A model for continued professional development with focus on inquiry-based learning in science education

This is a qualitative study with a twofold aim. The first aim is to describe and analyse teachers' perceptions of advantages and challenges with a model for continued professional development (CPD) for primary school teachers. The CPD course was about inquiry-based learning (IBL) in science education. The second aim of the study is to analyse the teachers' thoughts after implementing inquiry-based methods in their own science teaching. The empirical data, in the form of video transcriptions, notes, interviews and results from electronic forms, were collected during and after four separate in-service courses for teachers (N=26). The analysis of the data is done through thematic analysis. As positive results, the teachers emphasised the implementation of IBL with their students and the individual mentoring, which were parts of the CPD model. Teachers highlighted the importance of students' possibilities to make investigations based on their own questions, which proved to have a positive impact on students' interest and motivation. Teachers also saw the importance of their own planning and goal setting. The results indicate that the teachers perceived a tension between having control and relinquishing control, which can become a challenge. Two other challenges were teachers' perceived lack of time for planning and implementing but also teachers' deficient subject knowledge.

A Novel Polymorphism in Glycoprotein IV (Replacement of Proline-90 by Serine) Predominates in Subjects with Platelet GPIV Deficiency

SummaryTo clarify the molecular basis of the deficiency of glycoprotein IV (GPIV) of the platelet surface, we analyzed GPIV cDNA synthesized from platelet RNA of five unrelated Japanese subjects whose platelets did not express GPIV.We confirmed the presence of normal-sized GPIV mRNA in platelets from subjects with GPIV deficiency. The sequence of platelet GPIV cDNA from GPIV deficient subject showed three differences when compared with the published sequence; 1) a replacement of a 478CCT codon for proline-90 by TCT for serine, 2) a four-base insertion in the 3′-noncoding region, and 3) a substitution of A for 79C in the 5′-noncoding region. The replacement of Pro90 by Ser predominates in subjects with GPIV deficiency; that is, four out of five platelets with GPIV deficiency contained GPIV mRNA encoding GPIVSer-90, while all platelets from 17 GPIV positive subjects had GPIV mRNA encoding GPIVPro-90. The sequence of platelet GPIV cDNA which did not encode GPIVSer-90 from a subject with GPIV deficiency revealed no abnormality in the coding region. The four-base insertion in the 3′-noncoding region and the substitution of A for 79C in the 5′-noncoding region seems to be unrelated to the expression of GPIV.The substitution of Ser for Pro90 might alter the GPIV structure or impair GPIV biosynthesis, resulting in a lack of detectable GPIV. This hypothesis remains to be tested.

Thromboembolism and Bleeding Tendency in Congenital Factor XII DeficienCy - A Study on 74 Subjects from 14 Swiss Families

SummaryIn order to assess the clinical implications of hereditary F XII deficietrcy, all available members of Swiss families with F XII deficiency were investigated. Based on the F XII: C values and the family pedigree, the 74 subjects, aged 8-–82 years, were classified as homozygotes/double heterozygotes for F XII deficiency (n = 18), as obligatory (n = 20) or possibly (n = 25) heterozygotes, respectively, and as norrnals (n = 11). None of the 18 subjects with F XII: C <0.01 U/ml and only one possibly heterozygous woman had an abnormal bleeding tendency, confirming the notion that Hageman trait generally does not result in a hemorrhagic diathesis. Two of the 18 subjects with severe F XII deficiency had suffered from venous thromboembolic disease at age <40 years. One heterozygous woman had a leg ulcer probably due to venous thrombosis. Thus, whereas homozygous F XII deficiency may be associated with an increased risk for venous thromboembolic disease, partial F XII deficiency is not, by itself, a strong risk factor for thrombosis.Where as 17 of the 18 subjects with F xII : C <0.01 U/ml had no detectable F XIL Ag, one cross reacting material-positive F XII deficient subject (F XII:Ag = 0.11 U/ml) was identified. The dysfunctional F XII, present in this subject's plasma and tentatively called F XII Bern, is the fourth abnormal F XII molecule identified so far.

