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Sample records for normal early development

  1. Normal variation in early parental sensitivity predicts child structural brain development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kok, Rianne; Thijssen, Sandra; Bakermans-Kranenburg, Marian J; Jaddoe, Vincent W V; Verhulst, Frank C; White, Tonya; van IJzendoorn, Marinus H; Tiemeier, Henning

    2015-10-01

    Early caregiving can have an impact on brain structure and function in children. The influence of extreme caregiving experiences has been demonstrated, but studies on the influence of normal variation in parenting quality are scarce. Moreover, no studies to date have included the role of both maternal and paternal sensitivity in child brain maturation. This study examined the prospective relation between mothers' and fathers' sensitive caregiving in early childhood and brain structure later in childhood. Participants were enrolled in a population-based prenatal cohort. For 191 families, maternal and paternal sensitivity was repeatedly observed when the child was between 1 year and 4 years of age. Head circumference was assessed at 6 weeks, and brain structure was assessed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements at 8 years of age. Higher levels of parental sensitivity in early childhood were associated with larger total brain volume (adjusted β = 0.15, p = .01) and gray matter volume (adjusted β = 0.16, p = .01) at 8 years, controlling for infant head size. Higher levels of maternal sensitivity in early childhood were associated with a larger gray matter volume (adjusted β = 0.13, p = .04) at 8 years, independent of infant head circumference. Associations with maternal versus paternal sensitivity were not significantly different. Normal variation in caregiving quality is related to markers of more optimal brain development in children. The results illustrate the important role of both mothers and fathers in child brain development. Copyright © 2015 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Diversification of intrinsic motoneuron electrical properties during normal development and botulinum toxin-induced muscle paralysis in early postnatal mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakanishi, S T; Whelan, P J

    2010-05-01

    During early postnatal development, between birth and postnatal days 8-11, mice start to achieve weight-bearing locomotion. In association with the progression of weight-bearing locomotion there are presumed developmental changes in the intrinsic electrical properties of spinal -motoneurons. However, these developmental changes in the properties of -motoneuron properties have not been systematically explored in mice. Here, data are presented documenting the developmental changes of selected intrinsic motoneuron electrical properties, including statistically significant changes in action potential half-width, intrinsic excitability and diversity (quantified as coefficient of variation) of rheobase current, afterhyperpolarization half-decay time, and input resistance. In various adult mammalian preparations, the maintenance of intrinsic motoneuron electrical properties is dependent on activity and/or transmission-sensitive motoneuron-muscle interactions. In this study, we show that botulinum toxin-induced muscle paralysis led to statistically significant changes in the normal development of intrinsic motoneuron electrical properties in the postnatal mouse. This suggests that muscle activity during early neonatal life contributes to the development of normal motoneuron electrical properties.

  3. Do early premalignant changes in normal breast epithelial cells predict cancer development?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Clarke, Robert B; Bundred, Nigel J

    2005-01-01

    A recent report suggests that, in an in vitro model of premalignant breast cells (vHMECs), silencing of INK4A gene is accompanied by over-expression of cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-2. This suggests that COX-2 over-expression may be an early event in breast cancer aetiology permitting clones within the normal epithelium to evade apoptosis, to increase their numbers and perhaps acquire further changes that promote the formation of hyperplasias, and eventually carcinomas. While COX-2 expression in normal breast epithelium in vivo has not been proven to be linked to an increased risk of breast cancer, its over-expression in the premalignant model in vitro does provide preliminary evidence that COX-2 inhibition may be a useful chemoprevention strategy

  4. The significance of early post-exercise ST segment normalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chow, Rudy; Fordyce, Christopher B; Gao, Min; Chan, Sammy; Gin, Kenneth; Bennett, Matthew

    2015-01-01

    The persistence of ST segment depression in recovery signifies a strongly positive exercise treadmill test (ETT). However, it is unclear if early recovery of ST segments portends a similar prognosis. We sought to determine if persistence of ST depression into recovery correlates with ischemic burden based on myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI). This was a retrospective analysis of 853 consecutive patients referred for exercise MPI at a tertiary academic center over a 24-month period. Patients were stratified into three groups based on the results of the ETT: normal (negative ETT), persistence (positive ETT with >1mm ST segment depression at 1minute in recovery) and early normalization (positive ETT with normalization, while 105 patients met criteria for persistence. The persistence group had a significantly greater SSS (8.48±7.77) than both the early normalization (4.34±4.98, pnormal (4.47±5.31, pnormalization and normal groups were not statistically different and met the prespecified non-inferiority margin (mean difference 0.12, -0.66=lower 95% CI, pnormal and 7.4% of early normalization groups. Among patients with an electrically positive ETT, recovery of ST segment depression within 1minute was associated with a lower SSS than patients with persistence of ST depression beyond 1minute. Furthermore, early ST segment recovery conferred a similar SSS to patients with a negative ETT. These results suggest that among patients evaluated for chest pain with a positive ETT, early recovery of the ST segment during recovery is associated with a significantly less ischemic burden on subsequent MPI and thus may represent a false positive finding in exercise treadmill testing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Normal motor milestone development for use to promote child care

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahdin A. Husaini

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Background Motor behavior is an essential aspect of child development, and usually assessed in terms of age of achievement of motor milestone. The early detection of infants experiencing subtle delays in motor maturation can allow early intervention in developmental problems. Intervention can be more effective if delays are identified early. In order to facilitate the identification of early delays, the Center of Nutrition and Foods Research and Development in Bogor has designed a simple tool to monitor the child (aged 3 to 18 months motor development. Objective To develop an observable of normal gross motor maturation for use to detect deviance or motor delay. Methods A total of 2100 healthy children, aged 3-18 months, from high socio-economic group, in urban and suburban areas, were studied. Body length, weight and motor development were measured on all children. Gross motor development was measured 17 pre selected milestones: lie, sit, crawl, creep, stand Mth assistance, walk with assistance, stand alone, walk alone, and run. Results There were no differences between males and females in the comparison of attainment motor maturation therefore a sex combined curve was developed. Conclusion The curve of normal motor milestone development can be used as a tool to evaluate motor development over time, and/or as a child development card for use in primary health care.

  6. Adenomatous polyposis coli is required for early events in the normal growth and differentiation of the developing cerebral cortex

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Price David J

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Adenomatous polyposis coli (Apc is a large multifunctional protein known to be important for Wnt/β-catenin signalling, cytoskeletal dynamics, and cell polarity. In the developing cerebral cortex, Apc is expressed in proliferating cells and its expression increases as cells migrate to the cortical plate. We examined the consequences of loss of Apc function for the early development of the cerebral cortex. Results We used Emx1Cre to inactivate Apc specifically in proliferating cerebral cortical cells and their descendents starting from embryonic day 9.5. We observed reduction in the size of the mutant cerebral cortex, disruption to its organisation, and changes in the molecular identity of its cells. Loss of Apc leads to a decrease in the size of the proliferative pool, disrupted interkinetic nuclear migration, and increased apoptosis. β-Catenin, pericentrin, and N-cadherin proteins no longer adopt their normal high concentration at the apical surface of the cerebral cortical ventricular zone, indicating that cell polarity is disrupted. Consistent with enhanced Wnt/β-catenin signalling resulting from loss of Apc we found increased levels of TCF/LEF-dependent transcription and expression of endogenous Wnt/β-catenin target genes (Axin2 (conductin, Lef1, and c-myc in the mutant cerebral cortex. In the Apc mutant cerebral cortex the expression of transcription factors Foxg1, Pax6, Tbr1, and Tbr2 is drastically reduced compared to normal and many cells ectopically express Pax3, Wnt1, and Wt1 (but not Wnt2b, Wnt8b, Ptc, Gli1, Mash1, Olig2, or Islet1. This indicates that loss of Apc function causes cerebral cortical cells to lose their normal identity and redirect to fates normally found in more posterior-dorsal regions of the central nervous system. Conclusion Apc is required for multiple aspects of early cerebral cortical development, including the regulation of cell number, interkinetic nuclear migration, cell polarity, and

  7. Is phonology bypassed in normal or dyslexic development?

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    Pennington, B F; Lefly, D L; Van Orden, G C; Bookman, M O; Smith, S D

    1987-01-01

    A pervasive assumption in most accounts of normal reading and spelling development is that phonological coding is important early in development but is subsequently superseded by faster, orthographic coding which bypasses phonology. We call this assumption, which derives from dual process theory, the developmental bypass hypothesis. The present study tests four specific predictions of the developmental bypass hypothesis by comparing dyslexics and nondyslexics from the same families in a cross-sectional design. The four predictions are: 1) That phonological coding skill develops early in normal readers and soon reaches asymptote, whereas orthographic coding skill has a protracted course of development; 2) that the correlation of adult reading or spelling performance with phonological coding skill is considerably less than the correlation with orthographic coding skill; 3) that dyslexics who are mainly deficient in phonological coding skill should be able to bypass this deficit and eventually close the gap in reading and spelling performance; and 4) that the greatest differences between dyslexics and developmental controls on measures of phonological coding skill should be observed early rather than late in development.None of the four predictions of the developmental bypass hypothesis were upheld. Phonological coding skill continued to develop in nondyslexics until adulthood. It accounted for a substantial (32-53 percent) portion of the variance in reading and spelling performance in adult nondyslexics, whereas orthographic coding skill did not account for a statistically reliable portion of this variance. The dyslexics differed little across age in phonological coding skill, but made linear progress in orthographic coding skill, surpassing spelling-age (SA) controls by adulthood. Nonetheless, they didnot close the gap in reading and spelling performance. Finally, dyslexics were significantly worse than SA (and Reading Age [RA]) controls in phonological coding skill

  8. A Comparison of Early Maladaptive Schemas in Crystal Addicted Individuals and Normal Individuals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zahra Asadi

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Objective: The aim of present research was to compare early maladaptive schemas in crystal addicted individuals and normal individuals. Method: In this ex post facto research, two groups of subjects (normal adolescent=30 and addicted adolescent=30 were selected via cluster sampling and convenience sampling respectively. Yang early maladaptive schemas questionnaire were conducted, then data were analyzed using multiple analysis of variance. Results: The results revealed that there was significant difference between both groups in early maladaptive schemas. Conclusion: The findings provided empirical support for the proposition that early maladaptive schemas may influence on tendency of adolescent toward substance abuse.

  9. Social conversational skills development in early implanted children.

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    Guerzoni, Letizia; Murri, Alessandra; Fabrizi, Enrico; Nicastri, Maria; Mancini, Patrizia; Cuda, Domenico

    2016-09-01

    Social conversational skills are a salient aspect of early pragmatic development in young children. These skills include two different abilities, assertiveness and responsiveness. This study investigated the development of these abilities in early implanted children and their relationships with lexical development and some language-sensitive variables. Prospective, observational, nonrandomized study. Participants included 28 children with congenital profound sensorineural hearing loss. The mean age at device activation was 13.3 months (standard deviation [SD] ±4.2). The Social-Conversational Skills Rating Scale was used to evaluate assertiveness and responsiveness. The MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory (Words and Sentences form) was used to analyze the lexical development. The device experience was 12 months for each child, and the mean age at testing was 25.9 months (SD ±4.6). Assertiveness and responsiveness scores were within the normal range of normal-hearing age-matched peers. Age at cochlear implant activation exerted a significant impact, with the highest scores associated to the youngest patients. The residual correlations between assertiveness and responsiveness with the lexical development were positive and strongly significant (r = 0.69 and 0.73, respectively). Preoperative hearing threshold demonstrated an associated significant coefficient on the assertiveness score. Age at diagnosis and maternal education level were not correlated with the social conversational skills. Early-implanted children developed social conversational skills that are similar to normal-hearing peers matched for age 1 year after device activation. Social conversational skills and lexical development were strongly correlated, but the present study design cannot specify the direction of this relationship. Children with better preoperative residual hearing exhibited better assertive ability. 4 Laryngoscope, 126:2098-2105, 2016. © 2015 The American Laryngological

  10. Normal Brain-Skull Development with Hybrid Deformable VR Models Simulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, Jing; De Ribaupierre, Sandrine; Eagleson, Roy

    2016-01-01

    This paper describes a simulation framework for a clinical application involving skull-brain co-development in infants, leading to a platform for craniosynostosis modeling. Craniosynostosis occurs when one or more sutures are fused early in life, resulting in an abnormal skull shape. Surgery is required to reopen the suture and reduce intracranial pressure, but is difficult without any predictive model to assist surgical planning. We aim to study normal brain-skull growth by computer simulation, which requires a head model and appropriate mathematical methods for brain and skull growth respectively. On the basis of our previous model, we further specified suture model into fibrous and cartilaginous sutures and develop algorithm for skull extension. We evaluate the resulting simulation by comparison with datasets of cases and normal growth.

  11. Normal development and growth of the human neurocranium and cranial base.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friede, H

    1981-01-01

    The literature on normal development and growth of certain areas of the human head is reviewed, starting with the early induction of the desmal neurocranium. the development of the brain capsule with its dural reinforcement bands and their connection with the basicranium is discussed, as is the primordial chondrocranium, including its bone replacement. Growth of the calvaria and the three cranial fossae is also analysed. Special interest is focused on the anterior fossa, as knowledge of the growth in this area is very important for an understanding of pathogenesis and possibilities of treating premature craniosynostosis. Finally it is stressed that close observation of the effects of treatment on this pathology may increase our knowledge of normal growth.

  12. Visions of normality? Early experiences of radiographic reporting

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    Reeves, Pauline E-mail: pauline.reeves@whnt.nhs.uk

    2004-08-01

    This article reflects on my early [student] experiences in learning to undertake radiographic reporting and uses critical incidents to highlight two areas of error during this period. These errors include perceptual (optical illusions and, in particular, the Mach band effect) and lack of subject specific knowledge (specifically anatomical knowledge--especially of normal anatomical variants). These two errors are analysed in the wider context of radiological error and the difficulty in reaching consensus even between experienced reporters.

  13. Visions of normality? Early experiences of radiographic reporting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reeves, Pauline

    2004-01-01

    This article reflects on my early [student] experiences in learning to undertake radiographic reporting and uses critical incidents to highlight two areas of error during this period. These errors include perceptual (optical illusions and, in particular, the Mach band effect) and lack of subject specific knowledge (specifically anatomical knowledge--especially of normal anatomical variants). These two errors are analysed in the wider context of radiological error and the difficulty in reaching consensus even between experienced reporters

  14. [Dental caries and early childhood development: a pilot study].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Núñez, F Loreto; Sanz, B Javier; Mejía, L Gloria

    2015-01-01

    To investigate the association between dental caries and early childhood development in 3-year-olds from Talca, Chile. A pilot study with a convenience sample of 3-year-olds from Talca (n = 39) who attend public healthcare centers. Child development was measured by the Psychomotor Development Index (PDI), a screening tool used nationally among pre-school children to assess language development, fine motor skills and coordination areas. Dental caries prevalence was evaluated by decayed, missing, filled teeth (DFMT) and decayed, missing, filled tooth surfaces (DFMS) ceo-d and ceo-s indexes. The children were divided into two groups according to the PDIscore: those with a score of 40 or more were considered developmentally normal (n = 32), and those with a score below 40 were considered as having impaired development (n = 7). The severity of caries (DMFT) was negatively correlated with PDI (r = -0.82), and children with the lowest TEPSI score had the highest DFMT values. The average DMFT in children with normal development was 1.31, and 3.57 for those with impaired development. This pilot study indicates that the severity of dental caries is correlated with early childhood development. Copyright © 2015. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U.

  15. Amygdalo-cortical sprouting continues into early adulthood: implications for the development of normal and abnormal function during adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cunningham, Miles Gregory; Bhattacharyya, Sujoy; Benes, Francine Mary

    2002-11-11

    Adolescence is a critical stage for the development of emotional maturity and diverse forms of psychopathology. The posterior basolateral nucleus of the amygdala is known to mediate fear and anxiety and is important in assigning emotional valence to cognitive processes. The medial prefrontal cortex, a homologue of the human anterior cingulate cortex, mediates emotional, attentional, and motivational behaviors at the cortical level. We postulate that the development of connectivity between these two corticolimbic regions contributes to an enhanced integration of emotion and cognition during the postnatal period. In order to characterize the development of this relay, injections of the anterograde tracer biocytin were stereotaxically placed within the posterior basolateral nucleus of the amygdala of rats at successive postnatal time points (postnatal days 6-120). Labeled fibers in the medial prefrontal cortex were evaluated using a combination of brightfield, confocal, and electron microscopy. We found that the density of labeled fibers originating from the posterior basolateral nucleus shows a sharp curvilinear increase within layers II and V of the anterior cingulate cortex and the infralimbic subdivisions of medial prefrontal cortex during the late postweanling period. This increase was paralleled by a linear rise in the number of axospinous and axodendritic synapses present in the neuropil. Based on these results, we propose that late maturation of amygdalo-cortical connectivity may provide an anatomical basis for the development and integration of normal and possibly abnormal emotional behavior during adolescence and early adulthood. Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  16. Development of early communication skills in the first two years of life.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beuker, Karin T; Rommelse, Nanda N J; Donders, Rogier; Buitelaar, Jan K

    2013-02-01

    The first two years of life is a crucially important period for the development of communication skills. In this study joint attention and language development were monthly assessed between 8 and 24 months of age in a sample of 23 typically developing children to establish the developmental trajectory of specific joint attention skills, to investigate the developmental interrelations of these different joint attention skills with vocabulary size, and to examine whether the order of development of following and directing attention influences the development of other early communication skills such as language. All joint attention skills emerged between 8 and 15 months of age and responsive joint attention skills tend to emerge before initiative joint attention. Early joint attention skills influenced later language development, but not the other way around. Children in whom directing attention with gaze alternation developed early (in age or order) showed a relatively larger early vocabulary growth. A fine grained mapping of the normal development of early communication skills can be helpful in the early detection of abnormalities in these skills. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Normal growth and development

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... page: //medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002456.htm Normal growth and development To use the sharing features on this page, please enable JavaScript. A child's growth and development can be divided into four periods: ...

  18. Attainment of gross motor milestones by preterm children with normal development upon school entry

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Dokkum, Nienke H; de Kroon, Marlou L A; Bos, Arend F; Reijneveld, Sijmen A; Kerstjens, Jorien M

    BACKGROUND: Little is known on the motor development of moderately preterm born (MPT) children, in comparison with early preterm born (EPT) children and fullterm born (FT), for children with normal motor outcomes at school entry. AIMS: To compare attainment rates of gross motor milestones reached

  19. Rapid radioimmunological test for HCG in normal and disturbed early pregnancy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dericks-Tan, J.S.E.; Taubert, H.D.

    1979-01-01

    The clinical evaluation of a rapid radioimmunological test for HCG in serum showed that this method is as suitable as conventional radioimmunoassay or receptor methods in the diagnosis of normal and disturbed early pregnancy. Using a direct immunosorbent method total time requirements for the estimation could be reduced to half a working day. Sera of 314 women with normal pregnancies showed an exponential increase of HCG concentrations in serum during the first 8 weeks and thereafter steady levels for several weeks. As the anti-HCG serum used has only a slight cross reactivity with LH, false-positive results need hardly be expected in states if high LH levels in serum (menopause, polycystic ovaries, preovulatory LH peak). HCG concentrations in serum were clearly diminished in all pregnancies ending in abortion and in nearly all extrauterine pregnancies. Repeated estimations in early pregnancy enable a diagnosis of ectopic or disturbed intrauterine pregnancy to be made before symptoms of rupture, haemorrhage and similar complications occur. (orig.) [de

  20. ASSOCIATION BETWEEN VISUAL FUNCTION AND SUBRETINAL DRUSENOID DEPOSITS IN NORMAL AND EARLY AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION EYES.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neely, David; Zarubina, Anna V; Clark, Mark E; Huisingh, Carrie E; Jackson, Gregory R; Zhang, Yuhua; McGwin, Gerald; Curcio, Christine A; Owsley, Cynthia

    2017-07-01

    To examine the association between subretinal drusenoid deposits (SDDs) identified by multimodal retinal imaging and visual function in older eyes with normal macular health or in the earliest phases of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Age-related macular degeneration status for each eye was defined according to the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) 9-step classification system (normal = Step 1, early AMD = Steps 2-4) based on color fundus photographs. Visual functions measured were best-corrected photopic visual acuity, contrast and light sensitivity, mesopic visual acuity, low-luminance deficit, and rod-mediated dark adaptation. Subretinal drusenoid deposits were identified through multimodal imaging (color fundus photographs, infrared reflectance and fundus autofluorescence images, and spectral domain optical coherence tomography). The sample included 1,202 eyes (958 eyes with normal health and 244 eyes with early AMD). In normal eyes, SDDs were not associated with any visual function evaluated. In eyes with early AMD, dark adaptation was markedly delayed in eyes with SDDs versus no SDD (a 4-minute delay on average), P = 0.0213. However, this association diminished after age adjustment, P = 0.2645. Other visual functions in early AMD eyes were not associated with SDDs. In a study specifically focused on eyes in normal macular health and in the earliest phases of AMD, early AMD eyes with SDDs have slower dark adaptation, largely attributable to the older ages of eyes with SDD; they did not exhibit deficits in other visual functions. Subretinal drusenoid deposits in older eyes in normal macular health are not associated with any visual functions evaluated.

  1. Normal development of human brain white matter from infancy to early adulthood: a diffusion tensor imaging study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uda, Satoshi; Matsui, Mie; Tanaka, Chiaki; Uematsu, Akiko; Miura, Kayoko; Kawana, Izumi; Noguchi, Kyo

    2015-01-01

    Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), which measures the magnitude of anisotropy of water diffusion in white matter, has recently been used to visualize and quantify parameters of neural tracts connecting brain regions. In order to investigate the developmental changes and sex and hemispheric differences of neural fibers in normal white matter, we used DTI to examine 52 healthy humans ranging in age from 2 months to 25 years. We extracted the following tracts of interest (TOIs) using the region of interest method: the corpus callosum (CC), cingulum hippocampus (CGH), inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF), and superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). We measured fractional anisotropy (FA), apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD). Approximate values and changes in growth rates of all DTI parameters at each age were calculated and analyzed using LOESS (locally weighted scatterplot smoothing). We found that for all TOIs, FA increased with age, whereas ADC, AD and RD values decreased with age. The turning point of growth rates was at approximately 6 years. FA in the CC was greater than that in the SLF, ILF and CGH. Moreover, FA, ADC and AD of the splenium of the CC (sCC) were greater than in the genu of the CC (gCC), whereas the RD of the sCC was lower than the RD of the gCC. The FA of right-hemisphere TOIs was significantly greater than that of left-hemisphere TOIs. In infants, growth rates of both FA and RD were larger than those of AD. Our data show that developmental patterns differ by TOIs and myelination along with the development of white matter, which can be mainly expressed as an increase in FA together with a decrease in RD. These findings clarify the long-term normal developmental characteristics of white matter microstructure from infancy to early adulthood. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  2. Clinical assessment of early language development: a simplified short form of the Mandarin communicative development inventory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soli, Sigfrid D; Zheng, Yun; Meng, Zhaoli; Li, Gang

    2012-09-01

    The purpose of this study was to develop a practical mean for clinical evaluation of early pediatric language development by establishing developmental trajectories for receptive and expressive vocabulary growth in children between 6 and 32 months of age using a simple, time-efficient assessment tool. Simplified short form versions of the Words and Gestures and Words and Sentences vocabulary inventories in the Mandarin Communicative Development Inventory [1] were developed and used to assess early language development in developmentally normal children from 6 to 32 months of age during routine health checks. Developmental trajectories characterizing the rate of receptive and expressive vocabulary growth between 6 and 32 months of age are reported. These trajectories allow the equivalent age corresponding to a score to be determined after a brief structured interview with the child's parents that can be conducted in a busy clinical setting. The simplified short forms of the Mandarin Communicative Development Inventories can serve as a clinically useful tool to assess early child language development, providing a practical mean of objectively assessing early language development following early interventions to treat young children with hearing impairment as well as speech and language delays. Objective evidence of language development is essential for achievement of effective (re)habilitation outcomes. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Early Radiosurgery Improves Hearing Preservation in Vestibular Schwannoma Patients With Normal Hearing at the Time of Diagnosis

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    Akpinar, Berkcan [University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (United States); Mousavi, Seyed H., E-mail: mousavish@upmc.edu [Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (United States); McDowell, Michael M.; Niranjan, Ajay; Faraji, Amir H. [Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (United States); Flickinger, John C. [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (United States); Lunsford, L. Dade [Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (United States)

    2016-06-01

    Purpose: Vestibular schwannomas (VS) are increasingly diagnosed in patients with normal hearing because of advances in magnetic resonance imaging. We sought to evaluate whether stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) performed earlier after diagnosis improved long-term hearing preservation in this population. Methods and Materials: We queried our quality assessment registry and found the records of 1134 acoustic neuroma patients who underwent SRS during a 15-year period (1997-2011). We identified 88 patients who had VS but normal hearing with no subjective hearing loss at the time of diagnosis. All patients were Gardner-Robertson (GR) class I at the time of SRS. Fifty-seven patients underwent early (≤2 years from diagnosis) SRS and 31 patients underwent late (>2 years after diagnosis) SRS. At a median follow-up time of 75 months, we evaluated patient outcomes. Results: Tumor control rates (decreased or stable in size) were similar in the early (95%) and late (90%) treatment groups (P=.73). Patients in the early treatment group retained serviceable (GR class I/II) hearing and normal (GR class I) hearing longer than did patients in the late treatment group (serviceable hearing, P=.006; normal hearing, P<.0001, respectively). At 5 years after SRS, an estimated 88% of the early treatment group retained serviceable hearing and 77% retained normal hearing, compared with 55% with serviceable hearing and 33% with normal hearing in the late treatment group. Conclusions: SRS within 2 years after diagnosis of VS in normal hearing patients resulted in improved retention of all hearing measures compared with later SRS.

  4. Early Radiosurgery Improves Hearing Preservation in Vestibular Schwannoma Patients With Normal Hearing at the Time of Diagnosis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Akpinar, Berkcan; Mousavi, Seyed H.; McDowell, Michael M.; Niranjan, Ajay; Faraji, Amir H.; Flickinger, John C.; Lunsford, L. Dade

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: Vestibular schwannomas (VS) are increasingly diagnosed in patients with normal hearing because of advances in magnetic resonance imaging. We sought to evaluate whether stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) performed earlier after diagnosis improved long-term hearing preservation in this population. Methods and Materials: We queried our quality assessment registry and found the records of 1134 acoustic neuroma patients who underwent SRS during a 15-year period (1997-2011). We identified 88 patients who had VS but normal hearing with no subjective hearing loss at the time of diagnosis. All patients were Gardner-Robertson (GR) class I at the time of SRS. Fifty-seven patients underwent early (≤2 years from diagnosis) SRS and 31 patients underwent late (>2 years after diagnosis) SRS. At a median follow-up time of 75 months, we evaluated patient outcomes. Results: Tumor control rates (decreased or stable in size) were similar in the early (95%) and late (90%) treatment groups (P=.73). Patients in the early treatment group retained serviceable (GR class I/II) hearing and normal (GR class I) hearing longer than did patients in the late treatment group (serviceable hearing, P=.006; normal hearing, P<.0001, respectively). At 5 years after SRS, an estimated 88% of the early treatment group retained serviceable hearing and 77% retained normal hearing, compared with 55% with serviceable hearing and 33% with normal hearing in the late treatment group. Conclusions: SRS within 2 years after diagnosis of VS in normal hearing patients resulted in improved retention of all hearing measures compared with later SRS.

  5. Effects of the in vitro chemical environment during early embryogenesis on subsequent development

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    Rieger, D. [Guelph Univ., ON (Canada). Animal Biotechnology Embryo Lab.

    1998-12-31

    The development of the preimplantation embryo seems morphologically very simple, and embryologists previously assumed that an embryo that developed to the blastocyst stage was fully capable of normal development after transfer to the uterus of a recipient female. This complacency was disturbed by reports that exposure of early embryos to mutagens such as methylnitrosourea led to fetal abnormalities, decreased birth rates, and decreased life-span. Even more disturbing are recent reports that culture of early embryos in supposedly benign conditions can adversely affect their subsequent development. Techniques have been developed for the production of cattle and sheep embryos by in-vitro fertilization and by cloning. Such embryos must be cultured for several days before they can be transferred, and, in some cases, this has been related to abortion, very high birthweight, physical abnormalities and peri-natal mortality of the calves and lambs. This syndrome may result from an unbalanced development of the trophoblast relative to the inner-cell mass, possibly related to the presence of serum, glucose, or ammonium in the culture medium. An analogous phenomenon has been observed in human in-vitro fertilization where babies from single pregnancies have below-normal birth-weight. There is also evidence to suggest that the in-vitro environment of the gametes before fertilization can affect subsequent embryonal and fetal development. Exposure of mouse oocytes to vitrification solutions has been shown to lead to fetal malformations, and treatment of bull sperm with glutathione improves early embryo development. The common thread in these diverse observations is that development can be affected by events that occur long before any defect is apparent. Consequently, the production of a morphologically normal embryo is no guarantee that fetal development and post-natal life will be normal. This is of immediate concern in human reproductive medicine due to the increasing use of

  6. Identification of early indicators of altered metabolism in normal development using a rodent model system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ashok Daniel Prabakaran

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Although the existence of a close relationship between the early maternal developmental environment, fetal size at birth and the risk of developing disease in adulthood has been suggested, most studies, however, employed experimentally induced intrauterine growth restriction as a model to link this with later adult disease. Because embryonic size variation also occurs under normal growth and differentiation, elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying these changes and their relevance to later adult disease risk becomes important. The birth weight of rat pups vary according to the uterine horn positions. Using birth weight as a marker, we compared two groups of rat pups – lower birth weight (LBW, 5th to 25th percentile and average birth weight (ABW, 50th to 75th percentile – using morphological, biochemical and molecular biology, and genetic techniques. Our results show that insulin metabolism, Pi3k/Akt and Pparγ signaling and the genes regulating growth and metabolism are significantly different in these groups. Methylation at the promoter of the InsII (Ins2 gene and DNA methyltransferase 1 in LBW pups are both increased. Additionally, the Dnmt1 repressor complex, which includes Hdac1, Rb (Rb1 and E2f1, was also upregulated in LBW pups. We conclude that the Dnmt1 repressor complex, which regulates the restriction point of the cell cycle, retards the rate at which cells traverse the G1 or G0 phase of the cell cycle in LBW pups, thereby slowing down growth. This regulatory mechanism mediated by Dnmt1 might contribute to the production of small-size pups and altered physiology and pathology in adult life.

  7. Corpus luteum blood flow in normal and abnormal early pregnancy: evaluation and analysis with transvaginal color and pulsed doppler sonography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang Xiaoyi; Lin Meifang; Zheng Meirong; Liang Xiaoxian; Liu Jianfeng

    2005-01-01

    Objective: Detecting and assessment the corpus luteum blood flow in normal and abnormal early pregnancy. Methods: Using transvaginal color and pulse Doppler sonography, we detected 215 pregnant women including 150 normal intrauterine pregnancies, 25 abortion, 29 ectopic pregnancies, and then recorded corpus luteum blood flow feature and the blood flow indexes (Vmax, RI and PI). Results: 1) Corpus luteum was successfully identified in 148 cases out of 150 of normal early pregnancies, 25 cases out of 26 of threatened abortion; 22 cases out of 29 of ectopic pregnancy. 2) Three groups shared the same feature of Color Doppler imaging: a circumferential rim around the entire corpus luteum. 3) The flow index revealed mean PVS, RI and PI had no statistical difference in normal and abnormal early pregnancy; The mean PVS was lower in ectopic pregnancy than in normal pregnancy (P<0.05), while PI and PR had no characteristic in ectopic pregnancy group compared with the indexes obtained in normal pregnancy group. Conclusion: The corpus luteum can be precisely identified in most pregnancy using transvaginal color Doppler and manifests a characterized rim Doppler imaging. PVS may help in differentiating the ectopic pregnancy from normal early pregnancy. (authors)

  8. Primary cortical folding in the human newborn: an early marker of later functional development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benders, M.; Borradori-Tolsa, C.; Cachia, A.; Lazeyras, F.; Ha-Vinh Leuchter, R.; Sizonenko, S. V.; Warfield, S. K.; Mangin, J. F.; Hüppi, P. S.

    2008-01-01

    In the human brain, the morphology of cortical gyri and sulci is complex and variable among individuals, and it may reflect pathological functioning with specific abnormalities observed in certain developmental and neuropsychiatric disorders. Since cortical folding occurs early during brain development, these structural abnormalities might be present long before the appearance of functional symptoms. So far, the precise mechanisms responsible for such alteration in the convolution pattern during intra-uterine or post-natal development are still poorly understood. Here we compared anatomical and functional brain development in vivo among 45 premature newborns who experienced different intra-uterine environments: 22 normal singletons, 12 twins and 11 newborns with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and dedicated post-processing tools, we investigated early disturbances in cortical formation at birth, over the developmental period critical for the emergence of convolutions (26–36 weeks of gestational age), and defined early ‘endophenotypes’ of sulcal development. We demonstrated that twins have a delayed but harmonious maturation, with reduced surface and sulcation index compared to singletons, whereas the gyrification of IUGR newborns is discordant to the normal developmental trajectory, with a more pronounced reduction of surface in relation to the sulcation index compared to normal newborns. Furthermore, we showed that these structural measurements of the brain at birth are predictors of infants’ outcome at term equivalent age, for MRI-based cerebral volumes and neurobehavioural development evaluated with the assessment of preterm infant's behaviour (APIB). PMID:18587151

  9. Validation of the second version of the LittlEARS® Early Speech Production Questionnaire (LEESPQ) in German-speaking children with normal hearing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keilmann, Annerose; Friese, Barbara; Lässig, Anne; Hoffmann, Vanessa

    2018-04-01

    The introduction of neonatal hearing screening and the increasingly early age at which children can receive a cochlear implant has intensified the need for a validated questionnaire to assess the speech production of children aged 0‒18. Such a questionnaire has been created, the LittlEARS ® Early Speech Production Questionnaire (LEESPQ). This study aimed to validate a second, revised edition of the LEESPQ. Questionnaires were returned for 362 children with normal hearing. Completed questionnaires were analysed to determine if the LEESPQ is reliable, prognostically accurate, internally consistent, and if gender or multilingualism affects total scores. Total scores correlated positively with age. The LEESPQ is reliable, accurate, and consistent, and independent of gender or lingual status. A norm curve was created. This second version of the LEESPQ is a valid tool to assess the speech production development of children with normal hearing, aged 0‒18, regardless of their gender. As such, the LEESPQ may be a useful tool to monitor the development of paediatric hearing device users. The second version of the LEESPQ is a valid instrument for assessing early speech production of children aged 0‒18 months.

  10. Function of JARID2 in bovines during early embryonic development

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    Yao Fu

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Histone lysine modifications are important epigenetic modifications in early embryonic development. JARID2, which is a member of the jumonji demethylase protein family, is a regulator of early embryonic development and can regulate mouse development and embryonic stem cell (ESC differentiation by modifying histone lysines. JARID2 can affect early embryonic development by regulating the methylation level of H3K27me3, which is closely related to normal early embryonic development. To investigate the expression pattern of JARID2 and the effect of JARID2-induced H3K27 methylation in bovine oocytes and early embryonic stages, JARID2 mRNA expression and localization were detected in bovine oocytes and early embryos via qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence in the present study. The results showed that JARID2 is highly expressed in the germinal vesicle (GV, MII, 2-cell, 4-cell, 8-cell, 16-cell and blastocyst stages, but the relative expression level of JARID2 in bovine GV oocytes is significantly lower than that at other oocyte/embryonic stages (p < 0.05, and JARID2 is expressed primarily in the nucleus. We next detected the mRNA expression levels of embryonic development-related genes (OCT4, SOX2 and c-myc after JARID2 knockdown through JARID2-2830-siRNA microinjection to investigate the molecularpathwayunderlying the regulation of H3K27me3 by JARID2 during early embryonic development. The results showed that the relative expression levels of these genes in 2-cell embryos weresignificantly higher than those in the blastocyst stage, and expression levels were significantly increased after JARID2 knockdown. In summary, the present study identified the expression pattern of JARID2 in bovine oocytes and at each early embryonic stage, and the results suggest that JARID2 plays a key role in early embryonic development by regulating the expression of OCT4, SOX2 and c-myc via modification of H3K27me3 expression. This work provides new data for improvements in the

  11. New phenomenon in early development of sporelings in Gracilaria asiatica Chang et Xia (Gracilariaceae, Rhodophyta)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Fengjuan; Wang, Aihua; Liu, Jidong; Duan, Delin

    2006-12-01

    Study on the early development of sporelings from carpospores of Gracilaria asiatica Chang et Xia was conducted indoors under controlled culture conditions. Besides normal development of sporelings, a new developmental phenomenon of filamentous frond was observed. It was composed of one or two rows of cells, and took place from the outmost brim of the basal disc. During the early disc stage of germinated carpospores, one or two filamentous fronds formed on about 10% basal discs. Simultaneously, young fronds began to arch slightly from the centers of single and coalescent discs; lately more filamentous fronds up to 80% appeared on the brims of basal discs. Meanwhile one or more upright fronds protuberated on the basal discs. Generally, filamentous fronds exhibited in self-existence or co-existence forms with normal young sporelings on the same basal disc, and single cell detached from filamentous fronds developed into a new filamentous frond. This new phenomenon exhibited a unique differentiation pathway during the early development of G. asiatica, which would be potential for the application in artificial sporelings nursery.

  12. Serial assessment of cardiovascular control shows early signs of developing pre-eclampsia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rang, Sasika; Wolf, H.; van Montfrans, G. A.; Karemaker, J. M.

    2004-01-01

    Purpose To evaluate whether differences in autonomic cardiovascular control between normal pregnant women and women who develop pre-eclampsia later in pregnancy can be detected even before or early in pregnancy. Design We studied 42 women, 21 multigravid with a history of pre-eclampsia and 21

  13. Immune Regulator MCPIP1 Modulates TET Expression during Early Neocortical Development

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    Huihui Jiang

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available MCPIP1 is a recently identified immune regulator that plays critical roles in preventing immune disorders, and is also present in the brain. Currently an unresolved question remains as to how MCPIP1 performs its non-immune functions in normal brain development. Here, we report that MCPIP1 is abundant in neural progenitor cells (NPCs and newborn neurons during the early stages of neurogenesis. The suppression of MCPIP1 expression impairs normal neuronal differentiation, cell-cycle exit, and concomitant NPC proliferation. MCPIP1 is important for maintenance of the NPC pool. Notably, we demonstrate that MCPIP1 reduces TET (TET1/TET2/TET3 levels and then decreases 5-hydroxymethylcytosine levels. Furthermore, the MCPIP1 interaction with TETs is involved in neurogenesis and in establishing the proper number of NPCs in vivo. Collectively, our findings not only demonstrate that MCPIP1 plays an important role in early cortical neurogenesis but also reveal an unexpected link between neocortical development, immune regulators, and epigenetic modification.

  14. Cognitive Development in Infantile-Onset Pompe Disease Under Very Early Enzyme Replacement Therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lai, Chih-Jou; Hsu, Ting-Rong; Yang, Chia-Feng; Chen, Shyi-Jou; Chuang, Ya-Chin; Niu, Dau-Ming

    2016-12-01

    Most patients with infantile-onset Pompe disease die in early infancy before beginning enzyme replacement therapy, which has made it difficult to evaluate the impact of Pompe disease on cognitive development. Patients with infantile-onset Pompe disease can survive with enzyme replacement therapy, and physicians can evaluate cognitive development in these patients. We established an effective newborn screening program with quick clinical diagnostic criteria. Cognitive and motor development were evaluated using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-Third Edition at 6, 12, and 24 months of age. The patients who were treated very early demonstrate normal cognitive development with no significant change in cognition during this period (P = .18 > .05). The cognitive development was positively correlated with motor development (r = 0.533, P = .011). The results indicated that very early enzyme replacement therapy could protect cognitive development in patients with infantile-onset Pompe disease up to 24 months of age. © The Author(s) 2016.

  15. Hallux abductus interphalangeus in normal feet, early-stage hallux limitus, and hallux valgus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castillo-Lopez, Jose M; Ramos-Ortega, Javier; Reina-Bueno, Maria; Domínguez-Maldonado, Gabriel; Palomo-Toucedo, Inmaculada C; Munuera, Pedro V

    2014-03-01

    Excessive deviation of the distal phalanx in abduction frequently occurs in advanced stages of hallux rigidus but not in hallux valgus. Therefore, theoretically there should be no significant differences in the hallux interphalangeal angle (HIPA) between individuals with normal feet, those with hallux valgus, and those with mild hallux limitus. The objective of the present study was thus to determine if significant differences in HIPA exist in the early stages of hallux valgus or hallux limitus deformities. The hallux interphalangeal angle was measured in three groups of participants: a control group with normal feet (45 participants), a hallux valgus group (49 participants), and a hallux limitus group (48 participants). Both of the pathologies were at an early stage. A dorsoplantar radiograph under weightbearing conditions was taken for each individual, and measurements (HIPA and hallux abductus angle [HAA]) were taken using AutoCAD (Autodesk Inc, San Rafael, California) software. Intergroup comparisons of HIPA, and correlations between HIPA, HAA, and hallux dorsiflexion were calculated. The comparisons revealed no significant differences in the values of HIPA between any of the groups (15.2 ± 5.9 degrees in the control group, 15.5 ± 3.9 degrees in the hallux valgus group, and 16.15 ± 4.3 in the hallux limitus group; P  =  0.634). The Pearson correlation coefficients in particular showed no correlation between hallux dorsiflexion, HAA, and HIPA. For the study participants, there were similar deviations of the distal phalanx of the hallux with respect to the proximal phalanx in normal feet and in feet with the early stages of the hallux limitus and hallux valgus deformities.

  16. Length of FMR1 repeat alleles within the normal range does not substantially affect the risk of early menopause

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruth, Katherine S.; Bennett, Claire E.; Schoemaker, Minouk J.; Weedon, Michael N.; Swerdlow, Anthony J.; Murray, Anna

    2016-01-01

    STUDY QUESTION Is the length of FMR1 repeat alleles within the normal range associated with the risk of early menopause? SUMMARY ANSWER The length of repeat alleles within the normal range does not substantially affect risk of early menopause. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY There is a strong, well-established relationship between length of premutation FMR1 alleles and age at menopause, suggesting that this relationship could continue into the normal range. Within the normal range, there is conflicting evidence; differences in ovarian reserve have been identified with FMR1 repeat allele length, but a recent population-based study did not find any association with age at menopause as a quantitative trait. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION We analysed cross-sectional baseline survey data collected at recruitment from 2004 to 2010 from a population-based, prospective epidemiological cohort study of >110 000 women to investigate whether repeat allele length was associated with early menopause. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHOD We included 4333 women from the Breakthrough Generations Study (BGS), of whom 2118 were early menopause cases (menopause under 46 years) and 2215 were controls. We analysed the relationship between length of FMR1 alleles and early menopause using logistic regression with allele length as continuous and categorical variables. We also conducted analyses with the outcome age at menopause as a quantitative trait as well as appropriate sensitivity and exploratory analyses. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE There was no association of the shorter or longer FMR1 allele or their combined genotype with the clinically relevant end point of early menopause in our main analysis. Likewise, there were no associations with age at menopause as a quantitative trait in our secondary analysis. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION Women with homozygous alleles in the normal range may have undetected FMR1 premutation alleles, although there was no evidence to suggest this. We

  17. Three families with mild PMM2-CDG and normal cognitive development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vals, Mari-Anne; Morava, Eva; Teeäär, Kai; Zordania, Riina; Pajusalu, Sander; Lefeber, Dirk J; Õunap, Katrin

    2017-06-01

    Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) are caused by defective glycosylation of proteins and lipids. PMM2-CDG is the most common subtype among the CDG. The severity of PMM2-CDG is variable. Patients often have a recognizable phenotype with neurological and multisystem symptoms that might cause early death. We report six patients from three families who are diagnosed with a clinically mild PMM2-CDG and have normal cognitive development. All these patients had delayed gross motor skills with mild-to-moderate neurological findings. Cerebellar hypoplasia was detected in all siblings for whom brain MRI was performed. In 5/6 children the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) showed normal cognitive development with full scale IQ scores ranging from borderline to average. Four patients were diagnosed with PMM2-CDG at the age of 8 years or later as their neurological symptoms were quite mild and they had been able to participate in regular school programs. We report patients with p.Val231Met/p.Arg239Trp and p.Ile120Thr/p.Gly228Cys genotypes which may cause milder variants of PMM2-CDG. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  18. Microstructure, length, and connection of limbic tracts in normal human brain development

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    Qiaowen eYu

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The cingulum and fornix play an important role in memory, attention, spatial orientation and feeling functions. Both microstructure and length of these limbic tracts can be affected by mental disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, depression, autism, anxiety, and schizophrenia. To date, there has been little systematic characterization of their microstructure, length and functional connectivity in normally developing brains. In this study, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI and resting state functional MRI (rs-fMRI data from 65 normally developing right-handed subjects from birth to young adulthood was acquired. After cingulate gyrus part of the cingulum (cgc, hippocampal part of the cingulum (cgh and fornix (fx were traced with DTI tractography, absolute and normalized tract lengths and DTI-derived metrics including fractional anisotropy, mean, axial and radial diffusivity were measured for traced limbic tracts. Free water elimination (FWE algorithm was adopted to improve accuracy of the measurements of DTI-derived metrics. The role of these limbic tracts in the functional network at birth and adulthood was explored. We found a logarithmic age-dependent trajectory for FWE-corrected DTI metric changes with fast increase of microstructural integrity from birth to 2-year-old followed by a slow increase to 25-year-old. Normalized tract length of cgc increases with age, while no significant relationship with age was found for normalized tract lengths of cgh and fx. Stronger microstructural integrity on the left side compared to that of right side was found. With integrated DTI and rs-fMRI, the key connectional role of cgc and cgh in the default mode network (DMN was confirmed as early as birth. Systematic characterization of length and DTI metrics after FWE correction of limbic tracts offers insight into their morphological and microstructural developmental trajectories. These trajectories may serve as a normal reference for pediatric patients with

  19. Early androgen exposure and human gender development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hines, Melissa; Constantinescu, Mihaela; Spencer, Debra

    2015-01-01

    During early development, testosterone plays an important role in sexual differentiation of the mammalian brain and has enduring influences on behavior. Testosterone exerts these influences at times when the testes are active, as evidenced by higher concentrations of testosterone in developing male than in developing female animals. This article critically reviews the available evidence regarding influences of testosterone on human gender-related development. In humans, testosterone is elevated in males from about weeks 8 to 24 of gestation and then again during early postnatal development. Individuals exposed to atypical concentrations of testosterone or other androgenic hormones prenatally, for example, because of genetic conditions or because their mothers were prescribed hormones during pregnancy, have been consistently found to show increased male-typical juvenile play behavior, alterations in sexual orientation and gender identity (the sense of self as male or female), and increased tendencies to engage in physically aggressive behavior. Studies of other behavioral outcomes following dramatic androgen abnormality prenatally are either too small in their numbers or too inconsistent in their results, to provide similarly conclusive evidence. Studies relating normal variability in testosterone prenatally to subsequent gender-related behavior have produced largely inconsistent results or have yet to be independently replicated. For studies of prenatal exposures in typically developing individuals, testosterone has been measured in single samples of maternal blood or amniotic fluid. These techniques may not be sufficiently powerful to consistently detect influences of testosterone on behavior, particularly in the relatively small samples that have generally been studied. The postnatal surge in testosterone in male infants, sometimes called mini-puberty, may provide a more accessible opportunity for measuring early androgen exposure during typical development. This

  20. Physical Development: What's Normal? What's Not?

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Stages Listen Español Text Size Email Print Share Physical Development: What’s Normal? What’s Not? Page Content Article ... growth . The timing and speed of a child's physical development can vary a lot, because it is ...

  1. [Effectiveness of an early discharge program after normal childbirth].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teulón González, M; Martínez Pillado, M; Cuadrado Martín, M M; Rivero Martín, M J; Cerezuela Requena, J F

    To implement a program of early hospital discharge after an uncomplicated birth, in order to improve the effectiveness, as well as ensuring clinical safety and patient acceptability. Descriptive study of the effectiveness of an early discharge program after uncomplicated delivery between February 2012 and September 2013. The populations are post-partum women and newborns admitted to the University Hospital of Fuenlabrada, with a duration of less than 24h after uncomplicated delivery that met the defined inclusion criteria. Satisfaction was assessed using a Likert scale. The effectiveness of the program was monitored by safety indicators, productivity, adaptation, and continuity of care. A total of 20% of cases capable of early discharge from Fuenlabrada University Hospital completed the program. Almost all (94%) were normal deliveries. The 188 cases included were from 911 patients with uncomplicated childbirth, accounting for 6.5% of the 2,857 total births. The mean stay of patients included showed a decrease of 50% (2.4 to 1.2 days). All patients received continuity of care after hospital discharge. The review consultation was reprogrammed for 4.8% of cases, with 2% of patients re-admitted within 96h. with no serious problems. Four newborns (2%) required attention in the emergency department (mother or newborn) before 96h. The assessment of patient satisfaction achieved a score of 4.5 out of 5. The program achieved a decrease in the average stay by 50%, favouring the autonomy of midwives. This acceptance level is in line with similar interventions. The deployment of the program may be useful for other changes in care processes. Copyright © 2016 SECA. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  2. The maturation of cortical sleep rhythms and networks over early development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chu, C J; Leahy, J; Pathmanathan, J; Kramer, M A; Cash, S S

    2014-07-01

    Although neuronal activity drives all aspects of cortical development, how human brain rhythms spontaneously mature remains an active area of research. We sought to systematically evaluate the emergence of human brain rhythms and functional cortical networks over early development. We examined cortical rhythms and coupling patterns from birth through adolescence in a large cohort of healthy children (n=384) using scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) in the sleep state. We found that the emergence of brain rhythms follows a stereotyped sequence over early development. In general, higher frequencies increase in prominence with striking regional specificity throughout development. The coordination of these rhythmic activities across brain regions follows a general pattern of maturation in which broadly distributed networks of low-frequency oscillations increase in density while networks of high frequency oscillations become sparser and more highly clustered. Our results indicate that a predictable program directs the development of key rhythmic components and physiological brain networks over early development. This work expands our knowledge of normal cortical development. The stereotyped neurophysiological processes observed at the level of rhythms and networks may provide a scaffolding to support critical periods of cognitive growth. Furthermore, these conserved patterns could provide a sensitive biomarker for cortical health across development. Copyright © 2013 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Promoting an "Active Start" for Young Children: Developing Competent and Confident Early Movers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goodway, Jacqueline D.; Wall, Sarah; Getchell, Nancy

    2009-01-01

    With childhood obesity and physical inactivity at an all-time high, parents and physical educators alike must look to the early years to promote competent and confident young movers. Popular opinion believes that children are naturally active and motor skill development progresses as a normal function of getting older. However, if one looks at…

  4. Effect of UV irradiation on the early development of silkworm embryos, (2). Development of irradiated eggs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kobayashi, Y. (Hokkaido Univ., Sapporo (Japan). Faculty of Agriculture)

    1981-02-01

    The development of silkworm eggs irradiated with UV was compared with that of normal eggs. When the eggs were irradiated with UV from the lateral side immediately after oviposition, development was decelerated, but the germ band was produced. The side of the germ band that was irradiated with UV was abnormal with holes, but the opposite side was hole-free and normal. The normal half of the germ band splits longitudinally, but developed along with the abnormal half to form various malformations. When the eggs were irradiated from the ventral side, the ventral part of the germ band was abnormal at the early stage, the germ band did not concentrate to one place, and produced the half-embryos longitudinally divided by the median line. The UV irradiation at the beginning of the blastoderm stage produced similar results. In the areas irradiated by UV, cleavage nuclei invaded into the surrounding protoplasm, and mitotic figures were observed, but the cell number did not increase even with the advance of development unlike normal cells, whereas the sizes of the cells, their nuclei and nucleoli were enlarged, and intercellular space widened so that the cells were no longer in close contact. The germ band cells produced in the non-irradiated area were normal. The above results suggest that when either the protoplasm or the nucleus of a silkworm egg is damaged by UV, the effect first appears as the inhibition of cell division in the germ band, and as the enlargement of the cell, nucleus and nucleoli. It is presumed that this induces the subsequent inhibition of cell differentiation or abnormalities.

  5. [Psychomotor development and its disorders: between normal and pathological development].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vericat, Agustina; Bibiana Orden, Alicia

    2013-10-01

    This article discusses some aspects of psychomotor development and its disorders, with special emphasis on psychomotor retardation. Diagnostic classifications of psychomotor problems, such as DSM-IV and CIE-10, are referred to and their advantages and disadvantages are analyzed. The concept of normality as a synonym for the statistical mean in the context of psychomotor disorders is also analyzed in order to consider its dynamic and variability, thereby avoiding the normality/pathology opposition, while some issues, such as the social and cultural aspects, are highlighted, making it possible to rethink the universality and relativity of psychomotor development.

  6. POSTSURGICAL RECURRENT CUSHING DISEASE: CLINICAL BENEFIT OF EARLY INTERVENTION IN PATIENTS WITH NORMAL URINARY FREE CORTISOL.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carroll, Ty B; Javorsky, Bradley R; Findling, James W

    2016-10-01

    To assess the performance of biochemical markers in the detection of recurrent Cushing disease (CD), as well as the potential benefit of early intervention in recurrent CD patients with elevated late-night salivary cortisol (LNSC) and normal urinary free cortisol (UFC). The design was a single-center, retrospective chart review. Patients treated by the authors from 2008-2013 were included. Recurrence was defined by postsurgical remission of CD with subsequent abnormal LNSC, UFC, or dexamethasone suppression test (DST). We identified 15 patients with postsurgical recurrent CD after initial remission; all but one underwent testing with LNSC, DST, and UFC. Although 12 of 15 patients had normal UFC at time of recurrence, DST was abnormal in 11 of 15, and all 14 patients with LNSC results had ≥1 elevated measurement. Nine patients (7 with normal UFC) showed radiologic evidence of a pituitary tumor at time of recurrence. Among the 14 patients with available follow-up data, 12 have demonstrated significant improvement since receiving treatment. Five patients underwent repeat pituitary surgery and 4 achieved clinical and biochemical remission. Eight patients received mifepristone or cabergoline, and 6 showed clinical and/or biochemical improvement. Three patients (2 with prior mifepristone) underwent bilateral adrenalectomy and 2 demonstrated significant clinical improvements. LNSC is more sensitive than UFC or DST for detection of CD recurrence. Prompt intervention when LNSC is elevated, despite normal UFC, may yield significant clinical benefit for many patients with CD. Early treatment for patients with recurrent CD should be prospectively evaluated, utilizing LNSC elevation as an early biochemical marker. ACTH = adrenocorticotropic hormone CD = Cushing disease CS = Cushing syndrome CV = coefficient of variation DST = dexamethasone suppression test IPSS = inferior petrosal sinus sampling LNSC = late-night salivary cortisol QoL = quality of life TSS = transsphenoidal

  7. Normal development of paranasal sinuses in children: A CT study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Hyung Jin; Park, Eui Dong; Choi, Pil Youb; Kim, Jae Hyoung; Chung, Sung Hoon; Chung, Hae Gyeong

    1993-01-01

    To evaluate the normal development of the paranasal sinuses in children with CT, authors prospectively studied with brain CT scans of 260 children without known sinus disease, ranging image from 7 days to 16 years. Maximal anteroposterior and transverse diameters(mm) and maximal cross- sectional area(mm 2 ) of both sides of the maxillary sinus were measured with the aid of computer device. As to the ethmoidal and spheroidal sinuses, we simply documented the presence of the aplastic ethmoidal sinus and calculated the age-incidence of the spheroidal sinus pneumatization, respectively.There noted three phases in the development of the maxillary sinus. The anteroposterior and transverse diameters of the maxillary sinus increased nearly in parallel. The former was always greater than the latter. In no cases was the edathamil sinus aplastic and almost all sinuses were pneumatized even in infants as early as 7 old days. CT identified the conchal pattern of sphenoidal sinus pneumatization infants as early as 11 days old. Sphenoidal sinus pneumatization was seen in 38% of the children under the age of 1 year, 82% of the children between the age of 1 and 2 years, and almost all children older than 2 years. The anteroposterior and transverse diameters of the maxillary sinus seem to reach the adult size by 8 years of age, and the conchal pattern of sphemoidal sinus pneumatization can be recognized earlier with CT than on the plain radiographs

  8. Early postnatal gentamicin and ceftazidime treatment in normal and food restricted neonatal wistar rats: Implications for kidney development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bueters, Ruud R G; Jeronimus-Klaasen, Annelies; Brüggemann, Roger J M; van den Heuvel, Lambertus P; Schreuder, Michiel F

    2017-09-01

    Up to two-thirds of premature born neonates are treated for infections with aminoglycosides such as gentamicin. Although acute toxicities are well described, there is uncertainty on developmental changes after treatment of premature born neonates. We studied the effect of gentamicin and ceftazidime on kidney development in the rat. Additionally, we evaluated the modulating effect of extrauterine growth restriction. On postnatal day (PND) 2, Wistar rats were cross-fostered into normal sized litters (12 pups) or large litters (20 pups) to create normal food (NF) or food restricted (FR) litters to simulate growth restriction and dosed daily intraperitoneally with placebo, 4 mg/kg of gentamicin or 50 mg/kg ceftazidime until PND 8. Gentamicin pharmacokinetics were studied in a separate group of animals. Kidneys were weighed. Renal expression of 18 developmental genes was evaluated by quantitative PCR on PND 8. On PND 35, glomerular number was assessed by stereology and glomerular generations were counted. Food restricted litters showed 22% less body weight compared with controls by day 35 (p kidney development, ceftazidime can affect Renin expression, and extrauterine growth restriction impairs kidney development, but did not modulate potential drug toxicity. Birth Defects Research 109:1228-1235, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. China's natural gas exploration and development strategies under the new normal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jialiang Lu

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available China's natural gas industry has experienced a great leap-forward development in the past decade. Since the second half of 2014, however, international oil price has dropped sharply and global oil and gas markets have been sluggish. In China, economy growth rate slows down and resource environments tend to be more restricted. And energy production and consumption revolution speed up, and the development of natural gas industry experience profound changes internally and externally. Through review on the achievements in recent high-speed development and analysis on the future development of China's natural gas industry, it is believed that the growth rates of China's natural gas output and consumption will slow down and the supply and demand fundamentals present loose states. Low-permeability tight, deep–extra deep and unconventional reservoirs will be the principal targets of natural gas exploration and development and the tendency of resource deterioration is inevitable. The pressure to the decrease of gas price rises due to the sustained recession of oil price and the sharp decrease of alternative energy price. The normal means to increase benefits is to control investment strictly and reduce cost greatly. As for the new normal, five suggestions are proposed for natural gas exploration and development in China. Firstly, reinforce exploration continuously by guaranteeing work load and investment at the required level, and tamp the development basis. Secondly, pay much attention to early development evaluation, give prominence to plan implementation design and control productivity construction rhythm. Thirdly, pay attention to the top-level design of mature gas field development and adjustment, with fine description and management as the priority, and improve overall development level. Fourthly, strengthen the researches on exploration and development technologies, with the simplification and practicability of technologies as the focus, and

  10. FT overexpression induces precocious flowering and normal reproductive development in Eucalyptus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klocko, Amy L; Ma, Cathleen; Robertson, Sarah; Esfandiari, Elahe; Nilsson, Ove; Strauss, Steven H

    2016-02-01

    Eucalyptus trees are among the most important species for industrial forestry worldwide. However, as with most forest trees, flowering does not begin for one to several years after planting which can limit the rate of conventional and molecular breeding. To speed flowering, we transformed a Eucalyptus grandis × urophylla hybrid (SP7) with a variety of constructs that enable overexpression of FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT). We found that FT expression led to very early flowering, with events showing floral buds within 1-5 months of transplanting to the glasshouse. The most rapid flowering was observed when the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter was used to drive the Arabidopsis thaliana FT gene (AtFT). Early flowering was also observed with AtFT overexpression from a 409S ubiquitin promoter and under heat induction conditions with Populus trichocarpa FT1 (PtFT1) under control of a heat-shock promoter. Early flowering trees grew robustly, but exhibited a highly branched phenotype compared to the strong apical dominance of nonflowering transgenic and control trees. AtFT-induced flowers were morphologically normal and produced viable pollen grains and viable self- and cross-pollinated seeds. Many self-seedlings inherited AtFT and flowered early. FT overexpression-induced flowering in Eucalyptus may be a valuable means for accelerating breeding and genetic studies as the transgene can be easily segregated away in progeny, restoring normal growth and form. © 2015 Society for Experimental Biology, Association of Applied Biologists and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  11. Distinct GAGE and MAGE-A expression during early human development indicate specific roles in lineage differentiation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gjerstorff, Morten; Harkness, Linda; Kassem, Moustapha

    2008-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Expression of cancer/testis-associated proteins (CTAs) has traditionally been considered to be restricted to germ cells in normal tissues and to different types of malignancies. We have evaluated the potential role of CTAs in early human development. METHODS: Using immunohistochemistry...... and RT-PCR, we investigated the expression of CTAs in differentiated human embryonic stem cells (hESC) and in late embryos and early fetuses. RESULTS: We found that melanoma antigen A (MAGE-A) family members were expressed during differentiation of hESC to embryoid bodies and in teratomas, and overlapped...... with expression of the neuroectodermal markers beta-tubulin 3, Pax6 and nestin. A widespread expression of MAGE-A was also observed in neurons of the early developing central nervous system and peripheral nerves. G antigen (GAGE) expression was present in the early ectoderm of embryos, including cells...

  12. The effect of flurbiprofen on the development of anencephaly in early stage chicken embryos.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Özeren, Ersin; Er, Uygur; Güvenç, Yahya; Demirci, Adnan; Arıkök, Ata Türker; Şenveli, Engin; Ergün, Rüçhan Behzat

    2015-04-01

    The study investigated the effect of flurbiprofen on the development of anencephaly in early stage chicken embryos. We looked at four groups with a total of 36 embryos. There was a control group, a normal saline group, a normal-dose group and a high-dose group with ten, ten, eight and eight eggs with embryo respectively. Two embryos in the control group, studied with light microscopy at 48 h, were consistent with 28-29 hours' incubation in the Hamburger-Hamilton System. They had open neural tubes. The other embryos in this group were considered normal. One embryo in the normal saline group was on the occlusion stage at 48 h. One embryo showed an open neural tube. They were compatible with 28-29 hours' incubation in the Hamburger-Hamilton system. The remaining eight embryos showed normal development. In the normal dose group, one embryo showed underdevelopment of the embryonic disc and the embryo was dead. In four embryos, the neural tubes were open. One cranial malformation was found that was complicated with anencephaly in one embryo. In two embryos the neural tubes were closed, as they showed normal development, and they reached their expected stages according to the Hamburger-Hamilton classification. There was no malformation or growth retardation. Four experimental embryos were anencephalic in the high dose group, and three embryos had open neural tubes. One embryo exhibited both anencephaly and a neural tube closure defect. None of the embryos in this group showed normal development. Even the usual therapeutic doses of flurbiprofen increased the risk of neural tube defect. Flurbiprofen was found to significantly increase the risk of anencephaly. The provision of improved technical materials and studies with larger sample sizes will reveal the stage of morphological disruption during the development of embryos.

  13. "Differently normal" and "normally different": negotiations of female embodiment in women's accounts of 'atypical' sex development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guntram, Lisa

    2013-12-01

    During recent decades numerous feminist scholars have scrutinized the two-sex model and questioned its status in Western societies and medicine. Along the same line, increased attention has been paid to individuals' experiences of atypical sex development, also known as intersex or 'disorders of sex development' (DSD). Yet research on individuals' experiences of finding out about their atypical sex development in adolescence has been scarce. Against this backdrop, the present article analyses 23 in-depth interviews with women who in their teens found out about their atypical sex development. The interviews were conducted during 2009-2012 and the interviewees were all Swedish. Drawing on feminist research on female embodiment and social scientific studies on diagnosis, I examine how the women make sense of their bodies and situations. First, I aim to explore how the women construe normality as they negotiate female embodiment. Second, I aim to investigate how the divergent manners in which these negotiations are expressed can be further understood via the women's different access to a diagnosis. Through a thematic and interpretative analysis, I outline two negotiation strategies: the "differently normal" and the "normally different" strategy. In the former, the women present themselves as just slightly different from 'normal' women. In the latter, they stress that everyone is different in some manner and thereby claim normalcy. The analysis shows that access to diagnosis corresponds to the ways in which the women present themselves as "differently normal" and "normally different", thus shedding light on the complex role of diagnosis in their negotiations of female embodiment. It also reveals that the women make use of what they do have and how alignments with and work on norms interplay as normality is construed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Early Childhood Development and E-Learning in Africa: The Early Childhood Development Virtual University Programme

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pence, Alan

    2007-01-01

    This article explores the development and evaluation of the graduate-level Early Childhood Development Virtual University (ECDVU) programme in Sub-Saharan Africa from 2001 through to 2004. It outlines the history of the ECDVU and the establishing of a Sub-Saharan programme for future leaders in the early childhood field guided by the key principle…

  15. Gap-Junctional communication between developing Drosophila muscles is essential for their normal development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Todman, M G; Baines, R A; Stebbings, L A; Davies, J A; Bacon, J P

    1999-01-01

    Recent experiments have demonstrated that a family of proteins, known as the innexins, are structural components of invertebrate gap junctions. The shaking-B (shak-B) locus of Drosophila encodes two members of this emerging family, Shak-B(lethal) and Shak-B(neural). This study focuses on the role of Shak-B gap junctions in the development of embryonic and larval muscle. During embryogenesis, shak-B transcripts are expressed in a subset of the somatic muscles; expression is strong in ventral oblique muscles (VO4-6) but only weak in ventral longitudinals (VL3 and 4). Carboxyfluorescein injected into VO4 of wild-type early stage 16 embryos spreads, via gap junctions, to label adjacent muscles, including VL3 and 4. In shak-B2 embryos (in which the shak-B(neural) function is disrupted), dye injected into VO4 fails to spread into other muscles. In the first instar larva, when dye coupling between muscles is no longer present, another effect of the shak-B2 mutation is revealed by whole-cell voltage clamp. In a calcium-free saline, only two voltage-activated potassium currents are present in wild-type muscles; a fast IA and a slow IK current. In shak-B2 larvae, these two currents are significantly reduced in magnitude in VO4 and 5, but remain normal in VL3. Expression of shak-B(neural) in a shak-B2 background fully rescues both dye coupling in embryonic muscle and whole-cell currents in first instar VO4 and 5. Our observations show that Shak-B(neural) is one of a set of embryonic gap-junction proteins, and that it is required for the normal temporal development of potassium currents in some larval muscles.

