bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Epigenetic life: biological plasticity, abnormality, and new configurations of race and reproduction
Authors: Mansfield Becky , Guthman Julie
Published: November 2014

Environmental epigenetics is a ‘hot’ new field of post-genomic science investigating mechanisms that influence how genes are expressed. It offers a dynamic and non-dualistic understanding of the relationship between environments, genes, bodies, and health. We ask how this new science of biological plasticity is changing existing concepts of normality and abnormality. We find that epigenetics is contributing to a new biological (yet non-determinist) ontology of race and that the fetus and reproductive women are emerging as the central figures in this new epigenetic model of race and bodily plasticity. We find that epigenetics is a science of variation in which biological difference is figured as both normal (inevitable) and abnormal (a sign of disruption); it then seeks to improve life by identifying therapies to cure epigenetic ‘abnormalities’. In this way, epigenetics emerges as a reproductive science, in which the ‘uterine environment’ is figured as the key space–time of epigenetic becoming. We argue that in this focus on abnormality and improvement, epigenetics is tied to a eugenic logic, even as it rejects notions of genetic determinism. While it might seem that epigenetic models of plastic life should eliminate race by eliminating notions of discrete kinds given in nature, it appears that epigenetics offers a new form of racialization based on reproductive processes of becoming rather than on pre-given nature.
Proximity and journalistic practice in environmental discourse: Experiencing ‘job blackmail’ in the news
Authors: Johnstone Barbara , Mando Justin
Published: November 2014

The shift from coal to natural gas to fuel electricity generation has positive (environmental) and negative (economic) consequences for people in the affected areas of the US. Representations of the situation in the media shape how citizens understand and respond to it. We explore the role of proximity in media discourse about the closing of a coal-fired power plant near Waynesburg, a small city in a Pennsylvania coal-mining region. Comparing reporting in smaller-circulation newspapers closer to the site with reporting in larger-circulation regional newspapers, we find that Waynesburg-area papers simply describe the events leading to the closure while regional papers analyze the events in larger contexts, and that politicians, not the plant owners, are represented as blaming environmentalists for job loss. Our findings point to the importance of proximity in environmental discourse and to the need to examine not only what kinds of discourse circulate, but also how and to whom.
Use of Diabetes Data Management Software Reports by Health Care Providers, Patients With Diabetes, and Caregivers Improves Accuracy and Efficiency of Data Analysis and Interpretation Compared With Traditional Logbook Data
Authors: Hinnen Deborah A. , Buskirk Ann , Lyden Maureen , Amstutz Linda , Hunter Tracy , Parkin Christopher G. , Wagner Robin
Published: November 2014

Background:

We assessed users’ proficiency and efficiency in identifying and interpreting self-monitored blood glucose (SMBG), insulin, and carbohydrate intake data using data management software reports compared with standard logbooks.

Method:

This prospective, self-controlled, randomized study enrolled insulin-treated patients with diabetes (PWDs) (continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion [CSII] and multiple daily insulin injection [MDI] therapy), patient caregivers [CGVs]) and health care providers (HCPs) who were naïve to diabetes data management computer software. Six paired clinical cases (3 CSII, 3 MDI) and associated multiple-choice questions/answers were reviewed by diabetes specialists and presented to participants via a web portal in both software report (SR) and traditional logbook (TL) formats. Participant response time and accuracy were documented and assessed. Participants completed a preference questionnaire at study completion.

Results:

All participants (54 PWDs, 24 CGVs, 33 HCPs) completed the cases. Participants achieved greater accuracy (assessed by percentage of accurate answers) using the SR versus TL formats: PWDs, 80.3 (13.2)% versus 63.7 (15.0)%, P < .0001; CGVs, 84.6 (8.9)% versus 63.6 (14.4)%, P < .0001; HCPs, 89.5 (8.0)% versus 66.4 (12.3)%, P < .0001. Participants spent less time (minutes) with each case using the SR versus TL formats: PWDs, 8.6 (4.3) versus 19.9 (12.2), P < .0001; CGVs, 7.0 (3.5) versus 15.5 (11.8), P = .0005; HCPs, 6.7 (2.9) versus 16.0 (12.0), P < .0001. The majority of participants preferred using the software reports versus logbook data.

Conclusions:

Use of the Accu-Chek Connect Online software reports enabled PWDs, CGVs, and HCPs, naïve to diabetes data management software, to identify and utilize key diabetes information with significantly greater accuracy and efficiency compared with traditional logbook information. Use of SRs was preferred over logbooks.
One size doesn’t fit all
Authors: Marcus Justin , Fritzsche Barbara A.
Published: November 2014

Much of the research on the effects of age in the workplace has ignored the role of contextual factors, and the intersection of multiple group identities. In seeking to address these shortcomings, we provide a theoretical integration and review. First, we review the literature on contextual factors that determine age salience. We then provide a review of the major and competing theories on the consequences of multiple subordinate group status on work outcomes. Finally, we seek to integrate these multiple streams of thought into a unified framework, by identifying when and how competing aspects of group membership become salient, and the consequences of category membership constellations for various subgroups of older workers. A theoretical framework and accompanying propositions are presented.
Bacterial infections in childhood: A risk factor for gastrointestinal and other diseases?
Authors: Schwille-Kiuntke Juliane , Unverdorben Alexandra , Weimer Katja , Schlarb Angelika Anita , Gulewitsch Marco Daniel , Ellert Ute , Enck Paul
Published: November 2014

Background

There is evidence for post‐infectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI‐IBS) in adults, but little is known about PI‐IBS in children. The nationwide representative German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) assessed children's health.

