The Open Anchoring Quest Dataset: Anchored Estimates from 96 Studies on Anchoring Effects

People’s estimates are biased toward previously considered numbers (anchoring). We have aggregated all available data from anchoring studies that included at least two anchors into one large dataset. Data were standardized to comprise one estimate per row, coded according to a wide range of variables, and are available for download and analyses online (https://metaanalyses.shinyapps.io/OpAQ/). Because the dataset includes both original and meta-data it allows for fine-grained analyses (e.g., correlations of estimates for different tasks) but also for meta-analyses (e.g., effect sizes for anchoring effects).Journal of Open Psychology Dat

#ArsonEmergency and Australia's "Black Summer": Polarisation and misinformation on social media

During the summer of 2019-20, while Australia suffered unprecedented bushfires across the country, false narratives regarding arson and limited backburning spread quickly on Twitter, particularly using the hashtag #ArsonEmergency. Misinformation and bot- and troll-like behaviour were detected and reported by social media researchers and the news soon reached mainstream media. This paper examines the communication and behaviour of two polarised online communities before and after news of the misinformation became public knowledge. Specifically, the Supporter community actively engaged with others to spread the hashtag, using a variety of news sources pushing the arson narrative, while the Opposer community engaged less, retweeted more, and focused its use of URLs to link to mainstream sources, debunking the narratives and exposing the anomalous behaviour. This influenced the content of the broader discussion. Bot analysis revealed the active accounts were predominantly human, but behavioural and content analysis suggests Supporters engaged in trolling, though both communities used aggressive language.Comment: 16 pages, 8 images, presented at the 2nd Multidisciplinary International Symposium on Disinformation in Open Online Media (MISDOOM 2020), Leiden, The Netherlands. Published in: van Duijn M., Preuss M., Spaiser V., Takes F., Verberne S. (eds) Disinformation in Open Online Media. MISDOOM 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 12259. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61841-4_1

Influence of urbanization on the epidemiology of intestinal helminths of the red fox ( Vulpes vulpes ) in Geneva, Switzerland

Dixenous helminths that depend on rodent intermediate hosts are supposed to be negatively affected by urbanization due to lower supply of rodents in urbanized environments. Prevalence rates of dixenous, non-strictly monoxenous, and monoxenous helminths in 228 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) along a gradient of increasing urbanization were assessed by morphological parasite identification in the city of Geneva, Switzerland. Multivariate analyses for the five most prevalent helminth species or genera revealed a significant decrease of prevalence rates for the dixenous helminths Echinococcus multilocularis and Taenia spp. from the rural (52.1 and 54.3%, respectively) to the urban area (30.0 and 20.0%, respectively), but not for the monoxenous nematode Uncinaria stenocephala (overall prevalence of 78.2%) and the non-strictly monoxenous nematode Toxocara canis (overall prevalence of 44.3%). The lower prevalence of Toxascaris leonina in the urban area (8.0%) compared to the rural area (59.6%) raises the question of whether rodent paratenic hosts play a major role for the population dynamics of this specie

Orphan GPR26 Counteracts Early Phases of Hyperglycemia-Mediated Monocyte Activation and Is Suppressed in Diabetic Patients

Diabetes is the ninth leading cause of death, with an estimated 1.5 million deaths worldwide. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) results from the body's ineffective use of insulin and is largely the result of excess body weight and physical inactivity. T2D increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, retinopathy, and kidney failure by two-to three-fold. Hyperglycemia, as a hallmark of diabetes, acts as a potent stimulator of inflammatory condition by activating endothelial cells and by dysregulating monocyte activation. G-protein couple receptors (GPCRs) can both exacerbate and promote inflammatory resolution. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) indicate that GPCRs are differentially regulated in inflammatory and vessel cells from diabetic patients. However, most of these GPCRs are orphan receptors, for which the mechanism of action in diabetes is unknown. Our data indicated that orphan GPCR26 is downregulated in the PBMC isolated from T2D patients. In contrast, GPR26 was initially upregulated in human monocytes and PBMC treated with high glucose (HG) levels and then decreased upon chronic and prolonged HG exposure. GPR26 levels were decreased in T2D patients treated with insulin compared to non-insulin treated patients. Moreover, GPR26 inversely correlated with the BMI and the HbA1c of diabetic compared to non-diabetic patients. Knockdown of GPR26 enhanced monocyte ROS production, MAPK signaling, pro-inflammatory activation, monocyte adhesion to ECs, and enhanced the activity of Caspase 3, a pro-apoptotic molecule. The same mechanisms were activated by HG and exacerbated when GPR26 was knocked down. Hence, our data indicated that GPR26 is initially activated to protect monocytes from HG and is inhibited under chronic hyperglycemic conditions