  16. Reduction in the retinotopic early visual cortex with normal aging and magnitude of perceptual learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Li-Hung; Yotsumoto, Yuko; Salat, David H; Andersen, George J; Watanabe, Takeo; Sasaki, Yuka

    2015-01-01

    Although normal aging is known to reduce cortical structures globally, the effects of aging on local structures and functions of early visual cortex are less understood. Here, using standard retinotopic mapping and magnetic resonance imaging morphologic analyses, we investigated whether aging affects areal size of the early visual cortex, which were retinotopically localized, and whether those morphologic measures were associated with individual performance on visual perceptual learning. First, significant age-associated reduction was found in the areal size of V1, V2, and V3. Second, individual ability of visual perceptual learning was significantly correlated with areal size of V3 in older adults. These results demonstrate that aging changes local structures of the early visual cortex, and the degree of change may be associated with individual visual plasticity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. VOCAL DEVELOPMENT AS A MAIN CONDITION IN EARLY SPEECH AND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marianne HOLM

    2005-06-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this research is the evident positive vocal development in pre-lingual deaf children, who underwent a Cochlea Implantation in early age. The presented research compares the vocal speech expressions of three hearing impaired children and two children with normal hearing from 10 months to 5 years. Comparisons of the spontaneous vocal expressions were conducted by sonagraphic analyses. The awareness of the own voice as well as the voices of others is essential for the child’s continuous vocal development from crying to speech. Supra-segmental factors, such as rhythm, dynamics and melody play a very important role in this development.

  18. Early detection of interstitial pneumonia by WXGa-citrate scintigraphy. Cases of abnormal pulmonary WXGa uptake with normal chest radiographs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ito, Shinsaku; Mikami, Riichiro; Ryujin, Yoshitada

    1985-04-01

    In this paper we report our recent experience indicating usefulness of WXGa-citrate scintigraphy in 4 cases with inflammatory pulmonary diseases. These cases showed abnormal pulmonary WXGa uptake with normal chest radiographs. The first case with malignant lymphoma and the second one with lung cancer suffered from pulmonary infection following secondary immuno-insufficiency due to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Pneumocystis carinii was suspected as causative agent in the first case, and gram negative bacilli in the second case. The third case with lung cancer developed radiation pneumonia after radiotherapy. The fourth case with acute bronchitis developed drug induced interstitial pneumonia presumably due to minocycline administration. It is concluded that WXGa-citrate scintigraphy is more sensitive for early detection of interstitial pneumonia than routine chest radiography.

  19. Early growth and development impairments in patients with ganglioside GM3 synthase deficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, H; Wang, A; Wang, D; Bright, A; Sency, V; Zhou, A; Xin, B

    2016-05-01

    Ganglioside GM3 synthase is a key enzyme involved in the biosynthesis of gangliosides. GM3 synthase deficiency (GSD) causes a complete absence of GM3 and all downstream biosynthetic derivatives. The individuals affected by this disorder manifest severe irritability, intractable seizures and profound intellectual disability. However, we have found that most newborns seem symptom-free for a period of time after birth. In order to further understand the onset of the disease, we investigated the early growth and development of patients with this condition through this study. We compared 37 affected individuals with their normal siblings and revealed that all children with GSD had relatively normal intrauterine growth and development, as their weight, length and head circumference were similar to their normal siblings at birth. However, the disease progresses quickly after birth and causes significant constitutional impairments of growth and development by 6 months of age. Neither breastfeeding nor gastrostomy tube placement made significant difference on growth and development as all groups of patients showed the similar pattern. We conclude that GSD causes significant postnatal growth and developmental impairments and the amount of gangliosides in breast milk and general nutritional intervention do not seem to alter these outcomes. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. Stromal androgen receptor roles in the development of normal prostate, benign prostate hyperplasia, and prostate cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wen, Simeng; Chang, Hong-Chiang; Tian, Jing; Shang, Zhiqun; Niu, Yuanjie; Chang, Chawnshang

    2015-02-01

    The prostate is an androgen-sensitive organ that needs proper androgen/androgen receptor (AR) signals for normal development. The progression of prostate diseases, including benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate cancer (PCa), also needs proper androgen/AR signals. Tissue recombination studies report that stromal, but not epithelial, AR plays more critical roles via the mesenchymal-epithelial interactions to influence the early process of prostate development. However, in BPH and PCa, much more attention has been focused on epithelial AR roles. However, accumulating evidence indicates that stromal AR is also irreplaceable and plays critical roles in prostate disease progression. Herein, we summarize the roles of stromal AR in the development of normal prostate, BPH, and PCa, with evidence from the recent results of in vitro cell line studies, tissue recombination experiments, and AR knockout animal models. Current evidence suggests that stromal AR may play positive roles to promote BPH and PCa progression, and targeting stromal AR selectively with AR degradation enhancer, ASC-J9, may allow development of better therapies with fewer adverse effects to battle BPH and PCa. Copyright © 2015 American Society for Investigative Pathology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. The effect of UV irradiation on the early development of silkworm embryos, (2)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kobayashi, Yoshihiro

    1981-01-01

    The development of silkworm eggs irradiated with UV was compared with that of normal eggs. When the eggs were irradiated with UV from the lateral side immediately after oviposition, development was decelerated, but the germ band was produced. The side of the germ band that was irradiated with UV was abnormal with holes, but the opposite side was hole-free and normal. The normal half of the germ band splits longitudinally, but developed along with the abnormal half to form various malformations. When the eggs were irradiated from the ventral side, the ventral part of the germ band was abnormal at the early stage, the germ band did not concentrate to one place, and produced the half-embryos longitudinally divided by the median line. The UV irradiation at the beginning of the blastoderm stage produced similar results. In the areas irradiated by UV, cleavage nuclei invaded into the surrounding protoplasm, and mitotic figures were observed, but the cell number did not increase even with the advance of development unlike normal cells, whereas the sizes of the cells, their nuclei and nucleoli were enlarged, and intercellular space widened so that the cells were no longer in close contact. The germ band cells produced in the non-irradiated area were normal. The above results suggest that when either the protoplasm or the nucleus of a silkworm egg is damaged by UV, the effect first appears as the inhibition of cell division in the germ band, and as the enlargement of the cell, nucleus and nucleoli. It is presumed that this induces the subsequent inhibition of cell differentiation or abnormalities. (Kaihara, S.)

  2. Normal and Abnormal Behavior in Early Childhood

    OpenAIRE

    Spinner, Miriam R.

    1981-01-01

    Evaluation of normal and abnormal behavior in the period to three years of age involves many variables. Parental attitudes, determined by many factors such as previous childrearing experience, the bonding process, parental psychological status and parental temperament, often influence the labeling of behavior as normal or abnormal. This article describes the forms of crying, sleep and wakefulness, and affective responses from infancy to three years of age.

  3. Regulation of Arabidopsis Early Anther Development by Putative Cell-Cell Signaling Molecules and Transcriptional Regulators

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Yu-Jin Sun; Carey LH Hord; Chang-Bin Chen; Hong Ma

    2007-01-01

    Anther development in flowering plants involves the formation of several cell types, including the tapetal and pollen mother cells. The use of genetic and molecular tools has led to the identification and characterization of genes that are critical for normal cell division and differentiation in Arabidopsis early anther development. We review here several recent studies on these genes, including the demonstration that the putative receptor protein kinases BAM1 and BAM2 together play essential roles in the control of early cell division and differentiation. In addition, we discuss the hypothesis that BAM1/2 may form a positive-negative feedback regulatory loop with a previously identified key regulator, SPOROCYTELESS (also called NOZZLE),to control the balance between sporogenous and somatic cell types in the anther. Furthermore, we summarize the isolation and functional analysis of the DYSFUNCTIONAL TAPETUM1 (DYT1) gene in promoting proper tapetal cell differentiation. Our finding that DYT1 encodes a putative transcription factor of the bHLH family, as well as relevant expression analyses, strongly supports a model that DYT1 serves as a critical link between upstream factors and downstream target genes that are critical for normal tapetum development and function. These studies, together with other recently published works, indicate that cell-cell communication and transcriptional control are key processes essential for cell fate specification in anther development.

  4. Early Embryonic Heart Rate in Normal Pregnancies In Memory of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    To determine the appearance and development of embryonic heart rate a total of n = 317 Nigerian pregnant women were studied in the very early pregnancy from 23 – 56 days from the onset of last menstrual period (LMP). All pregnancies had a subsequent successful outcome. Transvaginal ultrasonography was ...

  5. Hormone patterns in early human gestation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mishell, D.R. Jr.; Thorneycroft, I.H.; Nagata, Y.; Murata, T.; Nakamura, R.M.

    1974-01-01

    Accurate measurement of the low concentration of gonadotropins and steroid hormones present in human serum has been made possible by the development of sensitive radioimmunoassay (RIA) techniques. With the use of RIA FSH and LH, progesterone and 17OH-progesterone have been previously measured in early normal pregnancy. In order to determine the daily pattern of hormone levels in early normal pregnancy, gonadotropins as well as steroid hormone levels were measured in serum samples obtained daily from three women from the time of the last menstrual period prior to conception throughout the first few months of gestation. To further identify the steroid hormone pattern in early normal pregnancy, concentrations of estradiol, progesterone, and 17OH-progesterone were measured in individual serum samples obtained from a group of 158 women with apparently normal gestations who subsequently had therapeutic abortions. (auth)

  6. Developing Visualization Support System for Teaching/Learning Database Normalization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Folorunso, Olusegun; Akinwale, AdioTaofeek

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: In tertiary institution, some students find it hard to learn database design theory, in particular, database normalization. The purpose of this paper is to develop a visualization tool to give students an interactive hands-on experience in database normalization process. Design/methodology/approach: The model-view-controller architecture…

  7. ECR-MAPK regulation in liver early development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Xiu-Ju; Zhuo, Hexian

    2014-01-01

    Early growth is connected to a key link between embryonic development and aging. In this paper, liver gene expression profiles were assayed at postnatal day 22 and week 16 of age. Meanwhile another independent animal experiment and cell culture were carried out for validation. Significance analysis of microarrays, qPCR verification, drug induction/inhibition assays, and metabonomics indicated that alpha-2u globulin (extracellular region)-socs2 (-SH2-containing signals/receptor tyrosine kinases)-ppp2r2a/pik3c3 (MAPK signaling)-hsd3b5/cav2 (metabolism/organization) plays a vital role in early development. Taken together, early development of male rats is ECR and MAPK-mediated coordination of cancer-like growth and negative regulations. Our data represent the first comprehensive description of early individual development, which could be a valuable basis for understanding the functioning of the gene interaction network of infant development.

  8. Investigation of normal organ development with fetal MRI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prayer, Daniela; Brugger, Peter C.

    2007-01-01

    The understanding of the presentation of normal organ development on fetal MRI forms the basis for recognition of pathological states. During the second and third trimesters, maturational processes include changes in size, shape and signal intensities of organs. Visualization of these developmental processes requires tailored MR protocols. Further prerequisites for recognition of normal maturational states are unequivocal intrauterine orientation with respect to left and right body halves, fetal proportions, and knowledge about the MR presentation of extrafetal/intrauterine organs. Emphasis is laid on the demonstration of normal MR appearance of organs that are frequently involved in malformation syndromes. In addition, examples of time-dependent contrast enhancement of intrauterine structures are given. (orig.)

  9. Investigation of normal organ development with fetal MRI

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Prayer, Daniela [Medical University of Vienna, Department of Radiology, Vienna (Austria); Brugger, Peter C. [Medical University of Vienna, Center of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Integrative Morphology Group, Vienna (Austria)

    2007-10-15

    The understanding of the presentation of normal organ development on fetal MRI forms the basis for recognition of pathological states. During the second and third trimesters, maturational processes include changes in size, shape and signal intensities of organs. Visualization of these developmental processes requires tailored MR protocols. Further prerequisites for recognition of normal maturational states are unequivocal intrauterine orientation with respect to left and right body halves, fetal proportions, and knowledge about the MR presentation of extrafetal/intrauterine organs. Emphasis is laid on the demonstration of normal MR appearance of organs that are frequently involved in malformation syndromes. In addition, examples of time-dependent contrast enhancement of intrauterine structures are given. (orig.)

  10. MRI of normal and pathological fetal lung development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kasprian, Gregor; Balassy, Csilla; Brugger, Peter C.; Prayer, Daniela

    2006-01-01

    Normal fetal lung development is a complex process influenced by mechanical and many biochemical factors. In addition to ultrasound, fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) constitutes a new method to investigate this process in vivo during the second and third trimester. The techniques of MRI volumetry, assessment of signal intensities, and MRI spectroscopy of the fetal lung have been used to analyze this process and have already been applied clinically to identify abnormal fetal lung growth. Particularly in conditions such as oligohydramnios and congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), pulmonary hypoplasia may be the cause of neonatal death. A precise diagnosis and quantification of compromised fetal lung development may improve post- and perinatal management. The main events in fetal lung development are reviewed and MR volumetric data from 106 normal fetuses, as well as different examples of pathological lung growth, are provided

  11. MRI of normal and pathological fetal lung development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kasprian, Gregor [University Clinic of Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna (Austria)]. E-mail: gregor.kasprian@meduniwien.ac.at; Balassy, Csilla [University Clinic of Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna (Austria); Brugger, Peter C. [Center of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Medical University of Vienna (Austria); Prayer, Daniela [University Clinic of Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna (Austria)

    2006-02-15

    Normal fetal lung development is a complex process influenced by mechanical and many biochemical factors. In addition to ultrasound, fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) constitutes a new method to investigate this process in vivo during the second and third trimester. The techniques of MRI volumetry, assessment of signal intensities, and MRI spectroscopy of the fetal lung have been used to analyze this process and have already been applied clinically to identify abnormal fetal lung growth. Particularly in conditions such as oligohydramnios and congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), pulmonary hypoplasia may be the cause of neonatal death. A precise diagnosis and quantification of compromised fetal lung development may improve post- and perinatal management. The main events in fetal lung development are reviewed and MR volumetric data from 106 normal fetuses, as well as different examples of pathological lung growth, are provided.

  12. Normal development of the female reproductive system

    Science.gov (United States)

    The embryonic development of the female reproductive system involves a progression of events that is conserved across vertebrate species. The early gonad progresses from a form that is undifferentiated in both genotypic males and females. Rudimentary male (Wolffian) and female (M...

  13. ECR-MAPK Regulation in Liver Early Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiu-Ju Zhao

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Early growth is connected to a key link between embryonic development and aging. In this paper, liver gene expression profiles were assayed at postnatal day 22 and week 16 of age. Meanwhile another independent animal experiment and cell culture were carried out for validation. Significance analysis of microarrays, qPCR verification, drug induction/inhibition assays, and metabonomics indicated that alpha-2u globulin (extracellular region-socs2 (-SH2-containing signals/receptor tyrosine kinases-ppp2r2a/pik3c3 (MAPK signaling-hsd3b5/cav2 (metabolism/organization plays a vital role in early development. Taken together, early development of male rats is ECR and MAPK-mediated coordination of cancer-like growth and negative regulations. Our data represent the first comprehensive description of early individual development, which could be a valuable basis for understanding the functioning of the gene interaction network of infant development.

  14. Disproportionate cardiac hypertrophy during early postnatal development in infants born preterm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aye, Christina Y L; Lewandowski, Adam J; Lamata, Pablo; Upton, Ross; Davis, Esther; Ohuma, Eric O; Kenworthy, Yvonne; Boardman, Henry; Wopperer, Samuel; Packham, Alice; Adwani, Satish; McCormick, Kenny; Papageorghiou, Aris T; Leeson, Paul

    2017-07-01

    BackgroundAdults born very preterm have increased cardiac mass and reduced function. We investigated whether a hypertrophic phenomenon occurs in later preterm infants and when this occurs during early development.MethodsCardiac ultrasound was performed on 392 infants (33% preterm at mean gestation 34±2 weeks). Scans were performed during fetal development in 137, at birth and 3 months of postnatal age in 200, and during both fetal and postnatal development in 55. Cardiac morphology and function was quantified and computational models created to identify geometric changes.ResultsAt birth, preterm offspring had reduced cardiac mass and volume relative to body size with a more globular heart. By 3 months, ventricular shape had normalized but both left and right ventricular mass relative to body size were significantly higher than expected for postmenstrual age (left 57.8±41.9 vs. 27.3±29.4%, P<0.001; right 39.3±38.1 vs. 16.6±40.8, P=0.002). Greater changes were associated with lower gestational age at birth (left P<0.001; right P=0.001).ConclusionPreterm offspring, including those born in late gestation, have a disproportionate increase in ventricular mass from birth up to 3 months of postnatal age. These differences were not present before birth. Early postnatal development may provide a window for interventions relevant to long-term cardiovascular health.

  15. Dynamic Alu Methylation during Normal Development, Aging, and Tumorigenesis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yanting Luo

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available DNA methylation primarily occurs on CpG dinucleotides and plays an important role in transcriptional regulations during tissue development and cell differentiation. Over 25% of CpG dinucleotides in the human genome reside within Alu elements, the most abundant human repeats. The methylation of Alu elements is an important mechanism to suppress Alu transcription and subsequent retrotransposition. Decades of studies revealed that Alu methylation is highly dynamic during early development and aging. Recently, many environmental factors were shown to have a great impact on Alu methylation. In addition, aberrant Alu methylation has been documented to be an early event in many tumors and Alu methylation levels have been associated with tumor aggressiveness. The assessment of the Alu methylation has become an important approach for early diagnosis and/or prognosis of cancer. This review focuses on the dynamic Alu methylation during development, aging, and tumor genesis. The cause and consequence of Alu methylation changes will be discussed.

  16. Effects of early thyroxine treatment on development and growth at age 10.7 years: follow-up of a randomized placebo-controlled trial in children with Down's syndrome

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Marchal, Jan Pieter; Maurice-Stam, Heleen; Ikelaar, Nadine A.; Klouwer, Femke C. C.; Verhorstert, Kim W. J.; Witteveen, M. Emma; Houtzager, Bregje A.; Grootenhuis, Martha A.; van Trotsenburg, A. S. Paul

    2014-01-01

    In 2-year-old children with Down's syndrome (DS), early T4 treatment was found to result in slightly better motor development and growth. This study sought to determine long-term effects of early T4 treatment on development and growth in children with DS with either an elevated or normal neonatal

  17. Developing a Home-Based Early Intervention Personnel Training Program in Southeast China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xie, Huichao; Chen, Ching-I; Chen, Chieh-Yu; Squires, Jane; Li, Wenge; Liu, Tian

    2017-01-01

    China is expected to have a rapid growth in specialized early intervention (EI) services for young children ages birth to 6 and their families. A major barrier in the provision of EI services in China is the shortage of well-trained EI personnel. In 2013, a Home-Based Early Intervention Program (HBEIP) was started at South China Normal University…

  18. Heterochrony and Early Left-Right Asymmetry in the Development of the Cardiorespiratory System of Snakes

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Soldt, Benjamin J.; Metscher, Brian D.; Poelmann, Robert E.; Vervust, Bart; Vonk, Freek J.; Müller, Gerd B.; Richardson, Michael K.

    2015-01-01

    Snake lungs show a remarkable diversity of organ asymmetries. The right lung is always fully developed, while the left lung is either absent, vestigial, or well-developed (but smaller than the right). A ‘tracheal lung’ is present in some taxa. These asymmetries are reflected in the pulmonary arteries. Lung asymmetry is known to appear at early stages of development in Thamnophis radix and Natrix natrix. Unfortunately, there is no developmental data on snakes with a well-developed or absent left lung. We examine the adult and developmental morphology of the lung and pulmonary arteries in the snakes Python curtus breitensteini, Pantherophis guttata guttata, Elaphe obsoleta spiloides, Calloselasma rhodostoma and Causus rhombeatus using gross dissection, MicroCT scanning and 3D reconstruction. We find that the right and tracheal lung develop similarly in these species. By contrast, the left lung either: (1) fails to develop; (2) elongates more slowly and aborts early without (2a) or with (2b) subsequent development of faveoli; (3) or develops normally. A right pulmonary artery always develops, but the left develops only if the left lung develops. No pulmonary artery develops in relation to the tracheal lung. We conclude that heterochrony in lung bud development contributes to lung asymmetry in several snake taxa. Secondly, the development of the pulmonary arteries is asymmetric at early stages, possibly because the splanchnic plexus fails to develop when the left lung is reduced. Finally, some changes in the topography of the pulmonary arteries are consequent on ontogenetic displacement of the heart down the body. Our findings show that the left-right asymmetry in the cardiorespiratory system of snakes is expressed early in development and may become phenotypically expressed through heterochronic shifts in growth, and changes in axial relations of organs and vessels. We propose a step-wise model for reduction of the left lung during snake evolution. PMID:25555231

  19. Heterochrony and early left-right asymmetry in the development of the cardiorespiratory system of snakes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Soldt, Benjamin J; Metscher, Brian D; Poelmann, Robert E; Vervust, Bart; Vonk, Freek J; Müller, Gerd B; Richardson, Michael K

    2015-01-01

    Snake lungs show a remarkable diversity of organ asymmetries. The right lung is always fully developed, while the left lung is either absent, vestigial, or well-developed (but smaller than the right). A 'tracheal lung' is present in some taxa. These asymmetries are reflected in the pulmonary arteries. Lung asymmetry is known to appear at early stages of development in Thamnophis radix and Natrix natrix. Unfortunately, there is no developmental data on snakes with a well-developed or absent left lung. We examine the adult and developmental morphology of the lung and pulmonary arteries in the snakes Python curtus breitensteini, Pantherophis guttata guttata, Elaphe obsoleta spiloides, Calloselasma rhodostoma and Causus rhombeatus using gross dissection, MicroCT scanning and 3D reconstruction. We find that the right and tracheal lung develop similarly in these species. By contrast, the left lung either: (1) fails to develop; (2) elongates more slowly and aborts early without (2a) or with (2b) subsequent development of faveoli; (3) or develops normally. A right pulmonary artery always develops, but the left develops only if the left lung develops. No pulmonary artery develops in relation to the tracheal lung. We conclude that heterochrony in lung bud development contributes to lung asymmetry in several snake taxa. Secondly, the development of the pulmonary arteries is asymmetric at early stages, possibly because the splanchnic plexus fails to develop when the left lung is reduced. Finally, some changes in the topography of the pulmonary arteries are consequent on ontogenetic displacement of the heart down the body. Our findings show that the left-right asymmetry in the cardiorespiratory system of snakes is expressed early in development and may become phenotypically expressed through heterochronic shifts in growth, and changes in axial relations of organs and vessels. We propose a step-wise model for reduction of the left lung during snake evolution.

  20. Heterochrony and early left-right asymmetry in the development of the cardiorespiratory system of snakes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Benjamin J van Soldt

    Full Text Available Snake lungs show a remarkable diversity of organ asymmetries. The right lung is always fully developed, while the left lung is either absent, vestigial, or well-developed (but smaller than the right. A 'tracheal lung' is present in some taxa. These asymmetries are reflected in the pulmonary arteries. Lung asymmetry is known to appear at early stages of development in Thamnophis radix and Natrix natrix. Unfortunately, there is no developmental data on snakes with a well-developed or absent left lung. We examine the adult and developmental morphology of the lung and pulmonary arteries in the snakes Python curtus breitensteini, Pantherophis guttata guttata, Elaphe obsoleta spiloides, Calloselasma rhodostoma and Causus rhombeatus using gross dissection, MicroCT scanning and 3D reconstruction. We find that the right and tracheal lung develop similarly in these species. By contrast, the left lung either: (1 fails to develop; (2 elongates more slowly and aborts early without (2a or with (2b subsequent development of faveoli; (3 or develops normally. A right pulmonary artery always develops, but the left develops only if the left lung develops. No pulmonary artery develops in relation to the tracheal lung. We conclude that heterochrony in lung bud development contributes to lung asymmetry in several snake taxa. Secondly, the development of the pulmonary arteries is asymmetric at early stages, possibly because the splanchnic plexus fails to develop when the left lung is reduced. Finally, some changes in the topography of the pulmonary arteries are consequent on ontogenetic displacement of the heart down the body. Our findings show that the left-right asymmetry in the cardiorespiratory system of snakes is expressed early in development and may become phenotypically expressed through heterochronic shifts in growth, and changes in axial relations of organs and vessels. We propose a step-wise model for reduction of the left lung during snake evolution.

  1. Lactate as an early predictor of psychomotor development in neonates with asphyxia receiving therapeutic hypothermia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Polackova, Renata; Salounova, Dana; Kantor, Lumir

    2017-12-04

    This prospective study aimed to evaluate the relationship between persistently elevated lactate values in the arterial blood of newborns with grade II and III hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (treated with therapeutic hypothermia) and psychomotor development at 24 months. 51 neonates of gestational age from 36 to 41 weeks receiving therapeutic hypothermia for moderate to severe hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy had arterial blood lactate levels regularly analysed. At 24 months the infants' psychomotor development was evaluated and they were divided into two groups - those where the outcome was favourable (i.e. normal psychomotor development) and adverse (severe motor or sensory impairment or death). The lactate dynamics over time were retrospectively evaluated from the data collected, with the normal upper limit set at 4 mmol/L. Of the 51 affected neonates, 7 died over the course of the study. 34 of the remaining 44 infants demonstrated normal psychomotor findings at 2 years old, with adverse findings in 10 cases. Although both groups experienced significant reductions in lactate over time, there were statistically significant differences between them regarding currently measured lactate levels. Absolute lactate values and their development over time can be a used as an auxiliary factor in making early estimates of the long-term outcome for newborns with neonatal asphyxia being treated with therapeutic hypothermia.

  2. Olfactory granule cell development in normal and hyperthyroid rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brunjes, P C; Schwark, H D; Greenough, W T

    1982-10-01

    Dendritic development was examined in olfactory bulbs of both normal 7-, 14-, 21- and 60-day-old rats and littermates treated on postnatal days 1-4 with 1 microgram/g body weight of L-thyroxine sodium. Tissue was processed via the Golgi-Cox technique and subjected to quantitative analyses of mitral and internal layer granule cell development. These populations of granule cells were selected because their pattern of late proliferation suggested potentially greater susceptibility to postnatal hormonal alterations. Although neonatal hyperthyroidism induces widespread acceleration of maturation, including precocious chemosensitivity, granule cell development was unaffected relative to littermate controls. Both normal and hyperthyroid groups exhibited an inverted U-shaped pattern of cellular development, with rapid dendritic dendritic growth and expansion occurring during the earliest ages tested, but with loss of processes and dendritic field size occurring after day 21.

  3. Dopamine Attenuates Ketamine-Induced Neuronal Apoptosis in the Developing Rat Retina Independent of Early Synchronized Spontaneous Network Activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Jing; Gao, Lingqi; Han, Junde; Zhang, Junjie; Zheng, Jijian

    2017-07-01

    Deprivation of spontaneous rhythmic electrical activity in early development by anesthesia administration, among other interventions, induces neuronal apoptosis. However, it is unclear whether enhancement of neuronal electrical activity attenuates neuronal apoptosis in either normal development or after anesthesia exposure. The present study investigated the effects of dopamine, an enhancer of spontaneous rhythmic electrical activity, on ketamine-induced neuronal apoptosis in the developing rat retina. TUNEL and immunohistochemical assays indicated that ketamine time- and dose-dependently aggravated physiological and ketamine-induced apoptosis and inhibited early-synchronized spontaneous network activity. Dopamine administration reversed ketamine-induced neuronal apoptosis, but did not reverse the inhibitory effects of ketamine on early synchronized spontaneous network activity despite enhancing it in controls. Blockade of D1, D2, and A2A receptors and inhibition of cAMP/PKA signaling partially antagonized the protective effect of dopamine against ketamine-induced apoptosis. Together, these data indicate that dopamine attenuates ketamine-induced neuronal apoptosis in the developing rat retina by activating the D1, D2, and A2A receptors, and upregulating cAMP/PKA signaling, rather than through modulation of early synchronized spontaneous network activity.

  4. Nurturing care: promoting early childhood development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Britto, Pia R; Lye, Stephen J; Proulx, Kerrie; Yousafzai, Aisha K; Matthews, Stephen G; Vaivada, Tyler; Perez-Escamilla, Rafael; Rao, Nirmala; Ip, Patrick; Fernald, Lia C H; MacMillan, Harriet; Hanson, Mark; Wachs, Theodore D; Yao, Haogen; Yoshikawa, Hirokazu; Cerezo, Adrian; Leckman, James F; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A

    2017-01-07

    The UN Sustainable Development Goals provide a historic opportunity to implement interventions, at scale, to promote early childhood development. Although the evidence base for the importance of early childhood development has grown, the research is distributed across sectors, populations, and settings, with diversity noted in both scope and focus. We provide a comprehensive updated analysis of early childhood development interventions across the five sectors of health, nutrition, education, child protection, and social protection. Our review concludes that to make interventions successful, smart, and sustainable, they need to be implemented as multi-sectoral intervention packages anchored in nurturing care. The recommendations emphasise that intervention packages should be applied at developmentally appropriate times during the life course, target multiple risks, and build on existing delivery platforms for feasibility of scale-up. While interventions will continue to improve with the growth of developmental science, the evidence now strongly suggests that parents, caregivers, and families need to be supported in providing nurturing care and protection in order for young children to achieve their developmental potential. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Advancing Early Childhood Development: from Science to Scale 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Black, Maureen M; Walker, Susan P; Fernald, Lia C H; Andersen, Christopher T; DiGirolamo, Ann M; Lu, Chunling; McCoy, Dana C; Fink, Günther; Shawar, Yusra R; Shiffman, Prof Jeremy; Devercelli, Amanda E; Wodon, Quentin T; Vargas-Barón, Emily; Grantham-McGregor, Sally

    2018-01-01

    Early childhood development programmes vary in coordination and quality, with inadequate and inequitable access, especially for children younger than 3 years. New estimates, based on proxy measures of stunting and poverty, indicate that 250 million children (43%) younger than 5 years in low-income and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential. There is therefore an urgent need to increase multisectoral coverage of quality programming that incorporates health, nutrition, security and safety, responsive caregiving, and early learning. Equitable early childhood policies and programmes are crucial for meeting Sustainable Development Goals, and for children to develop the intellectual skills, creativity, and wellbeing required to become healthy and productive adults. In this paper, the first in a three part Series on early childhood development, we examine recent scientific progress and global commitments to early childhood development. Research, programmes, and policies have advanced substantially since 2000, with new neuroscientific evidence linking early adversity and nurturing care with brain development and function throughout the life course. PMID:27717614

  6. The Development of Self-Regulation across Early Childhood

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montroy, Janelle J.; Bowles, Ryan P.; Skibbe, Lori E.; McClelland, Megan M.; Morrison, Frederick J.

    2016-01-01

    The development of early childhood self-regulation is often considered an early life marker for later life successes. Yet little longitudinal research has evaluated whether there are different trajectories of self-regulation development across children. This study investigates the development of behavioral self-regulation between the ages of 3 and…

  7. Improving early childhood development and well-being in refugee ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Improving early childhood development and well-being in refugee and other marginalized countries. Early childhood development research has traditionally focused on single-intervention initiatives and non-refugee populations. This project will generate evidence to support effective, integrated and scalable early childhood ...

  8. Exposure to dim light at night during early development increases adult anxiety-like responses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borniger, Jeremy C; McHenry, Zachary D; Abi Salloum, Bachir A; Nelson, Randy J

    2014-06-22

    Early experiences produce effects that may persist throughout life. Therefore, to understand adult phenotype, it is important to investigate the role of early environmental stimuli in adult behavior and health. Artificial light at night (LAN) is an increasingly common phenomenon throughout the world. However, animals, including humans, evolved under dark night conditions. Many studies have revealed affective, immune, and metabolic alterations provoked by aberrant light exposure and subsequent circadian disruption. Pups are receptive to entraining cues from the mother and then light early during development, raising the possibility that the early life light environment may influence subsequent behavior. Thus, to investigate potential influences of early life exposure to LAN on adult phenotype, we exposed mice to dim (~5 lux; full spectrum white light) or dark (~0 lux) nights pre- and/or postnatally. After weaning at 3 weeks of age, all mice were maintained in dark nights until adulthood (9 weeks of age) when behavior was assessed. Mice exposed to dim light in early life increased anxiety-like behavior and fearful responses on the elevated plus maze and passive avoidance tests. These mice also displayed reduced growth rates, which ultimately normalized during adolescence. mRNA expression of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a neurotrophin previously linked to early life environment and adult phenotype, was not altered in the prefrontal cortex or hippocampus by early life LAN exposure. Serum corticosterone concentrations were similar between groups at weaning, suggesting that early life LAN does not elicit a long-term physiologic stress response. Dim light exposure did not influence behavior on the open field, novel object, sucrose anhedonia, or forced swim tests. Our data highlight the potential deleterious consequences of low levels of light during early life to development and subsequent behavior. Whether these changes are due to altered maternal behavior

  9. Computerized tomography and head growth curve infantile macrocephaly with normal psychomotor development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eda, Isematsu; Kitahara, Tadashi; Takashima, Sachio; Takeshita, Kenzo

    1982-01-01

    Macrocephaly was defined as a head measuring larger than 98th percentile. We have evaluated CT findings and head growth curves in 25 infants with large heads. Ten (40%) of 25 infants with large heads were normal developmentally and neurologically. Five (20%) of those were mentally retarded. The other 10 infants (40%) included hydrocephalus (4 cases), malformation syndrome (3 cases), brain tumor (1 case), metabolic disorder (1 case) and degenerative disorder (1 case). Their head growth curves were typed as (I), (II) and (III): Type (I) (excessive head growth curve to 2 SDs above normal); Type (II) (head growth curve gradually approached to 2 SDs above normal); Type (III) (head growth curve parallel to 2 SDs above normal). Ten of macrocephaly with normal psychomotor development were studied clinically and radiologically in details. They were all male. CT pictures of those showed normal or various abnormal findings: ventricular dilatations, wide frontal and temporal subdural spaces, wide interhemispheric fissures, wide cerebral sulci, and large sylvian fissures. CT findings in 2 of those, which because normal after repeated CT examinations, resembled benign subdural collection. CT findings in one of those were external hydrocephalus. Head growth curves were obtained from 8 of those. Six cases revealed type (II) and two cases did type (III). The remaining 2 cases could not be followed up. We consider that CT findings of infants showed macrocephaly with normal psychomotor development reveals normal or various abnormal (ventricular dilatations, benign subdural collection, external hydrocephalus) and their head growth curves are not at least excessive. Infants with mental retardation showed similar CT findings and head growth curves as those with normal psychomotor development. It was difficult to distinguish normal from mentally retarded infants by either CT findings or head growth curves. (author)

  10. 18F-FDG PET and MRS of the early stages of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis in a child with a normal initial MRI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Seo, Yeong-Seon; Jung, Da-Eun; Kim, Ho-Sung

    2010-01-01

    In subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), conventional MRI findings have been reported. However, in the early clinical stages, imaging studies can appear normal. Moreover, with no history of infant measles infection, the diagnosis of SSPE can only be arrived at after extensive investigation that must eliminate a number of neurodegenerative diseases. We report here on 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ( 18 F-FDG PET) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) findings in a 14-year-old girl with a normal initial MRI who had not contracted measles. Although 18 F-FDG PET and MRS are not specific or diagnostic for SSPE, these techniques can demonstrate substantial metabolic impairments when MRI findings show no obvious abnormalities, as is often the case in the early stages of this disease. (orig.)

  11. Working memory in Farsi-speaking children with normal development and cochlear implant.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soleymani, Zahra; Amidfar, Meysam; Dadgar, Hooshang; Jalaie, Shohre

    2014-04-01

    Working memory has an important role in language acquisition and development of cognition skills. The ability of encoding, storage and retrieval of phonological codes, as activities of working memory, acquired by audition sense. Children with cochlear implant experience a period that they are not able to perceive sounds. In order to assess the effect of hearing on working memory, we investigated working memory as a cognition skill in children with normal development and cochlear implant. Fifty students with normal hearing and 50 students with cochlear implant aged 5-7 years participated in this study. Children educated in the preschool, the first and second grades. Children with normal development were matched based on age, gender, and grade of education with cochlear implant. Two components of working memory including phonological loop and central executive were compared between two groups. Phonological loop assessed by nonword repetition task and forward digit span. To assess central executive component backward digit span was used. The developmental trend was studied in children with normal development and cochlear implant as well. The effect of age at implantation in children with cochlear implants on components of working memory was investigated. There are significant differences between children with normal development and cochlear implant in all tasks that assess working memory (p memory between different grades showed significant differences both in children with normal development and in children with cochlear implant (p implied that children with cochlear implant may experience difficulties in working memory. Therefore, these children have problems in encoding, practicing, and repeating phonological units. The results also suggested working memory develops when the child grows up. In cochlear implant children, with decreasing age at implantation and increasing their experience in perceiving sound, working memory skills improved. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier

  12. Abnormal early cleavage events predict early embryo demise: sperm oxidative stress and early abnormal cleavage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burruel, Victoria; Klooster, Katie; Barker, Christopher M; Pera, Renee Reijo; Meyers, Stuart

    2014-10-13

    Human embryos resulting from abnormal early cleavage can result in aneuploidy and failure to develop normally to the blastocyst stage. The nature of paternal influence on early embryo development has not been directly demonstrated although many studies have suggested effects from spermatozoal chromatin packaging, DNA damage, centriolar and mitotic spindle integrity, and plasma membrane integrity. The goal of this study was to determine whether early developmental events were affected by oxidative damage to the fertilizing sperm. Survival analysis was used to compare patterns of blastocyst formation based on P2 duration. Kaplan-Meier survival curves demonstrate that relatively few embryos with short (P2 times reached blastocysts, and the two curves diverged beginning on day 4, with nearly all of the embryos with longer P2 times reaching blastocysts by day 6 (p < .01). We determined that duration of the 2nd to 3rd mitoses were sensitive periods in the presence of spermatozoal oxidative stress. Embryos that displayed either too long or too short cytokineses demonstrated an increased failure to reach blastocyst stage and therefore survive for further development. Although paternal-derived gene expression occurs later in development, this study suggests a specific role in early mitosis that is highly influenced by paternal factors.

  13. Early-life stress and the development of obesity and insulin resistance in juvenile bonnet macaques.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaufman, Daniel; Banerji, Mary Ann; Shorman, Igor; Smith, Eric L P; Coplan, Jeremy D; Rosenblum, Leonard A; Kral, John G

    2007-05-01

    Stress is a risk factor for chronic illnesses such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension and has been postulated to cause the metabolic syndrome via perturbation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. In our model of early-life stress (variable foraging demand [VFD]), food insecurity is imposed on monkey mothers for 16 weeks beginning when their nursing offspring are 3-5 months of age. Under VFD, food availability is never restricted, and the infant's growth is unaffected. VFD rearing does, however, cause a range of neurobiological abnormalities, including dysregulation of the HPA axis, manifested in abnormal cerebrospinal fluid cortisol and corticotropin-releasing factor levels. We previously reported spontaneous occurrence of metabolic syndrome in 14% of normally reared peripubertal bonnet macaques given ad libitum access to standard monkey chow. Here, we show that compared with normally reared monkeys, peripubertal VFD juveniles exhibit greater weight, BMI, abdominal circumference, and glucagon-like peptide-1 and decreased glucose disposal rates during hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamps. Our data suggest that early-life stress during a critical period of neuro development can result in the peripubertal emergence of obesity and insulin resistance.

  14. The Dens: Normal Development, Developmental Variants and Anomalies, and Traumatic Injuries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    William T O′Brien

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Accurate interpretation of cervical spine imagining can be challenging, especially in children and the elderly. The biomechanics of the developing pediatric spine and age-related degenerative changes predispose these patient populations to injuries centered at the craniocervical junction. In addition, congenital anomalies are common in this region, especially those associated with the axis/dens, due to its complexity in terms of development compared to other vertebral levels. The most common congenital variations of the dens include the os odontoideum and a persistent ossiculum terminale. At times, it is necessary to distinguish normal development, developmental variants, and developmental anomalies from traumatic injuries in the setting of acute traumatic injury. Key imaging features are useful to differentiate between traumatic fractures and normal or variant anatomy acutely; however, the radiologist must first have a basic understanding of the spectrum of normal developmental anatomy and its anatomic variations in order to make an accurate assessment. This review article attempts to provide the basic framework required for accurate interpretation of cervical spine imaging with a focus on the dens, specifically covering the normal development and ossification of the dens, common congenital variants and their various imaging appearances, fracture classifications, imaging appearances, and treatment options.

  15. Measurement of the uterus and gestation sac by ultrasound in early normal and abnormal pregnancy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chandra, M; Evans, L J; Duff, G B

    1981-01-14

    Uterine volumes measured by two different ultrasonic methods, and gestation sac volumes in early normal pregnancy are reported. The results obtained for uterine volume measurements are compared. Methods using measurements obtained from only a longitudinal scan were simpler but slightly less accurate. Uterine volumes were also calculated in a series of patients with pregnancy complicated by threatened abortion. The accuracy of the prediction of the outcome of the pregnancy, based solely on uterine volume was 71 percent. Uterine volume measurement is most useful in identifying cases of missed abortion where the period of gestation is known.

  16. A longitudinal study of lexical and grammar development in deaf Italian children provided with early cochlear implantation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chilosi, Anna Maria; Comparini, Alessandro; Scusa, Maria Flora; Orazini, Laura; Forli, Francesca; Cipriani, Paola; Berrettini, Stefano

    2013-01-01

    A growing number of studies on deaf children with cochlear implant (CI) document a significant improvement in receptive and expressive language skills after implantation, even if they show language delay when compared with normal-hearing peers. Data on language acquisition in CI Italian children are still scarce and limited to only certain aspects of language. The purpose of this study is to prospectively describe the trajectories of language development in early CI Italian children, with particular attention to the transition from first words to combinatorial speech and to acquisition of complex grammar in a language with rich morphology, such as Italian. Six children, with profound prelingual deafness, provided with CI, between 16 and 24 months of age were prospectively assessed and followed over a mean period of up to 34.8 months postimplant. During follow-up, each child received between four to five individual language evaluations through a combination of indirect procedures (parent reports of early lexical and grammar development) and direct ones (administration of standardized receptive and expressive language tests with Italian norms and collection of spontaneous language samples). In relation to chronological age, the acquisition of expressive vocabulary was delayed. However, considering the duration of hearing experience, most CI participants showed an earlier start and faster growth of expressive rather than receptive vocabulary in comparison with typically developing children. This quite atypical result persisted right up until the end of the follow-up. The acquisition of expressive grammar was delayed relative to chronological age, though all but one CI participant achieved the expected grammar level after approximately 3 years of CI use. In addition, the rate of grammar acquisition was not homogeneous during development, showing two different paces: one comparable with normal hearing in the transition from holophrastic to primitive combinatorial speech

  17. How normal is grammatical development in the right hemisphere following hemispherectomy? The root infinitive stage and beyond.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curtiss, Susan; de Bode, Stella

    2003-08-01

    We examined the morphosyntax of eight left hemispherectomized children at two different stages and compared it to MLU-matched normals. We found that the language of the hemispherectomies paralleled that of their MLU matches with respect to the specific morphosyntactic characteristics of each stage. Our findings provide strong evidence for the presence of functional categories in all early grammars and demonstrate that grammatical development, regardless of its neural substrate, is highly constrained by UG and follows a narrowly determined course. We discuss our findings within a neurobiological framework in which etiology defines the integrity of the remaining hemisphere, which in turn, determines its potential for linguistic reorganization and/or acquisition.

  18. Spatial learning and memory is preserved in rats after early development in a microgravity environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Temple, Meredith D.; Kosik, Kenneth S.; Steward, Oswald

    2002-01-01

    This study evaluated the cognitive mapping abilities of rats that spent part of their early development in a microgravity environment. Litters of male and female Sprague-Dawley rat pups were launched into space aboard the National Aeronautics and Space Administration space shuttle Columbia on postnatal day 8 or 14 and remained in space for 16 days. These animals were designated as FLT groups. Two age-matched control groups remained on Earth: those in standard vivarium housing (VIV) and those in housing identical to that aboard the shuttle (AGC). On return to Earth, animals were tested in three different tasks that measure spatial learning ability, the Morris water maze (MWM), and a modified version of the radial arm maze (RAM). Animals were also tested in an open field apparatus to measure general activity and exploratory activity. Performance and search strategies were evaluated in each of these tasks using an automated tracking system. Despite the dramatic differences in early experience, there were remarkably few differences between the FLT groups and their Earth-bound controls in these tasks. FLT animals learned the MWM and RAM as quickly as did controls. Evaluation of search patterns suggested subtle differences in patterns of exploration and in the strategies used to solve the tasks during the first few days of testing, but these differences normalized rapidly. Together, these data suggest that development in an environment without gravity has minimal long-term impact on spatial learning and memory abilities. Any differences due to development in microgravity are quickly reversed after return to earth normal gravity.

  19. Telomere lengthening early in development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Lin; Bailey, Susan M; Okuka, Maja; Muñoz, Purificación; Li, Chao; Zhou, Lingjun; Wu, Chao; Czerwiec, Eva; Sandler, Laurel; Seyfang, Andreas; Blasco, Maria A; Keefe, David L

    2007-12-01

    Stem cells and cancer cells maintain telomere length mostly through telomerase. Telomerase activity is high in male germ line and stem cells, but is low or absent in mature oocytes and cleavage stage embryos, and then high again in blastocysts. How early embryos reset telomere length remains poorly understood. Here, we show that oocytes actually have shorter telomeres than somatic cells, but their telomeres lengthen remarkably during early cleavage development. Moreover, parthenogenetically activated oocytes also lengthen their telomeres, thus the capacity to elongate telomeres must reside within oocytes themselves. Notably, telomeres also elongate in the early cleavage embryos of telomerase-null mice, demonstrating that telomerase is unlikely to be responsible for the abrupt lengthening of telomeres in these cells. Coincident with telomere lengthening, extensive telomere sister-chromatid exchange (T-SCE) and colocalization of the DNA recombination proteins Rad50 and TRF1 were observed in early cleavage embryos. Both T-SCE and DNA recombination proteins decrease in blastocyst stage embryos, whereas telomerase activity increases and telomeres elongate only slowly. We suggest that telomeres lengthen during the early cleavage cycles following fertilization through a recombination-based mechanism, and that from the blastocyst stage onwards, telomerase only maintains the telomere length established by this alternative mechanism.

  20. Transforming early childhood education for sustainable development

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper examined the ways in which early childhood education needs to be transformed for sustainable development. These ways include teaching children environmental security through play, personal hygiene, appropriate waste use and disposal, and nature awareness. It was recommended that early childhood ...

  1. Comparison of macular choroidal thickness among patients older than age 65 with early atrophic age-related macular degeneration and normals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sigler, Eric J; Randolph, John C

    2013-09-19

    To compare macular choroidal thickness between patients older than 65 years with early atrophic age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and normals. This was a consecutive, cross-sectional observational study. Enhanced depth imaging spectral-domain optical coherence tomography using horizontal raster scanning at 12 locations throughout the macula was performed in one eye of consecutive patients presenting with large soft drusen alone, drusen with additional features of early AMD, or a normal fundus. Choroidal thickness was measured at 7 points for each raster scan in the central 3 mm of the macula (total 84 points per eye). In addition, a single subfoveolar measurement was obtained for each eye. One hundred fifty eyes of 150 patients were included. There was no significant difference between mean refractive error for each diagnosis category via one-way ANOVA (P = 0.451). Mean macular choroidal thickness (CT) was 235 ± 49 μm (range, 125-334 μm; median 222 μm) for normals, 161 ± 39 μm (range, 89-260 μm; median = 158 μm) for the drusen group, and 115 ± 40 μm (range, 22-256 μm; median = 112 μm) for patients with AMD. Mean macular CT was significantly different via one-way ANOVA among all diagnosis categories (P < 0.001). The presence of features of early AMD without geographic atrophy and/or soft drusen alone is associated with decreased mean macular CT in vivo compared to that in patients with no chorioretinal pathology. Using enhanced depth imaging, measurement of a single subfoveolar choroidal thickness is highly correlated to mean central macular CT.

  2. Early executive function predicts reasoning development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richland, Lindsey E; Burchinal, Margaret R

    2013-01-01

    Analogical reasoning is a core cognitive skill that distinguishes humans from all other species and contributes to general fluid intelligence, creativity, and adaptive learning capacities. Yet its origins are not well understood. In the study reported here, we analyzed large-scale longitudinal data from the Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development to test predictors of growth in analogical-reasoning skill from third grade to adolescence. Our results suggest an integrative resolution to the theoretical debate regarding contributory factors arising from smaller-scale, cross-sectional experiments on analogy development. Children with greater executive-function skills (both composite and inhibitory control) and vocabulary knowledge in early elementary school displayed higher scores on a verbal analogies task at age 15 years, even after adjusting for key covariates. We posit that knowledge is a prerequisite to analogy performance, but strong executive-functioning resources during early childhood are related to long-term gains in fundamental reasoning skills.

  3. Developing early algebraic reasoning in a mathematical community of inquiry

    OpenAIRE

    Hunter, Jodie Margaret Roberta

    2013-01-01

    This study explores the development of early algebraic reasoning in mathematical communities of inquiry. Under consideration is the different pathways teachers take as they develop their own understanding of early algebra and then enact changes in their classroom to facilitate algebraic reasoning opportunities. Teachers participated in a professional development intervention which focused on understanding of early algebraic concepts, task development, modification, and enactment, and clas...

  4. The Spatial Musical Association of Response Codes does not depend on a normal visual experience: A study with early blind individuals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cattaneo, Zaira; Lega, Carlotta; Rinaldi, Luca; Fantino, Micaela; Ferrari, Chiara; Merabet, Lotfi B; Vecchi, Tomaso

    2018-02-26

    Converging evidence suggests that the perception of auditory pitch exhibits a characteristic spatial organization. This pitch-space association can be demonstrated experimentally by the Spatial Musical Association of Response Codes (SMARC) effect. This is characterized by faster response times when a low-positioned key is pressed in response to a low-pitched tone, and a high-positioned key is pressed in response to a high-pitched tone. To investigate whether the development of this pitch-space association is mediated by normal visual experience, we tested a group of early blind individuals on a task that required them to discriminate the timbre of different instrument sounds with varying pitch. Results revealed a comparable pattern in the SMARC effect in both blind participants and sighted controls, suggesting that the lack of prior visual experience does not prevent the development of an association between pitch height and vertical space.

  5. The normal development of Platynereis dumerilii (Nereididae, Annelida

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Henrich Thorsten

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The polychaete annelid Platynereis dumerilii is an emerging model organism for the study of molecular developmental processes, evolution, neurobiology and marine biology. Annelids belong to the Lophotrochozoa, the so far understudied third major branch of bilaterian animals besides deuterostomes and ecdysozoans. P. dumerilii has proven highly relevant to explore ancient bilaterian conditions via comparison to the deuterostomes, because it has accumulated less evolutionary change than conventional ecdysozoan models. Previous staging was mainly referring to hours post fertilization but did not allow matching stages between studies performed at (even slightly different temperatures. To overcome this, and to provide a first comprehensive description of P. dumerilii normal development, a temperature-independent staging system is needed. Results Platynereis dumerilii normal development is subdivided into 16 stages, starting with the zygote and ending with the death of the mature worms after delivering their gametes. The stages described can be easily identified by conventional light microscopy or even by dissecting scope. Developmental landmarks such as the beginning of phototaxis, the visibility of the stomodeal opening and of the chaetae, the first occurrence of the ciliary bands, the formation of the parapodia, the extension of antennae and cirri, the onset of feeding and other characteristics are used to define different developmental stages. The morphology of all larval stages as well as of juveniles and adults is documented by light microscopy. We also provide an overview of important steps in the development of the nervous system and of the musculature, using fluorescent labeling techniques and confocal laser-scanning microscopy. Timing of each developmental stage refers to hours post fertilization at 18 ± 0.1°C. For comparison, we determined the pace of development of larvae raised at 14°C, 16°C, 20°C, 25°C, 28°C and

  6. A novel model of early development in the brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana, and its use in assessing the effects of environmental variables on development, emergence, and hatching.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neumeyer, Courtney H; Gerlach, Jamie L; Ruggiero, Kristin M; Covi, Joseph A

    2015-03-01

    The brine shrimp, Artemia (Crustacea, Anostraca), is a zooplankton that is commonly used in both basic and applied research. Unfortunately, Artemia embryos are often cultured under conditions that alter early development, and reports based on these cultures oversimplify or fail to describe morphological phenotypes. This is due in part to the lack of a comprehensive developmental model that is applicable to observations of live specimens. The objective of this study was to build and test a descriptive model of post-diapause development in Artemia franciscana using observations made with a standard dissecting microscope. The working model presented is the first to comprehensively place all known "abnormal" embryonic and naupliar phenotypes within the context of a classic hatching profile. Contrary to previous reports, embryos and nauplii with aberrant phenotypes often recover and develop normally. Oval prenauplii may emerge as normal prenauplii (E2 stage). A delay of this transition leads to incomplete hatching or direct hatching of first instar larvae with a curved thoracoabdomen. When hatching is incomplete, retained cuticular remnants are shed during the next molt, and a "normal" second instar larva is produced. By differentiating between molting events and gross embryonic patterning in live embryos, this new model facilitates fine time-scale analyses of chemical and environmental impacts on early development. A small increase in salinity within what is commonly believed to be a permissive range (20‰-35‰) produced aberrant morphology by delaying emergence without slowing development. A similar effect was observed by decreasing culture density within a range commonly applied in toxicological studies. These findings clearly demonstrate that morphological data from end-point studies are highly dependent on the time points chosen. An alternate assessment method is proposed, and the potential impact of heavy metals, hexachlorobenzene, Mirex, and cis

  7. Preventing abusive head trauma resulting from a failure of normal interaction between infants and their caregivers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barr, Ronald G

    2012-10-16

    Head trauma from abuse, including shaken baby syndrome, is a devastating and potentially lethal form of infant physical abuse first recognized in the early 1970s. What has been less recognized is the role of the early increase in crying in otherwise normal infants in the first few months of life as a trigger for the abuse. In part, this is because infant crying, especially prolonged unsoothable crying, has been interpreted clinically as something wrong with the infant, the infant's caregiver, or the interactions between them. Here, we review an alternative developmental interpretation, namely, that the early increase in crying is a typical behavioral development in normal infants and usually does not reflect anything wrong or abnormal. We also review evidence indicating that this normal crying pattern is the most common trigger for abusive head trauma (AHT). Together, these findings point to a conceptualization of AHT as the consequence of a failure in an otherwise common, iterative, and developmentally normal infant-caregiver interaction. They also imply that there is a window of opportunity for prevention of AHT, and potentially other forms of infant abuse, through a public health primary universal prevention strategy aimed at changing knowledge and behaviors of caregivers and society in general concerning normal development of infants and the significance of early increased infant crying. If effective, there may be important implications for prevention of infant abuse nationally and internationally.

  8. Survival and psychomotor development with early betaine treatment in patients with severe methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase deficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diekman, Eugene F; de Koning, Tom J; Verhoeven-Duif, Nanda M; Rovers, Maroeska M; van Hasselt, Peter M

    2014-02-01

    The impact of betaine treatment on outcome in patients with severe methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) deficiency is presently unclear. To investigate the effect of betaine treatment on development and survival in patients with severe MTHFR deficiency. MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases between January 1960 and December 2012. Studies that described patients with severe MTHFR deficiency who received betaine treatment. We identified 15 case reports and case series, totaling 36 patients. Data included the following: (1) families with 2 or more patients with severe MTHFR deficiency, of whom at least 1 received betaine, or (2) single patients with severe MTHFR deficiency treated with betaine. To define severe MTHFR deficiency, methionine, homocysteine, MTHFR enzyme activity in fibroblasts, or mutations (in the MTHFR gene) had to be described as well as the effect of treatment (survival and/or psychomotor development). We compared the outcome in treated vs untreated patients and early- vs late-treated patients. Sensitivity analysis was performed to address definition of early treatment. To further assess the impact of treatment on mortality, we performed a subanalysis in families with at least 1 untreated deceased patient. Survival and psychomotor development. Eleven of 36 patients (31%) died. All deaths occurred in patients who did not receive treatment or in patients in whom treatment was delayed. In contrast, all 5 early-treated patients survived. Subgroup analysis of patients with deceased siblings-their genotypically identical controls-revealed that betaine treatment prevented mortality (P = .002). In addition, psychomotor development in surviving patients treated with betaine was normal in all 5 early-treated patients but in none of the 19 surviving patients with delayed treatment (P psychomotor development in patients with severe MTHFR deficiency, highlighting the importance of timely recognition through newborn screening.

  9. Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD)

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD) Sunsetted/For Reference ... page is not being updated . The Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD) began as the ...

  10. FEATURES OF DEVELOPMENT OF SOME ORGANS OF AIRBREATHING CATFISH (CLARIIDAE IN EARLY ONTOGENESIS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. V. Pirog

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim. Airbreathing catfish (CLARIIDAE - is one of the most promising specie of artificial breeding. However, for the reproduction of this specie it is required to conduct appropriate studies. In particular, it is necessary to review the features of morphogenesis during early ontogeny of this type of fish. We investigated prelarvae of airbreathing catfish (CLARIIBAE in 2,3 and 4 days of life. In the embryos, the spinal cord was formed on the 2nd day of life. At this stage, organs of vision were sufficiently developed. On the 4th day, we found hyaline cartilage at the base of the gill arch, arcs were covered with gill filaments; we also discovered fully formed mesonephros, renal corpuscles, renal tubules and intratubular liquid in the kidneys. The heart of the embryo consisted of atrium and voluminous ventricle.Methods. The research of development of airbreathing catfish in early ontogenesis has been carried out on the basis of "RENTOP Agro-5" Ltd. under the conditions of RAS in the Krasnodar region in the spring – summer period of years 2013-14. For morphological analysis we used serial histological sections on prelarvae of 40 airbreathing catfish at age 2, 3 and 4 days developing normally and atypically. The research combines some complex biological methods: ichthyologic, histological, physiological. Materials for the research were handled with the methods of classical histology. Viewing and imaging of the sections were made using Mikmed 6 microscope with a digital camera for imaging and computer analysis.Results. The finding of the study has been the analysis of the morphological structure of airbreathing catfish during early ontogeny, which can contribute to improving the biotechnology of breeding of airbreathing catfish under RAS.Main conclusions. First, in the early ontogenesis of airbreathing catfish we have discovered heterochrony in the development of basic systems: rapidly developing central nervous system and the digestive system

  11. Abdominal aortic aneurysm development in men following a "normal" aortic ultrasound scan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hafez, H; Druce, P S; Ashton, H A

    2008-11-01

    To determine predictors related to abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) development following a "normal" aortic ultrasound scan. Over a 23-year period, 22 961 men participated in an AAA screening programme. Maximum aortic diameter of less than 30 mm was deemed "normal". 4308 of these "normal" individuals were later re-scanned at intervals for research purposes. AAA prevalence was 4.4% at initial scanning. In those with a normal scan, 46 patients subsequently presented with AAAs incidentally detected and 120 (2.8%) had AAAs identified as part of the ongoing surveillance. The median initial aortic size of these 166 men was 25 mm (range 15-29 mm). Over the follow-up period, there have been 24 (14%) AAA-related deaths, 24 patients underwent successful AAA surgery and 36 died of unrelated causes. In those with an initial aortic diameter of <25 mm who later developed an AAA, the odds ratio for AAA-related mortality was 2 (95% CI 1-4.1, p=0.03, x(2)). AAAs can develop following an initial "normal" scan and men with an aortic diameters of 25-29 mm appear to be at greater risk. Surveillance for this sub-group may further reduce the incidence of undiagnosed AAA and AAA-related mortality.

  12. {sup 18}F-FDG PET and MRS of the early stages of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis in a child with a normal initial MRI

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Seo, Yeong-Seon; Jung, Da-Eun [Ajou University School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Suwon, Kyungki-do (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Ho-Sung [Ajou University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Suwon, Kyungki-do (Korea, Republic of)

    2010-11-15

    In subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), conventional MRI findings have been reported. However, in the early clinical stages, imaging studies can appear normal. Moreover, with no history of infant measles infection, the diagnosis of SSPE can only be arrived at after extensive investigation that must eliminate a number of neurodegenerative diseases. We report here on {sup 18} F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ({sup 18}F-FDG PET) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) findings in a 14-year-old girl with a normal initial MRI who had not contracted measles. Although {sup 18} F-FDG PET and MRS are not specific or diagnostic for SSPE, these techniques can demonstrate substantial metabolic impairments when MRI findings show no obvious abnormalities, as is often the case in the early stages of this disease. (orig.)

  13. 'Beyond Milestones': a randomised controlled trial evaluating an innovative digital resource teaching quality observation of normal child development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Connolly, Anne M; Cunningham, Clare; Sinclair, Adriane J; Rao, Arjun; Lonergan, Amy; Bye, Ann M E

    2014-05-01

    The study aimed to create and evaluate the educational effectiveness of a digital resource instructing paediatric trainees in a systematic approach to critical and quality observation of normal child development. A digital educational resource was developed utilising the skills of an expert developmental paediatrician who was videoed assessing normal early child development at a series of critical stages. Videos illustrated aspects of language, sophistication of play and socialisation, cognition, and motor progress. Expert commentary, teaching text and summaries were used. A randomised controlled trial evaluated the resource. Paediatric trainees were recruited from The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network. Outcome measures were repeated at three time points (pre-teaching, immediate-post and 1 month) and included self-rated attitudes, knowledge of markers of development and observational expertise. Qualitative data on teaching usefulness were obtained through open-ended questions. Fifty-six paediatric trainees (registrar 79%, women 82%; mean age 31 years) completed the pre-assessment, 46 the immediate-post and 45 the 1-month follow-up (20% attrition). Compared with the Control group, the Teaching group scored higher over time on markers of development (P = 0.006), observational expertise (P improves knowledge, increases confidence and is useful, providing a structured approach to developmental assessment. The techniques taught can be applied to every paediatric consultation. © 2013 The Authors. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health © 2013 Paediatrics and Child Health Division (Royal Australasian College of Physicians).

  14. Recent psychological explanations of infant development and scales of early mental development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maja Zupančič

    2002-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper reviews early infant measures based on standardised scales of development – both traditional ones and those based on Piaget's sensory-motor theory – and assesses their validity in predicting later mental development. The extremely low predictive power of test scores based on these measures in infancy has provided additional support for discontinuity theories of mental development from infancy to childhood. Conversely, the constructs implicit in earlier measures have been thoroughly criticised, and the search for valid measures of infant development that would reflect a construct similar to mental abilities in childhood has begun. At the outset, research was mostly influenced by the information processing theory. Two broad measures of information processing have been shown to be the most relevant indicators of an infant's mental development, namely habituation and dishabituation. Recent mental scales, such as the Bayley Scales of Infant Development-II, thus include items that measure the efficiency of an infant's information processing. Examples of such items are presented and interpreted, as are items reflecting the development of object permanence, the only early sensory-motor measure that shows better predictive effectiveness when compared to traditional developmental test scores. Several newly-developed indicators of infants' mental development, which utilize other measures than those derived from the information-processing approach, are surveyed (understanding causal relations, joint attention behaviours, representation of number, and their possible application within the context of potential items for early mental scales is discussed. Finally, the Bayley Scales of Infant Development-II, currently one of the best measures of early development, and presently undergoing a standardisation procedure in Slovenia, is evaluated, with analyses of some items from the Mental scale presented within the text.

  15. Developments in early intervention for psychosis in Hong Kong.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, G H Y; Hui, C L M; Wong, D Y; Tang, J Y M; Chang, W C; Chan, S K W; Lee, E H M; Xu, J Q; Lin, J J X; Lai, D C; Tam, W; Kok, J; Chung, D W S; Hung, S F; Chen, E Y H

    2012-09-01

    The year 2011 marked the 10-year milestone of early intervention for psychosis in Hong Kong. Since 2001, the landscape of early psychosis services has changed markedly in Hong Kong. Substantial progress has been made in the areas of early intervention service implementation, knowledge generation, and public awareness promotion. Favourable outcomes attributable to the early intervention service are supported by solid evidence from local clinical research studies; early intervention service users showed improved functioning, ameliorated symptoms, and decreased hospitalisation and suicide rates. Continued development of early intervention in Hong Kong over the decade includes the introduction and maturation of several key platforms, such as the Hospital Authority Early Assessment Service for Young People with Psychosis programme, the Psychosis Studies and Intervention Unit by the University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Early Psychosis Intervention Society, the Jockey Club Early Psychosis Project, and the postgraduate Psychological Medicine (Psychosis Studies) programme. In this paper, we reviewed some of the major milestones in local service development with reference to features of the Hong Kong mental health system. We describe chronologically the implementation and consolidation of public early intervention services as well as recent progresses in public awareness work that are tied in with knowledge generation and transfer, and outline the prospects for early intervention in the next decade and those that follow.

  16. Early radiation changes of normal dog brain following internal and external brain irradiation: A preliminary report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chin, H.; Maruyama, Y.; Markesbery, W.; Goldstein, S.; Wang, P.; Tibbs, P.; Young, B.; Feola, J.; Beach, L.