Objective and methods

We identified 643 children (50.1% males) in the KiGGS cohort (N  = 15,878, 51% males) with a history of Salmonella infection. The number was validated comparing this group with the known infection statistics from the Robert Koch‐Institute registry. We compared this group to the remaining KiGGS cohort (n  = 12,951) with respect to sociodemographic characteristics, pain and quality of life. To check for specificity, we repeated the comparisons with a group with a history of scarlet fever.

Results

Infection statistics predicted 504 cases of Salmonella infection in the KiGGS cohort, indicating high validity of the data. In children between 3 and 10 years with a history of Salmonella infection, significantly more abdominal pain (31.7% versus 21.9%, p  < 0.001) and headache (27.2% versus 15.1%, p  < 0.001) were reported. This group showed lower quality of life (p  < 0.001). Comparison to a group of scarlet fever‐infected children revealed poor specificity of the data.

Conclusion

Differences found between children with and without Salmonella infection reveal the role of gastrointestinal infection in the development of post‐infectious abdominal problems, but poor specificity may point toward a psychosocial (“somatization”) rather than a Salmonella ‐specific mechanism.
Can and Should Happiness Be a Policy Goal?
Authors: Oishi Shigehiro , Diener Ed
Published: November 2014

This article summarizes policy-relevant happiness research and demonstrates that self-reported happiness could be used to evaluate public policies. Self-reported well-being (e.g., life satisfaction, happiness) tracks objective societal and economic conditions fairly well (e.g., the financial crisis of 2008) and helps quantify people’s suffering (e.g., severe disability is roughly twice as aversive as unemployment). Evidence also demonstrates that some liberal policies, such as generous unemployment benefits, progressive taxation, and income equality, are positively associated with citizens’ self-reported well-being, whereas others (e.g., larger governmental spending per Gross Domestic Product [GDP]) are not. Just as the regular recording of economic activities helps gauge the effectiveness of specific policies and the general economic well-being of individuals and society at large, the regular recording of citizens’ self-reported well-being will help gauge the effectiveness of specific policies, as well as the psychological well-being of individuals and society at large.
Reducing Racial Health Care Disparities
Authors: Penner Louis A. , Blair Irene V. , Albrecht Terrance L. , Dovidio John F.
Published: November 2014

Large health disparities persist between Black and White Americans. The social psychology of intergroup relations suggests some solutions to health care disparities due to racial bias. Three paths can lead from racial bias to poorer health among Black Americans. First is the already well-documented physical and psychological toll of being a target of persistent discrimination. Second, implicit bias can affect physicians’ perceptions and decisions, creating racial disparities in medical treatments, although evidence is mixed. The third path describes a less direct route: Physicians’ implicit racial bias negatively affects communication and the patient–provider relationship, resulting in racial disparities in the outcomes of medical interactions. Strong evidence shows that physician implicit bias negatively affects Black patients’ reactions to medical interactions, and there is good circumstantial evidence that these reactions affect health outcomes of the interactions. Solutions focused on the physician, the patient, and the health care delivery system; all agree that trying to ignore patients’ race or to change physicians’ implicit racial attitudes will not be effective and may actually be counterproductive. Instead, solutions can minimize the impact of racial bias on medical decisions and on patient–provider relationships.
Psychology and Energy-Use Reduction Policies
Authors: Swim Janet K. , Geiger Nathaniel , Zawadzki Stephanie J.
Published: November 2014

Local, state, and federal governments are continuing to design and pass programs and policies to decrease demand for energy. These programs and policies provide social, economic, and environmental benefits. Social and behavioral scientists can inform policymaking and evaluation because of their expertise in behavioral change. Specifically, policies will be more effective if they include a behavioral level analysis to help select behaviors, design behavioral change strategies that target appropriate motives and abilities, and attend to social and environmental contexts. After describing these principles, the article illustrates how they can inform the evaluation of labeling programs designed to encourage energy-efficient behaviors among consumers, manufacturers, and building owners.
False Confessions
Authors: Kassin Saul M.
Published: November 2014

