Corporate Social Responsibility of the Media: Instrument Development and Validation

With the emergence of significant problems in capitalist systems around the world, corporate social responsibility has taken on greater emphasis. In the media industry, in which public interest has been discussed for a long time, the importance of corporate social responsibility is magnified again. Although many studies have already addressed this topic, there is less literature on how to measure corporate social responsibility in the media industry. This study aims to develop an instrument to measure corporate social responsibility in the media industry. Using data from 253 experts who majored in communication, this study verifies a proposed instrument. Results show that corporate social responsibility in the media consists of three major constructs, namely reliability, usefulness, and fairness. The findings of this study are expected to enable practitioners to improve social responsibility in their media and to allow academics to make further headway in this research stream

THE ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT INURY PREVENTION PROGRAM: A META-ANALYSIS

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a neuromuscular protocol on the prevention of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury by performing meta-analysis. An extensive literature review was conducted to identify relevant studies, and eventually, only seven randomized controlled trials or prospective cohort studies were included in the analysis. Subgroup analysis revealed that an age under 18, soccer rather than handball, pre- and in-season training rather than either pre or in-season training, and the plyometrics and strengthening components rather than balancing were significant. Metaanalysis showed that pre- and in-season neuromuscular training with an emphasis on plyometrics and strengthening exercises was effective at preventing ACL injury in female athletes, especially in those under 18 years of age

Unidirectional emission from a cardioid-shaped microcavity laser

We find unidirectional emission in a cardioid-shaped microcavity laser. When a deformation parameter is well adjusted, rays starting around a period-5 unstable periodic orbit emit unidirectionally. To confirm the emission direction, we fabricate a laser by using an InGaAsP semiconductor and investigate emission characteristics. When the laser is excited by current injection with a dc current, resonances localized on the period-5 unstable periodic orbit emit unidirectionally. © 2016 Optical Society of America.1

Immature Gastric Teratoma in an Infant: A Case Report

Gastric teratomas are extremely rare neoplasms and almost exclusively benign. They occur predominantly in males and generally present as a palpable abdominal mass. To our knowledge, only one adult case has been described in the Korean literature. We report a case in which an immature gastric teratoma in a 3-month-old boy was revealed by CT and US

Chirality of a resonance in the absence of backscatterings

Chirality of a resonance localized on an islands chain is studied in a deformed Reuleaux triangular-shaped microcavity, where clockwise and counter clockwise traveling rays are classically separated. A resonance localized on a period-5 islands chain exhibits chiral emission due to the asymmetric cavity shape. Chirality is experimentally proved in a InGaAsP multiquantum-well semiconductor laser by showing that the experimental emission characteristics well coincide with the wave dynamical ones. (C) 2017 Optical Society of America1

Direct observation of DNA target searching and cleavage by CRISPR-Cas12a

Cas12a (also called Cpf1) is a representative type V-A CRISPR effector RNA-guided DNA endonuclease, which provides an alternative to type II CRISPR-Cas9 for genome editing. Previous studies have revealed that Cas12a has unique features distinct from Cas9, but the detailed mechanisms of target searching and DNA cleavage by Cas12a are still unclear. Here, we directly observe this entire process by using single-molecule fluorescence assays to study Cas12a from Acidaminococcus sp. (AsCas12a). We determine that AsCas12a ribonucleoproteins search for their on-target site by a one-dimensional diffusion along elongated DNA molecules and induce cleavage in the two DNA strands in a well-defined order, beginning with the non-target strand. Furthermore, the protospacer-adjacent motif (PAM) for AsCas12a makes only a limited contribution of DNA unwinding during R-loop formation and shows a negligible role in the process of DNA cleavage, in contrast to the Cas9 PAM.

