Modeling Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy with Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

Research of genetic cardiovascular diseases has lacked of good disease models because rodents, which are primarily used, differ greatly from humans. The ability to derive human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) from patients carrying inherited cardiac diseases has revolutionized research in the cardiovascular field. The aim for this chapter is to review the current hiPSC reprogramming methods and methods for differentiating human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) into cardiomyocytes. The chapter focuses on the published hiPSC models for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and discusses the challenges related to modeling this interesting disease using hiPSC technology

Naturalising the new cold war : The geopolitics of framing the Ukrainian conflict in four European newspapers

The conflict in Ukraine has prompted analyses about the return of cold war divisions to Europe. This study focusses on the role the news media plays in the conflict by examining how the visual and textual practices of news framing help constitute geopolitical rationality and legitimise foreign policy. We analyse how the framing of the conflict in Die Welt, Dagens Nyheter, Helsingin Sanomat and The Guardian developed through four key events between February 2014 and February 2015. The analysis indicates that by promoting particular news frames the newspapers contributed to the legitimation of European Union policies, which are premised upon supporting the Ukrainian government in its military campaign in eastern Ukraine and placing responsibility for the conflict onto Russia. Hence, we argue that the news framing eventually contributed to the naturalisation of the ‘new cold war’ as a geopolitical rationality, orienting and legitimising foreign policy in EuropePeer reviewe

Professional role enactment amid information warfare : War correspondents tweeting on the Ukraine conflict

War correspondents work within a networked media environment characterised not only by an explosion of information but also a wide range of actors producing competing narratives and viewpoints. This study examines the ways in which war correspondents enact their professional roles when tweeting from within a conflict zone. The analysis sheds light on the conditions of modern information warfare in the context of reporting from within the Ukraine conflict. It also identifies the emerging social media practices of war correspondents and the different role categories that journalists are adopting on Twitter.Peer reviewe

Lännessä olemme, itään katsomme : Ukrainan kriisin kehykset ja Venäjän esitykset suomalaisissa mediakuvissa

Artikkeli selvittää, millaisia merkityksiä Ukrainan kriisistä suomalaisen valtavirtamedian kuvasto rakentaa. Tutkimuksen aineistona ovat Helsingin Sanomien sekä Ylen ja MTV3:n televisiouutisten Ukraina-juttujen kuvat. Havaintoja verrataan kolmen ulkomaisen julkaisun kuvallisiin esityksiin. Representaatioita tutkitaan kahdesta näkökulmasta. Erving Goffmanin kehysteorian pohjalta tutkimme kuvien tarjoamia tilannemääritelmiä sekä ja niiden taustalla vaikuttavia kehyksiä. Toiseksi analysoimme, millaisia rooleja Venäjän presidentti Vladimir Putin mediakuvissa saa ja millaisia käsityksiä Venäjästä kuvat rakentavat. Havaintoja verrataan aiempaan tutkimukseen Suomen median Venäjä-käsityksistä. Kuvien analyysi nostaa esiin kaksi hallitsevaa tulkintakehystä. Politiikka-kehyksessä kriisi määrittyy poliittiseksi ongelmaksi, jonka ratkaisu on poliittisten prosessien varassa. Humaani kehys taas kohdistaa huomion inhimillisiin menetyksiin, suruun ja väkivallan seurauksiin. Lukijaa puhutellaan empaattisena myötäeläjänä, joka samaistuu ukrainalaisten ahdinkoon. Suomen mediassa politiikan painopiste oli kansainvälisessä politiikassa, kun taas ulkomaiset julkaisut korostivat enemmän Venäjän merkitystä. Presidentti Putin esitettiin mediakuvissa syytettynä, vahvana johtajana, Ukrainan arkkivihollisena ja poliittisen kamppailun voittajana. Poliittisesti Putin asemoitiin ensin lännen (MTV3) ja Ukrainan (Yle) ja myöhemmin Ukrainan (MTV3, YLE, HS) vastapuoleksi. Havainnot heijastavat suomalaiselle Venäjä-kuvalle keskeistä toiseuden ajatusta ja irrationaalista tulkintakehystä.Peer reviewe

Caught between sympathy and suspicion: : Journalistic perceptions and practices of telling asylum seekers’ personal stories

Personal stories in news reports serve multiple purposes, but at their core lie efforts at illustrating and authenticating a social or political issue through human experience, an illustration that is compelling in its affective appeal. Telling the personal stories of people belonging to minority groups may work as a potent journalistic vehicle in countering negative stereotypes and prejudices against them. This article examines how Finnish journalists incorporate the personal stories of asylum seekers into their coverage of the so-called 'European refugee crisis' of 2015-2016. Drawing on qualitative interviews, we inquire into how journalists understand the meaning and purpose of asylum seekers' personal stories in their news reporting and reflect on the professional values and ethical dilemmas when telling them. Our findings reveal that while journalists tend to sympathise with the vulnerable and see it as important to combat xenophobia and racism, their relationship with asylum seekers becomes increasingly informed and constrained by socio-political and discursive structures that foster a culture of suspicion towards asylum seekers.Peer reviewe

