A study on using drama in education (panel discussion and hot-seating) to enhance the high level reading comprehension ability of junior secondary students in Hong Kong = Xi ju jiao xue fa (zuo tan hui, ti wen jiao se) dui ti sheng chu zhong xue sheng de shen ceng yue du neng li de yan jiu

Zhi dao lao shi: Luo Jiayi.指導老師: 羅嘉怡.Thesis (B. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 2013.Includes bibliographical references (p. 70-74)published_or_final_versionB.Ed. in Language Educatio

A cost-effective and universal strategy for complete prokaryotic genomic sequencing proposed by computer simulation

Background: Pyrosequencing techniques allow scientists to perform prokaryotic genome sequencing to achieve the draft genomic sequences within a few days. However, the assemblies with shotgun sequencing are usually composed of hundreds of contigs. A further multiplex PCR procedure is needed to fill all the gaps and link contigs into complete chromosomal sequence, which is the basis for prokaryotic comparative genomic studies. In this article, we study various pyrosequencing strategies by simulated assembling from 100 prokaryotic genomes. Findings. Simulation study shows that a single end 454 Jr. run combined with a paired end 454 Jr. run (8 kb library) can produce: 1) ∼90% of 100 assemblies with 99.99%; 4) average false gene duplication rate is < 0.7%; 5) average false gene loss rate is < 0.4%. Conclusions: A single end 454 Jr. run combined with a paired end 454 Jr. run (8 kb library) is a cost-effective way for prokaryotic whole genome sequencing. This strategy provides solution to produce high quality draft assemblies for most of prokaryotic organisms within days. Due to the small number of assembled scaffolds, the following multiplex PCR procedure (for gap filling) would be easy. As a result, large scale prokaryotic whole genome sequencing projects may be finished within weeks. © 2012 Jiang et al; BioMed Central Ltd.published_or_final_versio

An Epstein-Barr virus–encoded microRNA targets PUMA to promote host cell survival

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a herpesvirus associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), gastric carcinoma (GC), and other malignancies. EBV is the first human virus found to express microRNAs (miRNAs), the functions of which remain largely unknown. We report on the regulation of a cellular protein named p53 up-regulated modulator of apoptosis (PUMA) by an EBV miRNA known as miR-BART5, which is abundantly expressed in NPC and EBV-GC cells. Modulation of PUMA expression by miR-BART5 and anti–miR-BART5 oligonucleotide was demonstrated in EBV-positive cells. In addition, PUMA was found to be significantly underexpressed in ∼60% of human NPC tissues. Although expression of miR-BART5 rendered NPC and EBV-GC cells less sensitive to proapoptotic agents, apoptosis can be triggered by depleting miR-BART5 or inducing the expression of PUMA. Collectively, our findings suggest that EBV encodes an miRNA to facilitate the establishment of latent infection by promoting host cell survival

Maximizing the potential of aggressive mouse tumor models in preclinical drug testing.

Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (ATRT) is an aggressive embryonal brain tumor among infants and young children. Two challenges exist for preclinical testing in ATRT. First, genetically quiet, ATRT is a difficult tumor to target molecularly. Tumor cells need to divide to propagate tumor growth-intercepting the common crossroads in cell cycle progression is a feasible strategy. KIF11 is needed for bipolar spindle formation in metaphase. We identified KIF11 as a universal target of all ATRT-molecular-subtypes. Ispinesib, a KIF11-inhibitor, effectively inhibited tumor proliferation in all seven cell lines. A second challenge-a major challenge in preclinical drug testing in-vivo among aggressive tumor models, is the narrow therapeutic window to administer drugs within the limited murine lifespan. Our most aggressive ATRT tumor model was lethal in all mice within ~ 1 month of tumor implantation. Such short-surviving mouse models are difficult to employ for preclinical drug testing due to the narrow time window to administer drugs. To overcome this time restriction, we developed a clinical staging system which allowed physically-fit mice to continue treatment, in contrast to the conventional method of fixed drug-dose-duration regimen in preclinical testing which will not be feasible in such short-surviving mouse models. We validated this approach in a second embryonal brain tumor, medulloblastoma. This is a clinically relevant, cost-efficient approach in preclinical testing for cancer and non-cancer disease phenotypes. Widely used preclinical mouse models are not the most accurate and lack the aggressive tumor spectrum found within a single tumor type. Mice bearing the most aggressive tumor spectrum progress rapidly in the limited murine life-span, resulting in a narrow therapeutic window to administer drugs, and are thus difficult to employ in preclinical testing. Our approach overcomes this challenge. We discovered ispinesib is efficacious against two embryonal brain tumor types

