bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Quantitative Proteome Analysis Reveals Increased Content of Basement Membrane Proteins in Arteries From Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Lower Levels Among Metformin Users
Authors: Preil Simone A.R. , Kristensen Lars P. , Beck Hans C. , Jensen Pia S. , Nielsen Patricia S. , Steiniche Torben , Bjørling-Poulsen Marina , Larsen Martin R. , Hansen Maria L. , Rasmussen Lars M.
Published: September 2015

Background—

The increased risk of cardiovascular diseases in type 2 diabetes mellitus has been extensively documented, but the origins of the association remain largely unknown. We sought to determine changes in protein expressions in arterial tissue from patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and moreover hypothesized that metformin intake influences the protein composition.

Methods and Results—

We analyzed nonatherosclerotic repair arteries gathered at coronary bypass operations from 30 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and from 30 age- and sex-matched nondiabetic individuals. Quantitative proteome analysis was performed by isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation-labeling and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry, tandem mass spectrometry analysis on individual arterial samples. The amounts of the basement membrane components, α1-type IV collagen and α2-type IV collagen, γ1-laminin and β2-laminin, were significantly increased in patients with diabetes mellitus. Moreover, the expressions of basement membrane components and other vascular proteins were significantly lower among metformin users when compared with nonusers. Patients treated with or without metformin had similar levels of hemoglobin A1c, cholesterol, and blood pressure. In addition, quantitative histomorphometry showed increased area fractions of collagen-stainable material in tunica intima and media among patients with diabetes mellitus.

Conclusions—

The distinct accumulation of arterial basement membrane proteins in type 2 diabetes mellitus discloses a similarity between the diabetic macroangiopathy and microangiopathy and suggests a molecular explanation behind the alterations in vascular remodeling, biomechanical properties, and aneurysm formation described in diabetes mellitus. The lower amounts of basement membrane components in metformin-treated individuals are compatible with the hypothesis of direct beneficial drug effects on the matrix composition in the vasculature.
Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Life Expectancy After Acute Myocardial Infarction
Authors: Bucholz Emily M. , Ma Shuangge , Normand Sharon-Lise T. , Krumholz Harlan M.
Published: September 2015

Background—

Previous studies have been unable to disentangle the negative associations of black race and low socioeconomic status (SES) with long-term outcomes of patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Such information could assist in efforts to address both racial and socioeconomic disparities.

Methods and Results—

We used data from the Cooperative Cardiovascular Project, a prospective cohort study of Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized with AMI with 17 years of follow-up, to evaluate the relationship between race, area-level SES (measured by zip code–level median household income), and life expectancy after AMI. Life expectancy was estimated by using Cox proportional hazards regression with extrapolation using exponential models. Of the 141 095 patients with AMI, 6.3% were black and 6.8% resided in low-SES areas; 26% of black patients lived in low-SES areas in comparison with 5.7% of white patients. Post–myocardial infarction life expectancy estimates were shorter for black patients than for white patients across all socioeconomic levels in patients ≤75 years of age. After adjustment for patient and treatment characteristics, the association between race and life expectancy persisted but was attenuated. Younger black patients (<68 years) had shorter life expectancies than white patients, whereas older black patients had longer life expectancies. The largest white-black gap in life expectancy occurred in patients residing in high- and medium-SES areas (
P
=0.02 interaction).

Conclusions—

Black and white patients residing in low-SES areas have similar life expectancies after AMI, which are lower than those living in higher-SES areas. Racial disparities were most prominent among patients living in high-SES areas.
High‐Density Lipoprotein Subclasses and Noncardiovascular, Noncancer Chronic Inflammatory‐Related Events Versus Cardiovascular Events: The Multi‐Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis
Authors: Duprez Daniel A. , Otvos James , Tracy Russell P. , Feingold Kenneth R. , Greenland Philip , Gross Myron D. , Lima Joao A. C. , Mackey Rachel H. , Neaton James D. , Sanchez Otto A. , Jacobs David R.
Published: September 2015

Background

High‐density lipoprotein (
HDL
) particles have properties beyond reverse cholesterol transport. We hypothesized that their protection extends to inflammation‐related disease. The predictive value of
HDL
particle subclasses and inflammatory markers was studied for noncardiovascular, noncancer chronic inflammation–related death and hospitalization, and for incident cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Methods and Results

A multiethnic, multicenter, prospective observational study was conducted in 6475 men and women (aged 45 to 84 years) free of known
CVD
at baseline with median follow‐up of 10.1 years. Fasting venous samples were analyzed for baseline lipid profile and lipoprotein particles. We focused on the
HDL
family of variables (small‐, medium‐, and large‐diameter
HDL
particles and
HDL
cholesterol). Analyses identified the sum of small‐ plus medium‐diameter HDL particles as important. Small‐ plus medium‐diameter HDL particles were inversely associated with diagnostic code–based noncardiovascular, noncancer chronic inflammation–related death and hospitalization (n=1054) independent of covariates: relative risk per SD 0.85 (95%
CI
: 0.79 to 0.91,
P
<0.0001). Small‐ plus medium‐diameter HDL particles were also associated with adjudicated fatal and nonfatal coronary heart disease events (n=423): relative risk per
SD
0.88 (95% CI 0.77 to 0.98,
P
=0.02).

