Month: November 2023

The American Red Cross is hosting multiple blood drives across the Southern Tier during the month of December. “One donation can save up to three lives,” said Michael Tedesco, regional director of communications for the Red Cross of Western New York. “So, you might be helping a cancer patient replace platelets that have been destroyed as part of their treatment. You can be helping a young child or a trauma victim who needs a transfusion right away. That’s a case where we really welcome our Type O donors.” O-negative is a universal blood type. O-positive is compatible with all positive blood types and it is in high demand. Last fiscal year, the Red Cross collected nearly 110,000 units of blood throughout the Southern Tier region, according to Tedesco. He said that blood supply is not in critical decline, however, during the winter months, weather and holiday schedules can impact people’s ability to get out and give blood. The organization is also looking to replenish its supply after the many natural disasters that took place throughout the U.S. in 2023. Donors who give blood during December will be automatically entered to win a holiday prize package, which includes a $1,000 Amazon gift card and a 65-inch Amazon Fire TV. Additionally, all donors who give blood Dec. 1-17, will receive a $10 Amazon gift card by email. More information on how to donate and blood-drive locations in the Southern Tier can be found on the Red Cross website.

Introduction Fibromyalgia (FM) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) are characterized by chronic pain, fatigue, and weakness. Patients with these symptoms also suffer from sleep abnormalities and report affected cognitive processes such as memory. The diagnosis of these two syndromes is challenging and is based on questionnaires that make the diagnosis rather difficult and prone to be subjective. Currently, the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria are the most widely used in the diagnosis of FM1–4 and for CFS diagnosis the National Academy of Medicine (NAM)5 criteria, which recently replaced 1999 Fukuda and 2003 Canadian criteria,5,6 are the most widely adopted. Morbidity statistics show that FM affects 0.4–9.3% of people in different geographical regions7,8 and even 1% of the worldwide population may suffer from CFS.9 Women are three times more affected by each disease than men.4,9 The most frequent age of onset for FM is between 50 and 60 years,4 while CFS is most often diagnosed in two age groups: 10–19 and 30–39 years old.5 The treatment of both syndromes is challenging and depends on patient-specific symptoms such as post-exertional malaise, orthostatic intolerance, sleep issues, cognitive dysfunction, fatigue, immune dysfunction, pain, and gastrointestinal issues.5 As both diseases affect young and middle-aged people, and a large proportion of FM and CFS patients require continuous medical attention and are frequently unable to work, the management of FM and CFS presents a significant challenge for both healthcare systems and the labor market. To date, only weak evidence of the genetic background of FM and CFS has been reported in the literature. In the case of FM, the results of an observational study indicate a familiar aggregation of FM and odds ratio of FM in relatives of FM probands was found to be 8.5 (95% CI: 2.8–26).10 A more recent GWAS-based study estimated the heritability of FM in different age groups; however, the estimates differed significantly between the groups.11 Other studies on the genetic background of FM or chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain (CWP), which is a symptom of fibromyalgia, also suggested a genetic predisposition to this condition, but the results of these studies are largely discrepant.12,13 Similar to FM, a genetic contribution to CFS has been suggested by familial aggregation.14–16 Here, disease-associated genetic variants GRIK2 and NPAS217 have been reported, but these findings were not corroborated by large-scale GWASes.18,19 Considering rather weak evidence for a genetic predisposition to FM and CFS, it is plausible that aberrations in epigenetic mechanisms of gene expression regulation are involved in the development of these syndromes. Here, we reanalyzed available methylomics data for patients with FM and CFS from three independent studies using an updated and uniform bioinformatics data analysis framework. We found remarkable coherence of the physiological processes potentially affected by the identified methylation changes between those studies. Our results add to the body of evidence that epigenetic changes play a key role in the development of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndromes. Materials and Methods Patients’ and Samples Characteristics The results presented in this manuscript are based on data from published studies and were thus performed under appropriate ethical approval. The original datasets were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database (Table 1). Specifically, the microarray-based genome-wide methylation profiling data included methylation profiles of blood cells from 22 women diagnosed with FM,20 profiles of T CD3+ cells from 15 male and 46 female CFS patients21 and profiles of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from 66 females with CFS.22,23 FM was diagnosed using the 2010 ACR criteria.2,3,20 Additionally, pain intensity and the effect of pain on daily activity patients were assessed using three questionnaires, as described in a previous study.24 CFS was diagnosed using the 1994 Fukuda and 2003 Canadian criteria, and the RAND-36 questionnaire was used to measure pain intensity and its impact on daily activity.21,22 The controls in the experiment were healthy counterparts of the cells used in specific methylation screening experiments and included methylation