    1984-01-01

    To examine radiation-induced changes in the normal brain, internal or external radiation was given to normal dog brain. Seven medium-sized dogs were used in this study. Two dogs were controls and an ice-pick (plastic implant applicator) was placed in the right frontal lobe for about 5 hours but no irradiation. Two dogs underwent Cs-137 brain implantation for 4 and 5 hours, respectively using an ice-pick technique. Two dogs were given internal neutron irradiation using the same technique of intracerebral ice-pick brachytherapy. One dog received an external photon irradiation using 6-Mev Linear Accelerator. Postmortem microscopic examination was made to study the early cerebral changes to irradiation in three dogs: one control with no irradiation; one received intracerebral Cesium implantation; and one external photon irradiation. Vascular change was the most prominent microscopic finding. There were hemorrhage, endothelial proliferation and fibrinoid changes of small vessel wall. Most of the changes were localized in the white matter and the cortex remained intact. Details (CT, NMR and histological studies) are discussed

  17. Development of Water Resources Drought Early Warning System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, B. P. T.; Chen, C. H.

    2017-12-01

    Signs of impending drought are often vague and result from hydrologic uncertainty. Because of this, determining the appropriate time to enforce water supply restrictions is difficult. This study proposes a drought early warning index (DEWI) that can help water resource managers to anticipate droughts so that preparations can be made to mitigate the impact of water shortages. This study employs the expected-deficit-rate of normal water supply conditions as the drought early warning index. An annual-use-reservoir-based water supply system in southern Taiwan was selected as the case study. The water supply simulation was based on reservoir storage at the evaluation time and the reservoir inflow series to cope with the actual water supply process until the end of the hydrologic year. A variety of deficits could be realized during different hydrologic years of records and assumptions of initial reservoir storage. These deficits are illustrated using the Average Shortage Rate (ASR) and the value of the ASR, namely the DEWI. The ASR is divided into 5 levels according to 5 deficit-tolerance combinations of each kind of annual demand. A linear regression model and a Neuro-Fuzzy Computing Technique model were employed to estimate the DEWI using selected factors deduced from supply-demand traits and available information, including: rainfall, reservoir inflow and storage data. The chosen methods mentioned above are used to explain a significant index is useful for both model development and decision making. Tests in the Tsengwen-Wushantou reservoir system showed this DEWI to perform very well in adopting the proper mitigation policy at the end of the wet season.

  18. Parental Obesity and Early Childhood Development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeung, Edwina H; Sundaram, Rajeshwari; Ghassabian, Akhgar; Xie, Yunlong; Buck Louis, Germaine

    2017-02-01

    Previous studies identified associations between maternal obesity and childhood neurodevelopment, but few examined paternal obesity despite potentially distinct genetic/epigenetic effects related to developmental programming. Upstate KIDS (2008-2010) recruited mothers from New York State (excluding New York City) at ∼4 months postpartum. Parents completed the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) when their children were 4, 8, 12, 18, 24, 30, and 36 months of age corrected for gestation. The ASQ is validated to screen for delays in 5 developmental domains (ie, fine motor, gross motor, communication, personal-social functioning, and problem-solving ability). Analyses included 3759 singletons and 1062 nonrelated twins with ≥1 ASQs returned. Adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals were estimated by using generalized linear mixed models accounting for maternal covariates (ie, age, race, education, insurance, marital status, parity, and pregnancy smoking). Compared with normal/underweight mothers (BMI obese mothers (26% with BMI ≥30) had increased odds of failing the fine motor domain (aOR 1.67; confidence interval 1.12-2.47). The association remained after additional adjustment for paternal BMI (1.67; 1.11-2.52). Paternal obesity (29%) was associated with increased risk of failing the personal-social domain (1.75; 1.13-2.71), albeit attenuated after adjustment for maternal obesity (aOR 1.71; 1.08-2.70). Children whose parents both had BMI ≥35 were likely to additionally fail the problem-solving domain (2.93; 1.09-7.85). Findings suggest that maternal and paternal obesity are each associated with specific delays in early childhood development, emphasizing the importance of family information when screening child development. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  19. Early childhood development: impact of national human development, family poverty, parenting practices and access to early childhood education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tran, T D; Luchters, S; Fisher, J

    2017-05-01

    This study was to describe and quantify the relationships among family poverty, parents' caregiving practices, access to education and the development of children living in low- and middle-income countries (LAMIC). We conducted a secondary analysis of data collected in UNICEF's Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS). Early childhood development was assessed in four domains: language-cognitive, physical, socio-emotional and approaches to learning. Countries were classified into three groups on the basis of the Human Development Index (HDI). Overall, data from 97 731 children aged 36 to 59 months from 35 LAMIC were included in the after analyses. The mean child development scale score was 4.93 out of a maximum score of 10 (95%CI 4.90 to 4.97) in low-HDI countries and 7.08 (95%CI 7.05 to 7.12) in high-HDI countries. Family poverty was associated with lower child development scores in all countries. The total indirect effect of family poverty on child development score via attending early childhood education, care for the child at home and use of harsh punishments at home was -0.13 SD (77.8% of the total effect) in low-HDI countries, -0.09 SD (23.8% of the total effect) in medium-HDI countries and -0.02 SD (6.9% of the total effect) in high-HDI countries. Children in the most disadvantaged position in their societies and children living in low-HDI countries are at the greatest risk of failing to reach their developmental potential. Optimizing care for child development at home is essential to reduce the adverse effects of poverty on children's early development and subsequent life. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. Superconducting proximity effect in mesoscopic superconductor/normal-metal junctions

    CERN Document Server

    Takayanagi, H; Toyoda, E

    1999-01-01

    The superconducting proximity effect is discussed in mesoscopic superconductor/normal-metal junctions. The newly-developed theory shows long-range phase-coherent effect which explaines early experimental results of giant magnetoresistance oscillations in an Andreev interferometer. The theory also shows that the proximity correction to the conductance (PCC) has a reentrant behavior as a function of energy. The reentrant behavior is systematically studied in a gated superconductor-semiconductor junction. A negative PCC is observed in the case of a weak coupling between the normal metal and the external reservoir. Phase coherent ac effect is also observed when rf is irradiated to the junction.

  1. Early childhood development coming of age: science through the life course.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Black, Maureen M; Walker, Susan P; Fernald, Lia C H; Andersen, Christopher T; DiGirolamo, Ann M; Lu, Chunling; McCoy, Dana C; Fink, Günther; Shawar, Yusra R; Shiffman, Jeremy; Devercelli, Amanda E; Wodon, Quentin T; Vargas-Barón, Emily; Grantham-McGregor, Sally

    2017-01-07

    Early childhood development programmes vary in coordination and quality, with inadequate and inequitable access, especially for children younger than 3 years. New estimates, based on proxy measures of stunting and poverty, indicate that 250 million children (43%) younger than 5 years in low-income and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential. There is therefore an urgent need to increase multisectoral coverage of quality programming that incorporates health, nutrition, security and safety, responsive caregiving, and early learning. Equitable early childhood policies and programmes are crucial for meeting Sustainable Development Goals, and for children to develop the intellectual skills, creativity, and wellbeing required to become healthy and productive adults. In this paper, the first in a three part Series on early childhood development, we examine recent scientific progress and global commitments to early childhood development. Research, programmes, and policies have advanced substantially since 2000, with new neuroscientific evidence linking early adversity and nurturing care with brain development and function throughout the life course. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Assessing Home Environment for Early Child Development in Pakistan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nadeem, Sanober; Rafique, Ghazala; Khowaja, Liaquat; Yameen, Anjum

    2014-01-01

    Family environment plays a very important role in early child development and the availability of stimulating material in the early years of a child's life is crucial for optimising development. The Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) inventory is one of the most widely used measures to assess the quality and quantity of…

  3. Plasticity during Early Brain Development Is Determined by Ontogenetic Potential.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krägeloh-Mann, Ingeborg; Lidzba, Karen; Pavlova, Marina A; Wilke, Marko; Staudt, Martin

    2017-04-01

    Two competing hypotheses address neuroplasticity during early brain development: the "Kennard principle" describes the compensatory capacities of the immature developing CNS as superior to those of the adult brain, whereas the "Hebb principle" argues that the young brain is especially sensitive to insults. We provide evidence that these principles are not mutually exclusive. Following early brain lesions that are unilateral, the brain can refer to homotopic areas of the healthy hemisphere. This potential for reorganization is unique to the young brain but available only when, during ontogenesis of brain development, these areas have been used for the functions addressed. With respect to motor function, ipsilateral motor tracts can be recruited, which are only available during early brain development. Language can be reorganized to the right after early left hemispheric lesions, as the representation of the language network is initially bilateral. However, even in these situations, compensatory capacities of the developing brain are found to have limitations, probably defined by early determinants. Thus, plasticity and adaptivity are seen only within ontogenetic potential; that is, axonal or cortical structures cannot be recruited beyond early developmental possibilities. The young brain is probably more sensitive and vulnerable to lesions when these are bilateral. This is shown here for bilateral periventricular white matter lesions that clearly have an impact on cortical architecture and function, thus probably interfering with early network building. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  4. Early Speech Motor Development: Cognitive and Linguistic Considerations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nip, Ignatius S. B.; Green, Jordan R.; Marx, David B.

    2009-01-01

    This longitudinal investigation examines developmental changes in orofacial movements occurring during the early stages of communication development. The goals were to identify developmental trends in early speech motor performance and to determine how these trends differ across orofacial behaviors thought to vary in cognitive and linguistic…

  5. Normal skeletal development and imaging pitfalls of the calcaneal apophysis: MRI features

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rossi, Ignacio [Musculoskeletal Research Fellow at NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY (United States); Centro de Diagnostico Dr. Enrique Rossi, Buenos Aires (Argentina); Rosenberg, Zehava [NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY (United States); Zember, Jonathan [Albert Einstein College of Medicine Jacobi Medical Center, Bronx, NY (United States)

    2016-04-15

    Heel pain in children and secondary MR imaging (MRI) of the hindfoot have been increasing in incidence. Our purpose is to illustrate the, previously unreported, MRI stages in development of the posterior calcaneal apophysis, with attention to imaging pitfalls. This should aid in distinguishing normal growth from true disease. Consecutive ankle MRIs in children <18 years, from 2008-2014, were subdivided into 0≤5, 5≤10, 10≤15 and 15≤18 age groups and retrospectively reviewed for development of the calcaneal apophysis. 204 ankle MRI studies in 188 children were identified. 40 studies were excluded with final cohort of 164 studies in 154 patients (82 boys, 72 girls). The calcaneal apophysis was cartilaginous until age 5. Foci of decreased as well as increased signal were embedded in cartilage, prior to ossification. Early, secondary ossification centers appeared in plantar third of the apophysis in 100 % of children by age 7. Increased T2 signal in the ossifications was seen in 30 % of children. Apohyseal fusion began at 12 and was complete in 78 % of 14≤15 year olds and in 88 % of 15≤18 year olds. Curvilinear low signal in the ossification centers, paralleling, but distinguished from growth plate, and not be confused with fracture line, was common. Development of the posterior calcaneus follows a unique sequence. Apophyseal fusion occurs earlier than reported in the literature. Familiarity with this maturation pattern, in particular the apophyseal increased T2 signal and the linear low signal paralleling the growth plate, will avoid misinterpreting it for pathology. (orig.)

  6. Normal skeletal development and imaging pitfalls of the calcaneal apophysis: MRI features

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rossi, Ignacio; Rosenberg, Zehava; Zember, Jonathan

    2016-01-01

    Heel pain in children and secondary MR imaging (MRI) of the hindfoot have been increasing in incidence. Our purpose is to illustrate the, previously unreported, MRI stages in development of the posterior calcaneal apophysis, with attention to imaging pitfalls. This should aid in distinguishing normal growth from true disease. Consecutive ankle MRIs in children <18 years, from 2008-2014, were subdivided into 0≤5, 5≤10, 10≤15 and 15≤18 age groups and retrospectively reviewed for development of the calcaneal apophysis. 204 ankle MRI studies in 188 children were identified. 40 studies were excluded with final cohort of 164 studies in 154 patients (82 boys, 72 girls). The calcaneal apophysis was cartilaginous until age 5. Foci of decreased as well as increased signal were embedded in cartilage, prior to ossification. Early, secondary ossification centers appeared in plantar third of the apophysis in 100 % of children by age 7. Increased T2 signal in the ossifications was seen in 30 % of children. Apohyseal fusion began at 12 and was complete in 78 % of 14≤15 year olds and in 88 % of 15≤18 year olds. Curvilinear low signal in the ossification centers, paralleling, but distinguished from growth plate, and not be confused with fracture line, was common. Development of the posterior calcaneus follows a unique sequence. Apophyseal fusion occurs earlier than reported in the literature. Familiarity with this maturation pattern, in particular the apophyseal increased T2 signal and the linear low signal paralleling the growth plate, will avoid misinterpreting it for pathology. (orig.)

  7. Understanding minds: early cochlear implantation and the development of theory of mind in children with profound hearing impairment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sundqvist, Annette; Lyxell, Björn; Jönsson, Radoslava; Heimann, Mikael

    2014-03-01

    The present study investigates how auditory stimulation from cochlear implants (CI) is associated with the development of Theory of Mind (ToM) in severely and profoundly hearing impaired children with hearing parents. Previous research has shown that deaf children of hearing parents have a delayed ToM development. This is, however, not always the case with deaf children of deaf parents, who presumably are immersed in a more vivid signing environment. Sixteen children with CI (4.25 to 9.5 years of age) were tested on measures of cognitive and emotional ToM, language and cognition. Eight of the children received their first implant relatively early (before 27 months) and half of them late (after 27 months). The two groups did not differ in age, gender, language or cognition at entry of the study. ToM tests included the unexpected location task and a newly developed Swedish social-emotional ToM test. The tests aimed to test both cognitive and emotional ToM. A comparison group of typically developing hearing age matched children was also added (n=18). Compared to the comparison group, the early CI-group did not differ in emotional ToM. The late CI-group differed significantly from the comparison group on both the cognitive and emotional ToM tests. The results revealed that children with early cochlear implants solved ToM problems to a significantly higher degree than children with late implants, although the groups did not differ on language or cognitive measures at baseline. The outcome suggests that early cochlear implantation for deaf children in hearing families, in conjunction with early social and communicative stimulation in a language that is native to the parents, can provide a foundation for a more normalized ToM development. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Arrested development: early prefrontal lesions impair the maturation of moral judgement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taber-Thomas, Bradley C; Asp, Erik W; Koenigs, Michael; Sutterer, Matthew; Anderson, Steven W; Tranel, Daniel

    2014-04-01

    Learning to make moral judgements based on considerations beyond self-interest is a fundamental aspect of moral development. A deficit in such learning is associated with poor socialization and criminal behaviour. The neural systems required for the acquisition and maturation of moral competency are not well understood. Here we show in a unique sample of neurological patients that focal lesions involving ventromedial prefrontal cortex, acquired during development, result in an abnormally egocentric pattern of moral judgement. In response to simple hypothetical moral scenarios, the patients were more likely than comparison participants to endorse self-interested actions that involved breaking moral rules or physically harming others in order to benefit themselves. This pattern (which we also found in subjects with psychopathy) differs from that of patients with adult-onset ventromedial prefrontal cortex lesions--the latter group showed normal rejection of egocentric rule violations. This novel contrast of patients with ventromedial prefrontal cortex lesions acquired during development versus during adulthood yields new evidence suggesting that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex is a critical neural substrate for the acquisition and maturation of moral competency that goes beyond self-interest to consider the welfare of others. Disruption to this affective neural system early in life interrupts moral development.

  9. Hepatocyte nuclear factor 1-alpha mutation in normal glucose-tolerant subjects and early-onset type 2 diabetic patients

    OpenAIRE

    Lim, Dong Mee; Huh, Nam; Park, Keun Yong

    2008-01-01

    Background/Aims The prevalence of diabetes in Korea is reported to be approximately 10%, but cases of maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) are rare in Korea. A diagnostic technique for autosomal dominant MODY is being actively sought. In this regard, we used a DNA chip to investigate the frequency of mutations of the MODY3 gene (hepatocyte nuclear factor-1?) in Korean patients with early-onset type 2 diabetes. Methods The genomic DNA of 30 normal individuals [age, 24.9?8.6 years] and 2...

  10. Visual Memories Bypass Normalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloem, Ilona M; Watanabe, Yurika L; Kibbe, Melissa M; Ling, Sam

    2018-05-01

    How distinct are visual memory representations from visual perception? Although evidence suggests that briefly remembered stimuli are represented within early visual cortices, the degree to which these memory traces resemble true visual representations remains something of a mystery. Here, we tested whether both visual memory and perception succumb to a seemingly ubiquitous neural computation: normalization. Observers were asked to remember the contrast of visual stimuli, which were pitted against each other to promote normalization either in perception or in visual memory. Our results revealed robust normalization between visual representations in perception, yet no signature of normalization occurring between working memory stores-neither between representations in memory nor between memory representations and visual inputs. These results provide unique insight into the nature of visual memory representations, illustrating that visual memory representations follow a different set of computational rules, bypassing normalization, a canonical visual computation.

  11. Early Brain and Child Development: Connections to Early Education and Child Care

    Science.gov (United States)

    Romano, Judith T.

    2013-01-01

    The vast majority of young children spend time in settings outside of the home, and the nature of those settings directly impacts the child's health and development. The ecobiodevelopmental framework of early brain and child development serve as the backdrop for establishing quality. This article describes the use of quality rating systems,…

  12. Developmental changes in visuo-spatial working memory in normally developing children: event-related potentials study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myatchin, Ivan; Lagae, Lieven

    2013-10-01

    Working memory (WM) is very important for normal development. The fronto-parietal neuronal network supporting WM has already been well-studied. Less is known about the cortical activity changes during development of WM. We evaluated the maturation of visual WM network at the electrophysiological level in a group of normally developing children. Multichannel (n=31) event-related potentials (ERP) were measured during a visuo-spatial backmatching task in 69 childrens (6-16 years old). One-backmatching (BM1) and two-backmatching (BM2) tasks were performed. Age-related changes in behavioral parameters (commission and omission errors and reaction times) and ERP parameters (peak amplitudes and latencies) were analyzed between different ages. Clear improvement in performance from young childhood toward adolescence was seen at the behavioral level: decrease of errors and fastening of reaction times. At the electrophysiological level age-related changes were seen in peak latencies and especially in amplitudes. Different peaks have different dynamics in amplitudes and latencies: early peak amplitude decreased and latency shortened with age, which was not always seen in late peaks. This reflects developmental changes in intensity and speed of WM processing. Later peaks were more clearly seen over the right hemisphere in older children, illustrating hemispheric lateralization in visuo-spatial working memory. Our results indicate that not only at the behavioral but also at the electrophysiological level clear age-related dynamics in WM processing can be seen. Furthermore, with ERP we showed that different WM components follow different developmental trajectories. Our work demonstrates that age-related dynamics in intensity and speed of information processing during WM task is reflected in developmental changes in different ERP components. It also states that fronto-parietal visual WM network can be functional even before all its nodes are fully mature. Copyright © 2012 The

  13. Emotion processes in normal and abnormal development and preventive intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Izard, Carroll E; Fine, Sarah; Mostow, Allison; Trentacosta, Christopher; Campbell, Jan

    2002-01-01

    We present an analysis of the role of emotions in normal and abnormal development and preventive intervention. The conceptual framework stems from three tenets of differential emotions theory (DET). These principles concern the constructs of emotion utilization; intersystem connections among modular emotion systems, cognition, and action; and the organizational and motivational functions of discrete emotions. Particular emotions and patterns of emotions function differentially in different periods of development and in influencing the cognition and behavior associated with different forms of psychopathology. Established prevention programs have not emphasized the concept of emotion as motivation. It is even more critical that they have generally neglected the idea of modulating emotions, not simply to achieve self-regulation, but also to utilize their inherently adaptive functions as a means of facilitating the development of social competence and preventing psychopathology. The paper includes a brief description of a theory-based prevention program and suggestions for complementary targeted interventions to address specific externalizing and internalizing problems. In the final section, we describe ways in which emotion-centered preventions can provide excellent opportunities for research on the development of normal and abnormal behavior.

  14. The development of functional network organization in early childhood and early adolescence: A resting-state fNIRS study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lin Cai

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Early childhood (7–8 years old and early adolescence (11–12 years old constitute two landmark developmental stages that comprise considerable changes in neural cognition. However, very limited information from functional neuroimaging studies exists on the functional topological configuration of the human brain during specific developmental periods. In the present study, we utilized continuous resting-state functional near-infrared spectroscopy (rs-fNIRS imaging data to examine topological changes in network organization during development from early childhood and early adolescence to adulthood. Our results showed that the properties of small-worldness and modularity were not significantly different across development, demonstrating the developmental maturity of important functional brain organization in early childhood. Intriguingly, young children had a significantly lower global efficiency than early adolescents and adults, which revealed that the integration of the distributed networks strengthens across the developmental stages underlying cognitive development. Moreover, local efficiency of young children and adolescents was significantly lower than that of adults, while there was no difference between these two younger groups. This finding demonstrated that functional segregation remained relatively steady from early childhood to early adolescence, and the brain in these developmental periods possesses no optimal network configuration. Furthermore, we found heterogeneous developmental patterns in the regional nodal properties in various brain regions, such as linear increased nodal properties in the frontal cortex, indicating increasing cognitive capacity over development. Collectively, our results demonstrated that significant topological changes in functional network organization occurred during these two critical developmental stages, and provided a novel insight into elucidating subtle changes in brain functional networks across

  15. Parents' Role in the Early Head Start Children's Language Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Griswold, Cecelia Smalls

    2014-01-01

    The development of language during a child's early years has been linked to parental involvement. While Early Head Start (EHS) researchers have theorized that parental involvement is an important factor in language development, there has been little research on how parents view their roles in the language development process. The purpose of this…

  16. Early Alzheimer-type lesions in cognitively normal subjects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsartsalis, Stergios; Xekardaki, Aikaterini; Hof, Patrick R; Kövari, Enikö; Bouras, Constantin

    2018-02-01

    Amyloid deposits and tau-immunoreactive neurofibrillary tangles, together with neuronal and synaptic loss, are the neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Both proteins are present in the normal brain during aging. However, the temporal sequence of their involvement in the onset of AD pathology remains controversial. To define whether amyloid β protein deposits or tau protein lesions appear first during normal brain aging, we performed an immunohistological study on serial sections from 105 autopsy brains (age range: 40-104 years) from patients free of clinical signs of cognitive decline, using anti-tau (AT8) and anti-amyloid (4G8) antibodies in the hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, inferior temporal cortex (Brodmann area 20), prefrontal cortex (Brodmann area 9), occipital cortex (Brodmann areas 17 and 18), and in the brainstem. All cases older than 48 years displayed at least a few neurofibrillary tangles, which appeared more frequently in the entorhinal than in the transentorhinal cortex. Tau pathology in these areas preceded tau inclusions in the brainstem. Furthermore, the first site of the apparition of tau pathology is inconsistent, being the entorhinal cortex in most cases, and in fewer cases, the transentorhinal region. There was no case presenting with amyloid deposition in the absence of neurofibrillary tangles, lending evidence to the fact that neurofibrillary tangles appear earlier than amyloid plaques during normal brain aging. However, the role of amyloid in promoting tau deposition cannot be excluded in some cases but may not represent the sole mechanism of disease induction and progression. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. DISTURBANCE OF NORMAL MOTOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIRST YEAR OF LIFE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lidija Dimitrijević

    2005-07-01

    Full Text Available The adoption of the basic motor skills in the first year of life (postural head control, lateral transfers into a lying position, sitting, standing, walking, crawling, grasping... goes on quite spontaneously. A child learns all the motor actions by itself and that is why it is not necessary to “teach” a child to seat, grasp, stand, walk... Teaching a child the basic motor skills stands for a rough, unnecessary and undesirable involvement into spontaneous motor development, and, due to this, the normal adoption of motor skills is slowed down. For the normal motor development, children do not need helping devices (baby buggy, baby jump.... Helping devices suppress in children their natural urge to walk, complicate its development and may have harmful effects like equinus feet, deformed feet and spine and so on.

  18. Expressive vocabulary of children with normal and deviant phonological development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Athayde, Marcia de Lima; Mota, Helena Bolli; Mezzomo, Carolina Lisbôa

    2010-01-01

    expressive vocabulary of children with normal and deviant phonological development. to determine whether alterations presented by children with phonological disorders occur only at the phonological level or if there are any impacts on lexical acquisition; to compare the vocabulary performance of children with phonological disorders to reference values presented by the used test. participants of the study were 36 children of both genders, 14 with phonological disorders (Study group) and 22 with typical language development (Control Group). The ABFW - Vocabulary Test (Befi-Lopes, 2000) was used for assessing the expressive vocabulary of children and later to compare the performance of both groups. the performance of children with phonological disorder in the expressive vocabulary test is similar to that of children with normal phonological development. Most of the children of both groups reached the benchmarks proposed by the test for the different semantic fields. The semantic field Places demonstrated to be the most complex for both groups. the alterations presented by children with phonological disorder area limited to the phonological level, having no impact on the lexical aspect of language.

  19. Lessons from early experience in reactor development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Allen, W.

    1976-09-01

    This paper deals with several issues in U.S. reactor development and demonstration experience. The focus is on the period between 1946 and 1963 during which the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) guided early reactor research and development (R and D) and conducted the Power Reactor Demonstration Program

  20. Feasibility of an Online Professional Development Program for Early Intervention Practitioners

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kyzar, Kathleen B.; Chiu, Caya; Kemp, Peggy; Aldersey, Heather Michelle; Turnbull, Ann P.; Lindeman, David P.

    2014-01-01

    This article reports findings from 2 studies situated within a larger scope of design research on a professional development program, "Early Years," for Part C early intervention practitioners, working with families in home and community settings. Early Years includes online modules and onsite mentor coaching, and its development has…

  1. Role of mother’s perceptions on their child development on early detection of developmental deviation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pudji Andayani

    2006-10-01

    Full Text Available This report aimed to assess mothers’ perceptions on normal and deviation of development in their children. The study was done in underfive children and their mothers from May 1st 1999 to June 30th 1999 who visited the Nutrition, Growth & Development Clinic of the Child Health Department, Sanglah Hospital, Denpasar. A total of 76 children between 2 and 59 months of age and their mothers were enrolled. Data were collected by interview with mothers concerning the following items: perception of their children development, age of child, sex, mother’s education, mother’s job, number of sibling, and mother ability in making referral decisions. Denver II screening test was administered to each child to identify of development status as a gold standard. Sixteen (21% children was identified as having developmental deviation (by mother’s perception and 21 (28% by authors using Denver II screening test. The mother’s perception sensitivity was 67% and specificity was 97%. There were no significant differences of development status perception according to child’s age, mother’s education, mother’s job, and number of sibling. Most of mother’s perceptions about normal development were if the body weight increased and had no disability. Most of the sources of information about development was from the relatives. Thirteen of 21 children who had developmental deviation were referred by mothers. We conclude that mother’s perception can be used as early detection of developmental problems. Mother’s concerns of their children growth development had focused on again body weight, physical developmental and gross motor skill.

  2. Alberta Learning: Early Development Instrument Pilot Project Evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meaney, Wanda; Harris-Lorenze, Elayne

    The Early Development Instrument (EDI) was designed by McMaster University to measure the outcomes of childrens early years as they influence their readiness to learn at school. The EDI was piloted in several Canadian cities in recent years through two national initiatives. Building on these initiatives, Alberta Learning piloted the EDI as a…

  3. Left Hemisphere Regions Are Critical for Language in the Face of Early Left Focal Brain Injury

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beharelle, Anjali Raja; Dick, Anthony Steven; Josse, Goulven; Solodkin, Ana; Huttenlocher, Peter R.; Levine, Susan C.; Small, Steven L.

    2010-01-01

    A predominant theory regarding early stroke and its effect on language development, is that early left hemisphere lesions trigger compensatory processes that allow the right hemisphere to assume dominant language functions, and this is thought to underlie the near normal language development observed after early stroke. To test this theory, we…

  4. Promoting equity through integrated early child development and nutrition interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Black, Maureen M; Dewey, Kathryn G

    2014-01-01

    Sustainable development, a foundation of the post-2015 global agenda, depends on healthy and productive citizens. The origins of adult health begin early in life, stemming from genetic-environmental interactions that include adequate nutrition and opportunities for responsive learning. Inequities associated with inadequate nutrition and early learning opportunities can undermine children's health and development, thereby compromising their productivity and societal contributions. Transactional theory serves as a useful framework for examining the associations that link early child development and nutrition because it emphasizes the interplay that occurs between children and the environment, mediated through caregiver interactions. Although single interventions targeting early child development or nutrition can be effective, there is limited evidence on the development, implementation, evaluation, and scaling up of integrated interventions. This manuscript introduces a special edition of papers on six topics central to integrated child development/nutrition interventions: (1) review of integrated interventions; (2) methods and topics in designing integrated interventions; (3) economic considerations related to integrated interventions; (4) capacity-building considerations; (5) examples of integrated interventions; and (6) policy implications of integrated interventions. Ensuring the health and development of infants and young children through integrated child development/nutrition interventions promotes equity, a critical component of sustainable development. © 2014 New York Academy of Sciences.

  5. Developing the quality of early childhood mentoring institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sri Hartini

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The study was to uncover the concept of quality improvement, the supporting and the inhibiting factors within the quality improve and the quality improvement in the early childhood mentoring institutions/kindergarten. The study was a qualitative research. The subjects in the study were kindergarten principals, kindergarten teachers and parents. The data were gathered by means of observation, interview and documentation. For the data analysis, the researcher selected the qualitative descriptive data analysis method. The results of the study were as follows. First, the concept of educational quality improvement in the early childhood mentoring institutions/ kindergarten has been improveed from the vision, the mission and the objectives and the concept includes the aspects of planning, process and output which has synergy from one to another. The planning has been formulated in the curriculum, the syllabus and the daily activity plan. Second, the approach, the strategy and the technique of quality improvement has maximized the well-qualified schools’ resources, have been supported by the sufficient facilities and have been funded by the sufficient budget. Third, the supporting factors within the quality improvement of early childhood mentoring institutions/kindergarten have been the increasing awareness within the society toward the significance of early childhood mentoring institutions, the massive socialization conducted by the Office of Education through the provision of training programs in relation to the early childhood mentoring institution/kindergarten management and the human resources empowerment toward developing the quality of early childhood mentoring institutions. Fourth, the inhibiting factors within the quality improvement of early childhood mentoring institutions have been the lack of society care and participation, the less quality human resources that early childhood mentoring institutions have, the fund limitation, the

  6. Characterization of peanut phytochromes and their possible regulating roles in early peanut pod development.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ye Zhang

    Full Text Available Arachis hypogaea L. geocarpy is a unique feature different from other legume plants. Flowering and fertilization occur above ground, while the following processes of pod formation and development proceed in the soil. The zygote divides only few times to develop into pre-embryo and then further embryo developmental process stops when the gynoecium is exposed to light condition or normal day/night period. In this study, eight phytochrome genes were identified in two wild peanuts (four in Arachis duranensis and four in Arachis ipaensis. Using RACE and homologous cloning, the full CDS of AhphyA, AhphyA-like, AhphyB and AhphyE were acquired in cultivated peanut. Protein structure analysis showed that the conservative coding domains of phytochromes from a number of other plant species were found in these proteins. The C-terminal of AhphyA, AhphyA-like and AhphyB could interact with phytochrome-interacting factor 3 in vitro. The expression patterns of these genes in various tissues were analyzed by qRT-PCR, and significant differences were observed. Interestingly, the expression levels of AhphyA-like changed significantly during gynophore growth and early pod development. Furthermore, protein accumulation patterns of AhphyA and AhphyB in gynophore were different during early pod development stages in that AhphyA and AhphyB proteins were not detected in S1 and S2 gynophores, while significant accumulation of AhphyA and AhphyB were detected in S3 gynophore. These results provided evidence that phytochromes mediated light signal transduction may play key roles in peanut geocarpy development.

  7. The development of functional network organization in early childhood and early adolescence: A resting-state fNIRS study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cai, Lin; Dong, Qi; Niu, Haijing

    2018-04-01

    Early childhood (7-8 years old) and early adolescence (11-12 years old) constitute two landmark developmental stages that comprise considerable changes in neural cognition. However, very limited information from functional neuroimaging studies exists on the functional topological configuration of the human brain during specific developmental periods. In the present study, we utilized continuous resting-state functional near-infrared spectroscopy (rs-fNIRS) imaging data to examine topological changes in network organization during development from early childhood and early adolescence to adulthood. Our results showed that the properties of small-worldness and modularity were not significantly different across development, demonstrating the developmental maturity of important functional brain organization in early childhood. Intriguingly, young children had a significantly lower global efficiency than early adolescents and adults, which revealed that the integration of the distributed networks strengthens across the developmental stages underlying cognitive development. Moreover, local efficiency of young children and adolescents was significantly lower than that of adults, while there was no difference between these two younger groups. This finding demonstrated that functional segregation remained relatively steady from early childhood to early adolescence, and the brain in these developmental periods possesses no optimal network configuration. Furthermore, we found heterogeneous developmental patterns in the regional nodal properties in various brain regions, such as linear increased nodal properties in the frontal cortex, indicating increasing cognitive capacity over development. Collectively, our results demonstrated that significant topological changes in functional network organization occurred during these two critical developmental stages, and provided a novel insight into elucidating subtle changes in brain functional networks across development. Copyright

  8. Early development of the human pelvic diaphragm

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koch, Wijnandus Franciscus Robertus Maria

    2006-01-01

    The last decade an increasing interest in the pelvic floor can be observed in medical sciences. The lack of data on the development of the human pelvic floor is striking. The early development of the human pelvic diaphragm was studied. Materials and methodsUse was made of 38 human embryos and

  9. First-Time Mothers' Knowledge and Beliefs Regarding Early Communication Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, Vicki; Pearce, Wendy M.; Devine, Sue

    2014-01-01

    Limited literature exists in the Australian context about first-time mothers' knowledge of early communication milestones, their strategies to facilitate speech and language development and understanding of the relationship between early communication skills and future development. A cross-sectional online survey was administered to 53 first-time…

  10. Born a bit too early: A study of early planned birth and child development at school age

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jason Bentley

    2017-04-01

    Early (<39 weeks gestation planned birth is associated with an increased risk of poor development in children starting school. Given the timing of planned birth is modifiable, delaying birth for an additional week or more may improve child development. Strategies and interventions to inform more judicious decision making, weighing all the risks and benefits for early planned birth are required to ensure optimal child health and development.

  11. Development of in-situ rock shear test under low compressive to tensile normal stress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nozaki, Takashi; Shin, Koichi

    2003-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to develop an in-situ rock shear testing method to evaluate the shear strength under low normal stress condition including tensile stress, which is usually ignored in the assessment of safety factor of the foundations for nuclear power plants against sliding. The results are as follows. (1) A new in-situ rock shear testing method is devised, in which tensile normal stress can be applied on the shear plane of a specimen by directly pulling up a steel box bonded to the specimen. By applying the counter shear load to cancel the moment induced by the main shear load, it can obtain shear strength under low normal stress. (2) Some model tests on Oya tuff and diatomaceous mudstone have been performed using the developed test method. The shear strength changed smoothly from low values at tensile normal stresses to higher values at compressive normal stresses. The failure criterion has been found to be bi-linear on the shear stress vs normal stress plane. (author)

  12. Overweight and obese infants present lower cognitive and motor development scores than normal-weight peers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Camargos, Ana Cristina Resende; Mendonça, Vanessa Amaral; Andrade, Camila Alves de; Oliveira, Katherine Simone Caires; Lacerda, Ana Cristina Rodrigues

    2016-12-01

    Compare the cognitive and motor development in overweight/obese infants versus normal-weight peers and investigate the correlation of body weight, body length and body mass index with cognitive and motor development. We conducted a cross-sectional study with 28 overweight/obese infants and 28 normal-weight peers between 6 and 24 months of age. Both groups were evaluated with cognitive and motor scales of the Bayley-III infant development test. The t-test for independent samples was performed to compare the groups, and the Spearman correlation was used to verify the association between variables. Overweight/obese infants showed lower cognitive and motor composite scores than their normal-weight peers. A significant negative association was found of body weight and body length with cognitive development and of body mass index with motor development. This is the first study that found an effect on both cognitive and motor development in overweight/obese infants when compared with normal-weight peers between 6 and 24 months of age. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Effects of tracheal occlusion with retinoic acid administration on normal lung development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Delabaere, Amélie; Marceau, Geoffroy; Coste, Karen; Blanchon, Loïc; Déchelotte, Pierre-Jean; Blanc, Pierre; Sapin, Vincent; Gallot, Denis

    2017-05-01

    Tracheal occlusion (TO) is an investigational therapy for severe congenital diaphragmatic hernia that decreases pulmonary hypoplasia, but sustained TO also induces deficient surfactant synthesis. Intramuscular maternal administration of retinoic acid (RA) in a surgical rabbit model of congenital diaphragmatic hernia showed a beneficial effect on lung maturation. We evaluated the potential of RA delivery into the trachea and studied the combined effects of TO and RA on normal lung development. Experiments were performed on normal rabbit fetuses. Liposomes and capric triglyceride (Miglyol ® ), alone and with RA, were administered in the trachea just before TO (d26). Lung morphology and surfactant production were studied at term (d30). Tracheal occlusion increased lung weight and enhanced alveolar development but increased apoptotic activity and decreased surfactant expression. Tracheal injection of RA improved surfactant production to levels of normal controls. We established the potential of liposome and Miglyol as RA vehicle for delivering this bioactive molecule in the fetal airways. Tracheal RA injection seems to oppose the effects of TO in fetuses with normal lungs. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  14. Early development of Chondrus ocellatus holm (Gigartinaceae, Rhodophyta)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Aihua; Wang, Jicheng; Duan, Delin

    2006-06-01

    Chondrus is an economically important red algae widely used for food and biochemical purpose. It early development is crucial for the culture and seedling propagation. We chose tetraspores and carpospores of Chondrus ocellatus as examples for experiment of the culture, induction and release in laboratory condition, aiming to understand early development of C. ocellatus and to apply in seedling production. Mature C. ocellatus were collected in Qingdao, China, from Nov. to Dec. 2004. After the gametophyte and tetrasporophyte were brushed and washed with sterilized seawater, the algal materials were treated in 1.5% KI for 20 min, then were dried for 1h to stimulate the releasing of spores. After the spores released overnight, it were cultured in PES medium, incubated at 18 °C, 10±2 μmol/(m2·s1) in 12∶12h (light: dark). The observation and recording under microscope were carried out. Continuous observation of the early development showed that both tetraspore and carpospore are similar to each other. In general, three stages of the early development were shown being division, discoid crust and seedling stages. To the division stage, the most obvious feature was the increasing of cell number; during the discoid crust stage, the discoid crust had a three-dimensional axis, and it began to differentiate into two types of cells: the basal cells and the apical cells; and to the seedling stage, several protuberances-like appeared on the discoid crusts and formed juvenile seedlings. Carpospores and tetraspores exhibited a similar development process that included division stage, discoid crust stage and seedling stage.

  15. Motor development skills of 1- to 4-year-old Iranian children with early treated phenylketonuria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nazi, Sepideh; Rohani, Farzaneh; Sajedi, Firoozeh; Biglarian, Akbar; Setoodeh, Arya

    2014-01-01

    Objective : To gauge the gross and fine motor development of early treated phenylketonuria (ETPKU) in children in the age range of 1-4 years. Methods : A cross-sectional analytic study was conducted in PKU clinics (reference clinics for PKU follow-up), Tehran, Iran. Seventy children with ETPKU were selected as the case group for the study. ETPKU children were those with early and continuous treatment with a phenylalanine-restricted diet (the mean of blood phenylalanine level during the recent 6 months was 2-6 mg/dL or 120-360 μmol/L). Also, 100 healthy and normal children matched with the ETPKU group for age were randomly selected from 4 kindergartens in four parts of Tehran as a control group. The measurements consisted of a demographic questionnaire, Peabody Developmental Motor Scale-2 (PDMS-2), and pediatrician assessment. Motor quotients were determined by PDMS-2 and then compared in both groups by two independent samples t-test. Results : The mean ages in case and control group were 28.5 (± 11.6) and 29.7 (± 11.3) months, respectively. Comparison of the mean fine, gross, and total developmental motor quotients (DMQs) showed statistically significant differences between the two groups (p fine and total DMQs of ETPKU children were also correlated with age. In addition, there was a negative correlation between the phenylalanine level and fine (p motor development. It is recommended to plan programs for early detection and intervention of developmental delays in these children.

  16. Development of an imaging VUV monochromator in normal incidence region

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Koog, Joong-San

    1996-07-01

    This paper describes a development of the two-dimensional imaging monochromator system. A commercial normal incidence monochromator working on off-Rowland circle mounting is used for this purpose. The imaging is achieved with utilizing the pinhole camera effect created by an entrance slit of limited height. The astigmatism in the normal incidence mounting is small compared with a grazing incidence mount, but has a finite value. The point is that for near normal incidence, the vertical focusing with a concave grating is produced at outside across the exit slit. Therefore, by putting a 2-D detector at the position away from the exit slit ({approx}30 cm), a one-to-one correspondence between the position of a point on the detector and where it originated in the source is accomplished. This paper consists of (1) the principle and development of the imaging monochromator using the off-Rowland mounting, including the 2-D detector system, (2) a computer simulation by ray tracing for investigations of the imaging properties of imaging system, and aberration from the spherical concave grating on the exit slit, (3) the plasma light source (TPD-S) for the test experiments, (4) Performances of the imaging monochromator system on the spatial resolution and sensitivity, and (5) the use of this system for diagnostic studies on the JIPP T-IIU tokamak. (J.P.N.)

  17. Development of an imaging VUV monochromator in normal incidence region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koog, Joong-San.

    1996-07-01

    This paper describes a development of the two-dimensional imaging monochromator system. A commercial normal incidence monochromator working on off-Rowland circle mounting is used for this purpose. The imaging is achieved with utilizing the pinhole camera effect created by an entrance slit of limited height. The astigmatism in the normal incidence mounting is small compared with a grazing incidence mount, but has a finite value. The point is that for near normal incidence, the vertical focusing with a concave grating is produced at outside across the exit slit. Therefore, by putting a 2-D detector at the position away from the exit slit (∼30 cm), a one-to-one correspondence between the position of a point on the detector and where it originated in the source is accomplished. This paper consists of 1) the principle and development of the imaging monochromator using the off-Rowland mounting, including the 2-D detector system, 2) a computer simulation by ray tracing for investigations of the imaging properties of imaging system, and aberration from the spherical concave grating on the exit slit, 3) the plasma light source (TPD-S) for the test experiments, 4) Performances of the imaging monochromator system on the spatial resolution and sensitivity, and 5) the use of this system for diagnostic studies on the JIPP T-IIU tokamak. (J.P.N.)

  18. Early environmental therapy rescues brain development in a mouse model of Down syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Begenisic, Tatjana; Sansevero, Gabriele; Baroncelli, Laura; Cioni, Giovanni; Sale, Alessandro

    2015-10-01

    Down syndrome (DS), the most common genetic disorder associated with intellectual disabilities, is an untreatable condition characterized by a number of developmental defects and permanent deficits in the adulthood. Ts65Dn mice, the major animal model for DS, display severe cognitive and synaptic plasticity defects closely resembling the human phenotype. Here, we employed a multidisciplinary approach to investigate, for the first time in developing Ts65Dn mice, the effects elicited by early environmental enrichment (EE) on brain maturation and function. We report that exposure to EE resulted in a robust increase in maternal care levels displayed by Ts65Dn mothers and led to a normalization of declarative memory abilities and hippocampal plasticity in trisomic offspring. The positive effects of EE on Ts65Dn phenotype were not limited to the cognitive domain, but also included a rescue of visual system maturation. The beneficial EE effects were accompanied by increased BDNF and correction of over-expression of the GABA vesicular transporter vGAT. These findings highlight the beneficial impact of early environmental stimuli and their potential for application in the treatment of major functional deficits in children with DS. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Early dietary treated patients with phenylketonuria can achieve normal growth and body composition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rocha, Júlio C; van Spronsen, Francjan J; Almeida, Manuela F; Ramos, Elisabete; Guimarães, João T; Borges, Nuno

    2013-01-01

    In the past, overtreatment may have resulted in growth impairment in patients with phenylketonuria. The paper aims to investigate height and body composition in early treated patients with phenylketonuria who were diagnosed between 1981 and 2008. A cross-sectional study of 89 patients with phenylketonuria and 78 controls aged (mean ± SD, in years) 14.4 ± 6.6 and 15.9 ± 7.1, respectively, was undertaken, including anthropometric and body composition evaluation using bioelectrical impedance. Median Phe concentrations in the last year before study enrollment were used as a measure of metabolic control. Natural protein and amino acid mixture intakes were recorded in patients. No statistically significant differences were found on height z-scores between patients and controls aged less than 19 years (p=0.301), although all patients with classical phenylketonuria revealed negative height z-scores, resulting in a mean ± SD of -0.65 ± 0.41. Among participants aged 19 years or more, median (p25-p75) of height was significantly higher in controls [168.0 cm (159.2-174.8)] than in patients [160.5 cm (151.9-167.5)] (p=0.017). No significant differences were found between patients and controls regarding fat mass, fat free mass, muscular mass, body cell mass index and phase angle. Our results suggest that early and continuously treated patients with phenylketonuria born after 1992 can achieve normal growth and body composition, although the negative height z-score in patients with classical phenylketonuria strengthens the continuous need to optimize the quality of their protein intake. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. [Early Intervention and Cognitive Development: A Longitudinal Study with Psychologically Stressed Mother-Child-Dyad during Early Childhood].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zwönitzer, Annabel; Ziegenhain, Ute; Bovenschen, Ina; Pillhofer, Melanie; Spangler, Gottfried; Gerlach, Jennifer; Gabler, Sandra; Kindler, Heinz; Fegert, Jörg M; Künster, Anne Katrin

    2016-01-01

    Early intervention programs aiming at developing parents’ relationship and parenting skills and supporting young families have become increasingly established in Germany throughout the last decade. The present longitudinal study analyzed 53 children and their mothers receiving early intervention due to their psychosocially highly challenging life situations and personal circumstances. The children were examined at birth and at an age of twelve months as well as between ages two and four. The results revealed that the child’s cognitive development could be predicted by both maternal sensitivity and mother’s psychosocial stress. However, the amount, type, and intensity of early intervention did not have any effect on the child’s development. In terms of the effectiveness of early interventions the results implicate that interventions seems to be offered in an unspecific manner and does not contribute to an improvement of the child’s developmental status.

  1. Time Development in the Early History of Social Networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruun, Jesper; Bearden, Ian

    2014-01-01

    Studies of the time development of empirical networks usually investigate late stages where lasting connections have already stabilized. Empirical data on early network history are rare but needed for a better understanding of how social network topology develops in real life. Studying students who...... are beginning their studies at a university with no or few prior connections to each other offers a unique opportunity to investigate the formation and early development of link patterns and community structure in social networks. During a nine week introductory physics course, first year physics students were...... asked to identify those with whom they communicated about problem solving in physics during the preceding week. We use these students' self reports to produce time dependent student interaction networks. We investigate these networks to elucidate possible effects of different student attributes in early...

  2. Kinematic differentiation of prosodic categories in normal and disordered language development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goffman, Lisa

    2004-10-01

    Prosody is complex and hierarchically organized but is realized as rhythmic movement sequences. Thus, observations of the development of rhythmic aspects of movement can provide insight into links between motor and language processes, specifically whether prosodic distinctions (e.g., feet and prosodic words) are instantiated in rhythmic movement output. This experiment examined 4-7-year-old children's (both normally developing and specifically language impaired) and adults' productions of prosodic sequences that were controlled for phonetic content but differed in morphosyntactic structure (i.e., content vs. function words). Primary analyses included kinematic measures of rhythmic structure (i.e., amplitude and duration of movements in weak vs. strong syllables) across content and function contexts. Findings showed that at the level of articulatory movement, adults produced distinct rhythmic categories across content and function word contexts, whereas children did not. Children with specific language impairment differed from normally developing peers only in their ability to produce well-organized and stable rhythmic movements, not in the differentiation of prosodic categories.

  3. Postnatal development of the hippocampal dentate gyrus under normal and experimental conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Altman, J.; Bayer, S.

    Studies on postnatal maturation of the dentate gyrus are reviewed. Some topics discussed are: normal development of the dentate gyrus, cytogenesis, morphogenesis, synaptogenesis, gleogenesis, myelogenesis, development of the gyrus under experimental conditions, and effects of x radiation on cytogenesis and morphogenesis

  4. Early life vincristine exposure evokes mechanical pain hypersensitivity in the developing rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schappacher, Katie A; Styczynski, Lauren; Baccei, Mark L

    2017-09-01

    Vincristine (VNC) is commonly used to treat pediatric cancers, including the most prevalent childhood malignancy, acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Although clinical evidence suggests that VNC causes peripheral neuropathy in children, the degree to which pediatric chemotherapeutic regimens influence pain sensitivity throughout life remains unclear, in part because of the lack of an established animal model of chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain during early life. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of VNC exposure between postnatal days (P) 11 and 21 on mechanical and thermal pain sensitivity in the developing rat. Low doses of VNC (15 or 30 μg/kg) failed to alter nociceptive withdrawal reflexes at any age examined compared with vehicle-injected littermate controls. Meanwhile, high dose VNC (60 μg/kg) evoked mechanical hypersensitivity in both sexes beginning at P26 that persisted until adulthood and included both static and dynamic mechanical allodynia. Hind paw withdrawal latencies to noxious heat and cold were unaffected by high doses of VNC, suggesting a selective effect of neonatal VNC on mechanical pain sensitivity. Gross and fine motor function appeared normal after VNC treatment, although a small decrease in weight gain was observed. The VNC regimen also produced a significant decrease in intraepidermal nerve fiber density in the hind paw skin by P33. Overall, the present results demonstrate that high-dose administration of VNC during the early postnatal period selectively evokes a mechanical hypersensitivity that is slow to emerge during adolescence, providing further evidence that aberrant sensory input during early life can have prolonged consequences for pain processing.

  5. Applying cognitive training to target executive functions during early development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wass, Sam V

    2015-01-01

    Developmental psychopathology is increasingly recognizing the importance of distinguishing causal processes (i.e., the mechanisms that cause a disease) from developmental outcomes (i.e., the symptoms of the disorder as it is eventually diagnosed). Targeting causal processes early in disordered development may be more effective than waiting until outcomes are established and then trying to reverse the pathogenic process. In this review, I evaluate evidence suggesting that neural and behavioral plasticity may be greatest at very early stages of development. I also describe correlational evidence suggesting that, across a number of conditions, early emerging individual differences in attentional control and working memory may play a role in mediating later-developing differences in academic and other forms of learning. I review the currently small number of studies that applied direct and indirect cognitive training targeted at young individuals and discuss methodological challenges associated with targeting this age group. I also discuss a number of ways in which early, targeted cognitive training may be used to help us understand the developmental mechanisms subserving typical and atypical cognitive development.

  6. Training early literacy related skills: To which degree does a musical training contribute to phonological awareness development?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sebastian Kempert

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Well-developed phonological awareness skills are a core prerequisite for early literacy development. Although effective phonological awareness training programs exist, children at risk often do not reach similar levels of phonological awareness after the intervention as children with normally developed skills. Based on theoretical considerations and first promising results the present study explores effects of an early musical training in combination with a conventional phonological training in children with weak phonological awareness skills. Using a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design and measurements across a period of two years, we tested the effects of two interventions: a consecutive combination of a musical and a phonological training and a phonological training alone. The design made it possible to disentangle effects of the musical training alone as well the effects of its combination with the phonological training. The outcome measures of these groups were compared with the control group with multivariate analyses, controlling for a number of background variables. The sample included N = 424 German-speaking children aged 4 to 5 years at the beginning of the study. We found a positive relationship between musical abilities and phonological awareness. Yet, whereas the well-established phonological training produced the expected effects, adding a musical training did not contribute significantly to phonological awareness development. Training effects were partly dependent on the initial level of phonological awareness. Possible reasons for the lack of training effects in the musical part of the combination condition as well as practical implications for early literacy education are discussed.

  7. Estrogen and progesterone signalling in the normal breast and its implications for cancer development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hilton, Heidi N; Clarke, Christine L; Graham, J Dinny

    2018-05-05

    The ovarian hormones estrogen and progesterone are master regulators of the development and function of a broad spectrum of human tissues, including the breast, reproductive and cardiovascular systems, brain and bone. Acting through the nuclear estrogen (ER) and progesterone receptors (PR), both play complex and essential coordinated roles in the extensive development of the lobular alveolar epithelial structures of the normal breast during puberty, the normal menstrual cycle and pregnancy. The past decade has seen major advances in understanding the mechanisms of action of estrogen and progesterone in the normal breast and in the delineation of the complex hierarchy of cell types regulated by ovarian hormones in this tissue. There is evidence for a role for both ER and PR in driving breast cancer, and both are favourable prognostic markers with respect to outcome. In this review, we summarize current knowledge of the mechanisms of action of ER and PR in the normal breast, and implications for the development and management of breast cancer. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Does copepods influence dusky grouper (Epinephelus marginatus early development?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monica Mateus

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Good knowledge on the development of early life stages is essential for successful conservation programs of threatened fish species. Diet and rearing system affects early life survival and juvenile quality. Copepods are the natural food of fish larvae in the wild possessing high nutritional value, when compared with live feeds used in aquaculture (rotifers and artemia, and a wide range of size classes. Rearing systems with low water column disturbance and low larval densities enhanced the survival of fragile fish larvae. The aim of this work is to evaluate the effect of the introduction of copepods in the diet of early dusky grouper larvae reared in controlled mesocosm systems using larval development and juvenile quality as indicators. Two feeding protocols were tested, one composed only by rotifers (Brachionus plicatilis, brine shrimp (Artemia spp. and dry feed and the other supplemented with copepods (Paracartia grani from mouth opening (2 day after hatching - DAH to 8 DAH. Feeding behavior, growth, survival, skeletal malformations and digestive enzymes activity was assessed at different developmental stages. The addition of copepods to the early larvae diet of dusky grouper resulted in faster development and higher survival rates. Larvae fed with copepods improved their development. At 20 DAH all larvae reared at the mesocosm with copedods were already at the stage of post-flexion while in the system without copepods this stage was attained later. At 25 DAH only 64% of the larvae were in post flexion in the mesoscosm without copepods. At 30 DAH larvae supplemented with copepods attained an acidic digestion (high specific activity of pepsin earlier than at the system without copepods. In this last system alkaline digestion (trypsin specific activity, characteristic of early larval stages, was significantly higher reinforcing the faster development of larvae fed with copepods. In both systems the incidence of skeletal malformations was low.

  9. An Embodied Account of Early Executive-Function Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gottwald, Janna M.; Achermann, Sheila; Marciszko, Carin; Lindskog, Marcus; Gredebäck, Gustaf

    2016-01-01

    The importance of executive functioning for later life outcomes, along with its potential to be positively affected by intervention programs, motivates the need to find early markers of executive functioning. In this study, 18-month-olds performed three executive-function tasks—involving simple inhibition, working memory, and more complex inhibition—and a motion-capture task assessing prospective motor control during reaching. We demonstrated that prospective motor control, as measured by the peak velocity of the first movement unit, is related to infants’ performance on simple-inhibition and working memory tasks. The current study provides evidence that motor control and executive functioning are intertwined early in life, which suggests an embodied perspective on executive-functioning development. We argue that executive functions and prospective motor control develop from a common source and a single motive: to control action. This is the first demonstration that low-level movement planning is related to higher-order executive control early in life. PMID:27765900

  10. Dual odontogenic origins develop at the early stage of rat maxillary incisor development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kriangkrai, Rungarun; Iseki, Sachiko; Eto, Kazuhiro; Chareonvit, Suconta

    2006-03-01

    Developmental process of rat maxillary incisor has been studied through histological analysis and investigation of tooth-related gene expression patterns at initial tooth development. The tooth-related genes studied here are fibroblast growth factor-8 (Fgf-8), pituitary homeobox gene-2 (Pitx-2), sonic hedgehog (Shh), muscle segment homeobox-1 (Msx-1), paired box-9 (Pax-9) and bone morphogenetic protein-4 (Bmp-4). The genes are expressed in oral epithelium and/or ectomesenchyme at the stage of epithelial thickening to the early bud stage of tooth development. Both the histological observation and tooth-related gene expression patterns during early stage of maxillary incisor development demonstrate that dual odontogenic origins aligned medio-laterally in the medial nasal process develop, subsequently only single functional maxillary incisor dental placode forms. The cascade of tooth-related gene expression patterns in rat maxillary incisor studied here is quite similar to those of the previous studies in mouse mandibular molar, even though the origins of oral epithelium and ectomesenchyme involved in development of maxillary incisor and mandibular molar are different. Thus, we conclude that maxillary incisor and mandibular molar share a similar signaling control of Fgf-8, Pitx-2, Shh, Msx-1, Pax-9 and Bmp-4 genes at the stage of oral epithelial thickening to the early bud stage of tooth development.

  11. Early development of the aplacophoran mollusc Chaetoderma

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Claus; Haszprunar, Gerhard; Ruthensteiner, Bernhard

    2007-01-01

    The early development of the trochophore larva of the aplacophoran Chaetoderma nitidulum (Mollusca: Caudofoveata = Chaetodermomorpha) is described using scanning and transmission electron microscopy and using fluorescence staining and confocal laser scanning microscopy of the muscle system...

  12. Early vocabulary development in children with bilateral cochlear implants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Välimaa, Taina; Kunnari, Sari; Laukkanen-Nevala, Päivi; Lonka, Eila

    2018-01-01

    Children with unilateral cochlear implants (CIs) may have delayed vocabulary development for an extended period after implantation. Bilateral cochlear implantation is reported to be associated with improved sound localization and enhanced speech perception in noise. This study proposed that bilateral implantation might also promote early vocabulary development. Knowledge regarding vocabulary growth and composition in children with bilateral CIs and factors associated with it may lead to improvements in the content of early speech and language intervention and family counselling. To analyse the growth of early vocabulary and its composition during the first year after CI activation and to investigate factors associated with vocabulary growth. The participants were 20 children with bilateral CIs (12 boys; eight girls; mean age at CI activation = 12.9 months). Vocabulary size was assessed with the Finnish version of the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories (CDI) Infant Form and compared with normative data. Vocabulary composition was analysed in relation to vocabulary size. Growth curve modelling was implemented using a linear mixed model to analyse the effects of the following variables on early vocabulary growth: time, gender, maternal education, residual hearing with hearing aids, age at first hearing aid fitting and age at CI activation. Despite clear vocabulary growth over time, children with bilateral CIs lagged behind their age norms in receptive vocabulary during the first 12 months after CI activation. In expressive vocabulary, 35% of the children were able to catch up with their age norms, but 55% of the children lagged behind them. In receptive and expressive vocabularies of 1-20 words, analysis of different semantic categories indicated that social terms constituted the highest proportion. Nouns constituted the highest proportion in vocabularies of 101-400 words. The proportion of verbs remained below 20% and the proportion of function words and

  13. Nutrition in pregnancy and early childhood and associations with obesity in developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Zhenyu; Huffman, Sandra L

    2013-01-01

    Concerns about the increasing rates of obesity in developing countries have led many policy makers to question the impacts of maternal and early child nutrition on risk of later obesity. The purposes of the review are to summarise the studies on the associations between nutrition during pregnancy and infant feeding practices with later obesity from childhood through adulthood and to identify potential ways for preventing obesity in developing countries. As few studies were identified in developing countries, key studies in developed countries were included in the review. Poor prenatal dietary intakes of energy, protein and micronutrients were shown to be associated with increased risk of adult obesity in offspring. Female offspring seem to be more vulnerable than male offspring when their mothers receive insufficient energy during pregnancy. By influencing birthweight, optimal prenatal nutrition might reduce the risk of obesity in adults. While normal birthweights (2500-3999 g) were associated with higher body mass index (BMI) as adults, they generally were associated with higher fat-free mass and lower fat mass compared with low birthweights (obesity in adults. Breastfeeding and timely introduction of complementary foods were shown to protect against obesity later in life in observational studies. High-protein intake during early childhood however was associated with higher body fat mass and obesity in adulthood. In developed countries, increased weight gain during the first 2 years of life was associated with a higher BMI in adulthood. However, recent studies in developing countries showed that higher BMI was more related to greater lean body mass than fat mass. It appears that increased length at 2 years of age was positively associated with height, weight and fat-free mass, and was only weakly associated with fat mass. The protective associations between breastfeeding and obesity may differ in developing countries compared to developed countries because many

  14. Early class III occlusal tendency in children and its selective management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kapur A

    2008-09-01

    Full Text Available Class III malocclusion may develop in children as a result of an inherent growth abnormality, i.e., true class III malocclusion, or as a result of premature occlusal contacts causing forward functional shift of the mandible, which is known as pseudo class III malocclusion. These cases, if not treated at the initial stage of development, interfere with normal growth of the skeletal bases and may result in severe facial deformities. The treatment should be carried out as early as possible with the aim of permitting normal growth. This paper deals with the selection of an appropriate treatment approach from the various current options available for early intervention in children developing class III occlusal tendencies; the different clinical features are depicted in the three case reports.

  15. Chaos, Poverty, and Parenting: Predictors of Early Language Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vernon-Feagans, Lynne; Garrett-Peters, Patricia; Willoughby, Michael; Mills-Koonce, Roger

    2012-01-01

    Studies have shown that distal family risk factors like poverty and maternal education are strongly related to children's early language development. Yet, few studies have examined these risk factors in combination with more proximal day-to-day experiences of children that might be critical to understanding variation in early language. Young…

  16. Early Careerist Interest and Participation in Health Care Leadership Development Programs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, Jon M; Temple, April

    2015-01-01

    Health care organizations are increasingly embracing leadership development programs. These programs include a variety of specific activities, such as formally structured leadership development, as well as mentoring, personal development and coaching, 360-degree feedback, and job enlargement, in order to increase the leadership skills of managers and high-potential staff. However, there is a lack of information on how early careerists in health care management view these programs and the degree to which they participate. This article reports on a study undertaken to determine how early careerists working in health care organizations view leadership development programs and their participation in such programs offered by their employers. Study findings are based on a survey of 126 early careerists who are graduates of an undergraduate health services administration program. We found varying levels of interest and participation in specific leadership development activities. In addition, we found that respondents with graduate degrees and those with higher compensation were more likely to participate in selected leadership development program activities. Implications of study findings for health care organizations and early careerists in the offering of, and participation in, leadership development programs are discussed.

  17. Development of a theory of implementation and integration: Normalization Process Theory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    May Carl R

    2009-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Theories are important tools in the social and natural sciences. The methods by which they are derived are rarely described and discussed. Normalization Process Theory explains how new technologies, ways of acting, and ways of working become routinely embedded in everyday practice, and has applications in the study of implementation processes. This paper describes the process by which it was built. Methods Between 1998 and 2008, we developed a theory. We derived a set of empirical generalizations from analysis of data collected in qualitative studies of healthcare work and organization. We developed an applied theoretical model through analysis of empirical generalizations. Finally, we built a formal theory through a process of extension and implication analysis of the applied theoretical model. Results Each phase of theory development showed that the constructs of the theory did not conflict with each other, had explanatory power, and possessed sufficient robustness for formal testing. As the theory developed, its scope expanded from a set of observed regularities in data with procedural explanations, to an applied theoretical model, to a formal middle-range theory. Conclusion Normalization Process Theory has been developed through procedures that were properly sceptical and critical, and which were opened to review at each stage of development. The theory has been shown to merit formal testing.

  18. External-environmental and internal-health early life predictors of adolescent development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hartman, Sarah; Li, Zhi; Nettle, Daniel; Belsky, Jay

    2017-12-01

    A wealth of evidence documents associations between various aspects of the rearing environment and later development. Two evolutionary-inspired models advance explanations for why and how such early experiences shape later functioning: (a) the external-prediction model, which highlights the role of the early environment (e.g., parenting) in regulating children's development, and (b) the internal-prediction model, which emphasizes internal state (i.e., health) as the critical regulator. Thus, by using data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, the current project draws from both models by investigating whether the effect of the early environment on later adolescent functioning is subject to an indirect effect by internal-health variables. Results showed a significant indirect effect of internal health on the relation between the early environment and adolescent behavior. Specifically, early environmental adversity during the first 5 years of life predicted lower quality health during childhood, which then led to problematic adolescent functioning and earlier age of menarche for girls. In addition, for girls, early adversity predicted lower quality health that forecasted earlier age of menarche leading to increased adolescent risk taking. The discussion highlights the importance of integrating both internal and external models to further understand the developmental processes that effect adolescent behavior.

  19. Developing Prosocial Behaviors in Early Adolescence with Reactive Aggression

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fung, Annis L. C.

    2008-01-01

    Despite the alarming rise of early adolescence aggression in Hong Kong, it is the pioneer evidence-based outcome study on Anger Coping Training (ACT) program for early adolescence with reactive aggression to develop their prosocial behaviors. This research program involved experimental and control groups with pre- and post-comparison using a …

  20. Polycystic ovarian morphology in normal women does not predict the development of polycystic ovary syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murphy, M K; Hall, J E; Adams, J M; Lee, H; Welt, C K

    2006-10-01

    Polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) is present in 25% of normal women in the absence of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS); however, the natural history of PCOM is unknown. We hypothesized that the presence of PCOM predisposes the development of PCOS. The study was a longitudinal follow-up study over 8.2 +/- 5.2 yr (mean +/- sd; range 1.7-17.5 yr). The study took place in an outpatient setting. Women who took part in a previous study as a normal control and had an ultrasound examination (n = 40) participated. Subjects underwent an interval menstrual history, physical exam, blood sampling, and repeat ultrasound in the follicular phase. Development of PCOS was diagnosed by irregular menses and hyperandrogenism, in the absence of other disorders. Changes in ovarian morphology over time were evaluated. At the baseline visit, 23 women (57.5%) had PCOM and 17 (42.5%) had normal ovarian morphology. One subject with PCOM developed irregular menses and presumptive PCOS. Eleven subjects with PCOM no longer met the criteria for PCOM at follow-up. There was no factor that predicted the change to normal ovarian morphology at the follow-up visit. These data suggest that PCOM in women with regular ovulatory cycles does not commonly predispose the development of PCOS. Although it is unusual to develop PCOM if the ovaries are normal on first assessment, ovaries in women with PCOM no longer meet the criteria for PCOM in approximately half of cases over time.

