The ‘talk o’ the toon’?:An examination of the Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian football rivalry in Edinburgh, Scotland

Heart of Midlothian (Hearts) and Hibernian (Hibs) Football Clubs are historic football rivals based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Both clubs have past and present connections to sectarian identities resulting in their rivalry often being reductively labelled “a mini Old Firm” (a mini Rangers v Celtic rivalry). This reductionism misunderstands the genuine ethno-religious (sectarian) connections of both Edinburgh clubs and overlooks other significant factors that underpin and sustain the rivalry in 21st century Scotland. Hearts have British and military-related ‘remembrance’ signifiers and Hibs have Irish-Catholic signifiers and these do continue – under quite specific and sporadic conditions - to linger today. Yet both clubs also have additional aspects to their identities which underpin the rivalry and these relate to a failed take-over of Hibs by Hearts, to playing style, social class and geographical place. Utilising semi-structured and unstructured interviews and observation, we conclude that the Hearts-Hibs rivalry has entered a post-sectarian period where lingering sectarian signifiers sometimes reveal themselves - often when the two clubs play the Glasgow clubs Celtic and Rangers – but where more often, largely overlooked elements constitute the rivalry to a greater extent for large sections of both respective groups of supporters

Expression of endothelia and lymphocyte adhesion molecules in bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue (BALT) in adult human lung

BACKGROUND: Bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue (BALT) is the secondary lymphoid tissue in bronchial mucosa and is involved in the development of bronchopulmonary immune responses. Although migration of lymphocytes from blood vessels into secondary lymphoid tissues is critical for the development of appropriate adaptive immunity, the endothelia and lymphocyte adhesion molecules that recruit specific subsets of lymphocytes into human BALT are not known. The aim of this study was to determine which adhesion molecules are expressed on lymphocytes and high endothelial venules (HEVs) in human BALT. METHODS: We immunostained frozen sections of BALT from lobectomy specimens from 17 patients with lung carcinoma with a panel of monoclonal antibodies to endothelia and lymphocyte adhesion molecules. RESULTS: Sections of BALT showed B cell follicles surrounded by T cells. Most BALT CD4+ T cells had a CD45RO+ memory phenotype. Almost all BALT B cells expressed alpha4 integrin and L-selectin. In contrast, 43% of BALT T cells expressed alpha4 integrin and 20% of BALT T cells expressed L-selectin. Almost all BALT lymphocytes expressed LFA-1. HEVs, which support the migration of lymphocytes from the bloodstream into secondary lymphoid tissues, were prominent in BALT. All HEVs expressed peripheral node addressin, most HEVs expressed vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, and no HEVs expressed mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule-1. CONCLUSION: Human BALT expresses endothelia and lymphocyte adhesion molecules that may be important in recruiting naive and memory/effector lymphocytes to BALT during protective and pathologic bronchopulmonary immune responses

Moving beyond fan typologies: The impact of social integration on team loyalty in football

The purpose of this paper is to develop detailed insight into loyalty among football fans of Hibernian FC, moving beyond typologies to a more socially grounded approach. Issues explored include patterns of consumption, distinctions between fan groups, and antecedents of loyalty. The origins and development of the club are evaluated, and consumer fanaticism, football fan loyalty, consumption behaviour, and the sociological impact of fan communities are discussed. Data were collected using a variety of methods, including participant observation, in-depth interviews, and analysis of websites and fan forums. Key findings relate to the impact of family and community influences on loyalty, initial experiences of developing associations with the club, through to the impact of socialisation, and the lived experience of being a supporter. A supporter matrix is constructed as a portrayal of the loyalty found at the club. A range of theoretical implications is considered, and the matrix promoted as a tool for understanding loyalty in clubs with similar social structures and community connections

Palliative and end-of-life care research in Scotland 2006-2015: A systematic scoping review