In recent years, DNA exoneration cases have shed light on the problem of false confessions and the wrongful convictions that result. Drawing on basic psychological principles and methods, an extensive body of research has focused on the psychology of confessions. This article describes the processes of interrogation by which police assess whether a suspect is lying or telling the truth and the techniques used to elicit confessions from those deemed deceptive. The problem of false confessions emphasizes personal and situational factors that put innocent people at risk in the interrogation room. Turning from the causes of false confessions to their consequences, research shows that confession evidence can bias juries, judges, lay witnesses, and forensic examiners. Finally, empirically based proposals for the reform of policy and practice include a call for the mandatory video recording of interrogations, blind testing in forensic crime labs, and use of confession experts in court.
A Multilevel Analysis of Stigma and Health
Authors: Richman Laura Smart , Hatzenbuehler Mark L.
Published: November 2014

This article reviews research on stigma and discrimination—at both the interpersonal and societal levels—faced by disadvantaged groups. Research on interpersonal discrimination primarily concerns discrimination that is perceived and directly experienced (e.g., discrimination in employment and health care), whereas research on societal discrimination focuses on broad societal factors (e.g., institutional policies, social attitudes). We review evidence across numerous fields of study that rely on several types of research designs, which indicate that both forms of stigma and discrimination demonstrably contribute to health inequalities for disadvantaged groups such as racial and ethnic minorities and lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations. These adverse health outcomes range from maladaptive physiological stress responses in a laboratory setting to premature mortality at a population level. The science on stigma and discrimination applies to policy issues in education, same-sex marriage, and health care delivery. Some current policies increase the experience of stigma. We argue that more holistic social policies can recognize the psychosocial factors that contribute to well-being, thereby reducing social inequalities in health.
Active Deception Detection
Authors: Levine Timothy R.
Published: November 2014

Actively detecting deception requires (a) gathering information for fact-checking the communication content, (b) strategically prompting deception cues, and (c) encouraging honest admissions and discouraging continued deceit. Most deception-detection research, active or otherwise, finds that people are only slightly better than chance at correctly distinguishing truth from lies. Poor accuracy stems from a lack of reliable deception cues that hold across people and situations. Consequently, basing lie detection on deception cues is prone to error. However, some approaches to active deception detection yield higher accuracy than passive observation. Not all active approaches are advantageous. Mere interaction and mere question-asking produce outcomes similar to passive observation. Evidence-based and confession-solicitation approaches can be highly effective: for example, strategic use of evidence (SUE) and the content in context approach.
Negotiating Deals and Settling Conflict Can Create Value for Both Sides
Authors: De Dreu Carsten K. W.
Published: November 2014

Conflicts are mostly wasteful, and deal-making is often not optimal. Yet agreements in international relations, business, and personal relationships show that people can regulate their conflicts of interest and ideology constructively and sometimes to mutual benefit. When individuals, and their groups, create such mutually beneficial, integrative agreements, they promote economic prosperity, stabilize society, and reduce conflict. Key insights from social-psychological science show (a) when and why people initiate negotiation, (b) how negotiators’ cognitive strategies manage complex and uncertain information, and (c) how their goals and motivations can release their capacity to create value in conflict and deal-making. These integrative agreements grow from both concern for own interests and respect for the other side. Reaching integrative agreements is cognitively taxing and difficult, yet facilitated when negotiators adopt long-term perspectives focused on own and others’ interests rather than immediate competing positions. Institutions can help negotiators to seek integrative agreements that benefit all rather than some by nurturing mutual respect and promoting benign, low-pressure environments.
Women at Work
Authors: Ellemers Naomi
Published: November 2014

Organizations benefit from gender diversity, as research clearly documents. Nevertheless, statistics reveal consistent gender differences in career development and payment. Women who feel undervalued at work will re-evaluate their priorities and are tempted to “opt out.” Organizations that wish to reap the benefits of gender diversity can profit from behavioral science research identifying mechanisms that may prevent women from making the same career choices as men: (a) implicit bias decreases the odds that women will enter and perform in male-dominated job levels or organizations, (b) glass cliff effects make career development less attractive for women, (c) Queen Bee effects prevent women in leadership from acting as role models for other women, and (d) some work–family approaches imply that women have to give up family life to be successful in their professional career. Being aware of these mechanisms, their implications, and possible remedies can benefit organizations and policy makers, and encourage women in different career stages to “lean in.”
Psychological Aspects of Contraception, Unintended Pregnancy, and Abortion
Authors: Steinberg Julia R. , Rubin Lisa R.
Published: November 2014

The knowledge of important biopsychosocial factors linking women’s reproductive health and mental health is increasing. This review focuses on psychological aspects of contraception, unintended pregnancy, and abortion because these are common reproductive health experiences in U.S. women’s lives. This review addresses the mental-health antecedents and consequences of these experiences, mostly focusing on depression and depressive symptoms before and after unintended pregnancy and contraception. As mental-health antecedents, depressive symptoms predict contraceptive behaviors that lead to unintended pregnancy, and mental-health disorders have been associated with having subsequent abortions. In examining the mental-health consequences, most sound research does not find abortion or contraceptive use to cause mental-health problems. Consequently, evidence does not support policies based on the notion that abortion harms women’s mental health. Nevertheless, the abortion-care setting may be a place to integrate mental-health services. In contrast, women who have births resulting from unintended pregnancies may be at higher risk of postpartum depression. Social policies (e.g., paid maternity leave, subsidized child care) may protect women from mental-health problems and stress of unplanned children interrupting employment, education, and pre-existing family care responsibilities.
Understanding the Terrorist Threat
Authors: Orehek Edward , Vazeou-Nieuwenhuis Anna
Published: November 2014

