New Aspects Of Research Research Articles

Endogenous Erythroid Colony Formation in Patients with Retinal Vein Occlusion

The pathophysiology and causes of retinal vein occlusion (RVO) remain largely unknown. Latent forms of myeloproliferative disorders, which are diagnosed by the presence of in vitro endogenous erythroid colony (EEC) formation, are a well-known cause of intraabdominal vein thrombosis. The suspected diagnosis of a latent myeloproliferative disorder in a patient with RVO, based on the presence of EEC formation, led us to evaluate the association between latent myeloproliferative disorders and RVO. Observational case series in a national eye center. Forty-four patients, with a mean age of 46 years (range, 21-62) and central (n = 38) or peripheral (n = 6) RVO responsible for visual acuity decreased to 6/12 or less. In vitro bone marrow culture. Endogenous erythroid colony formation in cytokine-free culture medium. Conventional diagnostic criteria for myeloproliferative disorders and the JAK2 V617F mutation (which is strongly associated with myeloproliferative disorders) were assessed in RVO patients showing EECs. Endogenous erythroid colony formation was observed in 12 of 44 (27%) patients with RVO, 13 of 35 (37%) patients with Budd-Chiari syndrome, and 52 of 53 (98%) patients with primary polycythemia (positive control groups) but not in 22 healthy bone marrow donors (negative controls) evaluated at the same time and by the same hematology laboratory. Neither conventional nor genetic diagnostic criteria for myeloproliferative disorders were observed in any patient with both RVO and an EEC at the time of diagnosis or during follow-up. Endogenous erythroid colony formation is frequently observed in patients with RVO independently of any detectable myeloproliferative disorder. This opens a new aspect of research on the pathophysiology of this sight-threatening disease.

New aspects of research into service encounters and service quality

PurposeThe objective is two‐fold. The first is to describe contemporary and future penetration (i.e. analysis and understanding) in service encounter research. The other is to describe contemporary and future abstraction in service quality research.Design/methodology/approachThe paper provides a conceptual discussion of new aspects of research into service encounters and service quality.FindingsThere are still flaws in the contemporary penetration of service encounters and the contemporary abstraction of the service quality construct.Research limitations/implicationsService encounters and service quality pertain not only to human interactions, but also to the interaction between individuals and self‐service technology. The new aspects of service encounters and service quality described here are restricted to the interaction between individuals. It is argued that an extended penetration of service encounters, and an extended abstraction of the service quality construct, taken together, provide great potential for future research opportunities in services marketing.Practical implicationsThe aspects of penetration discussed here have the potential to provide a more sophisticated understanding of the complexity and dynamics of service encounters. The aspects of abstraction described here have the potential to contribute to a more sophisticated level of measurement of the service quality construct.Originality/valueA two‐fold approach is suggested that goes beyond the current state of the art in terms of penetration of service encounters and abstraction of the service quality construct. This is likely to trigger and encourage innovative research designs and alternative methodological approaches to new research problems. This might also stimulate innovative analytical techniques that could produce groundbreaking research findings, with important implications for practice.

Apical localization of ITPK1 enhances its ability to be a modifier gene product in a murine tracheal cell model of cystic fibrosis

A new aspect of research into the pathogenesis of cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetics-based search for ;modifier genes' that may affect the severity of CF lung disease. Using an alternative, cell biological approach, we show that ITPK1 should be considered a modifier gene. ITPK1 synthesizes an intracellular signal, inositol (3,4,5,6)-tetrakisphosphate [Ins(3,4,5,6)P4]. A bio-activatable, cell-permeable analogue of Ins(3,4,5,6)P4 inhibited Ca2+-dependent secretion of Cl- from polarized monolayers of immortalized mouse tracheal epithelial cells (MTEs). Analysis by high-pressure liquid chromatography showed endogenous Ins(3,4,5,6)P4 levels in CF MTEs were approximately 60% below those in wild-type MTEs (P<0.03). This adaptation, which improves purinergic activation of Ca2+-dependent Cl- secretion in CF MTEs, was exceptionally specific; there was no effect upon the cellular levels of all the other inositol phosphate signals. Real-time PCR provided the explanation: the level of ITPK1 expression in wild-type MTEs was twice as high as that in CF MTEs (P<0.002). The biological impact of this differential gene expression is amplified by ITPK1 being concentrated at the apical membrane of MTEs, which we discovered following confocal immunofluorescence microscopy. Compartmentalization of Ins(3,4,5,6)P4 synthesis adjacent to its site of action will enhance its regulatory capacity.

Microbial activity in biogeochemical gradients – new aspects of research

ABSTRACTIn April 2004, the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) co‐organized a meeting for US and German junior geoscientists in Washington DC. As an outcome of this Research Conference titled ‘Earth, Fire, Water, Air and Life’, a follow‐up workshop took place in May 2005 at the Eberhard‐Karls University of Tuebingen in Germany. This workshop covered new aspects of research to improve the understanding of steep biogeochemical gradients covering pH changes, redox zones, as well as solute and particulate concentration variations in aqueous systems. Detailed understanding of biogeochemistry in this context delivers new fundamental aspects in interdisciplinary research. Such work is also urgently needed to control ever‐increasing scarcity of water that is to large parts driven by decreasing water quality. Research ideas on gradients in a biogeochemical context that were discussed by a subgroup of biogeochemists during that workshop are summarized and presented here.

