Inequality Comparisons in a Multi-Period Framework: The Role of Alternative Welfare Metrics

This paper considers the use of alternative welfare metrics in evaluations of income inequality in a multi-period context. Using Norwegian longitudinal income data, it is found, as in many studies, that inequality is lower when each individual’s annual average income is used as welfare metric, compared with the use of a single-period accounting framework. However, this result does not necessarily hold when aversion to income fluctuations is introduced. Furthermore, when actual incomes are replaced by expected incomes (conditional on an initial period),using a model of income dynamics, higher values of inequality over longer periods are typically found, although comparisons depend on inequality and variability aversion parameters. The results are strongly influenced by the observed high degree of systematic regression towards the (geometric) mean, combined with a large extent of individual unexpected effects.income mobility; welfare evaluations; relative mobility process

Teaching interdisciplinary sustainability science teamwork skills to graduate students using in-person and web-based interactions

Interdisciplinary sustainability science teamwork skills are essential for addressing the world’s most pressing and complex sustainability problems, which inherently have social, natural, and engineering science dimensions. Further, because sustainability science problems exist at global scales, interdisciplinary science teams will need to consist of international members who communicate and work together effectively. Students trained in international interdisciplinary science skills will be able to hit the ground running when they obtain jobs requiring them to tackle sustainability problems. While many universities now have sustainability science programs, few offer courses that are interdisciplinary and international in scope. In the fall semester of 2013, we piloted a course for graduate students entitled “Principles of Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research” at Michigan Technological University. This course was part of our United States National Science Foundation Partnerships in International Research and Education project on bioenergy development impacts across the Americas. In this case study, we describe the course development and implementation, share critical insights from our experience teaching the course and student learning outcomes, and give recommendations for future similar course

Molecular circumscription of new species of Gyrocotyle Diesing, 1850 (Cestoda) from deep-sea chimaeriform holocephalans in the North Atlantic

Chimaeras, or ratfishes, are the only extant group of holocephalan fishes and are the sole host group of gyrocotylidean cestodes, which represent a sister group of the true tapeworms (Eucestoda). These unique, non-segmented cestodes have been known since the 1850s and multiple species and genera have been erected despite a general agreement that the delineation of species on the basis of morphology is effectively impossible. Thus, in the absence of molecular studies, the validity of gyrocotylid taxa and their specific host associations has remained highly speculative. Here we report the presence of Gyrocotyle spp. from rarely-caught deep-sea chimaeras collected in the North-East Atlantic, and describe two new species: G. haffii n. sp. from the bent-nose chimaera, Harriota raleighana Goode & Bean, and G. discoveryi n. sp. from the large-eyed rabbit fish, Hydrolagus mirabilis (Collett). Nuclear ribosomal sequence data were generated for individual parasites taken from different host species collected on different dates and from different localities and were combined with previously published sequences. Phylogenetic analyses supported the recognition of independent lineages and clusters, indicative of species, but were indecisive in recovering the root of the tree in analyses that included non-gyrocotylid outgroup taxa. The molecular data reveal variation not reflected in morphology and point to a complex picture of genetic divergence shaped by both isolation and migration in the deep-sea environment.Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The attached file is the published pdf.NHM Repositor

Anti-PAD4 autoantibodies in rheumatoid arthritis: levels in serum over time and impact on PAD4 activity as measured with a small synthetic substrate

Isoform 4 of the human peptidylarginine deiminase (hPAD4) enzyme may be responsible for the citrullination of antigens in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and has been shown to be itself the target of disease-specific autoantibodies. Here, we have tested whether the level of serum anti-hPAD4 antibodies in RA patients is stable over a period of 10 years and whether the antibodies influence hPAD4-mediated deimination of the small substrate N-α-Benzoyl-l-arginine ethyl ester. RA sera (n = 128) obtained at baseline and after 10 years were assessed for anti-hPAD4 antibodies by a specific immunoassay. For 118 RA patients, serum anti-hPAD4 IgG levels were stable over 10 years. Seven patients who were negative for anti-PAD4 IgG at baseline had become positive after 10 years. Further, total IgG from selected RA patients and controls were purified, and a fraction was depleted for anti-hPAD4 antibodies. Kinetic deimination assays were performed with total IgG and depleted fractions. The kcat and Km values of hPAD4-mediated deimination of N-α-Benzoyl-l-arginine ethyl ester were not affected by the depletion of the anti-hPAD4 antibodies from the total IgG pool. In conclusion, RA patients remain positive for anti-hPAD4 antibodies over time and some patients who are initially anti-hPAD4 negative become positive later in the disease course. The anti-hPAD4 antibodies did not affect the enzymatic activity of hPAD4 when the small substrate N-α-Benzoyl-l-arginine ethyl ester was used. However, this finding may not exclude an effect of these autoantibodies on citrullination of protein substrates in RA

