Contrast Enhancing Pattern on Pre-Treatment MRI predicts Response to Anti-Angiogenic Treatment in Recurrent Glioblastoma: Comparison of Bevacizumab and Temozolomide Treatment

Objective: To evaluate the value of the contrast enhancing pattern on pre-treatment MRI for predicting the response to anti-angiogenic treatment in patients with IDH-wild type recurrent glioblastoma.Methods: This retrospective study enrolled 65 patients with IDH wild-type recurrent glioblastoma who received standard therapy and then received either bevacizumab (46 patients) or temozolomide (19 patients) as a secondary treatment. The contrast enhancing pattern on pre-treatment MRI was visually analyzed and dichotomized into contrast enhancing lesion (CEL) dominant and non-enhancing lesion (NEL) dominant types. Quantitative volumetric analysis was used to support the dichotomization. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression analysis were used to stratify progression free survival (PFS) according to the treatment in the entire patients, CEL dominant group, and NEL dominant group.Results: In all patients, the PFS of those treated with bevacizumab was not significantly different from those treated with temozolomide (log-rank test, P=.96). When the contrast enhancing pattern was considered, bevacizumab was associated with longer PFS in the CEL dominant group (P=.031), whereas temozolomide showed longer PFS in the NEL dominant group (P=.022). Quantitative analysis revealed cut-offs for the proportion of solid-enhancing tumor of 13.7% for the CEL dominant group and 4.3% for the NEL dominant group. Conclusions: Patients with the CEL dominant type showed a better treatment response to bevacizumab, whereas NEL dominant types showed a better response to temozolomide. The contrast enhancing pattern on pre-treatment MRI can be used to stratify patients with IDH wild-type recurrent glioblastoma according to the effect of anti-angiogenic treatment.

Structural Identification of Metalloproteomes in Marine Diatoms, an Efficient Algae Model in Toxic Metals Bioremediation

The biosorption of pollutants using microbial organisms has received growing interest in the last decades. Diatoms, the most dominant group of phytoplankton in oceans, are (i) pollution tolerant species, (ii) excellent biological indicators of water quality, and (iii) efficient models in assimilation and detoxification of toxic metal ions. Published research articles connecting proteomics with the capacity of diatoms for toxic metal removal are very limited. In this work, we employed a structural based systematic approach to predict and analyze the metalloproteome of six species of marine diatoms: Thalassiosira pseudonana, Phaeodactylum tricornutum, Fragilariopsis cylindrus, Thalassiosira oceanica, Fistulifera solaris, and Pseudo-nitzschia multistriata. The results indicate that the metalloproteome constitutes a significant proportion (~13%) of the total diatom proteome for all species investigated, and the proteins binding non-essential metals (Cd, Hg, Pb, Cr, As, and Ba) are significantly more than those identified for essential metals (Zn, Cu, Fe, Ca, Mg, Mn, Co, and Ni). These findings are most likely related to the well-known toxic metal tolerance of diatoms. In this study, metalloproteomes that may be involved in metabolic processes and in the mechanisms of bioaccumulation and detoxification of toxic metals of diatoms after exposure to toxic metals were identified and described.

The “Supermen” Club: Organizational Secrecy and Masculine Identity in an Israeli National Security Organization

How does secrecy shape narratives of militarized hegemonic masculinity? This article assesses a gap at the intersection between theories of masculinities and organizational secrecy. Supported by 15 interviews with current and former male workers of a covert section of an Israeli national security organization, it argues that secrecy is experienced as both an external hurdle and a central component to the way that men internalize masculinity. Unable to access social capital outside the security organization, the respondents of the study construct a social field inside it through which they can assert their masculinity. They do so by conceptualizing their jobs, themselves, and the organization through a prism of sacrificial warriorhood, and actively incorporate secrecy’s constraints into a narrative of “super-men”. This study thus examines secrecy in the context of a militarized environment, showing the experience of masculinity and a perceived lack of power-access among members of a dominant group.

Individual Optimal Attentional Strategy in Motor Learning Tasks Characterized by Steady-State Somatosensory and Visual Evoked Potentials

