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Using learning objectives to guide course design is often considered an educational best practice, but little research exists that explores how students use them over time and across courses. We surveyed students on their use and perceived value of learning objectives as the semester progressed across four science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, examined students' ability to match exam questions with learning objectives, and analyzed how their course performance related to these qualities. We also gathered instructors' information on their implementation of learning objectives in these courses. We identified distinct disciplinary differences both in students' use and perceived benefit of learning objectives and in instructors' implementation of them. Students in less quantitatively focused courses, i.e., biology and organic chemistry, reported valuing and using learning objectives more than students in more quantitatively focused math and physics courses. Students' ability to match learning objectives with exam questions, however, positively correlated with exam score and final course grade in all our study courses. Our results have implications for considering disciplinary practices for use of learning objectives as instructors design and implement courses, educational researchers plan studies, and assessment specialists formulate institutional assessment plans.

Using learning objectives to guide course design is often considered an educational best practice, but little research exists that explores how students use them over time and across courses. We surveyed students on their use and perceived value of learning objectives as the semester progressed across four science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, examined students' ability to match exam questions with learning objectives, and analyzed how their course performance related to these qualities. We also gathered instructors' information on their implementation of learning objectives in these courses. We identified distinct disciplinary differences both in students' use and perceived benefit of learning objectives and in instructors' implementation of them. Students in less quantitatively focused courses, i.e., biology and organic chemistry, reported valuing and using learning objectives more than students in more quantitatively focused math and physics courses. Students' ability to match learning objectives with exam questions, however, positively correlated with exam score and final course grade in all our study courses. Our results have implications for considering disciplinary practices for use of learning objectives as instructors design and implement courses, educational researchers plan studies, and assessment specialists formulate institutional assessment plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many active learning pedagogies depend on students' preparing for class in advance. One common method for holding students accountable for this preparation is the use of reading quizzes. When used thoughtfully, reading quizzes can also actually promote student learning through the testing effect. In this article we describe why and how we use reading quizzes in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics courses. We point out the advantages and disadvantages of various delivery methods, such as in class or online, on paper or via clickers, and individual or team based. Our examples highlight the role of these quizzes in promoting student preparedness and in providing feedback to both students and instructors about student learning. Drawing on the literature and our experience, we answer questions that instructors may have about how to use these quizzes to help them achieve their goals for student learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The main aim of the study is to examine changes in the prevalence of obesity in Czech adolescents between 2018 and 2022 and its current non-genetic correlates with respect to the adolescents' families'socioeconomic status (SES) in 2022., Methods: The sample of 24,535 adolescents (n = 11,629/12,906 2018/2022 ; boys: 50.4/50.6% 2018/2022 ) aged 10.5-16.5 years that was analysed was drawn from two nationally representative cohorts of Czech youngsters from the last two cycles of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) online questionnaire survey from 2018 to 2022. Obesity is represented by the > 97th percentile interval on the World Health Organization Body Mass Index percentile chart, with distinctions by sex and the age of adolescents. The differences in the prevalence of obesity between boys and girls from all SES family categories in 2018 and 2022 were tested using a chi-square test (χ 2 ). Multiple logistic regression analysis with repeated measures was used to analyse correlates of obesity in 2022., Results: Between 2018 and 2022, there was no significant difference in the prevalence of obesity in girls or boys in any of the SES categories of families. Adolescents from low-SES families have the highest prevalence of obesity, 11% for boys and 5.8% for girls, significantly higher (p < .001) than its prevalence among adolescents from high-SES families, by + 4.8% points for boys and + 3.9% points for girls. Among adolescents from low-SES families, individuals who engaged in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (PA) daily (p < .005) or vigorous PA three times per week (p < .05) were significantly less likely to be obese than their less active peers. Skipping breakfast significantly (p < .05) increased the odds of obesity, but only among adolescents from low-SES families. Shorter screen time (ST) significantly (p < .05) reduced the odds of obesity for all categories of adolescent SES., Conclusions: Obesity is most pronounced in adolescents from low-SES families as a result of a long-term positive energy balance mediated by unbalanced behaviour. Significantly lower odds of obesity in adolescents from low-SES families were confirmed to be associated with regular practice of the recommended PA, shorter ST, and not skipping breakfast., (© 2023. BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

