Social Networking Tools for Internal Communication in Large Organizations: Benefits and Barriers

This article examines the prospect of implementing Social Networking technology and practices within large organizations, for internal communication among staff. A review of the literature revealed a very high rate of adoption among recreational users of tools such as Facebook, in comparison to the corresponding rate in businesses. A qualitative study was undertaken to explore the benefits and barriers of Social Networking tools in organizations. The analysis indicated that many respondents did foresee possible benefits, with some envisaging a longer term opportunity for these tools to engender a business climate of trust and enhance collaboration among business functions. However, most respondents also anticipated substantial barriers and risks, arising primarily from the existing internal communication policies within the organization studied. This research aims to extend understanding of some of the non-trivial social and organizational factors potentially involved in the interaction among people within a firm through a Social Networking application

ALK+ Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (ALCL)-Derived Exosomes Carry ALK Signaling Proteins and Interact with Tumor Microenvironment

The oncogenic pathways activated by the NPM-ALK chimeric kinase of ALK+ anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) are well characterized; however, the potential interactions of ALK signaling with the microenvironment are not yet known. Here we report that ALK+ ALCL-derived exosomes contain critical components of ALK signaling as well as CD30, and that exosome uptake by lymphoid cells led to increased proliferation and expression of critical antiapoptotic proteins by the recipient cells. The bone marrow fibroblasts highly uptake ALK+ ALCL-derived exosomes and acquire a cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) phenotype. Moreover, exosome-mediated activation of stromal cells altered the cytokine profile of the microenvironment. These interactions may contribute to tumor aggressiveness and possibly resistance to treatment

lncRNA NORAD is consistently detected in breastmilk exosomes and its expression is downregulated in mothers of preterm infants

Breast milk is the ideal food for infants and undoubtedly has immediate and long-term benefits. Breast milk contains extracellular vesicles (EVs) i.e., exosomes secreted by maternal breast cells. Exosomes carry genetic material, such as long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which possibly participate in cell-to-cell communications, as they are known to regulate critical gene pathways. The aim of the present study was to screen human breastmilk exosomes for their lncRNA cargo and to examine exosomal lncRNA levels associated with milk obtained from mothers that gave birth at term or prematurely (<37 weeks of gestation). Samples were collected at 3 weeks postpartum from 20 healthy, breastfeeding mothers; 10 mothers had given birth at full-term and 10 mothers preterm. Exosomal RNA was extracted from all samples and the expression of 88 distinct lncRNAs was determined using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. A total of 13 lncRNAs were detected in >= 85% of the samples, while 31 were detected in >= 50% of the samples. Differential expression analysis of the lncRNAs between the two groups revealed >= 2-fold differences, with generally higher lncRNA concentrations found in the milk of the mothers that gave birth at term compared with those that gave birth preterm. Among these, the non-coding RNA activated at DNA damage (NORAD) was prominently detected in both groups, and its expression was significantly downregulated in the breast milk exosomes of mothers who delivered preterm. On the whole, the present study demonstrates that breast milk lncRNAs may be important factors of normal early human development. Collectively, the presence of lncRNAs in human breast milk may explain the consistent inability of researchers to fully ‘humanize’ animal milk