Effects of biomechanical forces on signaling in the cortical collecting duct (CCD)

An increase in tubular fluid flow rate (TFF) stimulates Na reabsorption and K secretion in the cortical collecting duct (CCD) and subjects cells therein to biomechanical forces including fluid shear stress (FSS) and circumferential stretch (CS). Intracellular MAPK and extracellular autocrine/paracrine PGE2 signaling regulate cation transport in the CCD and, at least in other systems, are affected by biomechanical forces. We hypothesized that FSS and CS differentially affect MAPK signaling and PGE2 release to modulate cation transport in the CCD. To validate that CS is a physiological force in vivo, we applied the intravital microscopic approach to rodent kidneys in vivo to show that saline or furosemide injection led to a 46.5 ± 2.0 or 170 ± 32% increase, respectively, in distal tubular diameter. Next, murine CCD (mpkCCD) cells were grown on glass or silicone coated with collagen type IV and subjected to 0 or 0.4 dyne/cm2 of FSS or 10% CS, respectively, forces chosen based on prior biomechanical modeling of ex vivo microperfused CCDs. Cells exposed to FSS expressed an approximately twofold greater abundance of phospho(p)-ERK and p-p38 vs. static cells, while CS did not alter p-p38 and p-ERK expression compared with unstretched controls. FSS induced whereas CS reduced PGE2 release by ∼40%. In conclusion, FSS and CS differentially affect ERK and p38 activation and PGE2 release in a cell culture model of the CD. We speculate that TFF differentially regulates biomechanical signaling and, in turn, cation transport in the CCD

Deficiency of peroxiredoxin 2 exacerbates angiotensin II-induced abdominal aortic aneurysm

Abdominal aortic aneurysm: Potential enzyme biomarker identified An enzyme with antioxidant properties may provide a biomarker and therapeutic agent to help treat abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). AAA involves the structural deterioration of the aorta through chronic inflammation and oxidative stress, and can trigger life-threatening artery rupture. An antioxidant enzyme called peroxiredoxin 2 (PRDX2) is increased in patients with ruptures, but whether its role in AAA is beneficial or detrimental is unclear. Goo Taeg Oh at the Ewha Womans University in Seoul, Jong-Gil Park at the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Daejeon, South Korea, and co-workers examined the effect of PRDX2 on AAA progression. PRDX2 suppressed structural damage in mice, limiting artery dilation and protein degradation. Loss of PRDX2 accelerated AAA development. Measuring levels of PRDX2 may indicate AAA severity in patients, while boosting the enzyme could repair aortic damage

Primary Malignant Pericardial Mesothelioma Presenting as Acute Pericarditis

We report on a 21-year-old man with fever, dyspnea, and pleuritic chest pain. An electrocardiography showed ST elevation in multiple lead and thoracic echocardiography revealed moderate pericardial effusion. He was initially diagnosed with acute pericarditis, and treated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and colchicines with clinical and laboratory improvement. After 1 month of medication, his symptoms recurred. An echocardiography showed constrictive physiology and the patient was treated with steroid on the top of current medication. The patient had been well for 7 months until dyspnea and edema developed, when an echocardiography showed marked increased pericardial thickness and constriction. Pericardial biopsy was performed and primary malignant pericardial mesothelioma was diagnosed. Malignancy should be considered in the differential diagnosis of recurrent pericarditis

Cordycepin induces apoptosis of human ovarian cancer cells by inhibiting CCL5-mediated Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway

The chemokine, CCL5, is a key mediator for the recruitment of immune cells into tumors and tissues. Akt/NF-κB signaling is significantly activated by CCL5. However, the role of NF-κB inactivation in apoptosis induced by negative regulation of CCL5 remains unclear. Here, we analyzed the effect of cordycepin on NF-κB activity in SKOV-3 cells and found that cordycepin-mediated inhibition of NF-κB signaling induced apoptosis in SKOV-3 cells via the serial activation of caspases. In addition, immune-blotting analysis showed that CCL5 is highly expressed in SKOV-3 cells. In addition to activating caspases, we show that, cordycepin prevents TNF-α-induced increase in CCL5, Akt, NF-κB, and c-FLIPL activation and that CCL5 siRNA could inhibit Akt/NF-κB signaling. Moreover, cordycepin negatively regulated the TNF-α-mediated IκB/NF-κB pathway and c-FLIPL activation to promote JNK phosphorylation, resulting in caspase-3 activation and apoptosis. Also, we show that c-FLIPL is rapidly lost in NF-κB activation-deficient. siRNA mediated c-FLIP inhibition increased JNK. SP600125, a selective JNK inhibitor, downregulated p-JNK expression in cordycepin-treated SKOV-3 cells, leading to suppression of cordycepin-induced apoptosis. Thus, these results indicate that cordycepin inhibits CCL5-mediated Akt/NF-κB signaling, which upregulates caspase-3 activation in SKOV-3 cells, supporting the potential of cordycepin as a therapeutic agent for ovarian cancer