Exploring the Strategic Use of TikTok for Clinical Trial Recruitment: How audiences' Prior Short-Form Video Usage Influences Persuasive Effects.

Guided by the elaboration likelihood model and framing theory, this study explores the potential of short-form video platforms (e.g. TikTok), for targeted clinical trial recruitment. An online experiment compared doctor vs. peer-led videos addressing logistical or psychological barriers to participation, mimicking common TikTok communication tactics. Results indicate that high (vs. low) TikTok users are more persuaded by recruitment messages, and they exhibit stronger intentions to participate in clinical trials. Although doctor-sourced messages generate greater credibility and a more favorable message attitude, peer-sourced messages may be more effective in increasing participation intention. Lastly, doctor-sourced videos that address logistical barriers and peer-sourced videos that discuss psychological barriers result in higher self-efficacy for clinical trial participation. This study contributes to the growing body of research on new media's role in health communication and provides insights into how to strategically utilize TikTok and other short-form video platforms for clinical trial recruitment.

"Trust Me, I'm a Doctor." How TikTok Videos from Different Sources Influence Clinical Trial Participation.

This study experiments with TikTok videos to promote clinical trial participation. More specifically, it examines how short-form video sources (doctors vs. prior volunteers for clinical trials) influence perceived source credibility, self-efficacy, and behavioral intention to participate in clinical trials. Findings from this online experiment (N = 396) showed that doctor sources led to greater behavioral intention through enhancing source credibility compared to prior volunteer sources. Alternatively, prior volunteer sources increased behavioral intention via enhanced self-efficacy for participants with low trust in doctors. These findings contribute to the understanding of how short-form video sources act as heuristic cues, leading to persuasion outcomes. Overall, we recommend featuring doctors when using video-based messages to promote clinical trial participation. Also, this study emphasizes the need for health communication practitioners to consider prior volunteers as spokespersons when targeting populations with low baseline trust in doctors.

Using Short-Form Videos to Get Clinical Trial Newcomers to Sign Up: Message-Testing Experiment.

BACKGROUND: Recruiting participants for clinical trials poses challenges. Major barriers to participation include psychological factors (eg, fear and mistrust) and logistical constraints (eg, transportation, cost, and scheduling). The strategic design of clinical trial messaging can help overcome these barriers. While strategic communication can be done through various channels (eg, recruitment advertisements), health care providers on the internet have been found to be key sources for communicating clinical trial information to US adults in the social media era. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to examine how communication source (ie, medical doctors and peers) and message framing of TikTok videos (ie, psychological and logistical framing) influence clinical trial-related attitudes, perceptions, and sign-up behaviors under the guidance of the integrated behavioral model. METHODS: This study used a 2 (source: doctor vs peer) × 2 (framing: psychological vs logistical) between-participant factorial design web-based experiment targeting adults in the United States who had never participated in clinical trials (ie, newcomers). A Qualtrics panel was used to recruit and compensate the study respondents (n=561). Participants viewed short-form videos with doctors or peers, using psychological or logistical framing. The main outcome measures included perceived source credibility, self-efficacy, attitude toward clinical trial participation, behavioral intention, and sign-up behavior. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the direct and indirect effects of message factors on the outcome variables. Source (doctor=1; peer=0) and framing (psychological=1; logistical=0) were dummy-coded. RESULTS: Doctor-featured messages led to greater perceived source credibility (ß=.31, P<.001), leading to greater self-efficacy (95% CI 0.13-0.30), which in turn enhanced behavioral intention (95% CI 0.12-0.29) and clinical trial sign-up behavior (95% CI 0.02-0.04). Logistical barrier-framed messages led to greater self-efficacy (ß=-.09, P=.02), resulting in higher intention to participate in clinical trials (95% CI -0.38 to -0.03) and improved sign-up behavior (95% CI -0.06 to -0.004). Logistical barrier-framed messages were also directly associated with an increased likelihood of signing up for a clinical trial (ß=-.08, P=.03). The model accounted for 21% of the variance in clinical trial sign-up behavior. Attitude did not significantly affect behavioral intention in this study (ß=.08, P=.14), and psychological and logistical barrier-framed messages did not significantly differ in attitudes toward clinical trial participation (ß=-.04, P=.09). CONCLUSIONS: These findings advance our understanding of how people process popular message characteristics in short-form videos and lend practical guidance for communicators. We encourage medical professionals to consider short-form video sites (eg, TikTok and Instagram Reels) as effective tools for discussing clinical trials and participation opportunities. Specifically, featuring doctors discussing efforts to reduce logistical barriers is recommended. Our measuring of actual behavior as an outcome is a rare and noteworthy contribution to this research.