Conclusions

Small‐ plus medium‐diameter HDL particles are an independent predictor for noncardiovascular, noncancer chronic inflammation–related death and hospitalization and for coronary heart disease events in subjects initially free of overt
CVD
. These findings support the hypothesis that smaller
HDL
particles of diameter <9.4 nm have anti‐inflammatory properties in the general population.
Elements and Uniform Parts in Early Alexandrian Medicine
Authors: Leith David
Published: September 2015

This paper argues that the Alexandrian physicians Erasistratus of Iulis and Herophilus of Chalcedon adopted an Aristotelian analysis of the composition of organic bodies into three levels, namely elements, uniform and non-uniform parts. They asserted that it was not the task of the doctor to analyse the body at the level of elements, that the uniform parts, being perceptible, should be taken to be most basic in the context of medicine and that the inquiry into the elements be left to philosophers. The paper explores the possible motivations behind this restriction, and considers more generally its connections to the Peripatetic background.
Rearticulating Contemporary Populism
Authors: Bray Michael
Published: September 2015

Oriented, descriptively, by recent liberal definitions of populism, this essay pursues a historical-materialist definition that grounds populist antagonisms in class struggles as ‘crystallised’ in the capitalist state. A critical assessment of Laclau’s early equation of populism and socialism inaugurates the reading of Poulantzas’s relational account of class and state as a nascent framework for a theory of populism, centred on the state and its ideological crystallisation of individualisation, the mental/manual-labour division and the ‘people-nation’. This framework is then expanded to articulate the political-economic core of populist antagonisms, the specific character of ‘neoliberal populism’ today, and the potential, in relation to theories of ‘popular politics’ and a ‘communist people’, that left-wing populism might hold as a process of new political productions of class. This reading provides for a more expansive account of such movements’ potentials, beyond a threat to or correction of pre-determined democratic or Marxist schemas.
Exchanging without Exploiting
Authors: Lange Elena Louisa
Published: September 2015

AfterTranscritique: On Kant and Marx(2003), Karatani Kōjin’s new bookThe Structure of World Historypresents another engagement with Marxian theory from a ‘heterodox’ standpoint. In this book, rather than viewingThe Structure of World Historyfrom the aspect of mode of production in the conventional ‘Marxist’ sense, Karatani shifts perspective to the modes of exchange. To this end, Karatani appropriates what he sees as Marx’s emphasis on ‘exchange’. In the present essay, by looking at the textual evidence, I critically evaluate whether this appropriation of Marx’s theory is justified. I furthermore contend that Karatani’s reading of the concepts of value, money, capital, and surplus-value from the standpoint of ‘exchange’ (i.e.circulation) arises from a grave misconstrual of Marx’s critical intent. Accordingly, Karatani neglects the critique of exploitation and the systematic production of poverty that informs the basic assumptions of Marx’s analysis of the capitalist mode of production.
Human Rights, the State, and Recognition
Authors: Hann Matt
Published: September 2015

In three recent books, Andrew Vincent, Kelly Staples, and Jeremy Waldron offer much to enrich our understanding of the interface between human rights, the state, and recognition. Andrew Vincent offers an overview of the development of human rights from nineteenth century decline to twentieth century renaissance. He links the decline of natural rights to nationalism and evolution, and attributes the rebirth of rights to the horrors of the Holocaust. He claims human rights are qualitatively different to natural rights – though I argue this is not completely clear. Vincent argues that human rights require states, but that human rights are also protection against states. Kelly Staples uses two case studies to examine the effects of statelessness on human rights. She argues that statelessness, contra Arendt, need not mean deprivation of all rights. Her case studies are persuasive, though she may be reading Arendt on statelessness too strictly, and a more systematic setting out of Staples’ re-theorisation of statelessness would be desirable. Jeremy Waldron argues that ‘dignity’ should mean a set of rights, rather than being a reason to be held to have rights or something rights ought to protect. In making this argument, Waldron argues against Kantian and Roman Catholic conceptions of dignity. A potential drawback to Waldron’s theory is that it is silent on those outside the ‘dignitarian society.’ The three books together seem to represent a welcome shift towards thinking about human rights in terms of recognition.
North America from the Top Down
Authors: Desbarats Catherine , Greer Allan
Published: September 2015

This paper re-examines the spatial foundations of North American historiography concerning the early modern period. By focusing on the history of New France in its broader context, it argues that the hegemony of a United States-centric approach to pre-national America has distorted our understanding of the basic spatial dynamics of the period. More visibly than in other zones of empire formation, but not uniquely, New France displays a variety of spaces. We discuss three of these: imperial space, indigenous space and colonial space. We call into question the entrenched tendency, derived we think, from near-exclusive attention to the history of the Thirteen Colonies, to characterize this as “colonial history” and to assume that “colonies” were the only significant vessel of this history.
Bryophyte diversity along an altitudinal gradient in Darién National Park, Panama

