The roots of prejudice against the Negro in the United States

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Safe From Subpoena? The Importance of Certificates of Confidentiality to the Viability and Ethics of Research

This Article addresses legal issues related to Certificates, recognizes that Certificates face an uncertain future if challenged in court—based on the statutory history and limited relevant case law—and proposes that changes should be made to ensure Certificates actually offer the protection they promise. Part II reviews the background of Certificates of Confidentiality. Part III explores how Certificates fulfill vital functions by encouraging research participation, satisfying ethical obligations of researchers to protect participant data, and promoting the accuracy of data provided by participants in research studies. Part IV observes that the case law relevant to Certificates of Confidentiality, though limited, presents cause for concern. Part V explores the potential threats to Certificates of Confidentiality. Part VI argues that, for legal and public policy reasons, courts and Congress should consider changes in the way they approach Certificates of Confidentiality in order to offer broad protection for participants involved in sensitive research studies. Additionally, this section provides recommendations for researchers to secure sensitive data

Temas atuais da investigação internacional sobre o risco da violência

Introducción: La producción de investigación sobre riesgo de violencia muestra gran heterogeneidad internacional y, especialmente, escasez y lenta difusión en Latinoamérica. Objetivos: Obtener una visión configurativa de los tópicos pertinentes al riesgo y prevención secundaria de la violencia, que son focos actuales de la investigación internacional. Método: Revisión de artículos científicos publicados en inglés durante agosto-octubre del 2013 y de artículos en español que se publicaron durante el 2013-2014. La selección se realizó con base en los trabajos en inglés detectados por la “Alliance for International Risk Research”, y en los publicados en español hallados con búsqueda en LILACS y SciELO con las palabras clave “riesgo” y “violencia”, además de consulta a red de expertos. Resultados: 45 artículos en inglés y siete en español resultaron pertinentes para los objetivos del estudio. Se verificó amplia preocupación por la sistematización de la evaluación del riesgo de violencia y por la planificación y el monitoreo de las intervenciones de prevención secundaria. Predominaron los tópicos relacionados con la confiabilidad, validez y utilidad práctica de los instrumentos de evaluación de riesgo de violencia.Introduction: The production of research dealing with the violence risk shows significant international heterogeneity and, particularly, scarce results and a slow dissemination in Latin America. Objectives: To obtain a configurative vision of topics that are relevant to risk assessment and secondary prevention of violence that are the present matters on which international research is focused. Method: The review of scientific articles published in English during August-October 2013 and in Spanish through 2013-2014. The selection made was based on the works written in English as found by the “Alliance for International Risk Research”, and on those published in Spanish observed through searches in LILACS and SciELO with the Key Words “riesgo” y “violencia” (“risk and violence”), apart from expert-network consultations. Results: 45 articles in English and seven in Spanish were found relevant for the study purposes. Widespread concern was confirmed with respect to the systematization of violence risk assessment and the planning and monitoring of secondary prevention interventions. Topics relating to reliability, validity and practical usefulness of violence-risk assessment instruments prevailed.Introdução: A produção da investigação sobre o risco da violência mostra a grande heterogeneidade internacional e, especialmente, escassez e a difusão lenta em América Latina. Objetivos: Para obter uma visão configurativa dos temas pertinentes ao risco e à prevenção secundaria da violência, que são focos atuais da investigação internacional. Método: Revisão de artigos científicos publicada em inglés durante agosto-outubro do 2013 e de artigos no espanhol que foram publicados durante 2013-2014. A seleção foi feita com base nos trabalhos em inglês detectados pela “Alliance for International Risk Research”, e nos publicadas no espanhol encontrados com busca em LILACS e SciELO com as palavras chaves “risco” e “violência”, além da consulta à rede dos especialistas. Resultados: 45 artigos em inglês e sete em espanhol resultaram pertinentes para os objetivos do estudo. Verificou-se ampla preocupação pela sistematização da avaliação do risco da violência e pelo planejamento e pelo monitoramento das intervenções da prevenção secundária. Predominaram os temas relacionados à confiança, à validez e à utilidade prática dos instrumentos da avaliação do risco da violência.Facultad de Ciencias Médica

Distribution and Compartmentalization of Human Circulating and Tissue-Resident Memory T Cell Subsets

SummaryKnowledge of human T cells derives chiefly from studies of peripheral blood, whereas their distribution and function in tissues remains largely unknown. Here, we present a unique analysis of human T cells in lymphoid and mucosal tissues obtained from individual organ donors, revealing tissue-intrinsic compartmentalization of naive, effector, and memory subsets conserved between diverse individuals. Effector memory CD4+ T cells producing IL-2 predominated in mucosal tissues and accumulated as central memory subsets in lymphoid tissue, whereas CD8+ T cells were maintained as naive subsets in lymphoid tissues and IFN-γ-producing effector memory CD8+ T cells in mucosal sites. The T cell activation marker CD69 was constitutively expressed by memory T cells in all tissues, distinguishing them from circulating subsets, with mucosal memory T cells exhibiting additional distinct phenotypic and functional properties. Our results provide an assessment of human T cell compartmentalization as a new baseline for understanding human adaptive immunity

In vivo characterization of connective tissue remodeling using infrared photoacoustic spectra

Premature cervical remodeling is a critical precursor of spontaneous preterm birth, and the remodeling process is characterized by an increase in tissue hydration. Nevertheless, current clinical measurements of cervical remodeling are subjective and detect only late events, such as cervical effacement and dilation. Here, we present a photoacoustic endoscope that can quantify tissue hydration by measuring near-infrared cervical spectra. We quantify the water contents of tissue-mimicking hydrogel phantoms as an analog of cervical connective tissue. Applying this method to pregnant women in vivo, we observed an increase in the water content of the cervix throughout pregnancy. The application of this technique in maternal healthcare may advance our understanding of cervical remodeling and provide a sensitive method for predicting preterm birth

Microbiome Composition in Both Wild-Type and Disease Model Mice Is Heavily Influenced by Mouse Facility

Murine models have become essential tools for understanding the complex interactions between gut microbes, their hosts, and disease. While many intra-facility factors are known to influence the structure of mouse microbiomes, the contribution of inter-facility variation to mouse microbiome composition, especially in the context of disease, remains under-investigated. We replicated microbiome experiments using identical mouse lines housed in two separate animal facilities and report drastic differences in composition of microbiomes based upon animal facility of origin. We observed facility-specific microbiome signatures in the context of a disease model [the Ednrb (endothelin receptor type B) Hirschsprung disease mouse] and in normal C57BL/6J mice. Importantly, these facility differences were independent of cage, sex, or sequencing-related influence. In addition, we investigated the reproducibility of microbiome dysbiosis previously associated with Ednrb-/- (knock-out; KO) mice. While we observed genotype-based differences in composition between wild-type (WT) and KO mice, these differences were inconsistent with the previously reported conclusions. Furthermore, the genotype-based differences were not identical across animal facilities. Despite this, through differential abundance testing, we identified several conserved candidate taxa and candidate operational taxonomic units that may play a role in disease promotion or protection. Overall, our findings raise the possibility that previously reported microbiome-disease associations from murine studies conducted in a single facility may be heavily influenced by facility-specific effects. More generally, these results provide a strong rationale for replication of mouse microbiome studies at multiple facilities, and for the meticulous collection of metadata that will allow the confounding effects of facility to be more specifically identified