Revisiting diversity and difference in early childhood through children’s news media

Children’s access to certain knowledge, often deemed inappropriate for children by adults, has been at the core of many controversies in children’s early education. This is particularly the case in terms of the censorship associated with children’s access to what has been broadly viewed as ‘difficult knowledge’ – bodies of knowledge pertaining to sexuality, death, war, poverty, and violence, for example. In some western countries, the discourse of childhood innocence has been a powerful mediator/regulator of children’s access to knowledge and has influenced how children are viewed as active citizens in their everyday lives (Robinson, 2013). However, it is now more widely accepted that children are competent, knowing beings in and of the world, readily taking up, processing and challenging messages about a raft of uncomfortable and inequitable realities, from global warming, to sexism, to racial intolerance, to class prejudice (Osgood et al., 2016). This view of children and childhood requires that approaches to pedagogy, policy and practice around diversity and difference in early childhood education attend to children as knowers and doers in the world (Osgood, 2012; Osgood and Robinson, 2019; Robinson and Jones Díaz, 2016)

Heat Shock Protein 70 family members interact with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus and Hazara virus nucleocapsid proteins and perform a functional role in the nairovirus replication cycle

The Nairovirus genus of the Bunyaviridae family contains serious human and animal pathogens classified within multiple serogroups and species. Of these serogroups, the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) serogroup comprises sole members CCHFV and Hazara virus (HAZV). CCHFV is an emerging zoonotic virus that causes often-fatal hemorrhagic fever in infected humans for which preventative or therapeutic strategies are not available. In contrast HAZV is non-pathogenic to humans, and thus represents an excellent model to study aspects of CCHFV biology under more accessible biological containment. The three RNA segments that form the nairovirus genome are encapsidated by the viral nucleocapsid protein (N) to form ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complexes that are substrates for RNA synthesis and packaging into virus particles. We used quantitative proteomics to identify cellular interaction partners of CCHFV N, and identified robust interactions with cellular chaperones. These interactions were validated using immunological methods, and the specific interaction between native CCHFV N and cellular chaperones of the HSP70 family was confirmed during live CCHFV infection. Using infectious HAZV we showed for the first time that the nairovirus N-HSP70 association was maintained within both infected cells and virus particles, where N is assembled as RNPs. Reduction of active HSP70 levels in cells using small molecule inhibitors significantly reduced HAZV titres, and a model for chaperone function in the context of high genetic variability is proposed. These results suggest chaperones of the HSP70 family are required for nairovirus replication and thus represent a genetically stable cellular therapeutic target for preventing nairovirus-mediated disease

Bio-psychosocial determinants of cardiovascular disease in a rural population on Crete, Greece: formulating a hypothesis and designing the SPILI-III study

Background: In 1988, the SPILI project was established in order to evaluate the cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk profile of the inhabitants of Spili, in rural Crete, Greece. The first reports from this project revealed that against the unfavourable risk factors’ profile observed, only a few men with a previous myocardial infarction were encountered. A follow-up study (SPILI II) was performed twelve years after the initial examination, and the unfavourable cardiovascular risk profile was re-confirmed. Presentation of the Hypothesis: This paper presents a hypothesis formulated on the basis of previous research to investigate if dynamic psycho-social determinants, including social coherence of the local community, religiosity and spirituality, are protective against the development of coronary heart disease in a well-defined population. Testing the Hypothesis: A follow-up examination of this Cretan cohort is currently being performed to assess the link between psychosocial factors and CVD. Psychosocial factors including sense of control, religiosity and spirituality are assessed in together with conventional CVD risk factors. Smoking and alcohol consumption, as well as dietary habits and activity levels are recorded. Oxidative stress and inflammatory markers, as well as ultrasound measurement of carotid intima media thickness, a preclinical marker of atherosclerosis, will also be measured. Implications of the hypothesis tested: The issue of the cardio-protective effect of psycho-social factors would be revisited based on the results of this Cretan cohort; nevertheless, further research is needed across different subpopulations in order to establish a definite relationship. A comprehensive approach based on the aspects of biosocial life may result in more accurate CVD risk management

Characterization and applications of a Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus nucleoprotein-specific Affimer: Inhibitory effects in viral replication and development of colorimetric diagnostic tests