Authors: Gradstein S. Rob , Allen Noris Salazar
Published: September 2015

A bryophyte inventory along an altitudinal gradient on Cerro Pirre (1200 m), Darién National Park, Panama, demonstrates that the different rain forest types along the gradient (inundatedlowland, hillside-lowland, submontane, montane elfin forest) have very different species assemblages. The montane forest has the largest number of exclusive species and the largest bryophyte biomass. Species richness is greatest in the submontane forest. The bryophyte flora of Cerro Pirre is not exceedingly rich in species owing to the rather low elevation of the mountain and the seasonal climate in the adjacent coastal plain. Nevertheless, the distinct altitudinal diversification and the occurrence of a considerable number of rare hepatic taxa, demonstrate the importance of Darién National Park as an area of plant conservation. Forty hepatic species are reported as new to Panama.
Musgos de Costa Rica: nuevos registros
Authors: Arrocha Clotilde
Published: September 2015

Fifteen species of mosses are reported as new to Costa Rica, five of those are new to Central America. These are: Paraleucobryum albicans (Schwaegr.) Loeske, Philonotis elongata (Dism.) Crum & Steere, Leskeodon cubensis (Mitt.) Thér., Hookeriopsis dimorpha (C.M.) Broth. and Isopterygium machrisianum (Crum) Irel.
Biorrelaciones entre los musgos y su acarofauna en México
Authors: Riverón Anita Hoffmann y Roberto
Published: September 2015

Comments are given regarding a preliminary list of 48 families of mites collected on mosses in Mexico: 11 Mesostigmata, 17 Prostigmata (=Actinedida), 1 Astigmata and 19 Cryptostigmata (=Oribatei); a general analysis is made of the relationship between the bryophytes and their associated fauna. An in-depth study of this faunal group must reveal a much greater number of associated species.
Results of a lichenological and bryological exploration of Cerro Guaiquinima (Guayana Highland, Venezuela)
Authors: Sipman H. J.
Published: September 2015

214 Lichen and 38 bryophyte species are reported from Cerro Guaiquinima, a sandstone table mountain in southeastern Venezuela, thus far almost unexplored for these groups and apparently undisturbed by man. Slightly over half of these species have also been reported from the north slope of Mount Roraima and surroundings, a nearby area with similar edaphic and climatological conditions. Altitudinal differences in the flora are probably largely dependent on differences in vegetation structure: the closed froests at the foot harbour more Cladoniaceae and Trypetheliaceae are found. On the highest site bryophytes are more frequent. First descriptioins are given for nine lechens and one moss: Buellia bellardii Sipman, Hypotrachyna adaffinis Sipman, Myriotrema flavolucens Sipman, Myriotrama squamuloides Sipman, Ocellularia croceoisidiata Sipman, Ocellularia glaucoglyphica Sipman, Thelotrema caarneoradians Sipman, Thelotrema guaiquinimae Sipman, Sphagnum sipmanii Crum and Ocellularia sinuosa Sipman (in appendix, from Colombia). Myriotrema guianense is reduced to synonymy of Myriotrema columellatum (A. Zahlbr.) Sipman, comb. nov.
Notas para la revisión de las especies de Octoblepharum del neotrópico

Authors: Allen Noris Salazar
Published: September 2015

Out of 21 species of Octoblepharum validly published for the Neotropics only 9 are recognized at the present time. These are: O. albidum Hedw., O. ampullaceum Mitt., O. cocuiense Mitt., O. cylindricum Schimp. ex Mont., O. erectifolium Mitt., O. pulvinatum (Doz. & Molk.) Mitt., O. rhaphidostegium C. Müll., O. stramineum Mitt. y O. tatei (Williams) Bartr. According to the number of peristome teeth, there are two evolutionary lines: one with 16 and the other with 8. Members of the first line are all dioicous whereas those in the latter are either autoicous or dioicous. Phenological studies in three species of Octoblepharum in Panamá suggest the occurrence of pseudodioecism in autoicous species and the development of a greater number of male gametoecia and antheridia than female ones. Two peristome types are found in populations of O. albidum; one is vertically striated while the other is smooth. All species occur in South America and this is considered the center of origin and speciation for the genus.
El banco de datos de los musgos neotropicales
Authors: M. Claudio Delgadillo
Published: September 2015

LATMOSS is a data bank for mosses known from the neotropical area. The geographical data contained therein are being used to study phytogeographical patterns and propose explanations to the distribution of neotropical mosses. It currently contains 4129 entries.
Tillandsia leucopetala, a new species of Bromeliaceae from Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil
Authors: Büneker Henrique Mallmann , Pontes Rodrigo Corrêa , Witeck-Neto Leopoldo , Soares Kelen Pureza
Published: September 2015

Tillandsia leucopetala H. Büneker, R. Pontes & L. Witeck is an endemic saxicolous new species from Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. It is described, illustrated and data about its geographic distribution and ecology are provided.
Two new species of Ixora (Ixoroideae, Rubiaceae) endemic to the Philippines
Authors: Banag Cecilia Illiscupides , Tandang Danilo , Meve Ulrich , Liede-Schumann Sigrid
Published: September 2015

Two new species of Ixora are described from the provinces of Palawan and Samar, Philippines: I. alejandroi and I. reynaldoi. The two new species are compared mostly with other species of the genus from the Philippines and neighbouring Asian countries. Ixora alejandroi is characterized by its elongated cyme with congested secondary axes, reddish-brown corolla, stigmatic lobes shortly cleft in the middle, round at tip; while I. reynaldoi is easily recognised by its pseudanthium-type, 9–15 flowered inflorescences, long bracteoles (3.5–8 mm long), and keeled, foliaceous calyx lobes (8–10 mm long). The conservation status of each species is proposed, using IUCN Criteria.
A new species of Phylloporus (Agaricales, Boletaceae) from India
Authors: CK Pradeep , KB Vrinda , Varghese Shibu P , Arun Kumar Thiruvoth Kottuvetta
Published: September 2015

