bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Biomarker Discovery in Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer: Integrating Gene Expression Profiling, Meta-analysis, and Tissue Microarray Validation
Authors: Botling Johan , Edlund Karolina , Lohr Miriam , Hellwig Birte , Holmberg Lars , Lambe Mats , Berglund Anders , Ekman Simon , Bergqvist Michael , Pontén Fredrik , König André , Fernandes Oswaldo , Karlsson Mats , Helenius Gisela , Karlsson Christina , Rahnenführer Jörg , Hengstler Jan G , Micke Patrick
Published: October 2012

Purpose: Global gene expression profiling has been widely used in lung cancer research to identify clinically relevant molecular subtypes as well as to predict prognosis and therapy response. So far, the value of these multigene signatures in clinical practice is unclear, and the biologic importance of individual genes is difficult to assess, as the published signatures virtually do not overlap.

Experimental Design: Here, we describe a novel single institute cohort, including 196 non–small lung cancers (NSCLC) with clinical information and long-term follow-up. Gene expression array data were used as a training set to screen for single genes with prognostic impact. The top 450 probe sets identified using a univariate Cox regression model (significance level P < 0.01) were tested in a meta-analysis including five publicly available independent lung cancer cohorts (n = 860).

Results: The meta-analysis revealed 14 genes that were significantly associated with survival (P < 0.001) with a false discovery rate <1%. The prognostic impact of one of these genes, the cell adhesion molecule 1 (CADM1), was confirmed by use of immunohistochemistry on tissue microarrays from 2 independent NSCLC cohorts, altogether including 617 NSCLC samples. Low CADM1 protein expression was significantly associated with shorter survival, with particular influence in the adenocarcinoma patient subgroup.

Conclusions: Using a novel NSCLC cohort together with a meta-analysis validation approach, we have identified a set of single genes with independent prognostic impact. One of these genes, CADM1, was further established as an immunohistochemical marker with a potential application in clinical diagnostics. Clin Cancer Res; 19(1); 194–204. ©2012 AACR.
Redirecting Gene-Modified T Cells toward Various Cancer Types Using Tagged Antibodies
Authors: Tamada Koji , Geng Degui , Sakoda Yukimi , Bansal Navneeta , Srivastava Ratika , Li Zhaoyang , Davila Eduardo
Published: October 2012

Purpose: To develop an adaptable gene-based vector that will confer immune cell specificity to various cancer types.

Experimental Design: Human and mouse T cells were genetically engineered to express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) that binds a fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) molecule, termed anti-FITC CAR T cells. Various antibodies (Ab) currently in clinical use including cetuximab (Ctx), trastuzumab (Her2), and rituximab (Rtx) were conjugated with FITC and tested for their ability to bind tumor cells, activate T cells, and induce antitumor effects in vitro and in vivo.

Results: Anti-FITC CAR T cells recognize various cancer types when bound with FITC-labeled Abs resulting in efficient target lysis, T-cell proliferation, and cytokine/chemokine production. The treatment of immunocompromised mice with human anti-FITC CAR T cells plus FITC-labeled cetuximab (FITC-Ctx) delayed the growth of colon cancer but unexpectedly led to the outgrowth of EGF receptor (EGFR)-negative tumor cells. On the other hand, in a human pancreatic cancer cell line with uniform EGFR expression, anti-FITC CAR T cells plus FITC-Ctx eradicated preestablished late-stage tumors. In immunocompetent mice, anti-FITC CAR T cells exhibited potent antitumor activity against syngeneic mouse breast cancer expressing Her2 and B-cell lymphoma expressing CD20 by combining with FITC-Her2 and FITC-Rtx, respectively. In addition, the activity of anti-FITC CAR T cells could be attenuated by subsequent injections of nonspecific FITC-IgG.

Conclusion: These studies highlight an applicability of anti-tag CAR technology to treat patients with different types of cancers and a possibility to regulate CAR T-cell functions with competing FITC molecules. Clin Cancer Res; 18(23); 6436–45. ©2012 AACR.
The Effects of Vagus Nerve Stimulation on Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Cytokines in Children with Refractory Epilepsy: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Aalbers Marlien Wilhelmina , Klinkenberg Sylvia , Rijkers Kim , Verschuure Pauline , Kessels Alfons , Aldenkamp Albert , Vles Johan , Majoie Marian
Published: October 2012

