The landscape of information has experienced significant transformations with the rapid expansion of the internet and the emergence of online social networks. Initially, there was optimism that these ...platforms would encourage a culture of active participation and diverse communication. However, recent events have brought to light the negative effects of social media platforms, leading to the creation of echo chambers, where users are exposed only to content that aligns with their existing beliefs. Furthermore, malicious individuals exploit these platforms to deceive people and undermine democratic processes. To gain a deeper understanding of these phenomena, this chapter introduces a computational method designed to identify coordinated inauthentic behavior within Facebook groups. The method focuses on analyzing posts, URLs, and images, revealing that certain Facebook groups engage in orchestrated campaigns. These groups simultaneously share identical content, which may expose users to repeated encounters with false or misleading narratives, effectively forming "disinformation echo chambers." This chapter concludes by discussing the theoretical and empirical implications of these findings.
Asthma often remains uncontrolled, despite the fact that the pharmacological treatment has undergone large changes. We studied changes in the treatment of asthma over a 20-year period and identified ...factors associated with the regular use of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) treatment. Changes in the use of medication were determined in 4617 randomly selected subjects, while changes in adults with persistent asthma were analysed in 369 participants. The study compares data from three surveys in 24 centres in 11 countries. The use of ICSs increased from 1.7% to 5.9% in the general population and the regular use of ICSs increased from 19% to 34% among persistent asthmatic subjects. The proportion of asthmatic subjects reporting asthma attacks in the last 12 months decreased, while the proportion that had seen a doctor in the last 12 months remained unchanged (42%). Subjects with asthma who had experienced attacks or had seen a doctor were more likely to use ICSs on a regular basis. Although ICS use has increased, only one-third of subjects with persistent asthma take ICSs on a regular basis. Less than half had seen a doctor during the last year. This indicates that underuse of ICSs and lack of regular healthcare contacts remains a problem in the management of asthma.
Abstract 2820
Mpl, the receptor for thrombopoietin (Tpo), activates Jak2. Mpl and Jak2 are expressed both on platelets and on hematopoietic progenitors, where they initiate critical cell survival and ...proliferation signals in response to Tpo. Thus, interfering with the “Mpl/Jak2 couple” is likely to alter myelopoiesis. Indeed mutations in JAK2 or MPL are characteristic of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). However, platelet Mpl expression is frequently low in MPN, including MPN with no mutation of JAK2.
To determine whether expression of wild type Jak2 (Jak2wt) is altered in MPN, and whether changes in expression of Jak2wt affect Mpl expression.
Mpl and Jak2 protein expression was analysed by immunoblotting in platelet and cell lysates. Expression of JAK2 wt and JAK2 V617F was also studied at the mRNA level using quantitative RT-PCR. Transient transfections of HEL and UKE-1 cells were used to study the effects of Jak2wt on Mpl and of MPL on Jak2wt and Jak2V617F. We also studied the cellular localization of Jak2wt, Jak2V617F and Mpl, expressed as chimeric proteins fused to Visible Fluorescent Proteins (VFP, derivatives of GFP) or detected by immunofluorescence methods.
Following SDS-PAGE and western blotting of normal platelet proteins, Mpl was typically found in two isoforms: the long, mature 84 kDa isoform (Golgi-processed, glycosylated, functional, Tpo-binding form expressed at the cell surface) and the short, 74 kDa isoform (immature Mpl). Four subgroups of MPN patients were defined according to platelet Mpl patterns: pattern 1, mature and immature Mpl expressed at comparable levels, typical of healthy donors and found in 37% of MPN tested; pattern 2, mature Mpl only, typical of reactive states, associated with high JAK2 wt expression and observed in 15% of MPN; pattern 3: immature Mpl only; and pattern 4: no Mpl. Patterns 3 and 4 were observed in 48% of MPN and were associated with low JAK2 wt levels (<200 copies/100 ABL copies). JAK2 wt mRNA levels varied widely in MPN and Mpl pattern was correlated with levels of JAK2 wt, but not JAK2 V617F, mRNA. Blotting studies performed on cell lysates from cultured lines homozygous for JAK2V617F (HEL, UKE-1) detected mainly the 74 kDa immature form of Mpl.
Transfection of JAK2wt in HEL and UKE-1 cells, alone or together with MPL, increased the yield of mature Mpl. Fluorescence studies of HEL cells revealed that both endogenous Mpl and the Mpl-VFP chimeric proteins were largely restricted to an intracellular pool, without significant co-localization with Jak2V617F. In contrast, significant levels of transfected Mpl-VFP reach the plasma membrane in K562 cells that express only Jak2wt; co-localization of Jak2 and Mpl in these cells was significant.