A new species of Phylloporus from Kerala State, India is described, illustrated and discussed based on morphological and molecular characters. The phylogenetic relationship with related species based on ITS sequences is also provided.
Revision of Bondariella Hustache & Bondar (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), with descriptions of the first species from the Amazon and notes on natural history
Authors: VALENTE ROBERTA DE MELO , CORDEIRO MARIANO BRANDÃO JÚNIOR
Published: September 2015

Bondariella Hustache & Bondar, 1942 is revised. In addition to the redescription of the genus and its four previously known species, we report and describe the first species from the Amazonian region: Bondariella rudicula sp. nov. and Bondariella crenata sp. nov. We also provide a key to the species, illustrations and notes on natural history. All six species of Bondariella have been collected on palm flowers from Brazil, with the previously known species having only been      recorded from species of Syagrus Mart. from the Atlantic Forest and Caatinga biomes. The two new species have only been recorded from species of Euterpe Mart. from the Amazon biome. Future work may prove if the associations with Syagrus and Euterpe are specific to the biomes.
A new species of Suwallia (Plecoptera: Chloroperlidae) from China
Authors: CHEN ZHI-TENG , DU YU-ZHOU
Published: September 2015

A new species of the genus Suwallia, S. wolongshana sp. nov. is described and illustrated from specimens collected in Sichuan Province, China. The new species is characterized by the two sclerotized bands between the hemitergal processes. The new species is the fourth recorded species of Suwallia from China.
Improved Bias Correction Techniques for Hydrological Simulations of Climate Change*
Authors: Pierce David W. , Cayan Daniel R. , Maurer Edwin P. , Abatzoglou John T. , Hegewisch Katherine C.
Published: September 2015

Global climate model (GCM) output typically needs to be bias corrected before it can be used for climate change impact studies. Three existing bias correction methods, and a new one developed here, are applied to daily maximum temperature and precipitation from 21 GCMs to investigate how different methods alter the climate change signal of the GCM. The quantile mapping (QM) and cumulative distribution function transform (CDF-t) bias correction methods can significantly alter the GCM’s mean climate change signal, with differences of up to 2°C and 30% points for monthly mean temperature and precipitation, respectively. Equidistant quantile matching (EDCDFm) bias correction preserves GCM changes in mean daily maximum temperature but not precipitation. An extension to EDCDFm termed PresRat is introduced, which generally preserves the GCM changes in mean precipitation. Another problem is that GCMs can have difficulty simulating variance as a function of frequency. To address this, a frequency-dependent bias correction method is introduced that is twice as effective as standard bias correction in reducing errors in the models’ simulation of variance as a function of frequency, and it does so without making any locations worse, unlike standard bias correction. Last, a preconditioning technique is introduced that improves the simulation of the annual cycle while still allowing the bias correction to take account of an entire season’s values at once.
Robust Underestimation of Speed During Driving: A Field Study
Authors: Schütz Alexander C. , Billino Jutta , Bodrogi Peter , Polin Dmitrij , Khanh Tran Q. , Gegenfurtner Karl R.
Published: September 2015

Traffic reports consistently identify speeding as a substantial source of accidents. Adequate driving speeds require reliable speed estimation; however, there is still a lack of understanding how speed perception is biased during driving. Therefore, we ran three experiments measuring speed estimation under controlled driving and lighting conditions. In the first experiment, participants had to produce target speeds as drivers or had to judge driven speed as passengers. Measurements were performed at daylight and at night. In the second experiment, participants were required to produce target speeds at dusk, under rapidly changing lighting conditions. In the third experiment, we let two cars approach and pass each other. Drivers were instructed to produce target speeds as well as to judge the speed of the oncoming vehicle. Here measurements were performed at daylight and at night, with full or dipped headlights. We found that passengers underestimated driven speed by about 20% and drivers went over the instructed speed by roughly the same amount. Interestingly, the underestimation of speed extended to oncoming cars. All of these effects were independent of lighting conditions. The consistent underestimation of speed could lead to potentially fatal situations where drivers go faster than intended and judge oncoming traffic to approach slower than it actually is.
Understanding Land Reform in Ghana
Authors: Obeng-Odoom Franklin
Published: September 2015

Land reform has become particularly prominent in development discourse in recent times. Advocates emphasize its importance for poverty reduction in underdeveloped economies. However, how reform comes about and evolves and what it is and does is situated, not universal, as neoclassical economists suggest. This paper sheds light on the meaning, evolution, and outcomes of land reform in Ghana. It draws on historical and contemporary socio-legal and political-economic sources of evidence, analyzed within a critical postcolonial institutional framework. It shows important features of continuity and change in both colonial and post-colonial land reform. While pre-colonial land tenure relations are misrepresented as entailing no market activities, the concerted effort to introduce “capitalist markets” into the land sector to produce “socially efficient outcomes” has led to contradictory results.
Municipal-level differences in depressive symptoms among adolescents in Norway: Results from the cross-national Ungdata study
Authors: Abebe Dawit Shawel , Frøyland Lars Roar , Bakken Anders , von Soest Tilmann
Published: September 2015

