Reading prosocial content in books and adolescents' prosocial behavior: a moderated mediation model with evidence from China

Drawing upon the General Learning Model, the present study developed a moderated mediation model to provide an in-depth understanding of whether and how adolescents' reading prosocial content in books predicts their prosocial behavior. The target population in this study is Chinese adolescents, and we adopted a paper-based survey to collect data (N = 602). The age range of the sample was from 12 to 19 (M = 15.198, SD = 1.596). Among all participants, 49.3% were female, and 50.7% were male. PROCESS SPSS Macro was used to analyze the proposed moderated mediation model. The results showed that prosocial content reading was positively associated with adolescents' prosocial behavior. The positive association included a direct relationship and an indirect relationship through the mediation of moral identity. Furthermore, this study revealed the moderation effect of age on the relationships among prosocial content reading, moral identity, and prosocial behavior. Specifically, as age increases, the effects of prosocial content reading on moral identity and prosocial behavior attenuate, and the mediation effect of moral identity also decreases. The study adds to the body of knowledge on the prosocial media effect by extending it to book reading.Published versionThis work was supported by the Institute of College Student Development, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, under the project “Will social media use influence individuals’ prosocial behavior development: evidence from Chinese college students” (number: DFY-LL-2020081)

Association between Peak Neutrophil Count, Clopidogrel Loading Dose, and Left Ventricular Systolic Function in Patients with Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Inflammation plays an important role in plaque development and left ventricular remodeling during acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Clopidogrel may exhibit some anti-inflammatory properties and high loading dose of clopidogrel results in improved clinical outcomes in patients with AMI. 357 patients who received successful primary percutaneous coronary intervention from January 2008 to March 2011 in Peking University Third Hospital were included in this study. Different loading dose of clopidogrel (300 mg, 450 mg, or 600 mg) was given at the discretion of the clinician. Neutrophils reached their peak values on the first day after AMI. Higher levels of peak neutrophil and lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were found in patients of low clopidogrel loading dose group (300 mg or 450 mg). After adjusting for the related confounders, a logistic regression model showed that low clopidogrel loading dose remained an independent predictor of low LVEF (LVEF ≤ 50%) [OR: 1.97, 95% CI: 1.03–3.79, P = 0.04]. Low clopidogrel loading dose was associated with higher peak neutrophil count and poor left ventricular systolic function, suggesting an important role of clopidogrel loading dose in the improvement of left ventricular function and high loading dose may exhibit better anti-inflammatory properties

Combination of Solamargine and Metformin Strengthens IGFBP1 Gene Expression Through Inactivation of Stat3 and Reciprocal Interaction Between FOXO3a and SP1

Background/Aims: Solamargine, one natural photochemical component from traditional plants, has been shown to have anti-cancers properties. We previously showed that solamargine inhibited the growth of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells through suppression of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) receptor EP4 gene and regulation of downstream signaling pathways. However, the detailed mechanism underlying this, especially in combination of metformin, a known AMPK activator, still remained to be determined. Methods: Cell viability was measured using a 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and colorimetric 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU) ELISA methods, respectively. Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry were performed to examine the phosphorylation and protein expressions of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3), SP1, forkhead box O3a (FOXO3a), and insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-IGF binding protein 1 (IGFBP1). The expression of IGFBP1 mRNA was measured by quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR). Silencing of FOXO3a and IGFBP1 were examined by siRNA procedures. Exogenously expression of SP1, FOXO3a, and IGFBP1 were carried out by transient transfection assays. The promoter activity of IGFBP1 was tested using Secrete-PairTM Dual Luminescence Assay Kit. A xenografted tumor model was used to further test the effect of solamargine in combining with metformin in vivo. Results: We further demonstrated that solamargine inhibited growth and induced cell cycle arrest in other NSCLC cell lines. Through mechanism-based approaches, we showed that solamargine decreased the phosphorylation of Stat3; In addition, solamargine induced FOXO3a, whereas reduced SP1 protein levels; all of which were abrogated in cells with overexpressed Stat3 gene. Interestingly, there is interaction between FOXO3a and SP1. Moreover, solamargine increased mRNA, protein expression and promoter activity of IGFBP1, which was not observed in cells with overexpressed SP1 or with silenced FOXO3a genes. Finally, ablation of IGFBP1 expression by siRNA blocked the effect of solamargine on cell growth inhibition. More importantly, there was a synergy of combination of solamargine and metformin. Similar findings were also observed in vivo. Conclusion: Our results show that solamargine increases IGFBP1 gene expression through inactivation of Stat3, followed by regulation and reciprocal interaction of FOXO3a and SP1 in vitro and in vivo. This ultimately leads to suppression of human lung cancer cell growth. Moreover, this is a synergy of solamargine in combination with metformin in this process. This study unravels a novel mechanism underlying the anti-lung cancer effects of solamargine in combination of metformin, and suggests a potential new lung cancer associated therapy