  1. Early postnatal soluble FGFR3 therapy prevents the atypical development of obesity in achondroplasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saint-Laurent, Celine; Garcia, Stephanie; Sarrazy, Vincent; Dumas, Karine; Authier, Florence; Sore, Sophie; Tran, Albert; Gual, Philippe; Gennero, Isabelle; Salles, Jean-Pierre; Gouze, Elvire

    2018-01-01

    Achondroplasia is a rare genetic disease is characterized by abnormal bone development and early obesity. While the bone aspect of the disease has been thoroughly studied, early obesity affecting approximately 50% of them during childhood has been somewhat neglected. It nevertheless represents a major health problem in these patients, and is associated to life-threatening complications including increasing risk of cardiovascular pathologies. We have thus decided to study obesity in patients and to use the mouse model to evaluate if soluble FGFR3 therapy, an innovative treatment approach for achondroplasia, could also impact the development of this significant complication. To achieve this, we have first fully characterized the metabolic deregulations in these patients by conducting a longitudinal retrospective study, in children with achondroplasia Anthropometric, densitometric measures as well as several blood parameters were recorded and compared between three age groups ranging from [0-3], [4-8] and [9-18] years old. Our results show unexpected results with the development of an atypical obesity with preferential fat deposition in the abdomen that is remarkably not associated with classical complications of obesity such as diabetes or hypercholosterolemia. Because it is not associated with diabetes, the atypical obesity has not been studied in the past even though it is recognized as a real problem in these patients. These results were validated in a murine model of achondroplasia (Fgfr3ach/+) where similar visceral adiposity was observed. Unexpected alterations in glucose metabolism were highlighted during high-fat diet. Glucose, insulin or lipid levels remained low, without the development of diabetes. Very interestingly, in achondroplasia mice treated with soluble FGFR3 during the growth period (from D3 to D22), the development of these metabolic deregulations was prevented in adult animals (between 4 and 14 weeks of age). The lean-over-fat tissues ratio was

  2. RISK FACTORS AND EARLY DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN BORN WITH AN ASSISTED FERTILIZATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Milena MILICHEVIKJ

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to present a systematic literature review of the researches conducted in the area of risk factors and difficulties in the early development of children born after assisted conception, to systematize current knowledge in this field and allocate the factors of importance for the early intervention.In order to evaluate the published data on risk factors and early development of children born after assisted conception, an extensive literature search was conducted to identify the published papers related to the obstetric and neonatal outcome of pregnancies after assisted repro­duction technology, the incidence of multiple pregnancy and the risk of preterm delivery, the neonatal status, the mean gestational age, the average birth weight, the neuro-developmental outcomes and early cognitive and motor development. The research identified the following factors as the most important for the early intervention: increased rates of multiple gestations, prematurity, delivery by cesarean section, lower average gestational development and average birth weight, small fetal development for gestational age and low Apgar score, related to the an increased risk of developing neurological problems, such as the cerebral palsy.Accepting this research results, it can be concluded that all of these information should be available for couples seeking an Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART treatment.The success of the early intervention is directly related to the early detection and assessment that precedes this treatment, creating individual programs and evaluation of the effects of the treatment.

  3. The dentate nucleus in children: normal development and patterns of disease

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McErlean, Aoife; Abdalla, Khaled; Donoghue, Veronica; Ryan, Stephanie [Children' s University Hospital, Radiology Department, Dublin (Ireland)

    2010-03-15

    The dentate nuclei lie deep within the cerebellum and play a vital role in the pathways involved in fine motor control and coordination. They are susceptible to a variety of diseases. Some pathological processes preferentially affect the dentate nuclei, while concomitant basal ganglia or white matter involvement can be a striking finding in others. A familiarity with the normal appearance of the dentate nuclei at different ages in combination with the radiological distribution of pathology in the brain allows the paediatric radiologist to develop a logical approach to the interpretation of MR imaging of these deep cerebellar nuclei. In this article we review the normal appearance and MR features of the dentate nuclei, including changes that are seen with myelination. We describe the specific imaging characteristics of childhood diseases that involve the dentate nuclei, and develop a systematic approach to the differential diagnosis of dentate nucleus abnormalities on MR imaging. (orig.)

  4. The dentate nucleus in children: normal development and patterns of disease

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McErlean, Aoife; Abdalla, Khaled; Donoghue, Veronica; Ryan, Stephanie

    2010-01-01

    The dentate nuclei lie deep within the cerebellum and play a vital role in the pathways involved in fine motor control and coordination. They are susceptible to a variety of diseases. Some pathological processes preferentially affect the dentate nuclei, while concomitant basal ganglia or white matter involvement can be a striking finding in others. A familiarity with the normal appearance of the dentate nuclei at different ages in combination with the radiological distribution of pathology in the brain allows the paediatric radiologist to develop a logical approach to the interpretation of MR imaging of these deep cerebellar nuclei. In this article we review the normal appearance and MR features of the dentate nuclei, including changes that are seen with myelination. We describe the specific imaging characteristics of childhood diseases that involve the dentate nuclei, and develop a systematic approach to the differential diagnosis of dentate nucleus abnormalities on MR imaging. (orig.)

  5. Hemoglobin is essential for normal growth of Arabidopsis organs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hebelstrup, Kim Henrik; Hunt, Peter; Dennis, Elizabeth

    2006-01-01

    In Arabidopsis thaliana, the class I hemoglobin AHb1 is transiently expressed in the hydathodes of leaves and in floral buds from young inflorescences. Nitric oxide (NO) accumulates to high levels in these organs when AHb1 is silenced, indicating an important role in metabolizing NO. AHb1-silenced...... lines are viable but show a mutant phenotype affecting the regions where AHb1 is expressed. Arabidopsis lines with an insertional knockout or overexpression of AHb2, a class II 3-on-3 hemoglobin, were generated. Seedlings overexpressing AHb2 show enhanced survival of hypoxic stress. The AHb2 knockout...... lines develop normally. However, when AHb2 knockout is combined with AHb1 silencing, seedlings die at an early vegetative stage suggesting that the two 3-on-3 hemoglobins, AHb1 and AHb2, together play an essential role for normal development of Arabidopsis seedlings. In conclusion, these results...

  6. Cognitive Development in Early Readers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Briggs, Chari; Elkind, David

    Some studies of early readers are discussed. It is pointed out that study of early readers has relevance for practical and theoretical issues in psychology and education. Of interest in this document are the following questions: (1) Are there any special talents or traits distinguishing early from non-early readers? (2) Do children who read early…

  7. Biomechanical Analysis of Normal Brain Development during the First Year of Life Using Finite Strain Theory

    OpenAIRE

    Kim, Jeong Chul; Wang, Li; Shen, Dinggang; Lin, Weili

    2016-01-01

    The first year of life is the most critical time period for structural and functional development of the human brain. Combining longitudinal MR imaging and finite strain theory, this study aimed to provide new insights into normal brain development through a biomechanical framework. Thirty-three normal infants were longitudinally imaged using MRI from 2 weeks to 1 year of age. Voxel-wise Jacobian determinant was estimated to elucidate volumetric changes while Lagrange strains (both normal and...

  8. Early and Late Rate of Force Development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Lars L; Andersen, Jesper L; Zebis, Mette K

    2010-01-01

    The objective of this study is to investigate the potentially opposing influence of qualitative and quantitative muscular adaptations in response to high-intensity resistance training on contractile rate of force development (RFD) in the early (<100 ms) and later phases (>200 ms) of rising muscle...

  9. Impact of growth patterns and early diet on obesity and cardiovascular risk factors in young children from developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corvalán, Camila; Kain, Juliana; Weisstaub, Gerardo; Uauy, Ricardo

    2009-08-01

    Non-communicable chronic diseases are now a worldwide epidemic. Diet and physical activity throughout life are among its main determinants. In countries undergoing the early stages of the nutrition transition weight gain from birth to 2 years of life is related to lean mass gain, while ponderal gain after age 2 years is related to adiposity and later diabetes and CVD risk. Evidence from developing countries undergoing the more advanced stages of the nutrition transition is limited. The early growth patterns of a cohort of Chilean children born in 2002 with normal birth weight who at 4 years had a high prevalence of obesity and CVD risk factors have been assessed. Results indicate that BMI gain in early life, particularly from 6 months to 24 months, is positively associated with adiposity and CVD risk status at 4 years. These results together with existing evidence suggest that actions to prevent obesity and nutrition-related chronic diseases in developing countries should start early in life, possibly after 6 months of age. This approach should consider assessing the effect of mode of feeding and the amount and type of energy fed, as well as the resulting growth patterns. The challenge for researchers addressing the nutrition transition is to define the optimal nutrition in early life, considering not only the short- and long-term health consequences but also taking into account the stage of the nutritional transition for the given population of interest. The latter will probably require redefining optimal postnatal growth based on the context of maternal size and fetal growth.

  10. Role of CD56 in Normal Kidney Development and Wilms Tumorigenesis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yap, Li-Wei; Brok, Jesper; Pritchard-Jones, Kathy

    2017-01-01

    The cell-surface glycoprotein CD56 has three major isoforms that play important roles in cell adhesion and signaling, which may promote cell proliferation, differentiation, survival, or migration. It is an important molecule in normal kidney development and acts as a key marker in Wilms tumor stem...

  11. Persian competing word test: Development and preliminary results in normal children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Ebrahim Mahdavi

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available Background and Aim: Assessment of central auditory processing skills needs various behavioral tests in format of a test battery. There is a few Persian speech tests for documenting central auditory processing disorders. The purpose of this study was developing a dichotic test formed of one-syllabic words suitable for evaluation of central auditory processing in Persian language children and reporting its preliminary results in a group of normal children.Materials and Methods: Persian words in competing manner test was developed utilizing most frequent monosyllabic words in children storybooks reported in the previous researches. The test was performed at MCL on forty-five normal children (39 right-handed and 6 left-handed aged 5-11 years. The children did not show any obvious problem in hearing, speech, language and learning. Free (n=28 and directed listening (n=17 tasks were investigated.Results: The results show that in directed listening task, there is significant advantage for performance of pre-cued ear relative to opposite side. Right ear advantage is evident in free recall condition. Average performance of the children in directed recall is significantly better than free recall. Average row score of the test increases with the children age.Conclusion: Persian words in competing manner test as a dichotic test, can show major characteristics of dichotic listening and effect of maturation of central auditory system on it in normal children.

  12. Investing in the foundation of sustainable development: pathways to scale up for early childhood development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richter, Linda M; Daelmans, Bernadette; Lombardi, Joan; Heymann, Jody; Boo, Florencia Lopez; Behrman, Jere R; Lu, Chunling; Lucas, Jane E; Perez-Escamilla, Rafael; Dua, Tarun; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A; Stenberg, Karin; Gertler, Paul; Darmstadt, Gary L

    2018-01-01

    Building on long-term benefits of early intervention (Paper 2 of this Series) and increasing commitment to early childhood development (Paper 1 of this Series), scaled up support for the youngest children is essential to improving health, human capital, and wellbeing across the life course. In this third paper, new analyses show that the burden of poor development is higher than estimated, taking into account additional risk factors. National programmes are needed. Greater political prioritisation is core to scale-up, as are policies that afford families time and financial resources to provide nurturing care for young children. Effective and feasible programmes to support early child development are now available. All sectors, particularly education, and social and child protection, must play a role to meet the holistic needs of young children. However, health provides a critical starting point for scaling up, given its reach to pregnant women, families, and young children. Starting at conception, interventions to promote nurturing care can feasibly build on existing health and nutrition services at limited additional cost. Failure to scale up has severe personal and social consequences. Children at elevated risk for compromised development due to stunting and poverty are likely to forgo about a quarter of average adult income per year, and the cost of inaction to gross domestic product can be double what some countries currently spend on health. Services and interventions to support early childhood development are essential to realising the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals. PMID:27717610

  13. Gene methylation profiles of normal mucosa, and benign and malignant colorectal tumors identify early onset markers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vatn Morten

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Multiple epigenetic and genetic changes have been reported in colorectal tumors, but few of these have clinical impact. This study aims to pinpoint epigenetic markers that can discriminate between non-malignant and malignant tissue from the large bowel, i.e. markers with diagnostic potential. The methylation status of eleven genes (ADAMTS1, CDKN2A, CRABP1, HOXA9, MAL, MGMT, MLH1, NR3C1, PTEN, RUNX3, and SCGB3A1 was determined in 154 tissue samples including normal mucosa, adenomas, and carcinomas of the colorectum. The gene-specific and widespread methylation status among the carcinomas was related to patient gender and age, and microsatellite instability status. Possible CIMP tumors were identified by comparing the methylation profile with microsatellite instability (MSI, BRAF-, KRAS-, and TP53 mutation status. Results The mean number of methylated genes per sample was 0.4 in normal colon mucosa from tumor-free individuals, 1.2 in mucosa from cancerous bowels, 2.2 in adenomas, and 3.9 in carcinomas. Widespread methylation was found in both adenomas and carcinomas. The promoters of ADAMTS1, MAL, and MGMT were frequently methylated in benign samples as well as in malignant tumors, independent of microsatellite instability. In contrast, normal mucosa samples taken from bowels without tumor were rarely methylated for the same genes. Hypermethylated CRABP1, MLH1, NR3C1, RUNX3, and SCGB3A1 were shown to be identifiers of carcinomas with microsatellite instability. In agreement with the CIMP concept, MSI and mutated BRAF were associated with samples harboring hypermethylation of several target genes. Conclusion Methylated ADAMTS1, MGMT, and MAL are suitable as markers for early tumor detection.

  14. Evolutionary origins and early development of number processing

    CERN Document Server

    Geary, David C; Mann Koepke, Kathleen

    2014-01-01

    The first volume in this ground-breaking series focuses on the origins and early development of numerical cognition in non-human primates, lower vertebrates, human infants, and preschool children. The text will help readers understand the nature and complexity of these foundational quantitative concepts and skills along with evolutionary precursors and early developmental trajectories. Brings together and focuses the efforts and research of multiple disciplines working in math cognition.The contributors bring vast knowledge and experience to bear on resolving extant

  15. Early Phonological Development: Creating an Assessment Test

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stoel-Gammon, Carol; Williams, A. Lynn

    2013-01-01

    This paper describes a new protocol for assessing the phonological systems of two-year-olds with typical development and older children with delays in vocabulary acquisition. The test (Profiles of Early Expressive Phonological Skills ("PEEPS"), Williams & Stoel-Gammon, in preparation) differs from currently available assessments in…

  16. Activated ovarian endothelial cells promote early follicular development and survival.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kedem, Alon; Aelion-Brauer, Anate; Guo, Peipei; Wen, Duancheng; Ding, Bi-Sen; Lis, Raphael; Cheng, Du; Sandler, Vladislav M; Rafii, Shahin; Rosenwaks, Zev

    2017-09-19

    New data suggests that endothelial cells (ECs) elaborate essential "angiocrine factors". The aim of this study is to investigate the role of activated ovarian endothelial cells in early in-vitro follicular development. Mouse ovarian ECs were isolated using magnetic cell sorting or by FACS and cultured in serum free media. After a constitutive activation of the Akt pathway was initiated, early follicles (50-150 um) were mechanically isolated from 8-day-old mice and co-cultured with these activated ovarian endothelial cells (AOEC) (n = 32), gel (n = 24) or within matrigel (n = 27) in serum free media for 14 days. Follicular growth, survival and function were assessed. After 6 passages, flow cytometry showed 93% of cells grown in serum-free culture were VE-cadherin positive, CD-31 positive and CD 45 negative, matching the known EC profile. Beginning on day 4 of culture, we observed significantly higher follicular and oocyte growth rates in follicles co-cultured with AOECs compared with follicles on gel or matrigel. After 14 days of culture, 73% of primary follicles and 83% of secondary follicles co-cultured with AOEC survived, whereas the majority of follicles cultured on gel or matrigel underwent atresia. This is the first report of successful isolation and culture of ovarian ECs. We suggest that co-culture with activated ovarian ECs promotes early follicular development and survival. This model is a novel platform for the in vitro maturation of early follicles and for the future exploration of endothelial-follicular communication. In vitro development of early follicles necessitates a complex interplay of growth factors and signals required for development. Endothelial cells (ECs) may elaborate essential "angiocrine factors" involved in organ regeneration. We demonstrate that co-culture with ovarian ECs enables culture of primary and early secondary mouse ovarian follicles.

  17. Lexically-based learning and early grammatical development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lieven, E V; Pine, J M; Baldwin, G

    1997-02-01

    Pine & Lieven (1993) suggest that a lexically-based positional analysis can account for the structure of a considerable proportion of children's early multiword corpora. The present study tests this claim on a second, larger sample of eleven children aged between 1;0 and 3;0 from a different social background, and extends the analysis to later in development. Results indicate that the positional analysis can account for a mean of 60% of all the children's multiword utterances and that the great majority of all other utterances are defined as frozen by the analysis. Alternative explanations of the data based on hypothesizing underlying syntactic or semantic relations are investigated through analyses of pronoun case marking and of verbs with prototypical agent-patient roles. Neither supports the view that the children's utterances are being produced on the basis of general underlying rules and categories. The implications of widespread distributional learning in early language development are discussed.

  18. Medical students' professional identity development in an early nursing attachment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Helmich, Esther; Derksen, Els; Prevoo, Mathieu; Laan, Roland; Bolhuis, Sanneke; Koopmans, Raymond

    Objectives The importance of early clinical experience for medical training is well documented. However, to our knowledge there are no studies that assess the influence of very early nursing attachments on the professional development and identity construction of medical students. Working as an

  19. Medical students' professional identity development in an early nursing attachment.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Helmich, E.; Derksen, E.; Prevoo, M.; Laan, R.F.J.M.; Bolhuis, S.; Koopmans, R.T.C.M.

    2010-01-01

    OBJECTIVES: The importance of early clinical experience for medical training is well documented. However, to our knowledge there are no studies that assess the influence of very early nursing attachments on the professional development and identity construction of medical students. Working as an

  20. Early Infantile Epileptic Encephalopathy in an STXBP1 Patient with Lactic Acidemia and Normal Mitochondrial Respiratory Chain Function

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dong Li

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available A wide range of clinical findings have been associated with mutations in Syntaxin Binding Protein 1 (STXBP1, including multiple forms of epilepsy, nonsyndromic intellectual disability, and movement disorders. STXBP1 mutations have recently been associated with mitochondrial pathology, although it remains unclear if this phenotype is a part of the core feature for this gene disorder. We report a 7-year-old boy who presented for diagnostic evaluation of intractable epilepsy, episodic ataxia, resting tremor, and speech regression following a period of apparently normal early development. Mild lactic acidemia was detected on one occasion at the time of an intercurrent illness. Due to the concern for mitochondrial disease, ophthalmologic evaluation was performed that revealed bilateral midperiphery pigmentary mottling. Optical coherence tomography (OCT testing demonstrated a bilaterally thickened ganglion cell layer in the perifovea. Skeletal muscle biopsy analysis showed no mitochondrial abnormalities or respiratory chain dysfunction. Exome sequencing identified a de novo c.1651C>T (p.R551C mutation in STXBP1. Although mitochondrial dysfunction has been reported in some individuals, our proband had only mild lactic acidemia and no skeletal muscle tissue evidence of mitochondrial disease pathology. Thus, mitochondrial dysfunction is not an obligate feature of STXBP1 disease.

  1. Is early adulthood a critical developmental stage for psychosis proneness? A survey of delusional ideation in normal subjects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verdoux, H; van Os, J; Maurice-Tison, S; Gay, B; Salamon, R; Bourgeois, M

    1998-02-09

    It has been hypothesized that late adolescence and early adulthood might be a brain developmental stage favoring the clinical expression of psychotic symptoms in psychiatric or neurological diseases. The aim of the present survey was to examine the relationship between age and delusional ideation in a sample of subjects with no psychiatric disorder. The survey was carried out with the Aquitaine Sentinel Network of general practitioners. Consecutive practice attenders were invited to complete the PDI-21 (Peters Delusional Inventory 21 items), a self-report questionnaire designed to measure delusional ideation in the normal population. The study concerned 444 patients who had no lifetime history of psychiatric disorder and who completed the PDI-21. A principal component analysis of the PDI-21 items was performed in order to identify delusional dimensions. An age-related decrease in the likelihood to report delusional ideas was found, younger subjects scoring higher on most dimensions of delusional ideation, such as 'persecution', 'thought disturbance', 'grandiosity' and 'paranormal beliefs'. 'Religiosity' was the only dimension positively associated with age. The results suggest that there may be a physiological neurodevelopmental stage favouring the expression of psychosis proneness in normal subjects, and support the hypothesis that the association between age and positive psychotic symptoms in functional and organic psychoses may be linked to the interaction between normal brain maturational processes and cerebral abnormalities involved in the aetiology of functional and organic psychoses.

  2. Conditions on Early Mars Might Have Fostered Rapid and Early Development of Life

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gibson, Everett K.; McKay, David S.; Thomas-Keprta, Kathie L.; Clemett, Simon J.; Wentworth, Susan J.

    2007-01-01

    The exploration of Mars during the past decades has begun to unveil the history of the planet. The combinations of remote sensing, in situ geochemical compositional measurements and photographic observations from both above and on the surface have shown Mars to have a dynamic and active geologic evolution. Mars geologic evolution clearly had conditions that were suitable for supporting life. For a planet to be able to be habitable, it must have water, carbon sources, energy sources and a dynamic geologic past. Mars meets all of these requirements. The first 600 My of Martian history were ripe for life to develop because of the abundance of (i) Water-carved canyons and oceans or lakes with the early presence of near surface water shown by precipitated carbonates in ALH84001 well-dated at approx.3.9 Gy., (ii) Energy from the original accretional processes, a molten core which generated a strong magnetic field leaving a permanent record in the early crust, early active volcanism continuing throughout Martian history, and, and continuing impact processes, (iii) Carbon and water from possibly extensive volcanic outgassing (i.e. H2O, CO2, CH4, CO, O2, N2, H2S, SO2, etc.) and (iv) some crustal tectonics as revealed by faulting and possible plate movement reflected by the magnetic pattern in the crust. The question arises: "Why would life not evolve from these favorable conditions on early Mars in its first 600 My?" During this period, it seems likely that environmental near-surface conditions on Mars were more favorable to life than at any later time. Standing bodies of water, precipitation and flowing surface water, and possibly abundant hydrothermal energy would all favor the formation of early life. Even if life developed elsewhere (on Earth, Venus, or on other solar systems) and was transported to Mars, the surface conditions were likely very hospitable for that introduced life to multiply and evolve.

  3. Attentional and affective biases for attractive females emerge early in development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rennels, Jennifer Lynn; Verba, Stephanie Ann

    2017-01-01

    Predominant experience with females early in development results in infants developing an attractive, female-like facial representation that guides children's attention toward and affective preferences for attractive females. When combined with increased interest in the other sex at puberty, these early emerging biases might help explain the robust prosocial and financial biases men exhibit toward attractive women during adulthood.

  4. Autobiographical Memory in Normal Ageing and Dementia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Harvey J. Sagar

    1991-01-01

    Full Text Available Autobiographical memories in young and elderly normal subjects are drawn mostly from the recent past but elderly subjects relate a second peak of memories from early adulthood. Memory for remote past public events is relatively preserved in dementia, possibly reflecting integrity of semantic relative to episodic memory. We examined recall of specific, consistent autobiographical episodes in Alzheimer's disease (AD in response to cue words. Patients and control subjects drew most memories from the recent 20 years: episode age related to anterograde memory function but not subject age or dementia. Subjects also related a secondary peak of memories from early adulthood; episode age related to subject age and severity of dementia. The results suggest that preferential recall of memories from early adulthood is based on the salience of retrieval cues, altered by age and dementia, superimposed on a temporal gradient of semantic memory. Further, AD shows behavioural similarity to normal ageing.

  5. Regeneration of descending spinal axons after transection of the thoracic spinal cord during early development in the North American opossum, Didelphis virginiana.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, G F; Terman, J R; Wang, X M

    2000-11-15

    Opossums are born in an immature, fetal-like state, making it possible to lesion their spinal cord early in development without intrauterine surgery. When the thoracic spinal cord of the North American opossum, Didelphis virginiana, is transected on postnatal day 5, and injections of Fast Blue (FB) are made caudal to the lesion site 30-40 days or 6 months later, neurons are labeled in all of the spinal and supraspinal areas that are labeled after comparable injections in age-matched, unlesioned controls. Double-labeling studies document that regeneration of cut axons contributes to growth of axons through the lesion site and behavioral studies show that animals lesioned on postnatal day 5 use their hindlimbs in normal appearing locomotion as adults. The critical period for developmental plasticity of descending spinal axons extends to postnatal day 26, although axons which grow through the lesion site become fewer in number and more restricted as to origin with increasing age. Animals lesioned between postnatal day 12 and 26 use the hindlimbs better than animals lesioned as adults, but hindlimb function is markedly abnormal and uncoordinated with that of the forelimbs. We conclude that restoration of anatomical continuity occurs after transection of the spinal cord in developing opossums, that descending axons grow through the lesion site, that regeneration of cut axons contributes to such growth, and that animals lesioned early enough in development have relatively normal motor function as adults.

  6. Investing in the foundation of sustainable development: pathways to scale up for early childhood development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richter, Linda M; Daelmans, Bernadette; Lombardi, Joan; Heymann, Jody; Boo, Florencia Lopez; Behrman, Jere R; Lu, Chunling; Lucas, Jane E; Perez-Escamilla, Rafael; Dua, Tarun; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A; Stenberg, Karin; Gertler, Paul; Darmstadt, Gary L

    2017-01-07

    Building on long-term benefits of early intervention (Paper 2 of this Series) and increasing commitment to early childhood development (Paper 1 of this Series), scaled up support for the youngest children is essential to improving health, human capital, and wellbeing across the life course. In this third paper, new analyses show that the burden of poor development is higher than estimated, taking into account additional risk factors. National programmes are needed. Greater political prioritisation is core to scale-up, as are policies that afford families time and financial resources to provide nurturing care for young children. Effective and feasible programmes to support early child development are now available. All sectors, particularly education, and social and child protection, must play a role to meet the holistic needs of young children. However, health provides a critical starting point for scaling up, given its reach to pregnant women, families, and young children. Starting at conception, interventions to promote nurturing care can feasibly build on existing health and nutrition services at limited additional cost. Failure to scale up has severe personal and social consequences. Children at elevated risk for compromised development due to stunting and poverty are likely to forgo about a quarter of average adult income per year, and the cost of inaction to gross domestic product can be double what some countries currently spend on health. Services and interventions to support early childhood development are essential to realising the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Germination and early plant development of ten plant species ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ten agronomic plant species were exposed to different concentrations of nano titanium dioxide (nTiO2) or nano cerium oxide (nCeO2) (0, 250, 500 and 1000 mg/L) to examine potential effects on germination and early seedling development. We modified a standard test protocol developed for soluble chemicals (OPPTS 850.4200) to determine if such an approach might be useful for screening engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) and whether there were differences in response across a range of commercially important plant species to two common metal oxide ENMs. Eight of 10 species responded to nTiO2, and 5 species responded to nCeO2. Overall, it appeared that early root growth may be a more sensitive indicator of potential effects from ENM exposure than germination. The observed effects did not always relate to the exposure concentration, indicating that mass-based concentration may not fully explain developmental effects of these two ENMs. The results suggest that nTiO2 and nCeO2 have different effects on early plant growth of agronomic species, which may alter the timing of specific developmental events during their life cycle. In addition, standard germination tests, which are commonly used for toxicity screening of new materials, may not detect the subtle but potentially more important changes associated with early growth and development in terrestrial plants. Engineered nanoparticles (ENMs) have been recognized as valuable components of new technologies and are current

  8. Understanding Emotions from Standardized Facial Expressions in Autism and Normal Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castelli, Fulvia

    2005-01-01

    The study investigated the recognition of standardized facial expressions of emotion (anger, fear, disgust, happiness, sadness, surprise) at a perceptual level (experiment 1) and at a semantic level (experiments 2 and 3) in children with autism (N= 20) and normally developing children (N= 20). Results revealed that children with autism were as…

  9. Early psychosis workforce development: Core competencies for mental health professionals working in the early psychosis field.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Osman, Helen; Jorm, Anthony F; Killackey, Eoin; Francey, Shona; Mulcahy, Dianne

    2017-08-09

    The aim of this study was to identify the core competencies required of mental health professionals working in the early psychosis field, which could function as an evidence-based tool to support the early psychosis workforce and in turn assist early psychosis service implementation and strengthen early psychosis model fidelity. The Delphi method was used to establish expert consensus on the core competencies. In the first stage, a systematic literature search was conducted to generate competency items. In the second stage, a panel consisting of expert early psychosis clinicians from around the world was formed. Panel members then rated each of the competency items on how essential they are to the clinical practice of all early psychosis clinicians. In total, 1023 pieces of literature including textbooks, journal articles and grey literature were reviewed. A final 542 competency items were identified for inclusion in the questionnaire. A total of 63 early psychosis experts participated in 3 rating rounds. Of the 542 competency items, 242 were endorsed as the required core competencies. There were 29 competency items that were endorsed by 62 or more experts, and these may be considered the foundational competencies for early psychosis practice. The study generated a set of core competencies that provide a common language for early psychosis clinicians across professional disciplines and country of practice, and potentially are a useful professional resource to support early psychosis workforce development and service reform. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  10. Early enrichment effects on brain development in hatchery-reared Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar): no evidence for a critical period

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Näslund, Joacim; Aarestrup, Kim; Thomassen, Søren T.

    2012-01-01

    was released into nature and recaptured at smoltification. These stream-reared smolts developed smaller brains than the hatchery reared smolts, irrespective of initial enrichment treatment. These novel findings do not support the hypothesis that there is a critical early period determining the brain growth...... trajectory. In contrast, our results indicate that brain growth is plastic in relation to environment. In addition, we show allometric growth in brain substructures over juvenile development, which suggests that comparisons between groups of different body size should be made with caution. These results can......In hatcheries, fish are normally reared in barren environments, which have been reported to affect their phenotypic development compared with wild conspecifics. In this study, Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) alevins were reared in conventional barren hatchery trays or in either of two types...

  11. Mechanical property changes during neonatal development and healing using a multiple regression model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ansorge, Heather L; Adams, Sheila; Jawad, Abbas F; Birk, David E; Soslowsky, Louis J

    2012-04-30

    During neonatal development, tendons undergo a well orchestrated process whereby extensive structural and compositional changes occur in synchrony to produce a normal tissue. Conversely, during the repair response to injury, structural and compositional changes occur, but a mechanically inferior tendon is produced. As a result, developmental processes have been postulated as a potential paradigm for elucidation of mechanistic insight required to develop treatment modalities to improve adult tissue healing. The objective of this study was to compare and contrast normal development with injury during early and late developmental healing. Using backwards multiple linear regressions, quantitative and objective information was obtained into the structure-function relationships in tendon. Specifically, proteoglycans were shown to be significant predictors of modulus during early developmental healing but not during late developmental healing or normal development. Multiple independent parameters predicted percent relaxation during normal development, however, only biglycan and fibril diameter parameters predicted percent relaxation during early developmental healing. Lastly, multiple differential predictors were observed between early development and early developmental healing; however, no differential predictors were observed between late development and late developmental healing. This study presents a model through which objective analysis of how compositional and structural parameters that affect the development of mechanical parameters can be quantitatively measured. In addition, information from this study can be used to develop new treatment and therapies through which improved adult tendon healing can be obtained. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. QCD development in the early universe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gromov, N. A., E-mail: gromov@dm.komisc.ru [Komi Science Center of the Ural Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Department of Mathematics (Russian Federation)

    2017-03-15

    The high-energy limit of Quantum Chromodynamics is generated by the contraction of its gauge groups. Contraction parameters are taken identical with those of the Electroweak Model and tend to zero when energy increases. At the infinite energy limit all quarks lose masses and have only one color degree of freedom. The limit model represents the development of Quantum Chromodynamics in the early Universe from the Big Bang up to the end of several milliseconds.

  13. The neonatal brain : early connectome development and childhood cognition

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Keunen, K.

    2017-01-01

    The human brain is a vastly complex system that develops rapidly during human gestation. Its developmental pace is unprecedented in any other period of human development. By the time of normal birth the brain's layout verges on the adult human brain. All major structures have come into place,

  14. Effects of early life stress on amygdala and striatal development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fareri, Dominic S.; Tottenham, Nim

    2016-01-01

    Species-expected caregiving early in life is critical for the normative development and regulation of emotional behavior, the ability to effectively evaluate affective stimuli in the environment, and the ability to sustain social relationships. Severe psychosocial stressors early in life (early life stress; ELS) in the form of the absence of species expected caregiving (i.e., caregiver deprivation), can drastically impact one’s social and emotional success, leading to the onset of internalizing illness later in life. Development of the amygdala and striatum, two key regions supporting affective valuation and learning, is significantly affected by ELS, and their altered developmental trajectories have important implications for cognitive, behavioral and socioemotional development. However, an understanding of the impact of ELS on the development of functional interactions between these regions and subsequent behavioral effects is lacking. In this review, we highlight the roles of the amygdala and striatum in affective valuation and learning in maturity and across development. We discuss their function separately as well as their interaction. We highlight evidence across species characterizing how ELS induced changes in the development of the amygdala and striatum mediate subsequent behavioral changes associated with internalizing illness, positing a particular import of the effect of ELS on their interaction. PMID:27174149

  15. Effects of early life stress on amygdala and striatal development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fareri, Dominic S; Tottenham, Nim

    2016-06-01

    Species-expected caregiving early in life is critical for the normative development and regulation of emotional behavior, the ability to effectively evaluate affective stimuli in the environment, and the ability to sustain social relationships. Severe psychosocial stressors early in life (early life stress; ELS) in the form of the absence of species expected caregiving (i.e., caregiver deprivation), can drastically impact one's social and emotional success, leading to the onset of internalizing illness later in life. Development of the amygdala and striatum, two key regions supporting affective valuation and learning, is significantly affected by ELS, and their altered developmental trajectories have important implications for cognitive, behavioral and socioemotional development. However, an understanding of the impact of ELS on the development of functional interactions between these regions and subsequent behavioral effects is lacking. In this review, we highlight the roles of the amygdala and striatum in affective valuation and learning in maturity and across development. We discuss their function separately as well as their interaction. We highlight evidence across species characterizing how ELS induced changes in the development of the amygdala and striatum mediate subsequent behavioral changes associated with internalizing illness, positing a particular import of the effect of ELS on their interaction. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  16. Effects of early life stress on amygdala and striatal development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dominic S. Fareri

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Species-expected caregiving early in life is critical for the normative development and regulation of emotional behavior, the ability to effectively evaluate affective stimuli in the environment, and the ability to sustain social relationships. Severe psychosocial stressors early in life (early life stress; ELS in the form of the absence of species expected caregiving (i.e., caregiver deprivation, can drastically impact one’s social and emotional success, leading to the onset of internalizing illness later in life. Development of the amygdala and striatum, two key regions supporting affective valuation and learning, is significantly affected by ELS, and their altered developmental trajectories have important implications for cognitive, behavioral and socioemotional development. However, an understanding of the impact of ELS on the development of functional interactions between these regions and subsequent behavioral effects is lacking. In this review, we highlight the roles of the amygdala and striatum in affective valuation and learning in maturity and across development. We discuss their function separately as well as their interaction. We highlight evidence across species characterizing how ELS induced changes in the development of the amygdala and striatum mediate subsequent behavioral changes associated with internalizing illness, positing a particular import of the effect of ELS on their interaction.

  17. Prognosis with chest pain and normal thallium-201 exercise scintigrams

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pamelia, F.X.; Gibson, R.S.; Watson, D.D.; Craddock, G.B.; Sirowatka, J.; Beller, G.A.

    1985-01-01

    The goal of this study was to determine the prognostic value of a normal exercise thallium-201 (TI-201) scintigram by quantitative criteria in a consecutive series of 349 patients with chest pain. Follow- up was obtained in 345 patients (99%) from 8 to 45 months (mean 34 +/- 7). Of these, 60% were men, 26% had typical angina, 21% had chest pain during exercise testing, 29% were unable to achieve 85% or more of maximal predicted heart rate, and in 9% ischemic ST depression (1.0 mm or greater) developed during exercise. At the time of exercise testing, 45% of patients were taking nitrates and 38% were receiving a beta- blocking drug. During the follow-up period, there were 5 cardiac deaths (0.51%/year), of which 2 were sudden, 6 patients had a nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI) (0.61%/year). Two of the 5 patients who died and 1 who had MI had angiographically normal coronary arteries. The event rate was significantly higher (p less than 0.01) in patients referred for early catheterization (5 of 53; 9%) compared with the rate for those not undergoing early angiography (6 of 298; 2%). However, the event rate was similar in those who underwent catheterization with angiographically normal coronary arteries and in those who had significant coronary artery disease

  18. Development of Life on Early Mars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gibson, Everett K.; McKay, David S.; Thomas-Keprta, Kathie L.; Clemett, Simon J.; Wentworth, Susan J.

    2009-01-01

    Exploration of Mars has begun to unveil the history of the planet. Combinations of remote sensing, in situ compositional measurements and photographic observations have shown Mars had a dynamic and active geologic evolution. Mars geologic evolution encompassed conditions that were suitable for supporting life. A habitable planet must have water, carbon and energy sources along with a dynamic geologic past. Mars meets all of these requirements. The first 600 My of Martian history were ripe for life to develop because of the abundance of (i) Water- as shown by carved canyons and oceans or lakes with the early presence of near surface water shown by precipitated carbonates in ALH84001, well-dated at 3.9 Gy, (ii) Energy from the original accretional processes, a molten core which generated a strong magnetic field leaving a permanent record in the early crust, active volcanism continuing throughout Martian history, and continuing impact processes, (iii) Carbon, water and a likely thicker atmosphere from extensive volcanic outgassing (i.e. H20, CO2, CH4, CO, O2, N2, H2S, SO2, etc.) and (iv) crustal tectonics as revealed by faulting and possible plate movement reflected by the magnetic pattern in the crust [1]. The question arises: "Why would life not develop from these favorable conditions on Mars in its first 600 My?" During this period, environmental near-surface conditions on Mars were more favorable to life than at any later time. Standing bodies of water, precipitation and flowing surface water, and possibly abundant hydrothermal energy would favor the formation of early life. (Even if life developed elsewhere on Earth, Venus, or on other bodies-it was transported to Mars where surface conditions were suitable for life to evolve). The commonly stated requirement that life would need hundreds of millions of year to get started is only an assumption; we know of no evidence that requires such a long interval for the development of life, if the proper habitable

  19. Early postnatal soluble FGFR3 therapy prevents the atypical development of obesity in achondroplasia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarrazy, Vincent; Dumas, Karine; Authier, Florence; Sore, Sophie; Tran, Albert; Gual, Philippe; Gennero, Isabelle; Salles, Jean-Pierre; Gouze, Elvire

    2018-01-01

    Background Achondroplasia is a rare genetic disease is characterized by abnormal bone development and early obesity. While the bone aspect of the disease has been thoroughly studied, early obesity affecting approximately 50% of them during childhood has been somewhat neglected. It nevertheless represents a major health problem in these patients, and is associated to life-threatening complications including increasing risk of cardiovascular pathologies. We have thus decided to study obesity in patients and to use the mouse model to evaluate if soluble FGFR3 therapy, an innovative treatment approach for achondroplasia, could also impact the development of this significant complication. Methods and findings To achieve this, we have first fully characterized the metabolic deregulations in these patients by conducting a longitudinal retrospective study, in children with achondroplasia Anthropometric, densitometric measures as well as several blood parameters were recorded and compared between three age groups ranging from [0–3], [4–8] and [9–18] years old. Our results show unexpected results with the development of an atypical obesity with preferential fat deposition in the abdomen that is remarkably not associated with classical complications of obesity such as diabetes or hypercholosterolemia. Because it is not associated with diabetes, the atypical obesity has not been studied in the past even though it is recognized as a real problem in these patients. These results were validated in a murine model of achondroplasia (Fgfr3ach/+) where similar visceral adiposity was observed. Unexpected alterations in glucose metabolism were highlighted during high-fat diet. Glucose, insulin or lipid levels remained low, without the development of diabetes. Very interestingly, in achondroplasia mice treated with soluble FGFR3 during the growth period (from D3 to D22), the development of these metabolic deregulations was prevented in adult animals (between 4 and 14 weeks of age

  20. Left hemisphere regions are critical for language in the face of early left focal brain injury

    OpenAIRE

    Raja Beharelle, Anjali; Dick, Anthony Steven; Josse, Goulven; Solodkin, Ana; Huttenlocher, Peter R.; Levine, Susan C.; Small, Steven L.

    2010-01-01

    A predominant theory regarding early stroke and its effect on language development, is that early left hemisphere lesions trigger compensatory processes that allow the right hemisphere to assume dominant language functions, and this is thought to underlie the near normal language development observed after early stroke. To test this theory, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine brain activity during category fluency in participants who had sustained pre- or perinatal left h...

  1. [Normal and pathologic mandible development: practical deductions in maxillo-dento-facial orthopedics].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salagnac, Jean-Michel

    2016-09-01

    The mandible consists of different segments, each of which possess its own specific characteristics regarding emergence, ossification during growth and pathologies. Orthodontists need to be very familiar with these developmental anomalies if they are to avoid failure in their orthopedic or orthodontic treatments and in order to understand the reasons for the lack of success of "conventional" treatments. Each segment must develop correctly if the mandible is to achieve optimal development and occupy a normal position within the cranio-facial complex. The position of the mandible in the cranio-facial block is also conditioned by its attachment to the base of the skull. Combining a detailed semiologic study and a three-dimensional architectural and structural radiologic analysis of clinical cases, this article investigates the various anomalies affecting the mandibular segments and their impact on the craniofacial structure as a whole. An understanding of these anomalies and this analytical method can enable clinicians to perform early diagnosis, avoid undertaking orthopedic and orthodontic treatments which are likely to fail, understand the reasons for unsuccessful "conventional" treatments, provide an orthopedic-surgical guide and make it possible to inform patients correctly. Anomalies affecting the growth of the mandible and its position on the cranial base and their impact on cranio-facial skeletal balance are clearly revealed by structural and architectural analysis, which pinpoints the different clinical elements in skeletal Class II et III cases. In maxilla-dento-facial orthopedics when confronted with a pathology of mandibular origin, it is essential to carefully study the radiographs of each segment of the mandible, to seek out the minor forms of the anomalies and to calculate the position of the mandible on the cranial base relative to the neighboring structures; the skull, the cervical vertebrae and the maxilla. © EDP Sciences, SFODF, 2016.

  2. Parametric Cost and Schedule Modeling for Early Technology Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-04-02

    Research NoteNational Security Rep rt PARAMETRIC MODELING FOR EARLY TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT COST AND SCHEDULE Chuck...Alexander NSR_11x17_Cover_CostModeling_v8.indd 1 11/20/17 3:15 PM PARAMETRIC COST AND SCHEDULE MODELING FOR EARLY  TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT Chuck...COST AND SCHEDULE MODELING FOR EARLY  TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT iii Contents Figures

  3. The developing hypopharyngeal microbiota in early life

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mortensen, Martin Steen; Brejnrod, Asker Daniel; Roggenbuck, Michael

    2016-01-01

    BACKGROUND: The airways of healthy humans harbor a distinct microbial community. Perturbations in the microbial community have been associated with disease, yet little is known about the formation and development of a healthy airway microbiota in early life. Our goal was to understand the establi......BACKGROUND: The airways of healthy humans harbor a distinct microbial community. Perturbations in the microbial community have been associated with disease, yet little is known about the formation and development of a healthy airway microbiota in early life. Our goal was to understand...... the establishment of the airway microbiota within the first 3 months of life. We investigated the hypopharyngeal microbiota in the unselected COPSAC2010 cohort of 700 infants, using 16S rRNA gene sequencing of hypopharyngeal aspirates from 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months of age. RESULTS: Our analysis shows...... that majority of the hypopharyngeal microbiota of healthy infants belong to each individual's core microbiota and we demonstrate five distinct community pneumotypes. Four of these pneumotypes are dominated by the genera Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Moraxella, and Corynebacterium, respectively. Furthermore, we...

  4. Can very early music interventions promote at-risk infants' development?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Virtala, Paula; Partanen, Eino

    2018-04-30

    Music and musical activities are often a natural part of parenting. As accumulating evidence shows, music can promote auditory and language development in infancy and early childhood. It may even help to support auditory and language skills in infants whose development is compromised by heritable conditions, like the reading deficit dyslexia, or by environmental factors, such as premature birth. For example, infants born to dyslexic parents can have atypical brain responses to speech sounds and subsequent challenges in language development. Children born very preterm, in turn, have an increased likelihood of sensory, cognitive, and motor deficits. To ameliorate these deficits, we have developed early interventions focusing on music. Preliminary results of our ongoing longitudinal studies suggest that music making and parental singing promote infants' early language development and auditory neural processing. Together with previous findings in the field, the present studies highlight the role of active, social music making in supporting auditory and language development in at-risk children and infants. Once completed, the studies will illuminate both risk and protective factors in development and offer a comprehensive model of understanding the promises of music activities in promoting positive developmental outcomes during the first years of life. © 2018 The Authors. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of The New York Academy of Sciences.

  5. Development of Early Handwriting: Visual-Motor Control during Letter Copying

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maldarelli, Jennifer E.; Kahrs, Björn A.; Hunt, Sarah C.; Lockman, Jeffrey J.

    2015-01-01

    Despite the importance of handwriting for school readiness and early academic progress, prior research on the development of handwriting has focused primarily on the product rather than the process by which young children write letters. In contrast, in the present work, early handwriting is viewed as involving a suite of perceptual, motor, and…

  6. Early discrimination of nasopharyngeal carcinoma based on tissue deoxyribose nucleic acid surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qiu, Sufang; Li, Chao; Lin, Jinyong; Xu, Yuanji; Lu, Jun; Huang, Qingting; Zou, Changyan; Chen, Chao; Xiao, Nanyang; Lin, Duo; Chen, Rong; Pan, Jianji; Feng, Shangyuan

    2016-12-01

    Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) was employed to detect deoxyribose nucleic acid (DNA) variations associated with the development of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Significant SERS spectral differences between the DNA extracted from early NPC, advanced NPC, and normal nasopharyngeal tissue specimens were observed at 678, 729, 788, 1337, 1421, 1506, and 1573 cm-1, which reflects the genetic variations in NPC. Principal component analysis combined with discriminant function analysis for early NPC discrimination yielded a diagnostic accuracy of 86.8%, 92.3%, and 87.9% for early NPC, advanced NPC, and normal nasopharyngeal tissue DNA, respectively. In this exploratory study, we demonstrated the potential of SERS for early detection of NPC based on the DNA molecular study of biopsy tissues.

  7. Searching for biomarkers of developmental toxicity with microarrays: normal eye morphogenesis in rodent embryos

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nemeth, Kimberly A.; Singh, Amar V.; Knudsen, Thomas B.

    2005-01-01

    Gene expression arrays reveal the potential linkage of altered gene expression with specific adverse effects leading to disease phenotypes. But how closely do microarray data reflect early physiological or pharmacological measures that predict toxic event(s)? To explore this issue, we have undertaken experiments in early mouse embryos exposed to various teratogens during neurulation stages with the aim of correlating large-scale changes in gene expression across the critical period during exposure. This study reports some of the large-scale changes in gene expression that can be detected in the optic rudiment of the developing mouse and rat embryo across the window of development during which the eye is exceedingly sensitive to teratogen-induced micro-/anophthalmia. Microarray analysis was performed on RNA from the headfold or ocular region at the optic vesicle and optic cup stages when the ocular primordium is enriched for Pax-6, a master control gene for eye morphogenesis. Statistical selection of differentially regulated genes and various clustering techniques identified groups of genes in upward or downward trajectories in the normal optic primordium during early eye development in mouse and rat species. We identified 165 genes with significant differential expression during eye development, and a smaller subset of 58 genes that showed a tight correlation between mouse-rat development. Significantly over-represented functional categories included fatty acid metabolism (up-regulated) and glycolysis (down-regulated). From studies such as these that benchmark large-scale gene expression during normal embryonic development, we may be able to identify the panel of biomarkers that best correlate with species differences and the risks for developmental toxicity

  8. Towards the marketization of early childhood education and care? Recent developments in Sweden and the United Kingdom

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ingela Naumann

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Normal 0 21 false false false NO-BOK X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Vanlig tabell"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Vanlig tabell"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Extensive public debate is being waged across mature welfare states as to whether social services are best provided by the state or the market. This article examines developments in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC policy in Sweden and the United Kingdom, identifying trends towards marketization and universalization of ECEC that suggest a complex picture of competing policy logics and goals in the restructuring of welfare states. This article first

  9. Radiographic appearance of the normal temporomandibular joint in newborns and small children

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Larheim, T.A.

    1981-01-01

    The radiographic anatomy of the normal temporomandibular joint in newborns and children up to 4 years of age was investigated, partly on specimens, obtained at autopsy, with methods corresponding to clinical procedures, and partly on patients. A rather flat mandibular fossa and immature mandibular head were found at birth, whereas a well-developed articular tubercle and an adult-like radiographic appearance of the joint were found at about one year of age. No evident changes of the radiographic anatomy seemed to occur from one to 4 years of age. A striking similarity was observed between the dystrophic temporomandibular joint in patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and micrognathia and the normal radiographic appearance in the first months of life, indicating an early involvement of this joint in patients developing micrognathia. (Auth.)

  10. Trajectories of cortical surface area and cortical volume maturation in normal brain development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simon Ducharme

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This is a report of developmental trajectories of cortical surface area and cortical volume in the NIH MRI Study of Normal Brain Development. The quality-controlled sample included 384 individual typically-developing subjects with repeated scanning (1–3 per subject, total scans n=753 from 4.9 to 22.3 years of age. The best-fit model (cubic, quadratic, or first-order linear was identified at each vertex using mixed-effects models, with statistical correction for multiple comparisons using random field theory. Analyses were performed with and without controlling for total brain volume. These data are provided for reference and comparison with other databases. Further discussion and interpretation on cortical developmental trajectories can be found in the associated Ducharme et al.׳s article “Trajectories of cortical thickness maturation in normal brain development – the importance of quality control procedures” (Ducharme et al., 2015 [1].

  11. Improving Latino Children's Early Language and Literacy Development: Key Features of Early Childhood Education within Family Literacy Programmes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jung, Youngok; Zuniga, Stephen; Howes, Carollee; Jeon, Hyun-Joo; Parrish, Deborah; Quick, Heather; Manship, Karen; Hauser, Alison

    2016-01-01

    Noting the lack of research on how early childhood education (ECE) programmes within family literacy programmes influence Latino children's early language and literacy development, this study examined key features of ECE programmes, specifically teacher-child interactions and child engagement in language and literacy activities and how these…

  12. Biochemical composition of fetal fluids in at term, normal developed, healthy, viable dogs and preliminary data from pathologic littermates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Veronesi, M C; Bolis, B; Faustini, M; Rota, A; Mollo, A

    2018-03-01

    A proper canine neonatal assistance, required to reduce the high perinatal loss rate, imply a full knowledge about the fetal-to-neonatal physiology. Because fetal fluids play an important role throughout mammals pregnancy, influencing fetal growth and development, fetal well being, and contributing to guarantee the most suitable environment for the fetus, the knowledge about fetal fluids biochemical composition is of major importance. At first, the biochemical composition of fetal fluids collected by normal developed, healthy and viable newborns, is necessary to depict the normal features, and represent the first step for the further detection of abnormalities associated to fetal/neonatal distress and useful for the early identification of newborns needing special attention, immediately after birth. The present study was aimed to define the biochemical composition of amniotic and allantoic fluids collected from fetus delivered by caesarean section at term of pregnancy. To reduce the possible confounding effect of maternal labor or troubles at parturition, fetal fluids were collected only from puppies born by elective caesaeran section, at term of normal pregnancies. Fetal fluids from 76 puppies, 70 normal and six pathologic newborns, born by elective caesarean section were collected and analyzed for alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), creatine-kinase (CK), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), creatinine, urea, amylase, lipase, gamma-glutamyl transferase (γ-GT), triglycerides, cholesterol, total proteins, albumin, globulins, glucose, magnesium, potassium, chloride, sodium, calcium, phosphorus and osmolarity. No significant differences were found between biochemical composition of amniotic or allantoic fluid in normal and pathologic newborns, maybe due to the small number of the pathologic puppies. Although some correlations between the two fluids were found (albumin, phosphorus, glucose and

  13. Psychological preconditions of game activity development in the early childhood

    OpenAIRE

    Valeriya Spitsyna; Ekaterina Saraykina

    2013-01-01

    The article is devoted for detection the psychological preconditions of game activity development at early age and interrelation of game formation with the development of subject actions, informative activity and procedural game.

  14. Motor Development Skills of 1- to 4-Year-Old Iranian Children with Early Treated Phenylketonuria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Firouzeh Sajedi

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Objective: To gauge the gross and fine motor development of early treated phenylketonuria (ETPKU in children in the age range of 1–4 years. Materials & Methods: A cross-sectional analytic study was conducted in PKU clinics (reference clinics for PKU follow-up, Tehran, Iran. Seventy children with ETPKU were selected as the case group for the study. ETPKU children were those with early and continuous treatment with a phenylalaninerestricted diet (the mean of blood phenylalanine level during the recent 6 months was 2–6 mg/dL or 120–360 mmol/L. Also, 100 healthy and normal children matched with the ETPKU group for age were randomly selected from 4 kindergartens in four parts of Tehran as a control group. The measurements consisted of a demographic questionnaire, Peabody Developmental Motor Scale-2 (PDMS-2, and pediatrician assessment. Motor quotients were determined by PDMS-2 and then compared in both groups by two independent samples t-test. Results: The mean ages in case and control group were 28.5 (±11.6 and 29.7 (±11.3 months, respectively. Comparison of the mean fine, gross, and total developmental motor quotients (DMQs showed statistically significant differences between the two groups (P<0.05. The fine and total DMQs of ETPKU children were also correlated with age. In addition, there was a negative correlation between the phenylalanine level and fine (P<0.001 and total (P=0.001 DMQs. Conclusion: It seems that ETPKU Iranian children, regardless of following a phenylalanine-restricted diet or not, have lower motor development. It is recommended to plan programs for early detection and intervention of developmental delays in these children.

  15. C4.4A gene ablation is compatible with normal epidermal development and causes modest overt phenotypes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kriegbaum, Mette Camilla; Jacobsen, Benedikte; Füchtbauer, Annette

    2016-01-01

    of C4.4A in normal physiology and cancer progression. The unchallenged C4.4A-deficient mice were viable, fertile, born in a normal Mendelian distribution and, surprisingly, displayed normal development of squamous epithelia. The C4.4A-deficient mice were, nonetheless, significantly lighter than...

  16. Development of Early Warning Methods for Electric Power Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jóhannsson, Hjörtur

    This thesis concerns the development of methods that can provide, in realtime, an early warning for an emerging blackout in electric power systems. The blackout in E-Denmark and S-Sweden on September 23, 2003 is the main motivation for the method development. The blackout was caused by occurrence...

  17. Early Markers of Vulnerable Language Skill Development in Galactosaemia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewis, Fiona M.; Coman, David J.; Syrmis, Maryanne

    2014-01-01

    There are no known biomedical or genetic markers to identify which infants with galactosaemia (GAL) are most at risk of poor language skill development, yet pre-linguistic communicative "red flag" behaviours are recognised as early identifiers of heightened vulnerability to impaired language development. We report on pre-linguistic…

  18. What Drives Embryo Development? Chromosomal Normality or Mitochondria?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. Bayram

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective. To report the arrest of euploid embryos with high mtDNA content. Design. A report of 2 cases. Setting. Private fertility clinic. Patients. 2 patients, 45 and 40 years old undergoing IVF treatment. Interventions. Mature oocytes were collected and vitrified from two ovarian stimulations. Postthaw, survived mature oocytes underwent fertilization by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI. Preimplantation genetic screening (PGS and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA copy number were done using next generation sequencing (NGS. The only normal embryo among the all-biopsied embryos had the highest “Mitoscore” value and was the only arrested embryo in both cases. Therefore, the embryo transfer was cancelled. Main Outcome Measures. Postthaw survival and fertilization rate, embryo euploidy, mtDNA copy number, and embryo development. Results. In both patients, after PGS only 1 embryo was euploid. Both embryos had the highest mtDNA copy number from all tested embryos and both embryos were arrested on further development. Conclusions. These cases clearly demonstrate the lack of correlation between mtDNA value (Mitoscore and chromosomal status of embryo.

  19. Career Planning and Development for Early-Career Scientists

    Science.gov (United States)

    Early career development can be looked at as being of two major phases. The first phase is the formal educational process leading to an awarded degree, postdoctoral training, and potentially formal certification in a scientific discipline. The second phase is the informal educa...

  20. Proteinase-activated receptors - mediators of early and delayed normal tissue radiation responses

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hauer-Jensen, M.

    2003-01-01

    Proteinase-activated receptors (PARs) are G-protein coupled receptors that are activated by proteolytic exposure of a receptor-tethered ligand. The discovery of this receptor family represents one of the most intriguing recent developments in signal transduction. PARs are involved in the regulation of many normal and pathophysiological processes, notably inflammatory and fibroproliferative responses to injury. Preclinical studies performed in our laboratory suggest that proteinase-activated receptor-1 (PAR-1) plays a critical role in the mechanism of chronicity of radiation fibrosis, while proteinase-activated receptor-2 (PAR-2) may mediate important fibroproliferative responses in irradiated intestine. Specifically, activation of PAR-1 by thrombin, and PAR-2 by pancreatic trypsin and mast cell proteinases, appears to be involved in acute radiation-induced inflammation, as well as in subsequent extracellular matrix deposition, leading to the development of intestinal wall fibrosis and clinical complications. Pharmacological modulators of PAR-1 or PAR-2 expression or activation would be potentially useful as preventive or therapeutic agents in patients who receive radiation therapy, especially if blockade could be targeted to specific tissues or cellular compartments

  1. Effects of child development accounts on early social-emotional development: an experimental test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Jin; Sherraden, Michael; Kim, Youngmi; Clancy, Margaret

    2014-03-01

    This study, based on Oklahoma's statewide Child Development Accounts (CDAs) program, presents findings from the first experimental test of the hypothesis that creating lifelong savings accounts for children at birth promotes their long-term well-being. To examine the effects of CDAs, an innovative social policy to encourage lifelong saving and asset building for long-term development, on parent-reported social-emotional development in early childhood. A statewide randomized experiment of CDAs was conducted in 2008, drawing a probability sample of 7328 children from all infants born in two 3-month periods in Oklahoma (April 1 through June 30 and August 1 through October 31, 2007). After agreeing to participate in the experiment, caregivers of 2704 infants completed a baseline survey and were randomly assigned to treatment (n = 1358) and control groups (n = 1346). Approximately 84% of participants completed a follow-up survey in the spring of 2011. The intervention offered CDAs, built on the existing Oklahoma 529 college-savings plan, to treatment participants. It also provided additional financial incentives and information. The primary outcome-child social-emotional development-is measured by scores from a 17-item version of the Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Social-Emotional. Caregivers completed it in the 3-year follow-up survey. Lower scores indicate better functioning. The CDAs have positive effects on social-emotional development for children at approximately age 4 years. The nonweighted treatment-control difference is -1.56 (90% CI, -2.87 to -0.22; P = .06), but the weighted difference is nonsignificant. The effects appear to be greater for disadvantaged subsamples, such as low-income households (weighted mean difference, -2.21; 90% CI, -4.01 to -0.42; P = .04). As a complement to other early education and health interventions, CDAs may improve social-emotional development in early childhood. Their effects may be explained as a mediating

  2. Psychological and emotional development, intellectual capabilities, and body image in short normal children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Molinari, E; Sartori, A; Ceccarelli, A; Marchi, S

    2002-04-01

    It is well established that children with short stature frequently have problems in cognitive development, personality, self-esteem and social relations. This is partly due to the fact that many parents view them as more vulnerable than other children of normal stature and do not allow them to face the normal experiences that correspond to their actual age. The aim of the present study was to assess, through the administration of appropriate psychological tools, a series of psychological and cognitive characteristics [i.e. anxiety, depression, good adjustment, social functioning, feeling of guilt, interpersonal relationship, intelligence quotient (IQ)], as well as variables linked to development of body image, in a group of children suffering from normal growth variants [familial short stature (FSS), no. 10, 4 males/6 females; with constitutional growth delay (CGD), no. 4,4 males; height standard deviation score (HSDS) ranging between -2.4 and -1.9] and in a control group children of normal stature (HSDS between -0.1 and +0.1). Children with short stature significantly differed from normal statured controls as far as Colored Progressive Matrices (CPMs, centiles), IQ (IQ, obtained using the Goodenough test), "Good Adjustment" (Draw-a-Person index, DAP), "Feelings of Guilt" (DAP index), "Height" (as emerges from drawings of the body) are concerned. Significant relationships were found between the height of the subjects (in centiles) and cognitive skills, measured both using CPMs (r=0.408; p=0.017) and Draw-a-Man (DAM) (r=0.359; p=0.037) and between height and feelings of guilt (r=0.325; p=0.027), measured using DAP. CPM scores correlated positively with the "Good Adjustment" index of DAP (r=0.354; p=0.05) and negatively with Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) (r=-0.609; p=0.01), "School Anxiety" index (r=-0.427; p=0.05) and "Total Anxiety" index (r=-0.436; p=0.05) of the Anxiety Scale Questionnaire for the Age of Development, and with 2 indices of DAP, namely

  3. A Survey of English Sixth Formers' Knowledge of Early Brain Development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nolan, Mary

    2017-10-01

    Objectives To ascertain the knowledge of young people aged 16 to 19 of early brain development and their attitudes towards the care of babies and preschool children. Design Cross-sectional, school- and college-based survey including all sixth form students present on the days of data collection. The survey instrument comprised forced-choice questions in four sections: Demographics, Perceptions and Understanding of Early Childhood Development, Parental Behaviors to Support Early Brain development, and Resource Needs and Usage. Setting Two sixth form schools and one sixth form college in three towns of varying affluence in the West Midlands of the United Kingdom. Method The survey was mounted online and completed by 905 students who returned it directly to the researcher. Results Most students knew that tobacco, alcohol, and drugs are hazardous in pregnancy, and many recognized the impact of maternal stress on fetal brain development. Many believed that babies can be "spoiled" and did not appreciate the importance of reading to babies and of the relationship between play and early brain development. A significant minority thought that physical activity and a healthy diet have little impact on young children's development. Respondents said they would turn firstly to their parents for advice on baby care rather than professionals. Conclusion Young people need educating about parenting activities that support the all-round healthy development of infants. The importance of a healthy diet, physical activity, reading, and play should be included in sixth form curricula and antenatal classes. Consideration should be given to educating grandparents because of their influence on new parents.

  4. X-ray emssion from normal galaxies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Speybroeck, L. van; Bechtold, J.

    1981-01-01

    A summary of results obtained with the Einstein Observatory is presented. There are two general categories of normal galaxy investigation being pursued - detailed studies of nearby galaxies where individual sources can be detected and possibly correlated with galactic morphology, and shorter observations of many more distant objects to determine the total luminosity distribution of normal galaxies. The principal examples of the first type are the CFA study of M31 and the Columbia study of the Large Magellanic Cloud. The Columbia normal galaxy survey is the principal example of the second type, although there also are smaller CFA programs concentrating on early galaxies and peculiar galaxies, and MIT has observed some members of the local group. (Auth.)

  5. MRI of normal fetal brain development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prayer, Daniela; Kasprian, Gregor; Krampl, Elisabeth; Ulm, Barbara; Witzani, Linde; Prayer, Lucas; Brugger, Peter C.