Aim: This study aimed to investigate municipal-level variations and individual- and municipal-level predictors of high levels of depressive symptoms among Norwegian adolescents. Methods: We used data from the Norwegian cross-national Ungdata study. We included 77,424 adolescents from 171 municipalities attending junior high school (Grades 8–10; age 13–16 years) from 2011 to 2013. Multilevel (two-level) logistic regression models were applied for the data analyses. Results: The study revealed that 11% of adolescents reported high levels of depressive symptoms. The median odds ratio without adjusting for any individual- or municipal-level predictors was 1.24, indicating a small between-municipalities variability for high levels of depressive symptoms. All individual-level factors, such as gender, school grade, family income, substance use behaviours, bullying and dissatisfaction with different aspects of life, were significantly associated with high levels of depressive symptoms ( p < 0.05). As to municipal-level factors, a low annual budgets for municipal health services was the sole significant predictor of high levels of depressive symptoms between municipalities. Municipal-level factors and variables related to survey characteristics explained a moderate proportion of the variation in high levels of depressive symptoms between municipalities. Conclusions: The cluster heterogeneity in high levels of depressive symptoms was small between municipalities in Norway. Further research should examine the geographic clustering of mental health problems at the school and neighbourhood level.
An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in Trinidad
Authors: Clement Y. N. , Baksh-Comeau Y. S. , Seaforth C. E.
Published: September 2015

Background

An ethnobotanical survey was conducted on the Caribbean island of Trinidad to identify medicinal plants commonly used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of medical conditions.

Methods

A pilot survey was conducted to identify the top ten most common ailments where medicinal plants were used. The results of the foregoing study guided a wider national survey conducted between October 2007 and July 2008. A total of 450 households from 50 rural communities were interviewed using the TRAMIL (Traditional Medicine in the Islands) questionnaire for data collection. Details of plants, part(s) used, and remedy formulations were elicited from informants and voucher specimens collected for identification at the National Herbarium of Trinidad and Tobago. The TRAMIL methodology set a limit of a plant with 20 % or more citations for any particular ailment as having significant or popular use.

Results

At the end of the survey 917 single plant remedies were identified. The majority of species were from the following families; Asteraceae, Lamiaceae, Leguminosae, Verbenaceae and Poaceae. Applying the TRAMIL 20 % citation of a plant for popular use as significant, Leonotis nepetifolia (for cough/common cold), Gomphrena globosa (for “stoppage-of-water”), Curcuma longa and Senna occidentalis (for “afterbirth”), Cymbopogon citratus and Neurolaena lobata (for fever), and Citrus limon (for kidney stones) qualified in our study. Those not reaching the TRAMIL 20 % significant (popular) use were Stachytarpheta jamaicensis (L.) Vahl, Senna alata (L.) Roxb.and Momordica charantia L. which were widely used as “‘cooling/cleanser’” in our survey.

Conclusions

Our survey showed significant retention of traditional knowledge of medicinal plants in rural Trinidad. More interestingly, a large remnant of medico-cultural concepts such as “cooling/cleanser”, “afterbirth”, “stoppage-of-water” and “womb infection” persist in the rural population. Although the scientific literature show that some of the cited plants possessed antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and related pharmacological activities in laboratory studies, these results must be taken with caution until clinical trials are conducted to establish safety and efficacy.
Aesthetic reconstruction of the severely disfigured burned face: a creative strategy for a “natural” appearance using pre-patterned autogenous free flaps
Authors: Rose Elliott H.
Published: September 2015

The author reviews his pioneering work in aesthetic restoration of the severely disfigured burn face first introduced in 1995 and refined over the past two decades. The reader will be exposed to the step by step approach to achieving cosmetic enhancement and functional rehabilitation of advanced facial burns. The “keystone” of the autogenous reconstruction is the pre-patterned, sculpted microvascular free flap designed to fit like the “piece of a puzzle” into the aesthetic units of the face to replace disfiguring burn scars. Aggressive intraoperative “sculpting” is employed both “in situ” at the donor site and during the flap transfer to simulate the normal facial contours and planes. Comparisons of the author’s approach are made to the whole spectrum of reconstructive modalities ranging from conventional grafting to expanded pre-fabricated flaps and even to CTA face transplants; advantages/disadvantages of each are discussed. The pre-patterned, sculpted microvascular (MV) free flap offers the benefit of a single-stage transfer of composite skin/soft tissue hiding the seams at the junction of facial planes. When harvested from distant donor sites, the donor deformities can easily be concealed. The MV free tissue transfer offers the substrate that can be sculpted into nuanced facial components as well as the “palette” upon which the face can be painted with creative camouflage makeup. The soft contour and texture of the autogenous patterned transfers translates into a “natural” facial appearance while preserving fluid motions of facial expression.
The Work of Friendship in Nineteenth-Century American Friendship Album Verses
Authors: Zebuhr Laura
Published: September 2015

