Sources of community : mythical groundwork of Early Modern identities

Jakub Koryl’s lengthy chapter, “Sources of Community: Mythical Groundwork of Early Modern Identities”, stands out in terms of its theoretical nature and comprehensive scope. At the same time it goes to the heart of the question of confessional identity and otherness, and thus provides an illuminating perspective on many of the themes covered in both this section and the volume as a whole. Drawing on case-studies from both the Lutheran and Catholic Reformation, Korylseeksto offer a newaccount of confessional-identity building from the late Middle Ages through to the Enlightenment. In particular, he argues that in the early modern period the theme of myth - and especially the rival German and Roman “myths” of Reformation - became the driving force for the creation of new confessional identities, harnessing and uniting into one powerful synthesis, social, intellectual, political and religious forces. Then, following in the footsteps of Hans Blumenberg, Charles Taylor and others, Koryl traces the roots of the modern conception of identity to late medieval Nominalism and its overturning of the medieval analogical and hierarchical understanding of reality. According to Koryl, it was this philosophical move which helped release the creative - and destructive - interplay of forces that shaped the early modern confessional landscape for the next two centuries. Importantly, this situation gave minority views a new voice in European affairs, allowing them eventually to construct their own (secular) myths and take on the dominant, majority role they exercise in the world today

Effect of Alirocumab on Lipoprotein(a) and Cardiovascular Risk After Acute Coronary Syndrome

BACKGROUND Lipoprotein(a) concentration is associated with cardiovascular events. Alirocumab, a proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 inhibitor, lowers lipoprotein(a) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C).OBJECTIVES A pre-specified analysis of the placebo-controlled ODYSSEY Outcomes trial in patients with recent acute coronary syndrome (ACS) determined whether alirocumab-induced changes in lipoprotein(a) and LDL-C independently predicted major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE).METHODS One to 12 months after ACS, 18,924 patients on high-intensity statin therapy were randomized to alirocumab or placebo and followed for 2.8 years (median). Lipoprotein(a) was measured at randomization and 4 and 12 months thereafter. The primary MACE outcome was coronary heart disease death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, or hospitalization for unstable angina.RESULTS Baseline lipoprotein(a) levels (median: 21.2 mg/dl; interquartile range [IQR]: 6.7 to 59.6 mg/dl) and LDL-C [corrected for cholesterol content in lipoprotein(a)] predicted MACE. Alirocumab reduced lipoprotein(a) by 5.0 mg/dl (IQR: 0 to 13.5 mg/dl), corrected LDL-C by 51.1 mg/dl (IQR: 33.7 to 67.2 mg/dl), and reduced the risk of MACE (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.85; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.78 to 0.93). Alirocumab-induced reductions of lipoprotein(a) and corrected LDL-C independently predicted lower risk of MACE, after adjustment for baseline concentrations of both lipoproteins and demographic and clinical characteristics. A 1-mg/dl reduction in lipoprotein(a) with alirocumab was associated with a HR of 0.994 (95% CI: 0.990 to 0.999; p = 0.0081).CONCLUSIONS Baseline lipoprotein(a) and corrected LDL-C levels and their reductions by alirocumab predicted the risk of MACE after recent ACS. Lipoprotein(a) lowering by alirocumab is an independent contributor to MACE reduction, which suggests that lipoprotein(a) should be an independent treatment target after ACS. (ODYSSEY Outcomes: Evaluation of Cardiovascular Outcomes After an Acute Coronary Syndrome During Treatment With Alirocumab; NCT01663402) (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier on behalf of the American College of Cardiology Foundation.Fondation Assistance Publique - Hopitaux de Paris, Paris, Franc