Plasticity in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons that promotes pain requires activity-dependent mRNA translation. Protein synthesis inhibitors block the ability of many pain-promoting molecules to enhance excitability in DRG neurons and attenuate behavioral signs of pain plasticity. In line with this, we have recently shown that phosphorylation of the 5' cap-binding protein, eIF4E, plays a pivotal role in plasticity of DRG nociceptors in models of hyperalgesic priming. However, mRNA targets of eIF4E phosphorylation have not been elucidated in the DRG. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) signaling from nociceptors in the DRG to spinal dorsal horn neurons is an important mediator of hyperalgesic priming. Regulatory mechanisms that promote pain plasticity via controlling BDNF expression that is involved in promoting pain plasticity have not been identified. We show that phosphorylation of eIF4E is paramount for Bdnf mRNA translation in the DRG. Bdnf mRNA translation is reduced in mice lacking eIF4E phosphorylation (eIF4E(S209A)) and pro-nociceptive factors fail to increase BDNF protein levels in the DRGs of these mice despite robust upregulation of Bdnf-201 mRNA levels. Importantly, bypassing the DRG by giving intrathecal injection of BDNF in eIF4E(S209A) mice creates a strong hyperalgesic priming response that is normally absent or reduced in these mice. We conclude that eIF4E phosphorylation-mediated translational control of BDNF expression is a key mechanism for nociceptor plasticity leading to hyperalgesic priming.

Natural killer (NK) cells were so named for their uniqueness in killing certain tumor and virus-infected cells without prior sensitization unlike T lymphocytes. NK cells possess a myriad of activation receptors and cytokine receptors that allow them to recognize stress ligands on infected/tumor cells and respond to the cytokines produced during the inflammatory process. Upon activation, NK cells produce pro-inflammatory cytokines, cytotoxic granules and chemokines to recruit other cells which ultimately result in killing of target cells. These functions of NK cells are modulated in vivo by several immune mediators; IL-15 being the most potent in enabling NK cell homeostasis, maturation and activation. Indeed, IL-15 knockout mice have no detectable NK cells. During microbial infections, NK cells stimulated with IL-15 display enhanced cytokine responses. This priming effect has previously been shown with respect to increased IFN-γ production in NK cells upon IL-12 and IL-15/IL-2 co-stimulation. In this study, I explored if this effect of IL-15 priming can be extended to other cytokines and observed enhanced NK cell responses to stimulation with IFN-, IL-21, IL-2 and IL-4 in addition to IL-12. Notably, we also observed elevated IFN-γ production in primed NK cells upon stimulation through the Ly49H activation receptor. IL-15 treatments induced NK cell proliferation, enhanced NK cell responses to activating stimuli and equipped them with cytotoxic granules thereby “readying” them for battle against infections and tumors. Here, we try to understand the signaling mechanisms underlying IL-15 treatments that activate NK cells. Currently, the fundamental processes required for priming and whether these signaling pathways work collaboratively or independently for NK cell functions are poorly understood. To identify the key signaling events, we examined IL-15 priming on NK cells in which the pathways emanating from IL-15 receptor activation were blocked with specific inhibitors. Our results demonstrate that the PI3K-AKT-mTOR pathway is indispensable for cytokine responses in IL-15 primed NK cells. Furthermore, this pathway is also implicated in a broad range of IL-15 induced NK cell effector functions such as proliferation and cytotoxicity. Given that NK cells are critical for control of viral infections like murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV), we decided to analyze the consequences of blocking the PI3K-AKT-mTOR pathway in NK cells on its anti-viral responses. Likewise, NK cells from mice treated with rapamycin to block the mTOR pathway displayed defects in proliferation, IFN-γ and granzyme B production resulting in elevated viral burdens upon MCMV infection. Taken together, our data demonstrates the requirement of PI3K-mTOR pathway for enhanced NK cell functions by IL-15. It also shows that IL-15 primes NK cell responses to several cytokines and to Ly49H activation receptor stimulation. To our knowledge this is first report to demonstrate the requirement of mTOR activity in NK cells for efficient control of acute MCMV infections; thereby coupling the metabolic sensor mTOR to NK cell anti-viral responses.

