Produção e compreensão da ironia: Aproximações conceituais e empíricas entre a linguística e a análise do comportamento

O estudo da ironia verbal pela Análise do Comportamento imprescinde do conhecimento da teoria de Skinner sobre o comportamento verbal. Skinner cita a ironia como exemplo de comportamento verbal sem aprofundar sua definição e explicação. A ironia é comportamento operante e a explicação da sua função depende de variáveis ambientais específicas. O estudo da ironia pelo viés da Análise do Comportamento demonstra que a probabilidade de uma pessoa emitir ironias pode aumentar se parte da audiência já tenha liberado reforçadores para emissões anteriores e se o ambiente for similar ao ambiente em que a ironia emitida foi reforçada. A presente tese propõe a execução de quatro estudos, planejados para que seus achados se complementem para a defesa do argumento de que estímulos irônicos controlam comportamentos verbais de compreensão e comportamentos emocionais diferentes nos ouvintes, de acordo com as suas diferentes funções de audiência. O primeiro estudo é uma pesquisa teórico-conceitual. O procedimento de tratamento e análise de dados partiu das bases metodológicas de uma Análise Comportamental do Discurso. Trechos do discurso de Skinner no Verbal Behavior. Em um documento digitalizado do livro foram feitas buscas de ocorrências textuais que continham as palavras ironia, sarcasmo e zombaria, seguidas da interpretação da função do discurso do autor pela auto-observação do comportamento verbal de análise desse discurso. Foram localizadas e analisadas seis ocorrências nas quais Skinner impele no seu leitor a compreensão da ironia basicamente pela definição de dois elementos: controle múltiplo e do tato do contrário. No segundo estudo, visando à contribuição para uma análise funcional da ironia pela ótica da Análise do Comportamento, teve como objetivo, a partir de uma revisão sistemática, mapear as variáveis (ou indicadores de variáveis) que estão sendo estudadas pelas pesquisas empíricas sobre ironia. Foram realizadas buscas em bases de dados online com as palavras-chave: ironia, ironia verbal, sarcasmo, controle múltiplo, autoclíticos, irônico e comportamento verbal. O terceiro estudo é empírico e teve como objetivo analisar a produção da ironia por falantes irônicos profissionais que publicam constantemente produtos de seus comportamentos verbais em sites e redes sociais na rede mundial de computadores. Cinco produtores de ironia responderam questões descritivas dos elementos funcionais de sua produção irônica (sobre sexo, política e religião), em especial consequências sobre ouvintes e sentimentos correlatos a elas. O quarto estudo também é empírico e objetivou analisar a compreensão da ironia pelo ouvinte, a partir dos diferentes tipos de audiência, descrevendo os efeitos emocionais que ela pode produzir nele. Foram selecionadas cenas audiovisuais e formados quatro grupos de três participantes cada para responderem a questões sobre ironia tendo como Sd as cenas. As conclusões de cada estudo são que: a ironia é um comportamento verbal compreendido como a demonstração do contrário dos fatos reais e tem como característica essencial a audiência múltipla e o tato do contrário; a produção da ironia tem como motivador principal a crítica; audiências com características diferentes apresentam diferentes formas de compreensão da ironia. Com isso, espera-se que essa descrição de elementos conceituais e empíricos para uma análise funcional do comportamento verbal irônico contribua para o aprimoramento do conhecimento desse comportamento e para a execução de pesquisas experimentais sobre o tema na Análise do Comportamento. Palavras-chave: Ironia, Análise do Comportamento, Análise Funcional, Autoclítico, Produção, Compreensão, Linguística

Native Hypovitaminosis D in CKD Patients : From Experimental Evidence to Clinical Practice

Native hypovitaminosis D (n-hVITD) is frequently found from the early stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and its prevalence increases with CKD progression. Even if the implications of n-hVITD in chronic kidney disease-mineral bone disorder (CKD-MBD) have been extensively characterized in the literature, there is a lot of debate nowadays about the so called "unconventional effects" of native vitamin D (25(OH)VitD) supplementation in CKD patients. In this review, highlights of the dimension of the problem of n-hVITD in CKD stages 2-5 ND patients will be presented. In addition, it will focus on the "unconventional effects" of 25(OH)VitD supplementation, the clinical impact of n-hVITD and the most significant interventional studies regarding 25(OH)VitD supplementation in CKD stages 2-5 ND