profiling data from 23 peripheral blood, 48 T CD3+, and 24 PBMC cells. Table 1 Detailed Description of the Patient Cohorts Used in the Study Unified Genome-Wide Methylation Analysis The main goal of our study was to analyze the Infinium HumanMethylation 450 K BeadChip (450 K, Illumina Inc.) methylation profiling data from three independent studies with one coherent and up-to-date bioinformatics data analysis framework that would allow us to compare the results across those studies. Briefly, raw data were processed using the ChAMP package25,26 and normalized using the BMIQ method. Subsequently, we used ComBat to correct for the batch effect in all datasets; this procedure was not used previously in the data analysis of data from reference.20 Correction of the cell composition of individual samples has become a standard procedure for studies based on blood samples.27,28 In two of the analyzed in our study datasets,21,22 cell-type proportion correction was not used or was used as a covariate,22 which has been shown to be less precise than cell fraction correction according to a previous study.29 We adjusted all our analyses for cell fraction differences with the EpiDISH R package modified as described by Bińkowski et al30 with reference restricted only to cell types present in individual samples. We then used linear regression (function in ChAMP) to identify differentially methylated probes (DMPs) between cases and controls. In the gene GSEA and enrichment analyses, we considered only DMPs displaying more than 0.05 absolute mean β-value difference between cases and controls, with adjusted p-value (Benjamini-Hochberg) of less than 5%. All analyses were performed using R 4.1.2. Enrichment of DMPs in Genomic Regulatory Regions Statistically significant enrichment or depletion of methylation changes in specific functional genomic regions is likely to suggest the function of these changes. Thus, we analyzed the distribution of DMPs identified with our data analysis frame work in regions related to genes as defined in the Infinium Human Methylation 450 Bead Chip manifest v. 1.2, including TSS1500, TSS200, 5’UTR, 1stExon, Gene body, 3’UTR, and Unknown regions as well as genomic regions related to CpG islands (CGI), including N-shelf, N-shore, Island, S-shore, S-shelf, and Opensea

John Oldfield is no stranger to donating platelets, but he was in for a surprise when he arrived at the ImpactLife Blood Center, 3407 E. Agency Street on Tuesday, Nov. 21, to find a box of frosted cookies and small cake sitting at his donor lounge chair. Atop the cake was a plastic hula girl wearing a grass skirt. “Whenever (Oldfield) reaches the next milestone, he says, ‘Where are the dancing girls?’” explained Trish Weiland, the donor center recruiter. Tuesday’s milestone was a big one that staff also celebrated with a “thank you” sign and balloons. Officials of the blood center said Oldfield, a Navy veteran who lives in Burlington, has donated 65 gallons of blood, totaling 385 total lifetime blood donations. Oldfield was as usual cheerful and good-natured about the process, announcing he was about to be stuck with a needle. For platelet donations, “a machine collects only the platelets and returns the remaining components to the donors,” explained Kirby Winn, marketing director for ImpactLife Blood Center. Oldfield made his first blood donation when he was in the Navy. Married with a family, his main motivation to start was to be sure his family had blood available if disaster or illness were to strike. His concern for others also has kept him donating. “I just kept donating and donating. I donated whole blood until I got to six gallons and decided to get into the pheresis program. I’ve been there ever since,” he said. “Because platelets are replenished in the body more quickly than red blood cells, donors can give platelets up to 24 times a year. We are fortunate that John has remained in good health over many years and that he has been such a faithful and consistent donor for a long time,” said Winn. “His donations are used at hospitals across our service region, which includes Southeast Iowa Regional Medical Center in West Burlington,” Winn said. Platelets, said Becky Parker, a registered nurse who is the center’s supervisor, mostly go to help cancer patients. A steady donor base is critical, Parker explained, because platelets have a shelf life of seven days. “Burlington does really well but we can always use new donors,” said Parker. Competition among donors exists, but is the friendly sort. “(Oldfield) is our highest one here. We have some in the 50s (gallons). Some are competitive; they like to have the highest. The ones who have been giving so often, they get to know each other. It’s really good-natured. They’re all just here to help people,” explained Parker. During the holiday season, people get busy and donations drop, while accidents and mishaps requiring blood products tend to rise. Both Parker and Weiland said the center is providing incentives for people to donate. One donor made a lovely T-shirt quilt and gave it to the center for a drawing. Donating blood, rescheduling to donate blood, and bringing a friend also to donate each earns a chance in the drawing to be held Dec. 1. ImpactLife also has an online rewards store with T-shirts, mugs, drinking glasses and other items donors can purchase through its rewards program. For example, platelet apheresis earns 150 points. A whole blood donation garners 100 points. Oldfield is retired from Industrial Services. Besides donating blood he also volunteers for the Red Cross, responding to disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes, anywhere his help is required. The emergency response vehicle he drives can be dispatched to any part of the country that’s in need. He is more frequently, however, called in the middle of the night for a local