Are We Essential, or Sacrificial? The Effects of Felt Public Gratitude on Essential Worker Recovery Activities During COVID-19.

COVID-19 has been characterized by unprecedented levels of public gratitude to some, but not all, essential workers. In this research, we integrate insights from the stigmatized occupations and gratitude literature to build theory on the positive and negative relationships between such displays of public gratitude and essential workers' recovery activities. We argue that felt public gratitude positively relates to adaptive recovery activities (e.g., exercise) and negatively relates to maladaptive recovery activities (e.g., overdrinking). We further explain how felt public gratitude impacts (mal)adaptive recovery activities through (a) felt invisibility and (b) negative/positive affect. We find support for our predictions in a two-wave survey of 186 corrections officers (Study 1) and an experiment with 379 essential workers across a variety of industries (Study 2).

Integrating Single-Cell Transcriptome and Network Analysis to Characterize the Therapeutic Response of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia.

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative disease characterized by a unique BCR-ABL fusion gene. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) were developed to target the BCR-ABL oncoprotein, inhibiting its abnormal kinase activity. TKI treatments have significantly improved CML patient outcomes. However, the patients can develop drug resistance and relapse after therapy discontinues largely due to intratumor heterogeneity. It is critical to understand the differences in therapeutic responses among subpopulations of cells. Single-cell RNA sequencing measures the transcriptome of individual cells, allowing us to differentiate and analyze individual cell populations. Here, we integrated a single-cell RNA sequencing profile of CML stem cells and network analysis to decipher the mechanisms of distinct TKI responses. Compared to normal hematopoietic stem cells, a set of genes that were concordantly differentially expressed in various types of stem cells of CML patients was revealed. Further transcription regulatory network analysis found that most of these genes were directly controlled by one or more transcript factors and the genes have more regulators in the cells of the patients who responded to the treatment. The molecular markers including a known drug-resistance gene and novel gene signatures for treatment response were also identified. Moreover, we combined protein-protein interaction network construction with a cancer drug database and uncovered the drugs that target the marker genes directly or indirectly via the protein interactions. The gene signatures and their interacted proteins identified by this work can be used for treatment response prediction and lead to new strategies for drug resistance monitoring and prevention. Our single-cell-based findings offered novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic response of CML.

The hyoid bone: an overview.

The hyoid bone is a small horseshoe-shaped bone located between the mandible and the shoulder girdle. It is classified as a sesamoid bone which means it is a freely floating bone. However, it is anything but freely floating. The hyoid bone is a vestigial structure and is found as part of the tongue in lower animal forms. The hyoid bone is attached to the base of the skull, the mandible, the tongue, the larynx, and the scapular belt. Even though the hyoid bone is an important structure, it has not received the attention that it deserves. It participates in the function of speech, respiration, mastication, and swallowing, as well as maintaining the patency of the airway between the oropharynx and the tracheal rings. Knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the hyoid is necessary for recognition of the clinical presentation of related disorders and syndromes.

Change of hyoid bone position in patients treated for and resolved of myofascial pain.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate change in hyoid bone position for patients suffering from myofascial pain and to evaluate the modified hyoid triangle as a three-dimensional cephalometric modality for measuring hyoid position. Methods: Pre- and post-treatment CBCT scans for 30 female patients resolved of myofascial pain were reviewed by a blinded investigator using the modified hyoid triangle. Changes in dimensions of the hyoid triangle were analyzed with the t-test for paired comparisons. Results: Statistical analysis showed a drawing nearer of the chin to the third cervical vertebra (-2.0 mm, p = 0.026) and a release of the hyoid bone away from the floor of the mouth (1.5 mm, p = 0.011). Discussion: These findings suggest resolution of myofascial pain may correlate with decreased forward head posture and relaxation of suprahyoid musculature. The potential for change in oropharyngeal dimension and airway is evident.

A trajectories based perspective on status dynamics.

After decades of taking a relatively static view on status, the last few years has seen an increasing interest in better understanding status from a dynamic perspective. In this review, we organize this recent research into three related areas: i) How do people respond to their own potential or actual status change?, ii) How do people respond to others' potential or actual status changes?, and iii) Who strives for status change? We focus specifically on integrating this work around the notion of status trajectories - namely, that people appear to see themselves and others on status trajectories, where past changes and/or current behaviors inform expectations of a 'status future' that they react to, and in some cases actively work to realize or to prevent.