Introduction: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a heterogeneous disease caused by molecular changes, as driver mutations, gene methylations, etc., and influenced by tumor microenvironment (TME) pervaded with immune cells with both pro- and anti-tumor effects. The studying of interactions between the immune system (IS) and the TME is important for developing effective immunotherapeutic strategies for CRC. In our study, we focused on the analysis of expression profiles of inflammatory and immune-relevant genes to identify aberrant signaling pathways included in carcinogenesis, metastatic potential of tumors, and association of Kirsten rat sarcoma virus (KRAS) gene mutation., Methods: A total of 91 patients were enrolled in the study. Using NGS, differential gene expression analysis of 11 tumor samples and 11 matching non-tumor controls was carried out by applying a targeted RNA panel for inflammation and immunity genes containing 475 target genes. The obtained data were evaluated by the CLC Genomics Workbench and R library. The significantly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were analyzed in Reactome GSA software, and some selected DEGs were used for real-time PCR validation., Results: After prioritization, the most significant differences in gene expression were shown by the genes TNFRSF4 , IRF7 , IL6R , NR3CI , EIF2AK2 , MIF , CCL5 , TNFSF10 , CCL20 , CXCL11 , RIPK2 , and BLNK. Validation analyses on 91 samples showed a correlation between RNA-seq data and qPCR for TNFSF10 , RIPK2 , and BLNK gene expression. The top differently regulated signaling pathways between the studied groups (cancer vs. control, metastatic vs. primary CRC and KRAS positive and negative CRC) belong to immune system, signal transduction, disease, gene expression, DNA repair, and programmed cell death., Conclusion: Analyzed data suggest the changes at more levels of CRC carcinogenesis, including surface receptors of epithelial or immune cells, its signal transduction pathways, programmed cell death modifications, alterations in DNA repair machinery, and cell cycle control leading to uncontrolled proliferation. This study indicates only basic molecular pathways that enabled the formation of metastatic cancer stem cells and may contribute to clarifying the function of the IS in the TME of CRC. A precise identification of signaling pathways responsible for CRC may help in the selection of personalized pharmacological treatment., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Holubekova, Loderer, Grendar, Mikolajcik, Kolkova, Turyova, Kudelova, Kalman, Marcinek, Miklusica, Laca and Lasabova.)

