Carl Davidson

A number of growth factors and signaling pathways regulate matrix deposition and fibroblast proliferation in the lung. The epidermal growth factor receptor family of receptors and the transforming growth factor-β family are active in diverse biological processes and are central mediators in the initiation and maintenance of fibrosis in many diseases. Transforming growth factor-α is a ligand for the EGFR, and doxycycline -inducible transgenic mice conditionally expressing TGF-α specifically in the lung epithelium develop progressive fibrosis accompanied with cachexia, changes in lung mechanics, and marked pleural thickening. Although recent studies demonstrate that EGFR activation modulates the fibroproliferative effects involved in the pathogenesis of TGF-β induced pulmonary fibrosis, in converse, the direct role of EGFR induction of the TGF-β pathway in the lung is unknown. The αvβ6 integrin is an important in vivo activator of TGF-β activation in the lung. Immunohistochemical analysis of αvβ6 protein expression and bronchoalveolar analysis of TGF-β pathway signaling indicates activation of the αvβ6/TGF-β pathway only at later time points after lung fibrosis was already established in the TGF-α model. To determine the contribution of the αvβ6/TGF-β pathway on the progression of established fibrotic disease, TGF-α transgenic mice were administered Dox for 4 wk, which leads to extensive fibrosis; these mice were then treated with a function-blocking anti-αvβ6 antibody with continued administration of Dox for an additional 4 wk. Compared with TGF-α transgenic mice treated with control antibody, αvβ6 inhibition significantly attenuated pleural thickening and altered the decline in lung mechanics. To test the effects of genetic loss of the β6 integrin, TGF-α transgenic mice were mated with β6-null mice and the degree of fibrosis was compared in adult mice following 8 wk of Dox administration. Genetic ablation of the β6 integrin attenuated histological and physiological changes in the lungs of TGF-α transgenic mice although a significant degree of fibrosis still developed. In summary, inhibition of the β6 integrin led to a modest, albeit significant, effect on pleural thickening and lung function decline observed with TGF-α-induced pulmonary fibrosis. These data support activation of the αvβ6/TGF-β pathway as a secondary effect contributing to TGF-α-induced pleural fibrosis and suggest a complex contribution of multiple mediators to the maintenance of progressive fibrosis in the lung. © 2014 the American Physiological Society.

ABSTRACT The election of Donald Trump reflects the rise of a Right-wing nationalist movement. Central to Trump’s appeal has been his advocacy of anti-immigrant, racist, and misogynist ideas. At its core, his ruling power bloc consists of neo-liberal fundamentalists, the religious Right, and white nationalists. There are similarities between the new power bloc and fascism, and there are many who see Trump’s administration as such. Nevertheless, the new president’s authoritarian power bloc is neither hegemonic nor fascist yet, but it fascist core is growing quickly. It's important to look at its American roots in the 'Redemeer' Counterrevolution against Reconstruction. KEYWORDS: Hegemonyfascismnationalismneo-liberalismracism Previous article View issue table of contents Next article Disclosure Statement No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. Notes on Contributors: Jerry Harris is a founding member and national secretary of the Global Studies Association of North America and a founding member and on the international executive committee of the Network for the Critical Studies of Global Capitalism. He specializes in transnational capitalist class theory and political economy. He is author of Global Capitalism and the Crisis of Democracy (Clarity Press, 2016) and The Dialectics of Globalization: Economic and Political Conflict in a Transnational World (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2008). Carl Davidson is a co-founder of the Global Studies Association and director of the Online University of the Left. His area of interest is American history and politics. He is the author (with Jerry Harris) of Cyber Radicalism: A New Left for a Global Age (Changemaker Publications, 2005) and New Paths to Socialism (Changemaker Publications, 2011). Bill Fletcher Jr. is former president of TransAfrica Forum, a senior scholar with the Institute for Policy Studies, and co-author (with Peter Agard) of The Indispensable Ally: Black Workers and the Formation of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, 1934–1941, co-author (with Dr. Fernando Gapasin) of Solidarity Divided: The Crisis in Organized Labor and a New Path toward Social Justice, and author of They’re Bankrupting Us—And Twenty Other Myths about Unions. Paul Harris is a founding member of the San Francisco Law Collective, the national president of the Lawyers Guild, and the author of Black Rage Confronts the Law (New York University Press, 1997).