bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Genetic basis of variation in adenoma multiplicity in
Apc

Min
/+

Mom1
S

mice
Authors: Haines Jackie , Johnson Victoria , Pack Kevin , Suraweera Nirosha , Slijepcevic Predrag , Cabuy Erik , Coster Margaret , Ilyas Mohammad , Wilding Jennifer , Sieber Oliver , Bodmer Walter , Tomlinson Ian , Silver Andrew
Published: February 2005

Apc
Min

mice have provided an example of a locus (Modifier of
Min1
;
Mom1
) modifying adenoma numbers in the intestines of inbred strains. Linkage analysis located
Mom1
on chromosome 4, and further investigation identified secretory phospholipase A2 (
Pla2g2a
) as a candidate gene. Because of unknown variation introduced by a single founding male mouse, our
Min
stock, although

Pla2g2a
Mom1-s

, was not on a pure C57BL/6J background and exhibited several polymorphic loci, including a region on chromosome 18 distal to
Apc
. Through selective breeding for homozygosity for distal chromosome 18 markers, six recombinant lines that presented with limited intraline variation in adenoma numbers were established. One line (V) showed a particularly severe phenotype (mean adenoma number ± SEM, 370 ± 21) compared with the other lines that recorded significantly lower means (3- to 5-fold;
P
< 10
–3
,
t
test). Intercrosses between lines I and V showed suppression of the severe phenotype in the N1 generation. In N2 (and subsequent) backcrosses, tumor multiplicity depended on the origins of the WT and
Min Apc
alleles. Mice carrying both alleles from line V had a severe phenotype; others had mild disease very similar to line I (likelihood ratio statistic > 49.0; likelihood of odds > 10;
P
< 10
–5
). Frequency of allele loss at
Apc
was increased significantly in adenomas of mice with more severe disease. We propose that a modifier gene close to
Apc
or structural variation on chromosome 18 modifies polyp numbers in our mice, possibly by altering the frequency of WT
Apc
allele loss.
Altered vascular remodeling in fibulin-5-deficient mice reveals a role of fibulin-5 in smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration
Authors: Spencer Jeffrey A. , Hacker Shelby L. , Davis Elaine C. , Mecham Robert P. , Knutsen Russ H. , Li Dean Y. , Gerard Robert D. , Richardson James A. , Olson Eric N. , Yanagisawa Hiromi
Published: February 2005

Fibulin (fbln)-5 is an elastin-binding protein required for assembly and organization of elastic fibers. To examine the potential role of fbln-5 in vascular remodeling and neointima formation, we induced vascular injury by carotid artery ligation infbln-5–/–mice. Mutant mice displayed an exaggerated vascular remodeling response that was accompanied by severe neointima formation with thickened adventitia. These abnormalities were not observed inelastin+/–mice that exhibited a comparable reduction of vessel extensibility tofbln-5–/–mice. Thus, the severe remodeling response could not be attributed to altered extensibility of the vessel wall alone. Vascular smooth muscle cells cultured fromfbln-5–/–mice displayed enhanced proliferative and migratory responses to mitogenic stimulation relative to wild-type cells, and these responses were inhibited by overexpression offbln-5. These findings demonstrate the importance of the elastic laminae in vascular injury, and reveal an unexpected role of fbln-5 as an inhibitor of vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration.
Ca
2+
blinks: Rapid nanoscopic store calcium signaling
Authors: Brochet Didier X. P. , Yang Dongmei , Maio Alessandro Di , Lederer W. Jonathan , Franzini-Armstrong Clara , Cheng Heping
Published: February 2005

Luminal Ca
2+
in the endoplasmic and sarcoplasmic reticulum (ER/SR) plays an important role in regulating vital biological processes, including store-operated capacitative Ca
2+
entry, Ca
2+
-induced Ca
2+
release, and ER/SR stress-mediated cell death. We report rapid and substantial decreases in luminal [Ca
2+
], called “Ca
2+
blinks,” within nanometer-sized stores (the junctional cisternae of the SR) during elementary Ca
2+
release events in heart cells. Blinks mirror small local increases in cytoplasmic Ca
2+
,orCa
2+
sparks, but changes of [Ca
2+
] in the connected free SR network were below detection. Store microanatomy suggests that diffusional strictures may account for this paradox. Surprisingly, the nadir of the store depletion trails the peak of the spark by about 10 ms, and the refilling of local store occurs with a rate constant of 35 s
-1
, which is ≈6-fold faster than the recovery of local Ca
2+
release after a spark. These data suggest that both local store depletion and some time-dependent inhibitory mechanism contribute to spark termination and refractoriness. Visualization of local store Ca
2+
signaling thus broadens our understanding of cardiac store Ca
2+
regulation and function and opens the possibility for local regulation of diverse store-dependent functions.
Cognitive deficit associated with cholinergic and nerve growth factor down-regulation in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in rats
Authors: D'Intino Giulia , Paradisi Michela , Fernandez Mercedes , Giuliani Alessandro , Aloe Luigi , Giardino Luciana , Calzà Laura
Published: February 2005

