The stellar and sub-stellar IMF of simple and composite populations

The current knowledge on the stellar IMF is documented. It appears to become top-heavy when the star-formation rate density surpasses about 0.1Msun/(yr pc^3) on a pc scale and it may become increasingly bottom-heavy with increasing metallicity and in increasingly massive early-type galaxies. It declines quite steeply below about 0.07Msun with brown dwarfs (BDs) and very low mass stars having their own IMF. The most massive star of mass mmax formed in an embedded cluster with stellar mass Mecl correlates strongly with Mecl being a result of gravitation-driven but resource-limited growth and fragmentation induced starvation. There is no convincing evidence whatsoever that massive stars do form in isolation. Various methods of discretising a stellar population are introduced: optimal sampling leads to a mass distribution that perfectly represents the exact form of the desired IMF and the mmax-to-Mecl relation, while random sampling results in statistical variations of the shape of the IMF. The observed mmax-to-Mecl correlation and the small spread of IMF power-law indices together suggest that optimally sampling the IMF may be the more realistic description of star formation than random sampling from a universal IMF with a constant upper mass limit. Composite populations on galaxy scales, which are formed from many pc scale star formation events, need to be described by the integrated galactic IMF. This IGIMF varies systematically from top-light to top-heavy in dependence of galaxy type and star formation rate, with dramatic implications for theories of galaxy formation and evolution.Comment: 167 pages, 37 figures, 3 tables, published in Stellar Systems and Galactic Structure, Vol.5, Springer. This revised version is consistent with the published version and includes additional references and minor additions to the text as well as a recomputed Table 1. ISBN 978-90-481-8817-

Nutraceutical therapies for atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting large and medium arteries and is considered to be a major underlying cause of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although the development of pharmacotherapies to treat CVD has contributed to a decline in cardiac mortality in the past few decades, CVD is estimated to be the cause of one-third of deaths globally. Nutraceuticals are natural nutritional compounds that are beneficial for the prevention or treatment of disease and, therefore, are a possible therapeutic avenue for the treatment of atherosclerosis. The purpose of this Review is to highlight potential nutraceuticals for use as antiatherogenic therapies with evidence from in vitro and in vivo studies. Furthermore, the current evidence from observational and randomized clinical studies into the role of nutraceuticals in preventing atherosclerosis in humans will also be discussed

In COVID-19 Health Messaging, Loss Framing Increases Anxiety with Little-to-No Concomitant Benefits: Experimental Evidence from 84 Countries

The COVID-19 pandemic (and its aftermath) highlights a critical need to communicate health information effectively to the global public. Given that subtle differences in information framing can have meaningful effects on behavior, behavioral science research highlights a pressing question: Is it more effective to frame COVID-19 health messages in terms of potential losses (e.g., "If you do not practice these steps, you can endanger yourself and others") or potential gains (e.g., "If you practice these steps, you can protect yourself and others")? Collecting data in 48 languages from 15,929 participants in 84 countries, we experimentally tested the effects of message framing on COVID-19-related judgments, intentions, and feelings. Loss- (vs. gain-) framed messages increased self-reported anxiety among participants cross-nationally with little-to-no impact on policy attitudes, behavioral intentions, or information seeking relevant to pandemic risks. These results were consistent across 84 countries, three variations of the message framing wording, and 560 data processing and analytic choices. Thus, results provide an empirical answer to a global communication question and highlight the emotional toll of loss-framed messages. Critically, this work demonstrates the importance of considering unintended affective consequences when evaluating nudge-style interventions

A global experiment on motivating social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Finding communication strategies that effectively motivate social distancing continues to be a global public health priority during the COVID-19 pandemic. This cross-country, preregistered experiment (n = 25,718 from 89 countries) tested hypotheses concerning generalizable positive and negative outcomes of social distancing messages that promoted personal agency and reflective choices (i.e., an autonomy-supportive message) or were restrictive and shaming (i.e., a controlling message) compared with no message at all. Results partially supported experimental hypotheses in that the controlling message increased controlled motivation (a poorly internalized form of motivation relying on shame, guilt, and fear of social consequences) relative to no message. On the other hand, the autonomy-supportive message lowered feelings of defiance compared with the controlling message, but the controlling message did not differ from receiving no message at all. Unexpectedly, messages did not influence autonomous motivation (a highly internalized form of motivation relying on one’s core values) or behavioral intentions. Results supported hypothesized associations between people’s existing autonomous and controlled motivations and self-reported behavioral intentions to engage in social distancing. Controlled motivation was associated with more defiance and less long-term behavioral intention to engage in social distancing, whereas autonomous motivation was associated with less defiance and more short- and long-term intentions to social distance. Overall, this work highlights the potential harm of using shaming and pressuring language in public health communication, with implications for the current and future global health challenges

Long-Term Mortality of 306,868 Patients with Multi-Vessel Coronary Artery Disease: CABG versus PCI

Extracted text; Background Several randomized controlled trials (RCT) have reported no difference in long-term mortality between coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The purpose of this pooled observational analysis was to compare recent retrospective studies examining long-term survival of patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease undergoing CABG and PCI. Methodology We searched Medline for observational studies comparing long-term (>1 year) survival between CABG and PCI for the treatment of multi-vessel coronary artery disease over the past 10 years. Results Eight studies met inclusion criteria. A total of 306,868 patients (155,502 CABG; 151,366 PCI) were identified. Follow-up ranged from 1 to 8 years. Mantel-Haenszel combined hazard ratios (HR) for mortality demonstrated a protective benefit of CABG compared with PCI (HR=0.77, 95%CI=0.75–0.79). Conclusion These findings suggest a long-term survival advantage for CABG compared with PCI in patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease

Long-Term Mortality of 306,868 Patients with Multi-Vessel Coronary Artery Disease: CABG versus PCI

Extracted text; Background Several randomized controlled trials (RCT) have reported no difference in long-term mortality between coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The purpose of this pooled observational analysis was to compare recent retrospective studies examining long-term survival of patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease undergoing CABG and PCI. Methodology We searched Medline for observational studies comparing long-term (>1 year) survival between CABG and PCI for the treatment of multi-vessel coronary artery disease over the past 10 years. Results Eight studies met inclusion criteria. A total of 306,868 patients (155,502 CABG; 151,366 PCI) were identified. Follow-up ranged from 1 to 8 years. Mantel-Haenszel combined hazard ratios (HR) for mortality demonstrated a protective benefit of CABG compared with PCI (HR=0.77, 95%CI=0.75–0.79). Conclusion These findings suggest a long-term survival advantage for CABG compared with PCI in patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease