650 research outputs found
Picture Power? The Contribution of Visuals and Text to Partisan Selective Exposure
Today’s high-choice media environment allows citizens to select news in line with their political preferences and avoid content counter to their priors. So far, however, selective exposure research has exclusively studied news selection based on textual cues, ignoring the recent proliferation of visual media. This study aimed to identify the contribution of visuals alongside text in selective exposure to pro-attitudinal, counter-attitudinal and balanced content. Using two experiments, we created a social media-style newsfeed with news items comprising matching and non-matching images and headlines about the contested issues of immigration and gun control in the U.S. By comparing selection behavior of participants with opposing prior attitudes on these topics, we pulled apart the contribution of images and headlines to selective exposure. Findings show that headlines play a far greater role in guiding selection, with the influence of images being minimal. The additional influence of partisan source cues is also considered
Safety assessment of chronic oral exposure to iron oxide nanoparticles
Iron oxide nanoparticles with engineered physical and biochemical properties are finding a rapidly increasing number of biomedical applications. However, a wide variety of safety concerns, especially those related to oral exposure, still need to be addressed for iron oxide nanoparticles in order to reach clinical practice. Here, we report on the effects of chronic oral exposure to low doses of γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles in growing chickens. Animal observation, weight, and diet intake reveal no adverse signs, symptoms, or mortality. No nanoparticle accumulation was observed in liver, spleen, and duodenum, with feces as the main excretion route. Liver iron level and duodenal villi morphology reflect the bioavailability of the iron released from the partial transformation of γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles in the acid gastric environment. Duodenal gene expression studies related to the absorption of iron from γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles indicate the enhancement of a ferric over ferrous pathway supporting the role of mucins. Our findings reveal that oral administration of iron oxide nanoparticles is a safe route for drug delivery at low nanoparticle doses.Peer Reviewe
Estructura hidrográfica de la Bahía de Bluefields, Nicaragua
In March and October of 2000, under the DIPAL II project (Proyecto para el Desarrollo Integral de la Pesca Artesanal en la Región Autónoma del Atlántico Sur), two hydrographic surveys were carried out in the Bay of Bluefields to study their hydrography during the dry and rainy seasons. Water temperature, salinity and turbidity were determined both at the surface and the bottom of the bay. The results obtained are consistent with previous studies carried out in this area. In March, water temperature and salinity were lower and higher, respectively, than in October. Water turbidity increased with increased fresh water input as a result of a greater movement of suspended sediments and organic matter into the water body. Saline wedges were observed in deep strata during the two months of sampling in the adjacent areas to the bars of The Bluff and Hone Sound. In the first case the wedge extended to the northwest up to the area of Bluefields, while in the second case it extended to the west reaching the western coast of the bay. The vertical gradient of salinity was stronger in October, when the superficial flow of fresh water in the whole bay was more intense. A circulation pattern related to the salinity field was recognised: fresh water introduced by the Caño Negro and Escondido rivers moves along the western coast of the bay, while sea water enters the bay towards the northwest, throughout the whole water column, at the bars of The Bluff and Hone Sound. Fresh water introduced by the River Torsuani moves along the eastern coast towards the open sea at the southern end of the bay
Perturbation-Based Modeling Unveils the Autophagic Modulation of Chemosensitivity and Immunogenicity in Breast Cancer Cells
In the absence of new therapeutic strategies, chemotherapeutic drugs are the most widely
used strategy against metastatic breast cancer, in spite of eliciting multiple adverse effects and having
low responses with an average 5-year patient survival rate. Among the new therapeutic targets
that are currently in clinical trials, here, we addressed the association between the regulation of the
metabolic process of autophagy and the exposure of damage-associated molecular patterns associated
(DAMPs) to immunogenic cell death (ICD), which has not been previously studied. After validating
