Priming in interpersonal contexts: Implications for affect and behavior

Priming stereotypes can lead to a variety of behavioral outcomes, including assimilation, contrast, and response behaviors. However, the conditions that give rise to each of these outcomes are unspecified. Furthermore, theoretical accounts posit that prime-to-behavior effects are either direct (i.e., unmediated) or mediated by cognitive processes, whereas the role of affective processes has been largely unexplored. The present research directly investigated both of these issues. Three experiments demonstrated that priming a threatening social group ("hoodies") influences both affect and behavior in an interpersonal context. Hoodie priming produced both behavioral avoidance and several affective changes (including social apprehension, threat sensitivity, and self-reported anxiety and hostility). Importantly, avoidance following hoodie priming was mediated by anxiety and occurred only under conditions of other-(but not self-) focus. These results highlight multiple routes through which primes influence affect and behavior, and suggest that attention to self or others determine the nature of priming effects

Remote ischaemic pre-conditioning does not affect clinical outcomes following coronary Artery bypass grafting. A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Trials of remote ischemic pre-conditioning (RIPC) have suggested this intervention reduces complications of angioplasty and coronary artery by-pass grafting (CABG). The aim of this work was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of RIPC on mortality and myocardial damage in patients undertaking coronary artery bypass grafting with/without valve surgery. Methods A systematic review and subsequent meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of RIPC versus usual care or sham RIPC was performed. Results Eighteen studies, totalling 4551 participants were analysed. RIPC reduced post troponin release as indicated by area under the curve at 72 h (μg·L- 1) Mean Difference (MD) - 3.72 (95% CI - 3.92 to - 3.53, p < 0.00001). However there was no significant difference between RIPC and control when mortality odds ratio (OR) 1.27 (95% CI 0.87 to 1.86, p = 0.22); the incidence of new onset atrial fibrillation OR 0.82 (95% CI 0.67 to 1.01, p = 0.06); inotropic support OR 1.27 (95% CI 0.84 to 1.91, p = 0.25); intensive care unit stay in days MD - 0.02 (95% CI - 0.12 to 0.07, p = 0.61); Hospital stay in days MD 0.18 (95% CI - 0.30 to 0.66, p = 0.47) and serum creatinine MD - 0.00 (95% CI - 0.07 to 0.07, p = 0.97) were compared. Conclusions RIPC reduces does not confer any clinical benefit in patients undertaking CABG with/without valve surgery

Effect of exercise training on liver function in adults who are overweight or exhibit fatty liver disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

ObjectiveExercise training has been shown to have beneficial effects on liver function in adults overweight or with fatty liver disease. To establish which exercise programme characteristics were likely to elicit optimal improvements.DesignSystematic review and meta-analysis of randomised, controlled trials.Data sourcesPubMed, CINAHL and Cochrane controlled trials registry searched (1966 to 2 October 2015).Eligibility criteria for selecting studiesExercise intervention, with or without dietary intervention, versus usual care in adults undertaking, exercise training, who were overweight, obese or exhibited fatty liver disease (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or non-alcoholic steatohepatitis).ResultsWe included 21 randomised controlled trials, totalling 1530 participants. Exercise intervention studies with total exercise programme workload &gt;10 000 kcal produced significant improvements in intrahepatic fat, −3.46% (95% CI −5.20% to −1.73%), p&lt;0.0001, I2=73%; effect size (standardised mean difference, SMD) −1.77 (−3.11 to −0.42), p=0.01, I2=77%. When data from only exercise studies were pooled, there was a reduction in fasting free fatty acids (FFAs) −74.15 µmol/L (95% CI −118.47 to −29.84), p=0.001, I2=67% with a large effect size (SMD) −0.94 (−1.36 to −0.52), p&lt;0.0001, I2=0%. When data from only exercise studies were pooled, there was a significant reduction in insulin MD −1.88 UL (95% CI −3.43 to −0.34), p=0.02, I2=31%. The liver enzymes, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase, were not significantly altered with exercise.ConclusionsExercise training reduces intrahepatic fat and FFAs while increasing cardiorespiratory fitness. An aggregate exercise programme energy expenditure (&gt;10 000 kcal) may be required to promote reductions in intrahepatic fat.</jats:sec

Distinct emphysema subtypes defined by quantitative CT analysis are associated with specific pulmonary matrix metalloproteinases.

BACKGROUND: Emphysema is characterised by distinct pathological sub-types, but little is known about the divergent underlying aetiology. Matrix-metalloproteinases (MMPs) are proteolytic enzymes that can degrade the extracellular matrix and have been identified as potentially important in the development of emphysema. However, the relationship between MMPs and emphysema sub-type is unknown. We investigated the role of MMPs and their inhibitors in the development of emphysema sub-types by quantifying levels and determining relationships with these sub-types in mild-moderate COPD patients and ex/current smokers with preserved lung function. METHODS: Twenty-four mild-moderate COPD and 8 ex/current smokers with preserved lung function underwent high resolution CT and distinct emphysema sub-types were quantified using novel local histogram-based assessment of lung density. We analysed levels of MMPs and tissue inhibitors of MMPs (TIMPs) in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and assessed their relationship with these emphysema sub-types. RESULTS: The most prevalent emphysema subtypes in COPD subjects were mild and moderate centrilobular (CLE) emphysema, while only small amounts of severe centrilobular emphysema, paraseptal emphysema (PSE) and panlobular emphysema (PLE) were present. MMP-3, and -10 associated with all emphysema sub-types other than mild CLE, while MMP-7 and -8 had associations with moderate and severe CLE and PSE. MMP-9 also had associations with moderate CLE and paraseptal emphysema. Mild CLE occurred in substantial quantities irrespective of whether airflow obstruction was present and did not show any associations with MMPs. CONCLUSION: Multiple MMPs are directly associated with emphysema sub-types identified by CT imaging, apart from mild CLE. This suggests that MMPs play a significant role in the tissue destruction seen in the more severe sub-types of emphysema, whereas early emphysematous change may be driven by a different mechanism. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Trial registration number NCT01701869

