生命科学的发展对中学生物课程的影响(一)

生命科学的发展不仅影响到社会发展和个人生活的方方面面 ,对中学生物课程的改革 ,从课程理念到课程内容 ,乃至课程实施的过程和方法 ,也将产生深刻的影响。研究和反映生命科学的发展对中学生物课程的影响 ,对面向 2 1世纪的课程改革具有重要意义。1　当代生命科学的发展及其在自然科学中的作用当代生命科学在朝着微观和宏观两个方面向纵深发展。在微观方面 ,主要是在分子水平上研究生命过程和现象 ;在宏观方面 ,主要是生态学的研究 ,特别是生物多样性的研究日益引起人们的关注。正如邹承鲁院士《生物学走向 2 1世纪》一文所言 ,当前凡是研…     

生命科学的发展对中学生物课程的影响(二)

3　加强科学探索活动 ,培养学生的科学探究能力科学的核心是科学探究。对于中学生来说 ,科学探究是指用以获取知识、领悟科学家们研究自然界所用的方法而进行的各种活动 ,包括观察 ,提出问题 ,设计研究方案 ,获得实验证据 ,分析和解读数据 ,提出答案、解释和预测 ,把结果和结论告诉他人 ,等等。只有通过探究活动 ,学生才能真正认识到科学的历史和本质 ,譬如科学是人类探索自然界奥秘的一项不断变化的事业 ;科学需要实证、逻辑和怀疑 ;科学知识是人们对自然万物的合理的描述和解释 ,但都不是终极真理。只有通过科学探究活动 ,学生才能真正领…     

感染和免疫反应对睡眠的影响

既往认为急性感染过程中睡眠结构发生的改变是由发热或神经中枢损伤引起的,现在则普遍认为这是微生物诱导的急性反应的一部分。感染可以激活免疫反应,进而导致一些免疫调节物质如白细胞介素-1β（IL-1β）和肿瘤坏死因子α（TNFα）等的表达,这些免疫调节物质通过复杂的分子网络直接参与睡眠调控。     

Some central nervous actions of centrophenoxine (Meclofenoxat) in animals.

In experiments with rats and mice it was been found that centrophenoxine in acute experiments in large doses has inhibitory effects on the central nervous system. Centrophenoxine has no analgesic action. When administered subchronically, centrophenoxine aggravates both the pentetrazol and the maximal electroshock seizures.     

Microspectrofluorometric analysis of the effect of centrophenoxine on lipofuscin granules of hybridoma (Retrovirus-transformed) cells

The increase of the own luminescence lipofuscin granules (LG) in the course of single and repeated ultraviolet (UV) excitations (365 nm) in hybridoma (retrovirus transformed) cells cultured with or without 5 x 10(-4) M centrophenoxine (CP) was studied by microspectrofluorometric method. It was shown that CP influences only the rate of photochemical changes of chromophores in LG. Kinetic patterns of the own luminescence intensity of LG at the wavelength of 540 nm during excitation by UV permit one to suggest the occurrence of the cyclic chromophore changes.     

The influence of prior wakefulness on REM sleep

Data from studies of naps and of shifted sleep were used to determine the relationship between two measures of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep (percentage of REM in the first 2 hr of sleep and REM latency) and prior wakefulness. For each sample, we calculated the difference between the observed value and that predicted by a cosine function that estimated the circadian rhythm of REM sleep propensity. The difference values were found to correlate reliably with hours and log hours of prior wakefulness. We conclude that while REM sleep is regulated in part by an endogenous circadian oscillator, it is also influenced by the duration of prior wakefulness.     

Immune depression--a possible cause of the unfavorable course of pneumonia in chronic alcoholics

In 27 patients, suffering with chronic alcoholism and hospitalized for pulmonary diseases in the Clinic of Pulmonology and Phthisiology, the following immunological characteristics were checked up: the functional activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes and in 12 patients also that of alveolar macrophages were evaluated on the basis of the study of the phagocytic index and the phagocytic number, myeloperoxidase and the nitro blue tetrazolium test; the levels of serum IgG, IgA and IgM, the titer of the complement, E-rosette-forming cells (active and total) were also evaluated; the deficiency of cell-mediated immune response was determined by means of intradermal tests with the use of P.P.D., phytohemagglutinin, candidin, trichophytin. In all these investigations the depression of the functional activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes and alveolar macrophages, dysimmunoglobulinemia, the increased level of circulating immune complexes and the suppression of cell-mediated immunity characteristics were revealed in the patients. Frequent infections and the severe course of bacterial and viral infections observed in such patients can be probably attributed to deficient cell-mediated immune response and to disturbances in phagocytosis.     

Circadian gene variants influence sleep and the sleep electroencephalogram in humans

The sleep electroencephalogram (EEG) is highly heritable in humans and yet little is known about the genetic basis of inter-individual differences in sleep architecture. The aim of this study was to identify associations between candidate circadian gene variants and the polysomnogram, recorded under highly controlled laboratory conditions during a baseline, overnight, 8 h sleep opportunity. A candidate gene approach was employed to analyze single-nucleotide polymorphisms from five circadian-related genes in a two-phase analysis of 84 healthy young adults (28 F; 23.21 ± 2.97 years) of European ancestry. A common variant in Period2 (PER2) was associated with 20 min less slow-wave sleep (SWS) in carriers of the minor allele than in noncarriers, representing a 22% reduction in SWS duration. Moreover, spectral analysis in a subset of participants (n = 37) showed the same PER2 polymorphism was associated with reduced EEG power density in the low delta range (0.25–1.0 Hz) during non-REM sleep and lower slow-wave activity (0.75–4.5 Hz) in the early part of the sleep episode. These results indicate the involvement of PER2 in the homeostatic process of sleep. Additionally, a rare variant in Melatonin Receptor 1B was associated with longer REM sleep latency, with minor allele carriers exhibiting an average of 65 min (87%) longer latency from sleep onset to REM sleep, compared to noncarriers. These findings suggest that circadian-related genes can modulate sleep architecture and the sleep EEG, including specific parameters previously implicated in the homeostatic regulation of sleep.