Social and Emotional Learning programs, designed to enhance adolescents' social and emotional skills, are implemented in schools worldwide. One of these programs is Skills4Life (S4L), for students... Show moreSocial and Emotional Learning programs, designed to enhance adolescents' social and emotional skills, are implemented in schools worldwide. One of these programs is Skills4Life (S4L), for students in Dutch secondary education. To strengthen this program and adapt it to students' needs, we conducted an exploratory study on their perspectives on their own social-emotional development, focusing on low-achieving students in prevoca-tional education.We interviewed eleven boys and eleven girls in five focus groups on (1) their general school life experiences, (2) their perceptions and experiences regarding interactions with peers, the problems they encountered in these interactions, and (3) the strategies and skills they used to solve these problems. Driven by findings in related studies initial thematic analyzes were extended using a three-step approach: an inductive, data-driven process of open coding; axial coding; and selective coding, using the social-emotional skills comprised in an often-used SEL framework as sensitizing concepts. Overall, students were satisfied with their relationships with classmates and teachers and their ability to manage their daily interaction struggles. Their reflections on their interactions indicate that the skills they preferred to use mirror the social-emotional skills taught in many school programs. However, they also indicated that they did not apply these skills in situations they experienced as unsafe and uncontrollable, e.g., bullying and harassment. The insights into adolescents' social-emotional skills perceptions and the problems they encountered with peers at school presented here can contribute to customizing school-based skills enhancement programs to their needs. Teacher training is required to help teachers gain insight into students' perspectives and to use this insight to implement SEL programs tailored to their needs. Show less
Brienza, M.; Lovisari, L.; Rajpurohit, K.; Bonafede, A.; Gastaldello, F.; Murgia, M.; ... ; Weeren, R.J. van 2022
Objectives To describe the prevalence, temporal and regional trends in prescribing direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) in conjunction with interacting medications. Methods We performed a cross... Show moreObjectives To describe the prevalence, temporal and regional trends in prescribing direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) in conjunction with interacting medications. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study of pharmacy dispensing data in the Foundation for Pharmaceutical Statistics (SFK) registry on patients who have had a prescription for a DOAC filled at one of 831 randomly selected pharmacies in the Netherlands between Jan 2014-Jan 2019. Results We identified 99,211 patients who had a first DOAC prescription filled. Mean age was 71.6 +/- 10.9 years, 58% were male. In 2014, 8,293 patients were treated with DOACs, in 2018, 35,415 were newly started on a DOAC. In 2018, the use of apixaban was most common (52%) in the Eastern region, whereas rivaroxaban was most frequently prescribed (32-48%) in the other regions. At time of first prescription, the vast majority (99.3%) used >= 1 concomitant interacting drug, and 3.2% used >= 3 interacting medications. Most common were digoxin (37.8%), atorvastatin (31.5%), verapamil (13.7%) and amiodarone (9.7%). While the number of interacting medications remained unchanged over time (median 1, interquartile range 1-1), there was a notable decrease in antiarrhythmic medications and an increase in non-cardiovascular interacting medications (e.g. dexamethasone from 0.9% to 7.1%, antiepileptic drugs from 2.5% to 3.8%, and haloperidol from 0.5% to 2.2% in 2014 and 2018, respectively). Conclusion DOAC use has quadrupled in Dutch clinical practice over the 5-year period from 2014 to 2018. While the number of patients who take interacting medications remained stable, the profile of interacting medications has changed over time from cardiovascular to medications affecting other organ systems. Show less
This ecological community has long been known to affect host biology, and their diverse roles have been further clarified in recent years following numerous studies of animal:microbiota... Show moreThis ecological community has long been known to affect host biology, and their diverse roles have been further clarified in recent years following numerous studies of animal:microbiota interactions in diverse systems.In this thesis, I will shed light on the ecological interactions between the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides, and its gut microbiota. I will investigate the potential mechanisms underlying the transmission and colonization of gut microbiota of this species. In addition, I will examine some 9 of the effects conferred by the beetle’s microbiota on its ecology. My research highlights the association between host behaviour and gut microbiota ecology.My data contributes to an increased understand of the relationships between insect parental care and the social transmission of beneficial gut bacteria. My study will help us to better understand the complex interactions between insects and their microbiota. Show less
Schistosomiasis (Bilharzia) is a tropical parasitic disease caused by schistosomes. At present more than 200 million people are infected by these parasites. If the infection is left untreated, the... Show moreSchistosomiasis (Bilharzia) is a tropical parasitic disease caused by schistosomes. At present more than 200 million people are infected by these parasites. If the infection is left untreated, the parasites can survive within the body for 5 years or more. The parasite has developed r escape mechanisms to escape the immune response of its host. The production by the parasite of heavily glycosylated proteins and lipids is thought to play an important role in this. One important carbohydrate structure expressed in all stages is the trisaccharide Lewis X (Le^x). By measuring the interaction with mono-, di-, and trimeric Lex of antibodies both in vitro and in vivo it has become clear that the humoral immune response to the various oligomeric forms of Le^x is different. This can now be taken into account in further studies in which the humoral and cellular immunogenicity of Le^x is investigated. Next, the elucidation of the crystal structure of a monoclonal antibody in complex with Le^x has led to a better insight in protein-carbohydrage interactions on the molecular level. This new knowledge can be used for further improvement of diagnostic techniques for schistosomiasis, and also for a better understanding of this and other diseases in which Le^x plays a role (e.g. cancer). Show less