Learning from the Experience of others

AS THE YOUNGER of two children, I vividly remember day my brother was caught with and made to lie across our parents' bed to suffer consequences - three or four swats of the belt. I huddled outside door and added playing with matches to a mental list of behaviors I should avoid. I'm happy I took those mental notes. Today, as states consider behaviors they should and should not pursue to improve their education systems, it might be helpful if some of us sat outside door and took notes. After all, state after state has dedicated substantial thought, time, energy, and dollars to raising levels of student achievement, through passing individual bills and omnibus legislation that attempts to fix entire systems. The importance of omnibus bills should not be underestimated. Nor should these bills be confused with bills, which have acquired their name because lawmakers start hanging little extras onto some piece of legislation and so leave original bill buried in a mishmash of frequently unrelated pet provisions. Unlike Christmas tree bills, omnibus bills retain their focus on an issue such as education, but, instead of taking a piecemeal approach, they address whole system, including such items as funding, level of expectations for students, discipline, licensure, and governance. They launch systemwide changes. They are important. That is why, to help evaluate impact and implementation of such bills, a growing number of states have included provisions that require monitoring of these major reforms. These states are installing their own versions of sibling observers to huddle outside door and take notes on consequences of legislation, whether intended or unintended. One example is Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA), which was passed in 1993. It included a provision for a commission to oversee implementation of MERA, whose effects now seem to be hitting fan. This oversight commission, Massachusetts Education Reform Review Commission (MERRC), is supposed to provide objective, policy-relevant research and analysis to legislators and other key players in Massachusetts' education reform efforts. The commission's primary activity is funding independent research on various topics related to education reform. Its members include teachers, superintendents, principals, representatives of higher education (both private and public), parents, legislature, and school committees. The commission also aims to facilitate discussion between researchers and policy makers. In 1999 commission sponsored its first working conference of researchers and policy makers. The objective was to begin to develop strategies for stimulating additional research activity related to MERA. Last November, MERRC released a report titled How Massachusetts Schools Are Using MCAS [Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System] to Change Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment, and Resource Allocation, in which it reported results of a survey of school and district staff members and found following: * More than 90% reported that they receive results for students who are tested in their building; * 82% indicated that they were personally involved in analyzing their school's or district's MCAS results; and * more than 70% reported that their use of MCAS data affected instructional strategies they use in classroom. More recently, MERRC released its first annual report, and it is currently taking proposals from independent contractors to pursue several new aspects of research.1 For 2001 annual report, researchers visited 30 schools and interviewed superintendents, principals, teachers, and parents. Others, such as legislators, department of education personnel, and members of professional associations, were interviewed by phone. In all, researchers talked with more than 200 teachers, 90 superintendents, 100 principals, and 100 parents. …

PROGRESS IN TRANSGENIC PAPAYA (CARICA PAPAYA) RESEARCH: TRANSFORMATION FOR BROADER RESISTANCE AMONG CULTIVARS AND MICROPROPAGATING SELECTED HYBRID TRANSGENIC PLANTS

As Hawaii's first transgenic virus resistant papayas near commercialization, several new aspects of research emerge. Additional papaya cultivars adapted to specific locations are being transformed with different papaya ringspot virus (PRV) genes. Seed production of transgenic hybrids has been undertaken by the Hawaii Agriculture Research Center, HARC, in collaboration with the University of Hawaii. Hybrid plants are being micropropagated to determine the feasibility of producing propagules through tissue culture to help the industry recover from setbacks during our recent 5-year-old virus epidemic. Two hybrid hermaphrodite transgenic lines from the same seed source were propagated, one from seedlings germinated aseptically in tissue culture and then micropropagated, the other from a mature, superior field-grown tree whose lateral shoots were decontaminated and propagated in vitro. Both plants produced lines with fruit that were of acceptable quality. The seedling-derived propagules multiplied in culture at an 8X per month rate once the cultures were actively growing. Rooting efficiency ranged from 20-40% per month. To date about 400 rooted transgenic hybrid hermaphrodite shoots have been produced from about 1000 cuttings in one month. Less than 10% of the slow-growing lateral shoots from mature, field-grown trees could be made aseptic with our decontamination treatments. Two months after decontamination, multiplication from a single shoot was about 5 x per month on a modified DeFossard medium.

S12. Drug addictions. New aspects in research and treatment

S12. Drug addictions. New aspects in research and treatment

Electromagnetic smog — A damage and stress factor?