The impact of dynamic status changes within competitive rank-ordered hierarchies.

Jockeying and competing for higher status is an inherent feature of rank-ordered hierarchies. Despite theoretically acknowledging rank changes within hierarchies, the extant literature has ignored the role of competitors' dynamic movements on a focal actor's resulting behavior. By using a dynamic lens to examine these movement in competitive situations, we examine how positive change in a competitor's rank-that is, positive status momentum-affects a focal actor's psychology and resulting performance. We consider the real-world contexts of 5.2 million observations of chess tournaments and 117,762 observations of professional tennis players and find that a focal actor's performance in both cognitive and physical competitions is negatively impacted when facing a competitor with positive momentum. Additionally, 4 experimental studies reveal that a competitor's positive momentum results in the focal actor's positive projection of the competitor's future rank, which, in turn, increases the psychological threat for the actor. Collectively, our findings advance the social hierarchy literature by helping to elucidate the manner in which rank-ordered hierarchies are negotiated and disrupted over time.

Rising stars and sinking ships: consequences of status momentum.

Differences in rank are a ubiquitous feature of social life. Moving beyond the traditional static view of social hierarchy, five studies spanning multiple contexts examined how intertemporal changes in rank influenced people's status judgments. When final rank was held constant, people, products, and institutions were judged as higher status when they had arrived at this position by ascending, rather than descending, the hierarchy; moreover, these judgments affected downstream pricing recommendations, willingness to pay for products, and influence accepted from others. This impact of rank history on status judgments was accounted for by expectations of future status and moderated by the involvement of the self: The self and others are afforded an equivalent status boost for ascending to a given rank; however, only the self is pardoned the status tax that is levied on others for descending to the same rank. The theoretical utility of a dynamic approach to social hierarchy is discussed.

The eyes and ears of status: how status colors perceptual judgment.

To those with high status, abundance is granted. Moving beyond the multitude of objective benefits, the authors explore how status, once conferred, colors the perceptual world people inhabit. In four experiments, participants' status state influenced their judgments of status-relevant features in their environment. Participants in a state of high status reported hearing applause (Experiment 1) and seeing facial expressions (Experiment 2), in reaction to their performance, as louder and more favorable. In addition, expectations of how others will respond--expectations stemming from one's current status state--accounted for this effect (Experiment 3). Finally, differences in judgments between participants experiencing high versus low status were observed only when the target of the evaluation was the self (Experiment 4). These results advance scholars' understanding of the psychological experience of status and contribute to the growing literature on the dominant influence psychological states have on people's judgments of their social world.

Analysis of primary risk factors for oral cancer from select US states with increasing rates.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the primary risk factor for oral cancer in the US, smoking and tobacco use, among the specific US states that experienced short-term increases in oral cancer incidence and mortality. METHODS: Population-based data on oral cancer morbidity and mortality in the US were obtained from the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database for analysis of recent trends. Data were also obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) to measure current and former trends of tobacco usage. To comprehensive measures of previous state tobacco use and tobacco-related policies, the Initial Outcomes Index (IOI, 1992-1993) and the Strength of Tobacco Control index (SoTC, 1999-2000) were also used for evaluation and comparison. RESULTS: Analysis of the NCI-SEER data confirmed a previous report of geographic increases in oral cancer and demonstrated these were state-specific, were not regional, and were unrelated to previously observed increases among females and minorities. Analysis of the CDC-BRFSS data revealed these states had relatively higher percentages of smokers currently, as well as historically. In addition, analysis of the IOI and SoTC indexes suggest that many factors, including cigarette pricing, taxes and home or workplace bans, may have had significant influence on smoking prevalence in these areas. Trend analysis of these data uncovered a recent and significant reversal in smoking rates that suggest oral cancer incidence and mortality may also begin to decline in the near future. CONCLUSION: Due to the rising costs of health care in the US and the limited resources available for health prevention efforts, it is essential to organize and direct more effective efforts by public health officials and epidemiologists, as well as funding from local, state and federal governments, to reduce and eliminate identified health disparities. This study provides evidence how these efforts may be directed to specific geographic areas, and towards the white males, previously thought to be unaffected by the increases in oral cancer among females and minorities.