Terrorism is a tool designed to reach political objectives. Terrorism emerges in a social and political context, representing a form of psychological warfare aimed at achieving political goals by eliciting an emotional response in the populace of a perceived adversary. As such, terrorism requires both the ability to penetrate the enemy’s defenses and the motivation to justify violence. This article presents a means-end motivational account of terrorism, reviewing (a) the scope of the terrorist threat, (b) what drives perceiving terrorism as an instrumental means of reaching political goals, (c) how the quest for personal significance motivates adopting terrorism-justifying ideologies, and (d) how this understanding of terrorism may inform counter-terrorism policy considerations.
Educational Attainment and Life Expectancy
Authors: Kaplan Robert M. , Spittel Michael L. , Zeno Tia L.
Published: November 2014

National objectives for health concentrate on improving life expectancy and enhancing health-related quality of life. Although U.S. life expectancy has seen significant extensions over the last century, the rate of increase has been falling behind other wealthy countries, and these trends have been worsening over the last 30 years. In addition, the United States spends considerably more on health care in comparison with major trading competitors. Most policy approaches for enhancing health focus on increasing expenditures for medical care. Yet, medical care explains only about 10% of the variance in health outcomes, whereas behavioral and social factors outside of health care explain nearly 50%. Evidence suggests that educational attainment may be one of the strongest correlates of life expectancy. As a baseline, cancer screening and optimizing established risk factors for premature death typically extend life expectancy by less than 1 year. In contrast, remediating the health disparity associated with low educational attainment might enhance life expectancy by up to a decade. Amassing persuasive evidence on the health benefits of interventions to improve educational attainment will be challenging. To address this issue, a robust program of systematic research is needed.
Relative Deprivation
Authors: Smith Heather J. , Huo Yuen J.
Published: November 2014

Discussions of the impact of growing inequality have focused on objective indicators. Focusing on what individuals have or do not have can be misleading without understanding how they subjectively interpret the availability of resources. Relative deprivation (RD) occurs when individuals compare themselves with better-off others and conclude that they do not deserve their disadvantage. These upward comparisons, whether imposed or chosen, can damage people’s emotions, behavior, and even mental and physical health. How people respond to RD depends on whether they (a) experience the disadvantage directed toward them as a unique individual or as a member of a group (e.g., ethnic category, occupation), (b) feel anger or another emotion (e.g., sadness), and (c) view the system (e.g., workplace, nation) as open to change. Mobility interventions (e.g., housing and school vouchers) may have unexpected adverse consequences that direct improvements to the local infrastructure and community do not. Costs of RD (including physical illness) increase if people cannot address perceived inequities effectively. RD explains why simply enumerating resources and opportunities does not fully explain how relative disadvantage produces outcomes ranging from social protest to illness. Insights from psychological science that show how individuals respond to social inequities can inform policies for building communities and improving well-being.
Reactance or Rationalization? Predicting Public Responses to Government Policy
Authors: Proudfoot Devon , Kay Aaron C.
Published: November 2014

The public’s attitudes toward new governmental laws and regulations are frequently at the forefront of public policy debates. Will the public react negatively to a newly implemented public safety regulation or embrace the change? Does the public’s initial favorability toward a proposed environmental policy indicate public opinion and compliance if such a law passed? Social psychological research directly explores these questions and provides insight into how specific policy designs and implementations can shape public response to new regulations. People may exhibit one of two contrasting responses to policies: reactance or rationalization. When a rule is imposed, individuals often display reactance—exaggerating the value of the behavior being banned or restricted. However, individuals also frequently show an opposite, perhaps less conspicuous, tendency—They rationalize government policy; that is, they diminish alternatives and actively justify why the imposed regulations are favorable. In experiments, two factors—individuals’ attentional focus and a policy’s apparent absoluteness—determine whether people react against or rationalize policies that seek to restrict their behavior. In other evidence, people’s motivation to defend the status quo may hinder—but also facilitate—support for public policy changes. The implications can guide public policy design and implementation.
Assumptions About Behavior and Choice in Response to Public Assistance
Authors: Hall Crystal C. , Galvez Martha M. , Sederbaum Isaac M.
Published: November 2014