    2006-01-01

    Normal fetal brain maturation can be studied by in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) from the 18th gestational week (GW) to term, and relies primarily on T2-weighted and diffusion-weighted (DW) sequences. These maturational changes must be interpreted with a knowledge of the histological background and the temporal course of the respective developmental steps. In addition, MR presentation of developing and transient structures must be considered. Signal changes associated with maturational processes can mainly be ascribed to the following changes in tissue composition and organization, which occur at the histological level: (1) a decrease in water content and increasing cell-density can be recognized as a shortening of T1- and T2-relaxation times, leading to increased T1-weighted and decreased T2-weighted intensity, respectively; (2) the arrangement of microanatomical structures to create a symmetrical or asymmetrical environment, leading to structural differences that may be demonstrated by DW-anisotropy; (3) changes in non-structural qualities, such as the onset of a membrane potential in premyelinating axons. The latter process also influences the appearance of a structure on DW sequences. Thus, we will review the in vivo MR appearance of different maturational states of the fetal brain and relate these maturational states to anatomical, histological, and in vitro MRI data. Then, the development of the cerebral cortex, white matter, temporal lobe, and cerebellum will be reviewed, and the MR appearance of transient structures of the fetal brain will be shown. Emphasis will be placed on the appearance of the different structures with the various sequences. In addition, the possible utility of dynamic fetal sequences in assessing spontaneous fetal movements is discussed

  6. MRI of normal fetal brain development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Prayer, Daniela [Department of Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria)]. E-mail: Daniela.prayer@meduniwien.ac.at; Kasprian, Gregor [Department of Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria); Krampl, Elisabeth [Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria); Ulm, Barbara [Department of Prenatal Diagnosis, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria); Witzani, Linde [Department of Radiodiagnostics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria); Prayer, Lucas [Diagnosezentrum Urania, Vienna (Austria); Brugger, Peter C. [Center of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria)

    2006-02-15

    Normal fetal brain maturation can be studied by in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) from the 18th gestational week (GW) to term, and relies primarily on T2-weighted and diffusion-weighted (DW) sequences. These maturational changes must be interpreted with a knowledge of the histological background and the temporal course of the respective developmental steps. In addition, MR presentation of developing and transient structures must be considered. Signal changes associated with maturational processes can mainly be ascribed to the following changes in tissue composition and organization, which occur at the histological level: (1) a decrease in water content and increasing cell-density can be recognized as a shortening of T1- and T2-relaxation times, leading to increased T1-weighted and decreased T2-weighted intensity, respectively; (2) the arrangement of microanatomical structures to create a symmetrical or asymmetrical environment, leading to structural differences that may be demonstrated by DW-anisotropy; (3) changes in non-structural qualities, such as the onset of a membrane potential in premyelinating axons. The latter process also influences the appearance of a structure on DW sequences. Thus, we will review the in vivo MR appearance of different maturational states of the fetal brain and relate these maturational states to anatomical, histological, and in vitro MRI data. Then, the development of the cerebral cortex, white matter, temporal lobe, and cerebellum will be reviewed, and the MR appearance of transient structures of the fetal brain will be shown. Emphasis will be placed on the appearance of the different structures with the various sequences. In addition, the possible utility of dynamic fetal sequences in assessing spontaneous fetal movements is discussed.

  7. Use Case Evaluation (UCE): A Method for Early Usability Evaluation in Software Development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stage, Jan; Høegh, Rune Thaarup; Hornbæk, K.

    2007-01-01

    t is often argued that usability problems should be identified as early as possible during software development, but many usability evaluation methods do not fit well in early development activities. We propose a method for usability evaluation of use cases, a widely used representation of design...... ideas produced early in software development processes. The method proceeds by systematic inspection of use cases with reference to a set of guidelines for usable design. To validate the method, four evaluators inspected a set of use cases for a health care application....

  8. Carotid artery stiffness evaluated early by wave intensity in normal left ventricular function in post-radiotherapy patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Zhuo; Luo, Runlan; Tan, Bijun; Qian, Jing; Duan, Yanfang; Wang, Nan; Li, Guangsen

    2018-04-01

    This study aims to assess carotid elasticity early in normal left ventricular function in post-radiotherapy patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) by wave intensity. Sixty-seven post-radiotherapy patients all with normal left ventricular function were classified into group NPC1 and group NPC2 based on their carotid intima-media thickness. Thirty age- and sex-matched NPC patients without any history of irradiation and chemotherapy were included as a control group. Carotid parameters, including stiffness constant (β), pressure-strain elastic modulus (Ep), arterial compliance (AC), stiffness constant pulse wave velocity (PWVβ), and wave intensity pulse wave velocity (PWVWI) were measured. There were no significant differences in conventional echocardiographic variables among the three groups. In comparison with the control group, β, Ep, PWVβ, and PWVWI were significantly increased, while AC was significantly decreased in the NPC1 and NPC2 groups, and there were differences between the NPC1 group and NPC2 group (all P < 0.05). This study suggested that carotid artery stiffness increased with reduced carotid compliance in post-RT with NPC.

  9. Sall4-Gli3 system in early limb progenitors is essential for the development of limb skeletal elements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akiyama, Ryutaro; Kawakami, Hiroko; Wong, Julia; Oishi, Isao; Nishinakamura, Ryuichi; Kawakami, Yasuhiko

    2015-04-21

    Limb skeletal elements originate from the limb progenitor cells, which undergo expansion and patterning to develop each skeletal element. Posterior-distal skeletal elements, such as the ulna/fibula and posterior digits develop in a Sonic hedgehog (Shh)-dependent manner. However, it is poorly understood how anterior-proximal elements, such as the humerus/femur, the radius/tibia and the anterior digits, are developed. Here we show that the zinc finger factors Sall4 and Gli3 cooperate for proper development of the anterior-proximal skeletal elements and also function upstream of Shh-dependent posterior skeletal element development. Conditional inactivation of Sall4 in the mesoderm before limb outgrowth caused severe defects in the anterior-proximal skeletal elements in the hindlimb. We found that Gli3 expression is reduced in Sall4 mutant hindlimbs, but not in forelimbs. This reduction caused posteriorization of nascent hindlimb buds, which is correlated with a loss of anterior digits. In proximal development, Sall4 integrates Gli3 and the Plzf-Hox system, in addition to proliferative expansion of cells in the mesenchymal core of nascent hindlimb buds. Whereas forelimbs developed normally in Sall4 mutants, further genetic analysis identified that the Sall4-Gli3 system is a common regulator of the early limb progenitor cells in both forelimbs and hindlimbs. The Sall4-Gli3 system also functions upstream of the Shh-expressing ZPA and the Fgf8-expressing AER in fore- and hindlimbs. Therefore, our study identified a critical role of the Sall4-Gli3 system at the early steps of limb development for proper development of the appendicular skeletal elements.

  10. Early childhood obesity is associated with compromised cerebellar development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Jennifer L; Couch, Jessica; Schwenk, Krista; Long, Michelle; Towler, Stephen; Theriaque, Douglas W; He, Guojun; Liu, Yijun; Driscoll, Daniel J; Leonard, Christiana M

    2009-01-01

    As part of a study investigating commonalities between Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS-a genetic imprinting disorder) and early-onset obesity of unknown etiology (EMO) we measured total cerebral and cerebellar volume on volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images. Individuals with PWS (N = 16) and EMO (N = 12) had smaller cerebellar volumes than a control group of 15 siblings (p = .02 control vs. EMO; p = .0005 control vs. PWS), although there was no difference among the groups in cerebral volume. Individuals with PWS and EMO also had impaired cognitive function: general intellectual ability (GIA): PWS 65 +/- 25; EMO 81 +/- 19; and Controls 112 +/- 13 (p cognitive development, these results raise the possibility that early childhood obesity retards both cerebellar and cognitive development.

  11. The Effects of Irradiation and Calcium-deficient Diet on the Expression of Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2/4 during Early Tooth Development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Dai Hee; Hwang, Eui Hwan; Lee, Sang Rae

    2000-01-01

    To investigate the expression of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2/4 during early tooth development after irradiation and calcium-deficient diet. The pregnant three-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats were used for the study. The control group was non-irradiation/normal diet group (Group 1), and the experimental groups were irradiation/normal diet group (Group 2) and irradiation/calcium-diet group (Group 3). The abdomen of the rats at the 9th day of pregnancy were irradiated with single dose of 350 cGy. The rat pups were sacrificed at embryonic 18 days, 3 days and 14 days after delivery and the maxillae tooth germs were taken. The tissue sections of specimen were stained immunohistochemically with anti-BMP-2/4 antibody. At embryo-18 days, immunoreacivity for BMP-2/4 of the Group 1 was modetate in stratum intermedium of dental organ and weak in dental papilla and dental follicle, but that of Group 2 was weak in cell layer of dental organ, and no immunoreacivity was shown in dental papilla and dental follice of Group 2 and in all tissue components of the Group 3. At postnatal-3 days, immunoreacivity for BMP-2/4 of the Group 1 was strong in cell layer of dental organ, odontoblasts and developing alveolar bone, but that of Group of 2 and Group 3 was weak in odontoblasts and developing alveolar bone. At postnatal-14 days, immunoreacivity for BMP-2/4 of the Group 1 was strong in newly formed cementum, alveolar bone and odontoblasts, but that of Group 2 was weaker than that of Group 1. In the Group 3, tooth forming cell layer showed weak immunoreactivity, but other cell layers showed no immunoreactivity. The expression of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2/4 during early tooth development was disturbed after irradiation and calcium-deficient diet.

  12. The Effects of Irradiation and Calcium-deficient Diet on the Expression of Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2/4 during Early Tooth Development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Park, Dai Hee; Hwang, Eui Hwan; Lee, Sang Rae [Dept. of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, College of Dentistry, Kyunghee University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2000-09-15

    To investigate the expression of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2/4 during early tooth development after irradiation and calcium-deficient diet. The pregnant three-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats were used for the study. The control group was non-irradiation/normal diet group (Group 1), and the experimental groups were irradiation/normal diet group (Group 2) and irradiation/calcium-diet group (Group 3). The abdomen of the rats at the 9th day of pregnancy were irradiated with single dose of 350 cGy. The rat pups were sacrificed at embryonic 18 days, 3 days and 14 days after delivery and the maxillae tooth germs were taken. The tissue sections of specimen were stained immunohistochemically with anti-BMP-2/4 antibody. At embryo-18 days, immunoreacivity for BMP-2/4 of the Group 1 was modetate in stratum intermedium of dental organ and weak in dental papilla and dental follicle, but that of Group 2 was weak in cell layer of dental organ, and no immunoreacivity was shown in dental papilla and dental follice of Group 2 and in all tissue components of the Group 3. At postnatal-3 days, immunoreacivity for BMP-2/4 of the Group 1 was strong in cell layer of dental organ, odontoblasts and developing alveolar bone, but that of Group of 2 and Group 3 was weak in odontoblasts and developing alveolar bone. At postnatal-14 days, immunoreacivity for BMP-2/4 of the Group 1 was strong in newly formed cementum, alveolar bone and odontoblasts, but that of Group 2 was weaker than that of Group 1. In the Group 3, tooth forming cell layer showed weak immunoreactivity, but other cell layers showed no immunoreactivity. The expression of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2/4 during early tooth development was disturbed after irradiation and calcium-deficient diet.

  13. Vortex flow during early and late left ventricular filling in normal subjects: quantitative characterization using retrospectively-gated 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance and three-dimensional vortex core analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elbaz, Mohammed S M; Calkoen, Emmeline E; Westenberg, Jos J M; Lelieveldt, Boudewijn P F; Roest, Arno A W; van der Geest, Rob J

    2014-09-27

    LV diastolic vortex formation has been suggested to critically contribute to efficient blood pumping function, while altered vortex formation has been associated with LV pathologies. Therefore, quantitative characterization of vortex flow might provide a novel objective tool for evaluating LV function. The objectives of this study were 1) assess feasibility of vortex flow analysis during both early and late diastolic filling in vivo in normal subjects using 4D Flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) with retrospective cardiac gating and 3D vortex core analysis 2) establish normal quantitative parameters characterizing 3D LV vortex flow during both early and late ventricular filling in normal subjects. With full ethical approval, twenty-four healthy volunteers (mean age: 20±10 years) underwent whole-heart 4D Flow CMR. The Lambda2-method was used to extract 3D LV vortex ring cores from the blood flow velocity field during early (E) and late (A) diastolic filling. The 3D location of the center of vortex ring core was characterized using cylindrical cardiac coordinates (Circumferential, Longitudinal (L), Radial (R)). Comparison between E and A filling was done with a paired T-test. The orientation of the vortex ring core was measured and the ring shape was quantified by the circularity index (CI). Finally, the Spearman's correlation between the shapes of mitral inflow pattern and formed vortex ring cores was tested. Distinct E- and A-vortex ring cores were observed with centers of A-vortex rings significantly closer to the mitral valve annulus (E-vortex L=0.19±0.04 versus A-vortex L=0.15±0.05; p=0.0001), closer to the ventricle's long-axis (E-vortex: R=0.27±0.07, A-vortex: R=0.20±0.09, p=0.048) and more elliptical in shape (E-vortex: CI=0.79±0.09, A-vortex: CI=0.57±0.06; vortex. The circumferential location and orientation relative to LV long-axis for both E- and A-vortex ring cores were similar. Good to strong correlation was found between vortex shape and

  14. Fibroblast growth factor signaling is required for early somatic gonad development in zebrafish.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leerberg, Dena M; Sano, Kaori; Draper, Bruce W

    2017-09-01

    The vertebrate ovary and testis develop from a sexually indifferent gonad. During early development of the organism, primordial germ cells (the gamete lineage) and somatic gonad cells coalesce and begin to undergo growth and morphogenesis to form this bipotential gonad. Although this aspect of development is requisite for a fertile adult, little is known about the genetic regulation of early gonadogenesis in any vertebrate. Here, we provide evidence that fibroblast growth factor (Fgf) signaling is required for the early growth phase of a vertebrate bipotential gonad. Based on mutational analysis in zebrafish, we show that the Fgf ligand 24 (Fgf24) is required for proliferation, differentiation, and morphogenesis of the early somatic gonad, and as a result, most fgf24 mutants are sterile as adults. Additionally, we describe the ultrastructural elements of the early zebrafish gonad and show that distinct somatic cell populations can be identified soon after the gonad forms. Specifically, we show that fgf24 is expressed in an epithelial population of early somatic gonad cells that surrounds an inner population of mesenchymal somatic gonad cells that are in direct contact with the germ cells, and that fgf24 is required for stratification of the somatic tissue. Furthermore, based on gene expression analysis, we find that differentiation of the inner mesenchymal somatic gonad cells into functional cell types in the larval and early juvenile-stage gonad is dependent on Fgf24 signaling. Finally, we argue that the role of Fgf24 in zebrafish is functionally analogous to the role of tetrapod FGF9 in early gonad development.

  15. Development of a metabolic biosignature for detection of early Lyme disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Molins, Claudia R; Ashton, Laura V; Wormser, Gary P; Hess, Ann M; Delorey, Mark J; Mahapatra, Sebabrata; Schriefer, Martin E; Belisle, John T

    2015-06-15

    Early Lyme disease patients often present to the clinic prior to developing a detectable antibody response to Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent. Thus, existing 2-tier serology-based assays yield low sensitivities (29%-40%) for early infection. The lack of an accurate laboratory test for early Lyme disease contributes to misconceptions about diagnosis and treatment, and underscores the need for new diagnostic approaches. Retrospective serum samples from patients with early Lyme disease, other diseases, and healthy controls were analyzed for small molecule metabolites by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). A metabolomics data workflow was applied to select a biosignature for classifying early Lyme disease and non-Lyme disease patients. A statistical model of the biosignature was trained using the patients' LC-MS data, and subsequently applied as an experimental diagnostic tool with LC-MS data from additional patient sera. The accuracy of this method was compared with standard 2-tier serology. Metabolic biosignature development selected 95 molecular features that distinguished early Lyme disease patients from healthy controls. Statistical modeling reduced the biosignature to 44 molecular features, and correctly classified early Lyme disease patients and healthy controls with a sensitivity of 88% (84%-95%), and a specificity of 95% (90%-100%). Importantly, the metabolic biosignature correctly classified 77%-95% of the of serology negative Lyme disease patients. The data provide proof-of-concept that metabolic profiling for early Lyme disease can achieve significantly greater (P Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  16. Characteristics of effective professional development for early career science teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simon, Shirley; Campbell, Sandra; Johnson, Sally; Stylianidou, Fani

    2011-04-01

    The research reported here set out to investigate the features in schools and science departments that were seen as effective in contributing to the continuing professional development (CPD) of early career science teachers. Ten schools took part in the study, selected on the basis of their reputation for having effective CPD practices. To gain different perspectives from within the organisations we conducted interviews with senior members of staff, heads of science departments and early career teachers. A thematic analysis of the interviews is presented, drawing on findings from across the 10 schools, and exemplified in more detail by a vignette to show specific features of effective CPD practice. The study has revealed a wealth of practice across the 10 schools, which included a focus on broadening experience beyond the classroom, having an open, sharing, non-threatening culture and systemic procedures for mentoring and support that involved ring-fenced budgets. The schools also deployed staff judiciously in critical roles that model practice and motivate early career science teachers. Early career teachers were concerned primarily with their overall development as teachers, though some science specific examples such as observing practical work and sessions to address subject knowledge were seen as important.

  17. Integrated and Early Childhood Education: Preparation for Social Development. Theme A: Relevant Provision for Early Childhood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Axton, J. H. M.

    Factors which influence child development are listed and briefly discussed. These factors are (1) mother's childhood, (2) mother's age, (3) care during pregnancy and delivery, (4) early neonatal factors, (5) birth interval, (6) effect of repeated infection and malnutrition on brain growth and intellectual development, and (7) home environment. The…

  18. Behavior-Based Early Language Development on a Humanoid Robot

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Varshavskaya, Paulina

    2002-01-01

    We are exploring the idea that early language acquisition could be better modelled on an artificial creature by considering the pragmatic aspect of natural language and of its development in human infants...

  19. Early Career Boot Camp: a novel mechanism for enhancing early career development for psychologists in academic healthcare.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foran-Tuller, Kelly; Robiner, William N; Breland-Noble, Alfiee; Otey-Scott, Stacie; Wryobeck, John; King, Cheryl; Sanders, Kathryn

    2012-03-01

    The purpose of this article is to describe a pilot mentoring program for Early Career Psychologists (ECPs) working in Academic Health Centers (AHCs) and synthesize the lessons learned to contribute to future ECP and AHC career development training programs. The authors describe an early career development model, named the Early Career Boot Camp. This intensive experience was conducted as a workshop meant to build a supportive network and to provide mentorship and survival tools for working in AHCs. Four major components were addressed: professional effectiveness, clinical supervision, strategic career planning, and academic research. Nineteen attendees who were currently less than 5 years post completion of doctoral graduate programs in psychology participated in the program. The majority of boot camp components were rated as good to excellent, with no component receiving below average ratings. Of the components offered within the boot camp, mentoring and research activities were rated the strongest, followed by educational activities, challenges in AHCS, and promotion and tenure. The article describes the purpose, development, implementation, and assessment of the program in detail in an effort to provide an established outline for future organizations to utilize when mentoring ECPs.

  20. Normality and Impairment following Profound Early Institutional Deprivation: A Longitudinal follow-up into Early Adolescence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kreppner, Jana M.; Rutter, Michael; Beckett, Celia; Castle, Jenny; Colvert, Emma; Groothues, Christine; Hawkins, Amanda; O'Connor, Thomas G.; Stevens, Suzanne; Sonuga-Barke, Edmund J. S.

    2007-01-01

    Longitudinal analyses on normal versus impaired functioning across 7 domains were conducted in children who had experienced profound institutional deprivation up to the age of 42 months and were adopted from Romania into U.K. families. Comparisons were made with noninstitutionalized children adopted from Romania and with nondeprived within-U.K.…

  1. Psychiatric symptoms are present in most of the patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matheus F. Oliveira

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH is characterized by gait disturbance, dementia and/or urinary incontinence associated with dilation of ventricular system with normal opening cerebrospinal fluid pressure. Wide scientifical evidence confirms association between NPH and psychiatric symptoms. We selected 35 patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus from January 2010 to January 2012 in a Brazilian tertiary hospital and performed a formal psychiatric evaluation to identify psychiatric disorders. Psychiatric disorders were present in 71% of these patients, especially anxiety, depression and psychotic syndromes. NPH patients may develop symptoms with frontal dominance, such as personality changes, anxiety, depression, psychotic syndromes, obsessive compulsive disorder, Othello syndrome; shoplifting and mania. Unusual appearances of NPH symptoms may hinder early diagnosis and consequently proper treatment.

  2. Early neurodevelopment in very low birth weight infants with mild intraventricular hemorrhage or those without intraventricular hemorrhage

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Il Rak Choi

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available &lt;B&gt;Purpose:&lt;/B&gt; This study aimed to assess early development in very low birth weight (VLBW infants with mild intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH or those without IVH and to identify the perinatal morbidities affecting early neurodevelopmental outcome. &lt;B&gt;Methods:&lt;/B&gt; Bayley Scales of Infant Development-II was used for assessing neurological development in 49 infants with a birth weight &lt;1,500 g and with low grade IVH (?#167;rade II or those without IVH at a corrected age of 12 months. &lt;B&gt;Results:&lt;/B&gt; Among the 49 infants, 19 infants (38.8% showed normal development and 14 (28.6% showed abnormal mental and psychomotor development. Infants with abnormal mental development (n=14 were mostly male and had a longer hospitalization, a higher prevalence of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA and bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD, and were under more frequent postnatal systemic steroid treatment compared with infants with normal mental development (n=35, P&lt;0.05. Infants with abnormal psychomotor development (n=29 had a longer hospitalization and more associated PDA compared to infants with normal psychomotor development (n=20, P&lt;0.05. Infants with abnormal mental and psychomotor development were mostly male and had a longer hospitalization and a higher prevalence of PDA and BPD compared to infants with normal mental and psychomotor development (n=19, P&lt;0.05. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, a longer duration of hospitalization and male gender were found to be significant risk factors. &lt;B&gt;Conclusion:&lt;/B&gt; Approximately 62% of VLBW infants with low grade IVH or those without IVH had impaired early development.

  3. Toxicity and cardiac effects of carbaryl in early developing zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin, C.C.; Hui, Michelle N.Y.; Cheng, S.H.

    2007-01-01

    Carbaryl, an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, is known to be moderately toxic to adult zebrafish and has been reported to cause heart malformations and irregular heartbeat in medaka. We performed experiments to study the toxicity of carbaryl, specifically its effects on the heart, in early developing zebrafish embryos. LC50 and EC50 values for carbaryl at 28 h post-fertilization were 44.66 μg/ml and 7.52 μg/ml, respectively, and 10 μg/ml carbaryl was used in subsequent experiments. After confirming acetylcholinesterase inhibition by carbaryl using an enzymatic method, we observed red blood cell accumulation, delayed hatching and pericardial edema, but not heart malformation as described in some previous reports. Our chronic exposure data also demonstrated carbaryl-induced bradycardia, which is a common effect of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors due to the accumulation of acetylcholine, in embryos from 1 day post-fertilization (dpf) to 5 dpf. The distance between the sinus venosus, the point where blood enters the atrium, and the bulbus arteriosus, the point where blood leaves the ventricle, indicated normal looping of the heart tube. Immunostaining of myosin heavy chains with the ventricle-specific antibody MF20 and the atrium-specific antibody S46 showed normal development of heart chambers. At the same time, acute exposure resulted in carbaryl-induced bradycardia. Heart rate dropped significantly after a 10-min exposure to 100 μg/ml carbaryl but recovered when carbaryl was removed. The novel observation of carbaryl-induced bradycardia in 1- and 2-dpf embryos suggested that carbaryl affected cardiac function possibly through an alternative mechanism other than acetylcholinesterase inhibition such as inhibition of calcium ion channels, since acetylcholine receptors in zebrafish are not functional until 3 dpf. However, the exact nature of this mechanism is currently unknown, and thus further studies are required

  4. Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV): Building Health and Early Development with the Pediatric Family-Centered Medical Home

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willis, David W.

    2013-01-01

    President Obama announced his Early Learning Agenda during his Second Inaugural Address. This announcement has galvanized a special focus on early childhood policy and practices, for the prenatal to 5-year-old period, to improve educational outcomes for America's youth. The emergent science of early childhood development places an emphasis on…

  5. The Proteomic Signature of Aspergillus fumigatus During Early Development*

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cagas, Steven E.; Jain, Mohit Raja; Li, Hong; Perlin, David S.

    2011-01-01

    Aspergillus fumigatus is a saprophytic fungus that causes a range of diseases in humans including invasive aspergillosis. All forms of disease begin with the inhalation of conidia, which germinate and develop. Four stages of early development were evaluated using the gel free system of isobaric tagging for relative and absolute quantitation to determine the full proteomic profile of the pathogen. A total of 461 proteins were identified at 0, 4, 8, and 16 h and fold changes for each were established. Ten proteins including the hydrophobin rodlet protein RodA and a protein involved in melanin synthesis Abr2 were found to decrease relative to conidia. To generate a more comprehensive view of early development, a whole genome microarray analysis was performed comparing conidia to 8 and 16 h of growth. A total of 1871 genes were found to change significantly at 8 h with 1001 genes up-regulated and 870 down-regulated. At 16 h, 1235 genes changed significantly with 855 up-regulated and 380 down-regulated. When a comparison between the proteomics and microarray data was performed at 8 h, a total of 22 proteins with significant changes also had corresponding genes that changed significantly. When the same comparison was performed at 16 h, 12 protein and gene combinations were found. This study, the most comprehensive to date, provides insights into early pathways activated during growth and development of A. fumigatus. It reveals a pathogen that is gearing up for rapid growth by building translation machinery, generating ATP, and is very much committed to aerobic metabolism. PMID:21825280

  6. Biomarkers in early phase development of central nervous system drugs : a conceptual framework

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Post, Jeroen-Paul van der

    2006-01-01

    The main objective of this thesis is to provide a conceptual framework for the use of Central Nervous System (CNS) biomarkers in early phase clinical drug development. In the Introduction the current use of biomarkers in early CNS drug development is discussed. A conceptual framework for the

  7. Family Concepts in Early Learning and Development Standards

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, Bridget A.; Sanchez, Claudia; Lee, Angela M.; Casillas, Nicole; Hansen, Caitlynn

    2016-01-01

    This exploratory study investigated the use of concepts related to families, parents, and the home in 51 state-level early learning and development standards documents. Guidelines from six national family involvement, engagement, and school-partnership models were used to create the Family Involvement Models Analysis Chart (FIMAC), which served as…

  8. Development of the Life Story in Early Adolescence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steiner, Kristina L.; Pillemer, David B.

    2018-01-01

    Life span developmental psychology proposes that the ability to create a coherent life narrative does not develop until early adolescence. Using a novel methodology, 10-, 12-, and 14-year-old participants were asked to tell their life stories aloud to a researcher. Later, participants separated their transcribed narratives into self-identified…

  9. Ethnic Group Differences in Early Head Start Parents Parenting Beliefs and Practices and Links to Children's Early Cognitive Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keels, Micere

    2009-01-01

    Data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation study were used to examine the extent to which several factors mediate between- and within-ethnic-group differences in parenting beliefs and behaviors, and children's early cognitive development (analysis sample of 1198 families). The findings indicate that Hispanic-, European-, and…

  10. Early development of synchrony in cortical activations in the human.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koolen, N; Dereymaeker, A; Räsänen, O; Jansen, K; Vervisch, J; Matic, V; Naulaers, G; De Vos, M; Van Huffel, S; Vanhatalo, S

    2016-05-13

    Early intermittent cortical activity is thought to play a crucial role in the growth of neuronal network development, and large scale brain networks are known to provide the basis for higher brain functions. Yet, the early development of the large scale synchrony in cortical activations is unknown. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the early intermittent cortical activations seen in the human scalp EEG show a clear developmental course during the last trimester of pregnancy, the period of intensive growth of cortico-cortical connections. We recorded scalp EEG from altogether 22 premature infants at post-menstrual age between 30 and 44 weeks, and the early cortical synchrony was quantified using recently introduced activation synchrony index (ASI). The developmental correlations of ASI were computed for individual EEG signals as well as anatomically and mathematically defined spatial subgroups. We report two main findings. First, we observed a robust and statistically significant increase in ASI in all cortical areas. Second, there were significant spatial gradients in the synchrony in fronto-occipital and left-to-right directions. These findings provide evidence that early cortical activity is increasingly synchronized across the neocortex. The ASI-based metrics introduced in our work allow direct translational comparison to in vivo animal models, as well as hold promise for implementation as a functional developmental biomarker in future research on human neonates. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  11. Radiosensitization In Vivo by Histone Deacetylase Inhibition with No Increase in Early Normal Tissue Radiation Toxicity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Groselj, Blaz; Ruan, Jia-Ling; Scott, Helen; Gorrill, Jessica; Nicholson, Judith; Kelly, Jacqueline; Anbalagan, Selvakumar; Thompson, James; Stratford, Michael R L; Jevons, Sarah J; Hammond, Ester M; Scudamore, Cheryl L; Kerr, Martin; Kiltie, Anne E

    2018-02-01

    As the population ages, more elderly patients require radiotherapy-based treatment for their pelvic malignancies, including muscle-invasive bladder cancer, as they are unfit for major surgery. Therefore, there is an urgent need to find radiosensitizing agents minimally toxic to normal tissues, including bowel and bladder, for such patients. We developed methods to determine normal tissue toxicity severity in intestine and bladder in vivo , using novel radiotherapy techniques on a small animal radiation research platform (SARRP). The effects of panobinostat on in vivo tumor growth delay were evaluated using subcutaneous xenografts in athymic nude mice. Panobinostat concentration levels in xenografts, plasma, and normal tissues were measured in CD1-nude mice. CD1-nude mice were treated with drug/irradiation combinations to assess acute normal tissue effects in small intestine using the intestinal crypt assay, and later effects in small and large intestine at 11 weeks by stool assessment and at 12 weeks by histologic examination. In vitro effects of panobinostat were assessed by qPCR and of panobinostat, TMP195, and mocetinostat by clonogenic assay, and Western blot analysis. Panobinostat resulted in growth delay in RT112 bladder cancer xenografts but did not significantly increase acute (3.75 days) or 12 weeks' normal tissue radiation toxicity. Radiosensitization by panobinostat was effective in hypoxic bladder cancer cells and associated with class I HDAC inhibition, and protein downregulation of HDAC2 and MRE11. Pan-HDAC inhibition is a promising strategy for radiosensitization, but more selective agents may be more useful radiosensitizers clinically, resulting in fewer systemic side effects. Mol Cancer Ther; 17(2); 381-92. ©2017 AACR See all articles in this MCT Focus section, "Developmental Therapeutics in Radiation Oncology." ©2017 American Association for Cancer Research.

  12. Teachers' Perceptions of Professional Development in Chilean State-Funded Early Childhood Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gómez, Mariel; Ford, Laurie

    2017-01-01

    This article presents the results of a study on professional development in Chilean state-funded early childhood education. Based on a multiple-case study design and drawing on qualitative methods we explored teachers' perspectives on professional development at two early childhood educational centers. Two centers' directors and four early…

  13. [Advances in early childhood development: from neurons to big scale programs].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez-Escamilla, Rafael; Rizzoli-Córdoba, Antonio; Alonso-Cuevas, Aranzazú; Reyes-Morales, Hortensia

    Early childhood development (ECD) is the basis of countries' economic and social development and their ability to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Gestation and the first three years of life are critical for children to have adequate physical, psychosocial, emotional and cognitive development for the rest of their lives. Nurturing care and protection of children during gestation and early childhood are necessary for the development of trillions of neurons and trillions of synapses necessary for development. ECD requires access to good nutrition and health services from gestation, responsive caregiving according to the child's developmental stage, social protection and child welfare, and early stimulation and learning opportunities. Six actions are recommended to improve national ECD programs: expand political will and funding; create a supportive, evidence-based policy environment; build capacity through inter-sectoral coordination; ensure fair and transparent governance of programs and services; increase support for multidisciplinary research; and promote the development of leaders. Mexico has made significant progress under the leadership of the Health Ministry, but still faces significant challenges. The recent creation of a national inter-sectoral framework to enable ECD with support of international organizations and the participation of civil society organizations can help overcome these challenges. Copyright © 2017 Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez. Publicado por Masson Doyma México S.A. All rights reserved.

  14. Mosaic and Regulation Phenomena during the Early Formation of the Chick Blastoderm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marc Callebaut

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available After culturing symmetrically hemisectioned unincubated chicken blastoderms, asymmetric hemiembryos developed (indicating mosaic development. In the present study, we observed that after prolonged culture, the further asymmetric development (way with no possible return becomes profoundly disturbed, more particularly the Rauber's sickle-dependent phenomena: gastrulation and the formation of the coelomo-cardiovascular complex with absence of heart and pericard development. By contrast, the neural plate develops symmetrically. Asymmetrical ablation of Rauber's sickle and the neighboring upper layer results in the development of an apparently normal symmetrical embryo. Indeed, at the unoperated side, a normal half coelomo-cardiovascular system develops with a unilateral or bilateral heart tube and pericard formation (indicating regulation. Both regulation and mosaicism indicate that during normal early development, the interaction between the left and right sides of the caudal area centralis of the blastoderm is indispensable, depending on the spatial relationship between the elementary tissues (upper layer, Rauber's sickle, endophyll.

  15. An Early Years Toolbox for Assessing Early Executive Function, Language, Self-Regulation, and Social Development: Validity, Reliability, and Preliminary Norms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howard, Steven J; Melhuish, Edward

    2017-06-01

    Several methods of assessing executive function (EF), self-regulation, language development, and social development in young children have been developed over previous decades. Yet new technologies make available methods of assessment not previously considered. In resolving conceptual and pragmatic limitations of existing tools, the Early Years Toolbox (EYT) offers substantial advantages for early assessment of language, EF, self-regulation, and social development. In the current study, results of our large-scale administration of this toolbox to 1,764 preschool and early primary school students indicated very good reliability, convergent validity with existing measures, and developmental sensitivity. Results were also suggestive of better capture of children's emerging abilities relative to comparison measures. Preliminary norms are presented, showing a clear developmental trajectory across half-year age groups. The accessibility of the EYT, as well as its advantages over existing measures, offers considerably enhanced opportunities for objective measurement of young children's abilities to enable research and educational applications.

  16. The Importance of Play in Early Childhood Development ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In the study leading to this paper, the task was to determine the possibility of the Department of Technical Education at the University of Zimbabwe in-servicing Early Childhood Development (ECD) teachers in Design and Technology (D&T) through short and long-term courses. Such courses would specifically relate to the ...

  17. Early Learning Foundations. Indiana's Early Learning Development Framework Aligned to the Indiana Academic Standards, 2014

    Science.gov (United States)

    Indiana Department of Education, 2015

    2015-01-01

    The "Foundations" (English/language arts, mathematics, social emotional skills, approaches to play and learning, science, social studies, creative arts, and physical health and growth) are Indiana's early learning development framework and are aligned to the 2014 Indiana Academic Standards. This framework provides core elements that…

  18. Effect of dietary lipid structure in early postnatal life on mouse adipose tissue development and function in adulthood

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Oosting, Annemarie; van Vlies, Naomi; Kegler, Diane; Schipper, Lidewij; Abrahamse-Berkeveld, Marieke; Ringler, Silvia; Verkade, Henkjan J.; van der Beek, Eline M.

    2014-01-01

    Obese individuals have more (hyperplastic) and larger (hypertrophic) adipocytes in their white adipose tissue (WAT) than normal-weight individuals. The difference in cell number emerges early in childhood, suggesting that this is a critical period for being susceptible to obesity. Breast-feeding has

  19. Early monocular defocus disrupts the normal development of receptive-field structure in V2 neurons of macaque monkeys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tao, Xiaofeng; Zhang, Bin; Shen, Guofu; Wensveen, Janice; Smith, Earl L; Nishimoto, Shinji; Ohzawa, Izumi; Chino, Yuzo M

    2014-10-08

    Experiencing different quality images in the two eyes soon after birth can cause amblyopia, a developmental vision disorder. Amblyopic humans show the reduced capacity for judging the relative position of a visual target in reference to nearby stimulus elements (position uncertainty) and often experience visual image distortion. Although abnormal pooling of local stimulus information by neurons beyond striate cortex (V1) is often suggested as a neural basis of these deficits, extrastriate neurons in the amblyopic brain have rarely been studied using microelectrode recording methods. The receptive field (RF) of neurons in visual area V2 in normal monkeys is made up of multiple subfields that are thought to reflect V1 inputs and are capable of encoding the spatial relationship between local stimulus features. We created primate models of anisometropic amblyopia and analyzed the RF subfield maps for multiple nearby V2 neurons of anesthetized monkeys by using dynamic two-dimensional noise stimuli and reverse correlation methods. Unlike in normal monkeys, the subfield maps of V2 neurons in amblyopic monkeys were severely disorganized: subfield maps showed higher heterogeneity within each neuron as well as across nearby neurons. Amblyopic V2 neurons exhibited robust binocular suppression and the strength of the suppression was positively correlated with the degree of hereogeneity and the severity of amblyopia in individual monkeys. Our results suggest that the disorganized subfield maps and robust binocular suppression of amblyopic V2 neurons are likely to adversely affect the higher stages of cortical processing resulting in position uncertainty and image distortion. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/3413840-15$15.00/0.

  20. Association of Polar Early Career Scientists: a model for experiential learning in professional development for students and early career researchers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradley, A. C.; Hindshaw, R. S.; Fugmann, G.; Mariash, H.

    2016-12-01

    The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists was established by early career researchers during the 2007-2008 International Polar Year as an organization for early career researchers in the polar and cryospheric sciences. APECS works to promote early career researchers through soft-skills training in both research and outreach activities, through advocating for including early career researchers in all levels of the scientific process and scientific management, and through supporting a world-wide network of researchers in varied fields. APECS is lead by early career researchers; this self-driven model has proved to be an effective means for developing the leadership, management, and communication skills that are essential in the sciences, and has shown to be sustainable even in a community where frequent turn-over is inherent to the members. Since its inception, APECS has reached over 5,500 members in more than 80 countries, and we have placed more than 50 early career researchers on working groups and steering committees with organizations around the world in the last two years alone. The close partnerships that APECS has with national and international organizations exposes members to both academic and alternative career paths, including those at the science-policy interface. This paper describes APECS's approach to experiential learning in professional development and the best practices identified over our nearly ten years as an organization.

  1. Early Writing Development: Kindergarten Teachers' Beliefs about Emergent Writing in Qatari Preschool Settings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Maadadi, Fatima; Ihmeideh, Fathi

    2016-01-01

    Writing often begins during the very early years of childhood; however, some children first learn writing when they begin attending school. Teachers' beliefs about early writing development can influence when and how children learn to write. The purpose of this study was to determine kindergarten teachers' beliefs about the development of…

  2. Strategic Management Process of Islamic Character Development of Early Children in Islamic Kindergarten

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M Najib

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This research is a field research by using a qualitative research approach. The purpose in this research is to find steps in strategic management process for development character of early children in Islamic kindergarten of al-Irsyad Purwokerto, Central java, Indonesia. The results showed that the process of strategic management to develop Islamic character of early children is done through four processes. First, processing of observation environmental to develop Islamic character in Islamic kindergarten. Second, strategic formulation process for development an Islamic character of early children in Islamic kindergarten. Third, implementating strategic process for develop an Islamic character of early children in Islamic kindergarten. Fourth, strategic assesment process for develop an Islamic character of early children in Islamic kindergarten. Penelitian ini adalah penelitian lapangan menggunakan pendekatan penelitian kualitatif. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk menemukan langkah-langkah dalam proses manajemen strategik untuk membentuk karakter anak usia dini di Taman Kanak-kanak (TK Islam al-Irsyad Purwokerto, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia. Hasil penelitian mengungkapkan bahwa proses manajemen strategik untuk membentuk karakter anak usia dini di TK Islam dilakukan melalui empat langkah. Pertama, proses pengamatan lingkungan untuk membentuk karakter Islami anak usia dini di TK Islam. Kedua, proses formulasi strategi untuk membentuk karakter anak usia dini di TK Islam. Ketiga, proses penerapan strategi untuk membentuk karakter anak usia dini di TK Islam. Keempat, proses penilaian strategik untuk membentuk karakter anak usia dini di TK Islam.

  3. Timely management of developing class III malocclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M R Yelampalli

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Timing of orthodontic treatment, especially for children with developing class III malocclusions, has always been somewhat controversial, and definitive treatment tends to be delayed for severe class III cases. Developing class III patients with moderate to severe anterior crossbite and deep bite may need early intervention in some selected cases. Class III malocclusion may develop in children as a result of an inherent growth abnormality, i.e. true class III malocclusion, or as a result of premature occlusal contacts causing forward functional shift of the mandible, which is known as pseudo class III malocclusion. These cases, if not treated at the initial stage of development, interfere with normal growth of the jaw bases and may result in severe facial deformities. The treatment should be carried out as early as possible for permitting normal growth of the skeletal bases. This paper deals with the selection of an appropriate appliance from the various current options available for early intervention in developing class III malocclusion through two case reports.

  4. Regulation of fertilization and early seed development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dresselhaus, Thomas; Doughty, James

    2014-04-01

    Plant reproduction meetings often deal either with pre-fertilization processes such as flowering and pollen biology or post-fertilization processes such as embryogenesis and seed development. The Biochemical Society Focused Meeting entitled 'Regulation of Fertilization and Early Seed Development' was organized to close this gap and to discuss mechanistic similarities and future research directions in the reproductive processes shortly before, during and after fertilization. As an outcome of the workshop, invited speakers and a few selected oral communication presenters contributed focused reviews and technical articles for this issue of Biochemical Society Transactions. We provide here a short overview of the contents and highlights of the various articles.

  5. Automatic development of normal zone in composite MgB2/CuNi wires with different diameters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jokinen, A.; Kajikawa, K.; Takahashi, M.; Okada, M.

    2010-06-01

    One of the promising applications with superconducting technology for hydrogen utilization is a sensor with a magnesium-diboride (MgB2) superconductor to detect the position of boundary between the liquid hydrogen and the evaporated gas stored in a Dewar vessel. In our previous experiment for the level sensor, the normal zone has been automatically developed and therefore any energy input with the heater has not been required for normal operation. Although the physical mechanism for such a property of the MgB2 wire has not been clarified yet, the deliberate application might lead to the realization of a simpler superconducting level sensor without heater system. In the present study, the automatic development of normal zone with increasing a transport current is evaluated for samples consisting of three kinds of MgB2 wires with CuNi sheath and different diameters immersed in liquid helium. The influences of the repeats of current excitation and heat cycle on the normal zone development are discussed experimentally. The aim of this paper is to confirm the suitability of MgB2 wire in a heater free level sensor application. This could lead to even more optimized design of the liquid hydrogen level sensor and the removal of extra heater input.

  6. Nutrition, Health and Safety in Early Childhood Development ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This article investigates the nutrition, health and safety status in Early Childhood Development (ECD) programmes and its impact thereof on the quality of care and education in Harare primary schools as perceived by the school heads, ECD teachers and parents. The study is part of a larger study on assessing the quality of ...

  7. [Pathology of amniogenesis in the early prenatal period of human development].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kulazhenko, V P; Bragina, Z N

    1989-08-01

    Morphological and, in a number of cases, cytogenetical investigation has been performed in 420 intact embryonal sacs and in embryos 7-8-week-old, obtained at spontaneous abortions (272) and at tubal pregnancy (148). Among these cases 202 (48.1%) intact empty embryonal sacs, 75 (17.9%) embryos with panorganodysplasia, 25 (6%) embryos with isolated developmental defects and 118 (28%) phenotypically normal embryos have been revealed. Pathology of amniogenesis such as aplasia or hypoplasia of the amniotic cavity is noted in 136 (32.4%) cases. Among 75 embryos with panorganodysplasia anomalies such as hypoplasia of the amniotic cavity in combination with a partial extra-amniotic++ position of the embryos in exocelom (10.7%), aplasia (5.3%) or hypoplasia (17.3%) amniotic peduncle is present in 43 (57.3%) observations. Out of 40 such cases at spontaneous abortions, cytogenetically investigated, in 27 (67.5%) chromosomal disorders (tetraploidy, triploidy, autosomal trisomy and monosomy) are revealed. Aplasia and hypoplasia of the amniotic cavity are considered as pathology of histogenesis at the tissue stage of the early human ontogenesis, that most evidently occurs as a result of asplasia, destruction or anomaly of embryoblast during the first phase of gastrulation on the 7th-11th day of the intrauterine development.

  8. Site Development and Teaching of Motor Skills in Early Childhood Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Gil Madrona

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available In the stage of Early Childhood Education children continue a progressive discovery of their body itself as a source of feelings and sensations, exploring the different possibilities of action and body functions, will constitute the necessary experiences upon which children’s thought is being built. Besides, affective relationships established in situations of psychomotor education, and particularly through game, will be essential for children’s emotional development. In this sense, this article is focused on justifying the necessary presence of Psychomotor education in Early Childhood Education as well as on showing a pedagogical proposal based on an attractive and entertaining motor intervention for children at this stage. This article contains concepts and assumptions about the psychomotor development, movement contents, motor game and the methodological approach where psychomotor storytelling, learning corners, workshops and projects based on action and adventure spaces shine in their own right. Moreover, a didactic design based on programming motor skills at this stage of Early Childhood Education in a funny and lively way also plays a relevant role in this article. We argue that professionals working in the field of Early Childhood psychomotor skills may know and recognize the value of the proposals shown here so that they can teach us to be more critical regarding our professional practice, increasing our concern about the development of motor skills – physical education in Early Childhood Education in its systematic form – which without any doubt will result in children’s higher levels of welfare and health with regards to their own construction of the reality which surrounds them.

  9. Culture and Early Language Development: Implications for Assessment and Intervention

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parada, Patricia M.

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this qualitative study--"Culture and Early Language Development: Implications for Assessment and Intervention"--was to explore and describe the perceptions and beliefs of Salvadoran mothers of low socioeconomic status regarding the language development of their young children in order to identify cultural variations in…

  10. [Significance of early diagnosis of posterior urethral valves in fetus for further development - own experience].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krzemień, Grażyna; Szmigielska, Agnieszka; Wawer, Zofia; Roszkowska-Blaim, Maria

    2013-01-01

    The incidence of posterior urethral valves is estimated to be from 3:1000 to 8:1000 and this is one of the most common causes of obstruction of urinary tract in boys. About 13-17% of children with posterior urethral valves develop end stage renal failure. We present a  6-month-old boy with late diagnosis of posterior urtehral valves. Antenatal ultrasound investigation of the urinary tract was normal. A small degree of oligohydramnios was found during delivery. At the age of six months the boy was admitted to hospital because of urinary tract infection, hypertension (130/90 mmHg) and acute kidney injury (urea - 46 mg/dL, creatinine - 1.1 mg/dL, GFR - 35.5 mL/min/1.73 m2 ). Bilateral hydronephrosis and megaureters, low-capacity bladder with hypertrophied wall were seen on ultrasound examination. Voiding cystourethrograhy revealed vesicoureteral refluxes (III/V), hypertrophy of the bladder wall with numerous diverticula and dilated posterior urethra. During urethroscopy urethral valves were resected. Increased intravesical pressure (leak point up to 305 cm H2 O) was found on urodynamic test. Renal scintigraphy (99mTc-EC) revealed decreased intake of isotope in the left kidney (5%), and the right kidney intake was 95% ERPF. The patient was qualified for left-sided nephrectomy, which was postponed because of high leak point and high risk of worsening of vesicoureteral reflux to right kidney after nephrectomy. Anticholinergic and α-blocker treatment was started. At the age of 11 months left-side nephrectomy was performed because of recurrent urinary tract infections. After 3.5-year follow-up blood pressure, physical development, kidney function tests, and urinalysis are normal. Additionally to this investigation the significance of early diagnosis including prenatal (PUV) for further development as well as further therapeutic procedure is discussed.

  11. mTOR signaling and its roles in normal and abnormal brain development.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nobuyuki eTakei

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Target of rapamycin (TOR was first identified in yeast as a target molecule of rapamycin, an anti-fugal and immunosuppressant macrolide compound. In mammals, its orthologue is called mTOR (mammalian TOR. mTOR is a serine/threonine kinase that converges different extracellular stimuli, such as nutrients and growth factors, and diverges into several biochemical reactions, including translation, autophagy, transcription, and lipid synthesis among others. These biochemical reactions govern cell growth and cause cells to attain an anabolic state. Thus, the disruption of mTOR signaling is implicated in a wide array of diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and obesity. In the central nervous system (CNS, the mTOR signaling cascade is activated by nutrients, neurotrophic factors, and neurotransmitters that enhances protein (and possibly lipid synthesis and suppresses autophagy. These processes contribute to normal neuronal growth by promoting their differentiation, neurite elongation and branching, and synaptic formation during development. Therefore, disruption of mTOR signaling may cause neuronal degeneration and abnormal neural development. While reduced mTOR signaling is associated with neurodegeneration, excess activation of mTOR signaling causes abnormal development of neurons and glia, leading to brain malformation. In this review, we first introduce the current state of molecular knowledge of mTOR complexes and signaling in general. We then describe mTOR activation in neurons, which leads to translational enhancement, and finally discuss the link between mTOR and normal/abnormal neuronal growth during development.

  12. Diastolic and autonomic dysfunction in early cirrhosis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dahl, Emilie Kristine; Møller, Søren; Kjær, Andreas

    2014-01-01

    OBJECTIVE. Presence of cardiac dysfunction in patients with advanced cirrhosis is widely accepted, but data in early stages of cirrhosis are limited. Systolic and diastolic functions, dynamics of QT-interval, and pro-atrial natriuretic peptide (pro-ANP) are investigated in patients with early stage...... cirrhosis during maximal β-adrenergic drive. MATERIAL AND METHODS. Nineteen patients with Child A (n = 12) and Child B cirrhosis (n = 7) and seven matched controls were studied during cardiac stress induced by increasing dosages of dobutamine and atropine. RESULTS. Pharmacological responsiveness was similar...... indicate that patients with early stage cirrhosis exhibit early diastolic and autonomic dysfunction as well as elevated pro-ANP. However, the cardiac chronotropic and inotropic responses to dobutamine stress were normal. The dynamics of ventricular repolarization appears normal in patients with early stage...

  13. Funding opportunities for investigators in the early stages of career development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sumandea, C Amelia; Balke, C William

    2009-03-10

    Many sources of advice and guidance are available to the early career investigator. Generally, mentors serve as the primary source of information, although program and review officers are the most underutilized resources. This article organizes these opportunities to enable early career investigators to plot a rational trajectory for career success. A list of the major agencies that provide grant support for early career investigators is included. In addition, funding opportunities are organized on the basis of the stage in career development pathway and the type of terminal degree.

  14. Definition of technology development missions for early space station satellite servicing, volume 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    1983-01-01

    The testbed role of an early manned space station in the context of a satellite servicing evolutionary development and flight demonstration technology plan which results in a satellite servicing operational capability is defined. A satellite servicing technology development mission (a set of missions) to be performed on an early manned space station is conceptually defined.

  15. Normal and abnormal development of the kidney: a clinician's interpretation of current knowledge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glassberg, Kenneth I

    2002-06-01

    The recent basic science literature is replete with new discoveries in the molecular genetics of renal development. However, little of this information has filtered into urological textbooks and journals. An effort is made herein to integrate these new findings and propose a more sophisticated blueprint of renal development than the one traditionally taught in medical school and residency. To accomplish this goal the author offers simple definitions and interpretations of complicated terms and events, and points out how maldevelopment results when mutations take place. A review of recent advances in the molecular genetics of renal development and maldevelopment was done. Renal metanephric development results from the expression of many genes in the ureteral bud and metanephric blastema with each sending messages to the other to induce organogenesis. Currently an understanding of normal renal organogenesis stems from a study of disease states resulting from perturbations in molecular genetics. In turn, a better understanding of normal renal organogenesis facilitates an understanding of how dysplasia, hypoplasia, cystic disease and tumors develop when molecular genetics go awry. For each form of renal dysgenesis and for most renal tumors 1 or more gene defects are eventually identified. The young urologist based in these new discoveries would be better prepared to make the breakthroughs in the future that are necessary for advancing the prevention and management of these conditions.

  16. Geometry and evolution of low-angle normal faults (LANF) within a Cenozoic high-angle rift system, Thailand: Implications for sedimentology and the mechanisms of LANF development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morley, Chris K.

    2009-10-01

    At least eight examples of large (5-35 km heave), low-angle normal faults (LANFs, 20°-30° dip) occur in the Cenozoic rift basins of Thailand and laterally pass into high-angle extensional fault systems. Three large-displacement LANFs are found in late Oligocene-Miocene onshore rift basins (Suphan Buri, Phitsanulok, and Chiang Mai basins), they have (1) developed contemporaneous with, or after the onset of, high-angle extension, (2) acted as paths for magma and associated fluids, and (3) impacted sedimentation patterns. Displacement on low-angle faults appears to be episodic, marked by onset of lacustrine conditions followed by axial progradation of deltaic systems that infilled the lakes during periods of low or no displacement. The Chiang Mai LANF is a low-angle (15°-25°), high-displacement (15-35 km heave), ESE dipping LANF immediately east of the late early Miocene Doi Inthanon and Doi Suthep metamorphic core complexes. Early Cenozoic transpressional crustal thickening followed by the northward motion of India coupled with Burma relative to east Burma and Thailand (˜40-30 Ma) caused migmatization and gneiss dome uplift in the late Oligocene of the core complex region, followed by LANF activity. LANF displacement lasted 4-6 Ma during the early Miocene and possibly transported a late Oligocene-early Miocene high-angle rift system 35 km east. Other LANFs in Thailand have lower displacements and no associated metamorphic core complexes. The three LANFs were initiated as low-angle faults, not by isostatic rotation of high-angle faults. The low-angle dips appear to follow preexisting low-angle fabrics (thrusts, shear zones, and other low-angle ductile foliations) predominantly developed during Late Paleozoic and early Paleogene episodes of thrusting and folding.

  17. Bio-electrosprayed multicellular zebrafish embryos are viable and develop normally

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Clarke, Jonathan D W; Jayasinghe, Suwan N

    2008-01-01

    Bio-electrosprays are rapidly emerging as a viable protocol for directly engineering living cells. This communication reports the bio-electrospraying of multicellular organisms, namely zebrafish embryos. The results demonstrate that the bio-electrospray protocol fails to induce any embryological perturbations. In addition to analysing overall embryo morphology, we use transgenic embryos that express green fluorescent protein in specific brain neurons to determine that neuronal numbers and organization are completely normal. These results demonstrate that the bio-electrospraying protocol does not interfere with the complex gene regulation and cell movements required for the development of a multicellular organism. (communication)

  18. The Development of Early Childhood Education as an Academic Discipline in Finland

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eeva Hujala

    2008-10-01

    Full Text Available Early Childhood Education (ECE as an academic discipline has gained an academic legitimacy in Finland in 2005. In accordance with internationally established practice, Early Childhood Education as an academic field and a field of research has been set to cover the period from birth to eight years of age. The focus of ECE re- search is to analyse and define the development and upbringing of young children, including such themes as learning and teaching and the complex connection between child development to the growth environment. In recent years in Finland, the internal paradigmatic discussions within academic ECE have been both enlightened and critical. The emergence of an academic Early Childhood Education paradigm has been apparent in the discussions of early pedagogy, professional growth, leadership, management and quality and as a definer of pedagogy to support children’s learning. The challenge of academic Early Childhood Education is to introduce into the discussion ontological and epistemological issues of early childhood and thereby activate teachers and other professional educators and parents to consider personal and professional conceptions of the child, of learning and of the role of adults in the upbringing of young children from birth to eight years of age.

  19. Normal Conducting Deflecting Cavity Development at the Cockcroft Institute

    CERN Document Server

    Burt, G; Dexter, A C; Woolley, B; Jones, R M; Grudiev, A; Dolgashev, V; Wheelhouse, A; Mackenzie, J; McIntosh, P A; Hill, C; Goudket, P; Buckley, S; Lingwood, C

    2013-01-01

    Two normal conducting deflecting structures are currently being developed at the Cockcroft Institute, one as a crab cavity for CERN linear collider CLIC and one for bunch slice diagnostics on low energy electron beams for Electron Beam Test Facility EBTF at Daresbury. Each has its own challenges that need overcome. For CLIC the phase and amplitude tolerances are very stringent and hence beamloading effects and wakefields must be minimised. Significant work has been undertook to understand the effect of the couplers on beamloading and the effect of the couplers on the wakefields. For EBTF the difficulty is avoiding the large beam offset caused by the cavities internal deflecting voltage at the low beam energy. Prototypes for both cavities have been manufactured and results will be presented.

  20. Early Microbes Modify Immune System Development and Metabolic Homeostasis-The "Restaurant" Hypothesis Revisited.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nash, Michael J; Frank, Daniel N; Friedman, Jacob E

    2017-01-01

    The developing infant gut microbiome affects metabolism, maturation of the gastrointestinal tract, immune system function, and brain development. Initial seeding of the neonatal microbiota occurs through maternal and environmental contact. Maternal diet, antibiotic use, and cesarean section alter the offspring microbiota composition, at least temporarily. Nutrients are thought to regulate initial perinatal microbial colonization, a paradigm known as the "Restaurant" hypothesis. This hypothesis proposes that early nutritional stresses alter both the initial colonizing bacteria and the development of signaling pathways controlled by microbial mediators. These stresses fine-tune the immune system and metabolic homeostasis in early life, potentially setting the stage for long-term metabolic and immune health. Dysbiosis, an imbalance or a maladaptation in the microbiota, can be caused by several factors including dietary alterations and antibiotics. Dysbiosis can alter biological processes in the gut and in tissues and organs throughout the body. Misregulated development and activity of both the innate and adaptive immune systems, driven by early dysbiosis, could have long-lasting pathologic consequences such as increased autoimmunity, increased adiposity, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This review will focus on factors during pregnancy and the neonatal period that impact a neonate's gut microbiome, as well as the mechanisms and possible links from early infancy that can drive increased risk for diseases including obesity and NAFLD. The complex pathways that connect diet, the microbiota, immune system development, and metabolism, particularly in early life, present exciting new frontiers for biomedical research.

  1. Understanding Emotional Development: Helping Early Childhood Providers Better Support Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edwards, Nicole Megan

    2012-01-01

    This article is intended to provide early childhood providers with a concise overview of emerging emotional development in young children (birth-5), the important role of primary caregivers, and the link between parenting, emotional development, and behavior. Specific suggestions that have been shared with urban Head Start mothers are offered,…

  2. Integrating Early Child Development and Violence Prevention Programs: A Systematic Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Efevbera, Yvette; McCoy, Dana C.; Wuermli, Alice J.; Betancourt, Theresa S.

    2018-01-01

    Limited evidence describes promoting development and reducing violence in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), a missed opportunity to protect children and promote development and human capital. This study presents a systematic literature review of integrated early childhood development plus violence prevention (ECD+VP) interventions in…

  3. Anteroposterior axis patterning by early canonical Wnt signaling during hemichordate development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darras, Sébastien; Fritzenwanker, Jens H.; Uhlinger, Kevin R.; Farrelly, Ellyn; Pani, Ariel M.; Hurley, Imogen A.; Norris, Rachael P.; Osovitz, Michelle; Terasaki, Mark; Wu, Mike; Aronowicz, Jochanan; Kirschner, Marc; Gerhart, John C.

    2018-01-01

    The Wnt family of secreted proteins has been proposed to play a conserved role in early specification of the bilaterian anteroposterior (A/P) axis. This hypothesis is based predominantly on data from vertebrate embryogenesis as well as planarian regeneration and homeostasis, indicating that canonical Wnt (cWnt) signaling endows cells with positional information along the A/P axis. Outside of these phyla, there is strong support for a conserved role of cWnt signaling in the repression of anterior fates, but little comparative support for a conserved role in promotion of posterior fates. We further test the hypothesis by investigating the role of cWnt signaling during early patterning along the A/P axis of the hemichordate Saccoglossus kowalevskii. We have cloned and investigated the expression of the complete Wnt ligand and Frizzled receptor complement of S. kowalevskii during early development along with many secreted Wnt modifiers. Eleven of the 13 Wnt ligands are ectodermally expressed in overlapping domains, predominantly in the posterior, and Wnt antagonists are localized predominantly to the anterior ectoderm in a pattern reminiscent of their distribution in vertebrate embryos. Overexpression and knockdown experiments, in combination with embryological manipulations, establish the importance of cWnt signaling for repression of anterior fates and activation of mid-axial ectodermal fates during the early development of S. kowalevskii. However, surprisingly, terminal posterior fates, defined by posterior Hox genes, are unresponsive to manipulation of cWnt levels during the early establishment of the A/P axis at late blastula and early gastrula. We establish experimental support for a conserved role of Wnt signaling in the early specification of the A/P axis during deuterostome body plan diversification, and further build support for an ancestral role of this pathway in early evolution of the bilaterian A/P axis. We find strong support for a role of cWnt in

  4. Subcutaneous blood flow in early male pattern baldness

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klemp, P.; Peters, K.; Hansted, B.

    1989-01-01

    The subcutaneous blood flow (SBF) was measured by the 133 Xe washout method in the scalp of 14 patients with early male pattern baldness. Control experiments were performed in 14 normal haired men matched for age. The SBF in the scalp of the normal individuals was about 10 times higher than previously reported SBF values in other anatomical regions. In patients with early male pattern baldness, SBF was 2.6 times lower than the values found in the normal individuals (13.7 +/- 9.6 vs 35.7 +/- 10.5 ml/100 g/min-1). This difference was statistically significant (p much less than 0.001). A reduced nutritive blood flow to the hair follicles might be a significant event in the pathogenesis of early male pattern baldness

  5. Networking and professional development among teachers of Early Childhood Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosario Mérida Serrano

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper evaluates the professional development of 24 teachers involved in the Early Childhood Education-CPD Centre for Teachers-University Network ([blind review]. Collaborative research-action is carried out with teachers and pupils of Early Childhood Education, an adviser from the Continuing Professional Development (CPD Centre for Teachers, researchers, and teacher training undergraduates from the University of [blind review] ([blind review]. Taking a qualitative approach, through interviews, focus groups, and research journals, the benefits obtained by the teachers through their involvement in the [blind review] network are identified: (1 Their colleagues offer them emotional support and provide examples of good practices; (2 The teacher training undergraduates provide technological resources and the possibility of calmly observing what goes on in the classroom; (3 The researchers foster processes of reflection about practice and endorse the validity of the Project Approach; (4 The adviser provides continuing professional development.

  6. [Abnormal processing characteristics to basic emotional faces in the early phase in children with autism spectrum disorder].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Qiong-Xi; Wu, Gui-Hua; Zhang, Ling; Wang, Zeng-Jian; Pan, Ning; Xu, Cai-Juan; Jing, Jin; Jin, Yu

    2018-02-01

    To explore the recognition ability and abnormal processing characteristics to basic emotional faces in the early phase in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Photos of Chinese static faces with four basic emotions (fearful, happy, angry and sad) were used as stimulus. Twenty-five ASD children and twenty-two age- and gender-matched typical developed children (normal controls) were asked to match the emotional faces with words. Event-related potential (ERP) data were recorded concurrently. N170 latencies for total emotion and fearful face in the left temporal region were faster than in the right one in normal controls (P<0.05), but the results were not noted in ASD children. Further, N170 latencies in the left temporal region of ASD children were slower than normal controls for total emotion, fearful and happy faces (P<0.05), and their N170 latencies in the right temporal region were prone to slower than normal controls for angry and fearful faces. The holistic perception speed of emotional faces in the early cognitive processing phase in ASD children is slower than normal controls. The lateralized response in the early phase of recognizing emotional faces may be aberrant in children with ASD.

  7. Implementation of Early Childhood Development Education Service Standard Guidelines on Physical Facilities in Public and Private Early Childhood Education Centres Kakamega County, Kenya

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sitati, Emmily M.; Ndirangu, Mwangi; Kennedy, Bota; Rapongo, George S.

    2016-01-01

    In 2006, the Kenyan Ministry of Education (MoE) developed an early childhood development education (ECDE) service standard guidelines to guide the ECDE stakeholders in provision of early childhood education (ECE) programmes. The study sought to investigate the implementation of the ECDE service standard guidelines on provision of physical…

  8. Regulation of bone morphogenetic proteins in early embryonic development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamamoto, Yukiyo; Oelgeschläger, Michael

    2004-11-01

    Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), a large subgroup of the TGF-β family of secreted growth factors, control fundamental events in early embryonic development, organogenesis and adult tissue homeostasis. The plethora of dose-dependent cellular processes regulated by BMP signalling demand a tight regulation of BMP activity. Over the last decade, a number of proteins have been identified that bind BMPs in the extracellular space and regulate the interaction of BMPs with their cognate receptors, including the secreted BMP antagonist Chordin. In the early vertebrate embryo, the localized secretion of BMP antagonists from the dorsal blastopore lip establishes a functional BMP signalling gradient that is required for the determination of the dorsoventral or back to belly body axis. In particular, inhibition of BMP activity is essential for the formation of neural tissue in the development of vertebrate and invertebrate embryos. Here we review recent studies that have provided new insight into the regulation of BMP signalling in the extracellular space. In particular, we discuss the recently identified Twisted gastrulation protein that modulates, in concert with metalloproteinases of the Tolloid family, the interaction of Chordin with BMP and a family of proteins that share structural similarities with Chordin in the respective BMP binding domains. In addition, genetic and functional studies in zebrafish and frog provide compelling evidence that the secreted protein Sizzled functionally interacts with the Chd BMP pathway, despite being expressed ventrally in the early gastrula-stage embryo. These intriguing discoveries may have important implications, not only for our current concept of early embryonic patterning, but also for the regulation of BMP activity at later developmental stages and tissue homeostasis in the adult.