Clinical symptoms in multiple sclerosis include cognitive dysfunction. Difficulties in learning and remembering new information represent the most common cognitive deficit and are associated with a general and progressive brain pathology. Possible pathogenetic mechanisms for neuronal damage such as neuroprotective strategies are under active investigation also in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, the most widely used experimental model for multiple sclerosis. In this paper we demonstrate that a selective deficit in learning and memory performance, as investigated by the Morris water maze test, is a consistent feature in rat encephalomyelitis, which correlates with a decline in choline acetyltransferase activity and nerve growth factor mRNA level in cerebral cortex, hippocampus, and basal forebrain. Treatment aimed to restore acetylcholine content through chronic administration of selective acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (rivastigmine and donepezil) restores cognitive performance, choline acetyltransferase activity, and nerve growth factor mRNA expression.
Lactobacilli activate human dendritic cells that skew T cells toward T helper 1 polarization
Authors: Mohamadzadeh Mansour , Olson Scott , Kalina Warren V. , Ruthel Gordon , Demmin Gretchen L. , Warfield Kelly L. , Bavari Sina , Klaenhammer Todd R.
Published: February 2005

Professional antigen-presenting dendritic cells (DCs) are critical in regulating T cell immune responses at both systemic and mucosal sites. ManyLactobacillusspecies are normal members of the human gut microflora and most are regarded as safe when administered as probiotics. Because DCs can naturally or therapeutically encounter lactobacilli, we investigated the effects of several well defined strains, representing three species ofLactobacilluson human myeloid DCs (MDCs) and found that they modulated the phenotype and functions of human MDCs.Lactobacillus-exposed MDCs up-regulated HLA-DR, CD83, CD40, CD80, and CD86 and secreted high levels of IL-12 and IL-18, but not IL-10. IL-12 was sustained in MDCs exposed to all threeLactobacillusspecies in the presence of LPS fromEscherichia coli, whereas LPS-induced IL-10 was greatly inhibited. MDCs activated with lactobacilli clearly skewed CD4+and CD8+T cells to T helper 1 and Tc1 polarization, as evidenced by secretion of IFN-γ, but not IL-4 or IL-13. These results emphasize a potentially important role for lactobacilli in modulating immunological functions of DCs and suggest that certain strains could be particularly advantageous as vaccine adjuvants, by promoting DCs to regulate T cell responses toward T helper 1 and Tc1 pathways.
Tetracycline analogue-regulated transgene expression in
Plasmodium falciparum
blood stages using
Toxoplasma gondii
transactivators
Authors: Meissner Markus , Krejany Efrosinia , Gilson Paul R. , de Koning-Ward Tania F. , Soldati Dominique , Crabb Brendan S.
Published: February 2005

Genetic manipulation has revolutionized research in the Apicomplexan parasite
Plasmodium falciparum
, the most important causative agent of malaria. However, to date no techniques have been established that allow modifications that are deleterious to blood-stage growth, such as the disruption of essential genes or the expression of dominant-negative transgenes. The recent establishment of a screen for functional transactivators in the related parasite
Toxoplasma gondii
prompted us to identify transactivators in
T. gondii
and to examine their functionality in
P. falciparum
. Tetracycline-responsive minimal promoters were generated based on the characterized
P. falciparum
calmodulin promoter and used to assess transactivators in
P. falciparum
. We demonstrate that artificial tetracycline-regulated transactivators isolated in
T. gondii
are also functional in
P. falciparum
. By using the tetracycline analogue anhydrotetracycline, efficient, stage-specific gene regulation was achieved in
P. falciparum
. This regulatable expression technology has clear potential for the study of essential gene function in
P. falciparum
blood stages. On the other hand, the identified transactivators are not functional in mammalian cells, consistent with the fundamental differences in the mechanism of gene regulation between Apicomplexan parasites and their human hosts.
Concurrent suppression of hyperlipidemia and intestinal polyp formation by NO-1886, increasing lipoprotein lipase activity in Min mice
Authors: Niho Naoko , Mutoh Michihiro , Takahashi Mami , Tsutsumi Kazuhiko , Sugimura Takashi , Wakabayashi Keiji
Published: February 2005