Here, we present newly derived in vitro model for modeling Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Our new cell line was derived by reprogramming of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (isolated from blood from pediatric patient) with Sendai virus encoding Yamanaka factors. Derived iPS cells are capable to differentiate in vitro into three germ layers as verified by immunocytochemistry. When differentiated in special medium, our iPSc formed spontaneously beating cardiomyocytes. As cardiomyopathy is the main clinical complication in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, the cell line bearing the dystrophin gene mutation might be of interest to the research community., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common types of cancer worldwide. The carcinogenesis of CRC is indeed complex, and there are many different mechanisms and pathways that contribute to the development of malignancy and the progression from primary to metastatic tumors. The OCT4A, encoded by the POU5F1 gene, is a transcription factor responsible for the phenotype of stem cells, maintaining pluripotency and regulation of differentiation. The POU5F1 gene is made up of five exons that can create numerous isoforms through alternative promoter or alternative splicing. In addition to OCT4A , other isoforms called OCT4B are also translated into protein; however, their role in cells has been unclear. The aim of our work was to investigate the expression patterns of OCT4 isoforms in primary and metastatic CRC, providing us with useful information about their role in the development and progression of CRC., Methods: Surgical specimens from a total of 78 patients were collected and isolated from primary tumors ( n = 47) and metastases ( n = 31). The relative gene expression of OCT4 isoforms was investigated using the RT-qPCR method together with the TaqMan probes for particular OCT4 isoforms., Results: Our results suggest significantly downregulated expression of the OCT4A and OCT4Bs isoforms in both primary ( p = 0.0002 and p < 0.0001, respectively) and metastatic tumors ( p = 0.0006 and p = 0.00051, respectively) when compared with the control samples. We also observed a correlation between reduced expression of all OCT4 isoforms and both primary and left-sided tumors ( p = 0.001 and p = 0.030, respectively). On the other hand, the expression of all OCT4 isoforms was significantly upregulated in metastases compared with primary tumors ( p < 0.0001)., Discussion: Unlike previous reports, we found out that the expression of OCT4A , OCT4Bs , and all OCT4 isoforms was significantly reduced in primary tumors and metastases compared with control samples. On the other hand, we supposed that the expression rate of all OCT4 isoforms may be related to the cancer type and side, as well as to liver metastases. However, further studies are required to investigate the detailed expression patterns and significance of individual OCT4 isoforms in carcinogenesis., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Turyova, Mikolajcik, Grendar, Kudelova, Holubekova, Kalman, Marcinek, Hrnciar, Kovac, Miklusica, Laca and Lasabova.)

(1) Background: The World Health Organization (WHO)-5 Well-Being Index has been used in many epidemiological studies to assess adolescent mental well-being. However, cross-country comparisons of this instrument among adolescents are scarce and, so far, no good-fitting, common invariant measurement model across countries has been reported. The present study aims to evaluate and establish a version of the WHO-5 Well-Being Index that allows for a valid cross-country comparison of adolescent self-reported mental well-being. (2) Methods: Using data from the 2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study, we evaluated the measurement model and measurement invariance of the five items of the WHO-5 Well-Being Index. We used nationally representative samples of 11-, 13-, and 15-year-old adolescents ( N = 74,071) from fifteen countries and regions in Europe. Measurement invariance of the WHO-5 was assessed using a series (country, gender, and age) of multi-group confirmatory factor analyses. In addition, we evaluated the convergent validity of the measure by testing its correlations with psychosomatic complaints, life satisfaction, and self-rated health. (3) Results: We found that WHO-5 does not show good psychometric properties or good measurement invariance fit. However, by excluding the first item of the scale ("I have felt cheerful and in good spirits"), the WHO-4, consisting of the other four original items, had good psychometric properties, and demonstrated good suitability for cross-national comparisons (as well as age and gender) in adolescent mental well-being. (4) Conclusions: The present study introduces the WHO-4-a revised version of the WHO-5-, that allows for a valid comparison of mental well-being across fifteen countries and regions in Europe. The WHO-4 proved to be a reliable and valid instrument to assess mental well-being in the adolescent population.