emergency. The Des Moines County Chapter of the Red Cross does most of its work in Southeast Iowa, providing shelter and aid to those who just lost their home to a fire. Oldfield is a universal donor with type O-positive blood. On Sept. 21, ImpactLife put out an urgent notice announcing it had less than a one-day supply of both O-negative and O-positive red blood cells, and that other blood products as well were in critically short supply. “We greatly appreciate his regular visits to our Burlington Donor Center and his dedicated support of our region’s blood supply,” said Winn. The primary difference between a whole blood and platelet donation is the length of time for the donation, as well as the use of a cell separator. Pheresis donors are committed to giving at least two hours of their time to complete the process. Platelets are an important part of the blood clotting process that prevent bleeding and help white cells fight infection. Patients with cancer, aplastic anemia, leukemia and bleeding disorders often require platelet transfusions because their own are not functioning or not being produced. With a pheresis donation, the donor can give almost 10 times as many platelets as is possible during a whole blood donation. This means fewer reactions for patients, because the platelets come from one donor rather than 10 different donors. Because the human body is constantly replacing platelets, individuals may donate apheresis once a week, up to 24 times a year. The donors may also donate multiple products if they have a high enough platelet count, thereby helping two or three patients with one donation. Formerly known as Mississippi Regional Valley Blood Center, which is headquartered in Davenport, the non-profit, independent community blood center has extended into Illinois, Missouri and Wisconsin, and united under one name, ImpactLife, in 2021. To make an appointment to donate, visit bloodcenter.org.

…AIR STAGNATION ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM PST THURSDAY… * WHAT…Poor air quality. * WHERE…Portions of central, north central and northeast Oregon and central, south central and southeast Washington. * WHEN…Until 11 AM PST Thursday. * IMPACTS…Poor air quality may cause issues for people with respiratory problems. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS… People with respiratory illness should follow their physician’s advice for dealing with high levels of air pollution during periods of stagnant air. State air quality agencies highly recommend that no outdoor burning occur and that residential wood burning devices be limited as much as possible. According to state air quality agencies, prolonged periods of stagnant air can hold pollutants close to the ground where people live and breathe. Check with your local burn agency for any current restrictions in your area. &&

A 16-year-old reportedly died on the Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas cruise ship early Saturday morning. According to multiple passengers, the teenage boy climbed and fell numerous stories from an internal balcony in the vessel’s Central Park area. Allure of the Seas is one of Royal Caribbean’s most family-friendly ships, with activities and excursions for all ages. First launched in 2009, the Oasis-class vessel is one of the largest in the industry. It regularly sails to the Bahamas from Miami and Port Canaveral in Florida. Around 2:30 to 3:00 a.m. on Saturday, passengers awoke to an urgent intercom request for blood donations. One guest immediately posted on Reddit about the unsettling message. Credit: Royal Caribbean “I’m currently on the Allure of the seas,” u/Justman1020 wrote. “It’s 3:30 am. About 30 minutes ago there was an announcement that they were looking for Type O Pos or O Neg. Blood for a donation. Had me wondering what kind of emergency on the ship would lead to a blood transfusion onboard? Wild announcement at 3 am.” On Monday, multiple other Royal Caribbean cruise passengers confirmed that despite attempted blood transfusions, the 16-year-old passed away. According to some passengers, the boy tried to climb from one balcony to another before he fell. “I just got off the Allure, where on Saturday early morning… an announcement was made over the intercom asking for universal blood donors to donate blood to a fellow passenger,” u/Dipo4prez said. “A day later I see on a FB group where a mother of a 16 year old boy was thanking passengers for donating, but her son had passed. He fell from a balcony onto the Central Park area of the ship.” Credit: Royal Caribbean Another passenger and their husband witnessed the aftermath of the boy’s fall and struggled to cope with what they saw. “We were also on this cruise and my husband and I actually walked onto the seen by accident after he fell,” u/Due_Comedian1289 recalled. “Seeing his body after the fall has been traumatic for my husband and he’s cried everyday of the cruise for this young man. I was so hopeful after he made it through the night but heartbroken after hearing he passed…His parents wasn’t there when he fell so my heart goes out to them.” Credit: Royal Caribbean TMZ reached out to a Royal Caribbean representative who issued the following statement: “We are saddened to learn of the passing of a guest, and our hearts go out to the family. Out of respect for them, we won’t provide any further comment.” Tragic events on vacation can be traumatic for all passengers and witnesses. Reach out to a licensed mental health professional if a tragedy impacts you—you can find therapists near you here. Please note that the story outlined in this article is based on personal Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas guest experiences. No two guest experiences are alike, and this article does not necessarily align with Inside the Magic’s personal views on Royal Caribbean International operations.