Assumptions about decision making and consumer preferences guide programs and products intended to help low-income households achieve healthy outcomes and financial stability. Despite their importance to service design and implementation, these assumptions are rarely stated explicitly, or empirically tested. Some key assumptions may reflect ideas carried over from an earlier era of social-service delivery. Or they may reflect research on decision making by higher income populations that do not hold or have not been tested in a low-income context. This disconnect between assumptions and evidence potentially results in less effective policy design and implementation—at substantial financial and social cost. This piece examines how insights from psychology can help policymakers analyze the core assumptions about behavior that underlie policy outcomes. Three policy areas serve as case studies, to examine some implicit and explicit assumptions about how low-income individuals make decisions under public and nonprofit assistance: banking, nutrition, and housing. Research on preferences and decision making evaluates these foundational assumptions. This perspective provides a unique and under-utilized framework to explain some behavioral puzzles, examine and predict the actions of individuals living in poverty, and understand what are often disappointing program outcomes. Recommendations suggest how psychology and behavioral decision making can impact policy research and design.
Educational Theory, Practice, and Policy and the Wisdom of Social Psychology
Authors: Cohen Geoffrey L. , Garcia Julio
Published: November 2014

The power of psychologically based interventions has garnered much interest in the general public and in the social sciences, especially in social psychology. Among the lessons that such social-psychological interventions provide are two of special importance for educational practice and social policy. The first is that different students can perceive the same classroom differently and that these perceptions can lead to substantial differences in outcomes. The second is that timely and well-placed interventions, almost irrespective of their duration, can change students’ perceptions of school and the classroom for the better. Randomized double-blind experiments show that such change is possible and can trigger lasting improvements in students’ academic trajectories. In the context of closing achievement gaps, these insights offer practical solutions and a better understanding of motivation. This article focuses on how wise interventions and insights from social psychology can further apply to improve human affairs, both inside and outside the classroom.
Extragradient method for convex minimization problem
Authors: Ceng Lu-Chuan , Liou Yeong-Cheng , Wen Ching-Feng
Published: November 2014

In this paper, we introduce and analyze a multi-step hybrid extragradient algorithm by combining Korpelevich’s extragradient method, the viscosity approximation method, the hybrid steepest-descent method, Mann’s iteration method and the gradient-projection method (GPM) with regularization in the setting of infinite-dimensional Hilbert spaces. It is proven that, under appropriate assumptions, the proposed algorithm converges strongly to a solution of the convex minimization problem (CMP) with constraints of several problems: finitely many generalized mixed equilibrium problems (GMEPs), finitely many variational inclusions, and the fixed point problem of a strictly pseudocontractive mapping. In the meantime, we also prove the strong convergence of the proposed algorithm to the unique solution of a hierarchical variational inequality problem (over the fixed point set of a strictly pseudocontractive mapping) with constraints of finitely many GMEPs, finitely many variational inclusions and the CMP. The results presented in this paper improve and extend the corresponding results announced by many others.

MSC:49J30, 47H09, 47J20, 49M05.
Stakeholders’ perceptions of transferability criteria for health promotion interventions: a case study
Authors: Trompette Justine , Kivits Joëlle , Minary Laetitia , Cambon Linda , Alla François
Published: November 2014

Background

The effects of health promotion interventions are the result not only of the interventions themselves, but also of the contexts in which they unfold. The objective of this study was to analyze, through stakeholders’ discourse, the characteristics of an intervention that can influence its outcomes.

Methods

This case study was based on semi-structured interviews with health promotion stakeholders involved in a regional program (PRALIMAP). General hypotheses on transferability and on how the intervention is presumed to produce its effects were used to construct an interview guide. Interviews were analyzed using thematic coding.

Results

Twenty-three stakeholders were interviewed. Results showed stakeholders made few references to population and environment characteristics. Three themes emerged as significant for the stakeholders: implementation modalities and methodology, modalities used to mobilize actors; and transferability-promoting factors and barriers.

Conclusion

Our work contributes to a better understanding not only of transferability factors, but also of stakeholders’ perceptions of them, which are just as important, because those perceptions themselves are a factor in mobilization of actors, implementation, and transferability.
Hyperosmolar sodium-lactate in the ICU: vascular filling and cellular feeding
Authors: Fontaine Eric , Orban Jean-Christophe , Ichai Carole
Published: November 2014

Hyperosmolar lactate-based solutions have been used for fluid resuscitation in ICU patients. The positive effects observed with these fluids have been attributed to both lactate metabolism and the hypertonic nature of the solutions. In a recent issue of Critical Care, Duburcq and colleagues studied three types of fluid infused at the same volume in a porcine model of endotoxic shock. The control group was resuscitated with 0.9% NaCl, and the two other groups received either hypertonic sodium-lactate or hypertonic sodium-bicarbonate. The two hypertonic fluids proved to be more effective than 0.9% NaCl for resuscitation in this model. However, some parameters were more effectively corrected by hypertonic sodium-lactate than by hypertonic sodium-bicarbonate, suggesting that lactate metabolism was beneficial in these cases.
Early sedation use in critically ill mechanically ventilated patients: when less is really more
Authors: Lee Christie M , Mehta Sangeeta
Published: November 2014

