Mitigating Pretrial Publicity With A Cognitive Interview

Previous research has found that negative pretrial publicity (PTP) about a defendant biases mock jurors’ decision making. Remedies that have been implemented by the court systems to combat negative PTP have shown to be ineffective in reducing juror bias. The present study examined whether or not mock jurors who were exposed to negative PTP could have an improved memory of where information came from and a reduction in guilty verdicts after receiving a Modified Cognitive Interview (CI), compared to mock jurors who did not have the CI. Additionally, I tested to see if source-memory accuracy for trial information mediated the effect of the CI on verdicts. The present study used materials from Christine Ruva to investigate this issue. This was a two-part study, in which participants read the negative PTP or unrelated PTP in Phase 1. In Phase 2 participants received the CI, watched the criminal trial video, and finally rendered their verdicts and took the source monitoring questionnaire. This was a 2 (PTP: Negative PTP vs. unrelated PTP) X 2 (Interview: Cognitive Interview vs. No Cognitive Interview) between-subjects factorial design (n=163). Results indicated that the CI did not influence source memory. In contrast, it was found that the CI did influence guilt decisions. Individuals who were exposed to negative PTP and received the CI rendered fewer guilty verdicts than participants in the no CI condition. Further, the mediation analysis suggested that both the CI and trial accuracy scores did predict guilt decisions independently for the negative PTP conditions, however the trial accuracy scores did not mediate the relationship between the CI and guilt decisions

The Surtsey volcano geothermal system: An analogue for seawater-oceanic crust interaction with implications for the elemental budget of the oceanic crust

Pre-print (óritrýnt handrit)Surtsey is a young volcanic island in the offshore extension of Iceland's southeast rift zone that grew from the seafloor during explosive and effusive eruptions in 1963–1967. In 1979, a cored borehole (SE-1) was drilled to 181 m depth and in 2017 three cored boreholes (SE-2a, SE-2b and SE-3) were drilled to successively greater depths. The basaltic deposits host a low-temperature (40–141 °C) seawater-dominated geothermal system. Surtsey provides an ideal environment to study water-rock interaction processes in a young seawater geothermal system. Elemental concentrations (SiO2, B, Na, Ca, Mg, F, dissolved inorganic carbon, SO4, Cl) and isotope contents (δD, δ18O) in borehole fluids indicate that associated geothermal waters in submarine deposits originated from seawater modified by reactions with the surrounding basalt. These processes produce authigenic minerals in the basaltic lapilli tuff and a corresponding depletion of certain elements in the residual waters. Coupling of measured and modelled concentrations investigates the effect of temperature and associated abundance of authigenic minerals on chemical fluxes from and to the igneous oceanic crust during low-temperature alteration. The annual chemical fluxes calculated at 50–150 °C range from −0.01 to +0.1×1012 mol yr−1 for SiO2, +0.2 to +129×1012 mol yr−1 for Ca, −129 to −0.8×1012 mol yr−1 for Mg and −21 to +0.4 × 1012 mol yr−1 for SO4 where negative values indicate chemical fluxes from the ocean into the oceanic crust and positive values indicate fluxes from the oceanic crust to the oceans. These flux calculations reveal that water-rock interaction at varying water-rock ratios and temperatures produces authigenic minerals that serve as important sinks of seawater-derived SiO2, Mg and SO4. In contrast, water rock interaction accompanied by dissolution of basaltic glass and primary crystal fragments provides a significant source of Ca. Such low-temperature alteration could effectively influence the elemental budget of the oceanic igneous crust and ocean waters. The modeling provides insights into water chemistries and chemical fluxes in low temperature MOR recharge zones. Surtsey also provides a valuable young analogue for assessing the chemical evolution of fluid discharge over the life cycles of seamounts in ridge flank systems.Funding for this project was provided by the University of Iceland Recruitment fund, the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) through a grant to the SUSTAIN project, the Icelandic Science Fund, ICF-RANNÍS, the Bergen Research Foundation and K.G. Jebsen Centre for Deep Sea Research at University of Bergen, Norway, the German Research Foundation (DFG), and DiSTAR, Federico II, University of Naples, Federico II, Italy. The University of Utah, USA and the two Icelandic power companies Reykjavík Energy and Landsvirkjun, contributed additional funds. The authors would like to thank P. Bergsten, A.M. di Stefano, C.F. Gorny, J. Gunnarsson-Robin, G.H. Guðfinsson, Þ. Högnadóttir, E.W. Marshall, R. Ólafssdóttir, D.B. Ragnarsson and Þ.M. Þorbjarnardóttir for their contribution and assistance during sampling, sample preparation, analyses and data evaluation. The authors would like to thank M. E. Böttcher for careful editorial handling. Two anonymous reviewers and J. Alt are thanked for their thoughtful and valuable reviews

Antibody response to four doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases: an observational study

