Perinatal Inflammation: Could Partial Blocking of Cell Adhesion Molecule Function Be a Solution?

In spite of the great advances made in recent years in prenatal and perinatal medicine, inflammation can still frequently result in injury to vital organs and often constitutes a major cause of morbidity. It is today well established that in neonates-though vulnerability to infection among neonates is triggered by functional impairments in leukocyte adhesion-the decreased expression of cell adhesion molecules also decreases the inflammatory response. It is also clear that the cell adhesion molecules, namely, the integrins, selectins, and the immunoglobulin (Ig) gene super family, all play a crucial role in the inflammatory cascade.

Collective emotions online and their influence on community life.

Background: E-communities, social groups interacting online, have recently become an object of interdisciplinary research. As with face-to-face meetings, Internet exchanges may not only include factual information but also emotional information--how participants feel about the subject discussed or other group members. Emotions in turn are known to be important in affecting interaction partners in offline communication in many ways.