  9. MRS of normal and impaired fetal brain development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Girard, Nadine; Fogliarini, Celine; Viola, Angele; Confort-Gouny, Sylviane; Le Fur, Yann; Viout, Patrick; Chapon, Frederique; Levrier, Olivier; Cozzone, Patrick

    2006-01-01

    Cerebral maturation in the human fetal brain was investigated by in utero localized proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). Spectra were acquired on a clinical MR system operating at 1.5 T. Body phased array coils (four coils) were used in combination with spinal coils (two coils). The size of the nominal volume of interest (VOI) was 4.5 cm 3 (20 mm x 15 mm x 15 mm). The MRS acquisitions were performed using a spin echo sequence at short and long echo times (TE = 30 ms and 135 ms) with a VOI located within the cerebral hemisphere at the level of the centrum semiovale. A significant reduction in myo-inositol and choline and an increase in N-acetylaspartate were observed with progressive age. The normal MR spectroscopy data reported here will help to determine whether brain metabolism is altered, especially when subtle anatomic changes are observed on conventional images. Some examples of impaired fetal brain development studied by MRS are illustrated

  10. MRS of normal and impaired fetal brain development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Girard, Nadine [Service de Neuroradiologie, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Marseille, Hopital la Timone, Universite de la Mediterranee, Marseille (France)]. E-mail: nadine.girard@ap-hm.fr; Fogliarini, Celine [Centre de Resonance Magnetique Biologique et Medicale, UMR CNRS 6612, Universite de la Mediterranee, Faculte de Medecine la Timone, Marseille (France); Viola, Angele [Centre de Resonance Magnetique Biologique et Medicale, UMR CNRS 6612, Universite de la Mediterranee, Faculte de Medecine la Timone, Marseille (France); Confort-Gouny, Sylviane [Centre de Resonance Magnetique Biologique et Medicale, UMR CNRS 6612, Universite de la Mediterranee, Faculte de Medecine la Timone, Marseille (France); Le Fur, Yann [Centre de Resonance Magnetique Biologique et Medicale, UMR CNRS 6612, Universite de la Mediterranee, Faculte de Medecine la Timone, Marseille (France); Viout, Patrick [Centre de Resonance Magnetique Biologique et Medicale, UMR CNRS 6612, Universite de la Mediterranee, Faculte de Medecine la Timone, Marseille (France); Chapon, Frederique [Service de Neuroradiologie, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Marseille, Hopital la Timone, Universite de la Mediterranee, Marseille (France); Levrier, Olivier [Service de Neuroradiologie, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Marseille, Hopital la Timone, Universite de la Mediterranee, Marseille (France); Cozzone, Patrick [Centre de Resonance Magnetique Biologique et Medicale, UMR CNRS 6612, Universite de la Mediterranee, Faculte de Medecine la Timone, Marseille (France)

    2006-02-15

    Cerebral maturation in the human fetal brain was investigated by in utero localized proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). Spectra were acquired on a clinical MR system operating at 1.5 T. Body phased array coils (four coils) were used in combination with spinal coils (two coils). The size of the nominal volume of interest (VOI) was 4.5 cm{sup 3} (20 mm x 15 mm x 15 mm). The MRS acquisitions were performed using a spin echo sequence at short and long echo times (TE = 30 ms and 135 ms) with a VOI located within the cerebral hemisphere at the level of the centrum semiovale. A significant reduction in myo-inositol and choline and an increase in N-acetylaspartate were observed with progressive age. The normal MR spectroscopy data reported here will help to determine whether brain metabolism is altered, especially when subtle anatomic changes are observed on conventional images. Some examples of impaired fetal brain development studied by MRS are illustrated.

  11. Early adversity and learning: implications for typical and atypical behavioral development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanson, Jamie L; van den Bos, Wouter; Roeber, Barbara J; Rudolph, Karen D; Davidson, Richard J; Pollak, Seth D

    2017-07-01

    Children who experience early adversity often develop emotion regulatory problems, but little is known about the mechanisms that mediate this relation. We tested whether general associative learning processes contribute to associations between adversity, in the form of child maltreatment, and negative behavioral outcomes. Eighty-one participants between 12 and 17 years of age were recruited for this study and completed a probabilistic learning Task. Forty-one of these participants had been exposed to physical abuse, a form of early adversity. Forty additional participants without any known history of maltreatment served as a comparison group. All participants (and their parents) also completed portions of the Youth Life Stress Interview to understand adolescent's behavior. We calculated measures of associative learning, and also constructed mathematical models of learning. We found that adolescents exposed to high levels of adversity early in their lives had lower levels of associative learning than comparison adolescents. In addition, we found that impaired associative learning partially explained the higher levels of behavioral problems among youth who suffered early adversity. Using mathematical models, we also found that two components of learning were specifically affected in children exposed to adversity: choice variability and biases in their beliefs about the likelihood of rewards in the environment. Participants who had been exposed to early adversity were less able than their peers to correctly learn which stimuli were likely to result in reward, even after repeated feedback. These individuals also used information about known rewards in their environments less often. In addition, individuals exposed to adversity made decisions early in the learning process as if rewards were less consistent and occurred more at random. These data suggest one mechanism through which early life experience shapes behavioral development. © 2017 Association for Child and

  12. Early mathematics development and later achievement: Further evidence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aubrey, Carol; Godfrey, Ray; Dahl, Sarah

    2006-05-01

    There is a growing international recognition of the importance of the early years of schooling as well as an interest being shown in the relationship of early education to later achievement. This article focuses on a cohort of English pupils who have been tracked through primary school during the first five years of the new National Numeracy Strategy. It reports a limited longitudinal study of young children's early mathematical development, initially within three testing cycles: at the mid-point and towards the end of their reception year (at five years-of-age) and again at the mid-point of Year 1 (at six years-ofage). These cycles were located within the broader context of progress through to the end of Key Stage 1 (at seven years) and Key Stage 2 (at eleven years) on the basis of national standardised assessment tests (SATs). Results showed that children who bring into school early mathematical knowledge do appear to be advantaged in terms of their mathematical progress through primary school. Numerical attainment increases in importance across the primary years and practical problem solving remains an important element of this. This finding is significant given the current emphasis on numerical calculation in the English curriculum. It is concluded that without active intervention, it is likely that children with little mathematical knowledge at the beginning of formal schooling will remain low achievers throughout their primary years and, probably, beyond.

  13. A Quantitative Acetylomic Analysis of Early Seed Development in Rice (Oryza sativa L.).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yifeng; Hou, Yuxuan; Qiu, Jiehua; Li, Zhiyong; Zhao, Juan; Tong, Xiaohong; Zhang, Jian

    2017-06-27

    PKA (protein lysine acetylation) is a critical post-translational modification that regulates various developmental processes, including seed development. However, the acetylation events and dynamics on a proteomic scale in this process remain largely unknown, especially in rice early seed development. We report the first quantitative acetylproteomic study focused on rice early seed development by employing a mass spectral-based (MS-based), label-free approach. A total of 1817 acetylsites on 1688 acetylpeptides from 972 acetylproteins were identified in pistils and seeds at three and seven days after pollination, including 268 acetyproteins differentially acetylated among the three stages. Motif-X analysis revealed that six significantly enriched motifs, such as (DxkK), (kH) and (kY) around the acetylsites of the identified rice seed acetylproteins. Differentially acetylated proteins among the three stages, including adenosine diphosphate (ADP) -glucose pyrophosphorylases (AGPs), PDIL1-1 (protein disulfide isomerase like 1-1), hexokinases, pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC) and numerous other regulators that are extensively involved in the starch and sucrose metabolism, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and photosynthesis pathways during early seed development. This study greatly expanded the rice acetylome dataset, and shed novel insight into the regulatory roles of PKA in rice early seed development.

  14. Cesarean section delivery and development of food allergy and atopic dermatitis in early childhood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papathoma, Evangelia; Triga, Maria; Fouzas, Sotirios; Dimitriou, Gabriel

    2016-06-01

    Delivery by Cesarean section (CS) may predispose to allergic disorders, presumably due to alterations in the establishment of normal gut microbiota in early infancy. In this study, we sought to investigate the association between CS and physician-diagnosed food allergy and atopic dermatitis during the first 3 years of life, using data from a homogeneous, population-based, birth cohort. A total of 459 children born and cared for in the same tertiary maternity unit were examined at birth and followed up at 1, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 36 months of age. Participants with symptoms suggestive of food allergy or atopic dermatitis were evaluated by a pediatric allergy specialist to confirm the diagnosis based on well-defined criteria. The rate of CS was 50.8% (n = 233). Food allergy was diagnosed in 24 participants (5.2%) while atopic dermatitis was diagnosed in 62 children (13.5%). Cesarean section (OR 3.15; 95% CI 1.14-8.70), atopic dermatitis of the child (OR 3.01; 95% CI 1.18-7.80), parental atopy (OR 4.33; 95% CI 1.73-12.1), and gestational age (OR 1.57; 95% CI 1.07-2.37) were significant and independent predictors of food allergy. Children with at least one allergic parent delivered by CS had higher probability of developing food allergy compared with vaginally delivered children of non-allergic parents (OR 10.0; 95% CI 3.06-32.7). Conversely, the effect of CS on atopic dermatitis was not significant (OR 1.35; 95% CI 0.74-2.47). Delivery by CS predisposes to the development of food allergy but not atopic dermatitis in early childhood. Cesarean section delivery seems to upregulate the immune response to food allergens, especially in children with allergic predisposition. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  15. Black Female Faculty Success and Early Career Professional Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Tamara Bertrand; Osborne-Lampkin, La'Tara

    2013-01-01

    In recent years, a number of Black female junior scholars have participated in an early career professional development program designed to address socialization issues through individual and small group mentoring. This descriptive qualitative study investigated scholars' perceptions of the importance and effectiveness of a research…

  16. Development of tsunami early warning systems and future challenges

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Wächter

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Fostered by and embedded in the general development of information and communications technology (ICT, the evolution of tsunami warning systems (TWS shows a significant development from seismic-centred to multi-sensor system architectures using additional sensors (e.g. tide gauges and buoys for the detection of tsunami waves in the ocean.

    Currently, the beginning implementation of regional tsunami warning infrastructures indicates a new phase in the development of TWS. A new generation of TWS should not only be able to realise multi-sensor monitoring for tsunami detection. Moreover, these systems have to be capable to form a collaborative communication infrastructure of distributed tsunami warning systems in order to implement regional, ocean-wide monitoring and warning strategies.

    In the context of the development of the German Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System (GITEWS and in the EU-funded FP6 project Distant Early Warning System (DEWS, a service platform for both sensor integration and warning dissemination has been newly developed and demonstrated. In particular, standards of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC and the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS have been successfully incorporated.

    In the FP7 project Collaborative, Complex and Critical Decision-Support in Evolving Crises (TRIDEC, new developments in ICT (e.g. complex event processing (CEP and event-driven architecture (EDA are used to extend the existing platform to realise a component-based technology framework for building distributed tsunami warning systems.

  17. Altering the trajectory of early postnatal cortical development can lead to structural and behavioural features of autism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chomiak Taylor

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Autism is a behaviourally defined neurodevelopmental disorder with unknown etiology. Recent studies in autistic children consistently point to neuropathological and functional abnormalities in the temporal association cortex (TeA and its associated structures. It has been proposed that the trajectory of postnatal development in these regions may undergo accelerated maturational alterations that predominantly affect sensory recognition and social interaction. Indeed, the temporal association regions that are important for sensory recognition and social interaction are one of the last regions to mature suggesting a potential vulnerability to early maturation. However, direct evaluation of the emerging hypothesis that an altered time course of early postnatal development can lead to an ASD phenotype remains lacking. Results We used electrophysiological, histological, and behavioural techniques to investigate if the known neuronal maturational promoter valproate, similar to that in culture systems, can influence the normal developmental trajectory of TeA in vivo. Brain sections obtained from postnatal rat pups treated with VPA in vivo revealed that almost 40% of cortical cells in TeA prematurely exhibited adult-like intrinsic electrophysiological properties and that this was often associated with gross cortical hypertrophy and a reduced predisposition for social play behaviour. Conclusions The co-manifestation of these functional, structural and behavioural features suggests that alteration of the developmental time course in certain high-order cortical networks may play an important role in the neurophysiological basis of autism.

  18. Development of advanced automatic operation system for nuclear ship. 1. Perfect automatic normal operation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nakazawa, Toshio; Yabuuti, Noriaki; Takahashi, Hiroki; Shimazaki, Junya

    1999-02-01

    Development of operation support system such as automatic operating system and anomaly diagnosis systems of nuclear reactor is very important in practical nuclear ship because of a limited number of operators and severe conditions in which receiving support from others in a case of accident is very difficult. The goal of development of the operation support systems is to realize the perfect automatic control system in a series of normal operation from the reactor start-up to the shutdown. The automatic control system for the normal operation has been developed based on operating experiences of the first Japanese nuclear ship 'Mutsu'. Automation technique was verified by 'Mutsu' plant data at manual operation. Fully automatic control of start-up and shutdown operations was achieved by setting the desired value of operation and the limiting value of parameter fluctuation, and by making the operation program of the principal equipment such as the main coolant pump and the heaters. This report presents the automatic operation system developed for the start-up and the shutdown of reactor and the verification of the system using the Nuclear Ship Engineering Simulator System. (author)

  19. Prenatal concentrations of Perfluoroalkyl substances and early communication development in British girls.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeddy, Zuha; Hartman, Terryl J; Taylor, Ethel V; Poteete, Cayla; Kordas, Katarzyna

    2017-06-01

    Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), found in many household products and classed as endocrine disrupting chemicals, can be transferred through the placenta and are associated with multiple developmental deficits in offspring. Using data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), we investigated the association between intrauterine exposure to PFAS and early communication development in 432 mother-daughter dyads at 15 and 38months of age. Concentrations of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS), and perfluorononanoate (PFNA) were measured in maternal serum collected during pregnancy. Early communication development was measured with the ALSPAC-adapted MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories for Infants and Toddlers. The infant questionnaire measured verbal comprehension, vocabulary comprehension and production, nonverbal communication, and social development. The toddler questionnaire measured language, intelligibility, and communicative sub-scores. Multivariable linear regression was used to examine associations between each PFAS exposure and each communication sub-scale score. The association between maternal PFAS concentrations and early communication development at 15 and 38months of age varied by maternal age at delivery. In daughters of younger mothers (PFAS was positively and negatively associated with communication development among girls, with inconsistent pattern of association across all measured PFAS and endpoints. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. A comparative analysis of early child health and development services and outcomes in countries with different redistributive policies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van den Heuvel, Meta; Hopkins, Jessica; Biscaro, Anne; Srikanthan, Cinntha; Feller, Andrea; Bremberg, Sven; Verkuijl, Nienke; Flapper, Boudien; Ford-Jones, Elizabeth Lee; Williams, Robin

    2013-11-06

    The social environment is a fundamental determinant of early child development and, in turn, early child development is a determinant of health, well-being, and learning skills across the life course. Redistributive policies aimed at reducing social inequalities, such as a welfare state and labour market policies, have shown a positive association with selected health indicators. In this study, we investigated the influence of redistributive policies specifically on the social environment of early child development in five countries with different political traditions. The objective of this analysis was to highlight similarities and differences in social and health services between the countries and their associations with other health outcomes that can inform better global early child development policies and improve early child health and development. Four social determinants of early child development were selected to provide a cross-section of key time periods in a child's life from prenatal to kindergarten. They included: 1) prenatal care, 2) maternal leave, 3) child health care, and 4) child care and early childhood education. We searched international databases and reports (e.g. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, World Bank, and UNICEF) to obtain information about early child development policies, services and outcomes. Although a comparative analysis cannot claim causation, our analysis suggests that redistributive policies aimed at reducing social inequalities are associated with a positive influence on the social determinants of early child development. Generous redistributive policies are associated with a higher maternal leave allowance and pay and more preventive child healthcare visits. A decreasing trend in infant mortality, low birth weight rate, and under five mortality rate were observed with an increase in redistributive policies. No clear influence of redistributive policies was observed on breastfeeding and immunization

  1. The autism-associated MET receptor tyrosine kinase engages early neuronal growth mechanism and controls glutamatergic circuits development in the forebrain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peng, Y; Lu, Z; Li, G; Piechowicz, M; Anderson, M; Uddin, Y; Wu, J; Qiu, S

    2016-07-01

    The human MET gene imparts a replicated risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and is implicated in the structural and functional integrity of brain. MET encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase, MET, which has a pleiotropic role in embryogenesis and modifies a large number of neurodevelopmental events. Very little is known, however, on how MET signaling engages distinct cellular events to collectively affect brain development in ASD-relevant disease domains. Here, we show that MET protein expression is dynamically regulated and compartmentalized in developing neurons. MET is heavily expressed in neuronal growth cones at early developmental stages and its activation engages small GTPase Cdc42 to promote neuronal growth, dendritic arborization and spine formation. Genetic ablation of MET signaling in mouse dorsal pallium leads to altered neuronal morphology indicative of early functional maturation. In contrast, prolonged activation of MET represses the formation and functional maturation of glutamatergic synapses. Moreover, manipulating MET signaling levels in vivo in the developing prefrontal projection neurons disrupts the local circuit connectivity made onto these neurons. Therefore, normal time-delimited MET signaling is critical in regulating the timing of neuronal growth, glutamatergic synapse maturation and cortical circuit function. Dysregulated MET signaling may lead to pathological changes in forebrain maturation and connectivity, and thus contribute to the emergence of neurological symptoms associated with ASD.

  2. Perceptions and Attitudes of Early Childhood Teachers in Korea about Education for Sustainable Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Eunhye; Kim, Heejin; Yu, Sunyoung

    2016-01-01

    This study investigates the perceptions and attitudes of Korean early childhood teachers about education for sustainable development (ESD). A total of 301 Korean early childhood teachers participated in a survey which was purposefully developed for this research. The survey focused on three areas of interest: understanding of concepts about…

  3. APECS: A Network for Polar Early Career Scientist Professional Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Enderlin, E. M.

    2014-12-01

    The Association of Polar Early Career Researchers (APECS) is an international and interdisciplinary organization for undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, early faculty members, educators and others with interests in the polar regions, alpine regions and the wider Cryosphere. APECS is a scientific, non-profit organization with free individual membership that aims to stimulate research collaborations and develop effective future leaders in polar research, education, and outreach. APECS grew out of the 4th International Polar Year (2007-08), which emphasized the need to stimulate and nurture the next generation of scientists in order to improve the understanding and communication of the polar regions and its global connections. The APECS organizational structure includes a Council and an elected Executive Committee that are supported by a Directorate. These positions are open to all individual members through a democratic process. The APECS Directorate is funded by the Norwegian Research Council, the University of Tromsø and the Norwegian Polar Institute and is hosted by the University of Tromsø. Early career scientists benefit from a range of activities hosted/organized by APECS. Every year, numerous activities are run with partner organizations and in conjunction with major polar conferences and meetings. In-person and online panels and workshops focus on a range of topics, from developing field skills to applying for a job after graduate school. Career development webinars are hosted each fall and topical research webinars are hosted throughout the year and archived online (http://www.apecs.is). The APECS website also contains abundant information on polar news, upcoming conferences and meetings, and job postings for early career scientists. To better respond to members' needs, APECS has national/regional committees that are linked to the international overarching organization. Many of these committees organize regional meetings or

  4. Pattern Matching Framework to Estimate the Urgency of Off-Normal Situations in NPPs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shin, Jin Soo; Park, Sang Jun; Heo, Gyun Young [Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Park, Jin Kyun [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Hyo Jin; Park, Soon Yeol [Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power, Yeonggwang (Korea, Republic of)

    2010-10-15

    According to power plant operators, it was said that they could quite well recognize off-normal situations from an incipient stage and also anticipate the possibility of upcoming trips in case of skilled operators, even though it is difficult to clarify the cause of the off-normal situation. From the interview, we could assure the feasibility of two assumptions for the diagnosis of off-normal conditions: One is that we can predict whether an accidental shutdown happens or not if we observe the early stage when an off-normal starts to grow. The other is the observation at the early stage can provide the remaining time to a trip as well as the cause of such an off-normal situation. For this purpose, the development of on-line monitoring systems using various data processing techniques in nuclear power plants (NPPs) has been the subject of increasing attention and becomes important contributor to improve performance and economics. Many of studies have suggested the diagnostic methodologies. One of representative methods was to use the distance discrimination as a similarity measure, for example, such as the Euclidean distance. A variety of artificial intelligence techniques such as a neural network have been developed as well. In addition, some of these methodologies were to reduce the data dimensions for more effectively work. While sharing the same motivation with the previous achievements, this study proposed non-parametric pattern matching techniques to reduce the uncertainty in pursuance of selection of models and modeling processes. This could be characterized by the following two aspects: First, for overcoming considering only a few typical scenarios in the most of the studies, this study is getting the entire sets of off-normal situations which are anticipated in NPPs, which are created by a full-scope simulator. Second, many of the existing researches adopted the process of forming a diagnosis model which is so-called a training technique or a parametric

  5. Pattern Matching Framework to Estimate the Urgency of Off-Normal Situations in NPPs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shin, Jin Soo; Park, Sang Jun; Heo, Gyun Young; Park, Jin Kyun; Kim, Hyo Jin; Park, Soon Yeol

    2010-01-01

    According to power plant operators, it was said that they could quite well recognize off-normal situations from an incipient stage and also anticipate the possibility of upcoming trips in case of skilled operators, even though it is difficult to clarify the cause of the off-normal situation. From the interview, we could assure the feasibility of two assumptions for the diagnosis of off-normal conditions: One is that we can predict whether an accidental shutdown happens or not if we observe the early stage when an off-normal starts to grow. The other is the observation at the early stage can provide the remaining time to a trip as well as the cause of such an off-normal situation. For this purpose, the development of on-line monitoring systems using various data processing techniques in nuclear power plants (NPPs) has been the subject of increasing attention and becomes important contributor to improve performance and economics. Many of studies have suggested the diagnostic methodologies. One of representative methods was to use the distance discrimination as a similarity measure, for example, such as the Euclidean distance. A variety of artificial intelligence techniques such as a neural network have been developed as well. In addition, some of these methodologies were to reduce the data dimensions for more effectively work. While sharing the same motivation with the previous achievements, this study proposed non-parametric pattern matching techniques to reduce the uncertainty in pursuance of selection of models and modeling processes. This could be characterized by the following two aspects: First, for overcoming considering only a few typical scenarios in the most of the studies, this study is getting the entire sets of off-normal situations which are anticipated in NPPs, which are created by a full-scope simulator. Second, many of the existing researches adopted the process of forming a diagnosis model which is so-called a training technique or a parametric

  6. Changes in erythrocyte insulin receptors in normal dogs and keeshond dogs with inheritable, early onset, insulin dependent diabetes mellitus

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klaassen, J.K.

    1986-01-01

    Validation of a procedure to evaluate insulin receptors on erythrocytes (RBC-IR) in dogs is described. The specific binding of ( 125 I)iodoinsulin to RBC-IR of normal dogs is significantly greater than binding in keeshonds with an inheritable form of early onset diabetes mellitus. This decreased binding was due to a significant decrease in RBC-IR affinity in the diabetic keeshonds. To determine the effect on RBC-IR, normal dogs were treated with either dexamethasone (0.1 mg/kg) or prednisone (0.3 mg/kg) for 10 days: concentrations of plasma cortisol, glucose, and insulin, plus binding characteristics of RBC-IR were determined. In the dexamethasone treated group, plasma glucose concentrations were elevated significantly by day 6 and continued through day 10. Insulin concentrations were elevated significantly by day 3 and remained elevated through day 10. In the prednisone treated group, glucose concentrations were elevated significantly by day 3, while insulin concentrations were elevated significantly by day 8. Maximum binding of RBC-IR was unaffected by prednisone and neither affinities nor receptor numbers were significantly different from day 1. No changes in plasma cortisol concentration were seen. Diabetic keeshonds on daily insulin treatment were removed from exogenous insulin therapy for 48 hours. Significant increases in glucose concentrations were observed, but no significant changes in cortisol, insulin, average receptor binding affinity, or RBC-IR number per cell occurred

  7. Developing Early Undergraduate Research at a Two-Year College

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sibbernsen, Kendra

    2013-01-01

    Two-year college (TYC) physics teachers are not often required to provide student research experiences as a part of their contracted duties. However, some TYC physics faculty members are interested in developing research opportunities for their freshman- and sophomore-level students, often called "early undergraduate research" (EUR).…

  8. HIV Infection: Transmission, Effects on Early Development, and Interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lowenthal, Barbara

    1997-01-01

    Describes the modes of transmission of HIV and the course of the disease in infants and toddlers. Information is provided on its effects on early development, medical screening and treatments, therapies, psychosocial assistance, and interventions, including nutritional therapy, occupational and physical therapies, and speech and language therapy.…

  9. Immunohistochemical analysis of Sonic hedgehog signalling in normal human urinary tract development

    OpenAIRE

    Jenkins, Dagan; Winyard, Paul J D; Woolf, Adrian S.

    2007-01-01

    Studies of mouse mutants have demonstrated that Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signalling has a functional role in morphogenesis and differentiation at multiple sites within the forming urinary tract, and urinary tract malformations have been reported in humans with mutations that disrupt SHH signalling. However, there is only strikingly sparse and fragmentary information about the expression of SHH and associated signalling genes in normal human urinary tract development. We used immunohistochemistry ...

  10. Using Intervention Mapping for child development and wellbeing programs in early childhood education and care settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Connor, Amanda; Blewitt, Claire; Nolan, Andrea; Skouteris, Helen

    2018-06-01

    Supporting children's social and emotional learning benefits all elements of children's development and has been associated with positive mental health and wellbeing, development of values and life skills. However, literature relating to the creation of interventions designed for use within the early childhood education and care settings to support children's social and emotional skills and learning is lacking. Intervention Mapping (IM) is a systematic intervention development framework, utilising principles centred on participatory co-design methods, multiple theoretical approaches and existing literature to enable effective decision-making during the development process. Early childhood pedagogical programs are also shaped by these principles; however, educators tend to draw on implicit knowledge when working with families. IM offers this sector the opportunity to formally incorporate theoretical, evidence-based research into the development of early childhood education and care social and emotional interventions. Emerging literature indicates IM is useful for designing health and wellbeing interventions for children within early childhood education and care settings. Considering the similar underlying principles of IM, existing applications within early childhood education and care and development of interventions beyond health behaviour change, it is recommended IM be utilised to design early childhood education and care interventions focusing on supporting children's social and emotional development. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Starting Smart: How Early Experiences Affect Brain Development. An Ounce of Prevention Fund Paper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ounce of Prevention Fund.

    Recent research has provided great insight into the impact of early experience on brain development. It is now believed that brain growth is highly dependent upon early experiences. Neurons allow communication and coordinated functioning among various brain areas. Brain development after birth consists of an ongoing process of wiring and rewiring…

  12. Role of tonic GABAergic currents during pre- and early postnatal rodent development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Werner eKilb

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available In the last three decades it became evident that the GABAergic system plays an essential role for the development of the central nervous system, by influencing the proliferation of neuronal precursors, neuronal migration and differentiation, as well as by controlling early activity patterns and thus formation of neuronal networks. GABA controls neuronal development via depolarizing membrane responses upon activation of ionotropic GABA receptors. However, many of these effects occur before the onset of synaptic GABAergic activity and thus require the presence of extrasynaptic tonic currents in neuronal precursors and immature neurons. This review summarizes our current knowledge about the role of tonic GABAergic currents during early brain development. In this review we compare the temporal sequence of the expression and functional relevance of different GABA receptor subunits, GABA synthesizing enzymes and GABA transporters. We also refer to other possible endogenous agonists of GABAA receptors. In addition, we describe functional consequences mediated by the GABAergic system during early developmental periods and discuss current models about the origin of extrasynaptic GABA and/or other endogenous GABAergic agonists during early developmental states. Finally, we present evidence that tonic GABAergic activity is also critically involved in the generation of physiological as well as pathophysiological activity patterns before and after the establishment of functional GABAergic synaptic connections.

  13. How Early Hormones Shape Gender Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berenbaum, Sheri A.; Beltz, Adriene M.

    2015-01-01

    Many important psychological characteristics show sex differences, and are influenced by sex hormones at different developmental periods. We focus on the role of sex hormones in early development, particularly the differential effects of prenatal androgens on aspects of gender development. Increasing evidence confirms that prenatal androgens have facilitative effects on male-typed activity interests and engagement (including child toy preferences and adult careers), and spatial abilities, but relatively minimal effects on gender identity. Recent emphasis has been directed to the psychological mechanisms underlying these effects (including sex differences in propulsive movement, and androgen effects on interest in people versus things), and neural substrates of androgen effects (including regional brain volumes, and neural responses to mental rotation, sexually arousing stimuli, emotion, and reward). Ongoing and planned work is focused on understanding the ways in which hormones act jointly with the social environment across time to produce varying trajectories of gender development, and clarifying mechanisms by which androgens affect behaviors. Such work will be facilitated by applying lessons from other species, and by expanding methodology. Understanding hormonal influences on gender development enhances knowledge of psychological development generally, and has important implications for basic and applied questions, including sex differences in psychopathology, women’s underrepresentation in science and math, and clinical care of individuals with variations in gender expression. PMID:26688827

  14. Sowing on the emergence and early development of seedlings o baru

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alan Mario Zuffo

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this work to evaluate the influence of the position of baru seeds, the emergence and early seedling development. The test was conducted in a greenhouse experiment in randomized blocks, with five treatments (seeding position, with four replications, positions were: A - Hilo up, B - hilo down C - hilum and raphe aside, D - horizontal raphe up, E - horizontal raphe down. It was observed that the seeds deposited at the position B (heel down provided better emergence and seedling development. We evaluated the emergence, speed of emergence index, plant height, stem diameter, root length, dry mass of air, root dry weight, relative AP/DC, FSPA/FSR and Dickson quality index. The emergence and early seedling development baru were influenced by sowing position. The seeds deposited with the hilum down provided better results.

  15. Ovarian development and early larval survival of Stenopus zanzibaricus (Bruce, 1976

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Marques

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Despite economically valuable, ornamental shrimps are poorly studied and there is a lack of protocols for their captive breeding. Stenopus is one of the most important genera of ornamental shrimps, being Stenopus zanzibaricus one of the species with less information about captive breeding and larviculture. For a better knowledge of its reproductive cycle, we evaluated morphological and color changes during ovarian development of adult females through daily photographs taken during all the cycle. The effect of three diets (Brachionus plicatilis + Tetraselmis chuii; newly artemia nauplii + Tetraselmis chuii; newly artemia nauplii and two different temperatures (25ºC and 27ºC on early larval development were also evaluated. With this study, it was expected to obtain some insight about Stenopus zanzibaricus reproductive cycle and early larval development, in order to develop captive breeding and larval rearing protocols for this economic valuable species.

  16. Early-Life Antibiotic Exposure, Gut Microbiota Development, and Predisposition to Obesity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azad, Meghan B; Moossavi, Shirin; Owora, Arthur; Sepehri, Shadi

    2017-01-01

    Antibiotics are often prescribed inappropriately to infants and young children, with potentially adverse effects on the developing gut microbiota and related metabolic processes. We review evidence from 17 epidemiologic studies suggesting that antibiotic exposure during critical periods of early development may influence weight gain and the development of obesity. Complementary research in both humans and rodents indicates that gut microbiota play a key role in this process, although further research is needed to confirm and characterize the causal mechanisms involved. Obesity is a complex and multifactorial condition; thus, a multipronged prevention strategy will be required to curb the current obesity epidemic. Evidence to date suggests this strategy should include the judicious use of antibiotics, especially in early life when the developing gut microbiota is particularly susceptible to perturbations with long-lasting implications for metabolic programming and obesity risk. © 2017 Nestec Ltd., Vevey/S. Karger AG, Basel.

  17. Excess iron: considerations related to development and early growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wessling-Resnick, Marianne

    2017-12-01

    What effects might arise from early life exposures to high iron? This review considers the specific effects of high iron on the brain, stem cells, and the process of erythropoiesis and identifies gaps in our knowledge of what molecular damage may be incurred by oxidative stress that is imparted by high iron status in early life. Specific areas to enhance research on this topic include the following: longitudinal behavioral studies of children to test associations between iron exposures and mood, emotion, cognition, and memory; animal studies to determine epigenetic changes that reprogram brain development and metabolic changes in early life that could be followed through the life course; and the establishment of human epigenetic markers of iron exposures and oxidative stress that could be monitored for early origins of adult chronic diseases. In addition, efforts to understand how iron exposure influences stem cell biology could be enhanced by establishing platforms to collect biological specimens, including umbilical cord blood and amniotic fluid, to be made available to the research community. At the molecular level, there is a need to better understand stress erythropoiesis and changes in iron metabolism during pregnancy and development, especially with respect to regulatory control under high iron conditions that might promote ineffective erythropoiesis and iron-loading anemia. These investigations should focus not only on factors such as hepcidin and erythroferrone but should also include newly identified interactions between transferrin receptor-2 and the erythropoietin receptor. Finally, despite our understanding that several key micronutrients (e.g., vitamin A, copper, manganese, and zinc) support iron's function in erythropoiesis, how these nutrients interact remains, to our knowledge, unknown. It is necessary to consider many factors when formulating recommendations on iron supplementation. © 2017 American Society for Nutrition.

  18. Cushing`s disease: Fibrinogen and D-dimer levels fail to normalize despite early postoperative remission - a prospective, controlled study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Witek, Przemysław; Zieliński, Grzegorz; Szamotulska, Katarzyna; Witek, Joanna; Kamiński, Grzegorz

    2016-01-01

    Effective transsphenoidal surgery (TSS) for Cushing`s disease (CD) normalizes cortisol levels and reduces complications of hypercortisolism. However, there is evidence of increased cardiovascular morbidity even after successful surgery. A prospective, controlled study on the dynamics of fibrinogen and D-dimer levels with a six-month follow-up after an effective TSS for CD. Forty patients with CD and forty healthy age- and sex-matched subjects were included. We assessed ACTH, urinary and serum cortisol, and fibrinogen and D-dimer levels before TSS and during follow-up. Baseline BMI (P < 0.001), fibrinogen (P = 0.002), and D-dimer (P = 0.001) levels in CD patients were significantly higher than those in healthy controls. High fibrinogen levels in the CD group were independent of BMI, and were positively associated with hsCRP (rS = 0.61, P < 0.001) and arterial hypertension (P = 0.029). After the six-month follow-up we confirmed a sustained difference between the remission group and controls in fibrinogen and D-dimer levels (P = 0.001 and P = 0.017, respectively). Despite early biochemical remission of CD the levels of fibrinogen and D-dimer failed to decrease. This probably contributes to the high risk of thrombotic events and indicates the need for a close follow-up for signs of thromboembolic and cardiovascular complications in patients with early CD remission. (Endokrynol Pol 2016; 67 (3): 283-291).

  19. Early development of Ensatina eschscholtzii: an amphibian with a large, yolky egg

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Collazo Andres

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Comparative analyses between amphibians, concentrating on the cellular mechanisms of morphogenesis, reveal a large variability in the early developmental processes that were thought to be conserved during evolution. Increased egg size is one factor that could have a strong effect on early developmental processes such as cleavage pattern and gastrulation. Salamanders of the family Plethodontidae are particularly appropriate for such comparative studies because the species have eggs of varying size, including very large yolky eggs. Results In this paper, we describe for the first time the early development (from fertilization through neurulation of the plethodontid salamander Ensatina eschscholtzii. This species has one of the largest eggs known for an amphibian, with a mean ± SD diameter of 6 ± 0.43 mm (range 5.3-6.9; n = 17 eggs. Cleavage is meroblastic until approximately the 16-cell stage (fourth or fifth cleavage. At the beginning of gastrulation, the blastocoel roof is one cell thick, and the dorsal lip of the blastopore forms below the equator of the embryo. The ventral lip of the blastopore forms closer to the vegetal pole, and relatively little involution occurs during gastrulation. Cell migration is visible through the transparent blastocoel roof of the gastrula. At the end of gastrulation, a small archenteron spreading dorsally from the blastopore represents the relatively small and superficial area of the egg where early embryonic axis formation occurs. The resulting pattern is similar to the embryonic disk described for one species of anuran. Conclusions Comparisons with the early development of other species of amphibians suggest that an evolutionary increase in egg size can result in predictable changes in the patterns and rate of early development, but mainly within an evolutionary lineage.

  20. Effects of bombing after five years: Development of early maladaptive cognitive schemas in children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nikoloski-Končar Nataša

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available The main aim of the study is to examine effects of bombing on development of early maladaptive schemas in children who live in directly bombed towns in comparison with children who live in towns not directly exposed to bombing. The subjects were twelve years old at the moment of testing (February 2005 meaning that they were at the age of seven during the bombing. Additional aim was to examine gender differences in development of early maladaptive schemas. The theory of Young (1990 provided framework for the study. According to the theory, early maladaptive cognitive schemas, which present basis for psychological disorder later in life, begin to develop in childhood in connection with traumatic experiences and/or other aversive circumstances. The results showed that the early maladaptive schemas are more frequent in children from directly exposed towns; and in male subjects comparing with females.

  1. Emergency evacuation/transportation plan update: Traffic model development and evaluation of early closure procedures. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1993-10-28

    Prolonged delays in traffic experienced by Laboratory personnel during a recent early dismissal in inclement weather, coupled with reconstruction efforts along NM 502 east of the White Rock Wye for the next 1 to 2 years, has prompted Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to re-evaluate and improve the present transportation plan and its integration with contingency plans maintained in other organizations. Facilities planners and emergency operations staff need to evaluate the transportation system`s capability to inefficiently and safely evacuate LANL under different low-level emergency conditions. A variety of potential procedures governing the release of employees from the different technical areas (TAs) requires evaluation, perhaps with regard to multiple emergency-condition scenarios, with one or more optimal procedures ultimately presented for adoption by Lab Management. The work undertaken in this project will hopefully lay a foundation for an on-going, progressive transportation system analysis capability. It utilizes microscale simulation techniques to affirm, reassess and validate the Laboratory`s Early Dismissal/Closure/Delayed Opening Plan. The Laboratory is required by Federal guidelines, and compelled by prudent practice and conscientious regard for the welfare of employees and nearby residents, to maintain plans and operating procedures for evacuation if the need arises. The tools developed during this process can be used outside of contingency planning. It is anticipated that the traffic models developed will allow site planners to evaluate changes to the traffic network which could better serve the normal traffic levels. Changes in roadway configuration, control strategies (signalization and signing), response strategies to traffic accidents, and patterns of demand can be modelled using the analysis tools developed during this project. Such scenarios typically are important considerations in master planning and facilities programming.

  2. Early phase in e-money development: from Edvard Bellamy to Frank Macknamary

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O.S. Vysochan

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The article examines the phases of e-money development from the first mentioning of «a credit card» in literary sources to the appearance of Diners Club which preceded modern credit cards. The author has used the historical and geographic method for the decomposition of the early phase in the e-money development concerning the basic motives that induced emitters to develop and implement particular credit-payment systems. The article singles out three stages within the early phase of the e-money development, namely, the beginning of the ХХ-th century (supplying with short-term credits to obtain consumer’s goods, from 1920 to 1940 (guarantee of consumer’s loyalty to a brand, increasing the safety of clearing transactions by payer’s authorization, and 1950-ies (the use of the same credit for payment to various enterprises. It establishes the main features of the early phase in the e-money development; they are such as the absence of the necessary technical supply; emission, sale, guaranty on credits, on the cards issued take place outside the banking system; the lack of corporation credit card segment; the limitation of the application area; the low level of safety of the transactions accomplished.

  3. Regionalism and Development in Early Nineteenth Century Spanish America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Douglas

    An understanding of regionalism in early 19th century Spanish America is crucial to any understanding of this region's economic development. Regionalism became the barrier to the kind of integrated national economy that some writers claim could have been implemented had it not been for the imposition of dependency by external forces. This…

  4. MR of the normal and ischemic hip

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitchell, D.G.

    1988-01-01

    Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) appears to be more sensitive than traditional radiographic and radionuclide methods for detecting early avascular necrosis (AVN) of the femoral head. The authors have found that in addition to its proven value for early detection, MRI can help us characterize individual lesions and understand the pathophysiology of AVN. This chapter reviews the clinical and pathological features of AVN of the femoral head, and describes recent contributions of MRI toward understanding the normal and ischemic hip. This review summarizes the 5-year experience of the MR group at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

  5. Biomechanical Analysis of Normal Brain Development during the First Year of Life Using Finite Strain Theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Jeong Chul; Wang, Li; Shen, Dinggang; Lin, Weili

    2016-12-02

    The first year of life is the most critical time period for structural and functional development of the human brain. Combining longitudinal MR imaging and finite strain theory, this study aimed to provide new insights into normal brain development through a biomechanical framework. Thirty-three normal infants were longitudinally imaged using MRI from 2 weeks to 1 year of age. Voxel-wise Jacobian determinant was estimated to elucidate volumetric changes while Lagrange strains (both normal and shear strains) were measured to reveal directional growth information every 3 months during the first year of life. Directional normal strain maps revealed that, during the first 6 months, the growth pattern of gray matter is anisotropic and spatially inhomogeneous with higher left-right stretch around the temporal lobe and interhemispheric fissure, anterior-posterior stretch in the frontal and occipital lobes, and superior-inferior stretch in right inferior occipital and right inferior temporal gyri. In contrast, anterior lateral ventricles and insula showed an isotropic stretch pattern. Volumetric and directional growth rates were linearly decreased with age for most of the cortical regions. Our results revealed anisotropic and inhomogeneous brain growth patterns of the human brain during the first year of life using longitudinal MRI and a biomechanical framework.

  6. Extended flow cytometry characterization of normal bone marrow progenitor cells by simultaneous detection of aldehyde dehydrogenase and early hematopoietic antigens: implication for erythroid differentiation studies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pascariello Caterina

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH is a cytosolic enzyme highly expressed in hematopoietic precursors from cord blood and granulocyte-colony stimulating factor mobilized peripheral blood, as well as in bone marrow from patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia. As regards human normal bone marrow, detailed characterization of ALDH+ cells has been addressed by one single study (Gentry et al, 2007. The goal of our work was to provide new information about the dissection of normal bone marrow progenitor cells based upon the simultaneous detection by flow cytometry of ALDH and early hematopoietic antigens, with particular attention to the expression of ALDH on erythroid precursors. To this aim, we used three kinds of approach: i multidimensional analytical flow cytometry, detecting ALDH and early hematopoietic antigens in normal bone marrow; ii fluorescence activated cell sorting of distinct subpopulations of progenitor cells, followed by in vitro induction of erythroid differentiation; iii detection of ALDH+ cellular subsets in bone marrow from pure red cell aplasia patients. Results In normal bone marrow, we identified three populations of cells, namely ALDH+CD34+, ALDH-CD34+ and ALDH+CD34- (median percentages were 0.52, 0.53 and 0.57, respectively. As compared to ALDH-CD34+ cells, ALDH+CD34+ cells expressed the phenotypic profile of primitive hematopoietic progenitor cells, with brighter expression of CD117 and CD133, accompanied by lower display of CD38 and CD45RA. Of interest, ALDH+CD34- population disclosed a straightforward erythroid commitment, on the basis of three orders of evidences. First of all, ALDH+CD34- cells showed a CD71bright, CD105+, CD45- phenotype. Secondly, induction of differentiation experiments evidenced a clear-cut expression of glycophorin A (CD235a. Finally, ALDH+CD34- precursors were not detectable in patients with pure red cell aplasia (PRCA. Conclusion Our study, comparing surface antigen expression of

  7. Early successful orchidopexy does not prevent from developing azoospermia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Faruk Hadziselimovic

    2006-10-01

    Full Text Available INTRODUCTION: The incidence of Ad spermatogonia (stem cells for fertility was assessed in 20 cryptorchid patients, all of whom had a successful orchidopexy in childhood but developed azoospermia following puberty. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From a cohort of 231 patients who had a semen analysis following successful orchidopexy 20 patients (9% had azoospermia. The patients were classified into 2 groups according to the time of surgery: A = < 21 months of age (n = 5, mean = 10.7 ± 8.6 months and B = during childhood (n = 15, mean = 10.1 ± 3 years. Nine of the 20 patients (45% had bilateral cryptorchidism: A = 1 and B = 8. Testicular biopsies were performed during orchidopexy and analyzed with semi-thin technique. The number of Ad spermatogonia and entire number of germ cells was determined. The patients' semen analyses were evaluated at least twice; FSH and testosterone plasma values were estimated. RESULTS: In group A, all patients had germ cells at the time of surgery (mean = 1.04 ± 1.4 germ cells per tubular cross section; only 6 patients in group B (40% had no germ cells (mean = 0.17 ± 0.4; A vs. B, p = 0.0133. Importantly, Ad spermatogonia were absent in the entire study population. The plasma FSH of 16 patients (80% was abnormal [median = 16.35 IU/L (Interquartile range of sample - IQR 9.075-27.85 95% CI, 3-53] while the plasma testosterone of all the patients was normal. CONCLUSIONS: The most severe cause of infertility in cryptorchid patients cannot be mitigated by an early successful surgery alone.

  8. Early embryonic demise: no evidence of abnormal spiral artery transformation or trophoblast invasion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ball, E; Robson, S C; Ayis, S; Lyall, F; Bulmer, J N

    2006-03-01

    Invasion by extravillous trophoblast of uterine decidua and myometrium and the associated spiral artery 'transformation' are essential for the development of normal pregnancy. Small pilot studies of placental bed and basal plate tissues from miscarriages have suggested that impaired interstitial and endovascular trophoblast invasion may play a role in the pathogenesis of miscarriage. The hypothesis that early miscarriage is associated with reduced extravillous trophoblast invasion and spiral artery transformation was tested in a large series of placental bed biopsies containing decidua and myometrium and at least one spiral artery from early, karyotyped embryonic miscarriages (normal pregnancies (n = 78). Frozen sections were immunostained to demonstrate trophoblast (cytokeratin), myometrium and spiral artery medial smooth muscle (desmin), and endothelium (von Willebrand factor). Trophoblast invasion and individual features of spiral artery transformation were assessed histologically in spiral arteries of miscarriages (n = 176) and controls (n = 246) and analysed statistically using a logistic regression model. Trophoblast invasion of uterine tissues and spiral artery transformation did not differ between euploid and aneuploid early miscarriage and also did not differ significantly from normal pregnancy. These findings suggest that failed trophoblast invasion and spiral artery transformation do not have a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of early miscarriage.

  9. Early development of grateloupia turuturu (Halymeniaceae, Rhodophyta)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Gaoge; Jiang, Chunmei; Wang, Shasha; Wei, Xiaojiao; Zhao, Fengjuan

    2012-03-01

    Grateloupia turuturu is a commercial red alga with potential value in nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. To supplement information on its life history and verify whether carpospores can be used for seedling culture, early development of G. turuturu was investigated under culture conditions (27°C, 10-13 μol/(m2·s) in irradiance, photoperiod 10:14 h L:D). Three physiological stages were recognized by continuous microscopic observation: division stage, discoid crust stage, and juvenile seedling stage. At the beginning of the division stage, the carpospores developed germ tubes into which the carpospore protoplasm was evacuated, and then the carpospore protoplasm in the germ tubes began to divide continuously until discoid crusts formed. Finally, upright thalli appeared on the discoid crusts and developed into juvenile seedlings. It took about 60 days for carpospores to develop into juvenile seedlings. The growth parameters, including germination rate for carpospores and discoid crust diameter, were recorded. These results contribute more information on the life cycle, and at the same time are of great significance in the scaling-up of artificial seedling cultures of G. turuturu.

  10. Early phosphorus nutrition, mycorrhizae development, dry matter partitioning and yield of maize

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gavito, M.E.; Miller, M.H.

    1998-01-01

    to a mycorrhizal mycelium network (no-tillage treatments). Maize yield and harvest index were lower after cropping With canola. The yield for conventional tillage was higher than that for no-tillage but the harvest index was lower. The hypothesis was supported at early stages of maize growth by the effect...... was used with previous crop (Zea mays L.-maize and Brassica napus L.-canola), tillage practices (no-tillage or conventional tillage) and P fertilization (5 levels) as factors chosen to modify mycorrhizae development at early developmental stages of maize. Previous cropping with canola resulted in decreased......We conducted a field experiment to test the hypothesis that improved phosphorus nutrition occurs in maize plants with rapid arbuscular (AM) mycorrhizae development at early developmental stages and that this also is reflected in dry matter allocation and final yield. A split-split plot design...

  11. An Early Years Toolbox for Assessing Early Executive Function, Language, Self-Regulation, and Social Development: Validity, Reliability, and Preliminary Norms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howard, Steven J.; Melhuish, Edward

    2017-01-01

    Several methods of assessing executive function (EF), self-regulation, language development, and social development in young children have been developed over previous decades. Yet new technologies make available methods of assessment not previously considered. In resolving conceptual and pragmatic limitations of existing tools, the Early Years…

  12. Dual effects of fluoxetine on mouse early embryonic development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Chang-Woon; Choe, Changyong; Kim, Eun-Jin; Lee, Jae-Ik; Yoon, Sook-Young; Cho, Young-Woo; Han, Sunkyu; Tak, Hyun-Min; Han, Jaehee; Kang, Dawon

    2012-01-01

    Fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, regulates a variety of physiological processes, such as cell proliferation and apoptosis, in mammalian cells. Little is known about the role of fluoxetine in early embryonic development. This study was undertaken to investigate the effect of fluoxetine during mouse early embryonic development. Late two-cell stage embryos (2-cells) were cultured in the presence of various concentrations of fluoxetine (1 to 50 μM) for different durations. When late 2-cells were incubated with 5 μM fluoxetine for 6 h, the percentage that developed into blastocysts increased compared to the control value. However, late 2-cells exposed to fluoxetine (5 μM) over 24 h showed a reduction in blastocyst formation. The addition of fluoxetine (5 μM) together with KN93 or KN62 (calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) inhibitors) failed to increase blastocyst formation. Fluoxetine treatment inhibited TREK-1 and TREK-2, members of the two-pore domain K + channel family expressed in mouse embryos, activities, indicating that fluoxetine-induced membrane depolarization in late 2-cells might have resulted from TREK inhibition. In addition, long-term exposure to fluoxetine altered the TREK mRNA expression levels. Furthermore, injection of siRNA targeting TREKs significantly decreased blastocyst formation by ∼ 30% compared to injection of scrambled siRNA. Long-term exposure of fluoxetine had no effect on blastocyst formation of TREK deficient embryos. These results indicate that low-dose and short-term exposures of late 2-cells to fluoxetine probably increase blastocyst formation through activation of CaMKII-dependent signal transduction pathways, whereas long-term exposure decreases mouse early embryonic development through inhibition of TREK channel gating. Highlights: ► Short-term exposure of 2-cells to fluoxetine enhances mouse blastocyst formation. ► The enhancive effect of fluoxetine is resulted from CaMKII activation

  13. Dual effects of fluoxetine on mouse early embryonic development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Chang-Woon [Department of Physiology and Institute of Health Sciences, Gyeongsang National University School of Medicine, Jinju 660-751 (Korea, Republic of); Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Samsung Changwon Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University, Changwon 630-723 (Korea, Republic of); Choe, Changyong [National Institute of Animal Science, RDA, Cheonan 330-801 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Eun-Jin [Department of Physiology and Institute of Health Sciences, Gyeongsang National University School of Medicine, Jinju 660-751 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Jae-Ik [Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Gyeongsang National University Hospital, Jinju 660-702 (Korea, Republic of); Yoon, Sook-Young [Fertility Center of CHA Gangnam Medical Center, CHA University, Seoul 135-081 (Korea, Republic of); Cho, Young-Woo; Han, Sunkyu; Tak, Hyun-Min; Han, Jaehee [Department of Physiology and Institute of Health Sciences, Gyeongsang National University School of Medicine, Jinju 660-751 (Korea, Republic of); Kang, Dawon, E-mail: dawon@gnu.ac.kr [Department of Physiology and Institute of Health Sciences, Gyeongsang National University School of Medicine, Jinju 660-751 (Korea, Republic of)

    2012-11-15

    Fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, regulates a variety of physiological processes, such as cell proliferation and apoptosis, in mammalian cells. Little is known about the role of fluoxetine in early embryonic development. This study was undertaken to investigate the effect of fluoxetine during mouse early embryonic development. Late two-cell stage embryos (2-cells) were cultured in the presence of various concentrations of fluoxetine (1 to 50 μM) for different durations. When late 2-cells were incubated with 5 μM fluoxetine for 6 h, the percentage that developed into blastocysts increased compared to the control value. However, late 2-cells exposed to fluoxetine (5 μM) over 24 h showed a reduction in blastocyst formation. The addition of fluoxetine (5 μM) together with KN93 or KN62 (calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) inhibitors) failed to increase blastocyst formation. Fluoxetine treatment inhibited TREK-1 and TREK-2, members of the two-pore domain K{sup +} channel family expressed in mouse embryos, activities, indicating that fluoxetine-induced membrane depolarization in late 2-cells might have resulted from TREK inhibition. In addition, long-term exposure to fluoxetine altered the TREK mRNA expression levels. Furthermore, injection of siRNA targeting TREKs significantly decreased blastocyst formation by ∼ 30% compared to injection of scrambled siRNA. Long-term exposure of fluoxetine had no effect on blastocyst formation of TREK deficient embryos. These results indicate that low-dose and short-term exposures of late 2-cells to fluoxetine probably increase blastocyst formation through activation of CaMKII-dependent signal transduction pathways, whereas long-term exposure decreases mouse early embryonic development through inhibition of TREK channel gating. Highlights: ► Short-term exposure of 2-cells to fluoxetine enhances mouse blastocyst formation. ► The enhancive effect of fluoxetine is resulted from Ca

  14. Integrating nutrition and early child-development interventions among infants and preschoolers in rural India.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernandez-Rao, Sylvia; Hurley, Kristen M; Nair, Krishnapillai Madhavan; Balakrishna, Nagalla; Radhakrishna, Kankipati V; Ravinder, Punjal; Tilton, Nicholas; Harding, Kimberly B; Reinhart, Greg A; Black, Maureen M

    2014-01-01

    This article describes the development, design, and implementation of an integrated randomized double-masked placebo-controlled trial (Project Grow Smart) that examines how home/preschool fortification with multiple micronutrient powder (MNP) combined with an early child-development intervention affects child development, growth, and micronutrient status among infants and preschoolers in rural India. The 1-year trial has an infant phase (enrollment age: 6-12 months) and a preschool phase (enrollment age: 36-48 months). Infants are individually randomized into one of four groups: placebo, placebo plus early learning, MNP alone, and MNP plus early learning (integrated intervention), conducted through home visits. The preschool phase is a cluster-randomized trial conducted in Anganwadi centers (AWCs), government-run preschools sponsored by the Integrated Child Development System of India. AWCs are randomized into MNP or placebo, with the MNP or placebo mixed into the children's food. The evaluation examines whether the effects of the MNP intervention vary by the quality of the early learning opportunities and communication within the AWCs. Study outcomes include child development, growth, and micronutrient status. Lessons learned during the development, design, and implementation of the integrated trial can be used to guide large-scale policy and programs designed to promote the developmental, educational, and economic potential of children in developing countries. © 2013 New York Academy of Sciences.

  15. Evaluation and Referral of Children With Signs of Early Puberty.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaplowitz, Paul; Bloch, Clifford

    2016-01-01

    Concerns about possible early pubertal development are a common cause for referral to pediatric medical subspecialists. Several recent studies have suggested that onset of breast and/or pubic hair development may be occurring earlier than in the past. Although there is a chance of finding pathology in girls with signs of puberty before 8 years of age and in boys before 9 years of age, the vast majority of these children with signs of apparent puberty have variations of normal growth and physical development and do not require laboratory testing, bone age radiographs, or intervention. The most common of these signs of early puberty are premature adrenarche (early onset of pubic hair and/or body odor), premature thelarche (nonprogressive breast development, usually occurring before 2 years of age), and lipomastia, in which girls have apparent breast development which, on careful palpation, is determined to be adipose tissue. Indicators that the signs of sexual maturation may represent true, central precocious puberty include progressive breast development over a 4- to 6-month period of observation or progressive penis and testicular enlargement, especially if accompanied by rapid linear growth. Children exhibiting these true indicators of early puberty need prompt evaluation by the appropriate pediatric medical subspecialist. Therapy with a gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist may be indicated, as discussed in this report. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  16. Early Microbes Modify Immune System Development and Metabolic Homeostasis—The “Restaurant” Hypothesis Revisited

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nash, Michael J.; Frank, Daniel N.; Friedman, Jacob E.

    2017-01-01

    The developing infant gut microbiome affects metabolism, maturation of the gastrointestinal tract, immune system function, and brain development. Initial seeding of the neonatal microbiota occurs through maternal and environmental contact. Maternal diet, antibiotic use, and cesarean section alter the offspring microbiota composition, at least temporarily. Nutrients are thought to regulate initial perinatal microbial colonization, a paradigm known as the “Restaurant” hypothesis. This hypothesis proposes that early nutritional stresses alter both the initial colonizing bacteria and the development of signaling pathways controlled by microbial mediators. These stresses fine-tune the immune system and metabolic homeostasis in early life, potentially setting the stage for long-term metabolic and immune health. Dysbiosis, an imbalance or a maladaptation in the microbiota, can be caused by several factors including dietary alterations and antibiotics. Dysbiosis can alter biological processes in the gut and in tissues and organs throughout the body. Misregulated development and activity of both the innate and adaptive immune systems, driven by early dysbiosis, could have long-lasting pathologic consequences such as increased autoimmunity, increased adiposity, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This review will focus on factors during pregnancy and the neonatal period that impact a neonate’s gut microbiome, as well as the mechanisms and possible links from early infancy that can drive increased risk for diseases including obesity and NAFLD. The complex pathways that connect diet, the microbiota, immune system development, and metabolism, particularly in early life, present exciting new frontiers for biomedical research. PMID:29326657

  17. Predictors of Early versus Later Spelling Development in Danish

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nielsen, Anne-Mette Veber; Juul, Holger

    2016-01-01

    The present study examined phoneme awareness, phonological short term memory, letter knowledge, rapid automatized naming (RAN), and visual-verbal paired associate learning (PAL) as longitudinal predictors of spelling skills in an early phase (Grade 2) and a later phase (Grade 5) of development in a sample of 140 children learning to spell in the…

  18. Early development and larval behaviour of a minnow, Barbus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The chubbyhead barb, Barbus anoplus, underwent a population explosion in the early phases of filling of Lake be Roux on the Orange River. This successful colonization was possibly related to the survival strategy of the young stages of this minnow. It is suggested that some of the development traits of B. anoplus enabled ...

  19. Model of Early Support of Child Development in Poland

    Science.gov (United States)

    Czyz, Anna Katarzyna

    2018-01-01

    The development of a child, especially a child with a disability, is conditional upon the initiation of rehabilitation measures immediately after the problem has been identified. The quality of the reaction is conditioned by the functioning of the therapeutic team. The main purpose of the research was the diagnosis of early support system for…

  20. E-cadherin promotes incorporation of mouse epiblast stem cells into normal development.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Satoshi Ohtsuka

    Full Text Available Mouse epiblast stem cells (mEpiSCs are pluripotent stem cells derived from epiblasts of postimplantation mouse embryos. Their pluripotency is distinct from that of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs in several cell biological criteria. One of the distinctions is that mEpiSCs contribute either not at all or at much lower efficiency to chimeric embryos after blastocyst injection compared to mESCs. However, here we showed that mEpiSCs can be incorporated into normal development after blastocyst injection by forced expression of the E-cadherin transgene for 2 days in culture. Using this strategy, mEpiSCs gave rise to live-born chimeras from 5% of the manipulated blastocysts. There were no obvious signs of reprogramming of mEpiSCs toward the mESC-like state during the 2 days after induction of the E-cadherin transgene, suggesting that mEpiSCs possess latent ability to integrate into the normal developmental process as its origin, epiblasts.

  1. Early Development of the Gut Microbiota and Immune Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Pilar Francino

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, the increase in human microbiome research brought about by the rapidly evolving “omic” technologies has established that the balance among the microbial groups present in the human gut, and their multipronged interactions with the host, are crucial for health. On the other hand, epidemiological and experimental support has also grown for the ‘early programming hypothesis’, according to which factors that act in utero and early in life program the risks for adverse health outcomes later on. The microbiota of the gut develops during infancy, in close interaction with immune development, and with extensive variability across individuals. It follows that the specific process of gut colonization and the microbe-host interactions established in an individual during this period have the potential to represent main determinants of life-long propensity to immune disease. Although much remains to be learnt on the progression of events by which the gut microbiota becomes established and initiates its intimate relationships with the host, and on the long-term repercussions of this process, recent works have advanced significatively in this direction.

  2. Building the blocks of executive functioning: differentiating early developing processes contributing to executive functioning skills

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mandell, D.J.; Ward, S.E.

    2011-01-01

    The neural processes that underlie executive function begin to develop in infancy. However, it is unclear how the behavior manifested by these processes are related or if they can be differentiated early in development. This study seeks to examine early emerging executive functioning skills in

  3. Developing a methodology for identifying correlations between LERF and early fatality

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kang, Kyung Min; Jae, Moo Sung; Ahn, Kwang Il

    2009-01-01

    The correlations between Large Early Release Frequency (LERF) and Early Fatality need to be investigated for risk-informed application and regulation. In RG-1.174, there are decision-making criteria using the measures of CDF and LERF, while there are no specific criteria on LERF. Since there are both huge uncertainty and large cost need in off-site consequence calculation, a LERF assessment methodology need to be developed and its correlation factor needs to be identified for risk-informed decision-making. This regards, the robust method for estimating off-site consequence has been performed for assessing health effects caused by radioisotopes released from severe accidents of nuclear power plants. And also, MACCS2 code are used for validating source term quantitatively regarding health effects depending on release characteristics of radioisotopes during severe accidents has been performed. This study developed a method for identifying correlations between LERF and Early Fatality and validates the results of the model using MACCS2 code. The results of this study may contribute to defining LERF and finding a measure for risk-informed regulations and risk-informed decision making

  4. Dynamic changes in the interchromosomal interaction of early histone gene loci during development of sea urchin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matsushita, Masaya; Ochiai, Hiroshi; Suzuki, Ken-Ichi T; Hayashi, Sayaka; Yamamoto, Takashi; Awazu, Akinori; Sakamoto, Naoaki

    2017-12-15

    The nuclear positioning and chromatin dynamics of eukaryotic genes are closely related to the regulation of gene expression, but they have not been well examined during early development, which is accompanied by rapid cell cycle progression and dynamic changes in nuclear organization, such as nuclear size and chromatin constitution. In this study, we focused on the early development of the sea urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus and performed three-dimensional fluorescence in situ hybridization of gene loci encoding early histones (one of the types of histone in sea urchin). There are two non-allelic early histone gene loci per sea urchin genome. We found that during the morula stage, when the early histone gene expression levels are at their maximum, interchromosomal interactions were often formed between the early histone gene loci on separate chromosomes and that the gene loci were directed to locate to more interior positions. Furthermore, these interactions were associated with the active transcription of the early histone genes. Thus, such dynamic interchromosomal interactions may contribute to the efficient synthesis of early histone mRNA during the morula stage of sea urchin development. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  5. Deletion of OTX2 in neural ectoderm delays anterior pituitary development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mortensen, Amanda H.; Schade, Vanessa; Lamonerie, Thomas; Camper, Sally A.

    2015-01-01

    OTX2 is a homeodomain transcription factor that is necessary for normal head development in mouse and man. Heterozygosity for loss-of-function alleles causes an incompletely penetrant, haploinsufficiency disorder. Affected individuals exhibit a spectrum of features that range from developmental defects in eye and/or pituitary development to acephaly. To investigate the mechanism underlying the pituitary defects, we used different cre lines to inactivate Otx2 in early head development and in the prospective anterior and posterior lobes. Mice homozygous for Otx2 deficiency in early head development and pituitary oral ectoderm exhibit craniofacial defects and pituitary gland dysmorphology, but normal pituitary cell specification. The morphological defects mimic those observed in humans and mice with OTX2 heterozygous mutations. Mice homozygous for Otx2 deficiency in the pituitary neural ectoderm exhibited altered patterning of gene expression and ablation of FGF signaling. The posterior pituitary lobe and stalk, which normally arise from neural ectoderm, were extremely hypoplastic. Otx2 expression was intact in Rathke's pouch, the precursor to the anterior lobe, but the anterior lobe was hypoplastic. The lack of FGF signaling from the neural ectoderm was sufficient to impair anterior lobe growth, but not the differentiation of hormone-producing cells. This study demonstrates that Otx2 expression in the neural ectoderm is important intrinsically for the development of the posterior lobe and pituitary stalk, and it has significant extrinsic effects on anterior pituitary growth. Otx2 expression early in head development is important for establishing normal craniofacial features including development of the brain, eyes and pituitary gland. PMID:25315894

  6. Girl child marriage as a risk factor for early childhood development and stunting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Efevbera, Yvette; Bhabha, Jacqueline; Farmer, Paul E; Fink, Günther

    2017-07-01

    This paper quantitatively examines the intergenerational effects of girl child marriage, or the developmental and health outcomes of children born to women who marry before age 18. The overall objective is to understand the mechanisms through which girl child marriage affects the health and well-being of children in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as the relative magnitude and impact of these mechanisms. We used data from 37,558 mother-child pairs identified through 16 national and sub-national cross-sectional surveys across sub-Saharan Africa conducted between 2010 and 2014 by the UNICEF Multiple Indicator Clusters Survey program. The Early Childhood Development Index was used to measure child development, and stunting was used to measure health. Using logistic regression, we found that the odds of being off-track for development and being stunted were 25% and 29% higher, respectively, for children born to women who married before age 18 compared to those whose mothers married later (p early childbearing was not the sole pathway through which girl child marriage affected child development and health. Our final models revealed that disparities in advanced maternal education and wealth explained child development and stunting. We conclude that there are intergenerational consequences of girl child marriage on her child's well-being, and that through association with other contextual, socioeconomic, and biological factors, marrying early does matter for child development and health. Our findings resonate with existing literature and point toward important policy considerations for improving early childhood outcomes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. High-normal levels of hs-CRP predict the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver in healthy men.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jieun Lee

    Full Text Available We performed a follow-up study to address whether high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP levels within the normal range can predict the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD in healthy male subjects. Among15347 male workers between 30 and 59 years old who received annual health check-ups in 2002, a NAFLD-free cohort of 4,138 was followed through December 2009. Alcohol consumption was assessed with a questionnaire. At each visit, abdominal ultrasonography was performed to identify fatty liver disease. The COX proportional hazard model was used to evaluate the relationship between hs-CRP and incident NAFLD. During the follow-up period, 28.8% (1191 of 4138 of participants developed NAFLD. The hazard ratios of NAFLD were increased by hs-CRP categories within the normal range in the non-adjusted model and age-adjusted model. After adjusting for age, exercise, smoking, BMI, systolic BP, triglyceride, and fasting glucose, these incidences were only increased between the lowest and the highest hs-CRP categories. The risk for NAFLD increased as the hs-CRP level increased (p< 0.001. As the hs-CRP level increased within the healthy cohort, the risk of developing NAFLD increased. This trend remained true even if the hs-CRP level remained within the normal range. hs-CRP can be used as a predictor of NAFLD, as well as other obesity-associated diseases. Therefore, individuals with higher hs-CRP levels (even within the normal range may require appropriate follow-up and management to prevent NAFLD development.

