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Flowering is a critical life stage for plants, and the regulation of flowering is heavily influenced by environmental factors and is genetically very complex. In oilseed rape ( Brassica napus L.), a major oil crop, yield is heavily dependent on successful flowering. Until now, the influences of day length and temperature on flowering time have mostly been studied in spring-type rape, although they also affect flowering in winter oilseed rape after vernalization, and changing climate conditions alter springtime temperatures. In this study, a doubled haploid population derived from a cross between a winter and a spring-type oilseed rape was examined for the effect of cool and warm temperatures (11°C and 22°C) in combination with long and short days (8/16-h light) on flowering time after vernalization. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis revealed major QTLs for flowering time in two homologous regions on chromosomes C06 and A07, which were found to interact epistatically. It was found that temperature can either delay or promote flowering depending on day length and genotype, highlighting the complex interplay between these factors. Our study provides new insights into the genetic basis of flowering time regulation in B. napus , especially after vernalization, and highlights the importance of considering the interplay between temperature and day length in breeding programs for this crop, particularly in the context of climate change.

In this paper we explore and challenge the trajectory of research scholarship in the area of Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK). In doing so we adopt the position, as elaborated in Harris et al.'s (2017) editorial, that TPACK research is in need of addressing two key questions: What do teachers need to know in order to integrate technology effectively in the classroom and how can they best develop that knowledge? In order to explore this concern we undertook a review of research using the TPACK framework published in the Australasian Journal of Educational Technology over the last five years. The resulting 22 papers in which the TPACK framework was used substantially as a theoretical or methodological base for the research was analysed in regards to how TPACK scholarship is developing in relation to the research directions set out in the Harris et al.'s (2017) special edition editorial. The review concludes that much of the research identified focused on exploring, critiquing and validating the structure of the TPACK diagram and the seven components it describes. However, we argue that this focus has distracted researchers from addressing the key goals of TPACK and advancing understanding of effective teaching with technology. We conclude that there is a need for a fundamental shift in the trajectory of TPACK research, that is, to pay greater attention to understanding the knowledge that teachers need to use technology effectively for teaching and learning. [Author abstract]

MicroRNAs (miRs) are small non-coding RNAs that recently emerged as potent regulators of gene expression. The members of the miR-17–92 cluster have been shown to control endothelial cell functions and neovascularization; however, the regulation and function of the cluster in endothelial cell lineage commitment has not been explored. This project aimed to test the role of the miR-17–92 cluster during endothelial differentiation. We demonstrate that miR-17, miR-18, miR-19 and miR-20 are increased upon the induction of endothelial cell differentiation of murine embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells. In contrast, miR-92a and the primary miR-17–92 transcript were downregulated. The inhibition of each individual miR of the cluster by cholesterol-modified antagomirs did not affect endothelial marker gene expression. Moreover, the combination of all antagomirs had no effect. These findings illustrate that although the miR-17–92 cluster regulates vascular integrity and angiogenesis, none of the members has a significant impact on the endothelial differentiation of pluripotent stem cells.

This article reports on a comprehensive study, investigating the use of e-tools for formative assignment assessment. The study conducted a large-scale literature review and interviews with 90 academics at five New Zealand tertiary institutions. The focus of the study was on formative assessment provided in assignments, an area in which educational theories on importance for learning and on best practice are well established. Yet, research shows that these theories have failed to influence tertiary practice sufficiently to ensure the best possible outcomes for student learning. The interview data collected were analysed according to motivation, needs and benefits as perceived by lecturers and educational principles as derived from the literature. Both the literature and the interview analysis showed a strong positive impact from using e-tools for the management and marking of assignments. Widely available e-learning and general purpose computer tools can be used effectively to support lecturers in dealing with assignments. Specialised assignment tools provide opportunities for even greater gains. The use of e-tools means time savings for the lecturers and enables quality gains in the assignment process. E-tools have the potential to assist with uptake of the well-established educational theories. This article summarises important aspects of the literature review and the interview analysis conducted as part of the study. It provides recommendations in the form of suggestions on which tools are suitable for specific steps in the assignment process and alerts the reader to the website where there are user profiles supported by case studies and an action plan. All these recommendations are targeted at encouraging and enabling lecturers to employ e-tools for the management and marking of assignments.

