פרסומים

OBJECTIVE: Values have been found to predict aggressive behavior in adolescents. Adolescents who endorse self-enhancement values typically exhibit more aggressive behaviors, while adolescents who endorse self-transcendent values are less likely to behave aggressively. The associations between values and aggression are low to moderate, suggesting that other factors might moderate them. The study examined whether these associations were moderated by adolescent popularity, an indication of social power. METHOD: The study included 906 adolescents from three cultures: Brazilians (N = 244), Jewish citizens of Israel (N = 250), and Arabic citizens of Israel (N = 409). Personal values were assessed using the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ). Peer nominations were used to assess direct aggression and popularity. RESULTS: Popularity moderated the associations between values and aggression: while the aggressive behavior of popular adolescents was highly associated with their personal values, the behavior of unpopular adolescents was unrelated to their values. This effect consistently emerged across samples, with specific variations for gender and culture. CONCLUSION: Popularity enables adolescents to act according to their personal values: aggressive behaviors increase or decrease according to personal value priorities. The strength of this effect depends on cultural expectations and gender roles.

OBJECTIVE: Values have been found to predict aggressive behavior in adolescents. Adolescents who endorse self-enhancement values typically exhibit more aggressive behaviors, while adolescents who endorse self-transcendent values are less likely to behave aggressively. The associations between values and aggression are low to moderate, suggesting that other factors might moderate them. The study examined whether these associations were moderated by adolescent popularity, an indication of social power. METHOD: The study included 906 adolescents from three cultures: Brazilians (N = 244), Jewish citizens of Israel (N = 250), and Arabic citizens of Israel (N = 409). Personal values were assessed using the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ). Peer nominations were used to assess direct aggression and popularity. RESULTS: Popularity moderated the associations between values and aggression: while the aggressive behavior of popular adolescents was highly associated with their personal values, the behavior of unpopular adolescents was unrelated to their values. This effect consistently emerged across samples, with specific variations for gender and culture. CONCLUSION: Popularity enables adolescents to act according to their personal values: aggressive behaviors increase or decrease according to personal value priorities. The strength of this effect depends on cultural expectations and gender roles.

REV-ERB alpha is a nuclear receptor that inhibits Bmal1 transcription as part of the circadian clock molecular mechanism. Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) complex 1 (mTORC1) is a master regulator of cell and whole-body energy homeostasis, that serves as an important link between metabolism and circadian clock, in part, by regulating BMAL1 activity. While the connection of REV-ERB alpha to the circadian clock molecular mechanism is well characterized, the interaction between mTORC1, REV-ERB alpha and the circadian clock machinery is not very clear. We used leucine and rapamycin to modulate mTORC1 activation and evaluate this effect on circadian rhythms. In the liver, mTORC1 was inhibited by leucine. REV-ERB alpha overexpression activated the mTORC1 signaling pathway via transcription inhibition of mTORC1 inhibitor, Tsc1, antagonizing the effect of leucine, while its silencing downregulated mTORC1 signaling. Activation of mTORC1 led to increased BMAL1 phosphorylation. Activation as well as inhibition of mTORC1 led to altered circadian rhythms in mouse muscle. Inhibition of liver mTORC1 by leucine or rapamycin led to low-amplitude circadian rhythms. In summary, our study shows that leucine inhibits liver mTORC1 pathway leading to dampened circadian rhythms. REV-ERB alpha activates the mTORC1 pathway, leading to phosphorylation of the clock protein BMAL1.

Smell loss is important for coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) screening and diagnosis. Particular attention should be paid to individuals with pre-COVID-19 chronic hyposmia or anosmia. We report a case of reversible taste impairment in a COVID-19 patient with chronically impaired sense of smell. This case emphasizes the importance of COVID-19-related taste assessment.

The occurrence of microbial challenges in commercial poultry farming causes significant economic losses. Antibiotics have been used to control diseases involving bacterial infection in poultry. As the incidence of antibiotic resistance turns out to be a serious problem, there is increased pressure on producers to reduce antibiotic use. With the reduced availability of antibiotics, poultry producers are looking for feed additives to stimulate the immune system of the chicken to resist microbial infection. Some beta-glucans have been shown to improve gut health, to increase the flow of new immunocytes, increase macrophage function, stimulate phagocytosis, affect intestinal morphology, enhance goblet cell number and mucin-2 production, induce the increased expression of intestinal tight-junctions, and function as effective anti-inflammatory immunomodulators in poultry. As a result, beta-glucans may provide a new tool for producers trying to reduce or eliminate the use of antibiotics in fowl diets. The specific activity of each beta-glucan subtype still needs to be investigated. Upon knowledge, optimal beta-glucan mixtures may be implemented in order to obtain optimal growth performance, exert anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory activity, and optimized intestinal morphology and histology responses in poultry. This review provides an extensive overview of the current use of beta glucans as additives and putative use as antibiotic alternative in poultry.

The incidence of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases has increased over the last decades and is an important cause of death worldwide. An upcoming ingredient on the nutraceutical market are anthocyanins, a flavonoid subgroup, abundant mostly in berries and fruits. Epidemiological studies have suggested an association between anthocyanin intake and improved cardiovascular risk, type 2 diabetes and myocardial infarct. Clinical studies using anthocyanins have shown a significant decrease in inflammation markers and oxidative stress, a beneficial effect on vascular function and hyperlipidemia by decreasing low-density lipoprotein and increasing high-density lipoprotein. They have also shown a potential effect on glucose homeostasis and cognitive decline. This review summarizes the effects of anthocyanins in in-vitro, animal and human studies to give an overview of their application in medical prevention or as a dietary supplement.

In eukaryotes, stalled and collided ribosomes are recognized by several conserved multicomponent systems, which either block protein synthesis in situ and resolve the collision locally, or trigger a general stress response. Yeast ribosome-binding GTPases RBG1 (DRG1 in mammals) and RBG2 (DRG2) form two distinct heterodimers with TMA46 (DFRP1) and GIR2 (DFRP2), respectively, both involved in mRNA translation. Accumulated evidence suggests that the dimers play partially redundant roles in elongation processivity and resolution of ribosome stalling and collision events, as well as in the regulation of GCN1-mediated signaling involved in ribosome-associated quality control (RQC). They also genetically interact with SLH1 (ASCC3) helicase, a key component of RQC trigger (RQT) complex disassembling collided ribosomes. Here, we present RNA-Seq and ribosome profiling (Ribo-Seq) data from S. cerevisiae strains with individual deletions of the TMA46 and GIR2 genes. Raw RNA-Seq and Ribo-Seq data as well as gene-level read counts are available in NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) repository under GEO accession GSE185458 and GSE185286.