Sustainable upcycling of copper from waste printed circuit boards with the assistance of tannic acid and Fe3+ to a magnetic heterogeneous catalyst.

The recovery and upcycling of metals from electronic waste into functional materials for wastewater treatment is a win-win strategy for simultaneously realizing electronic waste recycling and wastewater purification. This study focused on converting Cu from waste printed boards (PCBs), a common Cu-rich electronic waste, into CuFe2O4 supported on a mesoporous carbon framework (PCFT) with the assistance of Fe3+ and tannic acid (TA). Compared to the PCF prepared without TA, the resulting PCFT exhibited excellent magnetic properties, high crystallinity, lower interfacial transfer resistance, more abundant oxygen vacancies (OV), and lower metal leaching. Moreover, PCFT can serve as a superior heterogeneous catalyst to activate peroxymonosulfate to remove reactive brilliant blue KN-R from wastewater, and its catalytic activity was markedly higher than that of CFT synthesized with Cu(NO3)2·3H2O, which may be due to its higher specific surface area and more abundant OV. The combined results of scavenging experiments, electron paramagnetic resonance analysis, and electrochemical measurements implied that both radical and nonradical processes promoted the elimination of KN-R; however, •OH and SO4•- were not the major contributors. Furthermore, the PCFT exhibited high adaptability to pH and water matrices, confirming its practical application potential. These findings provide a novel strategy for the upcycling of metals from electronic waste.

Effect of folic acid supplementation in the association between short sleep duration and gestational diabetes mellitus.

PURPOSE: To examine whether or not folic acid (FA) supplementation may modify the relationships between duration or quality of sleep and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) risk. METHODS: In a case-control study of patients with GDM and controls, mothers were interviewed face-to-face at enrollment. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Scale was used to assess duration and quality of sleep during early pregnancy, and information on FA supplementation and covariates was obtained using a semiquantitative questionnaire. RESULTS: Among 396 patients with GDM and 904 controls, GDM risk increased by 328% and 148% among women with short (< 7 h) and long (≥ 9 h) sleep durations, respectively, compared to those averaging 7-8.9 h sleep. Mothers with poor sleep quality increased their GDM risk by an average of 75% (all p < 0.05). The effect of short sleep duration on GDM risk was much weaker among women with adequate FA supplementation (taking supplements containing ≥ 0.4 mg FA daily for each day of the first three months of pregnancy) than that among women with inadequate FA supplementation, with a p-value for interaction = 0.003. There were no significant effects of FA on links among long duration and poor quality of sleep with GDM risk. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep duration and quality in early gestation were related to increased GDM risks. FA supplementation may reduce GDM risk associated with short sleep duration.

Waiting for a Match: Mitigating Reactance in Prosocial Health Behavior Using Psychological Distance.

This study examined how psychological distance, both social and temporal, can be leveraged in prosocial health behavior messages to mitigate perceived psychological reactance. Following the construal level and psychological reactance theories, we conducted a 2 × 2 between-subjects factorial design (N = 245), which manipulated naturalistic messages regarding a prosocial communications campaign. Structural equation modeling showed that far temporal distance combined with far social distance could significantly reduce threat to freedom and therefore positively affect attitudes and behavioral intentions toward prosocial health topics. The effect of social distance was found not significant, differing from past findings. Further, intertwined and parallel psychological reactance models were tested and discussed. We suggest the need for more psychological reactance research, particularly examining prosocial health behavior. Strategies for practical persuasion strategies in prosocial messages are proposed.

Overcoming Black Americans' Psychological and Cognitive Barriers to Clinical Trial Participation: Effects of News Framing and Exemplars.

This study examines how news features (framing and the use of exemplars) can help overcome two common barriers (psychological and cognitive) impeding Black American participation in clinical trials. In an online experiment, Black participants (N = 390) viewed social media news posts varying in framing (focus on psychological vs. cognitive barriers) and use of an exemplar (present vs. absent and White vs. Black) and then responded to outcome measures including perceived message effectiveness, message attitudes, and intention to participate in clinical trials. The findings illustrate that including a racially matched (i.e. Black) exemplar improves attitudes toward clinical trial messages. Most notably, featuring a race-matched exemplar increases intention to participate in a trial when the messages discuss psychological barriers. These findings enhance our understanding of how messages can be better designed to increase Black American participation in clinical trials, thereby contributing to reducing health inequities and improving health outcomes.