We present here a new iPS cell line for modeling sporadic form of ALS. Cell line was generated by reprogramming skin fibroblasts isolated with explant culture technology from skin biopsy, donated by ALS patient. For reprogramming, polycistronic self-replicating RNA vector was used and derived iPS cells were characterized by immunocytochemistry and FACS (pluripotent factors expression), karyotyping, STR fingerprinting analysis and in vitro differentiation assay. New cell line showed normal (46, XY) karyotype and differentiated in vitro into cells from three germ layers. STR analysis proved the origin and originality of the cell line., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The number of individuals diagnosed with colorectal cancer (CRC) has been on an alarming upward trajectory over the past decade. In some countries, this cancer represents one of the most frequently diagnosed types of neoplasia. Therefore, it is an important demand to study the pathology underlying this disease to gain insights into the mechanism of resistance to treatment. Resistance of tumors to chemotherapy and tumor aggressiveness have been associated with a minor population of neoplastic cells, which are considered to be responsible for tumor recurrence. These types of neoplastic cells are known as cancer stem cells, which have been previously reported to serve an important role in pathogenesis of this malignant disease. Slovakia has one of the highest incidence rates of CRC worldwide. In the present study, the aim was to classify the abundance of selected stem cell markers (CD133, CD166 and Lgr5) in CRC tumors using flow cytometry. In addition, the methylation status of selected genomic regions of CRC biomarkers ( ADAMTS16, MGMT, PROM1 (CD133), LGR5 and ALCAM ) was investigated by pyrosequencing in a cohort of patients from Martin University Hospital, Martin, Slovakia. Samples from both primary tumors and metastatic tumors were tested. Analysis of DNA methylation in the genomic regions of indicated five CRC biomarkers was also performed, which revealed the highest levels of methylation in the A disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 16 and O6-methyguanine-DNA methyl transferase genes, whereas the lowest levels of methylation were found in genes expressing prominin-1, leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein-coupled receptor 5 and activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule. Furthermore, tumor tissues from metastases showed significantly higher levels of CD133 + cells compared with that in primary tumors. Higher levels of CD133 + cells correlated with TNM stage and the invasiveness of CRC into the lymphatic system. Although relatively small number of samples was processed, CD133 marker was consider to be important marker in pathology of CRC., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright: © Mersakova et al.)

A flowing-water target was irradiated with a 150 MeV/nucleon beam of 78 Kr at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory to produce 77 Kr and 76 Kr. Real-time gamma-imaging measurements revealed the mass transport of the krypton radioisotopes through the target-water processing, or "isotope harvesting", system. The production rates were determined to be 2.7(1) × 10 -4 nuclei of 76 Kr and 1.18(6) × 10 -2 nuclei of 77 Kr formed per incident 78 Kr ion. Utilizing an off-gas processing line as part of the isotope harvesting system, a total of 7.2(1) MBq of 76 Kr and 19.1(6) MBq of 77 Kr were collected in cold traps. Through the decay, the daughter radionuclides 76 Br and 77 Br were generated and removed from the traps with an average efficiency of 77 ± 12%. Due to the differences in half-lives of 76 Kr and 77 Kr, it was possible to isolate a pure sample of 76 Br with 99.9% radionuclidic purity. The successful collection of krypton radioisotopes to generate 76 Br and 77 Br demonstrates the feasibility of gas-phase isotope harvesting from irradiated accelerator cooling-water. Larger-scale collections are planned for collecting by-product radionuclides from the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objectives: Recent literature indicates a decline over time in adolescent mental wellbeing but results are inconsistent and rely mainly on data from Western societies. This study investigates time trends in adolescent mental wellbeing (psychological and somatic complaints, life satisfaction) among Czech adolescents and explores the moderating role of gender, age and socioeconomic status., Methods: Nationally representative data from 29,376 Czech adolescents (50.8% girls, mean age = 13.43; SD = 1.65) across five Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) surveys (2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018) were used. Hierarchical regression models estimated national trends in adolescent mental wellbeing and established the moderating role of gender, age and socioeconomic status., Results: From 2002 to 2018, an increase in the psychological complaints was observed. Life satisfaction decreased over time up to 2014 only, whereas somatic symptoms increased until 2010, followed by a decline in 2014 and 2018. Girls, older adolescents and those from low family affluence reported poorer mental wellbeing. Gender gap increased over time for psychological complaints and life satisfaction. Socioeconomic inequalities gap remained stable over the investigated timeframe., Conclusions: Our findings do not provide evidence for substantial temporal changes in mental wellbeing among adolescents in the Czech Republic. Yet, the increase in psychological complaints has been consistent which is an indicator of a small decline over time in adolescent mental wellbeing. Furthermore, the gender gap in mental wellbeing increased over time, whereas the age and socioeconomic differences remained relatively stable. This calls for the attention of public health professionals and policy makers from the Czech Republic.

Rete testis invasion (RTI) is an unfavourable prognostic factor for the risk of relapse in clinical stage I (CS I) seminoma patients. Notably, no evidence of difference in the proteome of RTI-positive vs. -negative CS I seminomas has been reported yet. Here, a quantitative proteomic approach was used to investigate RTI-associated proteins. 64 proteins were differentially expressed in RTI-positive compared to -negative CS I seminomas. Of them, 14-3-3γ, ezrin, filamin A, Parkinsonism-associated deglycase 7 (PARK7), vimentin and vinculin, were validated in CS I seminoma patient cohort. As shown by multivariate analysis controlling for clinical confounders, PARK7 and filamin A expression lowered the risk of RTI, while 14-3-3γ expression increased it. Therefore, we suggest that in real clinical biopsy specimens, the expression level of these proteins may reflect prognosis in CS I seminoma patients.

Background: Adolescent alcohol consumption is a major public health concern that should be continuously monitored. This study aims (i) to analyze country-level trends in weekly alcohol consumption, drunkenness and early initiation in alcohol consumption and drunkenness among 15-year-old adolescents from 39 countries and regions across Europe and North America between 2002 and 2014 and (ii) to examine the geographical patterns in adolescent alcohol-related behaviours., Methods: The sample was composed of 250 161 adolescents aged 15 from 39 countries and regions from Europe and North America. Survey years were 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. The alcohol consumption and drunkenness items of the HBSC questionnaire were employed. Prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated using Poisson regression models with robust variance., Results: Data show a general decrease in all four alcohol variables between 2002 and 2014 except for some countries. However, there is variability both within a country (depending on the alcohol-related behaviour under study) and across countries (in the beginning and shape of trends). Some countries have not reduced or even increased their levels in some variables. Although some particularities have persisted over time, there are no robust patterns by regions., Conclusions: Despite an overall decrease in adolescent alcohol consumption, special attention should be paid to those countries where declines are not present, or despite decreasing, rates are still high. Further research is needed to clarify factors associated with adolescent drinking, to better understand country specificities and to implement effective policies., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.)

Background: High intake of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) contributes to detrimental cardio-metabolic indicators in youth. Monitoring of SSB consumption is lacking in Eastern Europe., Objectives: We assessed trends in the prevalence of adolescent daily consumption of SSBs in 14 Eastern European countries between 2002 and 2018, both overall and according to family material affluence., Methods: We used 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 data of the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children school-based study (repeated cross-sectional). Nationally representative samples of adolescents aged 11, 13, and 15 years were included (n = 325,184; 51.2% girls). Adolescents completed a standardized questionnaire, including a question on SSB consumption frequency. We categorized adolescents into 3 socioeconomic groups based on the relative Family Affluence Scale (FAS). Adjusted prevalences of daily SSB consumption by survey year, as well as country-level time trends between 2002 and 2018, were computed using multilevel logistic models (overall and by FAS groups)., Results: In 2018, the prevalence of adolescents consuming SSBs every day varied considerably between countries (range, 5.1%-28.1%). Between 2002 and 2018, the prevalence of daily SSB consumption declined in 10/14 countries (P for linear trends ≤ 0.004). The largest reductions were observed in Slovenia (OR, 0.48; 95% CI: 0.45-0.50) and the Russian Federation (OR, 0.67; 95% CI: 0.64-0.70). Daily SSB consumption was reduced at faster rates among the most affluent adolescents (who were larger consumers in 2002) than in the least affluent adolescents in 11/14 countries (P for linear trends ≤ 0.004). Thus, differences between FAS groups narrowed over time or even reversed, leading to larger proportions of daily consumers in the least affluent adolescents in 2018 in 5/14 countries (P ≤ 0.05)., Conclusions: Adolescent daily consumption of SSBs decreased between 2002 and 2018 in most Eastern European countries. Declines were larger among higher-affluence adolescents. These results are useful to evaluate and plan interventions promoting healthy childhood diets., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society for Nutrition.)

