An IFN-Associated Cytotoxic Cellular Immune Response against Viral, Self-, or Tumor Antigens Is a Common Pathogenetic Feature in “Interface Dermatitis”

The term “interface dermatitis” (ID) involves a specific histological inflammatory pattern that is characterized by a cytotoxic lymphocytic infiltration and a hydropic degeneration of the basal epidermal layer. ID is typically seen in autoimmune skin disorders such as lichen planus (LP), cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE), and may also appear during immune reactions against drugs, viruses, and tumors. Recent studies have shown that the type-I IFN system is involved in cutaneous autoimmune diseases characterized by ID. IFNs induce the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, which support the cellular immune response. The role of IFNs in ID is supported by a close morphological association between the expression pattern of IFN-inducible proteins and the distribution of CXCR3+ lymphocytes. The IFN-inducible chemokine CXCL10 is expressed in exactly those areas where cytotoxic lymphocytes invade the basal epidermis and cause keratinocyte death. A similar picture can be found in early herpes simplex viral skin lesions and viral warts, but also in “lichenoid” actinic keratosis and invasive squamous cell carcinoma. These data suggest that ID morphologically reflects a common IFN-driven cytotoxic attack affecting the basal keratinocytes under different conditions, which is important for antiviral and antitumor immune response, but is inappropriately activated in autoimmune skin disorders

Online Drift Compensation for Chemical Sensors Using Estimation Theory

Sensor drift from slowly changing environmental conditions and other instabilities can greatly degrade a chemical sensor\u27s performance, resulting in poor identification and analyte quantification. In the present work, estimation theory (i.e., various forms of the Kalman filter) is used for online compensation of baseline drift in the response of chemical sensors. Two different cases, which depend on the knowledge of the characteristics of the sensor system, are studied. First, an unknown input is considered, which represents the practical case of analyte detection and quantification. Then, the more general case, in which the sensor parameters and the input are both unknown, is studied. The techniques are applied to simulated sensor data, for which the true baseline and response are known, and to actual liquid-phase SH-SAW sensor data measured during the detection of organophosphates. It is shown that the technique is capable of estimating the baseline signal and recovering the true sensor signal due only to the presence of the analyte. This is true even when the baseline drift changes rate or direction during the detection process or when the analyte is not completely flushed from the system

Hierarchical Models, Marginal Polytopes, and Linear Codes

In this paper, we explore a connection between binary hierarchical models, their marginal polytopes and codeword polytopes, the convex hulls of linear codes. The class of linear codes that are realizable by hierarchical models is determined. We classify all full dimensional polytopes with the property that their vertices form a linear code and give an algorithm that determines them.Comment: 18 page

The DSM 5 and the Istanbul Protocol: Diagnosis of psychological sequels of torture

The Manual on Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, commonly known as the Istanbul Protocol, is an interdisciplinary standard supported by, among others, the United Nations and the World Medical Association. It aims at aiding the fight against torture by giving clear guidelines to ensure better and more effective assessment of physical and psychological sequels. Mental health is a key aspect of diagnostical assessment and documentation due to the severe and frequently long-lasting impact of torture that often lasts longer than physical sequels. The inclusion of psychological aspects and a psychiatric diagnosis is to be treated as an important obligatory. Care must be taken to avoid common pitfalls. The new and substantial revisions in the frequently used but also criticised Diagnostical and Statistical Manual (DSM) reflect challenges and opportunities in a comprehensive approach to the documentation of torture