Based on archival research done at the Library Company of Philadelphia, this essay offers an interpretation of original and popular verses that appear in nineteenth-century friendship albums. It argues that the verses engage a long-standing conversation about the nature of friendship in the Western tradition: where the feeling of friendship comes from, the nature of the feeling itself, and how we ought to practice it. Situating the verses in relation to literary and philosophical writings on friendship including those of Socrates, Michel de Montaigne, Friedrich Nietzsche, Friedrich Hölderlin, Rainer Maria Rilke, Maurice Blanchot, and Simone de Beauvoir achieves two main objectives. First, it aims to give the verses, which have largely been ignored by scholarship, their due as literary texts; and second, reveals that this popular practice, though not itself explicitly philosophical, makes a serious contribution to the Western philosophical tradition's consideration of the concept of friendship.
Kinship and Transmission within the French Nobility, Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries: The Case of the Vassé
Authors: Haddad Elie
Published: September 2015

This article analyzes transformations of domestic organization, transmission of material and symbolic goods, and representations of the “house” (after Claude Lévi-Strauss) by examining the Vassé, a provincial noble family living in the Maine and at Paris, at court, or in the army, depending on the circumstances. Articulating the social history and anthropology of kinship shows the fundamentally cognatic character of kinship among the nobility: the importance of marriage, and transmission through women, but also the social processes that led to an extreme valorization of the patrilineage. In the process it also shows how the noble “house” was enfeebled by the simultaneous reinforcement of patrilineality and loosening of the relationship to seigneuries and property, which reduced the place of goods in family continuity in favor of blood ties, resulting in a system different from the sixteenth-century system of multiple alliances and the establishment of several heirs.
Financing the Huguenot War Effort during the Early Wars of Religion, 1562–1570
Authors: Daussy Hugues
Published: September 2015

During the first Wars of Religion, military needs obliged Huguenot leaders to obtain by all possible means the resources needed to finance their troops. At first, they turned to expedients and improvisations. We can thus distinguish seven revenue sources used during the first War of Religion: voluntary contributions from Reformed churches; seizure of wealth from the Catholic Church; loans; levying taxes on Huguenot-occupied cities; the confiscation of municipal, royal, and ecclesiastical revenues; ransoming prisoners; and requests for support from foreign Protestants. During the second and third wars, however, improvisation gave way to a more organized system, notably due to fund-raising organized by political assemblies meeting in the south of the kingdom, which marked the beginning of a process of rationalizing Huguenot war finance.
The Dangers of Feminism in Colonial Indochina
Authors: Siegel Mona L.
Published: September 2015

This article examines the controversy elicited by the visit of two Western feminists—Camille Drevet of France and Edith Pye of Great Britain—to French Indochina in 1927. Traveling as delegates of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) and as guests of the Annamite Constitutionalist Party, Drevet and Pye challenged French male colonists whose vision of modern colonial governance rested on a defense of tradition and the presumed benefits of paternalistic guardianship over indigenous men and all women. Concerns regarding modern womanhood and an incipient Vietnamese youth revolt led French male colonists to denounce the threat that women's emancipation posed to Indochina. Vietnamese radicals were inspired by the WILPF visit, understanding that arguments to liberate women and the nation both rested on opposition to paternalistic subordination. The WILPF delegates emerged from the trip firmly opposed to colonialism; nonetheless, they struggled to articulate an explicitly feminist anti-imperialist agenda linking female and colonial subservience.
The Design of Failure: Health Policy and the Structure of Federalism
Authors: Vladeck Bruce C.
Published: September 2015

This paper explores the impact of the federal structure of American government on health policy through the examination of three case studies of unsatisfactory policy: Medicaid cutbacks; provider licensure; and health planning under P.L. 93-641. Problems arise in all three areas because of a disjunction between administrative or regulatory responsibilities and financial accountability. How the division of responsibilities among different levels of government might be managed better is examined briefly, in the context of possible state roles under a system of national health insurance.
Financial Viability of Community Health Centers
Authors: Brecher Charles , Forman Maury
Published: September 2015

Local public officials have become greatly concerned about the impact of the continued demand for local subsidies for outpatient programs. This article examines two basic obstacles to the fiscal viability of inner city ambulatory programs, management practices and reimbursement policies. Findings are presented with respect to the relative importance of these obstacles and options are developed for the reform of existing subsidy programs.
Eating locally: Australasian gannets increase their foraging effort in a restricted range
Authors: Angel Lauren P. , Barker Sophie , Berlincourt Maud , Tew Emma , Warwick-Evans Victoria , Arnould John P. Y.
Published: September 2015

During the breeding season, seabirds adopt a central place foraging strategy and are restricted in their foraging range by the fasting ability of their partner/chick and the cost of commuting between the prey resources and the nest. Because of the spatial and temporal variability of marine ecosystems, individuals must adapt their behaviour to increase foraging success within these constraints. The at-sea movements, foraging behaviour and effort of the Australasian gannet (Morus serrator) was determined over three sequential breeding seasons of apparent differing prey abundance to investigate how the species adapts to inter-annual fluctuations in food availability. GPS and tri-axial accelerometer data loggers were used to compare the degree of annual variation within two stages of breeding (incubation and chick rearing) at a small gannet colony situated between two larger, nearby colonies. Interestingly, neither males nor females increased the total distance travelled or duration of foraging trip in any breeding stage (P>0.05 in all cases) despite apparent low prey availability. However, consistently within each breeding stage, mean vectorial dynamic body acceleration (an index of energy expenditure) was greater in years of poorer breeding success (increased by a factor of three to eight), suggesting birds were working harder within their range. Additionally, both males and females increased the proportion of a foraging trip spent foraging in a poorer year across both breeding stages. Individuals from this colony may be limited in their ability to extend their range in years of low prey availability due to competition from conspecifics in nearby colonies and, consequently, increase foraging effort within this restricted foraging area.
FASTKD2 is an RNA-binding protein required for mitochondrial RNA processing and translation
Authors: Popow Johannes , Alleaume Anne-Marie , Curk Tomaz , Schwarzl Thomas , Sauer Sven , Hentze Matthias W.
Published: September 2015