Modified prolonged exposure therapy as Early Intervention after Rape (The EIR-study): study protocol for a multicenter randomized add-on superiority trial

Background Sexual assault and rape are the traumatic life events with the highest probability for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which can have devastating consequences for those aficted by the condition. Studies indicate that modifed prolonged exposure (mPE) therapy may be efective in preventing the development of PTSD in recently traumatized individuals, and especially for people who have experienced sexual assault. If a brief, manualized early intervention can prevent or reduce post-traumatic symptoms in women who have recently experienced rape, healthcare services targeted for these populations (i.e., sexual assault centers, SACs) should consider implementing such interventions as part of routine care. Methods/design This is a multicenter randomized controlled add-on superiority trial that enrolls patients attending sexual assault centers within 72 h after rape or attempted rape. The objective is to assess whether mPE shortly after rape can prevent the development of post-traumatic stress symptoms. Patients will be randomized to either mPE plus treatment as usual (TAU) or TAU alone. The primary outcome is the development of post-traumatic stress symptoms 3 months after trauma. Secondary outcomes will be symptoms of depression, sleep difculties, pelvic foor hyperactivity, and sexual dysfunction. The frst 22 subjects will constitute an internal pilot trial to test acceptance of the intervention and feasibility of the assessment battery. Discussion This study will guide further research and clinical initiatives for implementing strategies for preventing post-traumatic stress symptoms after rape and provide new knowledge about which women may beneft the most from such initiatives and for revising existing treatment guidelines within this area

Uptake of oxLDL and IL-10 production by macrophages requires PAFR and CD36 recruitment into the same lipid rafts

Macrophage interaction with oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) leads to its differentiation into foam cells and cytokine production, contributing to atherosclerosis development. In a previous study, we showed that CD36 and the receptor for platelet-activating factor (PAFR) are required for oxLDL to activate gene transcription for cytokines and CD36. Here, we investigated the localization and physical interaction of CD36 and PAFR in macrophages stimulated with oxLDL. We found that blocking CD36 or PAFR decreases oxLDL uptake and IL-10 production. OxLDL induces IL-10 mRNA expression only in HEK293T expressing both receptors (PAFR and CD36). OxLDL does not induce IL-12 production. The lipid rafts disruption by treatment with βCD reduces the oxLDL uptake and IL-10 production. OxLDL induces co-immunoprecipitation of PAFR and CD36 with the constitutive raft protein flotillin-1, and colocalization with the lipid raft-marker GM1-ganglioside. Finally, we found colocalization of PAFR and CD36 in macrophages from human atherosclerotic plaques. Our results show that oxLDL induces the recruitment of PAFR and CD36 into the same lipid rafts, which is important for oxLDL uptake and IL-10 production. This study provided new insights into how oxLDL interact with macrophages and contributing to atherosclerosis development

Civil Society, Everyday Life and the Possibilities for Development Studies

Civil society is one of the most contentious terms in political thought. There is considerable, and highly significant, difference between academic debate about the meaning of ‘civil society’ and the way the term is mobilized in international development discourse. In particular, narratives of civil society in international development are often dominated by reference to organizational descriptions and measurability. But I would like to suggest here that the term should be reclaimed as a way of giving meaning to the stories of the everyday lives of the people who create, shape and embody civil society. Used in this way, the idea of civil society can be understood as intersecting emotions, discourses and practices and can add to the body of scholarly work that nurtures and values everyday life as a lens through which to view wider social processes. Paying attention to the everyday life of civil society may have implications for that way the civil society is engaged with academically, and also has the potential to refresh how civil society is thought about in development practice