  8. Psychologically Inspired Sensory-Motor Development in Early Robot Learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M.H. Lee

    2008-11-01

    Full Text Available We present an implementation of a model of very early sensory-motor development, guided by results from developmental psychology. Behavioural acquisition and growth is demonstrated through constraint-lifting mechanisms initiated by global state variables. The results show how staged competence can be shaped by qualitative behaviour changes produced by anatomical, computational and maturational constraints.

  9. Promoting pedagogical content knowledge development for early career secondary teachers in science and technology using content representations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, John; Eames, Chris; Hume, Anne; Lockley, John

    2012-11-01

    Background: This research addressed the key area of early career teacher education and aimed to explore the use of a 'content representation' (CoRe) as a mediational tool to develop early career secondary teacher pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This study was situated in the subject areas of science and technology, where sound teacher knowledge is particularly important to student engagement. Purpose: The study was designed to examine whether such a tool (a CoRe), co-designed by an early career secondary teacher with expert content and pedagogy specialists, can enhance the PCK of early career teachers. The research questions were: How can experts in content and pedagogy work together with early career teachers to develop one science topic CoRe and one technology topic CoRe to support the development of PCK for early career secondary teachers? How does the use of a collaboratively designed CoRe affect the planning of an early career secondary teacher in science or technology? How has engagement in the development and use of an expert-informed CoRe developed an early career teacher's PCK? Sample: The research design incorporated a unique partnership between two expert classroom teachers, two content experts, four early career teachers, and four researchers experienced in science and technology education. Design: This study employed an interpretivist-based methodology and an action research approach within a four-case study design. Data were gathered using qualitative research methods focused on semi-structured interviews, observations and document analysis. Results: The study indicated that CoRes, developed through this collaborative process, helped the early career teachers focus on the big picture of the topic, emphasize particularly relevant areas of content and consider alternative ways of planning for their teaching. Conclusions: This paper presents an analysis of the process of CoRe development by the teacher-expert partnerships and the effect that had on

  10. An investigation into kana reading development in normal and dyslexic Japanese children using length and lexicality effects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sambai, Ami; Uno, Akira; Kurokawa, Suzuko; Haruhara, Noriko; Kaneko, Masato; Awaya, Noriko; Kozuka, Junko; Goto, Takashi; Tsutamori, Eishi; Nakagawa, Kazumi; Wydell, Taeko N

    2012-06-01

    This is the first study to report differences between Japanese children with and without dyslexia in the way string-length and lexicality effects are manifested when reading Japanese kana. These children were asked to read kana words and non-words consisting of either two or five kana characters. The results showed that the error rates of the normal Preschoolers and Primary-School children with dyslexia were higher than those of the normal Primary-School children. Further, the reading latencies of the normal Preschoolers, First-graders and dyslexics were significantly longer than those of the normal Second, Third and Fifth/Sixth graders. Moreover, reading latencies became shorter as the age of the participants increased. Both normal and dyslexic children showed significant effects of length and lexicality on reading latencies. However, the interaction between the length and lexicality was only seen in normal children from the Second-grade onwards. These results suggest that (1) normal First-graders reach a ceiling in terms of reading accuracy and that (2) as Japanese normal children become older, they become better at lexical reading processes, which leads to fluent kana reading, but that (3) the dyslexics, even at Fifth/Sixth grades, have not developed sufficient lexical reading processes. Copyright © 2011 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. All rights reserved.

  11. Henri Wallon's Theory of Early Child Development: The Role of Emotions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van der Veer, Rene

    1996-01-01

    Discusses the stage theory of early child development of French theorist Henri Wallon. Describes Wallon's efforts (in contrast to contemporary Piaget) to describe emotional development and the role emotions play in establishing the child-caregiver bond. Argues that Wallon's theory is unique in its focus, influenced theorists such as Vygotsky, and…

  12. Early molecular events in the development of the diabetic cardiomyopathy.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Monkemann, H.; Vriese, A.S. de; Blom, H.J.; Kluijtmans, L.A.J.; Heil, S.G.; Schild, H.H.; Golubnitschaja, O.

    2002-01-01

    Oxidative damage to DNA has been well documented in cardiac cells isolated from diabetic patients and rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus (DM). This study evaluates possible molecular mechanisms for early events in the development of DM-induced cardiomyopathy. Methods: To analyze the

  13. Early Journals and Their Influences on the Development of Gerontology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mercer, Lorraine; Carter, Lorraine

    2012-01-01

    This examination of early gerontology journals identifies the multidisciplinary backgrounds of contributors, methods of investigation, nascent theory development, and formative themes and controversies. Through use of content, thematic, and critical analyses of second year issues of "The Gerontologist," "Educational Gerontology," "Research on…

  14. Emerging Use of Early Health Technology Assessment in Medical Product Development: A Scoping Review of the Literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    IJzerman, Maarten J; Koffijberg, Hendrik; Fenwick, Elisabeth; Krahn, Murray

    2017-07-01

    Early health technology assessment is increasingly being used to support health economic evidence development during early stages of clinical research. Such early models can be used to inform research and development about the design and management of new medical technologies to mitigate the risks, perceived by industry and the public sector, associated with market access and reimbursement. Over the past 25 years it has been suggested that health economic evaluation in the early stages may benefit the development and diffusion of medical products. Early health technology assessment has been suggested in the context of iterative economic evaluation alongside phase I and II clinical research to inform clinical trial design, market access, and pricing. In addition, performing early health technology assessment was also proposed at an even earlier stage for managing technology portfolios. This scoping review suggests a generally accepted definition of early health technology assessment to be "all methods used to inform industry and other stakeholders about the potential value of new medical products in development, including methods to quantify and manage uncertainty". The present review also aimed to identify recent published empirical studies employing an early-stage assessment of a medical product. With most included studies carried out to support a market launch, the dominant methodology was early health economic modeling. Further methodological development is required, in particular, by combining systems engineering and health economics to manage uncertainty in medical product portfolios.

  15. Localization of DNA methyltransferase-1 during oocyte differentiation, in vitro maturation and early embryonic development in cow

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. M. Luciano

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available DNA methyltransferase-1 (Dnmt1 is involved in the maintenance of DNA methylation patterns and is crucial for normal mammalian development. The aim of the present study was to assess the localization of Dnmt1 in cow, during the latest phases of oocyte differentiation and during the early stages of segmentation. Dnmt1 expression and localization were assessed in oocytes according to the chromatin configuration, which in turn provides an important epigenetic mechanism for the control of global gene expression and represents a morphological marker of oocyte differentiation.We found that the initial chromatin condensation was accompanied by a slight increase in the level of global DNA methylation, as assessed by 5-methyl-cytosine immunostaining followed by laser scanning confocal microscopy analysis (LSCM. RT-PCR confirmed the presence of Dnmt1 transcripts throughout this phase of oocyte differentiation. Analogously, Dnmt1 immunodetection and LSCM indicated that the protein was always present and localized in the cytoplasm, regardless the chromatin configuration and the level of global DNA methylation. Moreover, our data indicate that while Dnmt1 is retained in the cytoplasm in metaphase II stage oocytes and zygotes, it enters the nuclei of 8-16 cell stage embryos. As suggested in mouse, the functional meaning of the presence of Dnmt1 in the bovine embryo nuclei could be the maintainement of the methylation pattern of imprinted genes. In conclusion, the present work provides useful elements for the study of Dnmt1 function during the late stage of oocyte differentiation, maturation and early embryonic development in mammals.

  16. Bilingual instruction in early childhood education, can it better develop children?

    OpenAIRE

    Djahimo Santri E. P.; Indahri Yulia

    2018-01-01

    This is a case study of teaching and learning using bilingual instruction in two schools of Early Childhood Education in Kupang-NTT, Indonesia. The aims of this study are to find out whether or not bilingual instruction in Early Childhood Education can better develop children (the outcomes) and if the issue of ‘the younger, the better” in children’s language acquisition in bilingual setting is acceptable and true. 4 students from one bilingual and one monolingual schools have been observed. I...

  17. Regional early development and eruption of permanent teeth: case report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al Mullahi, A M; Bakathir, A; Al Jahdhami, S

    2017-02-01

    Early development and eruption of permanent teeth are rarely reported in scientific literature. Early eruption of permanent teeth has been reported to occur due to local factors such as trauma or dental abscesses in primary teeth, and in systemic conditions. Congenital diffuse infiltrating facial lipomatosis (CDIFL) is a rare condition that belongs to a group of lipomatosis tumours. In this disorder, the mature adipocytes invade adjacent soft and hard tissues in the facial region. Accelerated tooth eruption is one of the dental anomalies associated with CDIFL. A 3-year-old boy presented with a swelling of the lower lip localised early development and eruption of permanent teeth and dental caries involving many primary teeth. The planned treatment included biopsy of the swollen lower lip to confirm the diagnosis, surgical reduction and reconstruction of lip aesthetics. The management of the carious primary teeth included preventative and comprehensive dental care and extractions. These procedures were completed under general anaesthesia due to the child's young age and poor cooperation. The lip biopsy showed features of CDIFL such as the presence of infiltrating adipose tissue, prominent number of nerve bundles and thickened vessels. The high recurrence rate of CDIFL mandates long-term monitoring during the facial growth period of the child. Follow-up care by the paediatric dentist and maxillofacial surgeon has been required to manage all aspects of this congenital malformation. This rare disorder has many implications affecting child's facial aesthetics, psychological well being, developing occlusion and risk of dental caries. A multi-disciplinary approach is needed for management of this condition.

  18. Post-Colonial Urban Development and Planning in Cyprus: Shifting Visions and Realities of Early Suburbia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Byron Ioannou

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper studies the evolution of early suburban neighbourhoods in the context of the post-colonial urban development and planning. The Planning Report of the colonial Government of Cyprus in 1959 examines the foundations of urban development in Cyprus and at the same time implies a surprisingly sustainable vision for the future of planning. Despite this early intentions and guidance, the urban districts developed far from being sustainable under widely accepted criteria and indicators (participation, effectiveness of planning and development control, sprawl, character and identity, green. The basic hypothesis is that planning has proved insufficient in providing rational urban development. The paper outlines the roots of the planning shortcomings during the last fifty years. British perceptions on planning of the first half of the 20th century influenced the 1959 Report, which affected, in turns, the legislation which followed. It is explained why development constrains and land market restrictions prevented the implementation of rational key ideas, and sustainable visions throughout the years. The paper concludes in attempting to visualize these dynamic processes at the early suburban neighbourhoods and measure distortions on densities, green spaces and layouts by taking an early suburban district as a case study.

  19. The Better Early Childhood Development Program: An Innovative Brazilian Public Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schneider, Alessandra; Ramires, Vera Regina; Paiva, Maria da Graca Gomes; Almeida, Leila

    2009-01-01

    This paper presents the pioneering experience of the Programa Primeira Infancia Melhor (the Better Early Childhood Development Program), also known as "PIM" that has been developed since 2003 in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. PIM's goal is to "provide guidance to families, based on their own culture and experiences, to…

  20. Using titer and titer normalized to confluence are complementary strategies for obtaining Chinese hamster ovary cell lines with high volumetric productivity of etanercept

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pristovšek, Nuša; Hansen, Henning Gram; Sergeeva, Daria

    2018-01-01

    The selection of clonally-derived Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell lines with the highest production rate of recombinant glycoproteins remains a big challenge during early stages of cell line development. Different strategies using either product titer or product titer normalized to cell number...

  1. Early Microbes Modify Immune System Development and Metabolic Homeostasis—The “Restaurant” Hypothesis Revisited

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael J. Nash

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The developing infant gut microbiome affects metabolism, maturation of the gastrointestinal tract, immune system function, and brain development. Initial seeding of the neonatal microbiota occurs through maternal and environmental contact. Maternal diet, antibiotic use, and cesarean section alter the offspring microbiota composition, at least temporarily. Nutrients are thought to regulate initial perinatal microbial colonization, a paradigm known as the “Restaurant” hypothesis. This hypothesis proposes that early nutritional stresses alter both the initial colonizing bacteria and the development of signaling pathways controlled by microbial mediators. These stresses fine-tune the immune system and metabolic homeostasis in early life, potentially setting the stage for long-term metabolic and immune health. Dysbiosis, an imbalance or a maladaptation in the microbiota, can be caused by several factors including dietary alterations and antibiotics. Dysbiosis can alter biological processes in the gut and in tissues and organs throughout the body. Misregulated development and activity of both the innate and adaptive immune systems, driven by early dysbiosis, could have long-lasting pathologic consequences such as increased autoimmunity, increased adiposity, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD. This review will focus on factors during pregnancy and the neonatal period that impact a neonate’s gut microbiome, as well as the mechanisms and possible links from early infancy that can drive increased risk for diseases including obesity and NAFLD. The complex pathways that connect diet, the microbiota, immune system development, and metabolism, particularly in early life, present exciting new frontiers for biomedical research.

  2. Early prediction of post-thyroidectomy hypocalcemia by early parathyroid hormone measurement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yetkin, Gurkan; Citgez, Bulent; Yazici, Pinar; Mihmanli, Mehmet; Sit, Erhan; Uludag, Mehmet

    2016-01-01

    Hypoparathyroidism is the most common complication of total thyroidectomy (TT). Postthyroidectomy hypocalcemia occurs 24 to 48 hours after the operation. It prolongs the length of hospital stay, even though transient in most cases. The aim of this study was to predetermine the patients who may develop postthyroidectomy hypocalcemia by using early postoperative serum intact parathormone (iPTH) and calcium (Ca2+) measurements, and to investigate the effects of early initiated oral calcium and vitamin D treatments on the development of transient hypocalcemia. Patients who underwent TT after initiation of the early iPTH measurement protocol in January 2013 were included into the study group (Group 1, n=202). The control group (Group 2) was composed of 72 patients who underwent TT before the protocol. Prior to the initiation of the protocol, Ca2+ was measured instead of iPTH. In the study group, the serum Ca2+ and iPTH levels were measured before surgery, and 1 and 24-hours after. A calcium level below 8 mg/dL was accepted as biochemical hypocalcaemia, and a iPTH level under 15pg/mL was accepted as hypoparathyroidism. In the study group, patients with below normal iPTH levels were treated with prophylactic oral calcium and vitamin D. In Group 1, 15.8% (n=32) of the patients had hypoparathyroidism on the 1h and 24 h iPTH measurements. There was no statistically difference with regard to PTH levels measured in the postoperative 1st hour and at the 24th hour (p= 0.078). Biochemical hypocalcaemia developed in 16 (7.9%) and 13 (18%) patients in Groups 1 and 2, respectively, 24 hours after thyroidectomy (peffective management of plausible postthyroidectomic hypocalcemia. It yields significantly shorter hospital stay periods. Calcium, Hypoparathyroidism, Postoperative complication, Total thyroidectomy.

  3. A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Early Childhood Professional Development for Providers and Recipients in the United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linder, Sandra M.; Rembert, Kellye; Simpson, Amber; Ramey, M. Deanna

    2016-01-01

    This multi-phase mixed-methods study explores provider and recipient perceptions of the current state of early childhood professional development in a southeastern area of the United States. Professional development for the early childhood workforce has been shown to positively influence the quality of early childhood classrooms. This study…

  4. [Association between time of permanence at early education program (Estancias Infantiles) and developmental level for children in situation of poverty].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rizzoli-Córdoba, Antonio; Vargas-Carrillo, Laura Ibernia; Vásquez-Ríos, Jorge Rodrigo; Reyes-Morales, Hortensia; Villasís-Keever, Miguel Ángel; O'Shea-Cuevas, Gabriel; Aceves-Villagrán, Daniel; Muñoz-Hernández, Onofre; García-Aranda, José Alberto

    Early education program (EEP) was created to support parents with 1 to 3 year olds living in poverty situation in Mexico, and includes education and child daycare for 8h five days per week. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between length of stay in EEP and the level of development in children. Cross sectional, population-based study conducted in two Mexican states. All children aged between 12 to 48 months enrolled in EEP from November 2014 to January 2015 were included. Child Development Evaluation (CDE) test was used to screen early development in every child. Normal early development prevalence odds ratio (OR) was calculated adjusted by gender, impairment and state, using as a reference those children with less than 30 days in the program. The study included 3,387 children from 177 EEP nurseries, from which 53% were male; age by group was divided in 12-24 months (22.3%), 25-36 months (37.6%) and 37-42 months (40.1%). Normal development adjusted OR by age was 1.9 (CI95%: 1.30-2.78) for 6-11 months, 2.36 (CI95%: 1.60-3.50) for 12-17 months, 2.78 (CI95%: 1.65-4.65) for 18-23 months and 3.46 (CI95%: 2.13-5.60) for >24 months. By area of development, a greater probability of having a normal result for language and social areas was observed after 6 months in the program, and for motor (both gross and fine) and knowledge areas after 12 months. The length of the stay in the EEP after 6 months significantly and progressively increases the probability of normal development regardless of gender and age. Copyright © 2017 Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez. Publicado por Masson Doyma México S.A. All rights reserved.

  5. Erotic Love and the Development of Proto-Capitalist Ideology in Early Modern Comedy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Damsen, Silver

    2009-01-01

    My dissertation, "Erotic Love and the Development of Proto-Capitalist Ideology in Early Modern Comedy" demonstrates how increased crown authority, and an expanded market combine with the mixed agency of the romantic comedy daughter to further encourage early modern economic growth. The triumph of rebelling daughter over blocking father has…

  6. Normality in Analytical Psychology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myers, Steve

    2013-01-01

    Although C.G. Jung’s interest in normality wavered throughout his career, it was one of the areas he identified in later life as worthy of further research. He began his career using a definition of normality which would have been the target of Foucault’s criticism, had Foucault chosen to review Jung’s work. However, Jung then evolved his thinking to a standpoint that was more aligned to Foucault’s own. Thereafter, the post Jungian concept of normality has remained relatively undeveloped by comparison with psychoanalysis and mainstream psychology. Jung’s disjecta membra on the subject suggest that, in contemporary analytical psychology, too much focus is placed on the process of individuation to the neglect of applications that consider collective processes. Also, there is potential for useful research and development into the nature of conflict between individuals and societies, and how normal people typically develop in relation to the spectrum between individuation and collectivity. PMID:25379262

  7. Normality in Analytical Psychology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steve Myers

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Although C.G. Jung’s interest in normality wavered throughout his career, it was one of the areas he identified in later life as worthy of further research. He began his career using a definition of normality which would have been the target of Foucault’s criticism, had Foucault chosen to review Jung’s work. However, Jung then evolved his thinking to a standpoint that was more aligned to Foucault’s own. Thereafter, the post Jungian concept of normality has remained relatively undeveloped by comparison with psychoanalysis and mainstream psychology. Jung’s disjecta membra on the subject suggest that, in contemporary analytical psychology, too much focus is placed on the process of individuation to the neglect of applications that consider collective processes. Also, there is potential for useful research and development into the nature of conflict between individuals and societies, and how normal people typically develop in relation to the spectrum between individuation and collectivity.

  8. Early Childhood Development Policy and Programming in India: Critical Issues and Directions for Paradigm Change

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharma, Adarsh; Sen, Rekha Sharma; Gulati, Renu

    2008-01-01

    The critical importance of the early childhood years and the rights perspective to human development has made policy and programming for early childhood development an imperative for every nation. In India, poverty, changing economic and social structures resulting in the breakdown of traditional coping mechanisms and family care systems, and the…

  9. Determinants of early child development in rural Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ribe, Ingeborg G; Svensen, Erling; Lyngmo, Britt A; Mduma, Estomih; Hinderaker, Sven G

    2018-01-01

    It has been estimated that more than 200 million children under the age of five do not reach their full potential in cognitive development. Much of what we know about brain development is based on research from high-income countries. There is limited evidence on the determinants of early child development in low-income countries, especially rural sub-Saharan Africa. The present study aimed to identify the determinants of cognitive development in children living in villages surrounding Haydom, a rural area in north-central Tanzania. This cohort study is part of the MAL-ED (The Interactions of Malnutrition & Enteric Infections: Consequences for Child Health and Development) multi-country consortium studying risk factors for ill health and poor development in children. Descriptive analysis and linear regression analyses were performed. Associations between nutritional status, socio-economic status, and home environment at 6 months of age and cognitive outcomes at 15 months of age were studied. The third edition of the Bayley Scales for Infant and Toddler Development was used to assess cognitive, language and motor development. There were 262 children enrolled into the study, and this present analysis included the 137 children with data for 15-month Bayley scores. Univariate regression analysis, weight-for-age and weight-for-length z-scores at 6 months were significantly associated with 15-month Bayley gross motor score, but not with other 15-month Bayley scores. Length-for-age z-scores at 6 months were not significantly associated with 15-month Bayley scores. The socio-economic status, measured by a set of assets and monthly income was significantly associated with 15-month Bayley cognitive score, but not with language, motor, nor total 15-month Bayley scores. Other socio-economic variables were not significantly associated with 15-month Bayley scores. No significant associations were found between the home environment and 15-month Bayley scores. In multivariate

  10. Fish early life stage: Developing AOPs to support targeted reduction and replacement

    Science.gov (United States)

    There is an interest in developing alternatives to the fish early-life stage (FELS) test (OECD test guideline 210), for predicting adverse chronic toxicity outcomes (e.g., impacts on growth and survival). Development and characterization of adverse outcome pathways (AOPs) related...

  11. A low-angle normal fault and basement structures within the Enping Sag, Pearl River Mouth Basin: Insights into late Mesozoic to early Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the South China Sea area

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ye, Qing; Mei, Lianfu; Shi, Hesheng; Shu, Yu; Camanni, Giovanni; Wu, Jing

    2018-04-01

    The basement structure of the Cenozoic Enping Sag, within the Pearl River Mouth Basin on the northern margin of South China Sea, is revealed by borehole-constrained high-quality 3D seismic reflection data. Such data suggest that the Enping Sag is bounded in the north by a low-angle normal fault. We interpret this low-angle normal fault to have developed as the result of the reactivation of a pre-existing thrust fault part of a pre-Cenozoic thrust system. This is demonstrated by the selective reactivation of the pre-existing thrust and by diffuse contractional deformation recognized from the accurate analysis of basement reflections. Another significant result of this study is the finding of some residual rift basins within the basement of the Enping Sag. Both the thrust system and the residual basins are interpreted to have developed after the emplacement of continental margin arc-related granitoids (J3-K1) that define the basement within the study area. Furthermore, seismic sections show that the pre-existing residual rift basins are offset by the main thrust fault and they are both truncated by the Tg unconformity. These structural relationships, interpreted in the frame of previous studies, help us to reconstruct a six-event structural evolution model for the Enping Sag from the late Mesozoic to the early Cenozoic. In particular, we interpret the residual rift basins to have formed as the result of back-arc extension due to the slab roll-back of the Paleo-Pacific Plate subduction in the early K2. The thrust system has recorded a compressional event in the late K2 that followed the back-arc extension in the SCS area. The mechanism of this compressional event is still to be clarified, and might be related to continuous subduction of the Paleo-Pacific Plate or to the continent-continent collision between a micro-continental block and the South China margin.

  12. Behavioural Development of Early Adolescents by Dint of Positive School Climate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jayalekshmi, N. B.; Dharma Raja, B. William

    2011-01-01

    Early adolescence is the period where the transition from child to adult takes place gradually. A major physical and cognitive change during this period is accompanied by social and emotional development. The growth spurt in this period makes them stronger and plays an important role in developing self identities. The journey through this crucial…

  13. Gene expression profiling in the Cynomolgus macaque Macaca fascicularis shows variation within the normal birth range

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vickers Mark H

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Although an adverse early-life environment has been linked to an increased risk of developing the metabolic syndrome, the molecular mechanisms underlying altered disease susceptibility as well as their relevance to humans are largely unknown. Importantly, emerging evidence suggests that these effects operate within the normal range of birth weights and involve mechanisms of developmental palsticity rather than pathology. Method To explore this further, we utilised a non-human primate model Macaca fascicularis (Cynomolgus macaque which shares with humans the same progressive history of the metabolic syndrome. Using microarray we compared tissues from neonates in the average birth weight (50-75th centile to those of lower birth weight (5-25th centile and studied the effect of different growth trajectories within the normal range on gene expression levels in the umbilical cord, neonatal liver and skeletal muscle. Results We identified 1973 genes which were differentially expressed in the three tissue types between average and low birth weight animals (P Conclusion These differences in gene expression levels between animals in the upper and lower percentiles of the normal birth weight range may point towards early life metabolic adaptations that in later life result in differences in disease risk.

  14. TGF-ß Regulates Cathepsin Activation during Normal and Pathogenic Development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flanagan-Steet, Heather; Christian, Courtney; Lu, Po-Nien; Aarnio-Peterson, Megan; Sanman, Laura; Archer-Hartmann, Stephanie; Azadi, Parastoo; Bogyo, Matthew; Steet, Richard A

    2018-03-13

    Cysteine cathepsins play roles during development and disease beyond their function in lysosomal protein turnover. Here, we leverage a fluorescent activity-based probe (ABP), BMV109, to track cysteine cathepsins in normal and diseased zebrafish embryos. Using this probe in a model of mucolipidosis II, we show that loss of carbohydrate-dependent lysosomal sorting alters the activity of several cathepsin proteases. The data support a pathogenic mechanism where TGF-ß signals enhance the proteolytic processing of pro-Ctsk by modulating the expression of chondroitin 4-sulfate (C4-S). In MLII, elevated C4-S corresponds with TGF-ß-mediated increases in chst11 expression. Inhibiting chst11 impairs the proteolytic activation of Ctsk and alleviates the MLII phenotypes. These findings uncover a regulatory loop between TGF-ß signaling and Ctsk activation that is altered in the context of lysosomal disease. This work highlights the power of ABPs to identify mechanisms underlying pathogenic development in living animals. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. [Early childhood development and risk factors in rural China: a cohort study].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cui, Y; Gao, J Q; Yue, A; Tang, L; Luo, R F; Scott, Rozelle

    2018-02-02

    Objective: To investigate the development status and risk factors of infants and toddlers in rural China. Methods: In this cohort study, 603 infants (6-12 months of age, Phase Ⅰ) in the rural areas of QinLing-Bashan (Qin-Ba) in Shaanxi were recruited in the control group that received no intervention from April 2013 to October 2015. Three follow-up visits were performed every six months (Phase Ⅱ(12-18 months of age), Phase Ⅲ (18-24 months of age) and Phase Ⅳ(24-30 months of age)). In all the 4 phases (Ⅰ-Ⅳ), general data of the children and the families were collected by questionnaires, early childhood growth and development were assessed by door to door visits, children's hemoglobin levels were determined by laboratory tests, and the cognitive and motor development screening was conducted by the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development. Logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors affecting the development of infants and toddlers in rural areas and the data were analyzed in terms of risk factors from infants, guardians and family. Results: Phase Ⅱ, Phase Ⅲ and Phase Ⅳ survey recruited 497, 483 and 486 participants respectively. The incidences of cognitive impairment (mental development scoresdevelopment scoresdevelopment of 24-30-month-old children was the mothers' poor education background (≤9 years of school education) ( OR= 2.56, Pdevelopment were the mothers' poor education background (≤9 years of school education) ( OR= 2.64, Pgrowth retardation ( OR= 2.95, P= 0.07). Conclusions: The early childhood development (especially cognitive development) in the rural areas of Qin-Ba in Shaanxi of China is not optimistic. More attention should be paid to the early childhood development in rural China, especially to the development of children from the mothers with poor education background.

  16. Transcriptomic profiling of bovine IVF embryos revealed candidate genes and pathways involved in early embryonic development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yandell Brian S

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Early embryonic loss is a large contributor to infertility in cattle. Although genetic factors are known to affect early embryonic development, the discovery of such factors has been a serious challenge. The objective of this study was to identify genes differentially expressed between blastocysts and degenerative embryos at early stages of development. Results Using microarrays, genome-wide RNA expression was profiled and compared for in vitro fertilization (IVF - derived blastocysts and embryos undergoing degenerative development up to the same time point. Surprisingly similar transcriptomic profiles were found in degenerative embryos and blastocysts. Nonetheless, we identified 67 transcripts that significantly differed between these two groups of embryos at a 15% false discovery rate, including 33 transcripts showing at least a two-fold difference. Several signaling and metabolic pathways were found to be associated with the developmental status of embryos, among which were previously known important steroid biosynthesis and cell communication pathways in early embryonic development. Conclusions This study presents the first direct and comprehensive comparison of transcriptomes between IVF blastocysts and degenerative embryos, providing important information for potential genes and pathways associated with early embryonic development.

  17. Ovarian activity and early embryonic development in the rusty bat ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The reproductive pattern of the female rusty bat, Pipistrellus rusticus, was investigated by means of a histological examination of the ovarian follicles as well as early embryonic development. Bats were collected from two localities in Limpopo Province. Female rusty bats are seasonal monestrous breeders, initiating ...

  18. Fathers' sensitive parenting and the development of early executive functioning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Towe-Goodman, Nissa R; Willoughby, Michael; Blair, Clancy; Gustafsson, Hanna C; Mills-Koonce, W Roger; Cox, Martha J

    2014-12-01

    Using data from a diverse sample of 620 families residing in rural, predominately low-income communities, this study examined longitudinal links between fathers' sensitive parenting in infancy and toddlerhood and children's early executive functioning, as well as the contribution of maternal sensitive parenting. After accounting for the quality of concurrent and prior parental care, children's early cognitive ability, and other child and family factors, fathers' and mothers' sensitive and supportive parenting during play at 24 months predicted children's executive functioning at 3 years of age. In contrast, paternal parenting quality during play at 7 months did not make an independent contribution above that of maternal care, but the links between maternal sensitive and supportive parenting and executive functioning seemed to operate in similar ways during infancy and toddlerhood. These findings add to prior work on early experience and children's executive functioning, suggesting that both fathers and mothers play a distinct and complementary role in the development of these self-regulatory skills.

  19. Fathers’ Sensitive Parenting and the Development of Early Executive Functioning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Towe-Goodman, Nissa R.; Willoughby, Michael; Blair, Clancy; Gustafsson, Hanna C.; Mills-Koonce, W. Roger; Cox, Martha J.

    2014-01-01

    Using data from a diverse sample of 620 families residing in rural, predominately low-income communities, this study examined longitudinal links between fathers’ sensitive parenting in infancy and toddlerhood and children’s early executive functioning, as well as the contribution of maternal sensitive parenting. After accounting for the quality of concurrent and prior parental care, children’s early cognitive ability, and other child and family factors, fathers’ and mothers’ sensitive and supportive parenting during play at 24-months predicted children’s executive functioning at 3-years of age. In contrast, paternal parenting quality during play at 7-months did not make an independent contribution above that of maternal care, but the links between maternal sensitive and supportive parenting and executive functioning seemed to operate in similar ways during infancy and toddlerhood. These findings add to prior work on early experience and children’s executive functioning, suggesting that both fathers and mothers play a distinct and complementary role in the development of these self-regulatory skills. PMID:25347539

  20. Effects of experimental suppression of active (REM) sleep during early development upon adult brain and behavior in the rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mirmiran, M; Scholtens, J; van de Poll, N E; Uylings, H B; van der Gugten, J; Boer, G J

    1983-04-01

    In order to test the hypothesis that active sleep (AS) is important for the normal development of the central nervous system, 3 different deprivation methods were applied to male Wistar rat pups during the first month of life. Daily injection of clomipramine from 8 to 21 days of age reduced the high level of AS to less than the adult value throughout most of the experimental period. Administration of clonidine from 8 to 21 days of life induced an almost total suppression of AS. Instrumental deprivation, using the 'pendulum' method, led to a significant (but less severe) AS reduction during 2-4 weeks of postnatal age. Open-field behavior testing in adulthood revealed a higher than normal level of ambulation in all 3 experimental groups. Masculine sexual responses were deficient, due to a low level of both mounts and ejaculations, in both clomipramine- and clonidine-treated animals. Neither passive avoidance learning nor dark preference tests revealed any differences between the experimental and control rats. Sleep observations showed that there was an abnormally high incidence of large myoclonic jerks during AS in both clomipramine- and clonidine-treated rats. Subsequent measurement of regional brain weights showed a significant reduction in the cerebral cortex and medulla oblongata, as compared with the respective control groups, in both the clomipramine- and the clonidine-treated rats. In addition, DNA and protein determination in the affected brain areas showed a proportional reduction in the cortex and in the medulla. These results demonstrate that interference with normal functioning either of AS per se or of specific monoaminergic transmitter systems during early development can produce long-lasting behavioral as well as brain morphological and biochemical abnormalities in later life.

  1. Re-Thinking ‘Normal’ Development in the Early Learning of Number

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alf Coles

    2018-06-01

    Full Text Available In this article we suggest that, notwithstanding noted differences, one unmarked similarity across psychology and mathematics education is the continued dominance of the view that there is a ‘normal’ path of development. We focus particularly on the case of the early learning of number and point to evidence that puts into question the dominant narrative of how number sense develops through the concrete and the cardinal. Recent neuroscience findings have raised the potential significance of ordinal approaches to learning number, which in privileging the symbolic—and hence the abstract—reverse one aspect of the ‘normal’ development order. We draw on empirical evidence to suggest that what children can do, and in what order, is sensitive to, among other things, the curriculum approach—and also the tools they have at their disposition. We draw out implications from our work for curriculum organisation in the early years of schooling, to disrupt taken-for-granted paths.

  2. Early Years Educators' Perceptions of Professional Development in England: An Exploratory Study of Policy and Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ingleby, Ewan

    2018-01-01

    This article explores the perceptions of professional development held by a selection of early years educators who have experience of working in statutory and private early years settings in the north of England. The research participants (n = 20) reflected on their experiences of professional development in early years. The research process is…

  3. A neonate with intestinal volvulus without malrotation exhibiting early jaundice with a suspected fetal onset.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hara, Kaori; Kinoshita, Mari; Kin, Takane; Arimitsu, Takeshi; Matsuzaki, Yohei; Ikeda, Kazushige; Tomita, Hiroshi; Fujino, Akihiro; Kuroda, Tatsuo

    2015-01-01

    Intestinal volvulus without malrotation is a rare disease that causes volvulus of the small intestine despite normal intestinal rotation and fixation. We encountered a neonate with this disease who developed early jaundice and was suspected to have a fetal onset. This patient was characterized by early jaundice complicating intestinal volvulus without malrotation and is considered to have exhibited reduced fetal movement and early jaundice as a result of volvulus, necrosis, and hemorrhage of the small intestine in the fetal period. If abdominal distention accompanied by early jaundice is noted in a neonate, intestinal volvulus without malrotation and associated intraabdominal hemorrhage should be suspected and promptly treated.

  4. The emergence and early development of prosocial behavior: universalities and cultural specifications

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Song, Y.; Dubas, J.J.S.; Broekhuizen, M.L.

    2015-01-01

    Despite a long standing interest in the early development of prosocial behaviors, there is still considerable controversy about their origins and development. While some researchers propose that humans are born with a fundamental motivation to help, share and comfort others (nature), some

  5. Early Childhood Education, Child Development and School Readiness: Evidence from Zambia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephanie Simmons Zuilkowski

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available While early childhood education has received increasing attention in the developing world in recent years, relatively little evidence is available from sub-Saharan Africa on its effects on child development and subsequent school enrolment. We use a prospective case-control design to evaluate the developmental impact of a community-based early childhood center in an urban area in Zambia. Comparing 40 children attending the center to 40 children not attending the center from the same community, we find that center attendance was associated with significantly better performance in an assessment of task orientation, and was also weakly associated with increased letter familiarity. We also observed higher performance among center students on tests of receptive language and pencil-related fine motor skills. These associations were, however, smaller and not statistically significant. We conducted a follow-up one year after the initial assessment, when children were seven years old and should have been in first grade. At follow-up, 27% of non-attendees were not yet enrolled in primary school, compared to just 11% of center students, suggesting that participation in early education encourages a timely transition into first grade.

  6. Development of children’s early understanding of numeric structure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vasilyeva, Marina

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Understanding of the base-10 structure of multi-digit numbers is one of the critical aspects in early mathematics learning. It has been documented that children from different countries vary in their use of base-10 representations. Questions concerning potential sources of this variability have been debated for decades. One commonly posited explanation is that some languages provide explicit cues about the structure of multi-digit numbers, facilitating the development of base-10 representations. In the present study, we tested this view against an alternative view, positing that variability in children’s learning of numeric structure may reflect differences in their experiences with numbers. The study examined kindergartners and first-graders from four countries: Taiwan, South Korea, the USA, and Russia. Results showed that the use of base-10 representations by American first-graders increased dramatically over the last decades, following changes in curricular guidelines. First-graders across the four countries showed some differences in performance (however, not consistent with the language account, whereas kindergartners performed comparably despite the differences in their languages. The results suggest that the nature of early math instruction may be critical for children’s developing understanding of numeric structure.

  7. Early Gesture Provides a Helping Hand to Spoken Vocabulary Development for Children with Autism, Down Syndrome, and Typical Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Özçaliskan, Seyda; Adamson, Lauren B.; Dimitrova, Nevena; Baumann, Stephanie

    2017-01-01

    Typically developing (TD) children refer to objects uniquely in gesture (e.g., point at a cat) before they produce verbal labels for these objects ("cat"). The onset of such gestures predicts the onset of similar spoken words, showing a strong positive relation between early gestures and early words. We asked whether gesture plays the…

  8. Dyslipoproteinemia in Gestosis in Early Puerperium

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. N. Shcherbakova

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective: to study the blood atherogenic potential in women with gestosis in early puerperium to assess a risk of cardiovascular diseases. Subjects and methods: The concentrations of triglycerides, total cholesterol, and cholesterols of high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, and very low-density lipoprotein were measured in 32 patients aged 25—30 years in early puerperium. The data of examining women with gestoses (Group 3 were compared with the results of examining those after physiological pregnancy delivered both during vaginal delivery (Group 1 and via cesarean section (Group 2. Results and discussion. The puerperas with gestosis had significant hypertriglyceridemia and hyperbetacholesterolemia throughout the follow-up. There were no significant abnormal concentrations of low-density lipoproteins. In gestosis and after cesarean section, there was an almost double fall in the blood concentration of high-density lipoproteins to the level that assigned these patients to a group at risk for cardiovascular diseases. In these patients, the cholesterol atherogenicity coefficient was drastically increased. A moderate increase in the blood atherogenic potential in early puerperium was noted both during normal pregnancy and at normal labor. Conclusion. Concomitance of hypertriglyceridemia and hyperprebetacholesrerolemia with the low concentration of high-density lipoproteins suggests that after prior gestosis, cardiovascular complications may develop, presenting a high death risk. It is concluded that it is necessary to monitor the blood lipoprotein spectrum during gestation and puerperium and atherogenic dyslipoproteinemia can be corrected in case of its detection. Key words: gestosis, puerperium, dyslipoproteinemia, hypertriglyceridemia, hyperprebetacholesterolemia.

  9. Differentiating cancerous from normal breast tissue by redox imaging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, He N.; Tchou, Julia; Feng, Min; Zhao, Huaqing; Li, Lin Z.

    2015-02-01

    Abnormal metabolism can be a hallmark of cancer occurring early before detectable histological changes and may serve as an early detection biomarker. The current gold standard to establish breast cancer (BC) diagnosis is histological examination of biopsy. Previously we have found that pre-cancer and cancer tissues in animal models displayed abnormal mitochondrial redox state. Our technique of quantitatively measuring the mitochondrial redox state has the potential to be implemented as an early detection tool for cancer and may provide prognostic value. We therefore in this present study, investigated the feasibility of quantifying the redox state of tumor samples from 16 BC patients. Tumor tissue aliquots were collected from both normal and cancerous tissue from the affected cancer-bearing breasts of 16 female patients (5 TNBC, 9 ER+, 2 ER+/Her2+) shortly after surgical resection. All specimens were snap-frozen with liquid nitrogen on site and scanned later with the Chance redox scanner, i.e., the 3D cryogenic NADH/oxidized flavoprotein (Fp) fluorescence imager. Our preliminary results showed that both NADH and Fp (including FAD, i.e., flavin adenine dinucleotide) signals in the cancerous tissues roughly tripled to quadrupled those in the normal tissues (pcancerous tissues than in the normal ones (pcancer and non-cancer breast tissues in human patients and this novel redox scanning procedure may assist in tissue diagnosis in freshly procured biopsy samples prior to tissue fixation. We are in the process of evaluating the prognostic value of the redox imaging indices for BC.

  10. Effects of early thyroxine treatment on development and growth at age 10.7 years: follow-up of a randomized placebo-controlled trial in children with Down's syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marchal, Jan Pieter; Maurice-Stam, Heleen; Ikelaar, Nadine A; Klouwer, Femke C C; Verhorstert, Kim W J; Witteveen, M Emma; Houtzager, Bregje A; Grootenhuis, Martha A; van Trotsenburg, A S Paul

    2014-12-01

    In 2-year-old children with Down's syndrome (DS), early T4 treatment was found to result in slightly better motor development and growth. This study sought to determine long-term effects of early T4 treatment on development and growth in children with DS with either an elevated or normal neonatal TSH concentration. Patients received a single follow-up visit 8.7 years after a randomized placebo-controlled trial (RCT) comparing T4 and placebo treatment during the first 2 years of life. Dutch Academic Hospital. All children who completed the RCT (N = 181, of 196 randomly assigned children) were invited for the follow-up study. A total of 123 participants enrolled, at a mean age of 10.7 years. T4 or placebo treatment from the neonatal period until 2 years. Primary: mental and motor development. Secondary: communication skills, fine-motor coordination, height, weight, and head circumference (HC). Outcomes were compared between T4- and placebo-treated children, and between treatment groups with either a normal (development, communication skills, or fine-motor coordination did not differ between T4- (N = 64) and placebo-treated children (N = 59). T4-treated children had a larger HC (50.4 vs 49.8 cm, P = .04) and tended to be taller (133.2 vs 131.1 cm, P = .06). These differences were somewhat greater in children with TSH ≥ 5 mIU/L (HC: T4, 50.5 vs placebo, 49.7 cm; P = .01; height: T4, 133.8 vs placebo, 130.8 cm; P = .02), but were not found in children with TSH children with DS does not seem to benefit mental or motor development later in life. However, the positive effect on growth is still measurable, especially in children with an elevated plasma TSH concentration in the neonatal period.

  11. Rethinking Early Learning and Development Standards in the Ugandan Context

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ejuu, Godfrey

    2013-01-01

    Concerns that the African child is being tailored to be a "global child," alongside other homogenizing and dominating projections, such as early learning and development standards (ELDS), have increased. African communities need to be assured that global standards and global indicators will not further homogenize nations and thereby risk…

  12. Early Implementation of QbD in Biopharmaceutical Development: A Practical Example

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jesús Zurdo

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available In drug development, the “onus” of the low R&D efficiency has been put traditionally onto the drug discovery process (i.e., finding the right target or “binding” functionality. Here, we show that manufacturing is not only a central component of product success, but also that, by integrating manufacturing and discovery activities in a “holistic” interpretation of QbD methodologies, we could expect to increase the efficiency of the drug discovery process as a whole. In this new context, early risk assessment, using developability methodologies and computational methods in particular, can assist in reducing risks during development in a cost-effective way. We define specific areas of risk and how they can impact product quality in a broad sense, including essential aspects such as product efficacy and patient safety. Emerging industry practices around developability are introduced, including some specific examples of applications to biotherapeutics. Furthermore, we suggest some potential workflows to illustrate how developability strategies can be introduced in practical terms during early drug development in order to mitigate risks, reduce drug attrition and ultimately increase the robustness of the biopharmaceutical supply chain. Finally, we also discuss how the implementation of such methodologies could accelerate the access of new therapeutic treatments to patients in the clinic.

  13. Raised international normalized ratio: an early warning for a late cardiac tamponade?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Shah, Ammad; van den Brink, Albert; de Mol, Bas

    2006-01-01

    Seven consecutive cases of late cardiac tamponade after valvular surgery are reported; all were postoperatively treated with acenocoumarol and 6 had an international normalized ratio peak greater than 6.0 within 3 days preceding tamponade. It is suggested that during this excessive anticoagulation

  14. Validation of Candidate Serum Ovarian Cancer Biomarkers for Early Detection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Feng Su

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective: We have previously analyzed protein profi les using Surface Enhanced Laser Desorption and Ionization Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectroscopy (SELDI-TOF-MS [Kozak et al. 2003, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 100:12343–8] and identified 3 differentially expressed serum proteins for the diagnosis of ovarian cancer (OC [Kozak et al. 2005, Proteomics, 5:4589–96], namely, apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I, transthyretin (TTR and transferin (TF. The objective of the present study is to determine the efficacy of the three OC biomarkers for the detection of early stage (ES OC, in direct comparison to CA125.Methods: The levels of CA125, apoA-I, TTR and TF were measured in 392 serum samples [82 women with normal ovaries (N, 24 women with benign ovarian tumors (B, 85 women with ovarian tumors of low malignant potential (LMP, 126 women with early stage ovarian cancer (ESOC, and 75 women with late stage ovarian cancer (LSOC], obtained through the GOG and Cooperative Human Tissue Network. Following statistical analysis, multivariate regression models were built to evaluate the utility of the three OC markers in early detection.Results: Multiple logistic regression models (MLRM utilizing all biomarker values (CA125, TTR, TF and apoA-I from all histological subtypes (serous, mucinous, and endometrioid adenocarcinoma distinguished normal samples from LMP with 91% sensitivity (specifi city 92%, and normal samples from ESOC with a sensitivity of 89% (specifi city 92%. MLRM, utilizing values of all four markers from only the mucinous histological subtype showed that collectively, CA125, TTR, TF and apoA-I, were able to distinguish normal samples from mucinous LMP with 90% sensitivity, and further distinguished normal samples from early stage mucinous ovarian cancer with a sensitivity of 95%. In contrast, in serum samples from patients with mucinous tumors, CA125 alone was able to distinguish normal samples from LMP and early stage ovarian cancer with a sensitivity of

  15. Early influences on the development of children’s eating behavior

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leann Birch

    2014-07-01

    Currently, there is little evidence-based guidance available for parents and caregivers on how to foster the acquisition of flavor preferences in infancy and early childhood that would promote intake of foods that are not sweet or salty, including vegetables and other key components of healthy diets. The absence of dietary guidelines for children under 24 months, a key developmental period of dietary transition, is largely due to the limited evidence base on nutrient needs and appropriate feeding practices. Fortunately, a new initiative “The B-24 Project”, sponsored jointly by DHHS and ARS, has the goal of including the period from birth to 24 months in the 2020 Dietary Guidelines. A first step has been to identify existing evidence and areas where evidence is needed to inform guidelines for infants and young children [7]. In addition, a recent IOM publication, Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Policies, includes information on feeding infants, toddlers and preschoolers, but is targeted primarily to healthcare and childcare providers [8]. We are currently missing opportunities to promote healthy diets in early life. The existing research on early learning of food and flavor preferences can be used to inform the development of evidence-based interventions to promote healthier diets during the first years of life.

  16. Republic of Kiribati Early Childhood Development : SABER and NSA-ECD Country Report 2014

    OpenAIRE

    World Bank Group

    2014-01-01

    This report presents an analysis of the Early Childhood Development (ECD) subsector, including programs and policies that affect young children in the Republic of Kiribati. This was a collaborative effort between UNICEF and the World Bank Group; it combines the World Bank Group’s Systems Approach for Better Education Results SABER-ECD framework, which includes analysis of early learningan...

  17. SPECTROSCOPIC OBSERVATIONS OF SN 2012fr: A LUMINOUS, NORMAL TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA WITH EARLY HIGH-VELOCITY FEATURES AND A LATE VELOCITY PLATEAU

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Childress, M. J.; Scalzo, R. A.; Sim, S. A.; Tucker, B. E.; Yuan, F.; Schmidt, B. P.; Cenko, S. B.; Filippenko, A. V.; Silverman, J. M.; Contreras, C.; Hsiao, E. Y.; Phillips, M.; Morrell, N.; Jha, S. W.; McCully, C.; Anderson, J. P.; De Jaeger, T.; Forster, F.; Benetti, S.; Bufano, F.

    2013-01-01

    We present 65 optical spectra of the Type Ia SN 2012fr, 33 of which were obtained before maximum light. At early times, SN 2012fr shows clear evidence of a high-velocity feature (HVF) in the Si II λ6355 line that can be cleanly decoupled from the lower velocity ''photospheric'' component. This Si II λ6355 HVF fades by phase –5; subsequently, the photospheric component exhibits a very narrow velocity width and remains at a nearly constant velocity of ∼12,000 km s –1 until at least five weeks after maximum brightness. The Ca II infrared triplet exhibits similar evidence for both a photospheric component at v ≈ 12,000 km s –1 with narrow line width and long velocity plateau, as well as an HVF beginning at v ≈ 31,000 km s –1 two weeks before maximum. SN 2012fr resides on the border between the ''shallow silicon'' and ''core-normal'' subclasses in the Branch et al. classification scheme, and on the border between normal and high-velocity Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) in the Wang et al. system. Though it is a clear member of the ''low velocity gradient'' group of SNe Ia and exhibits a very slow light-curve decline, it shows key dissimilarities with the overluminous SN 1991T or SN 1999aa subclasses of SNe Ia. SN 2012fr represents a well-observed SN Ia at the luminous end of the normal SN Ia distribution and a key transitional event between nominal spectroscopic subclasses of SNe Ia.

  18. Acquired auditory agnosia in childhood and normal sleep electroencephalography subsequently diagnosed as Landau-Kleffner syndrome: a report of three cases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Bogaert, Patrick; King, Mary D; Paquier, Philippe; Wetzburger, Catherine; Labasse, Catherine; Dubru, Jean-Marie; Deonna, Thierry

    2013-06-01

      We report three cases of Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS) in children (two females, one male) in whom diagnosis was delayed because the sleep electroencephalography (EEG) was initially normal.   Case histories including EEG, positron emission tomography findings, and long-term outcome were reviewed.   Auditory agnosia occurred between the age of 2 years and 3 years 6 months, after a period of normal language development. Initial awake and sleep EEG, recorded weeks to months after the onset of language regression, during a nap period in two cases and during a full night of sleep in the third case, was normal. Repeat EEG between 2 months and 2 years later showed epileptiform discharges during wakefulness and strongly activated by sleep, with a pattern of continuous spike-waves during slow-wave sleep in two patients. Patients were diagnosed with LKS and treated with various antiepileptic regimens, including corticosteroids. One patient in whom EEG became normal on hydrocortisone is making significant recovery. The other two patients did not exhibit a sustained response to treatment and remained severely impaired.   Sleep EEG may be normal in the early phase of acquired auditory agnosia. EEG should be repeated frequently in individuals in whom a firm clinical diagnosis is made to facilitate early treatment. © The Authors. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology © 2012 Mac Keith Press.

  19. Starting Smart: How Early Experiences Affect Brain Development. Second Edition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hawley, Theresa

    Based on recent research, it is now believed that brain growth is highly dependent upon children's early experiences. Neurons allow communication and coordinated functioning among various brain areas. Brain development after birth consists of an ongoing process of wiring and rewiring the connections among neurons. The forming and breaking of…

  20. Early assessment of medical devices in development for company decision making : An exploration of best practices

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Markiewicz, Katarzyna; Van Til, Janine; IJzerman, Maarten

    2017-01-01

    To improve successful development and clinical use of medical technologies, it is suggested that manufacturers should start collecting evidence on devices effectiveness and eficiency early in their development. The aim of this study was to explore whether and how Dutch manufacturers perform an early

  1. Modeling and managing risk early in software development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Briand, Lionel C.; Thomas, William M.; Hetmanski, Christopher J.

    1993-01-01

    In order to improve the quality of the software development process, we need to be able to build empirical multivariate models based on data collectable early in the software process. These models need to be both useful for prediction and easy to interpret, so that remedial actions may be taken in order to control and optimize the development process. We present an automated modeling technique which can be used as an alternative to regression techniques. We show how it can be used to facilitate the identification and aid the interpretation of the significant trends which characterize 'high risk' components in several Ada systems. Finally, we evaluate the effectiveness of our technique based on a comparison with logistic regression based models.

  2. Functional magnetic resonance imaging of the normal and abnormal visual system in early life

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Born, A.P.; Miranda Gimenez-Ricco, Maria Jo; Rostrup, Egill

    2000-01-01

    in very young infants and in infants with brain damage. We examined 15 preterm infants, 12 children suspected of having a cerebral visual impairment and 10 children with a normal visual system, all of whom were either spontaneously asleep or sedated with chloral hydrate. Cortical response to stroboscopic...... showed a signal decrease. The activated cortical volumes showed a linear relation to age for healthy children younger than 90 weeks PMA, but were small in children with visual impairment. In two children with unilateral damage to the optic radiations, activation was strongly asymmetrical with greatest......Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in young children may provide information about the development of the visual cortex, and may have predictive value for later visual performance. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of fMRI for examining cerebral processing of vision...

  3. Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-III profile in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease: performance in subtests sensitive to and resistant to normal decline with ageing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matsuda, Osamu; Saito, Masahiko; Kato, Mayumi; Azami, Hiroki; Shido, Emi

    2015-03-01

    This study examined the significance of age-related subtest scores from the Japanese version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-III in patients in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The subjects of this study included 58 elderly Japanese persons classified into two groups: AD group (n = 29) and control group (n = 29). These groups did not differ in age, years of education, gender ratio, Hasegawa's Dementia Scale-Revised score, or Full-Scale IQ score. No subject scored below the cut-off point on Hasegawa's Dementia Scale-Revised, a frequently used dementia screen test in Japan. At the index score level, General Ability Index scores were the only scores that differed significantly between the groups, with the AD group scoring significantly lower than the control group (P Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-III profile of very early AD may be characterized by weak performance on subtests normally resistant to decline with ageing. © 2014 The Authors. Psychogeriatrics © 2014 Japanese Psychogeriatric Society.

  4. Early short-term management of control-actuator failures in a linear dynamic system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ben-Haim, Y.

    1989-01-01

    Early short-term management of malfunction attempts to maintain system stability during the early development stages of a failure. This is achieved in two stages. First, the failure is partially diagnosed by comparing observed system behavior against the performance expected for each of the selected set of hypothesized malfunctions. Second, the normal controller is replaced by a compensatory controller whose aim is to maintain system stability while compensating for the failure. Malfunctions involving control actuators are studied here. The aim of this study is to develop a technique for choosing the set of hypothesized failures and compensatory controllers which assure that the state of the system remains within specified bounds for a given duration after initiation of failure, regardless of the precise temporal development of the failure

  5. How the early sporulation sigma factor sigmaF delays the switch to late development in Bacillus subtilis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karmazyn-Campelli, Céline; Rhayat, Lamya; Carballido-López, Rut; Duperrier, Sandra; Frandsen, Niels; Stragier, Patrick

    2008-03-01

    Sporulation in Bacillus subtilis is a primitive differentiation process involving two cell types, the forespore and the mother cell. Each cell implements two successive transcription programmes controlled by specific sigma factors. We report that activity of sigma(G), the late forespore sigma factor, is kept in check by Gin, the product of csfB, a gene controlled by sigma(F), the early forespore sigma factor. Gin abolishes sigma(G) transcriptional activity when sigma(G) is artificially synthesized during growth, but has no effect on sigma(F). Gin interacts strongly with sigma(G) but not with sigma(F) in a yeast two-hybrid experiment. The absence of Gin allows sigma(G) to be active during sporulation independently of the mother-cell development to which it is normally coupled. Premature sigma(G) activity leads to the formation of slow-germinating spores, and complete deregulation of sigma(G) synthesis is lethal when combined with gin inactivation. Gin allows sigma(F) to delay the switch to the late forespore transcription programme by preventing sigma(G) to take over before the cell has reached a critical stage of development. A similar strategy, following a completely unrelated route, is used by the mother cell.

  6. The zinc finger transcription factor 191 is required for early embryonic development and cell proliferation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li Jianzhong; Chen Xia; Yang Hua; Wang Shuiliang; Guo Baoyu; Yu Long; Wang Zhugang; Fu Jiliang

    2006-01-01

    Human zinc finger protein 191 (ZNF191/ZNF24) was cloned and characterized as a SCAN family member, which shows 94% identity to its mouse homologue zinc finger protein 191 (Zfp191). ZNF191 can specifically interact with an intronic polymorphic TCAT repeat (HUMTH01) in the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) gene. Allelic variations of HUMTH01 have been stated to have a quantitative silencing effect on TH gene expression and to correlate with quantitative and qualitative changes in the binding by ZNF191. Zfp191 is widely expressed during embryonic development and in multiple tissues and organs in adult. To investigate the functions of Zfp191 in vivo, we have used homologous recombination to generate mice that are deficient in Zfp191. Heterozygous Zfp191 +/- mice are normal and fertile. Homozygous Zfp191 -/- embryos are severely retarded in development and die at approximately 7.5 days post-fertilization. Unexpectedly, in Zfp191 -/- and Zfp191 +/- embryos, TH gene expression is not affected. Blastocyst outgrowth experiments and the RNA interference-mediated knockdown of ZNF191 in cultured cells revealed an essential role for Zfp191 in cell proliferation. In further agreement with this function, no viable Zfp191 -/- cell lines were obtained by derivation of embryonic stem (ES) cells from blastocysts of Zfp191 +/- intercrosses or by forced homogenotization of heterozygous ES cells at high concentrations of G418. These data show that Zfp191 is indispensable for early embryonic development and cell proliferation

  7. Changes in Neurotransmitter Profiles during Early Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Development and after Pesticide Exposure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tufi, Sara; Leonards, Pim; Lamoree, Marja; de Boer, Jacob; Legler, Juliette; Legradi, Jessica

    2016-03-15

    During early development, neurotransmitters are important stimulants for the development of the central nervous system. Although the development of different neuronal cell types during early zebrafish (Danio rerio) development is well-studied, little is known of the levels of neurotransmitters, their precursors and metabolites during development, and how these levels are affected by exposure to environmental contaminants. A method based on hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry has been applied for the first time to zebrafish embryos and larvae to study five neurotransmitter systems in parallel, including the dopaminergic-andrenergic, glutaminergic-GABAnergic, serotoninergic, histaminergic, and cholinergic systems. Our method enables the quantification of neurotransmitters and their precursors and metabolites in whole zebrafish from the period of zygote to free-swimming larvae 6 days postfertilization (dpf). We observed a developmental stage-dependent pattern with clear differences between the first 2 days of development and the following days. Whereas the neurotransmitter levels steadily increased, the precursors showed a peak at 3 dpf. After exposure to several pesticides, significant differences in concentrations of neurotransmitters and precursors were observed. Our study revealed new insights about neurotransmitter systems during early zebrafish development and showed the usefulness of our approach for environmental neurotoxicity studies.

  8. Molecular control of normal and acrocona mutant seed cone development in Norway spruce (Picea abies) and the evolution of conifer ovule-bearing organs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carlsbecker, Annelie; Sundström, Jens F; Englund, Marie; Uddenberg, Daniel; Izquierdo, Liz; Kvarnheden, Anders; Vergara-Silva, Francisco; Engström, Peter

    2013-10-01

    Reproductive organs in seed plants are morphologically divergent and their evolutionary history is often unclear. The mechanisms controlling their development have been extensively studied in angiosperms but are poorly understood in conifers and other gymnosperms. Here, we address the molecular control of seed cone development in Norway spruce, Picea abies. We present expression analyses of five novel MADS-box genes in comparison with previously identified MADS and LEAFY genes at distinct developmental stages. In addition, we have characterized the homeotic transformation from vegetative shoot to female cone and associated changes in regulatory gene expression patterns occurring in the acrocona mutant. The analyses identified genes active at the onset of ovuliferous and ovule development and identified expression patterns marking distinct domains of the ovuliferous scale. The reproductive transformation in acrocona involves the activation of all tested genes normally active in early cone development, except for an AGAMOUS-LIKE6/SEPALLATA (AGL6/SEP) homologue. This absence may be functionally associated with the nondeterminate development of the acrocona ovule-bearing scales. Our morphological and gene expression analyses give support to the hypothesis that the modern cone is a complex structure, and the ovuliferous scale the result of reductions and compactions of an ovule-bearing axillary short shoot in cones of Paleozoic conifers. © 2013 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2013 New Phytologist Trust.

  9. Early cognitive development in children born to women with epilepsy: a prospective report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bromley, Rebecca L; Mawer, George; Love, Jenna; Kelly, James; Purdy, Laura; McEwan, Lauren; Briggs, Maria; Clayton-Smith, Jill; Shi, Xin; Sin, Xin; Baker, Gus A

    2010-10-01

    In this prospective study the early cognitive development of children born to women with epilepsy (n = 198) was assessed and compared to a group of children representative of the general population (n = 230). The children were assessed when younger than the age of 2 years using the Griffiths Mental Development Scales, either in their local participating hospital or in their home. The assessments were completed by an assessor who was blinded to whether the child's mother had epilepsy and to antiepileptic drug type. Children exposed to sodium valproate had a statistically significant increased risk of delayed early development in comparison to the control children. Linear regression analysis showed a statistically significant effect of sodium valproate exposure on the child's overall developmental level that was not accounted for by confounding variables. Delayed early development is also noted for children within an ad hoc group of less commonly utilized antiepileptic drugs, although conclusions cannot be drawn due to the size of this group (n = 13). Children exposed to either carbamazepine or lamotrigine in utero did not differ significantly in their overall developmental ability. Differences noted in specific developmental areas for these two groups were not statistically significant after the control for confounders such as socioeconomic status and maternal IQ. Women with epilepsy should be informed of the risks posed to their potential offspring prior to pregnancy to allow for informed decisions regarding treatment. Children exposed in utero to antiepileptic drugs should be monitored throughout childhood to allow for early intervention when necessary. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2010 International League Against Epilepsy.

  10. Quantitative Folding Pattern Analysis of Early Primary Sulci in Human Fetuses with Brain Abnormalities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Im, K; Guimaraes, A; Kim, Y; Cottrill, E; Gagoski, B; Rollins, C; Ortinau, C; Yang, E; Grant, P E

    2017-07-01

    Aberrant gyral folding is a key feature in the diagnosis of many cerebral malformations. However, in fetal life, it is particularly challenging to confidently diagnose aberrant folding because of the rapid spatiotemporal changes of gyral development. Currently, there is no resource to measure how an individual fetal brain compares with normal spatiotemporal variations. In this study, we assessed the potential for automatic analysis of early sulcal patterns to detect individual fetal brains with cerebral abnormalities. Triplane MR images were aligned to create a motion-corrected volume for each individual fetal brain, and cortical plate surfaces were extracted. Sulcal basins were automatically identified on the cortical plate surface and compared with a combined set generated from 9 normal fetal brain templates. Sulcal pattern similarities to the templates were quantified by using multivariate geometric features and intersulcal relationships for 14 normal fetal brains and 5 fetal brains that were proved to be abnormal on postnatal MR imaging. Results were compared with the gyrification index. Significantly reduced sulcal pattern similarities to normal templates were found in all abnormal individual fetuses compared with normal fetuses (mean similarity [normal, abnormal], left: 0.818, 0.752; P the primary distinguishing features. The gyrification index was not significantly different between the normal and abnormal groups. Automated analysis of interrelated patterning of early primary sulci could outperform the traditional gyrification index and has the potential to quantitatively detect individual fetuses with emerging abnormal sulcal patterns. © 2017 by American Journal of Neuroradiology.

  11. A Review of Early Sport Specialization in Relation to the Development of a Young Athlete

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jonathan Michael Normand

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Background: The overall physical and psychological development of a young athlete is crucial for the enjoyment of physical activity for a lifetime. Children, as well as parents, tend to focus on individual accomplishment in sport despite any other aspect of physical development or appropriate training. Objective: the pressure to excel in sport has all too often brought about negative consequences through specialization at an early age. Method: A review and commentary report on the impact of early sport specialization on the physical and psychological development of a young athlete. Conclusion: A long-term, activity and age-appropriate developmental model is essential to those involved in training young athletes. Sport specialization may be appropriate in unique situations but only after the development of specific skills, abilities, and psychological maturity. As sport professionals, parents and coaches should be educated the pros/cons of early sport specialization. Ultimately, the focus on sport participation should be to increase physical activity, psychological development, and appreciation for a lifetime.

  12. Early postnatal docosahexaenoic acid levels and improved preterm brain development

    OpenAIRE

    Tam, Emily W.Y.; Chau, Vann; Barkovich, A. James; Ferriero, Donna M.; Miller, Steven P.; Rogers, Elizabeth E.; Grunau, Ruth E.; Synnes, Anne R.; Xu, Duan; Foong, Justin; Brant, Rollin; Innis, Sheila M.

    2016-01-01

    Background Preterm birth has a dramatic impact on polyunsaturated fatty acid exposures for the developing brain. This study examined the association between postnatal fatty acid levels and measures of brain injury and development, as well as outcomes. Methods A cohort of 60 preterm newborns (24?32 weeks GA) was assessed using early and near-term MRI studies. Red blood cell fatty acid composition was analyzed coordinated with each scan. Outcome at a mean of 33 months corrected age was assessed...

