A system, named Reflex, for handling reflection documents is presented. Writing a reflection document is a mandatory last step when carrying out Master’s or Bachelor’s theses within all education programs at the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Linköping University. In the reflection document the students are expected to reflect on both the thesis work and the outcome of the entire education program. The reflection is structured according to the four sections of the CDIO Syllabus plus additional aspects around the process of the thesis work and the program as a whole. Reflection documents have been used for more than ten years, but via the introduction of Reflex in 2023 the process is entirely electronic and all texts from the reflections are stored in a searchable database. This enables efficient and systematic analyses of the texts, which can be used for evaluations of entire programs as well as selected aspects. Two examples of such analyses are presented in the paper. In addition, the thesis work process is presented, together with a description of how the system Reflex works. 

A system, named Reflex, for handling reflection documents is presented. Writing a reflection document is a mandatory last step when carrying out Master’s or Bachelor’s theses within all education programs at the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Linköping University. In the reflection document the students are expected to reflect on both the thesis work and the outcome of the entire education program. The reflection is structured according to the four sections of the CDIO Syllabus plus additional aspects around the process of the thesis work and the program as a whole. Reflection documents have been used for more than ten years, but via the introduction of Reflex in 2023 the process is entirely electronic and all texts from the reflections are stored in a searchable database. This enables efficient and systematic analyses of the texts, which can be used for evaluations of entire programs as well as selected aspects. Two examples of such analyses are presented in the paper. In addition, the thesis work process is presented, together with a description of how the system Reflex works.  

The CDIO framework is an integrated and important part of the new quality assurance system within the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Linköping University. Both the CDIO Syllabus and the CDIO Standards are used extensively in the system. First, the paper presents the development and use of the second generation of course matrices (previously denoted ITU-matrices) and program matrices, which build upon an adapted and extended version of the CDIO Syllabus. The extension is made to also include bachelor’s and master’s program in subjects outside the engineering field. Second, the paper presents how the CDIO Standards are used in the quality reports, which are vital parts of the quality assurance systems. As a result, the CDIO framework is used for the design, management, and quality assurance of all education programs ( approximately 60 programs) within the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Linköping University.

Proliferation of fibroblasts is vital for adequate wound healing but is probably also involved in different hyperproliferative disorders such as atherosclerosis and cancer. The regeneration of tissue usually starts with coagulation, involving release of mitogenic and inflammatory factors from activated platelets. This study focuses on the role of eicosanoids in the proliferative effects of platelets on human fibroblasts. We show that the phospholipase A2 inhibitor 7,7-dimethyl-5,8-eicosadienoic acid (DMDA), the combined cyclooxygenase (COX) and lipoxygenase (LOX) inhibitor 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraynoic acid (ETYA) and the LOX inhibitor 5,8,11-eicosatriynoic acid (ETI) block the platelet-induced proliferation of serum starved subconfluent human fibroblasts. Anti-proliferative effects were also obtained by specific inhibition of 5-LOX with 5,6-dehydro arachidonic acid (5,6-dAA), whereas the 12-LOX inhibitor cinnamyl-3,4-dihydroxy-α-cyanocinnamate (CDC) did not affect the platelet-stimulated growth of fibroblasts. The expression of 5-LOX was analyzed by reverse-transcriptase-mediated PCR (RT-PCR), Western blotting and HPLC. 5-LOX message and protein was detected in fibroblasts but not in platelets. Incubation with platelets markedly increased, already after one hour, the expression of 5-LOX in the fibroblast culture. The increased 5-LOX activity was associated with an elevated level of the 5-LOX metabolite 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HETE) reaching its maximum after 1-2 hours of co-incubation of fibroblasts and platelets. The 5-HETE production was reduced by the inhibitors DMDA, ETYA and ETI. In conclusion, this study suggests that platelet-stimulated proliferation of fibroblasts is mediated by an increased 5-LOX activity, which supports recent findings indicating a crucial role for this enzyme in proliferative disorders such as atherosclerosis. © 2006 Schattauer GmbH, Stuttgart.

Lewis lung carcinoma cells contain specific high-affinity binding sites for the eicosanoid 12(S)-hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic acid [12(S)-HETE]. These binding sites have a cytosolic/nuclear localization and contain the heat shock proteins hsp70 and hsp90 as components of a high molecular weight cytosolic binding complex. The ligand binding subunit of this complex is a protein with an apparent molecular mass of ÿ50 kDa as judged by gel permeation chromatography. In this report, we present data showing that the 50-kDa 12(S)-HETE binding protein interacts as a homodimer with steroid receptor coactivator-1 (SRC-1) in the presence of 12(S)-HETE. Two putative interaction domains were mapped. One of these (amino acids 701-781) was within the nuclear receptor interaction domain in SRC-1 required for binding of various steroid and thyroid hormone receptors. It contains the most C-terminal of the three copies of LXXLL motif present in the nuclear receptor interaction domain. The second interaction domain was present in the N-terminal part of SRC-1 (amino acids 1-221). This region has two LXXLL motifs, one does not bind and the other binds only weakly to steroid and thyroid hormone receptors. Glutathione S-transferase (GST) pulldown experiments and far Western analyses demonstrated that the N-terminal region of SRC-1 (amino acids 1-212) alone does not bind the 50-kDa 12(S)-HETE binding protein, whereas GST/?SRC-11-1138 ligand-dependently pulled down a protein of ÿ50 kDa in size. Our results suggest that the 50-kDa 12(S)-HETE binding protein is a receptor that may signal through interaction with a nuclear receptor coactivator protein.