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading cancers in both genders. TNM staging system is still the most commonly used tumor classification and prognostic system. The disadvantage of TNM is that the prognostic information it provides is incomplete, and patients with the same histological tumor stages may differ significantly in the clinical outcome. Therefore, the identification of new prognostic parameters is crucial. The carcinogenic process that gives rise to an individual tumor is unique and tumor microenviroment should be taken into consideration. In CRC, T-cell infiltration is not homogenous, and recent studies are mostly focusing on memory T-cells and CD8 cells in predicting disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). It seems that DFS and OS are not only dependent on microsatellite instable or stable status but mostly on the levels of expression of the immune signatures. Also, patients with high infiltration of cytotoxic and memory cells have significantly better outcome. This review consolidates current knowledge and recent research about importance of immune-cell-associated proteins, specific gene profiles of immune cells and immunotherapy in CRC. We also discussed cell-specific signatures in cancer treatment.

Appendiceal mucocele is a rare disease with an incidence of 0.07-0.63% of all appendectomies and was first described in 1842 by Carl von Rokitansky. It is defined as an abnormal intraluminal accumulation of mucin. The clinical picture of AM can vary from asymptomatic mass in the right lower quadrant to symptoms of acute appendicitis. In some cases, AM can be found accidentally on CT performed due to other reasons or during surgery. Diagnosis consists mainly of imaging methods such as ultrasound, CT, and MRI with the finding of encapsulated cystic mass with calcifications. The main goal of surgical treatment is to remove an intact mucocele and prevent spillage of mucin into the peritoneal cavity. We present a case of large mucocele treated with laparoscopic right hemicolectomy.

The Guilt and Shame Experience Scale (GSES) is a new, brief self-report instrument for assessing experiences of guilt and shame. It includes two distinct scales: feelings of shame and feelings of guilt. The present report focuses on results from a final validation study using a nationally representative sample of 7899 adolescents (M age = 14.5 ± 1.1 years, 50.7% boys) who participated in the 2014 Health Behavior in School-aged Children study. For factor analysis, the dataset was divided into two groups. One group ( n = 3950) was used for the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and the second ( n = 3949) for the Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). The EFA results in a one-factor model of the GSES scale, while the CFA suggests a two-factor solution mirroring two scales, feelings of shame and feelings of guilt. Both models have a good fit to the data, and the scale also showed high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.89). A nonparametric comparison of different sociodemographic groups showed a higher disposition for experiencing guilt and shame among girls, students of the ninth grade, and religious respondents. A comparison of the results to previously published results obtained from adults indicates that adolescence is a developmental period involving low differentiation between moral emotions like guilt and shame compared with adulthood. Moreover, positive association with religious attendance shows a need of addressing these issues in a pastoral care setting.

The aim of this study was to investigate the test-retest reliability of the motives for undertaking physical activity (PA) items from the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) study questionnaire among Slovak and Czech adolescents and to determine whether this reliability differs by gender, age group and country. We obtained data from 580 students aged 11 and 15 years old (51.2% boys) who participated in a test and retest study with a four-week interval in 2013 via the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children cross-sectional study in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. We estimated the test-retest reliability of all 13 dichotomized motives by using Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC) and Cohen's Kappa statistics, for continuous and dichotomized motives, respectively. Test-retest reliability showed moderate agreement for nine motives (ICC from 0.41 to 0.60) and fair agreement for four motives (ICC from 0.33 to 0.40). Kappa statistics were similarly moderate to large (0.33 to 0.61), except for three motives with small or trivial correlations. The motives "To improve my health" and "To enjoy the feeling of using my body" had consistently low Kappas and correlations. Overall, the results of this study suggest that most questions on motives for PA on the HBSC questionnaire have acceptable test-retest characteristics for use among adolescents.

