Vorbeugende Sozialpolitik: Grundlinien eines sozialpolitischen Forschungsprogramms

Vorbeugende Sozialpolitik zielt darauf ab, allen Mitgliedern einer Gesellschaft unabhängig von ihrer sozialen Herkunft über den gesamten Lebenslauf hinweg das größtmögliche Maß an Autonomie zu eröffnen. Sie beruht auf einem erweiterten Präventionsverständnis, das neben Schutz und Gefahrenminimierung auch das Ziel der individuellen Befähigung und der strukturellen Ermöglichung selbstbestimmter Teilhabe umfasst. Als Forschungsprogramm im FGW umfasst 'Vorbeugende Sozialpolitik' insgesamt vier Themenschwerpunkte: (1) politisch-normative und fachlich-konzeptionelle Grundlagen, (2) Governance, (3) Monitoring und Evaluation sowie (4) die Perspektive der Nutzer_innen und Adressat_innen

Genomic Regions Associated with Multiple Sclerosis Are Active in B Cells

More than 50 genomic regions have now been shown to influence the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). However, the mechanisms of action, and the cell types in which these associated variants act at the molecular level remain largely unknown. This is especially true for associated regions containing no known genes. Given the evidence for a role for B cells in MS, we hypothesized that MS associated genomic regions co-localized with regions which are functionally active in B cells. We used publicly available data on 1) MS associated regions and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 2) chromatin profiling in B cells as well as three additional cell types thought to be unrelated to MS (hepatocytes, fibroblasts and keratinocytes). Genomic intervals and SNPs were tested for overlap using the Genomic Hyperbrowser. We found that MS associated regions are significantly enriched in strong enhancer, active promoter and strong transcribed regions (p = 0.00005) and that this overlap is significantly higher in B cells than control cells. In addition, MS associated SNPs also land in active promoter (p = 0.00005) and enhancer regions more than expected by chance (strong enhancer p = 0.0006; weak enhancer p = 0.00005). These results confirm the important role of the immune system and specifically B cells in MS and suggest that MS risk variants exert a gene regulatory role. Previous studies assessing MS risk variants in T cells may be missing important effects in B cells. Similar analyses in other immunological cell types relevant to MS and functional studies are necessary to fully elucidate how genes contribute to MS pathogenesis

Effects of Anacetrapib in Patients with Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease

BACKGROUND: Patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease remain at high risk for cardiovascular events despite effective statin-based treatment of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. The inhibition of cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) by anacetrapib reduces LDL cholesterol levels and increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. However, trials of other CETP inhibitors have shown neutral or adverse effects on cardiovascular outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 30,449 adults with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive atorvastatin therapy and who had a mean LDL cholesterol level of 61 mg per deciliter (1.58 mmol per liter), a mean non-HDL cholesterol level of 92 mg per deciliter (2.38 mmol per liter), and a mean HDL cholesterol level of 40 mg per deciliter (1.03 mmol per liter). The patients were assigned to receive either 100 mg of anacetrapib once daily (15,225 patients) or matching placebo (15,224 patients). The primary outcome was the first major coronary event, a composite of coronary death, myocardial infarction, or coronary revascularization. RESULTS: During the median follow-up period of 4.1 years, the primary outcome occurred in significantly fewer patients in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (1640 of 15,225 patients [10.8%] vs. 1803 of 15,224 patients [11.8%]; rate ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.85 to 0.97; P=0.004). The relative difference in risk was similar across multiple prespecified subgroups. At the trial midpoint, the mean level of HDL cholesterol was higher by 43 mg per deciliter (1.12 mmol per liter) in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (a relative difference of 104%), and the mean level of non-HDL cholesterol was lower by 17 mg per deciliter (0.44 mmol per liter), a relative difference of -18%. There were no significant between-group differences in the risk of death, cancer, or other serious adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive statin therapy, the use of anacetrapib resulted in a lower incidence of major coronary events than the use of placebo. (Funded by Merck and others; Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN48678192 ; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01252953 ; and EudraCT number, 2010-023467-18 .)

Paradigmenwechsel als Deutungskampf | Diskursstrategien im Umbau der deutschen Alterssicherung

Paradigm Change as Interpretative Struggle: Discourse Strategies in German Pension ReformIn the comparative literature on pension schemes in different countries, a broad range of varying factors and forces that can drive institutional change are discussed. This article follows a constructivist, knowledge-based approach that focuses on the construction of reality by political actors as an explanatory factor for institutional change. By reconstructing the German pension policy discourse, the article shows the wide spectrum of discourse strategies that can be used by interested political actors in their attempts to steer via communication the processes of institutional transformation. For this purpose, a set of ideal-typical cognitive and normative discourse strategies is developed

Von der „Humanisierung des Arbeitslebens“ zur „Guten Erwerbsbiografie“ – und darüber hinaus? Konturen einer Integrierten Sozialen Lebenslaufpolitik

Zusammenfassung Der Beitrag arbeitet eine konzeptionelle und politisch-normative Entwicklungslinie im deutschen Arbeitsmarktdiskurs heraus, die sich von den Humanisierungsprogrammen der 1970er Jahre bis hin zu aktuellen Diskursen um die Zukunft der Erwerbsarbeit zieht und in dessen Verlauf sich schrittweise das Programm einer integrierten sozialen Lebenslaufpolitik entfaltet. Diese Entwicklung wird anhand von insgesamt vier idealtypischen konzeptionellen Entwicklungsstufen rekonstruiert: „Humanisierung der Arbeit“, „Gute Arbeit“, „Gute Erwerbsbiografie“ und „Integrierte Soziale Lebenslaufpolitik“. Das Recht auf „biografische Selbstbestimmung“ und die Ermöglichung von Lebenszeitsouveränität, so die These, bilden den normativen Bezugspunkt einer zeitgemäßen Humanisierungspolitik, die der zunehmenden Pluralität der Lebensstile und Lebensentwürfe und den gestiegenen Selbstbestimmungsansprüchen der Beschäftigten gerecht wird. Abstract: From the “Humanization of Work” towards “Good Employment Biographies” – and beyond? Outlines of an Integrated Life Course Policy The article elaborates a conceptual and political-normative line of development in the German labor market discourse, which ranges from the humanization programs of the 1970s to current discourses about the future of paid work and in the course of which the program of an integrated social life course policy gradually unfolds. This development is reconstructed on the basis of four ideal-typical conceptual stages of development: “Humanization of Work”, “Good Work”, “Good Occupational Biography” and “Integrated Social Life Course Policy”. According to the thesis, the right to “biographical self-determination” and the possibility of life-time sovereignty form the normative point of reference for a modern humanization policy, which does justice to the increasing plurality of lifestyles and life plans as well as to the increased self-determination claims of the employees