19 research outputs found
Feels like Home: A Participatory Approach to Enhance Care Environments Through Personal and Collective Stories
No full textThe concept of ‘home’ plays a critical role in designing care environments for individuals with dementia, extending beyond physical space to include identity, familiarity, and continuity with life stories. This study explores the intersection of narrative and spatial design, presenting a narrative-based approach to creating living spaces that preserve and support personhood. As dementia progresses, recalling and organizing personal stories often becomes challenging, increasing the importance of environmental cues in maintaining identity. A participatory co-
design methodology was employed, engaging individuals with dementia, care staff, and researchers to develop spaces resonating with personal and collective narratives. Narrative elicitation sessions captured participants’ life stories, preferences, and sensory experiences, which were translated into tangible design elements. The resulting environments go beyond functionality, becoming extensions of residents’ life stories that promote emotional well-being, reduce stress, and enhance belonging. By embedding narrative-driven elements such as familiar objects, textures, and sensory cues, the design approach ensures that care environments remain adaptable and deeply personalized, supporting
identity amidst cognitive changes. This study underscores the therapeutic value of integrating narrative into design processes, advocating for care settings that reflect the unique identities of their residents while fostering connection and continuity
Dementia Lab 2025: Ethics + Aesthetics in Design
Get PDFThis is an open access book. It gathers revised and selected contributions to the 7th Dementia Lab Conference, D-Lab 2025, held on March 13–14, 2025, in Aveiro, Portugal, reporting on innovative research aimed at improving the lives of people with dementia, their loved ones, and their caregivers. This edition addresses the theme of ethics + aesthetics in design. Ethics emphasize justice, advocate for inclusive, person-centred practices, and challenge societal stigmas. Aesthetics, beyond beauty, focus on sensory and emotional engagement, which becomes increasingly significant as dementia progresses. Together, these principles guide innovative design approaches that enhance care, identity, and connection. Being organized into three themes, Designing with People with Dementia, Including Design in Dementia Care, and Design within Cultures of Care, this collection highlights research on participation, technology, and the cultural dimensions of care. It also demonstrates the key role of design in creating products and environments that embrace aesthetic value and is expected to challenge stigmas and unrealistic assumptions about people living with dementi
Artefacts in Action:Facilitating Positive Person Work in Dementia Group Living Environment
No full textThis study investigates how artefacts facilitate Positive Person Work (PPW) in dementia care, with a focus on facilitation and collaboration within group living environments. Using short-term design ethnography in a care home in Belgium, we explored how artefacts act as mediators of non-verbal communication, enable collaboration, and foster inclusivity. We used Actor-Network Theory (ANT) to map the interactions between residents, staff, and artefacts to understand how these interactions create a supportive environment for PPW. Additionally, by integrating Material Engagement Theory (MET), we identified the material agency of artefacts in these processes. These insights informed the development of a design toolkit based on the 5E Experience Design Model, offering caregivers a practical guide for creating activity experiences that enhance facilitation and collaboration. This research provides practical design-related considerations for improving care practices and enriching the daily experiences of people with dementia
Dementia Lab 2025: collection of summaries from presented research
Get PDFNo abstract available.publishe
Moderate and heavy alcohol consumption are prospectively associated with decreased left ventricular ejection fraction: The Hoorn Study
