Impact of language experience on attention to faces in infancy: evidence from unimodal and bimodal bilingual infants

Faces capture and maintain infants' attention more than other visual stimuli. The present study addresses the impact of early language experience on attention to faces in infancy. It was hypothesized that infants learning two spoken languages (unimodal bilinguals) and hearing infants of Deaf mothers learning British Sign Language and spoken English (bimodal bilinguals) would show enhanced attention to faces compared to monolinguals. The comparison between unimodal and bimodal bilinguals allowed differentiation of the effects of learning two languages, from the effects of increased visual communication in hearing infants of Deaf mothers. Data are presented for two independent samples of infants: Sample 1 included 49 infants between 7 and 10 months (26 monolinguals and 23 unimodal bilinguals), and Sample 2 included 87 infants between 4 and 8 months (32 monolinguals, 25 unimodal bilinguals, and 30 bimodal bilingual infants with a Deaf mother). Eye-tracking was used to analyze infants' visual scanning of complex arrays including a face and four other stimulus categories. Infants from 4 to 10 months (all groups combined) directed their attention to faces faster than to non-face stimuli (i.e., attention capture), directed more fixations to, and looked longer at faces than non-face stimuli (i.e., attention maintenance). Unimodal bilinguals demonstrated increased attention capture and attention maintenance by faces compared to monolinguals. Contrary to predictions, bimodal bilinguals did not differ from monolinguals in attention capture and maintenance by face stimuli. These results are discussed in relation to the language experience of each group and the close association between face processing and language development in social communication

The impact of the rotavirus vaccine on diarrhoea, five years following national introduction in Fiji.

BACKGROUND: In 2012, Fiji became the first independent Pacific island country to introduce rotavirus vaccine. We describe the impact of rotavirus vaccine on all-cause diarrhoea admissions in all ages, and rotavirus diarrhoea in children <5 years of age. METHODS: An observational study was conducted retrospectively on all admissions to the public tertiary hospitals in Fiji (2007-2018) and prospectively on all rotavirus-positive diarrhoea admissions in children <5 years at two hospital sites (2006-2018, and 2010-2015), along with rotavirus diarrhoea outpatient presentations at one secondary public hospital (2010-2015). The impact of rotavirus vaccine was determined using incidence rate ratios (IRR) of all-cause diarrhoea admissions and rotavirus diarrhoea, comparing the pre-vaccine and post-vaccine periods. All-cause admissions were used as a control. Multiple imputation was used to impute missing stool samples. FINDINGS: All-cause diarrhoea admissions declined among all age groups except among infants ≤2 months old and adults ≥55 years. For children <5 years, all-cause diarrhoea admissions declined by 39% (IRR)=0•61, 95%CI; 0•57-0•65, p-value<0•001). There was an 81% (95%CI; 51-94%) reduction in mortality among all-cause diarrhoea admissions in children under <5 years. Rotavirus diarrhoea admissions at the largest hospital among children <5 years declined by 87% (IRR=0•13, 95%CI; 0•10-0•17, p-value<0•001). Among rotavirus diarrhoea outpatient presentations, the IRR was 0•39 (95%CI; 0•11, 1.21, p-value=0.077). INTERPRETATIONS: Morbidity and mortality due to rotavirus and all-cause diarrhoea in Fiji has declined in people aged 2 months to 54 years after the introduction of the RV vaccine. FUNDING: Supported by WHO and the Australian Government

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

A Culturally Responsive Trauma-Informed Public Health Emergency Framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities in Australia, Developed during COVID-19

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic impacted peoples’ livelihoods and mental wellbeing. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia continue to experience intergenerational trauma associated with colonization and may experience trauma-related distress in response to government responses to public health emergencies. We aimed to develop a culturally responsive trauma-informed public health emergency response framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led study involved: (i) a review of trauma-informed public health emergency responses to develop a draft framework (ii) interviews with 110 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents about how COVID-19 impacted their lives, and (iii) a workshop with 36 stakeholders about pandemic experiences using framework analysis to refine a culturally responsive trauma-informed framework. The framework included: an overarching philosophy (cultural humility, safety and responsiveness); key enablers (local leadership and Eldership); supporting strategies (provision of basic needs and resources, well-functioning social systems, human rights, dignity, choice, justice and ethics, mutuality and collective responsibility, and strengthening of existing systems); interdependent core concepts (safety, transparency, and empowerment, holistic support, connectedness and collaboration, and compassion, protection and caring); and central goals (a sense of security, resilience, wellbeing, self- and collective-efficacy, hope, trust, resilience, and healing from grief and loss)