COULD FAMILY WELL-BEING MODERATE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES AND SOMATOFORM DISSOCIATION? A PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

16 pagesThe impacts of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been well documented. One possible consequence of ACEs is dissociation, which is a major feature of post-traumatic psychopathology and is also associated with considerable impairment and health care costs. Although ACEs are known to be associated with both psychoform and somatoform dissociation, much less is known about the mechanisms behind this relationship. Little is known about whether social and interpersonal factors such as family environments would moderate the relationship between ACEs and somatoform dissociation. This paper discusses the importance of having a positive and healthy family environment in trauma recovery. We then report the findings of a preliminary study in which we examined whether the association between ACEs and somatoform dissociation would be moderated by family well-being in a convenience sample of Hong Kong adults (N = 359). The number of ACEs was positively associated with somatoform dissociative symptoms, but this association was moderated by the level of family well-being. The number of ACEs was associated with somatoform dissociation only when the family well-being scores were low. These moderating effects were medium. The findings point to the potential importance of using family education and intervention programs to prevent and treat trauma-related dissociative symptoms, but further investigation is needed

Diversidade e Estrutura Genéticas de Bryconamericus aff. Iheringii (Characiformes: Characidae) na Área de Influência do Reservatório da Itaipu

Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso apresentado ao Instituto Latino-Americano de Ciências da Vida e Natureza da Universidade Federal da Integração Latino-Americana, como requisito parcial à obtenção do título de Bacharel em Ciências Biológicas – Ecologia e Biodiversidade.A diversidade genética é necessária para que as populações evoluam e se adaptem às mudanças ambientais, e comumente, está distribuída em um padrão dentro e entre populações que é referido como estrutura genética. O isolamento e a existência de poucos caminhos migratórios entre águas doces implicam na estruturação genética, principalmente, para peixes que possuem baixa mobilidade. Peixes de pequeno porte (≤ 15 cm de comprimento), que habitam riachos, representam, no mínimo 50% de toda a ictiofauna sul-americana e apresentam um alto grau de endemismo, devido, em parte, à sua baixa capacidade de deslocamento. Neste contexto, o presente trabalho objetivou avaliar a diversidade e a estrutura genéticas do caracídeo Bryconamericus aff. iheringii na área de influência do reservatório da Itaipu Binacional. Para isto, foram analisados 47 espécimes, 23 coletados em riachos da margem direita (Paraguai) e 24 coletados em riachos da margem esquerda (Brasil) do reservatório da Itaipu. Para acessar sua diversidade genética, foi empregado o marcador molecular D-loop, sendo estimado o número de haplótipos, os índices de diversidade haplotípica e nucleotídica e o nível de estruturação entre as diferentes amostras. B. aff. iheringii apresentou níveis de diversidade genética dentro do padrão relatado para a espécie, com moderados (amostras do Paraguai) a altos (amostras do Brasil) níveis de diversidade, o que se deve, sobretudo, ao fato de que quase todos os riachos paraguaios analisados são de uma única microbacia, enquanto os riachos brasileiros são de quatro microbacias diferentes. As populações não parecem ter respondido a eventos drásticos recentes, pois mesmo as presentes em regiões sob a pressão de atividades agrícolas, mostram variações no DNA mitocondrial. Foram encontrados altos níveis de estruturação genética entre o conjunto de amostras paraguaio e brasileiro e entre as microbacias dentro de cada país, o que se deve, principalmente, aos processos de colonização destas drenagens, os quais possivelmente envolvem fundadores com diferentes linhagens haplotípicas. Além disso, parece plausível que o rio Paraná (reservatório da Itaipu) funciona como uma barreira ao fluxo gênico entre as diferentes margens e entre suas microbacias. Deste modo, a identificação de linhagens é de grande importância, pois a manutenção da diversidade genética de uma espécie depende de sua preservação. Considerando a importância de estudos genético-populacionais para a conservação de espécies, espera-se que este trabalho possa servir como base para futuros estudos mais amplos com peixes de riachos