The association between systemic inflammatory response index and new-onset atrial fibrillation in patients with ST-elevated myocardial infarction treated with percutaneous coronary intervention.

BACKGROUND: New-onset atrial fibrillation (NOAF) complicating with ST-elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is associated with worse prognosis. The systemic inflammatory response index (SIRI), serves as a novel inflammatory indicator, is found to be predictive of adverse outcomes. The aim of this study is to explore the association between NOAF and SIRI. METHODS: A retrospective data included 616 STEMI participants treated with PCI in our cardiology department had been analyzed in present investigation, of which being divided into a NOAF or sinus rhythm (SR) group based on the presence or absence of atrial fibrillation. The predictive role of SIRI for in detecting NOAF had been evaluated by the logistic regression analyses and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Additionally, long-term all-cause mortality between both groups was compared using the Kaplan-Meier test. RESULTS: NOAF during hospitalization developed in 7.6% of PCI-treated individuals. After multivariate regression analyses, SIRI remains to be an independently predictor of NOAF (odds ratio 1.782, 95% confidence interval 1.675-1.906, P = 0.001). In the ROC curve analysis, SIRI with a cut-off value of 4.86 was calculated to predict NOAF, with 4.86, with a sensitivity of 80.85% and a specificity of 75.57%, respectively (area under the curve (AUC) = 0.826, P < 0.001). Furthermore, pairwise compassion of ROC curves displayed the superiority of SIRI in the prediction of NOAF in comparison with that of neutrophil/lymphocyte or monocyte/lymphocyte (P < 0.05). In addition, the participants in NOAF group had a significantly higher incidence of all-cause death compared to those in SR group after a median of 40-month follow-up (22.0% vs 5.8%, log-rank P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: SIRI can independently predict NOAF in patients with STEMI after PCI, with being positively correlated to worsened outcomes.

An informed approach to the development of primary care pediatric firearm safety messages.

BACKGROUND: Firearm ownership is prevalent in the US and many children spend time in areas where firearms are not stored safely. The AAP recommends firearm safety counseling at pediatric well-visits. METHODS: We developed and tested six contextual messages to promote safe firearm storage based on: absence of harm, collective appeal to understanding child behavior, pediatrician's authority, evidence-based, fear appeal, and general safety considerations. One hundred four parents who keep firearms at home were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk Prime and viewed video messages and reported behavioral intentions and emotional reactions following each message. RESULTS: All six contextual messages were perceived as important and believable and increased parents' intentions to follow safety advice provided, but also elicited negative emotions. The authority message elicited more negative emotions and resulted in lower intentions to follow safe storage advice. CONCLUSIONS: Including firearm messages with other child safety advice merits further evaluation. Authority messages should be avoided.

Improving rural White men's attitudes toward clinical trial messaging and participation: effects of framing, exemplars and trust.

This study examined whether framing, exemplar presence and exemplar race in social media news posts influence rural White men's perceptions, attitudes and behavioral intentions toward clinical trial participation, and if so, how individual trust in doctors moderates the effects of these three factors. An experiment with a 2 within (framing: cognitive versus psychological barriers) × 2 within (exemplar: present versus absent) × 2 between (exemplar race: White versus Black) subjects mixed factorial design was conducted among rural White men (N = 208). Twelve social media news posts about clinical trial participation were created for the experiment. Results revealed that respondents had greater behavioral intentions to participate in clinical trials after seeing posts with exemplars present (versus absent). When news posts addressed cognitive barriers (e.g. lacking knowledge about the value of clinical trials), the presence of exemplars enhanced perceived self-efficacy to participate in clinical trials. Participants with lower trust in doctors reported more favorable attitudes to posts with exemplars, and the posts with Black exemplars were perceived as more effective (approaching statistical significance). When communicating about clinical trials to rural White men, health professionals should consider including exemplars and addressing cognitive barriers to participation.

Waste eggshell-supported CuO used as heterogeneous catalyst for reactive blue 19 degradation through peroxymonosulfate activation (CuO/eggshell catalysts activate PMS to degrade reactive blue 19).