Mitochondrial RNA processing is an essential step for the synthesis of the components of the electron transport chain in all eukaryotic organisms, yet several aspects of mitochondrial RNA biogenesis and regulation are not sufficiently understood. RNA interactome capture identified several disease-relevant RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) with noncanonical RNA-binding architectures, including all six members of the FASTK (FAS-activated serine/threonine kinase) family of proteins. A mutation within one of these newly assigned FASTK RBPs, FASTKD2, causes a rare form of Mendelian mitochondrial encephalomyopathy. To investigate whether RNA binding of FASTKD2 contributes to the disease phenotype, we identified the RNA targets of FASTKD2 by iCLIP. FASTKD2 interacts with a defined set of mitochondrial transcripts including 16S ribosomal RNA (RNR2) and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6 (ND6) messenger RNA. CRISPR-mediated deletion of FASTKD2 leads to aberrant processing and expression of RNR2 and ND6 mRNA that encodes a subunit of the respiratory complex I. Metabolic phenotyping of FASTKD2-deficient cells reveals impaired cellular respiration with reduced activities of all respiratory complexes. This work identifies key aspects of the molecular network of a previously uncharacterized, disease-relevant RNA-binding protein, FASTKD2, by a combination of genomic, molecular, and metabolic analyses.
The Antibody Two-Step Solution
Authors: Browning Mike
Published: September 2015

Problems with antibody quality have been described in numerous recent publications.  In the present commentary it is argued that these quality problems are due primarily to issues of antibody variability and antibody validation.  Further it is argued that the problem of antibody variability must be solved before validation can be useful.  A two-step solution to the antibody problem is thus proposed.
The combinatorial inverse eigenvalue problem II: all cases for small graphs
Authors: Barrett Wayne , Nelson Curtis , Sinkovic John , Yang Tianyi
Published: September 2015

Let G be a simple undirected graph on n vertices and let S(G) be the class of real symmetric n by n matrices whose nonzero off-diagonal entries correspond to the edges of G. Given 2n - 1 real numbers \lambda_1\geq \mu_1 \geq \lambda_2 \geq \mu_2 \geq \cdots \geq \lambda_{n-1} \geq \mu_{n-1} \geq \lambda_{n-1}, and a vertex v of G, the question is addressed of whether or not there exists A in S(G) with eigenvalues \lambda_1, \ldots, \lambda_ n such that A(v) has eigenvalues \mu_1, \ldots, \mu_{n-1}, where A(v) denotes the matrix with vth row and column deleted. A complete solution can be given for the path on n vertices with v a pendant vertex and also for the star on n vertices with v the dominating vertex. The main result is a complete solution to this "\lambda, \mu" problem for all connected graphs on 4 vertices.
A determinantal inequality for positive semidefinite matrices
Authors: Lin Minghua
Published: September 2015

Let A, B, C be n Ã n positive semidefinite matrices. It is known that det(A + B + C) + det C â¥ det(A + C) + det(B + C), which includes det(A + B) â¥ det A + det B as a special case. In this article, a relation between these two inequalities is proved, namely, det(A + B + C) + det C â (det(A + C) + det(B + C)) â¥ det(A + B) â (det A + det B).
Orthogonal $*$-basis of relative symmetry classes of polynomials
Authors: Rodtes Kijti
Published: September 2015

In this note, the existence of orthogonal â-basis of the symmetry classes of polynomials is discussed. Analogously to the orthogonal â-basis of symmetry classes of tensor, some criteria for the existence of the basis for finite groups are provided. A condition for the existence of such basis of symmetry classes of polynomials associated to symmetric groups and some irreducible characters is also investigated.
A note on the spectral radius of a product of companion matrices
Authors: Key Eric , Volkmer Hans
Published: September 2015

Conditions are given on the coefficients of the characteristic polynomials of a set of k companion matrices to ensure that the spectral radius of their product is bounded by tk where 0 < t < 1.
Eigenvalue localization for complex matrices
Authors: Gumus Ibrahim , Hirzallah Omar , Kittaneh Fuad
Published: September 2015