The impedance behaviour of conifer needles in dependence on different ecological and anthropogenic factors opens up new aspects in research on forest damage and points out synergistic actions previously not subjected to research. This revelation of an electromagnetic stress of increasing intensity not recognized up to now, the combination of electrophysical metabolic processes with the effects on air pollutants and the position of bioelectrochemistry point out the way to more comprehensive enlightenment on the stress factor of electromagnetic smog. Research in this field is still not being supported. Amongst other items, the following are urgently necessary: examination throughout the year of the impedance in coniferous (needle-bearing) trees, measurement of the stress on the plant metabolism caused by high frequency as well as other comparative measurements of field strength distribution in pollution-affected areas.

New aspects in research on blood levels and bioavailability of antidepressants.

Recent research has been oriented towards the study of the clinical relevance of measuring free and total plasma levels of antidepressants and their hydroxylated metabolites, as animal experiments suggest that the latter may be clinically active. In central Europe, about 5-10% of the population has a genetic defect in metabolizing debrisoquine. This is of importance for pharmacopsychiatry, as some antidepressants like desipramine, nortriptyline, amitriptyline, imipramine (and possibly maprotiline) are metabolized by the same enzyme as debrisoquine. This observation helps to understand not only the large interindividual differences in the steady-state levels of these drugs but also drug interferences.

Cardiomyopathy and myocarditis--a review of new aspects in research in West Germany.

New aspects in the research of myocarditis and dilated cardiomyopathy in West Germany have evolved from molecular biology, immunobiology of the mitochondrion, immunoserology, and immunohistology. Coxsackie B3 virus inoculated into fetal human myocytes induced myocytolysis in the absence of immunologic effector mechanisms. By pretreatment with beta-interferon, the virus yield from the myocytes was reduced significantly. In myocarditis and dilated cardiomyopathy, antibodies against an organ-specific autoantigen of cardiac mitochondria, the adenine nucleotide translocator, were demonstrated. Antibody titers roughly correlated with the ejection fraction using the Elisa technique. It could also be shown that in 13% of cases in myocarditis and 31% in dilated cardiomyopathy heart-associated antimitochondrial antibodies are found, called anti-M7. Most of the patients had an interfibrillary staining pattern in the immunofluorescence test. No correlation with the severity of heart disease could be established. In dilated cardiomyopathy and myocarditis, there has recently been controversy over low suppressor T-cell activity. Whereas other groups have demonstrated a low concanavaldin-A-induced suppressor T-cell activity in both diseases, we have not been able to confirm reduced Con-A-induced or spontaneous T-suppressor cell activity in the different indicator systems used in analysis.

Some new aspects of research on polymer gels

In this paper a short critical review of both phenomenological and molecular aspects of swelling and mechanical behaviour of swollen polymer gels is given. A new principle, the topoanalogous transformation of polymeric networks, together with many experimental examples, is introduced and discussed in detail. With the aid of this principle some so far unsolved problems concerning applications of theory of rubber elasticity, the physical background behind equations and contributions of different kinds of junction zones to elasticity of swollen networks are analysed and solutions for related problems are suggested. Based on experimental data the thermodynamics of swelling of aqueous and non-aqueous polymer gels involving an effect of supermolecular or colloid structure on thermodynamic behaviour of these systems are also analysed and for homogeneous gels, a new equation is proposed for volume fraction dependence of the elastic part of solvent chemical potential. For description of inhomogeneous networks a simple, two-phase network model has been worked out and succesfully applied to swollen gels containing a high amount of inhomogeneities of colloid size.

Fiabilit�, validit� et pertinence-crit�res de la recherche sur l'enseignement de la math�matique

The terms reliability and validity here are used in a broader context than that of testing. Educational research often stresses reliability, that is internal consistency at the expense of validity and relevance. How research may start, is shown by a study of the IREM of Grenoble, which exhibits the clash between ‘text and context’, in particular the ‘magic context’. As medicine did in the past, educational research may start with phenomenological diagnosis but then progress to etiology in order finally to focus on prevention, which requires a more profound understanding of individual development. Meanwhile we are faced with a new aspect of research: legitimation.

New aspects of research on DC’s

New aspects of research on DC’s

New aspects in research on erythrocytes. Specific transport mechanisms in the erythrocyte membrane.

Es wird die Entwicklung, die zum Konzept des Tragermechanismus gefuhrt hat, dargestellt. Besonderheiten dieses Transportmechanismus durch die Membran (zum Teil in Analogie zur Enzymkinetik, zum Teil abweichend) werden an Beispielen des Zuckertransports durch die Erythrozytenmembran diskutiert. Schliesslich wird der ‘aktive’ Transport im Sinne einer Stoffbewegung entgegen dem Aktivitatsgradienten an zwei Beispielen erlautert, die am Erythrozyten studiert wurden: an der Kalium-Natrium-Pumpe und am Aminosauretransport durch die Membran. In bezug auf ihre Deutung im Sinne von Tragermechanismen wild darauf hingewiesen, dass der einfache Tragertransport durch verschiedene Arten von Kopplung zu einer «Pumpe» mit Aufwartstransport umgestaltet werden kann.