities with expertise in collaborative work in online-based learning environments and explores the specific challenges of implementing university courses in creative disciplines in such an environment. The first research phase comprises a literature search on creativity and its contextual factors in online collaboration in an educational setting. From this research a first set of possible key challenges and contextual key factors has been selected and applied to categorize the results of interviews and surveys on current good practice in creative online collaboration among experienced online teachers from the partner universities. From the key findings we formulate hypotheses to guide future research towards a framework for creative online collaboration. At the same time, the results can serve as inspiration for the educational practice. Notable observations of the good practice research among the partner universities are that they realise innovative collaboration concepts usually on mashed-up environments of state-of-the-art web services rather than on the omnipresent learning management systems (such as Moodle or Blackboard). Also, they show a paradigm shift from teaching to coaching and promotion of an open peer-review culture among the students

Maassa, puussa ja ilmassa : Janne Vilkunan juhlakirja

Kirja on kunnianosoitus Janne Vilkunalle hänen saavutuksistaan museologian professorin työssään, joka on linkittynyt monenlaisin sitein kotiseututyöhön. Samalla kirja on onnittelu ja kiitos ansiokkaasta toiminnasta arkeologian, museologian, museoiden ja kotiseututyön parissa. Juhlakirja sisältää 19 artikkelia liittyen Vilkunan työn ja harrastusten eri teemoihin. Teksteissä kerrotaan kotiseututyöstä sen alkujuurilta aina nykyilmentymiin saakka. Kirjassa kerrotaan esineistä, jotka kertovat jotain olennaista meistä ihmisinä, miten linnavuoren rinteen jäädytyskoe liittyy arkeologiaan ja Ural-moottoripyörä museologiaan.nonPeerReviewe