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The most frequently encountered group of students with special needs in inclusive education environments are students with learning disabilities. The vast majority of students with learning disabilities have difficulty in reading skills. One of the most important factors affecting reading skills is reading texts. The aim of this study is to evaluate the reading texts in the middle school Turkish textbooks, which were renewed in 2023-2024, by considering the performance of students with learning disabilities. In this study, 118 texts were analyzed in terms of readability, text type, average word length, average sentence length and 73 texts were analyzed in terms of reading comprehension questions. According to the two readability formulas used, there is a parallel relationship between grade level and readability. In terms of text type, it is seen that informative texts are more common in grade levels other than the sixth grade. It is also among the findings that the average sentence and clause lengths increase as the grade level increases. In the analyzed texts, open questions were the most common type of questions, followed by inference questions. The findings were discussed within the framework of the literature in terms of students with learning disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a close-formation flight of two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and the aim of the study is to improve the understanding of the vortex effects between fixed-wing UAVs in a swarm using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools. To validate the numerical method, results of a variable-density wind tunnel test from the literature were used. This numerical CFD analysis was used to determine the lift coefficient (CL) and the drag coefficient (CD) values for a single UAV at various angles of attack. When examining the aerodynamic impact areas behind the UAV, the longitudinal distance between the two UAVs is not particularly effective for close flight. Therefore, CFD analyses were carried out on the two UAVs for both vertical and lateral distances. The optimum position for close-formation flight was identified using CL/CD ratios. The results of the analysis indicate that the most effective flights, across all lateral positions, occur when the two UAVs are vertically at the same height. In terms of aerodynamic efficiency, the most effective points for close-formation flight for wingspan b are at lateral distances of 0.875 b and 1 b. At these positions, flight efficiency can be increased by approximately 11.5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

\nImpact statementThis study aimed to assess the impact of light on the reproductive performance of leeches for the first time using the Mediterranean medicinal leech Hirudo verbana Carena, 1820, which is important in medicinal leech aquaculture. Gravid leeches were subjected to three different light conditions: 24-h Light, 24-h Dark, and Daylight (14-h light and 10-h dark) for 11 weeks. Gravidity ended at the 8th week for the Dark (5.33 ± 0.38 weeks) and Daylight (5.41 ± 0.29 weeks) groups, whereas it persisted for 11 weeks in the Light group (6.75 ± 0.51 weeks) (p = 0.031). In comparison to the Daylight group (cocoons: 40, offspring: 538), the Light (cocoons: 50, offspring: 723) and Dark (cocoons: 45, offspring: 576) groups achieved a greater yield of cocoons (p = 0.312) and offspring (p = 0.323). We invite discussion on the notion that the enhanced reproductive capacity of leeches in full light and full dark conditions, as opposed to daylight, may be attributed to the disturbance of their circadian rhythms. Effects of light on reproductive performance of leeches were investigated for the first time.Gravidity lasted 3 weeks longer in the 24-hour light group.Cocoon and offspring were more abundant in 24-h light and 24-h dark groups.Findings are thought to be due to the disruption of the circadian rhythms of the leeches.Effects of light on reproductive performance of leeches were investigated for the first time.Gravidity lasted 3 weeks longer in the 24-hour light group.Cocoon and offspring were more abundant in 24-h light and 24-h dark groups.Findings are thought to be due to the disruption of the circadian rhythms of the leeches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In tremor syndromes, pharmacological therapy is the primary treatment, but deep brain stimulation (DBS) is used when it is insufficient. We explore the use of DBS, focusing on the globus pallidus internus for dystonia and the ventral intermediate nucleus (VIM) for tremor conditions. We introduce the posterior subthalamic area (PSA) as a potential target, suggesting its efficacy in tremor reduction, particularly in rare tremor syndromes. We aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of double targeting the VIM and PSA in rare tremor conditions, highlighting the limited existing data on this. Methods: Between 2019 and 2023, 22 patients with rare tremor syndromes were treated with bilateral DBS of the VIM and PSA. This case series consisted of 7 isolated head tremor, 1 hepatic encephalopathic tremor due to Abernethy syndrome, 2 voice tremor, 4 dystonic tremor, and 8 Holmes tremor (2 multiple sclerosis, 2 cerebellar insult, and 4 posttraumatic) patients. Patients' preoperative and 12-month postoperative tremor scores were compared, and