Over the last 10 years, there has been an explosion of literature surrounding sedation management for critically ill patients. The clinical target has moved away from an unconscious and immobile patient toward a goal of light or no sedation and early mobility. The move away from terms such as `sedation’ toward more patient-centered and symptom-based control of pain, anxiety, and agitation makes the management of critically ill patients more individualized and dynamic. Over-sedation has been associated with negative ICU outcomes, including longer durations of mechanical ventilation and lengths of stay, but few studies have been able to associate deep sedation with increased mortality.
Post return of spontaneous circulation factors associated with mortality in pediatric in-hospital cardiac arrest: a prospective multicenter multinational observational study
Authors: López-Herce Jesús , del Castillo Jimena , Matamoros Martha , Canadas Sonia , Rodriguez-Calvo Ana , Cecchetti Corrado , Rodríguez-Núnez Antonio , Carrillo Ángel ,   Iberoamerican Pediatric Cardiac Arrest Study Network RIBEPCI
Published: November 2014

Introduction

Most studies have analyzed pre-arrest and resuscitation factors associated with mortality after cardiac arrest (CA) in children, but many patients that reach return of spontaneous circulation die within the next days or weeks. The objective of our study was to analyze post-return of spontaneous circulation factors associated with in-hospital mortality after cardiac arrest in children.

Methods

A prospective multicenter, multinational, observational study in 48 hospitals from 12 countries was performed. A total of 502 children aged between 1 month and 18 years with in-hospital cardiac arrest were analyzed. The primary endpoint was survival to hospital discharge. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the influence of each post-return of spontaneous circulation factor on mortality.

Results

Return of spontaneous circulation was achieved in 69.5% of patients; 39.2% survived to hospital discharge and 88.9% of survivors had good neurological outcome. In the univariate analysis, post- return of spontaneous circulation factors related with mortality were pH, base deficit, lactic acid, bicarbonate, FiO2, need for inotropic support, inotropic index, dose of dopamine and dobutamine at 1 hour and at 24 hours after return of spontaneous circulation as well as Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and total hospital length of stay. In the multivariate analysis factors associated with mortality at 1 hour after return of spontaneous circulation were PaCO2 < 30 mmHg and >50 mmHg, inotropic index >14 and lactic acid >5 mmol/L. Factors associated with mortality at 24 hours after return of spontaneous circulation were PaCO2 > 50 mmHg, inotropic index >14 and FiO2 ≥ 0.80.

Conclusions

Secondary in-hospital mortality among the initial survivors of CA is high. Hypoventilation, hyperventilation, FiO2 ≥ 0.80, the need for high doses of inotropic support, and high levels of lactic acid were the most important post-return of spontaneous circulation factors associated with in-hospital mortality in children in our population.
Comparative analyses of Legionella species identifies genetic features of strains causing Legionnaires’ disease
Authors: Gomez-Valero Laura , Rusniok Christophe , Rolando Monica , Neou Mario , Dervins-Ravault Delphine , Demirtas Jasmin , Rouy Zoe , Moore Robert J , Chen Honglei , Petty Nicola K , Jarraud Sophie , Etienne Jerome , Steinert Michael , Heuner Klaus , Gribaldo Simonetta , Médigue Claudine , Glöckner Gernot , Hartland Elizabeth L , Buchrieser Carmen
Published: November 2014

Background

The genus Legionella comprises over 60 species. However, L. pneumophila and L. longbeachae alone cause over 95% of Legionnaires’ disease. To identify the genetic bases underlying the different capacities to cause disease we sequenced and compared the genomes of L. micdadei, L. hackeliae and L. fallonii (LLAP10), which are all rarely isolated from humans.

Results

We show that these Legionella species possess different virulence capacities in amoeba and macrophages, correlating with their occurrence in humans. Our comparative analysis of 11 Legionella genomes belonging to five species reveals highly heterogeneous genome content with over 60% representing species-specific genes; these comprise a complete prophage in L. micdadei, the first ever identified in a Legionella genome. Mobile elements are abundant in Legionella genomes; many encode type IV secretion systems for conjugative transfer, pointing to their importance for adaptation of the genus. The Dot/Icm secretion system is conserved, although the core set of substrates is small, as only 24 out of over 300 described Dot/Icm effector genes are present in all Legionella species. We also identified new eukaryotic motifs including thaumatin, synaptobrevin or clathrin/coatomer adaptine like domains.

Conclusions

Legionella genomes are highly dynamic due to a large mobilome mainly comprising type IV secretion systems, while a minority of core substrates is shared among the diverse species. Eukaryotic like proteins and motifs remain a hallmark of the genus Legionella. Key factors such as proteins involved in oxygen binding, iron storage, host membrane transport and certain Dot/Icm substrates are specific features of disease-related strains.
Long-Term Outcomes in Patients With Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer After Selective Bladder-Preserving Combined-Modality Therapy: A Pooled Analysis of Radiation Therapy Oncology Group Protocols 8802, 8903, 9506, 9706, 9906, and 0233
Authors: Mak Raymond H. , Hunt Daniel , Shipley William U. , Efstathiou Jason A. , Tester William J. , Hagan Michael P. , Kaufman Donald S. , Heney Niall M. , Zietman Anthony L.
Published: November 2014

Purpose

Multiple prospective Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) protocols have evaluated bladder-preserving combined-modality therapy (CMT) for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), reserving cystectomy for salvage treatment. We performed a pooled analysis of long-term outcomes in patients with MIBC enrolled across multiple studies.