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever orthonairovirus (CCHFV) is one of the most widespread medically important arboviruses, causing human infections that result in mortality rates of up to 60%. We describe the selection of a high-affinity small protein (Affimer-NP) that binds specifically to the nucleoprotein (NP) of CCHFV. We demonstrate the interference of Affimer-NP in the RNA-binding function of CCHFV NP using fluorescence anisotropy, and its inhibitory effects on CCHFV gene expression in mammalian cells using a mini-genome system. Solution of the crystallographic structure of the complex formed by these two molecules at 2.84 Å resolution revealed the structural basis for this interference, with the Affimer-NP binding site positioned at the critical NP oligomerization interface. Finally, we validate the in vitro application of Affimer-NP for the development of enzyme-linked immunosorbent and lateral flow assays, presenting the first published point-of-care format test able to detect recombinant CCHFV NP in spiked human and animal sera

Telomere Length Shows No Association with BRCA1 and BRCA2 Mutation Status

This study aimed to determine whether telomere length (TL) is a marker of cancer risk or genetic status amongst two cohorts of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers and controls. The first group was a prospective set of 665 male BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and controls (mean age 53 years), all healthy at time of enrolment and blood donation, 21 of whom have developed prostate cancer whilst on study. The second group consisted of 283 female BRCA1/2 mutation carriers and controls (mean age 48 years), half of whom had been diagnosed with breast cancer prior to enrolment. TL was quantified by qPCR from DNA extracted from peripheral blood lymphocytes. Weighted and unweighted Cox regressions and linear regression analyses were used to assess whether TL was associated with BRCA1/2 mutation status or cancer risk. We found no evidence for association between developing cancer or being a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation carrier and telomere length. It is the first study investigating TL in a cohort of genetically predisposed males and although TL and BRCA status was previously studied in females our results don't support the previous finding of association between hereditary breast cancer and shorter TL

The influence of depression on risk development of acute cardiovascular diseases in the female population aged 25–64 in Russia

Background. Recent studies showed that depression was an independent predictor of mortality from cardio-vascular disease in healthy women. Objective. To explore the effect of depression (D) on relative risk (RR) of myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke for 16 years (1995–2010) in the female population aged 25–64 years from Novosibirsk, Russia. Materials and methods. Under the third screening of the WHO “MONICA-psychosocial” (MOPSY) programme, a cohort of women aged 25–64 years (N=560) was surveyed. Women were followed for 16 years for the incidence of MI and stroke (1995–2010). D was measured at the baseline examination by means of test “MOPSY”. Participants having stroke, MI, arterial hypertension, coronary artery diseases and diabetes in their medical history at the baseline were excluded from this analysis. Results. The prevalence of D in women aged 25–64 years was 55.2%. With the growth of D levels, positive self-rated health reduced and almost 100% of those women have complaints about their health, but considered the care of their health insufficient. Women with major D significantly extended negative behavioural habits: smoking and unsuccessful attempts to give up, low physical activity, and less likely to follow a diet (healthy food). Major D associated with high job strain and family stress. Relative risk (RR) of MI development in women with D during 16 years of study was higher in 2.53 cases (p<0.05) and risk of stroke was higher in 4.63 cases (p<0.05). Conclusions. The prevalence of D in women aged 25–64 years was >50%. Women with D had a 2.53-fold risk of MI and 4.63-fold risk of stroke during the 16 years of follow-up

Is telomere length socially patterned? Evidence from the West of Scotland Twenty-07 study

Lower socioeconomic status (SES) is strongly associated with an increased risk of morbidity and premature mortality, but it is not known if the same is true for telomere length, a marker often used to assess biological ageing. The West of Scotland Twenty-07 Study was used to investigate this and consists of three cohorts aged approximately 35 (N = 775), 55 (N = 866) and 75 years (N = 544) at the time of telomere length measurement. Four sets of measurements of SES were investigated: those collected contemporaneously with telomere length assessment, educational markers, SES in childhood and SES over the preceding twenty years. We found mixed evidence for an association between SES and telomere length. In 35-year-olds, many of the education and childhood SES measures were associated with telomere length, i.e. those in poorer circumstances had shorter telomeres, as was intergenerational social mobility, but not accumulated disadvantage. A crude estimate showed that, at the same chronological age, social renters, for example, were nine years (biologically) older than home owners. No consistent associations were apparent in those aged 55 or 75. There is evidence of an association between SES and telomere length, but only in younger adults and most strongly using education and childhood SES measures. These results may reflect that childhood is a sensitive period for telomere attrition. The cohort differences are possibly the result of survival bias suppressing the SES-telomere association; cohort effects with regard different experiences of SES; or telomere possibly being a less effective marker of biological ageing at older ages