Case for diagnosis

Mulher branca de 30 anos de idade há 15 anos apresentando lesões com depressões e herniações anulares, atróficas, bem circunscritas em pele previamente normal, predominando na região cervical e tronco; sem história familiar. Exames laboratoriais sem alterações e histopatológico com infiltrado inflamatório discreto na derme. Coloração com orceína evidenciou fibras elásticas fragmentadas e encurtadas. Após correlação anatomoclínica confirmou-se o diagnóstico de anetodermia de Schweninger-Buzzi.A 30-year old woman with a 15-year history of atrophic, well-circumscribed annular lesions, with depressions and herniations, , in previously normal skin is presented. The lesions were predominant in the neck region and trunk; there was no familiar history. Laboratory examination was normal or negative and histological examination displayed discrete inflammatory infiltration on the dermis. Orceina stain showed fragmented and shortened elastic fibers. Diagnosis of anetodermia, Schweninger- Buzzi type, was confirmed after clinic-histological correlation

Case for diagnosis

Paciente do sexo masculino, branco, 43 anos, apresentava há dois anos lesão única, localizada no joelho direito, além de descamação nas regiões plantares. O exame micológico direto das lesões plantares mostrava filamentos de dermatófitos, mas foi negativo na lesão do joelho. Porém o exame histopatológico dessa área demonstrou presença de granuloma de corpo estranho com hifas de dermatófitos, confirmando o diagnóstico de granuloma de Majocchi.Caucasian male patient, 43 years old, presented two years ago with one single lesion in the right knee, in addition to desquamation in the plantar region. Direct mycological exam of the plantar damage showed filaments of dermatophytes, but it was negative for the knee injury. However, histopathology of the area showed presence of foreign body granuloma with hyphae of dermatophytes, confirming the diagnosis of Majocchi's granuloma

Identification and characterization of nanobodies targeting the EphA4 receptor

The ephrin receptor A4 (EphA4) is one of the receptors in the ephrin system that plays a pivotal role in a variety of cell-cell interactions, mostly studied during development. In addition, EphA4 has been found to play a role in cancer biology as well as in the pathogenesis of several neurological disorders such as stroke, spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and Alzheimer's disease. Pharmacological blocking of EphA4 has been suggested to be a therapeutic strategy for these disorders. Therefore, the aim of our study was to generate potent and selective Nanobodies against the ligand-binding domain of the human EphA4 receptor. Weidentified two Nanobodies, Nb 39 and Nb 53, that bind EphA4 with affinities in the nanomolar range. These Nanobodies were most selective for EphA4, with residual binding to EphA7 only. Using Alphascreen technology, we found that both Nanobodies displaced all known EphA4-binding ephrins from the receptor. Furthermore, Nb39 andNb53 inhibited ephrin-induced phosphorylationoftheEphA4proteininacell-basedassay. Finally, in a cortical neuron primary culture, both Nanobodies were able to inhibit endogenous EphA4-mediated growth-cone collapse induced by ephrin-B3. Our results demonstrate the potential of Nanobodies to target the ligand-binding domain of EphA4. These Nanobodiesmaydeservefurtherevaluationaspotentialtherapeutics in disorders in which EphA4-mediated signaling plays a role