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. For those who use it as an invective, “Luddite” is particularly handy: it casts opposition to technology as not just futile but cult-like. Luddites aren’t merely irrational; they’re weird and obsessive. This is partly a side-effect of the inventive mythmaking deployed by the original machine-wrecking Luddites of the early 19th century. This involved secret handshakes, gruesome animal-skin masks and much else besides. In some ways, these rituals were very much in keeping with the temper of the times (the period was chock-full of secret societies). Yet as Brian Merchant explains in Blood in the Machine, the Luddites’ leaderless spontaneity was actually more thought-through — and much more significant — than their reputation would suggest. A technology columnist for The Los Angeles Times, Merchant’s first book was 2017’s The One Device, an alternative look at the development of the iPhone. In this book he goes further, with a provocative rehabilitation of the Luddites as a well-organised labour movement who nearly incited a civil war. Above all, though, Merchant seeks to draw links between the spirit of the Luddites and the recent backlash against Silicon Valley. The Luddite unrest began in 1811, when factory owners in Nottingham began using new labour-saving devices such as the gig mill — used in the production of fabric — as a means of cutting jobs and wages. Merchant notes that textile workers had already embraced some forms of mechanisation, but soon found themselves on the sharp end of the Industrial Revolution. Lacking political recourse, the textile workers responded in the only way they felt would get their point across: by waiting until dark, breaking into the factories and destroying the machines. Although sabotage was confined to the burgeoning industrial heartlands of northern England, it operated in tandem with political lobbying, including strong support from poet Lord Byron. The Luddites also published foreboding letters under the name of “General Ludd” — a fictional figurehead for their movement. And in one of the many archival gems recounted by Merchant, male Luddites were known to dress up in drag and march through town, declaring themselves to be “General Ludd’s wives” in an act of solidarity with female cloth workers who had been put out of work by automation decades earlier. The then prime minister Spencer Perceval responded by sending troops to northern mill towns. The Luddites, meanwhile, stockpiled arms and melted down machine metal for bullets. As a way of getting employers to the bargaining table, their approach was surprisingly successful, bolstering wages and working conditions for textile workers. More notably, the Luddites’ activities paved the way for the creation of the first trade unions. They also influenced the development of English Romantic thought, changing the conversation around technological progress and very probably providing one inspiration for Mary Shelley’s groundbreaking novel Frankenstein, published in 1818. At times, Blood in the Machine suffers from the author’s decision to split the historical narrative into truncated, rapid-fire chapters that rotate through a large cast of characters. Reading the book can sometimes feel like getting jerked through a power loom. Luckily, Merchant’s longer chapters present a more nuanced argument — making parallels between the Luddites to contemporary worker movements at tech companies such as Uber and Amazon. With smart historical digging, he shows how 19th-century entrepreneurs used insecure, casualised employment arrangements, and recreates early debates between factory owners who were dealing with the pressure to automate their operations. If Merchant occasionally overstates the historical role of the Luddites, he makes up for it by showing that the struggle against technology that dominates our lives is also inherited. Calls to slow the development of human-level artificial intelligence are perhaps the most unexpected modern manifestation of the old Luddite sensibility. Merchant also uncovers some interesting policy demands by textile workers that are clear precedents for the proposals being put forward in the modern tech industry, including automation phase-ins, retraining and a tax on automated goods. The Luddites didn’t “hate” technology, writes Merchant, but “the way it was used against them” — and they understood its power all too well. Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech, by Brian Merchant, Little, Brown £25/$30, 496 pages Join our online book group on Facebook at FT Books Café