Representations of minimum unit pricing for alcohol in UK newspapers: a case study of a public health policy debate

Background: Mass media influence public acceptability, and hence feasibility, of public health interventions. This study investigates newsprint constructions of the alcohol problem and minimum unit pricing (MUP). Methods: Quantitative content analysis of 901 articles about MUP published in 10 UK and Scottish newspapers between 2005 and 2012. Results: MUP was a high-profile issue, particularly in Scottish publications. Reporting increased steadily between 2008 and 2012, matching the growing status of the debate. The alcohol problem was widely acknowledged, often associated with youths, and portrayed as driven by cheap alcohol, supermarkets and drinking culture. Over-consumption was presented as a threat to health and social order. Appraisals of MUP were neutral, with supportiveness increasing slightly over time. Arguments focused on health impacts more frequently than more emotive perspectives or business interests. Health charities and the NHS were cited slightly more frequently than alcohol industry representatives. Conclusion: Emphases on efficacy, evidence and experts are positive signs for evidence-based policymaking. The high profile of MUP, along with growing support within articles, could reflect growing appetite for action on the alcohol problem. Representations of the problem as structurally driven might engender support for legislative solutions, although cultural explanations remain common

The Mannheim Enterprise Panel (MUP) and firm statistics for Germany

The Mannheim Enterprise Panel (Mannheimer Unternehmenspanel – MUP) of the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) is the most comprehensive micro database of companies in Germany outside the official business register (which is not accessible to the public). The MUP is based on the firm data pool of Creditreform e.V., which is the largest credit rating agency in Germany. At the end of 2013, the MUP contained information on 7.7 Mio firms, of which about 3.2 Mio were still active. Comparisons of the active stock of firms in the MUP with the Business Register of the Federal Statistical Office indicate that the MUP gives by and large a representative picture of the corporate landscape in Germany. The MUP is a valuable database for analyzing the number of start‐ups and firm closures on a yearly basis for Germany. Further, the MUP is the sampling frame for the ZEW firm surveys and it is used for analyzing the development of firms over time

Characterization of mouse major urinary protein genes

Major urinary protein (MUP) genes were isolated from C57 genomic libraries, characterized by restriction enzyme mapping and compared with MUP genes isolated from BALB/c genomic libraries (Clark et al, 1982; Bishop et al, 1982). The conclusions drawn from the characterization of this new set of MUP genes are in agreement with those previously drawn from studies on the BALB/c MUP genes.Most MUP genes were found to share extensive homology in their transcription units and 5' and 3' flanking regions. Exceptions were those genes whose coding regions have been interupted by insertions and/or deletions. The MUP genes fall into two main groups based on hybridization criteria: group 1 and group 2 (Bishop et al, 1982). With the exception of one group 2 gene (BL-25/CL-2), restriction site homology was found to be greater within groups than between than. Restriction site homologies further divided the group 1 genes into two sub-groups. Sequence data revealed that the two sub-groups have different forms of an A-rich region located M0bp upstream of the TATA box.Messenger RNA from tissues that express MUP was shown to be more homologous to group 1 coding sequences than to group 2 coding sequences. In the liver, two forms of MUP mRNA can be distinguished. Group 1 sequences hybridized preferentially to the abundantly transcribed long form of the mRNA, while group 2 sequences hybridized preferentially to the short and rarer form of the mRNA. Genomic digests illustrated that two types of variation are found between the MUP genes of BALB/c and C57BL/Fa mice. The first relates to the presence of variant restriction fragments. Two cloned MUP genes carrying such fragments were identified. The second relates to variation in the intensity of common restriction fragments. Differences between the strains in the total number of MUP genes were not observed. Variation in the intensity of common restriction fragments are proposed to be the result of different homogenization events that took place in the mouse lineages from which BALB/c and C57BL/Fa were derived

Zhx2 (Zinc Fingers and Homeoboxes 2) Regulates Major Urinary Protein Gene Expression in the Mouse Liver