We have previously reported a hyperlipidemic state in two strains of
Apc
-deficient mice, Min and
Apc
1309
, associated with low expression levels of lipoprotein lipase (LPL) in the liver and small intestine, and enforced induction of LPL mRNA by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)α and PPARγ agonists clearly suppressed hyperlipidemia and intestinal polyp formation in these mice. Meanwhile, a compound, NO-1886, has been shown to increase LPL mRNA and protein levels but not to possess PPARα and PPARγ agonistic activity. In this study, therefore, the effects of NO-1886 on hyperlipidemia and intestinal polyp formation were investigated in Min mice. Administration of 400 and 800 ppm NO-1886 in the diet for 13 weeks from 7 weeks of age caused a reduction of serum triglycerides to 39% and 31% of the untreated value, respectively, and the values for very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were improved almost to the wild-type level with a corresponding elevation of the LPL mRNA. Moreover, total numbers of intestinal polyps in the groups receiving NO-1886 at 400 and 800 ppm were decreased to 48% and 42% of the control value, respectively. We also found that NO-1886 suppressed cyclooxygenase-2 transcriptional promoter activity in a reporter gene assay and reduced cyclooxygenase-2 mRNA levels in the small intestine of Min mice. These results indicate that suppression of serum lipid levels by increasing LPL activity may contribute to a reduction of intestinal polyp formation with
Apc
-deficiency, and NO-1886 and its derivatives could be useful as chemopreventive agents for colon cancer.
Embryonic pig liver, pancreas, and lung as a source for transplantation: Optimal organogenesis without teratoma depends on distinct time windows
Authors: Eventov-Friedman Smadar , Katchman Helena , Shezen Elias , Aronovich Anna , Tchorsh Dalit , Dekel Benjamin , Freud Enrique , Reisner Yair
Published: February 2005

Pig embryonic tissues represent an attractive option for organ transplantation. However, the achievement of optimal organogenesis after transplantation, namely, maximal organ growth and function without teratoma development, represents a major challenge. In this study, we determined distinct gestational time windows for the growth of pig embryonic liver, pancreas, and lung precursors. Transplantation of embryonic-tissue precursors at various gestational ages [from E (embryonic day) 21 to E100] revealed a unique pattern of growth and differentiation for each embryonic organ. Maximal liver growth and function were achieved at the earliest teratoma-free gestational age (E28), whereas the growth and functional potential of the pancreas gradually increased toward E42 and E56 followed by a marked decline in insulin-secreting capacity at E80 and E100. Development of mature lung tissue containing essential respiratory system elements was observed at a relatively late gestational age (E56). These findings, showing distinct, optimal gestational time windows for transplantation of embryonic pig liver, pancreas, and lung, might explain, in part, the disappointing results in previous transplantation trials and could help enhance the chances for successful implementation of embryonic pig tissue in the treatment of a wide spectrum of human diseases.
Function of endogenous inhibitors of angiogenesis as endothelium-specific tumor suppressors
Authors: Sund Malin , Hamano Yuki , Sugimoto Hikaru , Sudhakar Akulapalli , Soubasakos Mary , Yerramalla Udaya , Benjamin Laura E. , Lawler Jack , Kieran Mark , Shah Amish , Kalluri Raghu
Published: February 2005

Disruption of the systemic angiogenesis balance to favor enhanced angiogenesis is speculated to represent a key step in the growth of tumors. Although a major emphasis has been placed on the increase of angiogenesis stimulators, such as VEGF, on the disruption of the angiogenic balance, the potential role of the physiological levels of endogenous inhibitors of angiogenesis on tumor growth is poorly understood. Here, we use three independent lines of mice deficient in tumstatin, endostatin, or thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1), to address the role that these endogenous angiogenesis inhibitors play in tumor growth. Our experiments demonstrate that normal physiological levels of these inhibitors serve to retard the growth of tumors, and that their absence leads to enhanced angiogenesis and a 2- to 3-fold increase in tumor growth. The tumor-suppressive action of TSP-1, endostatin, and tumstatin correlates with expression of CD36 receptor, α5β1 integrin, and αvβ3 integrin on proliferating endothelial cells, respectively. Moreover, tumors grow 2-fold faster in the tumstatin/TSP-1 double-knockout mice, compared with either the tumstatin- or the TSP-1-deficient mice, strongly suggesting that ceiling rate of cancer growth is not completely dependent on the genetic defects of cancer cells but also depends on the host-derived tumor microenvironment. Additionally, tumor growth in transgenic mice overproducing endostatin specifically in the endothelial cells (a 1.6-fold increase in the circulating levels; mimicking Down's syndrome condition) is 3-fold slower than the tumor growth in wild-type mice. Collectively, our data suggest that physiological levels of endogenous inhibitors of angiogenesis can serve as endothelium-specific tumor suppressors.
Early onset of puberty and early ovarian failure in CYP7B1 knockout mice
Authors: Omoto Yoko , Lathe Richard , Warner Margaret , Gustafsson Jan-Åke
Published: February 2005

CYP7B1 is the enzyme responsible for hydroxylation and termination of the estrogenic actions of the androgen metabolite, 5α-androstane-3β, 17β-diol (3βAdiol). 3βAdiol is estrogenic in ERα or ERβ positive cells only if they do not express CYP7B1. In this study we show that female CYP7B1–/–mice experience early onset of growth of the uterus and mammary glands and commence estrus cycles 2 days earlier than their wild-type littermates. Adult mammary glands and uteri appear to be under continuous estrogenic stimulation. We conclude that, by cell-specific regulation of the estrogenicity of 3βAdiol, CYP7B1 performs two major tasks: (i) it allows 3βAdiol to have growth inhibitory effects through ERβ and (ii) it permits estradiol-specific activation of estrogen receptors by protection of certain cells from the estrogenic effects of 3βAdiol. When CYP7B1 is inactivated, 3βAdiol activates estrogen receptors indiscriminately, and the overall effect is prolonged and inappropriate exposure to estrogen.
Symmetry activates extrastriate visual cortex in human and nonhuman primates
Authors: Sasaki Yuka , Vanduffel Wim , Knutsen Tamara , Tyler Christopher , Tootell Roger
Published: February 2005