JAK2 wt and Mpl levels are linked and both are frequently low in MPN, including JAK2 V617F-negative MPN. Co-localization of Mpl and Jak2V617F is poor whereas Mpl and Jak2wt are strongly co-localized, consistent with constitutive association and indicating a role for Jak2wt as chaperone along the exocytic or recycling pathways. Future work will seek to determine the intracellular location of aberrantly trafficked Mpl and establish if other mutations found in MPN are linked to defects in the expression or trafficking of Mpl.
No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Genomics, proteomics and metabolomics (the ’omic’ technologies) have revolutionized the way we work and are able to think about working, and have opened up hitherto unimagined opportunities in all ...research fields. In marine ecology, while ‘standard’ molecular and genetic approaches are well known, the newer technologies are taking longer to make an impact. In this review we explore the potential and promise offered by genomics, genome technologies, expressed sequence tag (EST) collections, microarrays, proteomics and bar coding for modern marine ecology. Methods are succinctly presented with both benefits and limitations discussed. Through examples from the literature, we show how these tools can be used to answer fundamental ecological questions, e.g. ‘what is the relationship between community structure and ecological function in ecosystems?’; ‘how can a species and the phylogenetic relationship between taxa be identified?’; ‘what are the factors responsible for the limits of the ecological niche?’; or ‘what explains the variations in life-history patterns among species?’ The impact of ecological ideas and concepts on genomic science is also discussed.
Slanted columnar thin films (SCTFs) are promising anisotropic nanostructures for applications in optical sensing and chemical separation. However, the wide use of SCTFs is significantly limited by ...their poor mechanical properties and structural stability, especially in liquid media. In this work, we demonstrate the fabrication of solution-stable carbon nanotube (CNT)/graphene hybrid structures based on cobalt SCTFs. The CNT/graphene hybrid structures were synthesized through the use of a titanium underlayer for Co slanted nanopillars as a chemical vapor deposition catalyst, which allows simultaneous growth of CNTs at the Co/Ti interface and three-dimensional graphene over the surface of cobalt. Importantly, the CNT/graphene hybrid structures retain the anisotropy of the parent Co SCTFs and thus remain suitable for optical sensing. Graphene/CNT modification of Co SCTFs not only improves their stability in solutions but also enables their functionalization with pyrene-modified DNA probes, which can be monitored in real time by
in situ
ellipsometry measurements. In turn, the solution-stable DNA-modified SCTFs may find a wide range of applications in biosensing. The described synthetic approach that allows simultaneous growth of CNTs and graphene by engineering Co/Ti interfaces may also be applied to the fabrication of other kinds of complex CNT/graphene hybrid materials.
Because of their structural anisotropy and stability in liquids, carbon nanotube/graphene hybrid structures are promising for biosensing applications, as shown in a proof-of-concept experiment on
in situ
ellipsometry monitoring of pyrene-functionalized DNA attachment.
The goal of cultural psychology is to explain the ways in which human cultural constructions—for example, rituals, stereotypes, and meanings—organize and direct human acting, feeling, and thinking in ...different social contexts. A rapidly growing, international field of scholarship, cultural psychology is ready for an interdisciplinary, primary resource. Linking psychology, anthropology, sociology, archaeology, and history, this publication unites the variable perspectives from these disciplines. It comprises over fifty contributed articles, providing a comprehensive overview of contemporary cultural psychology, comparing cultures and the (often differing) human psychological functions occurring within them. It presents a concise history of psychology that includes valuable resources for innovation in psychology in general and cultural psychology in particular; interdisciplinary articles including insights into cultural anthropology, cross-cultural psychology, culture and conceptions of the self, and semiotics and cultural connections; close, conceptual links with contemporary biological sciences, especially developmental biology, and with other social sciences; and a section detailing potential methodological innovations for cultural psychology.
Objective: The objective of this study was to ascertain the most likely inheritance pattern of restless legs syndrome (RLS) using segregation analysis. Methods: Probands were RLS patients presenting ...to the Neurology and Sleep clinics of the Johns-Hopkins Bayview medical center with willing first and second degree relatives. Blinded diagnosis was made in those who exhibited the four diagnostic features of RLS. Analysis was performed on RLS as a dichotomous trait and considering age of onset models on 590 phenotyped subjects from 77 pedigrees. Results: All non-genetic models were rejected considering RLS as a dichotomous trait. A single locus Mendelian dominant model with gender as a covariate had best fit with allele frequency of 0.077 and complete penetrance. RLS frequency in non-carrier subjects was estimated to be 0.14. Two underlying distributions of age of onset, with a possible dichotomy at 26.3 years, were identified. Contrary to the results for RLS as a dichotomous trait, age of onset models did not indicate single major gene inheritance. Conclusion: This segregation analysis suggests that the pattern of segregation is consistent with that of a single major locus, when RLS is treated as a dichotomous trait without considering age of onset. The high rate of phenocopies matches known population frequencies and taken with significant residual familial effects and the lack of evidence for a major gene controlling age of onset, indicates that non-genetic causes of RLS may exist and RLS is a complex disorder.
PDF
