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Extant literature suggests that racism is associated with difficult emotional reactions and feelings of social disconnect among White individuals. These feelings of social disconnect may be particularly salient in today's digital era in which racism against racial minority individuals is conveniently and frequently witnessed via online platforms. Thus, we examined whether witnessing racism online may be associated with feelings of loneliness among White emerging adults. We also tested whether anti-racism advocacy buffered loneliness given its potential for relationship building and community organizing to promote racial justice and equity. Using data from 227 White emerging adults (M age  = 20.86, SD = 4.82), we conducted a latent moderated structural equation modeling to test individual and institutional anti-racism advocacy as moderators in the link between witnessing racism online (racial victimization of racial minority individuals in online interactions and online content on cultural devaluation/systemic racism against racial minority individuals) and loneliness. Greater exposure to online content on systemic racism and cultural devaluation of racial minority groups significantly predicted greater loneliness. Engagement in individual anti-racism advocacy (mean to high levels) buffered this link. White allies must engage in anti-racism practice to address racism in our society, and our findings advance our understanding of the associated psychosocial costs. Implications for research and practice are discussed., (© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Estrogens via estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) genomic and nongenomic signaling can influence plasticity processes in numerous brain regions. Using mice that express nuclear only ERα (NOER) or membrane only ERα (MOER), this study examined the effect of receptor compartmentalization on the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) and the hippocampus. The absence of nuclear and membrane ERα expression impacted females but not males in these two brain areas. In the PVN, quantitative immunohistochemistry showed that the absence of nuclear ERα increased nuclear ERβ. Moreover, in the hippocampus CA1, immuno-electron microscopy revealed that the absence of either nuclear or membrane ERα decreased extranuclear ERα and pTrkB in synapses. In contrast, in the dentate gyrus, the absence of nuclear ERα increased pTrkB in synapses, whereas the absence of membrane ERα decreased pTrkB in axons. However, the absence of membrane only ERα decreased the sprouting of mossy fibers in CA3 as reflected by changes in zinc transporter immunolabeling. Altogether these findings support the idea that both membrane and nuclear ERα contribute overlapping and unique actions of estrogen that are tissue- and cellular-specific.

Staphylococcus aureus nasal colonization is a risk factor for infection. A large proportion of the population are identified as potential S. aureus carriers yet we only partially understand the repertoire of genetic factors that promote long-term nasal colonization. Here we present a murine model of nasopharyngeal colonization that requires a low S. aureus inoculum and is amenable to experimental evolution approaches. We used this model to experimentally evolve S. aureus using successive passages in the nasopharynx to identify those genetic loci under selection. After 3 cycles of colonization, mutations were identified in mannitol, sorbitol, arginine, nitrite and lactate metabolism genes promoting key pathways in nasal colonization. Stress responses were identified as being under selective pressure, with mutations in DNA repair genes including dnaJ and recF and key stress response genes clpL , rpoB and ahpF . Peptidoglycan synthesis pathway genes also revealed mutations indicating potential selection for alteration of the cell surface. The murine model used here is versatile to question colonization, persistence and evolution studies. We studied the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus in our search to determine factors that contribute to its ability to live in the human nose and throat. The anterior nares and nasopharynx are considered primary habitats but we do not understand how the pathogen adapts as it moves from one person to the next. We first determined sustained survival of the pathogen over multiple days in the nasopharynx that might act as a good model for human persistence due to the low numbers of bacteria needed for it to establish. By using successive rounds of colonization of the nasopharynx across different mice we revealed that multiple genetic changes in the S. aureus occurred. These changes were found in genes associated with the cell surface and metabolism and might indicate adaptation to the niche. One gene showed an accumulation of multiple mutations supporting a key contribution in adaptation but the role of the protein it encodes is not yet known. The contribution of these genes and genetic changes are unclear but indicate an area for future research to better understand how this common human pathogen is so successful at human colonization and survival., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Salgado, Waters, Moran, Kadioglu and Horsburgh.)