Humans often create and appreciate visual symmetry in their environment, and the underlying brain mechanisms have been a topic of increasing interest. Here, symmetric versus random dot stimuli produced robust functional MRI (fMRI) activity in higher-order regions of human visual cortex (especially areas V3A, V4, V7, and LO) but little activity elsewhere in brain. This fMRI response was found both with and without attention controls. Moreover, it was highly correlated with the psychophysical perception of symmetry. Similar symmetry responses were found by using line-based and dot stimuli and were found at a wide range of stimulus sizes and geometric configurations. Weaker symmetry responses were found in analogous regions of macaque visual cortex by using fMRI techniques with higher sensitivity. This evidence suggests that visual symmetry is specifically enhanced in the human brain, but that the underlying neural mechanisms may nevertheless be resolvable in nonhuman primates.
Interviewing Iranian Immigrant Parents and Adolescents
Authors: Higgins Patricia J.
Published: February 2005

Among the newest developments in the ethnography of Iran is research on Iranians living outside of Iran. The large post-revolutionary Iranian diaspora raises many interesting issues and questions, including to what extent Iranian culture can be maintained abroad and how effectively displaced Iranians can function within host societies. Several features of the Iranian diaspora also make this population attractive for testing general theories concerning migration and adaptation. In addition, the conditions that led to the Iranian diaspora of the last 25 years also made it difficult for anthropologists to carry out research in Iran, enhancing the attractiveness of studying Iranian populations outside of Iran.
Crafting a National Identity Amidst Contentious Politics in Contemporary Iran
Authors: Farhi Farideh
Published: February 2005

It is perhaps no exaggeration to suggest that the crafting and re-crafting of national identity through actions of authorities and/or political mobilization and struggle has been a national preoccupation in modern Iranian history. This is not to imply that Iranians and their political leaders, going through the global process of modernity, have been any more or less creative than others in the world in re-inventing their “national” selves. However, a case can be made that in the past century Iranians have been afforded, or have produced, more opportunities to re-create themselves in a bombastic and dualistic fashion, energetically vacillating between extremes of contentious Islamism and secularism, pre-Islamic and Islamic imagination, and avid anti-imperialism and absorption in global trends.
Ethnic Diversity and Territorial Integrity of Iran: Domestic Harmony and Regional Challenges
Authors: Atabaki Touraj
Published: February 2005

This study aims to address concerns over Iranian territorial integrity with respect to ethnic identity by examining three interrelated points of:

Center and periphery in Iran.

Territorial attachment and the political borders.

Ethnic identity and social mobility.

Finally I shall discuss the challenges Iran has been facing throughout the twentieth-century on maintaining her territorial integrity.
From Motherhood to Equal Rights Advocates: The Weakening of Patriarchal Order
Authors: Kian-Thiébaut Azadeh
Published: February 2005

This paper is largely based on my field works in Iran from 1994 to 2004 and combines qualitative and quantitative methods. I conducted my first qualitative survey (open-ended interviews with a sample of a hundred mothers) in Tehran, Isfahan and their poor suburbs from 1994 to 2000. The quantitative survey, which is a result of the collaboration between Monde Iranien (CNRS), the French Research Institute in Iran and the Statistical Center of Iran was conducted in 2002 with a sample of 6,960 urban and rural households in all twenty-eight provinces. The sample was composed of 30,714 individuals, including 7,633 women 15 years and older married at least once, and 6,154 single youth, 15–29 years old, who lived with their parents: 3,437 boys and 2,717 girls.
Capital Accumulation and Economic Growth in Iran: Past Experience and Future Prospects
Authors: Jalali-Naini Ahmad R.
Published: February 2005

Maintaining a sustainable and relatively high economic growth rate is a major short- and long-term challenge facing Iran. To keep up the growth momentum, Iran not only must replace and upgrade its aging capital equipment in both the oil and non-oil sectors, but also needs to invest heavily in new industries, technology, human capital, and infrastructure. Higher growth is a socially desirable objective since it raises per-capita income, at least in par with middle-income countries, and it provides the material resources for reducing poverty and promoting sustainable human development. Moreover, due to demographic and gender factors, the rate of growth of labor supply in the next decade is expected to be fairly high and a relatively high rate of economic growth is necessary to boost the demand for labor. A rapid population growth at the rate of 2.6 percent per annum increased the population from 26 million in 1966 to nearly 66 million in 2002. Population growth has recently slowed down and is estimated at 1.65 percent for the next decade. Yet, the growth rate of the working-age population will be significantly higher, about 2.6 percent. According to World Bank estimates, by 2010 total population will be 75.9 million. Working-age population will be 51 million—compared to an estimated 43 million at the end of 2002.
Human Resources in Iran: Potentials and Challenges
Authors: Salehi-Isfahani Djavad
Published: February 2005

Critics of economic development strategies followed by most Middle Eastern countries often point to their lagging human development indicators as a sign of failure. While it is true that the growth performance of these countries has been generally quite poor since the 1980s—only Sub-Saharan Africa has had a worse experience—it is not true that they have failed to expand education. In fact, the rate of growth of years of schooling in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has been the fastest of any region in the last forty years.