Psychologists interested in the study of language find that people are faster at making decisions about words that are related than they are at making decisions about words that are not related – an effect called semantic priming. This phenomenon has largely only been document in laboratory settings using natural languages as contest and real words as stimuli. The current study explores the relation between the semantic priming effect and a laboratory procedure designed to give rise to performances that can be described as linguistic. Six adult participants learned to partition a collection of eight stimuli into two sets of four stimuli. Following this, the subjects showed the semantic priming effect within a set of stimuli but not across sets. These data suggest that it may be possible to study linguistic phenomenon in laboratory-based procedures allowing better control and the ability to ask very precise questions about linguistic functioning.

Diploma thesis is focused on self-priming pump 25 - OVE Sigma pumpy Hranice s.r.o., for its function is essential the ejector which is placed in the body of the pump. On the basis of the results of measurements there are designed construction modifications using a mathematical model. For the first time were made measurements to verify the self-priming capability with determining the maximum suction height.

Priming är ett sätt att studera hur det implicita minnet fungerar och påverkar oss. I den här studien undersöktes priming vid ordstamskomplettering och hur presenterat ord respektive icke presenterat ord påverkar priming. Syftet med studien var att undersöka och analysera priming vid ordstamskomplettering. Frågeställningen i studien har varit: Vilken inverkan har ett presenterat respektive icke presenterat ord vid priming? Hypotesen var att deltagarna skulle komplettera fler ord från den lista som de har sett än från den lista som de inte har sett. Tolv deltagare var med i studien mellan åldrarna 21 och 28 år. Resultatet från experimentet stödjer hypotesen. SPSS paired samples analysis visade att resultatet var signifikant, vilket stödjer hypotesen att det uppstår priming vid ordstamskomplettering.

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Evidence gathered from major fraud investigations over the last decade has revealed that auditors in these cases failed to attend to fraud red flags within the substantive testing evidence. Research in psychology regarding inattentional blindness (IB) provides a theoretical framework for explaining why auditors may be prone to missing fraud red flags. This study examines the presence of IB during the performance of substantive testing and proposes two distinct interventions. Each intervention is predicted to improve auditor fraud detection. In a scenario involving fraudulent revenue transactions, findings show that a slight modification to the standard audit procedures significantly improves an auditor’s detection of red flags indicative of fraud. A second intervention involving the performance of a strategic reasoning task did not yield significant results. Overall, the results suggest that audit firms should consider making a cost effective adjustment to their standard audit program to improve fraud detection.

This dissertation explores how nonconscious thought processing might be affected and activated in ways that influence consumer decision making. To activate nonconscious thought processes, this dissertation relies on priming—the unobtrusive activation of mental representations by stimuli in a social context, which occurs without participants' conscious awareness. Three dimensions of consumer decision making are investigated: purchase intention, product evaluation and arousal. The dissertation is based on the auto-motive model of nonconscious goal pursuit and somatic marker hypothesis. The dissertation is driven by three experiments, which respectively explore crucial areas in priming effects and addresses the following research question: can primes be shaped or controlled by marketers? Specifically, the dissertation examines whether shopping behavior can be primed. Second, the dissertation also examines how facial primes displaying basic emotions (happiness, anger, contempt, disgust, fear, sadness, and surprise) can prime emotion and arousal. Finally the dissertation examines the effect of the interaction of the buying prime with the primes of faces displaying basic emotions on the dependent variables of purchase intention, product evaluation, emotion, and arousal. Results from three experimental studies show that shopping behavior can be primed, and primed participants will exhibit higher product evaluation than those exposed to a control prime. Second while exposing participants to primes of faces displaying emotions did not elicit those emotions, the priming with faces did reveal a marginal activation of arousal in the participants. Third priming with faces was not found to interact with primed buying behavior such that the interaction would affect the level of arousal. The results indicate that Bargh's auto-motive model of nonconscious goal pursuit can be applied to marketing. Thus priming shopping behavior can affect product evaluation though the effect of this prime appears to be too weak to be applied in the field. Priming with faces was found not to interact with primed shopping behavior and thus affect product evaluation. The impact of the findings on marketing practitioners suggests that more laboratory investigation is necessary. Further laboratory investigation should be used to raise the effect level of the prime and to find ways to shape and control nonconscious goal pursuit prior to attempting to bring priming into the field.

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