1,721,348 research outputs found
Macrophage Plasticity and Polarization: Relevance to Biomaterials
No full textDiversity and plasticity are hallmarks of mononuclear phagocytes. In response to microenvironmental signals, macrophages may undergo M1 (classical) or M2 (alternative) activation, which represent extremes of a continuum in a spectrum of activation states. In addition to the known properties of macrophage phenotypes in host defense and cancer growth and progression, new perspectives in regenerative medicine have revisited the role of macrophages in tissue repair and host response to implantable biomaterials. Emerging data suggest that implanted biomaterials may actively interact with macrophages and modify their polarization state, thus decisively affecting the functional outcome of the implants. The further clarification of mechanisms and molecules involved in biomaterials-induced macrophage-polarized activation could provide new basis to optimize therapeutic approaches and improve patient outcomes
NF-κB as a potential therapeutic target in microbial diseases.
No full textThe failure of conventional vaccines or antimicrobials to combat newly emerging pathogens such as new influenza viruses or antibiotic-resistant bacteria provides significant challenges in the identification of innovative therapeutic approaches and targets for microbial infections. Such therapies, directed towards host-cell molecules, may represent alternative options where conventional approaches face difficulties. We will largely focus on those strategies that directly target the host inflammatory response, specifically those that result in the activation of the nuclear transcription factor (NF)-κB. NF-κB plays a central role in the cellular stress response and in inflammation by controlling the expression of a network of inducers and effectors that define responses to pathogens. Therefore, the modulation of NF-κB activation and its signaling pathway offer an exceptional therapeutical strategy that could benefit from targeting a single host regulatory pathway. The use of NF-κB inhibitors or enhancers will be possible only if modulation between the host's and pathogen's advantage can be reached. Since different pathogens have developed various mechanisms to alter the activation of NF-κB, the present review will mainly focus on the role of NF-κB in microbial infections, highlighting its importance as a therapeutic target and reviewing the current understanding of how NF-κB inhibition can be considered a potential paradigm for the development of novel antimicrobial therapies
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
CMTM4 as a new partner for IL‐17 receptor: Adding a piece in the puzzle of IL17‐driven diseases
No full textInsulin regulates IL-1α, IFN-γ IL-4 release from murine splenocytes stimulated with staphylococcal protein A, toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 and streptococcal lysin S
No full text
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
- …
