Fighting misinformation in seismology: Expert opinion on earthquake facts vs. fiction

Misinformation carries the potential for immense damage to public understanding of science and for evidence-based decision making at an individual and policy level. Our research explores the following questions within seismology: which claims can be considered misinformation, which are supported by a consensus, and which are still under scientific debate? Consensus and debate are important to quantify, because where levels of scientific consensus on an issue are high, communication of this fact may itself serve as a useful tool in combating misinformation. This is a challenge for earthquake science, where certain theories and facts in seismology are still being established. The present study collates a list of common public statements about earthquakes and provides–to the best of our knowledge–the first elicitation of the opinions of 164 earth scientists on the degree of verity of these statements. The results provide important insights for the state of knowledge in the field, helping identify those areas where consensus messaging may aid in the fight against earthquake related misinformation and areas where there is currently lack of consensus opinion. We highlight the necessity of using clear, accessible, jargon-free statements with specified parameters and precise wording when communicating with the public about earthquakes, as well as of transparency about the uncertainties around some issues in seismology

Risk perceptions of COVID-19 around the world

The World Health Organization has declared the rapid spread of COVID-19 around the world a global public health emergency. It is well-known that the spread of the disease is influenced by people’s willingness to adopt preventative public health behaviors, which are often associated with public risk perception. In this study, we present the first assessment of public risk perception of COVID-19 around the world using national samples (total N = 6,991) in ten countries across Europe, America, and Asia. We find that although levels of concern are relatively high, they are highest in the UK and lowest in South Korea. Across countries, personal experience with the virus, individualistic and prosocial values, hearing about the risk from friends and family, trust in government, science, and medical professionals, and personal and collective efficacy were all significant predictors of risk perception. Although there was substantial variability across cultures, individualistic worldviews, personal experience, prosocial values, and social amplification through friends and family in particular were found to be significant determinants in greater than half of the countries examined. Risk perception correlated with reported adoption of preventative health behaviors in all ten countries. Implications for effective risk communication are discussed.David & Claudia Harding Foundatio

Introducing Stories Into Downward Counterfactual Analysis: Examples From a Potential Mediterranean Disaster

How to recognise potential disasters is a question at the centre of risk analysis. Over-reliance on an incomplete, often epistemologically-biased, historical record, and a focus on quantified and quantifiable risks, have contributed to unanticipated disasters dominating both casualties and financial losses in the first part of the 21st century. Here we present the findings of an online workshop implementing a new scenario-planning method, called downward counterfactual analysis, which is designed to expand the range of risks considered. Interdisciplinary groups of disaster researchers constructed downward counterfactuals for a present-day version of the 365CE Cretan earthquake and tsunami, imagining how these events might have been worse. The resulting counterfactuals have trans-national, long-term impacts, particularly in terms of economic losses, and connect risks previously identified in separate sectors. Most counterfactuals involved socio-political factors, rather than intrinsic components of the hazard, consistent with the idea that there are “no natural disasters”. The prevalence of cascading counterfactuals in our workshop suggests that further work is required to give the appropriate weight to pre-existing economic and social conditions in scenario-planning methods, such as downward counterfactual analysis, which focus on the occurrence of a hazard as the temporal starting point for a disaster. Both proposed counterfactuals and their justifications reflect a bias towards contemporary issues and recent historical disasters. We suggest that interdisciplinary groups can expand the range of imagined risks. However, the setup used here would be improved by including local stakeholders. Qualitative forms of downward counterfactual analysis have potential applications for community engagement and education, as well as for risk analysis.</jats:p

MPP+-induced toxicity in the presence of dopamine is mediated by COX-2 through oxidative stress

Accumulating evidence suggests that endogenous dopamine may act as a neurotoxin and thereby participate in the pathophysiology of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of PD due to its ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). Inhibition of COX-2 leads to neuroprotection by preventing the formation of dopamine-quinone. In this study, we examined whether dopamine mediates 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP+)-induced toxicity in primary ventral mesencephalic (VM) neurons, an in vitro model of PD, and if so, whether the protective effects of COX-2 inhibitors on dopamine mediated MPP+-induced VM neurotoxicity and VM dopaminergic cell apoptosis result from the reduction of ROS. Reserpine, a dopamine-depleting agent, significantly reduced VM neurotoxicity induced by MPP+, whereas dopamine had an additive effect on MPP+-induced VM neurotoxicity and VM dopaminergic cell apoptosis. However, inhibition of COX-2 by a selective COX-2 inhibitor (DFU) or ibuprofen significantly attenuated MPP+-induced VM cell toxicity and VM dopaminergic cell apoptosis, which was accompanied by a decrease in ROS production in VM dopaminergic neurons. These results suggest that dopamine itself mediates MPP+-induced VM neurotoxicity and VM dopaminergic cell apoptosis in the presence of COX-2

H2A.Z Acidic Patch Couples Chromatin Dynamics to Regulation of Gene Expression Programs during ESC Differentiation