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals &lt;1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Karma and Bodhi : the Buddhist conception of life and death in Demi-gods and semi-devils = Yin guo yu jue wu : "Tian long ba bu" de Fo xue "sheng si" guan

Louis Cha Leung-Yung has long been known as one of the most popular fantasy martial arts novelists. The popularity of his novels and their TV series adaptations in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan over the last thirty years leads many people to view Louis Cha as a popular spokesperson for the traditional Chinese culture. Some of his novels have also been translated from Chinese into a variety of foreign languages. The thought and culture presented in the novels are also a hot topic for academic research. Past scholars have already discussed Louis Cha’s works in relation Buddhism. Among his 15 novels, “Demi-Gods and Semi- Devils” is believed by many as “the most representative” novel of Louis Cha's writing. While philosophers offer theories to explain the Buddhist conception of life and death, Louis Cha demonstrates the practical effects of these theories in the world of his novels. “Demi-Gods and Semi- Devils” offers not only valuable insights into Buddhism and the Buddhist conception of life and death, but it is also well structured with profound descriptions of characters, making it a valuable novel for textual analysis. The thesis is consisted of three major sections: First, “Theories of Buddhism in relation the conception of life and death” summarizes the understanding of life and death in Buddhism. Second, “Louis Cha and Buddhism” explores the personal life and background of Louis Cha and also his struggles to reconcile his religious faith of Buddhist inclination with his vocation as a novelist. The third and final section “Textual Analysis” examines the contents of “Demi-Gods and Semi- Devils” and explores Louis Cha’s understanding of Buddhism. 金庸是現今華文武俠小說的代表作家，他的作 品深受中、港、臺讀者的喜愛，部分小說更 被翻譯成外語，供外國讀者閱讀。金庸小說中的傳統文化與佛教思想，也成為眾多學者研 究主題。不少學者曾指出，金庸小說的佛學思想很大程度地體現在他的作品之中。 金庸創作的十五部小說中，《天龍八部》被譽為 “最具代表性的武俠小說”。《天龍八部》 的結構緊密而複雜，對人物的命運與性格有深刻的描寫，因此作為研究金庸小說的文本， 其研究價值相當高。另外，《天龍八部》一書反映的佛學意識也是金庸眾多作品中最為明 顯的。小說以佛經名詞命名，書中的人物、角色設定、乃至主角的名字，也表現出佛家意 味，與佛門有緊密的關係。因此，若要從金庸小說了解他的佛學觀，《天龍八部》可謂不 二之選。 本研究旨在以金庸小說《天龍八部》為文本，探討書中所表達的佛學“生死＂觀及作者的 佛學意識。本研究可分成三大部分: (1) “佛學對‘生死’的看法＂，將整合佛學對 “生 死”的看法，包括對本研究所涵蓋的一些佛學概念，例如 “生命＂、 “因果＂、 “業＂等基本概念作簡單解釋: (2) “金庸小說佛學意識＂，以金庸的生平資料，嘗試分析他對生死佛學的看法，希望有助分析《天龍八部》的思想特色; (3) “《天龍八部》的佛學觀＂，就《天龍八部》(新修版)的人物及文本內容及其佛學主題、就 “人生八苦＂、 “因果循環 ＂、 “覺悟＂等佛學意識進行文本分析，以勾勒出整部《天龍八部》的佛學觀。published_or_final_versionChinese Language and LiteratureMasterMaster of Art

Design of Intelligent Garment with Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation Function Based on the Intarsia Knitting Technique

This paper describes the work that was carried out on the design for intelligent wearable garment with transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) function from a knitwear design perspective. It is perceived that good design is essential for the development of textile-related products for medical function. The knitwear technique, garment design skill, Chinese acupuncture therapeutic method and TENS technology were integrated interactively in an intelligent TENS garment. The garment was observed to have more advantages than ones incorporating TENS device, such as it readily, quickly and easily targeted the back of the body; it was more flexible in the treatment by accommodating different numbers and locations of acupuncture points; it was light, washable, flexible, inexpensive and relatively simple to manufacture. This work aimed to develop a knitwear design based on intarsia knitting technique by using proposed textile electrode and conductive yarn to create a novel therapeutic method for healthcare through dressing. Experimental results revealed that the knitwear could achieve better results in performance than those incorporating the TENS therapeutic method.Institute of Textiles and ClothingDepartment of Electronic and Information EngineeringSchool of Nursin