Patients and Methods

Four hundred sixty-eight patients with MIBC were enrolled onto six RTOG bladder-preservation studies, including five phase II studies (RTOG 8802, 9506, 9706, 9906, and 0233) and one phase III study (RTOG 8903). Overall survival (OS) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and disease-specific survival (DSS), muscle-invasive and non–muscle-invasive local failure (LF), and distant metastasis (DM) were estimated by the cumulative incidence method.

Results

The median age of patients was 66 years (range, 34 to 93 years), and clinical T stage was T2 in 61%, T3 in 35%, and T4a in 4% of patients. Complete response to CMT was documented in 69% of patients. With a median follow-up of 4.3 years among all patients and 7.8 years among survivors (n = 205), the 5- and 10-year OS rates were 57% and 36%, respectively, and the 5- and 10-year DSS rates were 71% and 65%, respectively. The 5- and 10-year estimates of muscle-invasive LF, non–muscle-invasive LF, and DM were 13% and 14%, 31% and 36%, and 31% and 35%, respectively.

Conclusion

This pooled analysis of multicenter, prospective RTOG bladder-preserving CMT protocols demonstrates long-term DSS comparable to modern immediate cystectomy studies, for patients with similarly staged MIBC. Given the low incidence of late recurrences with long-term follow-up, CMT can be considered as an alternative to radical cystectomy, especially in elderly patients not well suited for surgery.
Chemokine signaling in development and disease
Authors: Wang John , Knaut Holger
Published: November 2014

Chemokines are a group of small, secreted molecules that signal through G protein-coupled receptors to promote cell survival and proliferation and to provide directional guidance to migrating cells. CXCL12 is one of the most evolutionary conserved chemokines and signals through the chemokine receptor CXCR4 to guide cell migration during embryogenesis, immune cell trafficking and cancer metastasis. Here and in the accompanying poster, we provide an overview of chemokine signaling, focusing on CXCL12, and we highlight some of the different chemokine-dependent strategies used to guide migrating cells.
Stat3-Efemp2a modulates the fibrillar matrix for cohesive movement of prechordal plate progenitors
Authors: Zhang Ting , Yin Chaoran , Qiao Liangjun , Jing Lulu , Li Hongda , Xiao Chun , Luo Ning , Lei Song , Meng Wentong , Zhu Hongyan , Liu Jin , Xu Hong , Mo Xianming
Published: November 2014

Recently, emerging evidence has shown that Stat3 controls tumor cell migration and invasion. However, the molecular mechanisms by which Stat3 controls the cell movement remain largely unknown. Embryonic gastrula progenitors display coordinated and orientated migration, called collective cell migration. Collective cell migration is the simultaneous movement of multiple cells and is universally involved in physiological and pathological programs. Stat3 activity is required for the migration of gastrula progenitors, but it does not affect cell specification, thus suggesting that gastrula movements are an excellent model to provide insight into Stat3 control of cell migration in vivo. In this study, we reveal a novel mechanism by which Stat3 modulates extracellular matrix (ECM) assembly to control the coherence of collective migration of prechordal plate progenitors during zebrafish embryonic gastrulation. We show that Stat3 regulates the expression of Efemp2a in the prechordal plate progenitors that migrate anteriorly during gastrulation. Alteration of Stat3-Efemp2a signaling activity disrupted the configuration of fibronectin (FN) and laminin (LM) matrices, resulting in defective coherence of prechordal plate progenitor movements in zebrafish embryos. We demonstrate that Efemp2a acts as a downstream effector of Stat3 to promote ECM configuration for coherent collective cell migrations in vivo.
A non-cell-autonomous role for Ras signaling inC. elegansneuroblast delamination
Authors: Parry Jean M. , Sundaram Meera V.
Published: November 2014

Receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) signaling through Ras influences many aspects of normal cell behavior, including epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, and aberrant signaling promotes both tumorigenesis and metastasis. Although many such effects are cell-autonomous, here we show a non-cell-autonomous role for RTK-Ras signaling in the delamination of a neuroblast from an epithelial organ. The C. elegans renal-like excretory organ is initially composed of three unicellular epithelial tubes, namely the canal, duct and G1 pore cells; however, the G1 cell later delaminates from the excretory system to become a neuroblast and is replaced by the G2 cell. G1 delamination and G2 intercalation involve cytoskeletal remodeling, interconversion of autocellular and intercellular junctions and migration over a luminal extracellular matrix, followed by G1 junction loss. LET-23/EGFR and SOS-1, an exchange factor for Ras, are required for G1 junction loss but not for initial cytoskeletal or junction remodeling. Surprisingly, expression of activated LET-60/Ras in the neighboring duct cell, but not in the G1 or G2 cells, is sufficient to rescue sos-1 delamination defects, revealing that Ras acts non-cell-autonomously to permit G1 delamination. We suggest that, similarly, oncogenic mutations in cells within a tumor might help create a microenvironment that is permissive for other cells to detach and ultimately metastasize.
Wnt/β-catenin and FGF signalling direct the specification and maintenance of a neuromesodermal axial progenitor in ensembles of mouse embryonic stem cells
Authors: Turner David A. , Hayward Penelope C. , Baillie-Johnson Peter , Rué Pau , Broome Rebecca , Faunes Fernando , Martinez Arias Alfonso
Published: November 2014