Let $A$ be an $n\times n$ complex matrix with $n\geq 3$. It is shown that at least $n-2$ of the eigenvalues of $A$ lie in the disk \begin{equation*}\left\vert z-\frac{\func{tr}A}{n}\right\vert \leq \sqrt{\frac{n-1}{n}\left(\sqrt{\left( \left\Vert A\right\Vert _{2}^{2}-\frac{\left\vert \func{tr} A\right\vert ^{2}}{n}\right) ^{2}-\frac{\left\Vert A^{\ast }A-AA^{\ast}\right\Vert _{2}^{2}}{2}}-\frac{\limfunc{spd}\nolimits^{2}(A)}{2}\right) },\end{equation*} where $\left\Vert A\right\Vert _{2},$ $\func{tr}A$, and $\limfunc{spd}(A)$ denote the Frobenius norm, the trace, and the spread of $A$, respectively. In particular, if $A=\left[ a_{ij}\right] $ is normal, then at least $n-2$ of the eigenvalues of $A$ lie in the disk {\small \begin{eqnarray*} & & \left\vert z-\frac{\func{tr}A}{n}\right\vert \\ & & \leq \sqrt{\frac{n-1}{n}\left( \frac{\left\Vert A\right\Vert _{2}^{2}}{2}-\frac{\left\vert \func{tr}A\right\vert ^{2}}{n}-\frac{3}{2}\max_{i,j=1,\dots,n} \left( \sum_{\substack{ k=1 \\ k\neq i}}^{n}\left\vert a_{ki}\right\vert ^{2}+\sum_{\substack{ k=1 \\ k\neq j}}^{n}\left\vert a_{kj}\right\vert ^{2}+\frac{\left\vert a_{ii}-a_{jj}\right\vert ^{2}}{2}\right) \right) }. \end{eqnarray*}} Moreover, the constant $\frac{3}{2}$ can be replaced by $4$ if the matrix $A$ is Hermitian.
Evaluation of a family of binomial determinants
Authors: Helou Charles , Sellers James
Published: September 2015

Motivated by a recent work about finite sequences where the n-th term is bounded by n^2, some classes of determinants are evaluated such as the (n â 2) Ã (n â 2) determinant â_n=\det [ (x_i+j \choose i-1)] for n \geq 1, where n, k, h, i, j are integers, (x_k) is a sequence of indeterminates over C and ( A \choose B ) is the usual binomial coefficient. It is proven that D_n=1 and â_n=(-1)^{ (n-2)(n-3)/2}.
Using variants of zero forcing to bound the inertia set of a graph
Authors: Butler Steve , Grout Jason , Hall H.
Published: September 2015

Zero forcing is a combinatorial game played on a graph with a goal of changing the color of every vertex at minimal cost. This leads to a parameter known as the zero forcing number that can be used to give an upper bound for the maximum nullity of a matrix associated with the graph. A variation on the zero forcing game is introduced that can be used to give an upper bound for the maximum nullity of such a matrix when it is constrained to have exactly q negative eigenvalues. This constrains the possible inertias that a matrix associated with a graph can achieve and gives a method to construct lower bounds on the inertia set of a graph (which is the set of all possible pairs (p,q) where p is the number of positive eigenvalues and q is the number of negative eigenvalues).
Extension of Bessel sequences to oblique dual frame sequences and the minimal projection
Authors: Koo Yoo , Lim Jae
Published: September 2015

An extension of two Bessel sequences to oblique dual frame sequences and its applications to shift-invariant spaces are considered. The best-known situation where this kind of extension is necessary is the construction of a pair of biorthogonal multiresolution analyses, where two generating sets whose shifts are only assumed to be Bessel sequences are given. This extension naturally leads to consideration of the âminimal projectionâ extending two closed subspaces. The existence or non-existence of the minimal projection is discussed.
Common solutions of linear equations in a ring, with applications
Authors: Dajic Alegra
Published: September 2015

This paper gives necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a common solution, and two expressions for the general common solution of the equation pair a_1xb_1 = c1, a_2xb_2 = c2, via a simpler equation p_1xp_2 + q_1yq_2=c, when each element belongs to an associative ring with unit. The paper also considers the same problem in the setting of a strongly â-reducing ring. Solutions of the generalized Sylvester equation are also presented. Both the solvability conditions and the expression for the general solution are given in terms of inner inverses. The paper uses the results obtained in the ring setting to give equivalent results for operators between Banach spaces, thus also recovering some of the well known matrix results.
On the multiplicities of eigenvalues of graphs and their vertex deleted subgraphs: old and new results
Authors: Simic Slobodan , Andelic Milica , Da Fonseca Carlos , Zivkovic Dejan
Published: September 2015

Given a simple graph G, let A(G) be its adjacency matrix. A principal submatrix of A(G) of order one less than the order of G is the adjacency matrix of its vertex deleted subgraph. It is well-known that the multiplicity of any eigenvalue of A(G) and such a principal submatrix can differ by at most one. Therefore, a vertex v of G is a downer vertex (neutral vertex, or Parter vertex) with respect to a fixed eigenvalue Î¼ if the multiplicity of Î¼ in A(G)âv goes down by one (resp., remains the same, or goes up by one). In this paper, we consider the problems of characterizing these three types of vertices under various constraints imposed on graphs being considered, on vertices being chosen and on eigenvalues being observed. By assigning weights to edges of graphs, we generalizeour results to weighted graphs, or equivalently to symmetric matrices.
Graphs with many valencies and few eigenvalues
Authors: Dam Edwin , Koolen Jack , Xia Zheng-Jiang
Published: September 2015

Dom de Caen posed the question whether connected graphs with three distinct eigenvalues have at most three distinct valencies. We do not answer this question, but instead construct connected graphs with four and five distinct eigenvalues and arbitrarily many distinct valencies. The graphs with four distinct eigenvalues come from regular two-graphs. As a side result, we characterize the disconnected graphs and the graphs with three distinct eigenvalues in the switching class of a regular two-graph.