The difficulty for economic growth appears to lie in translating this rising education into rising productivity. Doing so is not just a matter of restoring growth, though that is an essential task, but to alleviate acute social pressures arising from youth unemployment fuelled by rapid population growth. For quite a while these employment problems were solved by accumulation of physical capital bought with oil. With that option no longer viable, solutions for human resource problems must be found elsewhere, particularly in the markets for labor and human capital.
Post-apartheid Transition in a Small South African Town: Interracial Property Transfer in Margate, KwaZulu-Natal
Authors: Lemon Anthony , Clifford David
Published: February 2005

Post-apartheid transition in South Africa's small towns has received little attention. Using the South African Property Transfer Guide, 2500 residential transfers were analysed in Margate. Spatial and temporal patterns in Black house purchase were interpreted through discussions with key actors. The findings indicate the importance of micro-dynamics in determining specific post-apartheid transitions and confirm the relationship between racial employment profiles and housing markets. Black in-movement to previously White areas has focused on Extension 3, where private building of low-cost housing has occurred, but the area is now becoming resegregated. Whilst peripheral housing need not imply exclusion from services in small towns, unpaid mortgage bills and municipal rates have led to repossessions and affected the credit status of new Black buyers.
The Effect of Squatter Housing on Income Distribution in Urban Turkey
Authors: Baslevent Cem , Dayoglu Meltem
Published: February 2005

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of home-ownership on income distribution in Turkey. Making use of raw data from an official income distribution survey which provides information on cash and in-kind incomes of household members and imputed rents for home-owners, it is found that home-ownership has an equalising effect on income distribution in the urban areas of Turkey. This result is attributed to the fact that many low-income families reside in squatter housing built at the outskirts of large cities.
Privileged Places: Race, Uneven Development and the Geography of Opportunity in Urban America
Authors: Squires Gregory D. , Kubrin Charis E.
Published: February 2005

David Rusk, former Mayor of Albuquerque, New Mexico, has observed that "bad neighborhoods defeat good programs". This paper identifies the underlying causes of bad neighbourhoods along with their costs to local residents and residents throughout the region. It is a critical essay that traces recent patterns of uneven metropolitan development, the social forces generating these patterns, their many costs and potential remedies. It demonstrates how the interrelated processes of sprawl, concentration of poverty and racial segregation shape the opportunity structure facing diverse segments of the nation's urban and metropolitan population. In so doing, it draws on recent scholarly literature from various disciplines, government data and documents, research institute reports and the mass media. Topics addressed include income and wealth disparities, employment opportunities, housing patterns, access to health care and exposure to crime. While recognising the role of individual choice and human capital, the paper focuses on public policy decisions and related private-sector activities in determining how place and race shape the opportunity structure of metropolitan areas. Finally, the paper explores various policy options to sever the linkages among place, race and privilege in the nation's urban communities.
Institutional Investment in Rental Housing in Australia: A Policy Framework and Two Models
Authors: Berry Mike , Hall Jon
Published: February 2005

Housing affordability among low-to moderate-income private tenants has been declining over the past 10 years in Australia. This trend has intensified in spite of almost a decade of strong economic growth and low inflation in the Australian economy. An important factor here has been the continuing decline in the stock of rental housing at the low-rent end of the market, especially in the large cities like Sydney and Melbourne. This, in turn, has been associated with the peculiar pattern of private investment in Australian housing markets. Large professional and institutional investors have avoided the private rental sector, leaving a myriad of small individual investor-landlords as primary suppliers. Government housing, taxation and other policies have reinforced this pattern of development. This paper provides a conceptual framework for analysing these outcomes and develops an approach that identifies the key elements of public policy necessary to reduce barriers to widespread investment in the provision of affordable, low-cost rental housing. Two specific investment models are then outlined and analysed. The first model is based on renewed public borrowing from private investors. The second model introduces a stock exchange listed public company financed by a mix of government and private equity and corporate borrowings. The total net subsidy cost to government is identified in each model and sensitivity analysis outcomes noted.
The Effects of Expected Transport Improvements on Housing Prices
Authors: Yiu C.Y. , Wong S.K.
Published: February 2005