Background: The Scottish Government set out its 5-year vision to improve palliative care in its Strategic Framework for Action 2016–2021. This includes a commitment to strengthening research and evidence based knowledge exchange across Scotland. A comprehensive scoping review of Scottish palliative care research was considered an important first step. The aim of the review was to quantify and map palliative care research in Scotland over the ten-year period preceding the new strategy (2006–15). Methods: A systematic scoping review was undertaken. Palliative care research involving at least one co-author from a Scottish institution was eligible for inclusion. Five databases were searched with relevant MeSH terms and keywords; additional papers authored by members of the Scottish Palliative and End of Life Care Research Forum were added. Results: In total, 1919 papers were screened, 496 underwent full text review and 308 were retained in the final set. 73% were descriptive studies and 10% were interventions or feasibility studies. The top three areas of research focus were services and settings; experiences and/or needs; and physical symptoms. 58 papers were concerned with palliative care for people with conditions other than cancer – nearly one fifth of all papers published. Few studies focused on ehealth, health economics, out-of-hours and public health. Nearly half of all papers described unfunded research or did not acknowledge a funder (46%). Conclusions: There was a steady increase in Scottish palliative care research during the decade under review. Research output was strong compared with that reported in an earlier Scottish review (1990–2005) and a similar review of Irish palliative care research (2002–2012). A large amount of descriptive evidence exists on living and dying with chronic progressive illness in Scotland; intervention studies now need to be prioritised. Areas highlighted for future research include palliative interventions for people with non-malignant illness and multi-morbidity; physical and psychological symptom assessment and management; interventions to support carers; and bereavement support. Knowledge exchange activities are required to disseminate research findings to research users and a follow-up review to examine future research progress is recommended

Evaluation and comparison of two methods of abattoir surveillance for detection of ovine Johne’s Disease.

This project was designed to determine whether properties infected with ovine Johne’s disease (OJD) could be identified by routine monitoring of cull sheep at abattoirs for lesions of OJD or the presence of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis. Trained inspectors were stationed in abattoirs to examine not less than 50% and up to 95% of the abdominal viscera from all lines of adult sheep slaughtered during each kill shift (about 10 to 15 lines per shift at the two major export abattoirs). Where visible lesions suggestive of OJD were observed, fixed tissue samples were taken for confirmatory histopathology from up to three suspect sheep in each suspect line. Inspectors were not told the identity of the trial lines, but were aware that there was a trial line to be killed during the particular shift. Tied-off loops of terminal ileum were also taken from 10 randomly selected sheep in each line of sheep killed during the shift for pooled intestinal culture (PIC). The results of this trial indicate that visual and tactile monitoring of the viscera of cull sheep at slaughter for lesions suggestive of ovine Johne’s disease is a highly sensitive and reliable strategy for the detection of OJD infected flocks in which deaths from OJD are occurring

The secretory immunoglobulin A response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a childhood population Resposta da imunoglobulina A secretória ao Mycobacterium tuberculosis em população infantil

We report on the measurement of saliva anti-Purified Protein Derivative sIgA and 38kDa antibodies from 127 children, of whom 31 were strong tuberculosis suspects and 96 were healthy contact children. The results concerning the percentage of children with antibody reactivity to PPD and 38kDa antigens showed that, of these 2 antigens, 38kDa induced higher reactivity in patients positive and negative for the Tuberculin Skin Test (28% and 16.6%, respectively) in comparison to controls positive and negative for the TST (11.7% and 7.1%, respectively). There was a statistically significant difference between patients positive and controls negative for the TST. In relation to the Purified Protein Derivative antigen, while 14.2% of patients positive for the TST showed antibody reactivity to the PPD antigen, no patients negative for the TST had reactivity to this antigen. The findings suggest that these two antigens seem be associated with a different development of the mucosal defence mechanisms mediated by sIgA against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.<br>Foram dosados anticorpos sIgA anti-Purified Protein Derivative e 38kDa da saliva de 127 crianças, das quais 31 eram de pacientes altamente suspeitos de tuberculose e 96 eram provenientes de crianças saudáveis, que tiveram contato com pacientes. Os resultados referentes à porcentagem de crianças, reativas ao PPD e ao antígeno 38kDa, mostraram que destes dois antígenos, o 38kDa induziu maior reatividade em pacientes positivos e negativos ao Tuberculin Skin Test (28% e 16,6%, respectivamente), em comparação aos controles positivos e negativos ao TST (11,7% e 7,1%, respectivamente). Houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre pacientes positivos e controles negativos ao Tuberculin Skin Test. Em relação ao antígeno PPD, enquanto 14,2% de pacientes positivos ao TST mostraram anticorpos reativos ao antígeno Purified Protein Derivative, nenhum paciente negativo ao TST foi reativo ao antígeno. Os achados sugerem que, aparentemente, estes dois antígenos estão associados a desenvolvimento distinto dos mecanismos de defesa da mucosa mediados por sIgA contra Mycobacterium tuberculosis