Advanced oxidation processes play an important role in the removal of organic pollutants from wastewater, in which it is essential to develop an eco-friendly, effective, stable, and inexpensive catalyst. Herein, waste eggshell-supported copper oxide (CuO/eggshell) was synthesized via a facile method and employed as peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activator for the elimination of reactive blue 19 (RB19). CuO/eggshell exhibited high degradation efficiency of RB19 (approximately 100%) by activation of PMS under the optimum conditions of 20 mg/L RB19, 0.2 g/L CuO/eggshell, 0.36 mM PMS, and initial pH 7.12 within 20 min. In addition, the effects of catalyst dosage, PMS concentration, initial pH, inorganic ions, and humic acid on RB19 degradation were investigated. Scavenging experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance revealed that multiple reactive oxygen species, including sulfate radicals (SO4·-), hydroxyl radicals (·OH), superoxide radicals (O2·-), and singlet oxygen (1O2), contributed to RB19 degradation, and 1O2 played a dominant role. Finally, a possible PMS activation mechanism was proposed. This study suggests that loading catalytically active components onto waste eggshell is eco-friendly and effective for enhancing the degradation of dyes from wastewater.

The Third Rail of Pediatric Communication: Discussing Firearm Risk and Safety in Well-Child Exams.

This research endeavors to understand how pediatricians and parents discuss - or do not discuss - firearm risks for children during well-child visits. Through individual semi-structured interviews with 16 pediatric providers and 20 parents, the research explores discursive barriers to open conversation, perspectives on anticipatory guidance, and new ideas for culturally competent messaging. The research focuses particularly on how parents' and providers' perspectives on firearm risk communication are tied to cultural norms and expectations. One salient theme that emerged is that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation that pediatricians ask parents about ownership status is deemed undesirable by pediatricians and parents because of the delicate intercultural setting. Born out of pediatric and parent experiences, and mindful of culturally salient barriers, this study offers alternative strategies for discussing firearm risk in well-child exams.

A Porous Mooncake-Shaped Li4 Ti5 O12 Anode Material Modified by SmF3 and Its Electrochemical Performance in Lithium Ion Batteries.

Reasonably designing and synthesizing advanced electrode materials is significant to enhance the electrochemical performance of lithium ion batteries (LIBs). Herein, a metal-organic framework (MOF, Mil-125) was used as a precursor and template to successfully synthesize the porous mooncake-shaped Li4 Ti5 O12 (LTO) anode material assembled from nanoparticles. Even more critical, SmF3 was used to modify the prepared porous mooncake-shaped LTO material. The SmF3 -modified LTO maintained a porous mooncake-shaped structure with a large specific surface area, and the SmF3 nanoparticles were observed to be attach on the surface of the LTO material. It has been proven that the SmF3 modification can further facilitate the transition from Ti4+ to Ti3+ , reduce the polarization of electrode, decrease charge transfer impedance (Rct ) and solid electrolyte interface impedance (Rsei ), and increase the lithium ion diffusion coefficient (DLi ), thereby enhancing the electrochemical performance of LTO. Therefore, the porous mooncake-shaped LTO modified using 2 wt % SmF3 displays a large specific discharge capacity of 143.8 mAh g-1 with an increment of 79.16 % compared to pure LTO at a high rate of 10 C (1 C=170 mAh g-1 ), and shows a high retention rate of 96.4 % after 500 cycles at 5 C-rate.

miR-21 regulates tumor progression through the miR-21-PDCD4-Stat3 pathway in human salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma.

miR-21, which is a putative tumor onco-miR and frequently overexpressed microRNA in various tumors, has been linked to tumor progression through targeting of tumor-suppressor genes. In this study, we sought to determine whether miR-21 has any role on tumor progression of salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC) and the possible mechanisms. We found that the level of miR-21 expression was significantly higher in SACC than that in normal salivary tissues, and it is also higher in tumors with metastasis than that without metastasis. Using an anti-miR-21 inhibitor in an in vitro model, downregulation of miR-21 significantly decreased the capacity of invasion and migration of SACC cells, whereas a pre-miR-21 increased the capacity of invasion and migration of SACC cells. To explore the potential mechanisms by which miR-21 regulate invasion and migration, we identified one direct miR-21 target gene, programmed cell death 4 (PDCD4), which has been implicated in invasion and metastasis. The suppression of miR-21 in metastatic SACC-LM cells significantly increased the report activity of PDCD4 promoter and the expression of PDCD4 protein. This subsequently resulted in downregulation of the p-STAT3 protein. The level of miR-21 expression positively related to the expression of PDCD4 protein and negatively related to the expression of p-STAT3 protein in SACC specimens, respectively, indicating the potential role of the STAT3-miR-21-PDCD4 pathway in these tumors. Dysregulation of miR-21 has an important role in tumor growth and invasion by targeting PDCD4. Therefore, suppression of miR-21 may provide a potential approach for the treatment of advanced SACC patients.

Disparity expression of gammaH2AX in papillary thyroid cancer and nodular goiter.

BACKGROUND: H2AX, one of the variants of histone H2A with conserved sequence, plays a vital role in maintaining genomic stability. DNA double-strand break (DSB) induces H2AX phosphorylation (γH2AX). Growing evidence indicated γH2AX was linked to thyroid disease. However, the precise expression of γH2AX in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and nodular goiter was unknown. In this study, the yH2AX expression in PTC and nodular goiter and the significance of the aberrant expression were investigated. METHODS: The γH2AX expression level was evaluated by immunohistochemistry staining in 140 specimens with thyroid diseases (30 cases of nodular goiter, 30 cases of PTC, and 80 cases of PTC coexisting with nodular goiter). The possible relationships between γH2AX expression and patients' clinicopathological characteristics were analyzed. RESULTS: In the set of nodular goiter, 20.0% (6/30) of nodular goiter component and 10.0% (3/30) of normal adjacent tissues exhibited high expression of γH2AX (p > 0.05). In the set of PTC, 70.0% (21/30) of PTC component and 0.0% (0/30) of normal adjacent tissues showed high expression of γH2AX (p < 0.05). In the set of PTC coexisting with nodular goiter, 95.0% (76/80) of PTC component, 12.5% (10/80) of nodular goiter component, and 8.8% (7/80) of normal adjacent specimens showed high expression of γH2AX (p < 0.05). 85.5% (65/76) of PTC patients with lymph node metastasis were found to have a high expression level of γH2AX, and the proportion was lower than that in patients without lymph node metastasis (34/34, 100.0%) (p = 0.003). High γH2AX expression was also found in 76.2% (16/21) of stage IV patients and the proportion was lower than that in stage I - III patients (83/89, 93.3%) (p = 0.034). No statistically significant correlation was found between yH2AX expression level and other clinicopathological features, including age, gender, capsular invasion, tumor size, tumor focus number, distant metastasis, and T status. CONCLUSIONS: γH2AX expression was increased in PTC patients, while nodular goiter and normal adjacent tissues exhibited no statistically significant difference in γH2AX expression. yH2AX expression had a negative correlation with TNM stage and lymph node metastasis. γH2AX seems to play a more critical role in early-stage PTC rather than late-stage PTC and might inhibit lymph node metastasis.

Tannic acid-assisted upcycling of Cu from waste printed circuit boards to an efficient peroxymonosulfate catalyst for the degradation of organic pollutants.

The recovery of metals from solid waste for use as heterogeneous catalysts to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for organic wastewater treatment is a promising, environmentally friendly and economical strategy. Herein, we present a facile and versatile strategy for upcycling copper (Cu) from waste printed circuit boards (PCBs) to Cu oxides supported on a three-dimensional carbon framework (10PCBs-Cu-TA) with the aid of tannic acid (TA). Compared to the PCBs-Cu synthesized without TA, introducing TA into 10PCBs-Cu-TA reduced Cu leaching, enhanced crystallinity, promoted electron transfer, and increased the number of oxygen vacancies. Moreover, 10PCBs-Cu-TA exhibited superior catalytic activity in activating PMS for the degradation of reactive brilliant blue KN-R, exceeding the activity of 10Cu-TA prepared using commercial Cu(NO3)2·3H2O. This enhanced performance may be attributed to the higher specific surface area and oxygen vacancies of 10PCBs-Cu-TA. The 10PCBs-Cu-TA/PMS system also exhibited broad catalytic universality and adaptability to various contaminants and water matrices. Quenching experiments, electron paramagnetic resonance analysis, and electrochemical measurements indicated that radical and non-radical processes jointly contributed to KN-R degradation. The proposed strategy for upcycling Cu from waste PCBs into functional materials provides novel insights into the utilization of solid waste and the development of PMS activators.

Refractory hypertension complicated with Turner syndrome: A case report.

Hypertension is commonly classified into essential hypertension and secondary hypertension, although definitive classification can be challenging in some cases. Here, we discussed a patient who admitted for refractory hypertension, exhibiting various clinical manifestations including inadequate estrogen secretion, underdeveloped secondary sexual characteristics, primary amenorrhea, short stature, multiple moles, and somatic abnormalities. The patient was finally diagnosed with Turner syndrome (TS) based on clinical findings and chromosomal analysis. The genetic karyotype identified was 46,X,i(X)(q10).