Cr(VI)-stimulated STAT3 tyrosine phosphorylation and nuclear translocation in human airway epithelial cells requires Lck

Chronic inhalation of low amounts of Cr(VI) promotes pulmonary diseases and cancers through poorly defined mechanisms. SFKs (Src family kinases) in pulmonary airway cells may mediate Cr(VI) signalling for lung injury, although the downstream effectors of Cr(VI)-stimulated SFKs and how they relate to pathogenic gene induction are unknown. Therefore SFK-dependent activation of transcription factors by non-cytotoxic exposure of human bronchial epithelial cells to Cr(VI) was determined. Protein–DNA binding arrays demonstrated that exposing BEAS 2B cells to 5 μM Cr(VI) for 4 and 24 h resulted in increased protein binding to 25 and 43 cis-elements respectively, while binding to 12 and 16 cis-elements decreased. Of note, Cr(VI) increased protein binding to several STAT (signal transducer and activator of transcription) cis-elements. Cr(VI) stimulated acute tyrosine phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of STAT1 over a 4 h period and a prolonged activation of STAT3 that reached a peak between 48 and 72 h. This prolonged activation was observed for both STAT3α and STAT3β. Immunofluorescent confocal microscopy confirmed that Cr(VI) increased nuclear localization of phosphorylated STAT3 for more than 72 h in both primary and BEAS 2B human airway cells. Cr(VI) induced transactivation of both a STAT3-driven luciferase reporter construct and the endogenous inflammatory gene IL-6 (interleukin-6). Inhibition with siRNA (small interfering RNA) targeting the SFK Lck, but not dominant-negative JAK (Janus kinase), prevented Cr(VI)-stimulated phosphorylation of both STAT3 isoforms and induction of IL-6. The results suggest that Cr(VI) activates epithelial cell Lck to signal for prolonged STAT3 activation and transactivation of IL-6, an important immunomodulator of lung disease progression

Collected Gnommero

Collected Gnommero is a series of five thematic pamphlets independently published in Glasgow between 2008 – 2015. The pamphlets provided space for artists and writers to respond to Italo Calvino’s thoughts on the literary qualities of lightness, quickness, exactitude, visibility, multiplicity and consistency (as published in Six Memos for the Next Millennium, 1988). Gnommero was also an economic experiment in independent publishing: the pamphlets were produced collectively by the contributors who shared production costs. The copies were then divided equally and distributed at launch events featuring performances and presentations by the contributors. The five Gnommero pamphlets, one for each memo (excluding ‘Consistency’), have been gathered into a red envelope of Collected Gnommero containing works by 54 contributors over Gnommero’s six-year lifespan. Gnommero was edited by Sarah Tripp with the artists Richard Taylor and Eona McCallum. Works in the Gnommero Collection are by: Giles Bailey, Ruth Barker, Becky Beasley, Anca Benera, Tom Betteridge, Nathalie de Briey, Kimberley Bright, Jenny Brownrigg, Maria Bojanowska, Barry Burns, Neil Davidson, Rachael Disbury, Rowena Easton, Laura Edbrook, Kathryn Elkin, Stuart Fallon, Kate Grenyer, Lauren Hall, Jane Hartshorn, Jamie Hogarth, Simone Hutchinson, Ben Knight, Mhari Lafferty, Chin Li, Lila Matsumoto, Eona McCallum, Conal McStravick, Giuseppe Mistretta, Charlotte Morgan, Kate Morrell, Aniara Omann, Steven Paige, Jessica Potter, Darren Rhymes, Anthony Schrag, Laura Simpson, Carrie Skinner, Louise Shelley, Katherine Sowerby, Emily Speed, Patrick Staff, Catherine Street, Richard Taylor, Iris Tendink, Cara Tolmie, Sarah Tripp, Tom Varley, Chris Walker, Thom Walker, Daniella Watson, Lauren Wells, Rebecca Wilcox, George Ziffo