the optimum VIM and PSA stimulation areas were investigated. Results: There was a significant reduction in the mean TRS score from 3.70 (±0.57) to 0.45 (±0.68) after 12 months of surgery. Specific outcomes for different indications were observed: for head tremor, 6 of 7 patients showed a reduction in TRS scores to 0 points; the vocal tremor patients demonstrated improvement; this change was not statistically significant, which is likely to be due to the low number of patients in this subgroup; the dystonic tremor patients showed either complete tremor abolition or a reduction in TRS scores; the Holmes tremor patients showed an 80% reduction in TRS scores; and the hepatic encephalopathy tremor and Abernethy syndrome patients showed a 75% improvement in TRS scores. The stimulation parameters converged on the VIM and dorsal PSA. Complications included the need for electrode repositioning, infections requiring electrode removal and re-implantation, dysarthria, and stimulation-induced ataxia, which was resolved by adjusting the stimulation parameters. Discussion: The literature on DBS for rare tremors is limited. Double targeting of the VIM and PSA appears to produce promising improvements on the outcomes reported in the existing literature on VIM-only DBS. The proximity of the VIM and PSA allows for flexible electrode placement, contributing to the potential success of the dual-target approach. We also discuss the theoretical advantages of targeting the PSA based on the distribution of tremor circuits, emphasizing the need for further research and electrophysiological studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Mother Tongue Education / Ana Dili Egitim Dergisi is the property of Journal of Mother Tongue Education / Ana Dili Egitim Dergisi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Ozel Egitim Dergisi is the property of Ankara University, Faculty of Educational Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background and Objective: Benzothiazole derivatives, a class of heterocyclic compounds, exhibited diverse biological activities influenced by substituents in the thiazole ring. This study aimed to synthesize these compounds with two functional groups to investigate their potential as anticancer agents, particularly against breast cancer. While previous research demonstrated the efficacy of 2-substituted benzothiazoles against glioma and cervical and pancreatic cancer cells, there is a gap in studies targeting breast cancer., Methods: The synthesized compounds were tested in vitro using MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, and MCF-10A cell lines, with Doxorubicin as the positive control. Various assays were conducted, including Annexin V/PI, cell cycle analysis, wound healing, and measurement of mitochondrial membrane potential. Protein expression of EGFR and transcription levels of apoptosis-related genes (Bax and Bcl-xL) and cancer progression-related genes (JAK, STAT3, ERK, AKT, mTOR) were analyzed. Additionally, the balance between antioxidants and oxidants was evaluated by measuring TAS and TOS levels., Results: Our findings revealed that benzothiazole compounds significantly inhibited breast cancer cell growth by reducing cell motility, disrupting mitochondrial membrane potential, and inducing cell cycle arrest in the sub-G1 phase. These compounds increased reactive oxygen species accumulation, leading to cell death. Furthermore, they decreased EGFR protein levels, increased Bax gene transcription, and downregulated the expression of genes such as JAK, STAT3, ERK, AKT, and mTOR., Conclusion: In conclusion, benzothiazole derivatives exhibited potent inhibitory effects on breast cancer in vitro by promoting apoptosis, downregulating EGFR activity, and modulating key signaling pathways, including JAK/STAT, ERK/MAPK, and PI3K/Akt/mTOR. These results highlighted the potential of benzothiazole derivatives as novel therapeutic agents for breast cancer treatment., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

The target compounds benzothiazole derivatives (8a-g) were synthesized starting from the norbornene. The antiproliferative activities of the compounds 6a-g and 8a-g were determined against C6 (rat brain tumor) and HeLa (human cervical carcinoma cells) cell lines using BrdU cell proliferation ELISA assay using 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) as standard. In both series, when compared with 5-FU (IC50=<5 µM for C6 and 16.33µM for HeLa), the most active compounds against C6 cells were 6a and 8g with IC50 values of 14.13 µM and 29.99 µM, respectively, while 6a, 6e, 6f and 8b were the most active compounds against HeLa cells with IC50 values of <5, <5, 19.33 and 1813 µM, respectively. Addition, to predict the physicochemical and AMDE properties of the tested compounds, SwissADME online web tool was used. The results showed that all compounds possess promising predicted physiochemical and pharmacokinetic properties, and they complied with Lipinski's rule of 5 indicating that they are predicted to be orally bioavailable, and they possess a predicted bioavailability score of 0.55. Furthermore, in SwissADME Boiled-Egg chart, all compounds showed high predicted GIT absorption, and while compounds 6a-g showed blood brain barrier (BBB) permeation, the compounds 8a-g did not. Moreover, all compounds are not p-glycoprotein (P-gp) substrates., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)