Whose War, Whose Fault? : Visual Framing of the Ukraine Conflict in Western European Newspapers

Images play a key role in modern mediatized conflicts, promoting particular ways of understanding those conflicts, what they are about, and who drives them. This article examines the visual coverage of the Ukraine conflict in The Guardian, Die Welt, Dagens Nyheter, and Helsingin Sanomat in terms of three dominant frames: the Ukraine conflict as national power struggle, as Russian intervention, and as geopolitical conflict. Focusing on four key events in the conflict between February 2014 and February 2015, and combining quantitative and qualitative methods, the framing analysis highlights the need to examine news images’ textual content and layout and broader cultural and political contexts. We argue that the interplay between visual and textual devices is central to the production of hegemonic meanings, particularly when shaping public perceptions of key actors and their roles in international conflicts.Peer reviewe

CytoSpectre: a tool for spectral analysis of oriented structures on cellular and subcellular levels

CytoSpectre user guide. This file contains the user guide of the software. (PDF 464 kb

Prevention of Gestational Diabetes: Design of a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial and One-Year Follow-Up

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Annual prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is 12.5% among Finnish pregnant women. The prevalence is expected to rise with the increasing overweight among women before pregnancy. Physical activity and diet are both known to have favourable effects on insulin resistance and possibly on the risk of GDM. We aimed to investigate, whether GDM can be prevented by counseling on diet, physical activity and gestational weight gain during pregnancy.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>A cluster-randomized controlled trial was conducted in 14 municipalities in the southern part of Finland. Pairwise randomization was performed in order to take into account socioeconomic differences. Recruited women were at 8-12 weeks' gestation and fulfilled at least one of the following criteria: body mass index ≥ 25 kg/m², history of earlier gestational glucose intolerance or macrosomic newborn (> 4500 g), age ≥ 40 years, first or second degree relative with history of type 1 or 2 diabetes. Main exclusion criterion was pathological oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) at 8-12 weeks' gestation. The trial included one counseling session on physical activity at 8-12 weeks' gestation and one for diet at 16-18 weeks' gestation, and three to four booster sessions during other routine visits. In the control clinics women received usual care. Information on height, weight gain and other gestational factors was obtained from maternity cards. Physical activity, dietary intake and quality of life were followed by questionnaires during pregnancy and at 1-year postpartum. Blood samples for lipid status, hormones, insulin and OGTT were taken at 8-12 and 26-28 weeks' gestation and 1 year postpartum. Workability and return to work were elicited by a questionnaire at 1- year postpartum. Linkage to the national birth register of years 2007-2009 will provide information on perinatal complications and GDM incidence among the non-participants of the study. Cost-effectiveness evaluation will be based on quality-adjusted life years. This study has received ethical approval from the Ethical board of Pirkanmaa Hospital District.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The study will provide information on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of gestational physical activity and dietary counseling on prevention of GDM in a risk group of women. Also information on the prevalence of GDM and postpartum metabolic syndrome will be gained. Results on maintaining the possible health behaviour changes are important in order to prevent chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>The trial is registered ISRCTN 33885819</p

Effects of cardioactive drugs on human induced pluripotent stem cell derived long QT syndrome cardiomyocytes

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) have enabled a major step forward in pathophysiologic studies of inherited diseases and may also prove to be valuable in in vitro drug testing. Long QT syndrome (LQTS), characterized by prolonged cardiac repolarization and risk of sudden death, may be inherited or result from adverse drug effects. Using a microelectrode array platform, we investigated the effects of six different drugs on the electrophysiological characteristics of human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes as well as hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes from control subjects and from patients with type 1 (LQT1) and type 2 (LQT2) of LQTS. At baseline the repolarization time was significantly longer in LQTS cells compared to controls. Isoprenaline increased the beating rate of all cell lines by 10-73 % but did not show any arrhythmic effects in any cell type. Different QT-interval prolonging drugs caused prolongation of cardiac repolarization by 3-13 % (cisapride), 10-20 % (erythromycin), 8-23 % (sotalol), 16-42 % (quinidine) and 12-27 % (E-4031), but we did not find any systematic differences in sensitivity between the control, LQT1 and LQT2 cell lines. Sotalol, quinidine and E-4031 also caused arrhythmic beats and beating arrests in some cases. In summary, the drug effects on these patient-specific cardiomyocytes appear to recapitulate clinical observations and provide further evidence that these cells can be applied for in vitro drug testing to probe their vulnerability to arrhythmia.Peer reviewe