an mCHR-GFP tandem LC3 sensor capacity to report dynamic changes of the autophagic metabolic
flux in response to external stimuli and demonstrating that both basal autophagy levels and response
to diverse autophagy regulators fluctuate among different cell lines, we explored the interaction
between autophagy modulators and chemotherapeutic agents in regards of cytotoxicity and ICD
using three different breast cancer cell lines. Since these interactions are very complex and variable
throughout different cell lines, we designed a perturbation-based model in which we propose specific
modes of action of chemotherapeutic agents on the autophagic flux and the corresponding strategies
of modulation to enhance the response to chemotherapy. Our results point towards a promising
therapeutic potential of the metabolic regulation of autophagy to overcome chemotherapy resistance
by eliciting ICD.Universidad de Costa Rica/[803-B6-600]/UCR/Costa RicaUCR::Vicerrectoría de Investigación::Unidades de Investigación::Ciencias de la Salud::Centro de Investigación en Enfermedades Tropicales (CIET)UCR::Vicerrectoría de Docencia::Salud::Facultad de Microbiologí
Comparison of breast and bowel cancer screening uptake patterns in a common cohort of South Asian women in England
Background: Inequalities in uptake of cancer screening by ethnic minority populations are well documented in a
number of international studies. However, most studies to date have explored screening uptake for a single cancer
only. This paper compares breast and bowel cancer screening uptake for a cohort of South Asian women invited to
undertake both, and similarly investigates these women's breast cancer screening behaviour over a period of fifteen
years.
Methods: Screening data for rounds 1, 2 and 5 (1989-2004) of the NHS breast cancer screening programme and for
round 1 of the NHS bowel screening pilot (2000-2002) were obtained for women aged 50-69 resident in the English
bowel screening pilot site, Coventry and Warwickshire, who had been invited to undertake breast and bowel cancer
screening in the period 2000-2002. Breast and bowel cancer screening uptake levels were calculated and compared
using the chi-squared test.
Results: 72,566 women were invited to breast and bowel cancer screening after exclusions. Of these, 3,539 were South
Asian and 69,027 non-Asian; 18,730 had been invited to mammography over the previous fifteen years (rounds 1 to 5).
South Asian women were significantly less likely to undertake both breast and bowel cancer screening; 29.9% (n =
1,057) compared to 59.4% (n = 40,969) for non-Asians (p < 0.001). Women in both groups who consistently chose to
undertake breast cancer screening in rounds 1, 2 and 5 were more likely to complete round 1 bowel cancer screening.
However, the likelihood of completion of bowel cancer screening was still significantly lower for South Asians; 49.5% vs.
82.3% for non-Asians, p < 0.001. South Asian women who undertook breast cancer screening in only one round were
no more likely to complete bowel cancer screening than those who decided against breast cancer screening in all
three rounds. In contrast, similar women in the non-Asian population had an increased likelihood of completing the
new bowel cancer screening test. The likelihood of continued uptake of mammography after undertaking screening in
round 1 differed between South Asian religio-linguistic groups. Noticeably, women in the Muslim population were less
likely to continue to participate in mammography than those in other South Asian groups.
Conclusions: Culturally appropriate targeted interventions are required to reduce observed disparities in cancer
screening uptakes
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Oscillation of the velvet worm slime jet by passive hydrodynamic instability
The rapid squirt of a proteinaceous slime jet endows velvet worms (Onychophora) with a unique mechanism for defence from predators and for capturing prey by entangling them in a disordered web that immobilizes their target. However, to date, neither qualitative nor quantitative descriptions have been provided for this unique adaptation. Here we investigate the fast oscillatory motion of the oral papillae and the exiting liquid jet that oscillates with frequencies f~30–60 Hz. Using anatomical images, high-speed videography, theoretical analysis and a physical simulacrum, we show that this fast oscillatory motion is the result of an elastohydrodynamic instability driven by the interplay between the elasticity of oral papillae and the fast unsteady flow during squirting. Our results demonstrate how passive strategies can be cleverly harnessed by organisms, while suggesting future oscillating microfluidic devices, as well as novel ways for micro and nanofibre production using bioinspired strategies
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