No full textBACKGROUND AND AIMS: Data on the prospective relationship of alcohol consumption at more moderate levels with systolic and diastolic function are scarce. We aimed to examine the prospective association of alcohol consumption with echocardiographic measures of cardiac structure and function, in individuals with and without type 2 diabetes (T2DM). METHODS AND RESULTS: We included 778 participants from the Hoorn Study (aged 68.4 ± 7.2 years, 49% women), a population-based prospective cohort study, oversampled for people with impaired glucose metabolism or T2DM. Self-reported alcohol consumption was collected at baseline with a validated food-frequency questionnaire and categorized into: none (0/week), light (>0-≤30 g/week), light-to-moderate (>30-≤70 g/week), moderate (>70-≤140 g/week), and heavy drinkers (>140 g/week). Echocardiography was performed at baseline (N = 778) and after 8 years follow-up (N = 404). Multiple linear regression was used to study the association between alcohol consumption and echocardiographic measures (left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left atrial volume index (LAVI) and left ventricular mass index (LVMI)), adjusted for confounders. Moderate and heavy alcohol consumption were associated with a decreased LVEF of -3.91% (CI: -7.13;-0.69) for moderate and -4.77% (-8.18;-1.36) for heavy drinkers compared to light drinkers. No associations were found between alcohol consumption, LVMI and LAVI. Modified Poisson regression showed a trend that higher alcohol consumption amounts were associated with a higher risk of incident systolic dysfunction (LVEF≤50%) (P-for-trend 0.058). CONCLUSION: The findings provide longitudinal evidence that moderate and heavy alcohol consumption are associated with decreased LVEF and trend towards a higher risk of incident LV systolic dysfunction, compared to light drinkers
Search for new particles decaying into top quark-antiquark pairs in proton-proton collisions at = 13 TeV
No full textInternational audienceA search for new particles decaying to top quark-antiquark pairs is performed using proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The data set recorded with the CMS detector between 2016 and 2018 is used, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb. Final states with 0, 1, and 2 leptons are analyzed, covering all decay modes of the top quark-antiquark pairs. Heavy Z' bosons with relative widths of 1, 10, and 30% are excluded for masses in the ranges 0.44.8, 0.46.2, and 0.47.4 TeV, respectively. A KaluzaKlein gluon in the RandallSundrum model and a dark-matter mediator are excluded for masses between 0.55.5 and 1.04.2 TeV, respectively. These results set the most stringent limits to date for the considered models in the final state. In addition, in the two-Higgs-doublet models, upper limits are set on the coupling strength modifier for scalar and pseudoscalar Higgs bosons with relative widths of 2.5, 10, and 25% in the mass range of 0.51.0 TeV
Search for Higgs boson production at high transverse momentum in the WW decay channel in proton-proton collisions at = 13 TeV
No full textInternational audienceA search for Higgs boson (\PH) production at high transverse momentum () in the WW decay channel is presented. The analysis uses proton-proton collisions at = 13 TeV recorded by the CMS experiment in 20162018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb. The visible decay products of the Higgs boson are reconstructed as a single large-radius jet with one isolated lepton or none (1 and 0, respectively; = e, ). The \PH-candidate jets are identified using an advanced transformer-based algorithm and are calibrated with the Lund jet plane reweighting technique. The 1 channel is further split into gluon fusion, vector boson fusion, and associated production with hadronically decaying vector boson categories, while the 0 channel considers all production processes inclusively. The measured cross section times the H WW branching fraction relative to the standard model expectation is = 0.19, indicating no evidence of a signal above the background. This measurement represents the first dedicated study of highly Lorentz-boosted H WW decays, complementing earlier searches for high- Higgs boson in other decay channels
Association of Intima‐Media Thickness Measured at the Common Carotid Artery With Incident Carotid Plaque: Individual Participant Data Meta‐Analysis of 20 Prospective Studies
Get PDFBackground The association between common carotid artery intima‐media thickness (CCA‐IMT) and incident carotid plaque has not been characterized fully. We therefore aimed to precisely quantify the relationship between CCA‐IMT and carotid plaque development. Methods and Results We undertook an individual participant data meta‐analysis of 20 prospective studies from the Proof‐ATHERO (Prospective Studies of Atherosclerosis) consortium that recorded baseline CCA‐IMT and incident carotid plaque involving 21 494 individuals without a history of cardiovascular disease and without preexisting carotid plaque at baseline. Mean baseline age was 56 years (SD, 9 years), 55% were women, and mean baseline CCA‐IMT was 0.71 mm (SD, 0.17 mm). Over a median follow‐up of 5.9 years (5th–95th percentile, 1.9–19.0 years), 8278 individuals developed first‐ever carotid plaque. We combined study‐specific odds ratios (ORs) for incident carotid plaque using random‐effects meta‐analysis. Baseline CCA‐IMT was approximately log‐linearly associated with the odds of developing carotid plaque. The age‐, sex‐, and trial arm–adjusted OR for carotid plaque per SD higher baseline CCA‐IMT was 1.40 (95% CI, 1.31–1.50; I2=63.9%). The corresponding OR that was further adjusted for