Democracy, protest and public sphere in Russia after the 2011–2012 anti-government protests: digital media at stake

The 2011–2012 Russian protest mobilisations were largely enabled by the rise of social networks. Social and technological advancements paired to pave the way for the ‘biggest protests since the fall of USSR’. Ubiquitous and uncensored social media facilitated the networking and mobilisation for this protest activity: Liberal masses were able to share and discuss their grievances, unite and coordinate online for the offline protest. The digitally savvy protest public developed to confront the government, which appeared to be astonished by the scale of protest. Those mobilisations marked an important gap between the government’s conception of the society and the real state of resistance. This article studies three main hypotheses regarding the potential of the protest movement in Russia. The hypotheses were drawn from recent sociological, political and media studies on Russian resistance. Current research aims to contribute to the debate from the digital media perspective. It therefore evaluates three main assumptions: Digital media have the potential to empower, dependent upon the relevant political, social and economic factors; digital media isolates protest publics and therefore may be more useful for the government than the resistance; and recent censorship of digital media communication signals a tightening of both formal and informal restrictions against opposition and protest politics. This article uses theoretical and factual evidence on the limitations of democracy and the public sphere and conceptualises the government’s management of resistance in Russia during and after the 2011–2012 protests. It studies how the hybrid political regime in Russia balances restrictions on freedom of speech with strengthened state propaganda and how it mediates media oppression and invites self-censorship. Finally, it examines how the state communication watchdog has recently focused its attention at the digital realm. This move confirms the importance of the online protest communication for the Russian political environment. Yet the state’s acknowledgement of digital political resistance may lead to further oppression and curbing of this emerging component of Russian politics

Evaluating the feasibility of using candidate DNA barcodes in discriminating species of the large Asteraceae family

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Five DNA regions, namely, <it>rbcL</it>, <it>matK</it>, ITS, ITS2, and <it>psbA-trnH</it>, have been recommended as primary DNA barcodes for plants. Studies evaluating these regions for species identification in the large plant taxon, which includes a large number of closely related species, have rarely been reported.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The feasibility of using the five proposed DNA regions was tested for discriminating plant species within Asteraceae, the largest family of flowering plants. Among these markers, ITS2 was the most useful in terms of universality, sequence variation, and identification capability in the Asteraceae family. The species discriminating power of ITS2 was also explored in a large pool of 3,490 Asteraceae sequences that represent 2,315 species belonging to 494 different genera. The result shows that ITS2 correctly identified 76.4% and 97.4% of plant samples at the species and genus levels, respectively. In addition, ITS2 displayed a variable ability to discriminate related species within different genera.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>ITS2 is the best DNA barcode for the Asteraceae family. This approach significantly broadens the application of DNA barcoding to resolve classification problems in the family Asteraceae at the genera and species levels.</p

Effectiveness of motivational interviewing and physical activity on prescription on leisure exercise time in subjects suffering from mild to moderate hypertension

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Physical inactivity is considered to be the strongest individual risk factor for poor health in Sweden. It has been shown that increased physical activity can reduce hypertension and the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. The objective of the present pilot study was to investigate whether a combination of Motivational Interviewing (MI) and Physical Activity on Prescription (PAP) would increase leisure exercise time and subsequently improve health-related variables.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This pilot study was of a repeated measures design, with a 15 months intervention in 31 patients with mild to moderate hypertension. Primary outcome parameter was leisure exercise time and secondary outcome parameters were changes in blood pressure, Body Mass Index (BMI), waist circumference, lipid status, glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and maximal oxygen uptake (VO_{2 max}). Assessments of the outcome parameters were made at baseline and after 3, 9 and 15 months.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Leisure exercise time improved significantly from < 60 min/week at baseline to a mean activity level of 300 (± 165) minutes/week at 15 months follow up. Furthermore, statistically significant improvements (p < 0.05) were observed in systolic (-14,5 ± 8.3 mmHg) and diastolic blood pressure (-5,1 ± 5.8 mmHg), heart rate (-4.9 ± 8.7 beats/min, weight (-1.2 ± 3.4 kg) BMI -0.6 ± 1.2 kg/m²), waist circumference (-3.5 ± 4.1 cm) as well as in VO_{2 max}(2.94 ± 3.8 ml/kg and 0.23, ± 0.34 lit/min) upon intervention as compared to baseline.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>A 15 month intervention period with MI, in combination with PAP, significantly increased leisure exercise time and improved health-related variables in hypertensive patients. This outcome warrants further research to investigate the efficacy of MI and PAP in the treatment of mild to moderate hypertension.</p

Antihypertensives for combating dementia? A perspective on candidate molecular mechanisms and population-based prevention

Age-related increases in prevalent dementia over the next 30–40 years risk collapsing medical resources or radically altering the way we treat patients. Better prevention of dementia therefore needs to be one of our highest medical priorities. We propose a perspective on the pathological basis of dementia based on a cerebrovascular-Alzheimer disease spectrum that provides a more powerful explanatory framework when considering the impact of possible public health interventions. With this in mind, a synthesis of evidence from basic, clinical and epidemiological studies indeed suggests that the enhanced treatment of hypertension could be effective for the primary prevention of dementia of either Alzheimer or vascular etiology. In particular, we focus on candidate preventative mechanisms, including reduced cerebrovascular disease, disruption of hypoxia-dependent amyloidogenesis and the potential neuroprotective properties of calcium channel blockers. Following the successful translation of large, long-term and resource-intense trials in cardiology into improved vascular health outcomes in many countries, new multinational prevention trials with dementia-related primary outcomes are now urgently required

The neuropathology of autism: defects of neurogenesis and neuronal migration, and dysplastic changes