  13. Characterization of a putative grapevine Zn transporter, VvZIP3, suggests its involvement in early reproductive development in Vitis vinifera L

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gainza-Cortés Felipe

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Zinc (Zn deficiency is one of the most widespread mineral nutritional problems that affect normal development in plants. Because Zn cannot passively diffuse across cell membranes, it must be transported into intracellular compartments for all biological processes where Zn is required. Several members of the Zinc-regulated transporters, Iron-regulated transporter-like Protein (ZIP gene family have been characterized in plants, and have shown to be involved in metal uptake and transport. This study describes the first putative Zn transporter in grapevine. Unravelling its function may explain an important symptom of Zn deficiency in grapevines, which is the production of clusters with fewer and usually smaller berries than normal. Results We identified and characterized a putative Zn transporter from berries of Vitis vinifera L., named VvZIP3. Compared to other members of the ZIP family identified in the Vitis vinifera L. genome, VvZIP3 is mainly expressed in reproductive tissue - specifically in developing flowers - which correlates with the high Zn accumulation in these organs. Contrary to this, the low expression of VvZIP3 in parthenocarpic berries shows a relationship with the lower Zn accumulation in this tissue than in normal seeded berries where its expression is induced by Zn. The predicted protein sequence indicates strong similarity with several members of the ZIP family from Arabidopsis thaliana and other species. Moreover, VvZIP3 complemented the growth defect of a yeast Zn-uptake mutant, ZHY3, and is localized in the plasma membrane of plant cells, suggesting that VvZIP3 has the function of a Zn uptake transporter. Conclusions Our results suggest that VvZIP3 encodes a putative plasma membrane Zn transporter protein member of the ZIP gene family that might play a role in Zn uptake and distribution during the early reproductive development in Vitis vinifera L., indicating that the availability of this micronutrient

  14. State of Early Child Development Research, Practice, and Policy for Most Vulnerable Children: A Global Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Young, Mary Eming

    2017-01-01

    Interventions to enhance development of children ages 0-6 have profound benefits for children, families, and societies. The benefits are well documented, recognized internationally, and supportive of policies and programs targeting early child development (ECD). Intervening in the early years is a critical first step toward alleviating poverty,…

  15. mTOR Hyperactivation in down syndrome hippocampus appears early during development

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Iyer, Anand M.; van Scheppingen, Jackelien; Milenkovic, Ivan; Anink, Jasper J.; Adle-Biassette, Homa; Kovacs, Gabor G.; Aronica, Eleonora

    2014-01-01

    The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway is a key developmental pathway involved in mechanisms underlying cellular aging and neurodegeneration. We hypothesized that its deregulation may occur during early brain development in patients with Down syndrome (DS). The expression

  16. Can We Measure the Transition to Reading? General Outcome Measures and Early Literacy Development From Preschool to Early Elementary Grades

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Scott McConnell

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This study evaluated the extent to which existing measures met standards for a continuous suite of general outcome measures (GOMs assessing children’s early literacy from preschool through early elementary school. The study assessed 316 children from age 3 years (2 years prekindergarten through Grade 2, with 8 to 10 measures of language, alphabetic principle, phonological awareness, and beginning reading. We evaluated measures at each grade group against six standards for GOMs extracted from earlier work. We found that one measure of oral language met five or six standards at all grade levels, and several measures of phonological awareness and alphabetic principle showed promise across all five grade levels. Results are discussed in relation to ongoing research and development of a flexible and seamless system to assess children’s academic progress across time for effective prevention and remediation, as well as theoretical and empirical analyses in early literacy, early reading, and GOMs.

  17. Early deprivation, atypical brain development, and internalizing symptoms in late childhood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bick, J; Fox, N; Zeanah, C; Nelson, C A

    2017-02-07

    Children exposed to extreme early-life neglect such as in institutional rearing are at heightened risk for developing depression and anxiety disorders, and internalizing problems more broadly. These outcomes are believed to be due to alterations in the development of neural circuitry that supports emotion regulation. The specific neurodevelopmental changes that contribute to these difficulties are largely unknown. This study examined whether microstructural alterations in white matter pathways predicted long-term risk for internalizing problems in institutionally reared children. Data from 69 children were drawn from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, a randomized clinical trial of foster care for institutionally reared children. White matter was assessed using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) when children were between 8 and 10years of age. Internalizing symptoms were assessed at the time of the MRI scan, and once children reached 12-14years of age. Results indicated that neglect-associated alterations in the external capsule and corpus callosum partially explained links between institutional rearing status and internalizing symptoms in middle childhood and early adolescence. Findings shed light on neural mechanisms contributing to increased risk for emotional difficulties among children reared in adverse conditions and have implications for prevention and intervention. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  18. Development of Technologies for Early Detection and Stratification of Breast Cancer

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-10-01

    emissive fluorescent dye, boron -dipyrromethene (BODIPY) was copolymerized into the polymer as the acceptor molecule, poly[9,9-dioctylfluorenyl-2,7...showing no clear lung metastases. This is likely due to the early sacrifice required by developing toxicity to inhibitor 1 treatment. Thus, we have...focused on the development of more potent, less toxic inhibitors, together with our collaborator. From an earlier screen of six additional related

  19. Target normal sheath acceleration analytical modeling, comparative study and developments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perego, C.; Batani, D.; Zani, A.; Passoni, M.

    2012-01-01

    Ultra-intense laser interaction with solid targets appears to be an extremely promising technique to accelerate ions up to several MeV, producing beams that exhibit interesting properties for many foreseen applications. Nowadays, most of all the published experimental results can be theoretically explained in the framework of the target normal sheath acceleration (TNSA) mechanism proposed by Wilks et al. [Phys. Plasmas 8(2), 542 (2001)]. As an alternative to numerical simulation various analytical or semi-analytical TNSA models have been published in the latest years, each of them trying to provide predictions for some of the ion beam features, given the initial laser and target parameters. However, the problem of developing a reliable model for the TNSA process is still open, which is why the purpose of this work is to enlighten the present situation of TNSA modeling and experimental results, by means of a quantitative comparison between measurements and theoretical predictions of the maximum ion energy. Moreover, in the light of such an analysis, some indications for the future development of the model proposed by Passoni and Lontano [Phys. Plasmas 13(4), 042102 (2006)] are then presented.

  20. Formation and early development of tetraspores of Polysiphonia urceolata (Rhodomelaceae, Rhodophyta)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yao, Jianting; Li, Dapeng; Yu, Shenhui; Liu, Jidong; Duan, Delin

    2009-05-01

    Polysiphonia urceolata is one type of potential commercial red seaweeds used for breeding and cultivation, because of its significant biochemical and biomedical application. However, the information of breeding and seedling incubation for cultivation is limited, especially the early development. In this study, tetrasporohyte and gametophyte of P. urceolata were taken as the study materials in Huiquan Bay, Qingdao, China. The cleaned and sterilized tetrasporophytes and gametophytes were pre-cultured in sterilized seawater, then nurtured at 18°C, 25 μmol photons m-2 s-1 in 12:12 h (light:dark) photoperiod. Continuous observation under microscope showed that the early development consists of bipolar division stage and seedling stage. In the division stage, tetraspores germinate into bipolar sporelings that further differentiate into a colorless rhizoidal portion and a lightly pigmented upright shoot. The lightly pigmented rhizoidal cell develops to a rhizoid and the larger pigmented cell transforms to an erect axis. In the seedling stage, several quasi-protuberances appear on the erect axis and form juvenile seedlings. The results demonstrate the culture of P. urceolata from tetraspores under laboratory conditions.

  1. Collaboration with Pharma Will Introduce Nanotechnologies in Early Stage Drug Development | Poster

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Frederick National Lab has begun to assist several major pharmaceutical companies in adopting nanotechnologies in early stage drug development, when the approach is most efficient and cost-effective.

  2. A Case Study of Idea Work in the Early Phases of Product Development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gish, Liv; Clausen, Christian; Hansen, Claus Thorp

    2009-01-01

    development. Based on our case we will point out four central findings: 1) Early idea work is a complex process and interlinked with many other activities both inside and outside the organization. 2) Ideas evolve,combine and change over time. 3) Idea work involves a wide range of actors. 4) Carrying ideas......Focus in this paper is on the early innovation activities, in particular idea work. Based on a case study from industrial practice on the development of a new circulator (the Alpha Pro circulator) we aim at getting a better understanding of the work with ideas in the early phases of product...... through demands continuous mobilization of support among a range of actors. We suggest that the actors involved in idea work and their interaction such as negotiating different understandings of what constitutes a qualified idea as well as the continuous mobilization of support to their ideas among...

  3. Early Vascular Ageing - A Concept in Development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    M Nilsson, Peter

    2015-04-01

    Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a prevalent condition in the elderly, often associated with metabolic disturbance and type 2 diabetes. For a number of years, research dedicated to understand atherosclerosis dominated, and for many good reasons, this pathophysiological process being proximal to the CVD events. In recent years, research has been devoted to an earlier stage of vascular pathology named arteriosclerosis (arterial stiffness) and the new concept of early vascular ageing (EVA), developed by a group of mostly European researchers. This overview describes recent developments in research dedicated to EVA and new emerging aspects found in studies of families at high cardiovascular risk. There are new aspects related to genetics, telomere biology and the role of gut microbiota. However, there is still no unifying definition available of EVA and no direct treatment, but rather only recommendations for conventional cardiovascular risk factor control. New interventions are being developed - not only new antihypertensive drugs, but also new drugs for vascular protection - the selective angiotensin-II (AT2) agonist Compound 21 (C21). Human studies are eagerly awaited. Even new functional food products could have the potential to positively influence cardiometabolic regulation, to be confirmed.

  4. Early motor development and later language and reading skills in children at risk of familial dyslexia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viholainen, Helena; Ahonen, Timo; Lyytinen, Paula; Cantell, Marja; Tolvanen, Asko; Lyytinen, Heikki

    2006-05-01

    Relationships between early motor development and language and reading skills were studied in 154 children, of whom 75 had familial risk of dyslexia (37 females, 38 males; at-risk group) and 79 constituted a control group (32 females, 47 males). Motor development was assessed by a structured parental questionnaire during the child's first year of life. Vocabulary and inflectional morphology skills were used as early indicators of language skills at 3 years 6 months and 5 years or 5 years 6 months of age, and reading speed was used as a later indicator of reading skills at 7 years of age. The same subgroups as in our earlier study (in which the cluster analysis was described) were used in this study. The three subgroups of the control group were 'fast motor development', 'slow fine motor development', and 'slow gross motor development', and the two subgroups of the at-risk group were 'slow motor development' and 'fast motor development'. A significant difference was found between the development of expressive language skills. Children with familial risk of dyslexia and slow motor development had a smaller vocabulary with poorer inflectional skills than the other children. They were also slower in their reading speed at the end of the first grade at the age of 7 years. Two different associations are discussed, namely the connection between early motor development and language development, and the connection between early motor development and reading speed.

  5. Early diagnosis and early intervention in cerebral palsy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mijna eHadders-Algra

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper reviews the opportunities and challenges for early diagnosis and early intervention in cerebral palsy (CP. CP describes a group of disorders of the development of movement and posture, causing activity limitation, that are attributed to disturbances that occurred in the fetal or infant brain. Therefore the paper starts with a summary of relevant information from developmental neuroscience. Most lesions underlying CP occur in the second half of gestation, when developmental activity in the brain reaches its summit. Variations in timing of the damage not only result in different lesions, but also in different neuroplastic reactions and different associated neuropathologies. This turns CP into a heterogeneous entity. This may mean that the best early diagnostics and the best intervention methods may differ for various subgroups of children with CP. Next, the paper addresses possibilities for early diagnosis. It discusses the predictive value of neuromotor and neurological exams, neuro-imaging techniques and neurophysiological assessments. Prediction is best when complementary techniques are used in longitudinal series. Possibilities for early prediction of CP differ for infants admitted to neonatal intensive care and other infants. In the former group best prediction is achieved with the combination of neuro-imaging and the assessment of general movements, in the latter group best prediction is based on carefully documented milestones and neurological assessment. The last part reviews early intervention in infants developing CP. Most knowledge on early intervention is based on studies in high risk infants without CP. In these infants early intervention programs promote cognitive development until preschool age; motor development profits less. The few studies on early intervention in infants developing CP suggest that programs that stimulate all aspects of infant development by means of family coaching are most promising. More research is

  6. Brain anatomical networks in early human brain development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, Yong; Shi, Feng; Smith, Jeffrey Keith; Lin, Weili; Gilmore, John H; Shen, Dinggang

    2011-02-01

    Recent neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that human brain networks have economic small-world topology and modular organization, enabling efficient information transfer among brain regions. However, it remains largely unknown how the small-world topology and modular organization of human brain networks emerge and develop. Using longitudinal MRI data of 28 healthy pediatric subjects, collected at their ages of 1 month, 1 year, and 2 years, we analyzed development patterns of brain anatomical networks derived from morphological correlations of brain regional volumes. The results show that the brain network of 1-month-olds has the characteristically economic small-world topology and nonrandom modular organization. The network's cost efficiency increases with the brain development to 1 year and 2 years, so does the modularity, providing supportive evidence for the hypothesis that the small-world topology and the modular organization of brain networks are established during early brain development to support rapid synchronization and information transfer with minimal rewiring cost, as well as to balance between local processing and global integration of information. Copyright © 2010. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  7. Moderate alcohol exposure during early brain development increases stimulus-response habits in adulthood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, Matthew O; Evans, Alexandra M-D; Brock, Alistair J; Combe, Fraser J; Teh, Muy-Teck; Brennan, Caroline H

    2016-01-01

    Exposure to alcohol during early central nervous system development has been shown variously to affect aspects of physiological and behavioural development. In extreme cases, this can extend to craniofacial defects, severe developmental delay and mental retardation. At more moderate levels, subtle differences in brain morphology and behaviour have been observed. One clear effect of developmental alcohol exposure is an increase in the propensity to develop alcoholism and other addictions. The mechanisms by which this occurs, however, are not currently understood. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that adult zebrafish chronically exposed to moderate levels of ethanol during early brain ontogenesis would show an increase in conditioned place preference for alcohol and an increased propensity towards habit formation, a key component of drug addiction in humans. We found support for both of these hypotheses and found that the exposed fish had changes in mRNA expression patterns for dopamine receptor, nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and μ-opioid receptor encoding genes. Collectively, these data show an explicit link between the increased proclivity for addiction and addiction-related behaviour following exposure to ethanol during early brain development and alterations in the neural circuits underlying habit learning. © 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  8. MENTAL AND PSYCHOMOTOR RETARDATION IN EARLY CHILDHOOD: Overview and development of a protocol for neuropsychological assessment.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    María del Mar Sánchez-Joya

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: The last decades have brought great advances in the understanding of child neurodevelopment and knowledge of cognitive processes that occur in the brain from an early age. As a result and thanks to the large number of standardized and scientifically guaranteed neuropsychological tests that are available today, we can assess and diagnose with high specificity, deficits or delays in the acquisition of cognitive functions. Besides, it allows knowing the strengths or normality points of children with various pathologies. Objective: To present the concepts and a neuropsychological assessment protocol for mental retardation, pervasive developmental disorder and psychomotor retardation. Development: First, the authors present a general model of neuropsychological assessment in childhood. Second, he concept, classification and aetiology of mental retardation is revised and it is proposed a neuropsychological profile. Finally, the paradigms of pervasive developmental disorder and psychomotor retardation are shown. Conclusion: Based on standardized and validated test for child neuropsychological assessment, children cognitive disorders can be accurately identified to plan each child's cognitive stimulation, and thus optimize the results of the therapy.

  9. Development of Generic Tools for Coastal Early Warning and Decision Support

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bogaard Tom

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Recent and historic high-impact events demonstrated coastal risk (Xynthia, Europe, 2010; Katrina, USA, 2005. This is only to get worse, because risk is increasing due to increase in both hazard intensity, frequency and increase in consequences (increased coastal development. Adaptation requires a re-evaluation of coastal disaster risk reduction (DRR strategies and a new mix of prevention, mitigation (e.g. limiting construction in flood-prone areas and preparedness (e.g. Early warning systems, EWS measures. Within the EU funded project RISC-KIT the focus is on preparedness measures and its aim is to demonstrate robustness and applicability of coastal EWS (Early Warning Systems and DSS (Decision Support Systems. Delft-FEWS, a generic tool for Early Warning Systems has been extended, to be applied at sites all across Europe. The challenges for developing a modern EWS are found in the integration of large data sets, specialised modules to process the data, and open interfaces to allow easy integration of existing modelling capacities. In response to these challenges, Delft-FEWS provides a state of the art EWS framework, which is highly customizable to the specific requirements of an individual organisation. For ten case study sites on all EU regional seas a EWS has been developed, to provide real-time (short-term forecasts and early warnings. The EWS component is a 2D model framework of hydro-meteo and morphological models which computes hazard intensities. The total expected impact of a hazard can be obtained by using a Bayesian network DSS. This DSS, which is incorporated in the Delft-FEWS platform is a tool that links coastal multi-hazards to their socioeconomic and environmental consequences. An important innovation of the EWS/DSS lies in its application in dual mode: as a forecast and warning system and as a consistent ex-ante planning tool to evaluate the long-term vulnerability due to multiple (low-frequency coastal hazards, under various

  10. Establishment of normal gut microbiota is compromised under excessive hygiene conditions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bettina Schmidt

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Early gut colonization events are purported to have a major impact on the incidence of infectious, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases in later life. Hence, factors which influence this process may have important implications for both human and animal health. Previously, we demonstrated strong influences of early-life environment on gut microbiota composition in adult pigs. Here, we sought to further investigate the impact of limiting microbial exposure during early life on the development of the pig gut microbiota. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Outdoor- and indoor-reared animals, exposed to the microbiota in their natural rearing environment for the first two days of life, were transferred to an isolator facility and adult gut microbial diversity was analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. From a total of 2,196 high-quality 16S rRNA gene sequences, 440 phylotypes were identified in the outdoor group and 431 phylotypes in the indoor group. The majority of clones were assigned to the four phyla Firmicutes (67.5% of all sequences, Proteobacteria (17.7%, Bacteroidetes (13.5% and to a lesser extent, Actinobacteria (0.1%. Although the initial maternal and environmental microbial inoculum of isolator-reared animals was identical to that of their naturally-reared littermates, the microbial succession and stabilization events reported previously in naturally-reared outdoor animals did not occur. In contrast, the gut microbiota of isolator-reared animals remained highly diverse containing a large number of distinct phylotypes. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The results documented here indicate that establishment and development of the normal gut microbiota requires continuous microbial exposure during the early stages of life and this process is compromised under conditions of excessive hygiene.

  11. On self-propagating methodological flaws in performance normalization for strength and power sports.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arandjelović, Ognjen

    2013-06-01

    Performance in strength and power sports is greatly affected by a variety of anthropometric factors. The goal of performance normalization is to factor out the effects of confounding factors and compute a canonical (normalized) performance measure from the observed absolute performance. Performance normalization is applied in the ranking of elite athletes, as well as in the early stages of youth talent selection. Consequently, it is crucial that the process is principled and fair. The corpus of previous work on this topic, which is significant, is uniform in the methodology adopted. Performance normalization is universally reduced to a regression task: the collected performance data are used to fit a regression function that is then used to scale future performances. The present article demonstrates that this approach is fundamentally flawed. It inherently creates a bias that unfairly penalizes athletes with certain allometric characteristics, and, by virtue of its adoption in the ranking and selection of elite athletes, propagates and strengthens this bias over time. The main flaws are shown to originate in the criteria for selecting the data used for regression, as well as in the manner in which the regression model is applied in normalization. This analysis brings into light the aforesaid methodological flaws and motivates further work on the development of principled methods, the foundations of which are also laid out in this work.

  12. Characterization of the onset of embryonic control and early development in the bovine embryo

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barnes, F.L.

    1988-01-01

    Bovine embryos were used to determine if morphological and molecular features of early development are similar to in vivo recovered bovine embryos and to determine at what level early bovine development is regulated. Radiolabeling of IVP embryos and in vivo recovered embryos with 35 S-methionine for SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis reveals that these embryos are equivalent. Few differences in protein profiles are observed between 1- and early 4-cell embryos. A change in protein profiles begins at the mid 4-cell stage and continues into the 8-cell stage. Few differences in protein profiles are observed between 1- and early 4-cell embryos. A change in protein profiles begins at the mid 4-cell stage and continues into the 8-cell stage. Few differences in protein profiles are observed between late 8-cells and morulae. This transition is α-amanitin sensitive therefore due to de novo embryonic transcription. Embryonic transcription is partially responsible for terminating the post-transcriptionally regulated period of early bovine development. Argentophillic nucleolar organizing regions (Ag-NORs) indicate onset of nucleolar activation. Ag-NORs were absent in 2- and 4-cell IVP embryos and rarely occurred in 8-cell IVP embryos cultured in vitro. IVP 1- and 2-cell embryos cultured to blastocysts in sheep oviducts demonstrated Ag-NORs. Thus the lack of nucleolar activation of IVP embryos cultured in vitro is culture induced between the 2- and 8-cell stage

  13. Early development of Calanus hyperboreus nauplii: Response to a changing ocean

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jung-Madsen, Signe; Nielsen, Torkel Gissel; Grønkjær, Peter

    2013-01-01

    To forecast effects of temperature changes on recruitment and population dynamics of the Arctic copepod Calanus hyperboreus, laboratory experiments investigating temperature and food effects on early development were performed in Disko Bay, western Greenland, in 2009, and ascent rates of C. hyper...

  14. Normal-sized ovarian papillary serous carcinoma: a case report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, W C; Lai, C I; Huang, L C; Chiu, T H; Hung, Y C; Chang, W C

    2010-01-01

    A normal-sized ovarian papillary serous carcinoma is rare. We present the case of a 46-year-old woman with progressive abdominal fullness of one week's duration. The medical evaluation revealed abdominal carcinomatosis with normal-sized ovaries and an elevated serum CA-125 level of 147,365.8 U/ml. Cytoreductive surgery (hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, omentectomy, lymphadenectomy, infracolic omentectomy, peritoneal biopsy, washing cytology, and appendectomy) was performed. The histologic examination revealed an ovarian serous papillary carcinoma. Adjuvant chemotherapy was administered. The serum CA-125 level decreased after completion of treatment. Normal-sized ovarian serous surface papillary carcinomas should be kept in mind as an origin of disease in patients who have peritoneal carcinomatosis, which sometimes is a diagnostic dilemma of the disease source. We report this case to emphasize the clinical symptoms and importance of the early and accurate diagnosis of a normal-sized ovarian papillary serous carcinoma.

  15. A Developmental Study of Static Postural Control and Superimposed Arm Movements in Normal and Slowly Developing Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fisher, Janet M.

    Selected electromyographic parameters underlying static postural control in 4, 6, and 8 year old normally and slowly developing children during performance of selected arm movements were studied. Developmental delays in balance control were assessed by the Cashin Test of Motor Development (1974) and/or the Williams Gross Motor Coordination Test…

  16. Identification of the Social Development in Early Childhood in Pakistan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malik, Asif; Sarwar, Muhammad; Khan, Naeemullah

    2010-01-01

    This study was conducted to identify the social development in early childhood years. It was delimited to eight private schools of Lahore City from the area of Faisal Town and Shadman. Forty students (male and female) were randomly selected as the sample. Five students from Nursery, Prep and grade one were selected from each school. A checklist…

  17. Creating, Constructing, and Cultivating Professional Development within a Reggio-Inspired Early Childhood Education Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haigh, Karen M.

    2009-01-01

    The study examined the professional development system of an early childhood education program which was influenced by the Reggio Emilia Approach to early learning. This multi-site program thrived within low-income, inner-city communities of Chicago. Literature connected to the program's historical context of the Settlement House and the Reggio…

  18. Toward Development of Pluripotent Porcine Stem Cells by Road Mapping Early Embryonic Development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petkov, Stoyan; Freude, Kristine; Mashayekhi-Nezamabadi, Kaveh

    2017-01-01

    The lack in production of bona fide porcine pluripotent stem cells has definitely been hampered by a lack of research into porcine embryo development. Embryonic development in mammals is the extraordinary transition of a single-celled fertilized zygote into a complex fetus, which occurs...... in the uterus of the maternal adult during the early stages of gestation. Biomedical pig models could serve as genetic backgrounds for establishment of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) or other pluripotent stem cells (such as iPSC), which may be used to model and study diseases in vitro. This chapter provides...... insight into the current knowledge of pluripotent states in the developing pig embryo and the current status in establishment of bona fide porcine ESC (pESC) and piPSCs. It reflects the potential causes underlying the difficulty in establishing pluripotent stem cells and reviews recent data on global...

  19. The maturation of cortical sleep rhythms and networks over early development

    OpenAIRE

    Chu, Catherine Jean; Leahy, J.; Pathmanathan, Jay Sriram; Kramer, M.A.; Cash, Sydney S.

    2014-01-01

    Objective: Although neuronal activity drives all aspects of cortical development, how human brain rhythms spontaneously mature remains an active area of research. We sought to systematically evaluate the emergence of human brain rhythms and functional cortical networks over early development. Methods: We examined cortical rhythms and coupling patterns from birth through adolescence in a large cohort of healthy children (n=384) using scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) in the sleep state. ...

  20. Evaluation of passive avoidance learning and spatial memory in rats exposed to low levels of lead during specific periods of early brain development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rao Barkur, Rajashekar; Bairy, Laxminarayana K

    2015-01-01

    Widespread use of heavy metal lead (Pb) for various commercial purposes has resulted in the environmental contamination caused by this metal. The studies have shown a definite relationship between low level lead exposure during early brain development and deficit in children's cognitive functions. This study investigated the passive avoidance learning and spatial learning in male rat pups exposed to lead through their mothers during specific periods of early brain development. Experimental male rats were divided into 5 groups: i) the normal control group (NC) (N = 12) consisted of rat offspring born to mothers who were given normal drinking water throughout gestation and lactation, ii) the pre-gestation lead exposed group (PG) (N = 12) consisted of rat offspring, mothers of these rats had been exposed to 0.2% lead acetate in the drinking water for 1 month before conception, iii) the gestation lead exposed group (G) (N = 12) contained rat offspring born to mothers who had been exposed to 0.2% lead acetate in the drinking water throughout gestation, iv) the lactation lead exposed group (L) (N = 12) had rat offspring, mothers of these rats exposed to 0.2% lead acetate in the drinking water throughout lactation and v) the gestation and lactation lead exposed group (GL) (N = 12) contained rat offspring, mothers of these rats were exposed to 0.2% lead acetate throughout gestation and lactation. The study found deficit in passive avoidance learning in the G, L and GL groups of rats. Impairment in spatial learning was found in the PG, G, L and GL groups of rats. Interestingly, the study found that gestation period only and lactation period only lead exposure was sufficient to cause deficit in learning and memory in rats. The extent of memory impairment in the L group of rats was comparable with the GL group of rats. So it can be said that postnatal period of brain development is more sensitive to neurotoxicity compared to prenatal exposure. This work is available in Open

  1. Normalizing the causality between time series

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liang, X. San

    2015-08-01

    Recently, a rigorous yet concise formula was derived to evaluate information flow, and hence the causality in a quantitative sense, between time series. To assess the importance of a resulting causality, it needs to be normalized. The normalization is achieved through distinguishing a Lyapunov exponent-like, one-dimensional phase-space stretching rate and a noise-to-signal ratio from the rate of information flow in the balance of the marginal entropy evolution of the flow recipient. It is verified with autoregressive models and applied to a real financial analysis problem. An unusually strong one-way causality is identified from IBM (International Business Machines Corporation) to GE (General Electric Company) in their early era, revealing to us an old story, which has almost faded into oblivion, about "Seven Dwarfs" competing with a giant for the mainframe computer market.

  2. An EEG/ERP investigation of the development of empathy in early and middle childhood

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yawei Cheng

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Empathic arousal is the first ontogenetic building block of empathy to appear during infancy and early childhood. As development progresses, empathic arousal becomes associated with an increasing ability to differentiate between self and other, which is a critical aspect of mature empathetic ability (Decety and Jackson, 2004. This allows for better regulation of contagious distress and understanding others mental states. In the current study, we recorded electroencephalographic event-related potentials and mu suppression induced by short visual animations that depicted painful situations in 57 typically developing children aged between 3 and 9 years as well as 15 young adults. Results indicate that the difference wave of an early automatic component (N200, indexing empathic arousal, showed an age-related decrease in amplitude. In contrast, the difference wave of late-positive potentials (LPP, associated with cognitive appraisal, showed an age-related gain. Only early LPP was detected in children, whereas both early and late LPP were observed in adults. Furthermore, as compared with adults, children showed stronger mu suppression when viewing both painful and non-painful stimuli. These findings provide neurophysiological support for the development of empathy during childhood, as indicated by a gradual decrease in emotional arousal and an increase in cognitive appraisal with age.

  3. Emotional development among early school-age children: gender differences in the role of problem behaviours

    OpenAIRE

    Maguire, Lisa K.; Niens, Ulrike; McCann, Mark; Connolly, Paul

    2015-01-01

    There has been an increasing focus on social and emotional development in educational programmes in early childhood as both variables are believed to influence behavioural outcomes in the classroom. However, relationships between social and emotional development and behaviour in early childhood have rarely been explored. This article sets out to investigate the conceptualisation of these variables and their interrelationships. Structural equation models were used to assess whether differences...

  4. Role of executive functioning and home environment in early reading development

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Segers, P.C.J.; Damhuis, C.M.P.; Sande, E. van de; Verhoeven, L.T.W.

    2016-01-01

    We examined the role of executive functioning (EF) and home environment in the prediction of early reading development. In a longitudinal design, we followed 101 Dutch children from kindergarten to second grade. EF (attentional control, action control, short-term memory (STM)) and home factors

  5. Microenvironments and Signaling Pathways Regulating Early Dissemination, Dormancy, and Metastasis

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-09-01

    regulators of branching morphogenesis during mammary gland development 17,18, arguing that normal mammary epithelial cells cooperate with these innate ...CD45+CD11b+F4/80+ cells lacking lymphoid and granulocytic markers (Supplementary Fig.3B). viSNE plots 30 of myelo- monocytic cells (Fig.5A) showed that...cancer cells and how the microenvironment in these primary sites named P-TMEM (Primary Tumor Microenvironment of Metastases) contribute to early

  6. Basic characterization of normal multifocal electroretinogram

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fernandez Cherkasova, Lilia; Rojas Rondon, Irene; Castro Perez, Pedro Daniel; Lopez Felipe, Daniel; Santiesteban Freixas, Rosaralis; Mendoza Santiesteban, Carlos E

    2008-01-01

    A scientific literature review was made on the novel multifocal electroretinogram technique, the involved cell mechanisms and some of the factors modifying its results together with the form of presentation. The basic characteristics of this electrophysiological record obtained from several regions of the retina of normal subjects is important in order to create at a small scale a comparative database to evaluate pathological eye tracing. All this will greatly help in early less invasive electrodiagnosis of localized retinal lesions. (Author)

  7. The Normal Fetal Pancreas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kivilevitch, Zvi; Achiron, Reuven; Perlman, Sharon; Gilboa, Yinon

    2017-10-01

    The aim of the study was to assess the sonographic feasibility of measuring the fetal pancreas and its normal development throughout pregnancy. We conducted a cross-sectional prospective study between 19 and 36 weeks' gestation. The study included singleton pregnancies with normal pregnancy follow-up. The pancreas circumference was measured. The first 90 cases were tested to assess feasibility. Two hundred ninety-seven fetuses of nondiabetic mothers were recruited during a 3-year period. The overall satisfactory visualization rate was 61.6%. The intraobserver and interobserver variability had high interclass correlation coefficients of of 0.964 and 0.967, respectively. A cubic polynomial regression described best the correlation of pancreas circumference with gestational age (r = 0.744; P pancreas circumference percentiles for each week of gestation were calculated. During the study period, we detected 2 cases with overgrowth syndrome and 1 case with an annular pancreas. In this study, we assessed the feasibility of sonography for measuring the fetal pancreas and established a normal reference range for the fetal pancreas circumference throughout pregnancy. This database can be helpful when investigating fetomaternal disorders that can involve its normal development. © 2017 by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.

  8. Influences of early child nutritional status and home learning environment on child development in Vietnam.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Phuong H; DiGirolamo, Ann M; Gonzalez-Casanova, Ines; Young, Melissa; Kim, Nicole; Nguyen, Son; Martorell, Reynaldo; Ramakrishnan, Usha

    2018-01-01

    Early childhood development plays a key role in a child's future health, educational success, and economic status. However, suboptimal early development remains a global challenge. This study examines the influences of quality of the home learning environment (HOME) and child stunting in the first year of life on child development. We used data collected from a randomized controlled trial of preconceptional micronutrient supplementation in Vietnam (n = 1,458). The Bayley Scales of Infant Development-III were used to assess cognition, language, and motor development domains at 2 years. At 1 year, 14% of children were stunted, and 15%, 58%, and 28% of children lived in poor, medium, and high HOME environments, respectively. In multivariate generalized linear regression models, living in a high HOME environment was significantly associated with higher scores (0.10 to 0.13 SD) in each of the developmental domains. Stunted children scored significantly lower for cognitive, language, and motor development (-0.11 to -0.18), compared to nonstunted children. The negative associations between stunting on development were modified by HOME; the associations were strong among children living in homes with a poor learning environment whereas they were nonsignificant for those living in high-quality learning environments. In conclusion, child stunting the first year of life was negatively associated with child development at 2 years among children in Vietnam, but a high-quality HOME appeared to attenuate these associations. Early interventions aimed at improving early child growth as well as providing a stimulating home environment are critical to ensure optimal child development. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Having older siblings is associated with gut microbiota development during early childhood

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Laursen, Martin Frederik; Zachariassen, Gitte; Bahl, Martin Iain

    2015-01-01

    characteristics were not significantly associated with cumulative occurrence of eczema and asthmatic bronchitis during the first 3 years of life. Presence of older siblings is associated with increased gut microbial diversity and richness during early childhood, which could contribute to the substantiation...... of the hygiene hypothesis. However, no associations were found between gut microbiota and atopic symptoms of eczema and asthmatic bronchitis during early childhood and thus further studies are required to elucidate whether sibling-associated gut microbial changes influence development of allergies later...... in childhood....

  10. Professional Development for Early Childhood Educators: Efforts to Improve Math and Science Learning Opportunities in Early Childhood Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piasta, Shayne B.; Logan, Jessica A. R.; Pelatti, Christina Yeager; Capps, Janet L.; Petrill, Stephen A.

    2015-01-01

    Because recent initiatives highlight the need to better support preschool-aged children's math and science learning, the present study investigated the impact of professional development in these domains for early childhood educators. Sixty-five educators were randomly assigned to experience 10.5 days (64 hr) of training on math and science or on…

  11. Early adolescent childbearing in low- and middle-income countries: associations with income inequity, human development and gender equality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Decker, Michele R; Kalamar, Amanda; Tunçalp, Özge; Hindin, Michelle J

    2017-03-01

    Reducing unwanted adolescent childbearing is a global priority. Little is known about how national-level economic and human development indicators relate to early adolescent childbearing. This ecological study evaluates associations of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), GINI index, Human Development Index (HDI) and Gender-related Development Index (GDI; i.e. the HDI adjusted for gender disparities) with early adolescent childbearing in 27 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) across three time periods. Among women ages 18–24, prevalence estimates for early birth (development adjusted for gender disparities in educational and economic prospects, was more consistently related to early adolescent childbearing than the absolute development prospects as given by the HDI. While creating gender equality is an important goal in and of itself, the findings emphasize the potential for improved national-level gender equitable development as a means to improve adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health.

  12. Tractography of the corticospinal tracts in infants with focal perinatal injury: comparison with normal controls and to motor development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roze, Elise; Harris, Polly A.; Ball, Gareth; Braga, Rodrigo M.; Allsop, Joanna M.; Counsell, Serena J.; Elorza, Leire Zubiaurre; Merchant, Nazakat; Arichi, Tomoki; Edwards, A.D.; Cowan, Frances M.; Porter, Emma; Rutherford, Mary A.

    2012-01-01

    Our aims were to (1) assess the corticospinal tracts (CSTs) in infants with focal injury and healthy term controls using probabilistic tractography and (2) to correlate the conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and tractography findings in infants with focal injury with their later motor function. We studied 20 infants with focal lesions and 23 controls using MRI and diffusion tensor imaging. Tract volume, fractional anisotropy (FA), apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values, axial diffusivity and radial diffusivity (RD) of the CSTs were determined. Asymmetry indices (AIs) were calculated by comparing ipsilateral to contralateral CSTs. Motor outcome was assessed using a standardized neurological examination. Conventional MRI was able to predict normal motor development (n = 9) or hemiplegia (n = 6). In children who developed a mild motor asymmetry (n = 5), conventional MRI predicted a hemiplegia in two and normal motor development in three infants. The AIs for tract volume, FA, ADC and RD showed a significant difference between controls and infants who developed a hemiplegia, and RD also showed a significant difference in AI between controls and infants who developed a mild asymmetry. Conventional MRI was able to predict subsequent normal motor development or hemiplegia following focal injury in newborn infants. Measures of RD obtained from diffusion tractography may offer additional information for predicting a subsequent asymmetry in motor function. (orig.)

  13. Early childhood development in Africa: interrogating constraints of prevailing knowledge bases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pence, Alan R; Marfo, Kofi

    2008-04-01

    The past two decades have been characterized by renewed attention to the importance of early childhood development (ECD) policies and services in the world's richest and most industrialized countries. During the same period, we have witnessed unprecedented efforts to place ECD policies on the national development planning agenda of the economically less advantaged countries of the Majority World. This paper is premised on the concern that the purposes that have led bilateral and multilateral international agencies to promote and support ECD services in Africa may also be paving the way for uncritical adoption of program and service delivery models grounded in value systems and knowledge bases that may not be appropriate for the continent. We present two critiques to highlight the dangers of ignoring the sociocultural contexts of the knowledge bases that inform ECD policies and practices. We describe one capacity-building effort, under the auspices of the Early Childhood Development Virtual University (ECDVU), to promote culturally relevant knowledge and prepare leadership personnel for Africa's emerging ECD movement. Finally, based on an exercise designed for an ECDVU cohort to engage and reflect on critiques of mainstream research and theorizing on child development, we share insights that are suggestive of the ways in which African perspectives can contribute to and enrich a global knowledge base on child development.

  14. Overexpression of IL-7R alpha provides a competitive advantage during early T-cell development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laouar, Yasmina; Crispe, I Nicholas; Flavell, Richard A

    2004-03-15

    Critical checkpoints controlling early thymic T-cell development and homeostasis are set by the proper signaling function of the interleukin 7 receptor (IL-7R) and the pre-T-cell antigen receptor. Although alpha beta T-cell development is observed in IL-7- and IL-7R alpha-deficient mice, the number of thymocytes is significantly reduced, implying a role for the IL-7R in controlling the size of the thymic T-cell compartment. Here, we report the overexpression of IL-7R alpha that occurs in the early T-cell compartment from AKR/J mice, animals that are highly susceptible to the spontaneous development of thymoma. Increased IL-7R alpha was revealed by surface staining, and increased IL-7R alpha mRNA was documented by using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). This resulted in increased survival of AKR/J early thymocytes, shown by the decreased frequency of TUNEL(+) (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate [dUTP]-fluorescein nick end labeling) cells. In an in vivo thymocyte repopulation model, AKR/J thymocytes had a selective advantage over healthy thymocytes. This advantage occurred at early stages of T-cell development. Our findings support the model that overexpression of growth factor receptors can contribute to proliferation and malignancy.

  15. Normal male childhood and adolescent sexual interactions: implications for sexual orientation of the individual with intersex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Peter A; Houk, Christopher P

    2005-03-01

    Data provided by 24 adult men, 20 heterosexual and four homosexual, concerning parental, religious, geographic and explicit sexual innuendos, comments and childhood experiences are presented and discussed in an attempt to consider some of the multiple factors impacting the development of sexual orientation. All of the study subjects were normally developed males and were presumed to have been exposed to normal male levels of androgens prenatally. Since the experiences and perceptions reported are conditioned by a unique social environment that has been superimposed on a normal male typical prenatal CNS differentiation, the experiences of these men suggest that affirmation of masculinity, and openness in the realm of social and sexual interaction, may enhance the formation of a heterosexual orientation. Conversely, sexually explicit feedback with critical implications occurred commonly among the homosexual men, which they interpreted as implying an insufficient masculinity. Both innate factors and social influences impact sexual orientation; in some instances males appear to have been homosexual from early childhood onward, while in other cases there appears to have been some degree of conditioning and choice in sexual orientation. Regarding the intersexed male, this suggests that social interactions, particularly those provided by parents, have a major influence on the development of sexual orientation in the child, while all persons involved in these children's lives and particularly those who nurture must be prepared for any sexual orientation that develops.

  16. The influence of the neighborhood physical environment on early child health and development: A review and call for research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christian, Hayley; Zubrick, Stephen R; Foster, Sarah; Giles-Corti, Billie; Bull, Fiona; Wood, Lisa; Knuiman, Matthew; Brinkman, Sally; Houghton, Stephen; Boruff, Bryan

    2015-05-01

    This review examines evidence of the association between the neighborhood built environment, green spaces and outdoor home area, and early (0-7 years) child health and development. There was evidence that the presence of child relevant neighborhood destinations and services were positively associated with early child development domains of physical health and wellbeing and social competence. Parents׳ perceptions of neighborhood safety were positively associated with children׳s social-emotional development and general health. Population representative studies using objective measures of the built environment and valid measures of early child development are warranted to understand the impact of the built environment on early child health and development. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. Development and application of a biorelevant dissolution method using USP apparatus 4 in early phase formulation development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fang, Jiang B; Robertson, Vivian K; Rawat, Archana; Flick, Tawnya; Tang, Zhe J; Cauchon, Nina S; McElvain, James S

    2010-10-04

    Dissolution testing is frequently used to determine the rate and extent at which a drug is released from a dosage form, and it plays many important roles throughout drug product development. However, the traditional dissolution approach often emphasizes its application in quality control testing and usually strives to obtain 100% drug release. As a result, dissolution methods are not necessarily biorelevant and meaningful application of traditional dissolution methods in the early phases of drug product development can be very limited. This article will describe the development of a biorelevant in vitro dissolution method using USP apparatus 4, biorelevant media, and real-time online UV analysis. Several case studies in the areas of formulation selection, lot-to-lot variability, and food effect will be presented to demonstrate the application of this method in early phase formulation development. This biorelevant dissolution method using USP apparatus 4 provides a valuable tool to predict certain aspects of the in vivo drug release. It can be used to facilitate the formulation development/selection for pharmacokinetic (PK) and clinical studies. It may also potentially be used to minimize the number of PK studies, and to aid in the design of more efficient PK and clinical studies.

  18. The effect of excess expression of GFP in a novel heart-specific green fluorescence zebrafish regulated by nppa enhancer at early embryonic development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Wen; Deng, Yun; Dong, Wei; Yuan, Wuzhou; Wan, Yongqi; Mo, Xiaoyan; Li, Yongqing; Wang, Zequn; Wang, Yuequn; Ocorr, Karen; Zhang, Bo; Lin, Shuo; Wu, Xiushan

    2011-02-01

    In order to study the impalpable effect of GFP in homozygous heart-specific GFP-positive zebrafish during the early stage, the researchers analyzed the heart function of morphology and physiology at the first 3 days after fertilization. This zebrafish line was produced by a large-scale Tol2 transposon mediated enhancer trap screen that generated a transgenic zebrafish with a heart-specific expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged under control of the nppa enhancer. In situ hybridization experiments showed that the nppa:GFP line faithfully recapitulated both the spatial and temporal expressions of the endogenous nppa. Green fluorescence was intensively and specifically expressed in the myocardial cells located both in the heart chambers and in the atrioventricular canal. The embryonic heart of nppa:GFP line developed normally compared with those in the wild type. There was no difference between the nappa:GFP and wild type lines with respect to heart rate, overall size, ejection volume, and fractional shortening. Thus the excess expression of GFP in this transgenic line seemed to exert no detrimental effects on zebrafish hearts during the early stages.

  19. Early development of postural adjustments in standing with and without support

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hedberg, Asa; Schmitz, Christina; Forssberg, Hans; Hadders-Algra, Mijna

    This study investigates the early development of postural adjustments during external perturbations in two different standing positions: standing with support and standing without support. The aim of the study was to assess a group of 13 infants four times during the period in life when independent

  20. Parental psychopathology and the early developing child: The Generation R Study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    M.P. Lambregtse-van den Berg (Mijke)

    2006-01-01

    textabstractUp to now research tradition particularly focused on the influence of maternal psychopathology on the early developing infant. There are two main reasons to focus on paternal psychopathology during pregnancy. Firstly, fathers contribute 50% of their children’s genes and depression and

  1. Community-based interventions to optimize early childhood development in low resource settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maulik, P K; Darmstadt, G L

    2009-08-01

    Interventions targeting the early childhood period (0 to 3 years) help to improve neuro-cognitive functioning throughout life. Some of the more low cost, low resource-intensive community practices for this age-group are play, reading, music and tactile stimulation. This research was conducted to summarize the evidence regarding the effectiveness of such strategies on child development, with particular focus on techniques that may be transferable to developing countries and to children at risk of developing secondary impairments. PubMed, PsycInfo, Embase, ERIC, CINAHL and Cochrane were searched for studies involving the above strategies for early intervention. Reference lists of these studies were scanned and other studies were incorporated based on snow-balling. Overall, 76 articles corresponding to 53 studies, 24 of which were randomized controlled trials, were identified. Sixteen of those studies were from low- and middle-income countries. Play and reading were the two commonest interventions and showed positive impact on intellectual development of the child. Music was evaluated primarily in intensive care settings. Kangaroo Mother Care, and to a lesser extent massage, also showed beneficial effects. Improvement in parent-child interaction was common to all the interventions. Play and reading were effective interventions for early childhood interventions in low- and middle-income countries. More research is needed to judge the effectiveness of music. Kangaroo Mother Care is effective for low birth weight babies in resource poor settings, but further research is needed in community settings. Massage is useful, but needs more rigorous research prior to being advocated for community-level interventions.

  2. Neurobiological Programming of Early Life Stress: Functional Development of Amygdala-Prefrontal Circuitry and Vulnerability for Stress-Related Psychopathology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    VanTieghem, Michelle R; Tottenham, Nim

    2017-04-25

    Early adverse experiences are associated with heighted vulnerability for stress-related psychopathology across the lifespan. While extensive work has investigated the effects of early adversity on neurobiology in adulthood, developmental approaches can provide further insight on the neurobiological mechanisms that link early experiences and long-term mental health outcomes. In the current review, we discuss the role of emotion regulation circuitry implicated in stress-related psychopathology from a developmental and transdiagnostic perspective. We highlight converging evidence suggesting that multiple forms of early adverse experiences impact the functional development of amygdala-prefrontal circuitry. Next, we discuss how adversity-induced alterations in amygdala-prefrontal development are associated with symptoms of emotion dysregulation and psychopathology. Additionally, we discuss potential mechanisms through which protective factors may buffer the effects of early adversity on amygdala-prefrontal development to confer more adaptive long-term outcomes. Finally, we consider limitations of the existing literature and make suggestions for future longitudinal and translational research that can better elucidate the mechanisms linking early adversity, neurobiology, and emotional phenotypes. Together, these findings may provide further insight into the neuro-developmental mechanisms underlying the emergence of adversity-related emotional disorders and facilitate the development of targeted interventions that can ameliorate risk for psychopathology in youth exposed to early life stress.

  3. 78 FR 9396 - Draft Guidance for Industry on Alzheimer's Disease: Developing Drugs for the Treatment of Early...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-02-08

    ...] Draft Guidance for Industry on Alzheimer's Disease: Developing Drugs for the Treatment of Early Stage... ``Alzheimer's Disease: Developing Drugs for the Treatment of Early Stage Disease.'' This guidance outlines FDA... trials that are specifically focused on the treatment of patients with established Alzheimer's disease...

  4. Normal tissue complication probability for salivary glands

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rana, B.S.

    2008-01-01

    The purpose of radiotherapy is to make a profitable balance between the morbidity (due to side effects of radiation) and cure of malignancy. To achieve this, one needs to know the relation between NTCP (normal tissue complication probability) and various treatment variables of a schedule viz. daily dose, duration of treatment, total dose and fractionation along with tissue conditions. Prospective studies require that a large number of patients be treated with varied schedule parameters and a statistically acceptable number of patients develop complications so that a true relation between NTCP and a particular variable is established. In this study Salivary Glands Complications have been considered. The cases treated in 60 Co teletherapy machine during the period 1994 to 2002 were analyzed and the clinicians judgement in ascertaining the end points was the only means of observations. The only end points were early and late xerestomia which were considered for NTCP evaluations for a period of 5 years

  5. Activation of the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Interferes with Early Embryonic Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manolis Gialitakis

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available The transcriptional program of early embryonic development is tightly regulated by a set of well-defined transcription factors that suppress premature expression of differentiation genes and sustain the pluripotent identity. It is generally accepted that this program can be perturbed by environmental factors such as chemical pollutants; however, the precise molecular mechanisms remain unknown. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR is a widely expressed nuclear receptor that senses environmental stimuli and modulates target gene expression. Here, we have investigated the AHR interactome in embryonic stem cells by mass spectrometry and show that ectopic activation of AHR during early differentiation disrupts the differentiation program via the chromatin remodeling complex NuRD (nucleosome remodeling and deacetylation. The activated AHR/NuRD complex altered the expression of differentiation-specific genes that control the first two developmental decisions without affecting the pluripotency program. These findings identify a mechanism that allows environmental stimuli to disrupt embryonic development through AHR signaling.

  6. Effects of copper on early developmental stages of Lessonia nigrescens Bory (Phaeophyceae)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Contreras, Loretto [Departamento de Ecologia, Center for Advanced Studies in Ecology and Biodiversity, Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Post-code 6513677, Alameda 340, Santiago (Chile); Medina, Matias H. [Departamento de Ecologia, Center for Advanced Studies in Ecology and Biodiversity, Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Post-code 6513677, Alameda 340, Santiago (Chile); CIIMAR - Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigacao Marinha e Ambiental, Laboratory of Ecotoxicology, Universidade do Porto (Portugal); Andrade, Santiago [Departamento de Ecologia, Center for Advanced Studies in Ecology and Biodiversity, Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Post-code 6513677, Alameda 340, Santiago (Chile); Oppliger, Valeria [Departamento de Ecologia, Center for Advanced Studies in Ecology and Biodiversity, Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Post-code 6513677, Alameda 340, Santiago (Chile); Correa, Juan A. [Departamento de Ecologia, Center for Advanced Studies in Ecology and Biodiversity, Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Post-code 6513677, Alameda 340, Santiago (Chile)]. E-mail: jcorrea@bio.puc.cl

    2007-01-15

    Copper effects on the early developmental gametophytic and sporophytic stages of the kelp Lessonia nigrescens were tested in gradients of increasing concentrations of ASV-labile copper. The results demonstrated a high sensitivity to copper of all life-history stages of the alga, where even the lowest tested concentration affected spore release as well as their subsequent settlement. More significant, concentrations higher than 7.87 {mu}g L{sup -1} totally interrupted the development of the spores after they settle. This effect led to a failure in the formation of male and female gametophytes and, as a consequence, to a complete disruption of the normal life cycle of the kelp. Thus, we suggest that the absence of L. nigrescens from copper-enriched environments results from the high sensitivity of its early life cycle stages, which limits growth and maturation of the gametophytic microscopic phase and, as a consequence, prevents development of the macroscopic sporophytic phase. - Early developmental stages of Lessonia nigrescens are highly sensitive to copper.

  7. Effects of copper on early developmental stages of Lessonia nigrescens Bory (Phaeophyceae)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Contreras, Loretto; Medina, Matias H.; Andrade, Santiago; Oppliger, Valeria; Correa, Juan A.

    2007-01-01

    Copper effects on the early developmental gametophytic and sporophytic stages of the kelp Lessonia nigrescens were tested in gradients of increasing concentrations of ASV-labile copper. The results demonstrated a high sensitivity to copper of all life-history stages of the alga, where even the lowest tested concentration affected spore release as well as their subsequent settlement. More significant, concentrations higher than 7.87 μg L -1 totally interrupted the development of the spores after they settle. This effect led to a failure in the formation of male and female gametophytes and, as a consequence, to a complete disruption of the normal life cycle of the kelp. Thus, we suggest that the absence of L. nigrescens from copper-enriched environments results from the high sensitivity of its early life cycle stages, which limits growth and maturation of the gametophytic microscopic phase and, as a consequence, prevents development of the macroscopic sporophytic phase. - Early developmental stages of Lessonia nigrescens are highly sensitive to copper

  8. The effect of unilateral ovariectomy on early embryonic survival and embryo development in rabbits

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. Peiró

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Unilateral ovariectomy can be used to study uterine capacity in rabbits because an overcrowding of the functional uterine horn is produced. Due to the uterus duplex, the rabbit is the ideal model for such studies. However, this technique may affect embryo survival. The aim of this work is to study the effect of unilateral ovariectomy on early embryo survival and development in rabbit. A total of 101 unilateral ovariectomised females and 52 intact females were compared after slaughter at 30 h post-mating. Early embryo survival was estimated as the ratio between number of embryo recovered and ovulation rate. No differences were found between intact and unilaterally ovariectomised females in this trait. Unilateral ovariectomy did not change embryo development, measured as the number of embryo cells. Variability of embryo development was not affected either. At 30 h post-mating, the majority of embryos (86.2% were 4-cell stage. Embryo quality was evaluated according to morphological criteria. No difference in embryo quality between intact and unilaterally ovariectomised females was found. Therefore, unilateral ovariectomy performed before puberty in rabbit does not modify early embryo survival and development.

  9. A Systematic Review of the Effectiveness of Early Intervention and the Role of Parents in Language Development of Hearing Loss Children

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    Ehsan Shekari

    2017-03-01

    Discussion: Research showed the effectiveness of early intervention in the early development of language and vocabulary. In addition, early detection of hearing loss in the first 6 months of age has a positive impact on children and families interactions and consequently, on language and vocabulary development. The primary focus in the implementation of early intervention services is to reduce the negative effects of risk factors and facilitate optimum development over time. Finally, the combination of early diagnosis and early intervention for children with hearing impairment is necessary.

  10. Developing TOPSIS method using statistical normalization for selecting knowledge management strategies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amin Zadeh Sarraf

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Numerous companies are expecting their knowledge management (KM to be performed effectively in order to leverage and transform the knowledge into competitive advantages. However, here raises a critical issue of how companies can better evaluate and select a favorable KM strategy prior to a successful KM implementation. Design/methodology/approach: An extension of TOPSIS, a multi-attribute decision making (MADM technique, to a group decision environment is investigated. TOPSIS is a practical and useful technique for ranking and selection of a number of externally determined alternatives through distance measures. The entropy method is often used for assessing weights in the TOPSIS method. Entropy in information theory is a criterion uses for measuring the amount of disorder represented by a discrete probability distribution. According to decrease resistance degree of employees opposite of implementing a new strategy, it seems necessary to spot all managers’ opinion. The normal distribution considered the most prominent probability distribution in statistics is used to normalize gathered data. Findings: The results of this study show that by considering 6 criteria for alternatives Evaluation, the most appropriate KM strategy to implement  in our company was ‘‘Personalization’’. Research limitations/implications: In this research, there are some assumptions that might affect the accuracy of the approach such as normal distribution of sample and community. These assumptions can be changed in future work. Originality/value: This paper proposes an effective solution based on combined entropy and TOPSIS approach to help companies that need to evaluate and select KM strategies. In represented solution, opinions of all managers is gathered and normalized by using standard normal distribution and central limit theorem. Keywords: Knowledge management; strategy; TOPSIS; Normal distribution; entropy

  11. Nutrition and brain development in early life.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prado, Elizabeth L; Dewey, Kathryn G

    2014-04-01

    Presented here is an overview of the pathway from early nutrient deficiency to long-term brain function, cognition, and productivity, focusing on research from low- and middle-income countries. Animal models have demonstrated the importance of adequate nutrition for the neurodevelopmental processes that occur rapidly during pregnancy and infancy, such as neuron proliferation and myelination. However, several factors influence whether nutrient deficiencies during this period cause permanent cognitive deficits in human populations, including the child's interaction with the environment, the timing and degree of nutrient deficiency, and the possibility of recovery. These factors should be taken into account in the design and interpretation of future research. Certain types of nutritional deficiency clearly impair brain development, including severe acute malnutrition, chronic undernutrition, iron deficiency, and iodine deficiency. While strategies such as salt iodization and micronutrient powders have been shown to improve these conditions, direct evidence of their impact on brain development is scarce. Other strategies also require further research, including supplementation with iron and other micronutrients, essential fatty acids, and fortified food supplements during pregnancy and infancy. © 2014 International Life Sciences Institute.

  12. Early and delayed Tc-99m ECD brain SPECT in SLE patients with CNS involvement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kikukawa, Kaoru; Toyama, Hiroshi; Katayama, Masao

    2000-01-01

    We compared early and delayed Tc-99m ECD SPECT scans in 32 SLE patients (Group 1, definite neuropsychiatric disorders; Group 2, minor neurologic symptoms or normal) with those of normal controls by visual inspection and semi-quantitative evaluation. With visual interpretation, 13 out of 14 patients in Group 1 (93%) and 7 out of 18 patients in Group 2 (39%) had diffuse uneven decrease in early scans. Seven patients in Group 2 (39%) who had normal early scans demonstrated focal decrease in the medial frontal lobe in delayed scans. With cerebral region to cerebellar ratios, in early scans, the medial frontal lobe in Group 1 and Group 2 was significantly lower than in normal controls, and lateral frontal lobe and occipital lobes in Group 1 were significantly lower than in normal controls. Nevertheless, in delayed scans, every cortical region except for the parietal lode in Groups 1 and 2 was significantly lower than in normal controls. The retention rates in all regions in SLE patients were significantly lower than in normal controls. No case showed SPECT improvement on follow-up studies in either group in spite of clinical improvement. Delayed Tc-99m ECD brain SPECT of high sensitivity might be useful in detecting CNS involvement. Although the SPECT findings did not correlate with the neuropsychiatric symptoms, early and delayed Tc-99m ECD SPECT seems to provide useful objective diagnostic information in SLE patients. (author)

  13. Distinguishing human normal or cancerous esophagus tissue ex vivo using multiphoton microscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, N R; Chen, G N; Wu, S S; Chen, R

    2014-01-01

    Application of multiphoton microscopy (MPM) to clinical cancer research has greatly developed over the last few years. In this paper, we mainly focus on two-photon excitation fluorescence (TPEF) and second harmonic generation (SHG) for investigating esophageal cancer. We chiefly discuss the SHG/TPEF image and spectral characteristics of normal and cancerous esophagus submucosa with the combined multi-channel imaging mode and Lambda mode of a multiphoton microscope (LSM 510 META). Great differences can be detected, such as collagen content and morphology, glandular-shaped cancer cells, TPEF/SHG intensity ratio, and so on, which demonstrate that the multiphoton imaging technique has the potential ability for minimally-invasive early cancer diagnosis. (paper)

  14. Distinguishing human normal or cancerous esophagus tissue ex vivo using multiphoton microscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, N. R.; Chen, G. N.; Wu, S. S.; Chen, R.

    2014-02-01

    Application of multiphoton microscopy (MPM) to clinical cancer research has greatly developed over the last few years. In this paper, we mainly focus on two-photon excitation fluorescence (TPEF) and second harmonic generation (SHG) for investigating esophageal cancer. We chiefly discuss the SHG/TPEF image and spectral characteristics of normal and cancerous esophagus submucosa with the combined multi-channel imaging mode and Lambda mode of a multiphoton microscope (LSM 510 META). Great differences can be detected, such as collagen content and morphology, glandular-shaped cancer cells, TPEF/SHG intensity ratio, and so on, which demonstrate that the multiphoton imaging technique has the potential ability for minimally-invasive early cancer diagnosis.

  15. Role of Insulin-like growth factors in initiation of follicle growth in normal and polycystic human ovaries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stubbs, Sharron A; Webber, Lisa J; Stark, Jaroslav; Rice, Suman; Margara, Raul; Lavery, Stuart; Trew, Geoffrey H; Hardy, Kate; Franks, Stephen

    2013-08-01

    Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the commonest cause of anovulatory infertility, is characterized by disordered follicle development including increased activation and accelerated growth of preantral follicles. Data from experimental animals and preliminary results from studies of human ovarian tissue suggest that IGFs affect preantral follicle development. Our objectives were to investigate the expression of the type-1 IGF receptor (IGFR-1) in the human ovary and to determine whether IGFs are involved in stimulating the transition of follicles from primordial to primary stage in normal and polycystic ovaries. We used archived ovarian tissue for protein expression studies and small cortical biopsies for follicle isolation and for tissue culture. This was a laboratory-based study, using clinical tissue samples. A total of 54 women, 33 with normal ovaries and 21 with polycystic ovaries, were classified by reference to menstrual cycle history and ultrasonography. We evaluated expression of IGFR-1 mRNA in isolated preantral follicles and of IGFR-1 protein in archived ovarian tissue samples from normal and polycystic ovaries and effects of exogenous IGF-1 on preantral follicle development and survival in cultured fragments of normal and polycystic ovaries. IGFR-1 mRNA and protein was expressed in preantral follicles at all stages of development and enhanced expression was noted in PCOS follicles during early preantral development. IGF-1 stimulated initiation of follicle growth in normal tissue but had little effect on preantral follicle growth in polycystic ovaries in which, characteristically, there was a higher proportion of follicles that had entered the growing phase even before culture. IGFs are plausible candidates in regulation of initiation of human follicle growth, and accelerated preantral follicle growth in PCOS may be due to increased activity of endogenous IGFs.

  16. Role of vision on early motor development : lessons from the blind

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Prechtl, HFR; Cioni, G; Einspieler, C; Bos, AF; Ferrari, F

    For a better understanding of the contribution vision makes to the development of other sensory systems and to movement and posture, we studied effects of early blindness by examining video recordings of 14 totally blind infants. Infants were born at term or preterm and showed no evidence of brain

  17. Identifying Local Benefits of Early Childhood Development Programs Using Regional Modeling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Temple, Judy A.; Rolnick, Arthur J.

    2012-01-01

    This article presents a review of "Investing in Kids: Early Childhood Programs and Local Economic Development" by Timothy J. Bartik. Timothy Bartik's timely book contributes to an important conversation about the role of government in promoting investments in children in the years before traditional public schooling typically begins. Until…

  18. Rethinking the Food and Drug Administration's 2013 guidance on developing drugs for early-stage Alzheimer's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schneider, Lon S

    2014-03-01

    The February 2013 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) draft guidance for developing drugs for early-stage Alzheimer's disease (AD) creates certain challenges as they guide toward the use of one cognitive outcome to gain accelerated marketing approval for preclinical AD drugs, and a composite clinical scale - the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale in particular - for the primary outcome for prodromal AD clinical trials. In light of the developing knowledge regarding early stage diagnoses and clinical trials outcomes, we recommend that FDA describe its requirements for validating preclinical AD diagnoses for drug development purposes, maintain the principle for requiring coprimary outcomes, and encourage the advancement of outcomes for early stage AD trials. The principles for drug development for early stage AD should not differ from those for clinical AD, especially as the diagnoses of prodromal and early AD impinge on each other. The FDA should not recommend that a composite scale be used as a sole primary efficacy outcome to support a marketing claim unless it requires that the cognitive and functional components of such a scale are demonstrated to be individually meaningful. The current draft guidelines may inadvertently constrain efforts to better assess the clinical effects of new drugs and inhibit innovation in an area where evidence-based clinical research practices are still evolving. Copyright © 2014 The Alzheimer's Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Deiodinase knockdown during early zebrafish development affects growth, development, energy metabolism, motility and phototransduction.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Enise Bagci

    Full Text Available Thyroid hormone (TH balance is essential for vertebrate development. Deiodinase type 1 (D1 and type 2 (D2 increase and deiodinase type 3 (D3 decreases local intracellular levels of T3, the most important active TH. The role of deiodinase-mediated TH effects in early vertebrate development is only partially understood. Therefore, we investigated the role of deiodinases during early development of zebrafish until 96 hours post fertilization at the level of the transcriptome (microarray, biochemistry, morphology and physiology using morpholino (MO knockdown. Knockdown of D1+D2 (D1D2MO and knockdown of D3 (D3MO both resulted in transcriptional regulation of energy metabolism and (muscle development in abdomen and tail, together with reduced growth, impaired swim bladder inflation, reduced protein content and reduced motility. The reduced growth and impaired swim bladder inflation in D1D2MO could be due to lower levels of T3 which is known to drive growth and development. The pronounced upregulation of a large number of transcripts coding for key proteins in ATP-producing pathways in D1D2MO could reflect a compensatory response to a decreased metabolic rate, also typically linked to hypothyroidism. Compared to D1D2MO, the effects were more pronounced or more frequent in D3MO, in which hyperthyroidism is expected. More specifically, increased heart rate, delayed hatching and increased carbohydrate content were observed only in D3MO. An increase of the metabolic rate, a decrease of the metabolic efficiency and a stimulation of gluconeogenesis using amino acids as substrates may have been involved in the observed reduced protein content, growth and motility in D3MO larvae. Furthermore, expression of transcripts involved in purine metabolism coupled to vision was decreased in both knockdown conditions, suggesting that both may impair vision. This study provides new insights, not only into the role of deiodinases, but also into the importance of a correct

  20. Lung Development and Aging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bush, Andrew

    2016-12-01

    The onset of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can arise either from failure to attain the normal spirometric plateau or from an accelerated decline in lung function. Despite reports from numerous big cohorts, no single adult life factor, including smoking, accounts for this accelerated decline. By contrast, five childhood risk factors (maternal and paternal asthma, maternal smoking, childhood asthma and respiratory infections) are strongly associated with an accelerated rate of lung function decline and COPD. Among adverse effects on lung development are transgenerational (grandmaternal smoking), antenatal (exposure to tobacco and pollution), and early childhood (exposure to tobacco and pollution including pesticides) factors. Antenatal adverse events can operate by causing structural changes in the developing lung, causing low birth weight and prematurity and altered immunological responses. Also important are mode of delivery, early microbiological exposures, and multiple early atopic sensitizations. Early bronchial hyperresponsiveness, before any evidence of airway inflammation, is associated with adverse respiratory outcomes. Overlapping cohort studies established that spirometry tracks from the preschool years to late middle age, and those with COPD in the sixth decade already had the worst spirometry at age 10 years. Alveolar development is now believed to continue throughout somatic growth and is adversely impacted by early tobacco smoke exposure. Genetic factors are also important, with genes important in lung development and early wheezing also being implicated in COPD. The inescapable conclusion is that the roots of COPD are in early life, and COPD is a disease of childhood adverse factors interacting with genetic factors.