ObjectivesAntibody response to COVID-19 vaccines are reduced among immunocompromised patients but are not well-quantified among people with rare disease. We conducted an observational study to evaluate the antibody responses to the booster SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in people with rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases (RAIRD).MethodsBlood samples were collected after second, before third, after third and after fourth vaccine doses. Anti-spike and anti-nucleocapsid antibody levels were measured using an in-house ELISA assay. Logistic regression models were built to determine the predictors for non-response. Results were compared with age and sex matched healthy controls (HC).Results43 people with RAIRD were included, with a median age of 56 years. Anti-spike seropositivity increased from 42.9% after second dose to 51.2% after third dose and 65.6% after fourth dose. Median anti-spike antibody levels increased from 33.6 (IQR 7.8–724.5) post-second dose to 239.4 (IQR 35.8–1051.1) BAU after the booster dose (third dose, or fourth dose if eligible). 22.2% of participants who had sufficient antibody levels post-second dose had insufficient levels after the booster. 34.9% of participants had lower antibodies after the booster than the lowest HC had after the second dose. Rituximab in the six months prior to booster (p = 0.02) and non-white ethnicity (p = 0.04) was associated with non-response. There was a dose-response relationship between timing of rituximab and generation of sufficient antibodies (p = 0.03).ConclusionsAlthough the booster dose increased anti-spike IgG and seropositivity rates, some people with RAIRD, particularly those on rituximab, had insufficient antibody levels despite 3–4 doses

mRNA vaccine boosting enhances antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in individuals with antibody deficiency syndromes

Individuals with primary antibody deficiency (PAD) syndromes have poor humoral immune responses requiring immunoglobulin replacement therapy. We followed individuals with PAD after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccination by evaluating their immunoglobulin replacement products and serum for anti-spike binding, Fcγ receptor (FcγR) binding, and neutralizing activities. The immunoglobulin replacement products tested have low anti-spike and receptor-binding domain (RBD) titers and neutralizing activity. In coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-naive individuals with PAD, anti-spike and RBD titers increase after mRNA vaccination but wane by 90 days. Those vaccinated after SARS-CoV-2 infection develop higher and more sustained responses comparable with healthy donors. Most vaccinated individuals with PAD have serum-neutralizing antibody titers above an estimated correlate of protection against ancestral SARS-CoV-2 and Delta virus but not against Omicron virus, although this is improved by boosting. Thus, some immunoglobulin replacement products likely have limited protective activity, and immunization and boosting of individuals with PAD with mRNA vaccines should confer at least short-term immunity against SARS-CoV-2 variants, including Omicron

Immunoglobulin replacement products protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection in vivo despite poor neutralizing activity

Immunoglobulin (IG) replacement products are used routinely in patients with immune deficiency and other immune dysregulation disorders who have poor responses to vaccination and require passive immunity conferred by commercial antibody products. The binding, neutralizing, and protective activity of intravenously administered IG against SARS-CoV-2 emerging variants remains unknown. Here, we tested 198 different IG products manufactured from December 2019 to August 2022. We show that prepandemic IG had no appreciable cross-reactivity or neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2. Anti-spike antibody titers and neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2 WA1/2020 D614G increased gradually after the pandemic started and reached levels comparable to vaccinated healthy donors 18 months after the diagnosis of the first COVID-19 case in the United States in January 2020. The average time between production to infusion of IG products was 8 months, which resulted in poor neutralization of the variant strain circulating at the time of infusion. Despite limited neutralizing activity, IG prophylaxis with clinically relevant dosing protected susceptible K18-hACE2-transgenic mice against clinical disease, lung infection, and lung inflammation caused by the XBB.1.5 Omicron variant. Moreover, following IG prophylaxis, levels of XBB.1.5 infection in the lung were higher in FcγR-KO mice than in WT mice. Thus, IG replacement products with poor neutralizing activity against evolving SARS-CoV-2 variants likely confer protection to patients with immune deficiency disorders through Fc effector function mechanisms

SARS-CoV-2 booster vaccination rescues attenuated IgG1 memory B cell response in primary antibody deficiency patients

BACKGROUND: Although SARS-CoV-2 vaccines have proven effective in eliciting a protective immune response in healthy individuals, their ability to induce a durable immune response in immunocompromised individuals remains poorly understood. Primary antibody deficiency (PAD) syndromes are among the most common primary immunodeficiency disorders in adults and are characterized by hypogammaglobulinemia and impaired ability to mount robust antibody responses following infection or vaccination. METHODS: Here, we present an analysis of both the B and T cell response in a prospective cohort of 30 individuals with PAD up to 150 days following initial COVID-19 vaccination and 150 days post mRNA booster vaccination. RESULTS: After the primary vaccination series, many of the individuals with PAD syndromes mounted SARS-CoV-2 specific memory B and CD4 CONCLUSION: Together, these data indicate that SARS-CoV-2 vaccines elicit memory B and T cells in most PAD patients and highlights the importance of booster vaccination in immunodeficient individuals