Autism is characterized by a broad spectrum of clinical manifestations including qualitative impairments in social interactions and communication, and repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior. Abnormal acceleration of brain growth in early childhood, signs of slower growth of neurons, and minicolumn developmental abnormalities suggest multiregional alterations. The aim of this study was to detect the patterns of focal qualitative developmental defects and to identify brain regions that are prone to developmental alterations in autism. Formalin-fixed brain hemispheres of 13 autistic (4–60 years of age) and 14 age-matched control subjects were embedded in celloidin and cut into 200-μm-thick coronal sections, which were stained with cresyl violet and used for neuropathological evaluation. Thickening of the subependymal cell layer in two brains and subependymal nodular dysplasia in one brain is indicative of active neurogenesis in two autistic children. Subcortical, periventricular, hippocampal and cerebellar heterotopias detected in the brains of four autistic subjects (31%) reflect abnormal neuronal migration. Multifocal cerebral dysplasia resulted in local distortion of the cytoarchitecture of the neocortex in four brains (31%), of the entorhinal cortex in two brains (15%), of the cornu Ammonis in four brains and of the dentate gyrus in two brains. Cerebellar flocculonodular dysplasia detected in six subjects (46%), focal dysplasia in the vermis in one case, and hypoplasia in one subject indicate local failure of cerebellar development in 62% of autistic subjects. Detection of flocculonodular dysplasia in only one control subject and of a broad spectrum of focal qualitative neuropathological developmental changes in 12 of 13 examined brains of autistic subjects (92%) reflects multiregional dysregulation of neurogenesis, neuronal migration and maturation in autism, which may contribute to the heterogeneity of the clinical phenotype

Valganciclovir for Symptomatic Congenital Cytomegalovirus Disease

BACKGROUND: The treatment of symptomatic congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease with intravenous ganciclovir for 6 weeks has been shown to improve audiologic outcomes at 6 months, but the benefits wane over time. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, placebo-controlled trial of valganciclovir therapy in neonates with symptomatic congenital CMV disease, comparing 6 months of therapy with 6 weeks of therapy. The primary end point was the change in hearing in the better ear (“best-ear” hearing) from baseline to 6 months. Secondary end points included the change in hearing from baseline to follow-up at 12 and 24 months and neurodevelopmental outcomes, with each end point adjusted for central nervous system involvement at baseline. RESULTS: A total of 96 neonates underwent randomization, of whom 86 had follow-up data at 6 months that could be evaluated. Best-ear hearing at 6 months was similar in the 6-month group and the 6-week group (2 and 3 participants, respectively, had improvement; 36 and 37 had no change; and 5 and 3 had worsening; P=0.41). Totalear hearing (hearing in one or both ears that could be evaluated) was more likely to be improved or to remain normal at 12 months in the 6-month group than in the 6-week group (73% vs. 57%, P=0.01). The benefit in total-ear hearing was maintained at 24 months (77% vs. 64%, P=0.04). At 24 months, the 6-month group, as compared with the 6-week group, had better neurodevelopmental scores on the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, third edition, on the language-composite component (P=0.004) and on the receptive-communication scale (P=0.003). Grade 3 or 4 neutropenia occurred in 19% of the participants during the first 6 weeks. During the next 4.5 months of the study, grade 3 or 4 neutropenia occurred in 21% of the participants in the 6-month group and in 27% of those in the 6-week group (P=0.64). CONCLUSIONS: Treating symptomatic congenital CMV disease with valganciclovir for 6 months, as compared with 6 weeks, did not improve hearing in the short term but appeared to improve hearing and developmental outcomes modestly in the longer term. (Funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00466817.

Detecting impacts of invasive non-native sharptooth catfish, Clarias gariepinus, within invaded and non-invaded rivers.

In aquatic ecosystems, impacts by invasive introduced fish can be likened to press disturbances that persistently influence communities. This study examined invasion disturbances by determining the relationship between non-native sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus and aquatic macroinvertebrates in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. A Multiple Before–After Control–Impact (MBACI) experimental design was used to examine macroinvertebrate communities within two rivers: one with catfish and another one without catfish. Within the invaded river, macroinvertebrates showed little response to catfish presence, whereas predator exclusion appeared to benefit community structure. This suggests that the macroinvertebrate community within the invaded river was adapted to predation impact because of the dominance of resilient taxa, such as Hirudinea, Oligochaeta and Chironomidae that were abundant in the Impact treatment relative to the Control treatment. High macroinvertebrate diversity and richness that was observed in the Control treatment, which excluded the predator, relative to the Impact treatment suggests predator avoidance behaviour within the invaded river. By comparison, within the uninvaded river, catfish introduction into the Impact treatment plots indicated negative effects on macroinvertebrate community that was reflected by decrease in diversity, richness and biomass. A community level impact was also reflected in the multivariate analysis that indicated more variation in macroinvertebrate composition within the Impact treatment relative to the Control in the uninvaded river. Catfish impact within the uninvaded river suggests the dominance of vulnerable taxa, such as odonates that were less abundant in the Impact treatment plots after catfish introduction. From a disturbance perspective, this study revealed different macroinvertebrate responses to catfish impact, and suggests that within invaded habitats, macroinvertebrates were less responsive to catfish presence, whereas catfish introduction within uninvaded habitats demonstrated invasion impact that was shown by a decrease in the abundance of vulnerable taxa. The occurrence of non-native sharptooth catfish within many Eastern Cape rivers is a concern because of its predation impact and potential to influence trophic interrelationships, and efforts should be taken to protect uninvaded rivers, and, where possible, eradicate the invader