Balancing high expectations with academic quality:achieving equilibrium in education to promote student employability

A discussion of how to promote employability within the curriculum

Community-Based Study of the Association of High Myopia in Children with Ocular and Systemic Disease

Purpose. High myopia in childhood is associated with important ocular and systemic conditions. However in the UK, high myopia in early childhood is not specifically identified in current ophthalmology, optometry, or orthoptic protocols for screening, referral, or investigation. An ongoing study in the West Midlands, UK, is investigating high myopia presenting to community health care clinics with the aim of compiling guidelines for assessment and subsequent referral. Methods. Children with high myopia were identified from community optometric and orthoptic sources and invited for an ophthalmology and optometry examination to ascertain possible ocular or systemic disease. Results. High myopia with no associated ocular or systemic condition was present in 15 (56%) of the children. In seven children (25%), associated ocular problems were found including unrecognized retinal dystrophies and amblyopia. Systemic disorders associated with high myopia were found in five children (19%) and included Sticklers syndrome, Weill-Marchesani syndrome, and homocystinuria. In one child, the diagnosis made before this study was found to be incorrect, and in another child, the results were inconclusive. In two cases, the diagnosis of a systemic condition in the child led to the identification of the disease in at least one relative. Conclusions. There is a high prevalence of ocular and systemic abnormality in young children seen in the community. Optometric and ophthalmologic assessment of children less than 10 years with myopia ≥5 D is likely to identify significant ocular or systemic disease, a proportion of which will respond to medical intervention. Detection and prompt referral of these cases by community health care services may be expected to prolong vision and possibly life expectancy.

Rotational co-culture of clonal β-cells with endothelial cells:effect of PPAR-γ agonism in vitro on insulin and VEGF secretion

Aim: Delayed graft revascularization impedes the success of human islet transplantation. This study utilized rotational co-culture of insulin secreting ß-cells with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-?) agonist to promote insulin and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretory function. Methods: Clonal BRIN-BD11 (D11) cells were maintained in static culture (SC) and rotational culture (RC) ± HUVEC and ± the TZD (thiazolidinedione) rosiglitazone (10 mmol/l) as a specific PPAR-? agonist. HUVECs were cultured in SC and RC ± D11 and ± TZD. D11 insulin secretion was induced by static incubation with low glucose (1.67 mmol/l), high glucose (16.7 mmol/l) and high glucose with 10 mmol/l theophylline (G+T) and assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). HUVEC proliferation was determined by ATP luminescence, whereas VEGF secretion was quantified by ELISA. Co-cultured cells were characterized by immunostaining for insulin and CD31. Results: D11 SC and RC showed enhanced insulin secretion in response to 16.7 mmol/l and G+T (p <0.01); without significant alteration by the TZD. Co-culture with HUVEC in SC and RC also increased D11 insulin secretion when challenged with 16.7 mmol/l and G+T (p <0.01), and this was slightly enhanced by the TZD. The presence of HUVEC increased D11 SC and RC insulin secretion in response to high glucose and G+T, respectively (p <0.01). Addition of the TZD increased SC and RC HUVEC ATP content (p <0.01) and VEGF production (p <0.01) in the presence and absence of D11 cells. Conclusions: Rotational co-culture of insulin secreting cells with endothelial cells, and exposure to a PPAR-? agonist may improve the prospects for graft revascularization and function after implantation. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

High resolution demodulation platform for large capacity hybrid WDM/FDM microstructures sensing system assisted by tunable FP filter

In this paper we proposed a demodulation scheme based on tunable FP filter for the WDM/FDM sensing system of the microstructure mentioned in the previous work. Simulation is done to prove the feasibility of demodulating the microstructure with the tunable FP filter. The experiments result showed high consistence with the simulation. And with the help of the high speed FPGA module and a high resolution AD/DA card, the system has achieved a very high resolution, up to 2.5 pm, and wavelength ranges 1520nm to 1590 nm.