The psychological impact of genocide on the Yazidis

Background: The genocide against the Yazidis by the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) in the Sinjar area of Northern Iraq has costed many lives and has also caused a psychological long-term impact in this minority. This impact can be seen among individual survivors. Additionally, there is a large number of direct and indirect victims and for this reason, the impact can also be observed on the level of the group and society in this region at large. Methodology: The research examines three different population groups (Yazidis members who had been exposed to violence by terrorist group actions, those not exposed to this experience as they were living in an area not directly exposed to ISIS violence, and a control group of non – Yazidi general population members). In total, 425 participants (age range 15-78) took part in the study and participated in interviews using standard scales to measure general physical and mental health. Results: The results demonstrate that psychological stress and suicidality are higher among the Yazidis survivors of violence than in the other Yazidi participants. Conclusions: Psychological Disorders after a genocide and war in post-conflict populations should receive more attention in the planning of mental health care and prevention and should be seen as a major problem, especially in camp settings and displaced persons besides the usual increased prevalence of posttraumatic stress and other disorders covered by research so far in this context

Safer Vehicles for People and the Planet

Motor vehicles contribute to climate change and petroleum dependence. Improving their fuel economy by making them lighter need not compromise safety. The cars and trucks plying America's roads and highways generate roughly 20 percent of the nation's total emissions of carbon dioxide, a pollutant that is, of course, of increasing concern because of its influence on climate. Motor vehicles also account for most of our country's dependence on imported petroleum, the price of which has recently skyrocketed to near-record levels. So policymakers would welcome the many benefits that would accrue from lessening the amount of fuel consumed in this way. Yet lawmakers have not significantly tightened new vehicle fuel-economy standards since they were first enacted three decades ago. Since then, manufacturers have, for the most part, used advances in automotive technology, ones that could have diminished fuel consumption, to boost performance and increase vehicle weight. In addition, the growth in popularity of pickups, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and minivans--and the large amounts of gas they typically guzzle--has resulted in the average vehicle using the same amount of fuel per mile as it did 20 years ago. One of the historical impediments to imposing tougher fuel-economy standards has been the long-standing worry that reducing the mass of a car or truck to help meet these requirements would make it more dangerous to its occupants in a crash. People often justify this concern in terms of 'simple physics', noting, for example, that, all else being equal, in a head-on collision, the lighter vehicle is the more strongly decelerated, an argument that continues to sway regulators, legislators and many in the general public. We have spent the past several years examining the research underlying this position--and some recent work challenging it. We have also conducted our own analyses and come to the conclusion that the claim that lighter vehicles are inherently dangerous to those riding in them is flawed. For starters, all else is never equal; other aspects of vehicle design appear to control what really happens in a crash, as reflected in the safety record of different kinds of vehicles. What's more, the use of high-strength steel, light-weight metals such as aluminum and magnesium, and fiber-reinforced plastics now offers automotive engineers the means to fashion vehicles that are simultaneously safer and less massive than their predecessors, and such designs would, of course, enjoy the better fuel economy that shedding pounds brings

I feel you feel what I feel: Perceived perspective-taking promotes victims‘ conciliatory attitudes because of inferred emotions in the offender

In the context of bullying in a nursing workplace, we test the argument that an offender‘s perspective-taking promotes victim conciliation, mediated by perceived perspective-taking, that is, the extent to which the victim perceives the offender as taking their perspective. Perceived perspective-taking facilitates the attribution of moral emotions (remorse, etc.) to the offender, thereby promoting conciliatory victim responses. However, perceived perspective-taking would be qualified by the extent to which the severity of consequences expressed in the offender‘s perspective-taking matches or surpasses the severity for the victim. In Studies 1 and 2 (Ns = 141 and 122), victims indicated greater trust and/or forgiveness when the offender had taken the victim‘s perspective. This was sequentially mediated by perceived perspective-taking and victim‘s inference that the offender had felt moral emotions. As predicted, in Study 2 (but not Study 1) severity of consequences qualified victims‘ perceived perspective-taking. Study 3 (N = 138) examined three potential mechanisms for the moderation by severity. Victims attributed greater perspective-taking to the offender when the consequences were less severe than voiced by the offender, suggesting victims‘ appreciation of the offender‘s generous appraisal. Attributions of perspective-taking and of moral emotions to the offender may play an important role in reconciliation processes