A note on perturbation series in supersymmetric gauge theories

Exact results in supersymmetric Chern-Simons and N=2 Yang-Mills theories can be used to examine the quantum behavior of observables and the structure of the perturbative series. For the U(2) x U(2) ABJM model, we determine the asymptotic behavior of the perturbative series for the partition function and write it as a Borel transform. Similar results are obtained for N=2 SU(2) super Yang-Mills theory with four fundamental flavors and in N=2* super Yang-Mills theory, for the partition function as well as for the expectation values for Wilson loop and 't Hooft loop operators (in the 0 and 1 instanton sectors). In all examples, one has an alternate perturbation series where the coefficient of the nth term increases as n!, and the perturbation series are Borel summable. We also calculate the expectation value for a Wilson loop operator in the N=2* SU(N) theory at large N in different regimes of the 't Hooft gauge coupling and mass parameter. For large masses, the calculation reproduces the running gauge coupling for the pure N=2 SYM theory.Comment: 28 pages. V2: minor additions and reference adde

Elastic pp Scattering at LHC Energies

We consider the first LHC data for elastic pp scattering in the framework of Regge theory with multiple Pomeron exchanges. The simplest eikonal approach allows one to describe differential elastic cross sections at LHC, as well as pp and $\bar{p}p$ scattering at lower collider energies, on a reasonable level.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, and 1 tabl

Harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to transform hearing healthcare and research

The advances in artificial intelligence that are transforming many fields have yet to make an impact in hearing. Hearing healthcare continues to rely on a labour-intensive service model that fails to provide access to the majority of those in need, while hearing research suffers from a lack of computational tools with the capacity to match the complexities of auditory processing. This Perspective is a call for the artificial intelligence and hearing communities to come together to bring about a technological revolution in hearing. We describe opportunities for rapid clinical impact through the application of existing technologies and propose directions for the development of new technologies to create true artificial auditory systems. There is an urgent need to push hearing towards a future in which artificial intelligence provides critical support for the testing of hypotheses, the development of therapies and the effective delivery of care worldwide

TGF-beta 1 induces human alveolar epithelial to mesenchymal cell transition (EMT)

Background: Fibroblastic foci are characteristic features in lung parenchyma of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). They comprise aggregates of mesenchymal cells which underlie sites of unresolved epithelial injury and are associated with progression of fibrosis. However, the cellular origins of these mesenchymal phenotypes remain unclear. We examined whether the potent fibrogenic cytokine TGF-β1 could induce epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) in the human alveolar epithelial cell line, A549, and investigated the signaling pathway of TGF-β1-mediated EMT. Methods: A549 cells were examined for evidence of EMT after treatment with TGF-β1. EMT was assessed by: morphology under phase-contrast microscopy; Western analysis of cell lysates for expression of mesenchymal phenotypic markers including fibronectin EDA (Fn-EDA), and expression of epithelial phenotypic markers including E-cadherin (E-cad). Markers of fibrogenesis, including collagens and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) were also evaluated by measuring mRNA level using RT-PCR, and protein by immunofluorescence or Western blotting. Signaling pathways for EMT were characterized by Western analysis of cell lysates using monoclonal antibodies to detect phosphorylated Erk1/2 and Smad2 after TGF-β1 treatment in the presence or absence of MEK inhibitors. The role of Smad2 in TGF-β1-mediated EMT was investigated using siRNA. Results: The data showed that TGF-β1, but not TNF-α or IL-1β, induced A549 cells with an alveolar epithelial type II cell phenotype to undergo EMT in a time-and concentration-dependent manner. The process of EMT was accompanied by morphological alteration and expression of the fibroblast phenotypic markers Fn-EDA and vimentin, concomitant with a downregulation of the epithelial phenotype marker E-cad. Furthermore, cells that had undergone EMT showed enhanced expression of markers of fibrogenesis including collagens type I and III and CTGF. MMP-2 expression was also evidenced. TGF-β1-induced EMT occurred through phosphorylation of Smad2 and was inhibited by Smad2 gene silencing; MEK inhibitors failed to attenuate either EMT-associated Smad2 phosphorylation or the observed phenotypic changes. Conclusion: Our study shows that TGF-β1 induces A549 alveolar epithelial cells to undergo EMT via Smad2 activation. Our data support the concept of EMT in lung epithelial cells, and suggest the need for further studies to investigate the phenomenon

Irregular singularities in Liouville theory

Motivated by problems arising in the study of N=2 supersymmetric gauge theories we introduce and study irregular singularities in two-dimensional conformal field theory, here Liouville theory. Irregular singularities are associated to representations of the Virasoro algebra in which a subset of the annihilation part of the algebra act diagonally. In this paper we define natural bases for the space of conformal blocks in the presence of irregular singularities, describe how to calculate their series expansions, and how such conformal blocks can be constructed by some delicate limiting procedure from ordinary conformal blocks. This leads us to a proposal for the structure functions appearing in the decomposition of physical correlation functions with irregular singularities into conformal blocks. Taken together, we get a precise prediction for the partition functions of some Argyres-Douglas type theories on the four-sphere.Comment: 84 pages, 6 figure