Aberrant restriction endonuclease digests of DNA from subjects with hereditary myeloperoxidase deficiency

Myeloperoxidase (MPO) is a critical component in the oxygen-dependent microbicidal activity of neutrophils. Hereditary deficiency of MPO occurs commonly, but its genetic basis has not been determined. Previously we have reported the presence of an 89-kilodalton protein, likely pro-MPO, in normal and MPO-deficient neutrophils and hypothesized that the absence of peroxidase activity in neutrophils from affected subjects was the result of defective posttranslational processing of pro-MPO. In this study we analyzed nucleic acids from three completely and two partially MPO-deficient individuals by using a cDNA probe for MPO. The affected individuals studied are unrelated to one another. Neutrophils from all affected subjects lacked mature MPO subunits; however, a monospecific antibody for MPO identified in these cells a high-molecular weight protein that is the same size as pro-MPO. Northern blots demonstrated that the amount and size of RNA (3.3 kilobases [kb]) in a completely deficient subject was normal. BglII digests of genomic DNA from control individuals (n = 14) contained three fragments that hybridized with cDNA for MPO under very stringent conditions. In contrast, BglII digests of genomic DNA from completely MPO-deficient individuals contained an extra fragment of 2.1 kb that was not present in DNA from controls. In addition, two different endonuclease digest patterns were found in MPO-deficient subjects who were biochemically and phenotypically identical. We conclude from these studies that (a) hereditary MPO deficiency is not associated with a major deletion or rearrangement of the MPO gene; (b) myeloid precursors in an MPO-deficient individual contain normal amounts of an mRNA that is the same size as that for MPO in normal individuals; and (c) the genetic basis for MPO deficiency may be heterogeneous, with at least two genotypes generating the same phenotype. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that the genetic defect in MPO deficiency results in synthesis of a modified pro-MPO that undergoes defective posttranslational processing.

Aberrant restriction endonuclease digests of DNA from subjects with hereditary myeloperoxidase deficiency

Myeloperoxidase (MPO) is a critical component in the oxygen-dependent microbicidal activity of neutrophils. Hereditary deficiency of MPO occurs commonly, but its genetic basis has not been determined. Previously we have reported the presence of an 89-kilodalton protein, likely pro-MPO, in normal and MPO-deficient neutrophils and hypothesized that the absence of peroxidase activity in neutrophils from affected subjects was the result of defective posttranslational processing of pro-MPO. In this study we analyzed nucleic acids from three completely and two partially MPO-deficient individuals by using a cDNA probe for MPO. The affected individuals studied are unrelated to one another. Neutrophils from all affected subjects lacked mature MPO subunits; however, a monospecific antibody for MPO identified in these cells a high-molecular weight protein that is the same size as pro-MPO. Northern blots demonstrated that the amount and size of RNA (3.3 kilobases [kb]) in a completely deficient subject was normal. BglII digests of genomic DNA from control individuals (n = 14) contained three fragments that hybridized with cDNA for MPO under very stringent conditions. In contrast, BglII digests of genomic DNA from completely MPO-deficient individuals contained an extra fragment of 2.1 kb that was not present in DNA from controls. In addition, two different endonuclease digest patterns were found in MPO-deficient subjects who were biochemically and phenotypically identical. We conclude from these studies that (a) hereditary MPO deficiency is not associated with a major deletion or rearrangement of the MPO gene; (b) myeloid precursors in an MPO-deficient individual contain normal amounts of an mRNA that is the same size as that for MPO in normal individuals; and (c) the genetic basis for MPO deficiency may be heterogeneous, with at least two genotypes generating the same phenotype. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that the genetic defect in MPO deficiency results in synthesis of a modified pro-MPO that undergoes defective posttranslational processing.