Improvements in transport were commonly found to have a positive effect on the price of housing. As the construction of infrastructure often lasts for years, it is plausible to assume that investors will take expected improvements into consideration when pricing and trading neighbourhood properties. However, there have been few investigations of such effects. This paper is an empirical study of whether premiums were paid for the expected benefits offered by a new tunnel before its completion. The results showed that there were positive price expectation effects well before the completion of the tunnel. The expectation effects allow the government to finance infrastructure projects by selling land in the affected districts in advance.
Renter Illusion: Fact or Fiction?
Authors: Blom-Hansen Jens
Published: February 2005

The renter illusion hypothesis holds that renters underestimate their property tax burden and therefore support excessive levels of local expenditure. A number of studies have reached results that are consistent with the hypothesis. But so far empirical investigations have proceeded from the assumption that renter illusion is a fact and have investigated the implications of this fact. No-one has investigated renter illusion as such. In other areas of fiscal illusion, survey analyses of voter perceptions have yielded considerable insight into the validity of illusionary hypotheses. This paper follows this method and investigates a representative sample of 1000 Danish renters' and home-owners' perception of the local property tax system. The evidence raises doubts about the renter illusion hypothesis. The survey findings are corroborated by an analysis of property taxation in Danish municipalities.
Quantifying Urban Form: Compactness versus 'Sprawl'
Authors: Tsai Yu-Hsin
Published: February 2005

This paper develops a set of quantitative variables to characterise urban forms at the metropolitan level and, in particular, to distinguish compactness from 'sprawl'. It first reviews and analyses past research on the definitions of urban form, compactness and sprawl, and corresponding quantitative variables. Four quantitative variables are developed to measure four dimensions of urban form at the metropolitan level: metropolitan size, activity intensity, the degree that activities are evenly distributed, and the extent that high-density sub-areas are clustered. Through a series of simulation analyses, the global Moran coefficient, which characterises the fourth dimension, distinguishes compactness from sprawl. It is high, intermediate and close to zero for monocentric, polycentric and decentralised sprawling forms respectively. In addition, the more there is more local sprawl, composed of discontinuity and strip development, the lower is the Moran coefficient.
The Politics of the German Company Network
Authors: Höpner Martin , Krempel Lothar
Published: February 2005

For over 100 years, the company network was a major feature of organized corporate governance in Germany. This paper uses network visualization techniques and qualitative-historical analysis to discuss the structure, origins and development of this network and to analyse the reasons for its recent erosion. Network visualization makes it possible to identify crucial entanglement patterns that can be traced back historically. In three phases of network formation– the 1880s, 1920s and the 1950s– capital entanglement resulted from the interaction of company behaviour and government policy. In its heyday, the company network was de facto encompassing and provided its core participants, especially the banks, with a national, macroeconomic perspective. In the 1970s, increased competition among financial companies set in. In the 1980s and 1990s, declining returns from blockholding and increased opportunity costs made network dissolution a thinkable option for companies. Because of the strategic reorientation of the largest banks toward investment banking, ties between banks and industry underwent functional changes. Since the year 2000, the German government's tax policy has sped up network erosion. Vanishing capital ties imply a declining degree of strategic co-ordination among large German companies.
Negotiated Shareholder Value: The German Variant of an Anglo-American Practice
Authors: Vitols Sigurt
Published: February 2005

In comparative political economy it has become commonplace to distinguish between two types of corporate governance systems. In shareholder systems, influence over company management is concentrated with institutional investors holding small percentages of companies' shares. In stakeholder systems, influence is shared between large shareholders, employees, the community and suppliers and customers. This paper contributes to the literature addressing recent changes in the German variant of the stakeholder system by proposing a few new concepts. On the level of institutions, it is argued that the stakeholder system is not being replaced by a shareholder system in Germany. Rather, an augmented stakeholder system is emerging through the inclusion of institutional investors in the old stakeholder coalition of interests. On the level of practice, it is argued that negotiated shareholder value is being adopted in Germany. This German variant of shareholder value is distinct from Anglo-American practice because major changes implementing shareholder value must be negotiated within the augmented stakeholder coalition. As a result, performance incentives for employees tend to be less strong than is the case in the USA and UK.
Reforming the German Labour Market: The Case of Temporary Agency Work
Authors: Vitols Katrin
Published: February 2005

Germany is known as one of the countries where the collective representation of interests through associations (‘corporatism’) is particularly strong. However, after the tripartite Alliance for Jobs, Training and Competitiveness failed to agree on solutions for combating high unemployment, an independent commission established by the government (the ‘Hartz commission’) has currently set the agenda for labour market reform. This article addresses the question of whether these events signal the end of corporatism in labour market policy in Germany. An analysis of temporary agency work, an atypical form of employment addressed by the Hartz reforms, shows that fundamental reform in Germany must be initiated outside the system of tripartite interest negotiation. However, the implementation of such reforms depends on the traditional structures of interest negotiation between the social partners.
Entrepreneurial Models and the Software Sector
Authors: Engelhardt Lutz
Published: February 2005

