No abstract

Porcine transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV) and porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) can cause severe diarrhea in newborn piglets and led to significant economic losses. The S proteins are the main structural proteins of PEDV and TGEV capable of inducing neutralizing antibodies in vivo. In this study, a DNA vaccine SL7207 (pVAXD-PS1-TS) co-expressing S proteins of TGEV and PEDV delivered by attenuated Salmonella typhimurium was constructed and its immunogenicity in piglets was investigated. Twenty-day-old piglets were orally immunized with SL7207 (pVAXD-PS1-TS) at a dosage of 1.6 × 10(11) CFU per piglet and then booster immunized with 2.0 × 10(11) CFU after 2 weeks. Humoral immune responses, as reflected by virus neutralizing antibodies and specific IgG and sIgA, and cellular immune responses, as reflected by IFN-γ, IL-4, and lymphocyte proliferation, were evaluated. SL7207 (pVAXD-PS1-TS) simultaneously elicited immune responses against TGEV and PEDV after oral immunization. The immune levels started to increase at 2 weeks after immunization and increased to levels statistically significantly different than controls at 4 weeks post-immunization, peaking at 6 weeks and declined at 8 weeks. The humoral, mucosal, and cellular immune responses induced by SL7207 (pAXD-PS1-TS) were significantly higher than those of the PBS and SL7207 (pVAXD) (p < 0.01). In particular, the levels of IFN-γ and IL-4 were higher than those induced by the single-gene vaccine SL7207 (pVAXD-PS1) (p < 0.05). These results demonstrated that SL7207 (pVAXD-PS1-TS) possess the immunological functions of the two S proteins of TGEV and PEDV, indicating that SL7207 (pVAXD-PS1-TS) is a candidate oral vaccine for TGE and PED.

This study sought to expand the literature on bereavement and response to natural disasters by reporting the prevalence, severity, and correlates of depressive symptoms among bereaved and nonbereaved parents of the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake in China. Bereaved (n = 155) and nonbereaved (n = 35) parents from the Xiang’e township in China were interviewed at 18 months (Wave 1) and 24 months (Wave 2) following the earthquake. From Wave 1 to Wave 2, rates of probable depression fell for both bereaved (65.8% to 44.5%) and nonbereaved parents (34.3% to 20.0%). The depression index of both groups also decreased, but only significantly among bereaved parents. Of bereaved parents, those with fewer years of education had more severe symptoms at both waves. Depressive symptom severity of bereaved mothers improved over time, but that of bereaved fathers remained unchanged. Not becoming pregnant again after the earthquake was significantly linked to worse depressive symptoms in both waves, but this was not significant when age was added to the model. Bereaved parents may need more postearthquake supportive services, with fathers, individuals with fewer years of education, and parents who are not able to become pregnant again after the earthquake being particularly vulnerable.

No abstract

Consumers' thinking style (e.g., dialectical thinking), which is fundamental to cognition, has been paid inadequate attention in the consumer literature. This research explores the impact of dialectical thinking on Chinese consumer responses toward crisis-associated products/brands. Findings in three experimental studies indicate that, in comparison to those primed with nondialectical thinking, consumers primed with dialectical thinking report higher levels of purchase intention and trust for a crisis-associated product/brand. This is the case not just for products with Chinese cultural background, but also for products with western cultural background. Consumers' perceived severity of crises moderates the impact of dialectical thinking, with a stronger impact in a highly severe crisis situation than in a less severe one. A survey study indicates a similar pattern. These findings are important in suggesting ways of encouraging Chinese consumers to be insistent on quality standard in order to better protect their consumer rights, and moreover, for multinational corporations on how best to respond and formulate strategies of handling productharm crises in the Chinese market.