Sarcopenia is Associated with Malnutrition but Not with Systemic Inflammation in Older Persons with Advanced CKD

Background: In patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), sarcopenia can be determined by a wide spectrum of risk factors. We evaluated the association of sarcopenia with nutritional, behavioral and inflammatory patterns in older patients with advanced CKD. Methods: we cross-sectionally evaluated 113 patients with CKD stages 3b-5. Sarcopenia was defined according to the EWGSOP2 criteria. We assessed: anthropometry, bioelectrical impedance analysis, physical, and psychological performance. Nutritional status was assessed using the Malnutrition Inflammation Score (MIS) and by verifying the eventual presence Protein Energy Wasting syndrome (PEW). Systemic inflammation was assessed by dosing: CRP, IL6, TNF\u3b1, MCP1, IL10, IL17, fetuin, IL12. Results: 24% of patients were sarcopenic. Sarcopenic individuals had lower creatinine clearance (18 \ub1 11 vs. 23 \ub1 19 mL/min; p = 0.0087) as well as lower BMI (24.8 \ub1 3.0 vs. 28.4 \ub1 5.5 Kg/m2; p < 0.0001) and a lower FTI (11.6 \ub1 3.9 vs. 14.4 \ub1 5.1 kg/m2, p = 0.023). Sarcopenic persons had higher prevalence of PEW (52 vs. 20%, p < 0.0001) and a tendency to have higher MIS (6.6 \ub1 6.5 vs. 4.5 \ub1 4.0, p = 0.09); however, they did not show any difference in systemic inflammation compared to non-sarcopenic individuals. Conclusions: CKD sarcopenic patients were more malnourished than non-sarcopenic ones, but the two groups did not show any difference in systemic inflammation

RNA-seq dataset of subcutaneous adipose tissue: Transcriptional differences between obesity and healthy women

In this data article, we present the dataset from the RNA-Seq analysis of subcutaneous adipose tissue collected from 5 healthy normal weight women (NW, age 37 +/- 6.7 years, BMI 24.3 +/- 0.9 kg/m(2)) and 5 obese women (OBF, age 41 +/- 12.5 years, BMI 38.2 +/- 4.6 kg/m(2)). Raw data obtained from Illumina NextSeq 500 sequencer were processed through BlueBee (R) Genomics Platform while differential expression analysis was performed with the DESeq2 R package and deposited in the GEO public repository with GSE166047 as accession number. Specifically, 20 samples divided between NW (control), OBF (obese women), OBM (obese male) and OBT2D (obese women with diabetes) are deposited in the GSE166047. We hereby describe only 10 samples (5 healthy normal weight women reported as NW and 5 obese women reported as OBF) because we refer to the data published in the article "Transcriptional characterization of Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue in obesity affected women highlights metabolic dysfunction and implications for lncRNAs" (DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.09.014). Pathways analyses were performed on g:Profiler, Enrichr, ClueGO and GSEA to gain biological insights on gene expression. Raw data reported in GEO database along with detailed methods description reported in this data article could be reused for comparisons with other datasets on the topic to obtain transcriptional differences in a wider co-hort. Moreover, detailed pathways analysis along with cross-referenced data with other datasets will allow to identify novel dysregulated pathways and genes responsible for this regulation. The biological interpretation of this dataset, along with related in vitro experiments, is reported by Rey et al., in Genomics (DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.09.014). (C) 2021 Published by Elsevier Inc

The properties, origin and evolution of stellar clusters in galaxy simulations and observations

We investigate the properties and evolution of star particles in two simulations of isolated spiral galaxies, and two galaxies from cosmological simulations. Unlike previous numerical work, where typically each star particle represents one ‘cluster’, for the isolated galaxies we are able to model features we term ‘clusters’ with groups of particles. We compute the spatial distribution of stars with different ages, and cluster mass distributions, comparing our findings with observations including the recent LEGUS survey. We find that spiral structure tends to be present in older (100s Myrs) stars and clusters in the simulations compared to the observations. This likely reflects differences in the numbers of stars or clusters, the strength of spiral arms, and whether the clusters are allowed to evolve. Where we model clusters with multiple particles, we are able to study their evolution. The evolution of simulated clusters tends to follow that of their natal gas clouds. Massive, dense, long-lived clouds host massive clusters, whilst short-lived clouds host smaller clusters which readily disperse. Most clusters appear to disperse fairly quickly, in basic agreement with observational findings. We note that embedded clusters may be less inclined to disperse in simulations in a galactic environment with continuous accretion of gas onto the clouds than isolated clouds and correspondingly, massive young clusters which are no longer associated with gas tend not to occur in the simulations. Caveats of our models include that the cluster densities are lower than realistic clusters, and the simplistic implementation of stellar feedback

Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue Transcriptome Highlights Specific Expression Profiles in Severe Pediatric Obesity: A Pilot Study

The prevalence of pediatric obesity is rising rapidly worldwide, and "omic" approaches are helpful in investigating the molecular pathophysiology of obesity. This work aims to identify transcriptional differences in the subcutaneous adipose tissue (scAT) of children with overweight (OW), obesity (OB), or severe obesity (SV) compared with those of normal weight (NW). Periumbilical scAT biopsies were collected from 20 male children aged 1-12 years. The children were stratified into the following four groups according to their BMI z-scores: SV, OB, OW, and NW. scAT RNA-Seq analyses were performed, and a differential expression analysis was conducted using the DESeq2 R package. A pathways analysis was performed to gain biological insights into gene expression. Our data highlight the significant deregulation in both coding and non-coding transcripts in the SV group when compared with the NW, OW, and OB groups. A KEGG pathway analysis showed that coding transcripts were mainly involved in lipid metabolism. A GSEA analysis revealed the upregulation of lipid degradation and metabolism in SV vs. OB and SV vs. OW. Bioenergetic processes and the catabolism of branched-chain amino acids were upregulated in SV compared with OB, OW, and NW. In conclusion, we report for the first time that a significant transcriptional deregulation occurs in the periumbilical scAT of children with severe obesity compared with those of normal weight or those with overweight or mild obesity

Redox Imbalance in Neurological Disorders in Adults and Children

Oxygen is a central molecule for numerous metabolic and cytophysiological processes, and, indeed, its imbalance can lead to numerous pathological consequences. In the human body, the brain is an aerobic organ and for this reason, it is very sensitive to oxygen equilibrium. The consequences of oxygen imbalance are especially devastating when occurring in this organ. Indeed, oxygen imbalance can lead to hypoxia, hyperoxia, protein misfolding, mitochondria dysfunction, alterations in heme metabolism and neuroinflammation. Consequently, these dysfunctions can cause numerous neurological alterations, both in the pediatric life and in the adult ages. These disorders share numerous common pathways, most of which are consequent to redox imbalance. In this review, we will focus on the dysfunctions present in neurodegenerative disorders (specifically Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) and pediatric neurological disorders (X-adrenoleukodystrophies, spinal muscular atrophy, mucopolysaccharidoses and Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Disease), highlighting their underlining dysfunction in redox and identifying potential therapeutic strategies

Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells Expanded Inside the Nichoid Micro-Scaffold: a Focus on Anti-Inflammatory Response

Purpose Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent a promising source for stem cell therapies in numerous diseases, including pediatric respiratory system diseases. Characterized by low immunogenicity, high anti-inflammatory, and immunoregulatory features, MSCs demonstrated an excellent therapeutic profile in numerous in vitro and preclinical models. MSCs reside in a specialized physiologic microenvironment, characterized by a unique combination of biophysical, biochemical, and cellular properties. The exploitation of the 3D micro-scaffold Nichoid, which simulates the native niche, enhanced the anti-inflammatory potential of stem cells through mechanical stimulation only, overcoming the limitation of biochemical and xenogenic growth factors application.Materials and Methods In this work, we expanded pediatric bone marrow MSCs (BM-MSCs) inside the Nichoid and performed a complete cellular characterization with different approaches including viability assays, immunofluorescence analyses, RNA sequencing, and gene expression analysis.Results We demonstrated that BM-MSCs inside the scaffold remain in a stem cell quiescent state mimicking the condition of the in vivo environment. Moreover, the gene expression profile of these cells shows a significant up-regulation of genes involved in immune response when compared with the flat control.Conclusion The significant changes in the expression profile of anti-inflammatory genes could potentiate the therapeutic effect of BM-MSCs, encouraging the possible clinical translation for the treatment of pediatric congenital and acquired pulmonary disorders, including post-COVID lung manifestations

A novel model of in vitro osteocytogenesis induced by retinoic acid treatment

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