Young, radically innovative, growth-orientated and publicly listed high-tech companies in Silicon Valley, together with venture capital financiers, gave birth to the concept of the ‘Entrepreneurial Business Model’ (EBM). This concept has become central to the debate about the innovative capacity of nations in information technology and its promotion became an important policy objective in Germany during the 1990s. This paper addresses the question of whether German software companies on the former ‘Neuer Markt’ of the Frankfurt stock exchange were able to successfully implement business models similar to that of the typical entrepreneurial company in the USA. The paper focuses on the performance of software companies and venture capital investments on the ‘Neuer Markt’. A number of findings emerge from this effort. First, successful German software companies implement traditional business models. The most successful German companies specialize in IT – and software services. Such firms do not specialize in standardized software products which require little service and customization. Secondly, German venture capital for the most part was not able to establish successful entrepreneurial companies on the Silicon Valley model. Nor were they able to create a successful German variant of venture capital involvement in more traditional companies.
An Elusive Model — Diversified Quality Production and the Transformation of the German Automobile Industry
Authors: Jürgens Ulrich
Published: February 2005

The main argument in this article is that there is no one production system that characterizes the German model and that has provided a long-lasting, stable solution to the problems of the German automobile industry, in particular the high cost structure. A core element of the German model debate is the concept of diversified quality production (DQP). In the 1980s the German car-makers followed the DQP orientation of diversifying product range, aiming at non-price competitive market segments and organizing production on the basis of skilled labour. These strategies, however, had hidden structural problems which became apparent during the crisis in the early 1990s. This forced the companies to develop new strategies that were only partially complementary with DQP and had their own inherent problems. The dynamics of change in the automobile industry have not been adequately reflected in the debate on national models.
Aldi and the German Model: Structural Change in German Grocery Retailing and the Success of Grocery Discounters
Authors: Wortmann Michael
Published: February 2005

Most accounts claiming that there is a distinctive ‘German model’ have focused on manufacturing industries. Less attention has been paid to the service sector, in part because of the claim that many services are not exposed to the international economy. This article examines one service industry in Germany, grocery retailing. This industry is of interest because its most successful firms – the ‘hard discounters’ such as Aldi – deviate from the manufacturing model of production along at least two dimensions: labour relations and product policy. Nevertheless, the hard discounters are very successful, both domestically and abroad. The explanation for the success of the hard discounters offered here is based on both an institution central to Germany – the Mittelstand – as well as industry-specific factors. This complexity cannot be neglected when analysing changes in the German economy
Fleeing or Exporting the German Model? — The Internationalization of German Multinationals in the 1990s
Authors: Dörrenbächer Christoph
Published: February 2005

This article examines the question of whether German companies flee or export the German model. On the basis of data from the Deutsche Bundesbank and mergers and acquisitions data, the article argues that job exports from Germany in the last fifteen years have been rather marginal. Thus, German multinational corporations (MNCs) do not flee the German model to the extent suggested by many critics of Germany as a production location. In addition, the paper draws on 13 case studies of German investments in Hungary to help understand the extent to which German MNCs export the German model. This case study evidence indicates that German MNCs do not attempt to completely transfer all aspects of the German production model, as some proponents of institutionalist political economy approaches maintain. The German labour relations model, in particular, is only selectively transferred.
Are cancer patients at higher suicide risk than the general population? A nationwide register study in Sweden from 1965 to 1999
Authors: Björkenstam Charlotte , Edberg Annika , Ayoubi Shiva , Rosén Måns
Published: February 2005

Objectives: The aims were to test whether suicide is more prevalent among cancer patients than among the general population, whether the association changes over time, and whether the risk depends on the severity of the cancer disease. Design: A register study was carried out, where standardized suicide rates for different cancer sites were analysed by sex, time periods (1965—74, 1975—84, and 1985—94), and five-year survival rates. Setting: The setting was the Swedish population from 1965 to 1999. Subjects: The cohort studied was 1,031,919 cancer cases and 2,587,152 person-years. Main outcome measures: The main outcome measure was the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) with the world population as standard population. Results: Cancer patients run a higher risk of suicide than the general population. The suicide rate ratio between male cancer patients and the general population was about 2.5 in 1965—74, which thereafter reduced to about 1.5 in 1985— 94. The suicide rate among female cancer patients was in excess of 2.9 in 1965—74 and 2.3 in 1985—94. In fact, a slightly higher rate for women was observed for 1985—94 than for 1975—84. There is also a strong negative association between survival rates and suicide rates, i.e. suicide rates are higher for severe cancer sites with low survival rates. Conclusions: Our findings support the hypothesis that cancer patients run greater risks of committing suicide than the general population does. The severity of the cancer increases the suicide risk. More attention to cancer patients' psychological and care situation is called for.
Cardiac rehabilitation services in Denmark: Still room for expansion
Authors: Zwisler Ann-Dorthe O. , Træden Ulla I. , Videbæk Jørgen , Madsen Mette
Published: February 2005