MicroRNAs in the circulation of breast cancer (BC) patients have great potential for the early diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of breast cancer. The aim of this preliminary study was to obtain the expression profile of selected miRNAs in the plasma of BC patients that could discriminate BC patients from healthy volunteers and may be useful in early detection of BC. Significantly deregulated miRNAs were evaluated by pathway analysis with the prediction of potential miRNA targets. The study enrolled plasma samples from 65 BC patients and 34 healthy volunteers. Selected miRNAs were screened in pilot testing by the real-time PCR (qPCR) method, and the most appropriate reference genes were selected for normalisation by the geNorm algorithm. In the final testing, we detected miR-99a, miR-130a, miR-484 and miR-1260a ( p < 0.05) as significantly up-regulated in the plasma of BC patients. Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis revealed that all significantly deregulated miRNAs are involved in the Hippo and Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGF-beta) signalling pathways. Our study confirmed a different profile of selected circulating miRNAs in the plasma of BC patients with an emphasis on some critical points in the analysis process.

We generated new in vitro model for sporadic form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis by reprogramming isolated skin fibroblasts into iPSCs. Fibroblasts were reprogrammed with commercially available synthetic polycistronic, self-replicating RNA vector. As verified by FISH, an early passages of a new iPSC line showed mosaic karyotype (cells with normal and abnormal karyotype 46,XY,t(2;14)(q13;p12) were present), while late passages contained only cells with abnormal karyotype. New iPSCs differentiated into all three germ layers and formed a teratoma in nude mice. Our iPSC line represents a new model for therapy testing and drug development in the field of ALS research., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

(1) Background: There is a need for studies on population-level health literacy (HL) to identify the current state of HL within and between countries. We report comparative findings from 10 European countries (Austria, Belgium (Fl), Czechia, England, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Macedonia, Poland, and Slovakia) on adolescents' HL and its associations with gender, family affluence (FAS), and self-rated health (SRH). (2) Methods: Representative data (N = 14,590; age 15) were drawn from the HBSC (Health Behavior in School-Aged Children) study. The associations between HL, gender, FAS, and SRH were examined via path models. (3) Results: The countries exhibited differences in HL means and in the range of scores within countries. Positive associations were found between FAS and HL, and between HL and SRH in each country. Gender was associated with differences in HL in only three countries. HL acted as a mediator between gender and SRH in four countries, and between FAS and SRH in each country. (4) Conclusions: The findings confirm that there are differences in HL levels within and between European countries, and that HL does contribute to differences in SRH. HL should be taken into account when devising evidence-informed policies and interventions to promote the health of adolescents.

Research in some religious countries shows that religiosity and spirituality positively affect adolescent health. We studied whether religiosity and spirituality also have positive associations with adolescent health in a secular country. We tested the associations between religious attendance and spirituality and self-reported health and health complaints using a representative sample of Czech adolescents ( n = 4182, 14.4 ± 1.1 years, 48.6% boys) from the 2014 health behavior in school-aged children (HBSC) study. We used religious attendance, the adjusted shortened version of the spiritual well-being scale (SWBS), and its two components-religious well-being (RWB) and existential well-being (EWB)-as independent variables and the eight item "HBSC symptom checklist" and self-reported overall health as dependent variables. A higher level of spirituality was associated with lower chances of health complaints and self-reported health, ranging from a 9% to 30% decrease in odd ratios (OR). Religious attendance was not associated with any of the observed variables. The EWB showed a negative association with all of the observed variables, with associations ranging from a 19% to 47% decrease. The RWB was associated with a higher risk of nervousness (OR = 1.12), while other associations were not significant. Non-spiritual but attending respondents were more likely to report a higher occurrence of stomachache (OR = 2.20) and had significantly worse overall health (OR = 2.38). In a largely secular country, we found that spirituality and the EWB (unlike religious attendance and the RWB) could have a significant influence on adolescent health.