The development of the central nervous system is known to result from two sequential events. First, an inductive event of the mesoderm on the overlying ectoderm that generates a neural plate that, after rolling into a neural tube, acts as the main source of neural progenitors. Second, the axial regionalization of the neural plate that will result in the specification of neurons with different anteroposterior identities. Although this description of the process applies with ease to amphibians and fish, it is more difficult to confirm in amniote embryos. Here, a specialized population of cells emerges at the end of gastrulation that, under the influence of Wnt and FGF signalling, expands and generates the spinal cord and the paraxial mesoderm. This population is known as the long-term neuromesodermal precursor (NMp). Here, we show that controlled increases of Wnt/β-catenin and FGF signalling during adherent culture differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) generates a population with many of the properties of the NMp. A single-cell analysis of gene expression within this population reveals signatures that are characteristic of stem cell populations. Furthermore, when this activation is triggered in three-dimensional aggregates of mESCs, the population self-organizes macroscopically and undergoes growth and axial elongation that mimics some of the features of the embryonic spinal cord and paraxial mesoderm. We use both adherent and three-dimensional cultures of mESCs to probe the establishment and maintenance of NMps and their differentiation.
SOX9 accelerates ESC differentiation to three germ layer lineages by repressing SOX2 expression through P21 (WAF1/CIP1)
Authors: Yamamizu Kohei , Schlessinger David , Ko Minoru S. H.
Published: November 2014

Upon removal of culture conditions that maintain an undifferentiated state, mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) differentiate into various cell types. Differentiation can be facilitated by forced expression of certain transcription factors (TFs), each of which can generally specify a particular developmental lineage. We previously established 137 mouse ESC lines, each of which carried a doxycycline-controllable TF. Among them, Sox9 has unique capacity: its forced expression accelerates differentiation of mouse ESCs into cells of all three germ layers. With the additional use of specific culture conditions, overexpression of Sox9 facilitated the generation of endothelial cells, hepatocytes and neurons from ESCs. Furthermore, Sox9 action increases formation of p21 (WAF1/CIP1), which then binds to the SRR2 enhancer of pluripotency marker Sox2 and inhibits its expression. Knockdown of p21 abolishes inhibition of Sox2 and Sox9-accelerated differentiation, and reduction of Sox2 2 days after the beginning of ESC differentiation can comparably accelerate mouse ESC formation of cells of three germ layers. These data implicate the involvement of the p21-Sox2 pathway in the mechanism of accelerated ESC differentiation by Sox9 overexpression. The molecular cascade could be among the first steps to program ESC differentiation.
Correlating the ability of VP24 protein from Ebola and Marburg viruses to bind human karyopherin to their immune suppression mechanism and pathogenicity using computational methods
Authors: Chakraborty Sandeep , Rao Basuthkar J. , Asgeirsson Bjarni , Dandekar Abhaya M.
Published: November 2014

Immune response suppression is crucial for viral invasion. The protein VP24 is pivotal in achieving this in Ebola, although interestingly the mechanism of immune suppression is different in the closely related Marburg virus. Here, we illustrate that a possible molecular basis for this diffrence emanates from two alpha helical structures (α5 and α6) in VP24 involved in binding human karyopherin (KPNA) (PDBid:4U2X), wherein the Ebola and Marburg viruses have distinctly different charged properties in α5. α6 is absent in Marburg, and has a different hydrophobic moment in the Reston Ebola (REBOV) species, which is surprisingly non-pathogenic in humans. Based on the hypothesis that REBOV is not immunosuppressive, which is in turn is due to its inability to bind KPNA, we show by docking KPNA to the REBOV VP24 that the single amino acid substitution R140S is responsible for this difference between REBOV and Zaire Ebola strains. Such a scenario of getting a virulent REBOV through a single mutation is particularly worrisome, since the REBOV, once found only in monkeys, has been recently detected in pigs. We also reiterate the potential of using these helices as potential epitopes for generating protective antibodies against Ebola.
Comparative Analysis of the Bankrupt Companies of the Sector of Animal Slaughtering and Processing
Authors: Tomczak Sebastian
Published: November 2014

Bankruptcy, especially during an economic crisis, is a common phenomenon. In the adverse changing economic conditions, economic activities become a challenge. Only strong individuals are able to survive the economic fluctuations, while others are eliminated from the market. The integrated models are used in predicting bankruptcy. These models are often designed on the basis of financial indicators. Some of these models use similar financial indicators, in many cases using the same ones. The present study deals with the evaluation of the sector of animal slaughtering and processing in the period 2000-2011, as well as the evaluation of the causes of business failure in the sector, and the comparison of bankrupt companies in the sector.