Assessment of needs, challenges, and re-design considerations for culturally sensitive provision and delivery of palliative care supports and services for older adults who prefer to age and die in place in diverse India.

As the global older adult population continues to grow, challenges related to managing multiple chronic conditions (MCCs) or multimorbidity underscore the growing need for palliative care. Palliative care preferences and needs vary significantly based on context, location, and culture. As a result, there is a need for more clarity on what constitutes palliative care in diverse settings. Our objective was to present an international perspective on palliative care in India, a culturally diverse and large ancient Eastern middle-income country. In this narrative review article, we considered three questions when re-designing palliative care for older adults aging-in-place in India: (I) what are the needs for palliative care for persons and their families? (II) Which palliative care domains are essential in assessing improvements in the quality of life (QoL)? (III) What patientreported measures are essential considerations for palliative care? To address these questions, we provide recommendations based on the following key domains: social, behavioral, psychological, cultural, spiritual, medical, bereavement, legal, and economic. Using an established and widely reported conceptual framework on aging and health disparities, we provide how these domains map across multiple levels of influence, such as individual or family members, community, institutions, and health systems for achieving the desired QoL. For greater adoption, reach, and accessibility across diverse India, we conclude palliative care must be carefully and systematically re-designed to be culturally appropriate and community-focused, incorporating traditions, individual preferences, language(s), supports and services from educational and health institutions, community organizations and the government. In addition, national government insurance schemes such as the Ayushman Bharat Yojna can include explicit provisions for palliative care so that it is affordable to all, regardless of ability to pay. In summary, our considerations for incorporating palliative care domains to care of whole person and their families, and provision of supports of services from an array of stakeholders broadly apply to culturally diverse older adults aging in place in India and around the globe who prefer to age and die in place.

COVID-19 vaccination communication: Effects of vaccine conspiracy beliefs and message framing among black and white participants.

BACKGROUND: The importance of vaccination in combating the COVID-19 pandemic is widely acknowledged. The aim of this study was (1) to understand how one's vaccine conspiracy beliefs would influence their public health news processing, (2) to examine how specific public health news features (i.e., news frame) would influence message processing, and (3) to examine if there were any differences between Black and White participants in their message processing. METHODS: A nationwide online experiment (N = 821) with a 3 (vaccine conspiracy beliefs: high vs. moderate vs. low) × 2 (participants' race: Black vs. White) × 2 (news frames: gain vs. loss) mixed-factorial design was conducted in the United States. RESULTS: Participants' level of vaccine conspiracy beliefs was predictive of their responses to outcome measures. Additionally, Black participants reported higher perceived message effectiveness, more favorable attitudes toward the message, and higher vaccination intentions than White participants. Furthermore, health news that emphasized vaccination benefits produced more favorable attitudes than those emphasizing losses associated with non-vaccination, especially for White participants. Lastly, participants reported more favorable attitudes toward gain-framed health news regardless of their vaccine conspiracy beliefs. CONCLUSION: It is crucial for health officials to work to find effective media message strategies to combat COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories and misinformation. Furthermore, this study supports the significance of health organizations' ongoing efforts to tailor public health messaging to specific racial groups, as evidenced by considerable variations in perceptions among Black and White Americans.

Identification and functional characteristics of a novel splicing heterozygote variant of COL2A1 associated with Stickler syndrome type I.

Background: Stickler syndrome type I (STL1) is an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by ocular, auditory, orofacial, and skeletal anomalies. The main causes of STL1 are variants in the COL2A1 gene, which encodes a type II collagen precursor protein. The specific focus of this study was on a newborn from China diagnosed with STL1, with the aim of providing novel insights into the effects of a newly identified intronic variant in the COL2A1 gene on pre-mRNA splicing. Methods: Trio whole exome sequencing was used to identify the causative variant in the family. The identified variant was validated using Sanger sequencing. Bioinformatics programs were used to predict the pathogenicity of the candidate variant. Additionally, an in vitro minigene assay was used to investigate the effects of the identified variant on RNA splicing. Results: The proband with STL1 had a novel heterozygous splicing variant in the intron nine acceptor donor site of COL2A1 (c.655-2A>G). This splice junction variant resulted in aberrant COL2A1 mRNA splicing, leading to the skipping of exon 10 and the production of a shorter protein that may lack the last 18 native amino acids. Conclusion: The c.655-2A>G variant in the COL2A1 gene leads to STL1 through abnormal splicing. By expanding the spectrum of variants in the COL2A1 gene, this finding improves the clinical understanding of STL1 and provides guidance for early diagnosis and disease counseling.