ethnicity, smoking, diabetes, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, low‐ and high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, and lipid‐lowering and antihypertensive medication was 1.34 (95% CI, 1.24–1.45; I2=59.4%; 14 studies; 16 297 participants; 6381 incident plaques). We observed no significant effect modification across clinically relevant subgroups. Sensitivity analysis restricted to studies defining plaque as focal thickening yielded a comparable OR (1.38 [95% CI, 1.29–1.47]; I2=57.1%; 14 studies; 17 352 participants; 6991 incident plaques). Conclusions Our large‐scale individual participant data meta‐analysis demonstrated that CCA‐IMT is associated with the long‐term risk of developing first‐ever carotid plaque, independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors
System-size dependence of charged-particle suppression in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions
No full textInternational audienceHigh-energy partons lose energy while propagating through the hot, strongly interacting medium produced in ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions, leading to a suppression of particle production at high transverse momentum (). The dependence of this energy loss on the size of the colliding nuclear system has yet to be firmly established experimentally. This Letter presents a systematic study of charged-particle suppression across four different nucleus-nucleus collision systems using nuclear modification factors () measured by the CMS Collaboration at the CERN LHC. Previous CMS measurements of in oxygen-oxygen, xenon-xenon, and lead-lead collisions are recast with identical intervals and are complemented by the first measurement of the charged-particle in neon-neon collisions at = 5.36 TeV. The neon-neon data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 0.76 nb. The in all collision systems examined show similar qualitative trends, but have a magnitude which is ordered with the nucleon number A. The feature a downward slope at low , a local minimum at around 57 GeV, and an upward slope with increasing . The are also compared in terms of A, which is proportional to the nuclear radius. Models including only initial-state nuclear effects fail to reproduce the observed trends, whereas energy loss models reproduce the trends in the region 9.6 GeV
Studies on the immunosuppressive effects and detection of naturally-occuring toxins
Get PDFEpisodes of toxin-producing phytoplankton occur worldwide, causing both animal and
human fatalities. Toxicity occurs through consumption of phycotoxins, including
azaspiracid, which accumulate in filter-feeding shellfish. Microcystins are hepatotoxins,
produced mainly by freshwater cyanobacteria. Aflatoxins are potent, fungal
hepatocarcinogens, which occur mainly in food and feed products. The purpose of this
research was to examine the cytotoxic and immunosuppressive effects of aflatoxins (B1,
B2 and G1), azaspiracid-1 and microcystin-LR in vitro, using the murine macrophage
cell line, J774A.1. The results clearly demonstrated that azaspiracid and microcystin had
a significant effect on host defence functions, through deregulation of IL-6, IL-10, IL12p40 and TNF-α cytokine expression. Microcystin exposure significantly decreased
IL-1β expression. ‘Toll-like’ receptor (TLR2 and CD14) expression was altered
following aflatoxin exposure, while apoptotic marker (caspase-1) expression was
affected following microcystin exposure. This knowledge should be taken into
consideration in the implementation of detection limits, aimed at minimising risks to
human health through toxin exposure.
Increased awareness of the hazards presented by toxins led to the requirement for
recombinant antibodies for these targets, for incorporation into sensitive detection
immunoassays. This thesis describes the production of leprine and avian immune
libraries for azaspiracid and microcystin, respectively. Attempts were made to isolate
azaspiracid-specific antibodies with little success. Phage display was utilised to
successfully isolate two single chain antibody fragments (scFvs) to microcystin from the
avian library. Error-prone PCR resulted in the isolation of a mutant clone which
displayed a 2.3-fold improvement in sensitivity by ELISA, with an LOD of 1.4 ng/mL.
The mutant scFv displayed an altered cross-reactivity profile to the microcystin variants
tested using Biacore™ inhibition analysis. The recombinant antibodies were
successfully applied to the development of fluorescence-based immunoassay formats.
The biotinylated mutant scFv was incorporated into a slide-based assay format on a
functionalised glass substrate (IC50 ~ 1 µg/L). This assay had the potential to accurately
detect microcystin and its variants, below the regulatory limit of 1 µg/L. The application
of these highly-sensitive recombinant antibodies into rapid and inexpensive
fluorescence detection systems could aid in the development of an early warning system
for toxin outbreaks
