Gender Discrimination in Hiring: Evidence from a Cross-National Harmonized Field Experiment

© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly citedGender discrimination is often regarded as an important driver of women’s disadvantage in the labour market, yet earlier studies show mixed results. However, because different studies employ different research designs, the estimates of discrimination cannot be compared across countries. By utilizing data from the first harmonized comparative field experiment on gender discrimination in hiring in six countries, we can directly compare employers’ callbacks to fictitious male and female applicants. The countries included vary in a number of key institutional, economic, and cultural dimensions, yet we found no sign of discrimination against women. This cross-national finding constitutes an important and robust piece of evidence. Second, we found discrimination against men in Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK, and no discrimination against men in Norway and the United States. However, in the pooled data the gender gradient hardly differs across countries. Our findings suggest that although employers operate in quite different institutional contexts, they regard female applicants as more suitable for jobs in female-dominated occupations, ceteris paribus, while we find no evidence that they regard male applicants as more suitable anywhere.This project received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 649255; the Research Council of Norway, grant number 287016; The Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO), (016.Vidi.185.041)Peer reviewe

Follow-up of bone lesions in an experimental multiple myeloma mouse model: description of an in vivo technique using radiography dedicated for mammography.

The evolution of bone lesions in transplantable C57BL/KaLwRjj 5T mouse myeloma (MM) has been followed in vivo. Mice were anaesthetised and a radiograph of the pelvis and hind legs was performed by a radiograph dedicated for mammography. This is the first description of an in vivo technique under experimental conditions whereby the development of bone lesions owing to the MM growth was demonstrated

Murine 5T multiple myeloma cells induce angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo

Multiple myeloma is a B cell malignancy. Recently, it has been demonstrated that bone marrow samples of patients with multiple myeloma display an enhanced angiogenesis. The mechanisms involved seem to be multiple and complex. We here demonstrate that the murine 5T multiple myeloma models are able to induce angiogenesis in vitro by using a rat aortic ring assay and in vivo by determining the microvessel density. The rat aortic rings cultured in 5T multiple myeloma conditioned medium exhibit a higher number of longer and more branched microvessels than the rings cultured in control medium. In bone marrow samples from 5T multiple myeloma diseased mice, a statistically significant increase of the microvessel density was observed when compared to bone marrow samples from age-matched controls. The angiogenic phenotype of both 5T multiple myeloma cells could be related, at least in part, to their capacity to produce vascular endothelial growth factor. These data clearly demonstrate that the 5T multiple myeloma models are good models to study angiogenesis in multiple myeloma and will allow to unravel the mechanisms of neovascularisation, as well as to test new putative inhibitors of angiogenesis

SAMSN1 is a tumor suppressor gene in multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma (MM), a hematological malignancy characterized by the clonal growth of malignant plasma cells (PCs) in the bone marrow, is preceded by the benign asymptomatic condition, monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS). Several genetic abnormalities have been identified as critical for the development of MM; however, a number of these abnormalities are also found in patients with MGUS, indicating that there are other, as yet unidentified, factors that contribute to the onset ofMMdisease. In this study, we identify a Samsn1 gene deletion in the 5TGM1/C57BL/KaLwRij murine model of myeloma. In addition, SAMSN1 expression is reduced in the malignant CD138+ PCs of patients with MM and this reduced expression correlates to total PC burden. We identify promoter methylation as a potential mechanismthrough which SAMSN1 expression is modulated in human myeloma cell lines.Notably, re-expression of Samsn1 in the 5TGM1murinePCline resulted in complete inhibition ofMMdisease development in vivo and decreased proliferation in stromal cell–PC co-cultures in vitro. This is the first study to identify deletion of a key gene in the C57BL/KaLwRij mice that also displays reduced gene expression in patients withMMand is therefore likely to play an integral role in MM disease development.Jacqueline E. Noll, Duncan R. Hewett, Sharon A. Williams, Kate Vandyke, Chung Kok, Luen B. To, and Andrew C.W. Zannettin

A geometric analysis of hallux valgus: correlation with clinical assessment of severity

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Application of plane geometry to the study of bunion deformity may represent an interesting and novel approach in the research field of hallux valgus. For the purpose of contributing to development of a different perspective in the assessment of hallux valgus, this study was conducted with three objectives: a) to determine the position on the intersection point of the perpendicular bisectors of the longitudinal axes of the first metatarsal and proximal phalanx (IP), b) to correlate the location of this point with hallux valgus deformity according to angular measurements and according to visual assessment of the severity carried out by three independent observers, and c) to assess whether this IP correlated with the radius of the first metatarsophalangeal arc circumference.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Measurements evaluated were intermetatarsal angle (IMA), hallux valgus angle (HVA), and proximal phalangeal articular angle (PPAA). The Autocad^®program computed the location of the IP inside or outside of the foot. Three independent observers rated the severity of hallux valgus in photographs using a 100-mm visual analogue scale (VAS).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Measurements of all angles except PPAA showed significantly lower values when the IP was located out of the foot more distantly and vice versa, significantly higher values for severe deformities in which the IP was found inside the foot (<it>p </it>< 0.001). The IP correlated significantly with VAS scores and with the length of the radius of the circle that included the first metatarsophalangeal arc circumference (<it>p </it>< 0.001)</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The IP is a useful indicator of hallux valgus deformity because correlated significantly with IMA and HVA measurements, VAS scores obtained by visual inspection of the degree of deformity, and location of the center of the first metatarsophalangeal arc circumference.</p

Tracking human multiple myeloma xenografts in NOD-Rag-1/IL-2 receptor gamma chain-null mice with the novel biomarker AKAP-4

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Multiple myeloma (MM) is a fatal malignancy ranking second in prevalence among hematological tumors. Continuous efforts are being made to develop innovative and more effective treatments. The preclinical evaluation of new therapies relies on the use of murine models of the disease.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Here we describe a new MM animal model in NOD-Rag1null IL2rgnull (NRG) mice that supports the engraftment of cell lines and primary MM cells that can be tracked with the tumor antigen, AKAP-4.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Human MM cell lines, U266 and H929, and primary MM cells were successfully engrafted in NRG mice after intravenous administration, and were found in the bone marrow, blood and spleen of tumor-challenged animals. The AKAP-4 expression pattern was similar to that of known MM markers, such as paraproteins, CD38 and CD45.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We developed for the first time a murine model allowing for the growth of both MM cell lines and primary cells in multifocal sites, thus mimicking the disease seen in patients. Additionally, we validated the use of AKAP-4 antigen to track tumor growth <it>in vivo </it>and to specifically identify MM cells in mouse tissues. We expect that our model will significantly improve the pre-clinical evaluation of new anti-myeloma therapies.</p