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

SUSTAIN drilling at Surtsey volcano, Iceland, tracks hydrothermal and microbiological interactions in basalt 50 years after eruption

The 2017 Surtsey Underwater volcanic System for Thermophiles, Alteration processes and INnovative concretes (SUSTAIN) drilling project at Surtsey volcano, sponsored in part by the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP), provides precise observations of the hydrothermal, geochemical, geomagnetic, and microbiological changes that have occurred in basaltic tephra and minor intrusions since explosive and effusive eruptions produced the oceanic island in 1963–1967. Two vertically cored boreholes, to 152 and 192 m below the surface, were drilled using filtered, UV-sterilized seawater circulating fluid to minimize microbial contamination. These cores parallel a 181 m core drilled in 1979. Introductory investigations indicate changes in material properties and whole-rock compositions over the past 38 years. A Surtsey subsurface observatory installed to 181 m in one vertical borehole holds incubation experiments that monitor in situ mineralogical and microbial alteration processes at 25–124 ∘C. A third cored borehole, inclined 55∘ in a 264∘ azimuthal direction to 354 m measured depth, provides further insights into eruption processes, including the presence of a diatreme that extends at least 100 m into the seafloor beneath the Surtur crater. The SUSTAIN project provides the first time-lapse drilling record into a very young oceanic basaltic volcano over a range of temperatures, 25–141 ∘C from 1979 to 2017, and subaerial and submarine hydrothermal fluid compositions. Rigorous procedures undertaken during the drilling operation protected the sensitive environment of the Surtsey Natural Preserve

Expanding the diversity of mycobacteriophages: insights into genome architecture and evolution.

Mycobacteriophages are viruses that infect mycobacterial hosts such as Mycobacterium smegmatis and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. All mycobacteriophages characterized to date are dsDNA tailed phages, and have either siphoviral or myoviral morphotypes. However, their genetic diversity is considerable, and although sixty-two genomes have been sequenced and comparatively analyzed, these likely represent only a small portion of the diversity of the mycobacteriophage population at large. Here we report the isolation, sequencing and comparative genomic analysis of 18 new mycobacteriophages isolated from geographically distinct locations within the United States. Although no clear correlation between location and genome type can be discerned, these genomes expand our knowledge of mycobacteriophage diversity and enhance our understanding of the roles of mobile elements in viral evolution. Expansion of the number of mycobacteriophages grouped within Cluster A provides insights into the basis of immune specificity in these temperate phages, and we also describe a novel example of apparent immunity theft. The isolation and genomic analysis of bacteriophages by freshman college students provides an example of an authentic research experience for novice scientists

To what extent do nurses use research in clinical practice? A systematic review

Background : In the past forty years, many gains have been made in our understanding of the concept of research utilization. While numerous studies exist on professional nurses\u27 use of research in practice, no attempt has been made to systematically evaluate and synthesize this body of literature with respect to the extent to which nurses use research in their clinical practice. The objective of this study was to systematically identify and analyze the available evidence related to the extent to which nurses use research findings in practice. Methods : This study was a systematic review of published and grey literature. The search strategy included 13 online bibliographic databases: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, HAPI, Web of Science, SCOPUS, OCLC Papers First, OCLC WorldCat, ABI Inform, Sociological Abstracts, and Dissertation Abstracts. The inclusion criteria consisted of primary research reports that assess professional nurses\u27 use of research in practice, written in the English or Scandinavian languages. Extent of research use was determined by assigning research use scores reported in each article to one of four quartiles: low, moderate-low, moderate-high, or high. Results : Following removal of duplicate citations, a total of 12,418 titles were identified through database searches, of which 133 articles were retrieved. Of the articles retrieved, 55 satisfied the inclusion criteria. The 55 final reports included cross-sectional/survey (n = 51) and quasi-experimental (n = 4) designs. A sensitivity analysis, comparing findings from all reports with those rated moderate (moderate-weak and moderate-strong) and strong quality, did not show significant differences. In a majority of the articles identified (n = 38, 69%), nurses reported moderate-high research use. Conclusions : According to this review, nurses\u27 reported use of research is moderate-high and has remained relatively consistent over time until the early 2000\u27s. This finding, however, may paint an overly optimistic picture of the extent to which nurses use research in their practice given the methodological problems inherent in the majority of studies. There is a clear need for the development of standard measures of research use and robust well-designed studies examining nurses\u27 use of research and its impact on patient outcomes. The relatively unchanged self-reports of moderate-high research use by nurses is troubling given that over 40 years have elapsed since the first studies in this review were conducted and the increasing emphasis in the past 15 years on evidence-based practice. More troubling is the absence of studies in which attempts are made to assess the effects of varying levels of research use on patient outcomes.<br /