Sense of coherence predicts post-myocardial infarction trajectory of leisure time physical activity: a prospective cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Physical activity confers a survival advantage after myocardial infarction (MI), yet the majority of post-MI patients are not regularly active. Since sense of coherence (SOC) has been associated with health outcomes and some health behaviours, we investigated whether it plays a role in post-MI physical activity.</p> <p>We examined the predictive role of SOC in the long-term trajectory of leisure time physical activity (LTPA) after MI using a prospective cohort design.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cohort of 643 patients aged ≤ 65 years admitted to hospital in central Israel with incident MI between February 1992 and February 1993 were followed up for 13 years. Socioeconomic, clinical and psychological factors, including SOC, were assessed at baseline, and LTPA was self-reported on 5 separate occasions during follow-up. The predictive role of SOC in long-term trajectory of LTPA was assessed using generalized estimating equations.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>SOC was consistently associated with engagement in LTPA throughout follow-up. Patients in the lowest SOC tertile had almost twice the odds (odds ratio,1.99; 95% confidence interval,1.52-2.60) of decreasing their engagement in LTPA as those in the highest tertile. A strong association remained after controlling for disease severity, depression, sociodemographic and clinical factors.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our evidence suggests that SOC predicts LTPA trajectory post-MI. Assessment of SOC can help identify high-risk MI survivors, who may require additional help in following secondary prevention recommendations which can dramatically improve prognosis.</p

Self-perceived psychological stress and ischemic stroke: a case-control study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A growing body of evidence suggests that psychological stress contributes to coronary artery disease. However, associations between stress and stroke are less clear. In this study, we investigated the possible association between ischemic stroke and self-perceived psychological stress, as measured by a single-item questionnaire, previously reported to be associated with myocardial infarction.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In the Sahlgrenska Academy Study on Ischemic Stroke (SAHLSIS), 600 consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke (aged 18 to 69 years) and 600 age-matched and sex-matched population controls were recruited. Ischemic stroke subtype was determined according to Trial of Org 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) criteria. Self-perceived psychological stress preceding stroke was assessed retrospectively using a single-item questionnaire.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Permanent self-perceived psychological stress during the last year or longer was independently associated with overall ischemic stroke (multivariate adjusted odds ratio (OR) 3.49, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.06 to 5.93). Analyses by stroke subtype showed that this association was present for large vessel disease (OR 3.91, 95% CI 1.58 to 9.67), small vessel disease (OR 3.20, 95% CI 1.64 to 6.24), and cryptogenic stroke (OR 4.03, 95% CI 2.34 to 6.95), but not for cardioembolic stroke (OR 1.48, 95% CI 0.64 to 3.39).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In this case-control study, we found an independent association between self-perceived psychological stress and ischemic stroke. A novel finding was that this association differed by ischemic stroke subtype. Our results emphasize the need for further prospective studies addressing the potential role for psychological stress as a risk factor for ischemic stroke. In such studies ischemic stroke subtypes should be taken into consideration.</p

THETA-rhythm makes the world go round:dissociative effects of TMS theta versus alpha entrainment of right pTPJ on embodied perspective transformations

Being able to imagine another person's experience and perspective of the world is a crucial human ability and recent reports suggest that humans "embody" another's viewpoint by mentally rotating their own body representation into the other's orientation. Our recent Magnetoencephalography (MEG) data further confirmed this notion of embodied perspective transformations and pinpointed the right posterior temporo-parietal junction (pTPJ) as the crucial hub in a distributed network oscillating at theta frequency (3-7 Hz). In a subsequent transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) experiment we interfered with right pTPJ processing and observed a modulation of the embodied aspects of perspective transformations. While these results corroborated the role of right pTPJ, the notion of theta oscillations being the crucial neural code remained a correlational observation based on our MEG data. In the current study we therefore set out to confirm the importance of theta oscillations directly by means of TMS entrainment. We compared entrainment of right pTPJ at 6 Hz vs. 10 Hz and confirmed that only 6 Hz entrainment facilitated embodied perspective transformations (at 160° angular disparity) while 10 Hz slowed it down. The reverse was true at low angular disparity (60° between egocentric and target perspective) where a perspective transformation was not strictly necessary. Our results further corroborate right pTPJ involvement in embodied perspective transformations and highlight theta oscillations as a crucial neural code