The mouse major urinary proteins (Mups) are encoded by a large family of highly related genes clustered on chromosome 4. Mups, synthesized primarily and abundantly in the liver and secreted through the kidneys, exhibit male-biased expression. Mups bind a variety of volatile ligands; these ligands, and Mup proteins themselves, influence numerous behavioral traits. Although urinary Mup protein levels vary between inbred mouse strains, this difference is most pronounced in BALB/cJ mice, which have dramatically low urinary Mup levels; this BALB/cJ trait had been mapped to a locus on chromosome 15. We previously identified Zhx2 (zinc fingers and homeoboxes 2) as a regulator of numerous liver-enriched genes. Zhx2 is located on chromosome 15, and a natural hypomorphic mutation in the BALB/cJ Zhx2 allele dramatically reduces Zhx2 expression. Based on these data, we hypothesized that reduced Zhx2 levels are responsible for lower Mup expression in BALB/cJ mice. Using both transgenic and knock-out mice along with in vitro assays, our data show that Zhx2 binds Mup promoters and is required for high levels of Mup expression in the adult liver. In contrast to previously identified Zhx2 targets that appear to be repressed by Zhx2, Mup genes are positively regulated by Zhx2. These data identify Zhx2 as a novel regulator of Mup expression and indicate that Zhx2 activates as well as represses expression of target genes

Clinical outcome of patients with metastatic melanoma of unknown primary in the era of novel therapy

Melanoma of unknown primary (MUP) is considered different from melanoma of known primary (MKP), and it is unclear whether these patients benefit equally from novel therapies. In the current study, characteristics and overall survival (OS) of patients with advanced and metastatic MUP and MKP were compared in the era of novel therapy. Patients were selected from the prospective nation-wide Dutch Melanoma Treatment Registry (DMTR). The following criteria were applied: diagnosis of stage IIIc unresectable or IV cutaneous MKP (cMKP) or MUP between July 2012 and July 2017 and treatment with immune checkpoint inhibition and/or targeted therapy. OS was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. The stratified multivariable Cox regression model was used for adjusted analysis. A total of 2706 patients were eligible including 2321 (85.8%) patients with cMKP and 385 (14.2%) with MUP. In comparative analysis, MUP patients more often presented with advanced and metastatic disease at primary diagnosis with poorer performance status, higher LDH, and central nervous system metastases. In crude analysis, median OS of cMKP or MUP patients was 12 months (interquartile range [IQR] 5 - 44) and 14 months (IQR 5 - not reached), respectively (P = 0.278). In adjusted analysis, OS in MUP patients was superior (hazard rate 0.70, 95% confidence interval 0.58-0.85; P < 0.001). As compared to patients with advanced and metastatic cMKP, MUP patients have superior survival in adjusted analysis, but usually present with poorer prognostic characteristics. In crude analysis, OS was comparable indicating that patients with MUP benefit at least equally from treatment with novel therapies

Statistical Confirmation of a Stellar Upper Mass Limit

We derive the expectation value for the maximum stellar mass (m_max) in an ensemble of N stars, as a function of the IMF upper-mass cutoff (m_up) and N. We statistically demonstrate that the upper IMF of the local massive star census observed thus far in the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds clearly exhibits a universal upper mass cutoff around 120 - 200 M_sun for a Salpeter IMF, although the result is more ambiguous for a steeper IMF.Comment: PDF, 5 pages, 4 figures. Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal Letter

The Roles of Gene Duplication, Gene Conversion and Positive Selection in Rodent \u3ci\u3eEsp\u3c/i\u3e and \u3ci\u3eMup\u3c/i\u3e Pheromone Gene Families with Comparison to the \u3ci\u3eAbp\u3c/i\u3e Family

Three proteinaceous pheromone families, the androgen-binding proteins (ABPs), the exocrine-gland secreting peptides (ESPs) and the major urinary proteins (MUPs) are encoded by large gene families in the genomes of Mus musculus and Rattus norvegicus. We studied the evolutionary histories of the Mup and Esp genes and compared them with what is known about the Abp genes. Apparently gene conversion has played little if any role in the expansion of the mouse Class A and Class B Mup genes and pseudogenes, and the rat Mups. By contrast, we found evidence of extensive gene conversion in many Esp genes although not in all of them. Our studies of selection identified at least two amino acid sites in β-sheets as having evolved under positive selection in the mouse Class A and Class B MUPs and in rat MUPs. We show that selection may have acted on the ESPs by determining Ka/Ks for Exon 3 sequences with and without the converted sequence segment. While it appears that purifying selection acted on the ESP signal peptides, the secreted portions of the ESPs probably have undergone much more rapid evolution. When the inner gene converted fragment sequences were removed, eleven Esp paralogs were present in two or more pairs with Ka/Ks \u3e1.0 and thus we propose that positive selection is detectable by this means in at least some mouse Esp paralogs. We compare and contrast the evolutionary histories of all three mouse pheromone gene families in light of their proposed functions in mouse communication