Focus of attention is one of the most influential factors facilitating motor performance. Previous evidence supports that the external focus (EF) strategy, which directs attention to movement outcomes, is associated with better motor performance than the internal focus (IF) strategy, which directs attention to body movements. However, recent studies have reported that the EF strategy is not effective for some individuals. Furthermore, neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that the frontal and parietal areas characterize individual optimal attentional strategies for motor tasks. However, whether the sensory cortices are also functionally related to individual optimal attentional strategy remains unclear. Therefore, the present study examined whether an individual’s sensory processing ability would reflect the optimal attentional strategy. To address this point, we explored the relationship between responses in the early sensory cortex and individuals’ optimal attentional strategy by recording steady-state somatosensory evoked potentials (SSSEP) and steady-state visual evoked potentials (SSVEP). Twenty-six healthy young participants first performed a motor learning task with reaching movements under IF and EF conditions. Of the total sample, 12 individuals showed higher after-effects under the IF condition than the EF condition (IF-dominant group), whereas the remaining individuals showed the opposite trend (EF-dominant group). Subsequently, we measured SSSEP from bilateral primary somatosensory cortices while presenting vibrotactile stimuli and measured SSVEP from bilateral primary visual cortices while presenting checkerboard visual stimuli. The degree of increasing SSSEP response when the individuals in the IF-dominant group directed attention to vibrotactile stimuli was significantly more potent than those in the EF-dominant individuals. By contrast, the individuals in the EF-dominant group showed a significantly larger SSVEP increase while they directed attention to visual stimuli compared with the IF-dominant individuals. Furthermore, a significant correlation was observed such that individuals with more robust IF dominance showed more pronounced SSSEP attention modulation. These results suggest that the early sensory areas have crucial brain dynamics to characterize an individual’s optimal attentional strategy during motor tasks. The response characteristics may reflect the individual sensory processing ability, such as control of priority to the sensory inputs. Considering individual cognitive traits based on the suitable attentional strategy could enhance adaptability in motor tasks.

Macrozoobenthos in an altitudinal gradient in North Patagonian Cautín River (Araucanía Region, Chile)

The Cautín River is closely related with the economic development of Temuco city, (38°S; Chile). Existing knowledge of the Cautín River is limited to information about its biological characteristics as a reference for the evaluation and assessment of water quality. The object of this study was to develop taxonomic characterisation of the benthic macroinvertebrates along the main course of the Cautín River, and to study the community structure using correlation analysis between community parameters. To carry out this research, the macroinvertebrate community was studied in 10 sampling sites distributed along the main course of the river. The samples were taken in summer (1997 and 2000), when optimal hydrological conditions existed. Analysis of the samples showed that the benthic fauna was composed of 56 taxa, the dominant group being insects with 48 taxa. Three main sectors were recognised in the course of the Cautín River: high, middle and low. Each sector has restricted-distribution species, while other species are widely distributed along the river. These distribution patterns seem to be influenced by dissolved oxygen concentration, temperature, altitudinal distribution and anthropo-cultural activity, present at every sampling site. Finally, this research provides a first approach to the biology of the Cautín River. Further studies could be planned on the basis of this knowledge to investigate water quality indicators based on macroinvertebrate communities.

Spatio-temporal distribution patterns of Chironomidae communities in the wadis of Northern Tunisia

In Northern Tunisia, seasonal streams, called wadi, are characterized by extreme hydrological and thermal conditions. These freshwater systems have very particular features as a result of their strong irregularity of flow due to limited precipitation runoff regime, leading to strong seasonal hydrologic fluctuations. The current study focused on the spatio-temporal distribution of chironomids in 28 sampling sites spread across the Northern Tunisia. By emplying PERMANOVA, the results indicated a significant spatio-temporal variation along various environmental gradients. The main abiotic factors responsible for noted differences in the spatial distribution of chironomids in wadi were the conductivity and temperature, closely followed by altitude, pH, salinity, talweg slope and dissolved oxygen, identified as such by employing distance-based linear models’ procedure. The Distance-based redundancy analysis ordination showed two main groups: the first clustered the Bizerte sites, which were characterized by high water conductivity, sodium concentration and salinity. The second main group comprised sites from the Tell zone and was characterized by low temperatures, neutral pH, low conductivity and nutrients content. The subfamily TANYPODIINAE (e.g., Prochladius sp., Prochladius choerus (Meigen, 1804) and Macropelopia sp.) was the dominant group at Tell zone, whereas species such as Diamesa starmachi (Kownacki et Kownacha, 1970) and Potthastia gaedii (Meigen, 1838) were found only in Tell Wadis. In contrast, chironomid species such as Diamesa starmachi (Kownacki et Kownacha, 1970), Potthastia gaedii (Meigen, 1838), Procladius choreus (Meigen, 1804) were specific for Tell Mountain. Cap Bon wadis region was dominated by genus Cladotanytarsus sp. The results of this survey liked the taxonomic composition of chironomid assemblages to the variation of hydromorphological and physic-chemical gradients across the northern Tunisia wadis.

The COVID States Project #73: American Attitudes Toward Critical Race Theory

In a few short years, the scholarly approach known as Critical Race Theory (CRT) went from a relatively obscure academic framework to the new front in the American culture wars. CRT has made its way to the front pages of newspapers, cable news show’s primetime specials, Presidential executive orders, and a slate of laws and regulations dictating how history can be taught in public schools. Critical Race Theory1 is an academic movement of scholars who investigate and seek to change the existing power dynamic between race and racism in society.CRT began in the 1970s among legal scholars and has since influenced other fields such as sociology, education, and ethnic studies. CRT consists of several basic tenants or themes, although substantial individual variation exists across scholars. Among these is the notion that race is socially constructed (there is no biological basis for what we think of as race), the idea that racism is normalized as part of everyday society (it is entrenched in modern institutions and policies and can be difficult to combat), and the idea that the dominant group have little incentive to eliminate racism because the current racial hierarchy serves important material and psychological needs. Other themes in CRT include the idea of intersectionality which argues that belonging to multiple oppressed groups is a distinctive experience that is more than just the sum of its parts.