The histone H2A variant H2A.Z is essential for embryonic development and for proper control of developmental gene expression programs in embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Divergent regions of amino acid sequence of H2A.Z likely determine its functional specialization compared to core histone H2A. For example, H2A.Z contains three divergent residues in the essential C-terminal acidic patch that reside on the surface of the histone octamer as an uninterrupted acidic patch domain; however, we know little about how these residues contribute to chromatin structure and function. Here, we show that the divergent amino acids Gly92, Asp97, and Ser98 in the H2A.Z C-terminal acidic patch (H2A.Z[superscript AP3]) are critical for lineage commitment during ESC differentiation. H2A.Z is enriched at most H3K4me3 promoters in ESCs including poised, bivalent promoters that harbor both activating and repressive marks, H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 respectively. We found that while H2A.Z[superscript AP3] interacted with its deposition complex and displayed a highly similar distribution pattern compared to wild-type H2A.Z, its enrichment levels were reduced at target promoters. Further analysis revealed that H2A.Z[superscript AP3] was less tightly associated with chromatin, suggesting that the mutant is more dynamic. Notably, bivalent genes in H2A.Z[superscript AP3] ESCs displayed significant changes in expression compared to active genes. Moreover, bivalent genes in H2A.Z[superscript AP3] ESCs gained H3.3, a variant associated with higher nucleosome turnover, compared to wild-type H2A.Z. We next performed single cell imaging to measure H2A.Z dynamics. We found that H2A.Z[superscript AP3] displayed higher mobility in chromatin compared to wild-type H2A.Z by fluorescent recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). Moreover, ESCs treated with the transcriptional inhibitor flavopiridol resulted in a decrease in the H2A.Z[superscript AP3] mobile fraction and an increase in its occupancy at target genes indicating that the mutant can be properly incorporated into chromatin. Collectively, our work suggests that the divergent residues in the H2A.Z acidic patch comprise a unique domain that couples control of chromatin dynamics to the regulation of developmental gene expression patterns during lineage commitment.Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT Core Grant P30-CA14051)National Science Foundation (U.S.). Emergent Behaviors of Integrated Cellular Systems (Grant CBET-0939511)MIT Faculty Start-up FundMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Computational and Systems Biology Initiative (Merck & Co. Postdoctoral Fellowship

Expression of P. falciparum var Genes Involves Exchange of the Histone Variant H2A.Z at the Promoter

Plasmodium falciparum employs antigenic variation to evade the human immune response by switching the expression of different variant surface antigens encoded by the var gene family. Epigenetic mechanisms including histone modifications and sub-nuclear compartmentalization contribute to transcriptional regulation in the malaria parasite, in particular to control antigenic variation. Another mechanism of epigenetic control is the exchange of canonical histones with alternative variants to generate functionally specialized chromatin domains. Here we demonstrate that the alternative histone PfH2A.Z is associated with the epigenetic regulation of var genes. In many eukaryotic organisms the histone variant H2A.Z mediates an open chromatin structure at promoters and facilitates diverse levels of regulation, including transcriptional activation. Throughout the asexual, intraerythrocytic lifecycle of P. falciparum we found that the P. falciparum ortholog of H2A.Z (PfH2A.Z) colocalizes with histone modifications that are characteristic of transcriptionally-permissive euchromatin, but not with markers of heterochromatin. Consistent with this finding, antibodies to PfH2A.Z co-precipitate the permissive modification H3K4me3. By chromatin-immunoprecipitation we show that PfH2A.Z is enriched in nucleosomes around the transcription start site (TSS) in both transcriptionally active and silent stage-specific genes. In var genes, however, PfH2A.Z is enriched at the TSS only during active transcription in ring stage parasites. Thus, in contrast to other genes, temporal var gene regulation involves histone variant exchange at promoter nucleosomes. Sir2 histone deacetylases are important for var gene silencing and their yeast ortholog antagonises H2A.Z function in subtelomeric yeast genes. In immature P. falciparum parasites lacking Sir2A or Sir2B high var transcription levels correlate with enrichment of PfH2A.Z at the TSS. As Sir2A knock out parasites mature the var genes are silenced, but PfH2A.Z remains enriched at the TSS of var genes; in contrast, PfH2A.Z is lost from the TSS of de-repressed var genes in mature Sir2B knock out parasites. This result indicates that PfH2A.Z occupancy at the active var promoter is antagonized by PfSir2A during the intraerythrocytic life cycle. We conclude that PfH2A.Z contributes to the nucleosome architecture at promoters and is regulated dynamically in active var genes

The development and validation of a low-cost trans perineal (TP) prostate biopsy simulator from 3Dprinted mould: improving trainees’ confidence and cognitive targeting skills

Introduction & Objectives To develop a simulation modality for trans perineal (TP) prostate biopsy that can be utilised in training. The aim of this study is to create a novel and low-cost model that has face, content and construct validity and high educational value. Materials & Methods This research developed a TP prostate biopsy simulation model using 3D-printed moulds and utilisation of tissue mimicking materials. Important regions including the anterior, mid and posterior zones were coded with different colours. Ultrasound - visible abnormal lesions were embedded in the prostate phantom. Expert, amateurs and biopsy- naïve participants in TP prostate biopsies were prospectively recruited. Skills that were deemed essential for TP prostate biopsy were identified through the consensus of six experts (>125 independent cases each). These skills were incorporated into tasks that were subsequently used to rate the performances of the participants. This included accuracy and timing of both systematic and target biopsies. Immediate feedback can be obtained based on the colour of biopsy cores taken. A survey was distributed after usage of simulator to evaluate its realism and educational value. Results This research developed a low cost (<£7) TP prostate biopsy bench model simulator for training and education using 3D- printed moulds. We were able to prove face, content and construct validity in this simulator. There was a significant difference (p= 0.02) in the accuracy of systematic 12-core ultrasound-guided biopsies between expert and novice groups. There is also significant difference (p=0.01) in the ability of expert group to accurately identify the target lesion on ultrasound. Participants rated the overall realism of the simulator as 4.57 out of 5 (range 3 – 5). 100% of the experts felt that there is benefit in introducing this simulator in TP prostate biopsy training. 85.7% of the participants strongly agree that the simulator improved their confidence in performing this procedure. Conclusions There is value in integrating this proof-of-concept TP prostate biopsy simulator into training. Its low cost makes its introduction feasible. It has highly rated educational value and was shown to have face, content, and construct validity. There is potential in improving patient safety and diagnostic accuracy with this simulator