Aim: European cardiologists agree that cardiac rehabilitation (CR) should be offered as an integrated part of cardiac care, and CR guidelines have been published. The authors aimed to ascertain the potential for expanding CR coverage at hospitals in Denmark. Method: A cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted among all hospitals receiving acute cardiac patients (n=67). The response rate was 79%, with no differences according to catchment area, number of beds, or geographical location. The hospitals were classified as having full CR if all core components (physical training, psychosocial support, dietary counselling, smoking cessation, and pharmaceutical risk factor management) were available during each of three phases: (I) in hospital; (II) outpatient; and (II) community-based services. Results: Many hospitals offered one or more of the CR components during phases I and II: physical training (77%; 77%), psychosocial support (89%; 79%), dietary counselling (85%; 89%), smoking cessation (94%; 68%), and clinical control by a physician (100%; 93%). The content varied greatly. Full phase I CR was offered at 57% (95% confidence interval (95% CI): 44—70%) of the hospitals and 47% (95% CI: 34—60%) offered full phase II CR. Phase III CR was very rare (2% (95% CI: 0—6%). The numbers of patients receiving CR was not registered. Conclusion: Marked progress was made in the 1990s in implementing CR; nevertheless, the services are far from fully expanded. Denmark has great potential for improving CR services, as do most other European countries. CR activities need to be registered at Danish hospitals.
Breastfeeding attitudes among counselling health professionals Development of an instrument to describe breastfeeding attitudes
Authors: Ekström Anette , Matthiesen Ann-Sofi , Widström Ann- Marie , Nissen Eva
Published: February 2005

Aim: The aim of the study was to develop an instrument that can be used for accurate assessment of nurses' and midwives' attitudes toward breastfeeding in a group of midwives, maternity-nursing staff and postnatal nurses experienced in breastfeeding counselling. Method: An instrument based on WHO standards was developed to measure breastfeeding attitudes. In all, 168 healthcare professionals filled in the instrument. A factor analysis using maximum likelihood and varimax rotation was performed. Spearman's correlation was used to correlate factorial dimensions and self-described interest in breastfeeding. Results: By means of factor analysis four factors were identified: the ``regulating'' factor focused on regulating the mothers' breastfeeding management, the ``facilitating'' factor focused on making it easy for mothers to manage their breastfeeding, the ``disempowering'' factor focused on giving advice, disregarding the needs of the mother being counselled, and the ``breastfeeding antipathy'' factor focused on insufficient, basic, breastfeeding knowledge and aversive reactions to breastfeeding. Midwives rated higher on the facilitating factor and breastfeeding antipathy factor and lower on the regulating factor than postnatal nurses. Breastfeeding interest was positively correlated with the facilitating factor, and negatively with the disempowering factor and the breastfeeding antipathy factor. Conclusion: This instrument provides a picture of health professionals' attitudes towards breastfeeding. Four factors were identified in order of importance: regulating, facilitating, disempowering, and breastfeeding antipathy factors. Harmful attitudes were identified and suggested a need for educational programmes to help health professionals to reconcile damaging values, in order to improve breastfeeding counselling.
Social mobility, marital status, and mortality risk in an adult life course perspective: The Malmö Preventive Project
Authors: Nilsson Peter M. , Nilsson Jan-Åke , Östergren Per-Olof , Berglund Göran
Published: February 2005

Aims: Adverse social factors predict increased mortality. This study aimed to assess the influence of social class and marital status on mortality, adding an adult life course perspective. Methods: In total, 32,907 males and 20,204 females were evaluated based on census data in Malmö, Sweden. Of these subjects, 22,444 males and 10,902 females also took part in health screening. The main outcomes were all-cause and cause-specific mortality rates in subgroups based on social class and marital status, either measured once or repeatedly in adult life. Results were based on a total of 522,807 years of follow-up in men (5,761 deaths) and 239,815 in women (1,354 deaths). Results: Total and cardiovascular mortality were significantly higher in manual male employees with age-adjusted risk ratios (RR) of 1.7 (95% CI 1.5—1.9) and 1.6 (1.3—2.0) in skilled manual workers, and 2.0 (1.7—2.2) and 1.9 (1.6—2.3) in unskilled manual workers, compared with high-level non-manual employees. The differences remained after adjustment for baseline risk factors and prevalent cardiovascular disease, and were similar for women. Increased mortality risk was also documented for subjects who were divorced or unmarried (adjusted for social class), as well as being downward socially mobile or in a permanent low social class (manual) position. Conclusions: Social class based on occupation, either measured once or repeatedly in adult life, is associated with marked differences in mortality risk in middle-aged subjects. People who remain married/cohabiting or remarry are at lower risk of early death than people who remain unmarried or divorced.
Developing capabilities and rights in welfare-to-work policies
Authors: Dean Hartley , Bonvin Jean-Michel , Vielle Pascale , Farvaque Nicolas
Published: February 2005

The article, having characterised present European work–welfare policies in terms of a process of re-commodification, considers the consequences both from a capabilities and a rights perspective. Drawing on recent empirical research it seeks to bring these two perspectives together in order to illustrate an alternative ‘life-first’ approach to work–welfare policy, an approach that would reach beyond both work-first and human capital approaches and expand the possibilities presented by the policy concept of ‘work–life balance’.