The Macroeconomics of Stratification

Stratification economics, which has emerged as a new subfield of research on inequality, is distinguished by a system-level analysis. It explores the role of power in influencing the processes and institutions that produce hierarchical economic and social orderings based on ascriptive characteristics. Macroeconomic factors play a role in buttressing stratification, especially by race and gender. Among the macroeconomic policy levers that produce and perpetuate intergroup inequality are monetary policy, fiscal expenditures, exchange rate policy, industrial policy, and trade, investment, and financial policies. These policies interact with a stratification “infrastructure,” comprised of racial and gender ideologies, norms, and stereotypes that are internalized at the individual level and act as a “stealth” factor in reproducing hierarchies. In stratified societies, racial and gender norms and stereotypes act to justify various forms of exclusion from prized economic assets such as good jobs. For example, gendered and racial stereotypes contribute to job segregation, with subordinated groups largely sequestered in the secondary labor market where wages are low and jobs are insecure. The net effect is that subordinated groups serve as shock absorbers that insulate members of the dominant group from the impact of negative macroeconomic phenomena such as unemployment and economic volatility. Further, racial and gender inequality have economy-wide effects, and play a role in determining the rate of economic growth and overall performance of an economy. The impact of intergroup inequality on macro-level outcomes depends on a country’s economic structure. While under some conditions, intergroup inequality acts as a stimulus to economic growth, under other conditions, it undermines societal well-being. Countries are not locked into a path whereby inequality has a positive or negative effect on growth. Rather, through their policy decisions, countries can choose the low road (stratification) or the high road (intergroup inequality). Thus, even if intergroup inequality has been a stimulus to growth in the past, it is possible to choose an equity-led growth path.

Waterbird assemblages of inland wetlands in Chile: A meta-analysis

Chile has a large number of wetlands that offer a wide variety of refuges and food to waterbird assemblages. This research hypothesises that these assemblages differ according to the structural characteristics of each type of inland wetland. The object is to identify the structure of these assemblages, evaluating their richness, alpha α diversity and some ecological characteristics, taxonomic structures and trophic guilds. We performed a meta-analysis by submitting pre-selected articles to multivariate reliability analysis. The selected articles were used to characterise the assemblages by alpha α diversity: species richness, Shannon-Wiener index, Pielou’s Evenness Index, relative abundance and taxonomic distinctiveness Δ + and beta β diversity: Bray-Curtis with analysis of similarity percentage. Diversity and evenness differed in the seven wetlands studied, among 12 to 45 species, Shannon-Wiener index H’= 0.08 to 0.94 bits and Pielou’s Evenness Index J’= 0.06 to 0.71. Four wetlands were below and three above the expected value for taxonomic distinctiveness (Δ +) (73.2 units). Two clusters were identified using the β diversity: one consisting of the High-Andean wetlands (Huasco and Negro Francisco); and the other of El Peral lagoon, the Cruces River wetlands complex and the Tranque San Rafael man-made wetland. The most remarkable dissimilarity was provided by three species (Cygnus melancoryphus, Phoenicoparrus jamesi and Phoenicoparrus andinus). Zoophagous species that eat invertebrates by the first choice are the dominant group, while in lagoon wetlands phytophages and omnivores are more evenly represented.

Evaluation of water quality of Çoruh River Basin (Turkey) using some biotic indices

In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the water quality of the Çoruh Basin using BMWP (Biological Monitoring Working Party) index, ASPT (Average Score Per Taxon) index, Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index, EPT (Ephemeroptera Plecoptera Trichoptera taxa), EP (Ephemeroptera Plecoptera taxa) index scores and benthic macroinvertebrates. The benthic macroinvertebrates were collected from 54 stations at the Çoruh basin between 2014-2016 years. Standard hand net (D-frame net) and Ekman-Birge grab were used as sampling tools. As a result of the diagnoses, a total of 7246 individuals belonging to Insecta, Crustacea, Mollusca, Oligochaeta and Plathyhelminthes were obtained. It was determined that the most dominant group was Insecta and the rarest group was Plathyhelminthes. It was observed that the BMWP score ranged between 5 and 94, and the lowest and highest number of families detected in the stations were 1 and 18, respectively. It was determined that the Shannon Wiener diversity index value was between 0.54-2.20, therefore the basin streams generally showed moderate pollution. The results of BMWP index show that the basin streams had mostly show 3rd and 4th class water quality and also biodiversity decreases with the deterioration of the riverbed or exposure to pollution.