This article presents the findings of a qualitative evaluation on the effect of a specialised software tool on the efficiency and quality of assignment marking. The software, Lightwork, combines with the Moodle learning management system and provides support through marking rubrics and marker allocations. To enable the evaluation a framework has been developed that is based on an extensive literature review and interviews with academics in tertiary settings. The framework introduces key factors that are crucial to educationally sound and efficient assignment marking. The use of Lightwork is compared to the prior experiences of participants who used either electronic- or paper-based approaches. The findings are analysed using the framework. The study indicates that Lightwork is well suited to support efficient, high quality assignment marking. It is suggested that the evaluation framework can be used for future studies in this area. (Contains 1 figure and 2 tables.)

The educational literature shows that formative assessment is highly conducive to learning. The tasks given to students in formative assessment generally require open-ended responses that can be given, for example, in essay-type format and that are assessed by a human marker. An essential component is the formative feedback provided by the marker that needs to assist the student in recognising knowledge gaps and in formulating steps to close these gaps. The concepts of ‘electronic repositories of marked student work’ introduced in this article suggests an approach to support learning from formative assessment. At the core of this concept lies the realisation that the artefacts submitted by students and assessed by markers are a valuable resource. This resource should not just be used by the submitting students but should be made accessible to future students studying the same concepts. These students can learn from the artefacts and the formative feedback attached to these artefacts. Self- and peer-assessment, important concepts closely linked to formative assessment, can be integrated with the repositories to develop the students' subject knowledge, to enhance their critical thinking skills and to familiarise them with assessment procedures. This article develops the concepts of electronic repositories of marked student work. Special emphasis is put on reviewing the educational literature on formative assessment and on binding the concepts introduced into the literature findings.

The bibliometric data in this editorial provide readers with information about the journal’s publication, review and article access statistics, the articles attracting the most interest over the past year and the citation performance of the journal.

Over the last decade the deployment and use of learning analytics has become routine in many universities around the world. The ability to analyse the way students interact with technology has demonstrated significant value for providing insights into student learning and there are now a wide range of uses for learning analytics in education. From use as a diagnostic tool, to a method for prediction, learning analytics in higher education has an emphasis on a wide range of outcome measures, including student retention, progression, attainment, performance, mastery, employability and engagement. In exploring how learning analytics can improve learning practice by transforming the ways we support learning processes, this editorial highlights some of the learning analytics research that has been published in AJET to date.

By far not all genetic information is expressed by mRNA coding regions of the DNA. 98% of the human genome is not encoding for proteins. Therefore, these non-coding regions have been considered as “junk DNA” for a long time [1, 2]. The last years, new high throughput sequencing techniques have allowed the elucidation of the heterogeneous population of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs, Table 1). RNAs longer than 200 nucleotides (nt) belong to the family of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). They can exhibit numerous functions: The biggest family of RNAs is represented by the ribosomal RNAs (rRNAs). Together with the transfer RNAs (tRNAs) they are essential for the translation of mRNA into an amino acid sequence.The most popular example of a functional lncRNA is Xist, a lncRNA that mediates the inactivation of the second X-chromosome in females [3]. By now, numerous functions have been assigned to lncRNAs, e.g. epigenetic regulation of gene expression or splicing [4, 5] and are deregulated in disease states, e.g. MALAT1 has been shown to be involved in the pathogenesis of pulmonary tumors [6]. However, the function of many lncRNAs remains unknown. Small non-coding RNAs are shorter than 200 nucleotides. For example, small nuclear RNAs (snRNAs or U-RNAs) are located in the nucleus where they regulate the processing of mRNAs. Small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) and small cajal body specific RNAs (scaRNAs), as well are able to guide modifications of other RNAs, especially methylation and pseudouridylation of rRNAs, tRNAs and snRNAs. Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are the largest group of small non-coding RNAs. They are present in complexes with proteins and function as epigenetic gene regulators in germ cells [7]. Moreover they are implicated in transposon silencing and heterochromatin modification [8]. MicroRNAs are another large group of small non-coding RNAs, that was investigated extensively within the last two decades. The biogenesis and regulation as well as the function of miRs will be introduced in the following sections.