Objectives: The vagus nerve has important immunological and anti-inflammatory actions that might be relevant to the beneficial effects of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS). Therefore, we conducted an exploratory study on VNS effects on cytokine levels in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid of children suffering from refractory epilepsy. Moreover, as predictors of the response are lacking, we also aimed to determine if cytokine changes predict the clinical response. Methods: VNS was performed according to a randomized double-blind design: plasma levels were compared between patients who received 20 weeks of high output (therapeutic) (n = 21) or low output (active control) stimulation (n = 20). Thereupon, all patients received high output stimulation for another 19 weeks; levels during this period were compared to baseline. Interictal interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, and interleukin-10 were determined by ELISA. Results: No significant changes were found between high and low output groups and between the last 19 weeks of stimulation and baseline. Changes in interleukin-1β correlated with improved IQ (τ = 0.42, p < 0.01). Lower baseline plasma levels of interleukin-6 were associated with more seizure frequency reduction [R2 = 0.105 (1, 35), p = 0.050]. Conclusion: Interictal cytokine levels were not altered by VNS but baseline interleukin-6 predicted the clinical response. In the future, patient selection may be aided by determination of the cytokine profile of the patient.
The Robustness of Generalized Estimating Equations for Association Tests in Extended Family Data
Authors: Suktitipat Bhoom , Mathias Rasika A. , Vaidya Dhananjay , Yanek Lisa R. , Young J. Hunter , Becker Lewis C. , Becker Diane M. , Wilson Alexander F. , Fallin M. Daniele
Published: October 2012

Variance components analysis (VCA), the traditional method for handling correlations within families in genetic association studies, is computationally intensive for genome-wide analyses, and the computational burden of VCA increases with family size and the number of genetic markers. Alternative approaches that do not require the computation of familial correlations are preferable, provided that they do not inflate type I error or decrease power. We performed a simulation study to evaluate practical alternatives to VCA that use regression with generalized estimating equations (GEE) in extended family data. We compared the properties of linear regression with GEE applied to an entire extended family structure (GEE-EXT) and GEE applied to nuclear family structures split from these extended families (GEE-SPL) to variance components likelihood-based methods (FastAssoc). GEE-EXT was evaluated with and without robust variance estimators to estimate the standard errors. We observed similar average type I error rates from GEE-EXT and FastAssoc compared to GEE-SPL. Type I error rates for the GEE-EXT method with a robust variance estimator were marginally higher than the nominal rate when the minor allele frequency (MAF) was <0.1, but were close to the nominal rate when the MAF was ≥0.2. All methods gave consistent effect estimates and had similar power. In summary, the GEE framework with the robust variance estimator, the computationally fastest and least data management-intensive approach, appears to work well in extended families and thus provides a reasonable alternative to full variance components approaches for extended pedigrees in a genome-wide association study setting.
Caveolin 1 Expression Correlates with Poor Prognosis and Focal Adhesion Kinase Expression in Gastric Cancer
Authors: Nam Kyung Han , Lee Byung Lan , Park Joo Hyun , Kim Jin , Han Nayoung , Lee Hee Eun , Kim Min A. , Lee Hye Seung , Kim Woo Ho
Published: October 2012

Objective:Caveolin 1 gene is known as a tumor promoter or suppressor, depending on the tumor type and/or tumor stage. We aimed to investigate the clinical significance of caveolin 1 protein (Cav1) expression in gastric cancer (GC). Methods: Immunohistochemistry was performed on tissue array slides containing 405 GC specimens. The relationships between Cav1 expression and clinicopathological factors, prognosis, focal adhesion kinase expression, mucin phenotypes and p53 expression were analyzed. Results: In non-neoplastic gastric mucosa, Cav1 was not expressed in the epithelial compartment. In GC, positive staining of Cav1 was shown in 22 (5.4%) of 405 cases and was significantly higher in the advanced GC group than in the early GC group (p = 0.037). Also, it was significantly associated with advanced pTNM stage (p = 0.027) and lymph node metastasis (p = 0.018). Moreover, survival analysis showed that Cav1 expression was an independent prognostic factor of poor survival (p = 0.028). In addition, the expression of Cav1 was positively correlated with that of focal adhesion kinase (p = 0.034). Conclusions: These results indicate that the expression of Cav1 is significantly correlated with cancer progression and poor prognosis in GC. Thus, Cav1 could supplement its protein expression for the diagnosis and treatment of GC.
Effects of Repetitive Exposure to Pain and Morphine Treatment on the Neonatal Rat Brain
Authors: Dührsen Lasse , Simons Sinno H.P. , Dzietko Mark , Genz Kerstin , Bendix Ivo , Boos Vinzenz , Sifringer Marco , Tibboel Dick , Felderhoff-Mueser Ursula
Published: October 2012

Background: Untreated exposure to pain in preterm neonates might damage the vulnerable premature brain and alter development. Pain treatment is limited because analgesic agents may also have adverse neurodevelopmental consequences in newborns. Objective: To study the effects of neonatal pain and morphine treatment on the developing brain in a neonatal rat model. Methods: Newborn rats were randomly assigned to: treatment with formalin injections (group 1), saline injections (group 2) and controls receiving no injections (group 3). Treatment was given on postnatal days 1–3 (model A), 1–5 (model B) and 10–12 (model C). Brains were studied histologically and protein expression was evaluated (protein kinase C epsilon and doublecortin). Effects of preemptive morphine treatment were studied in the same models (models A+M and B+M). Results: Formalin injections resulted in increased apoptotic scores in models A and B. Saline injections increased the number of degenerative cells only in model B. Morphine showed protective effects in formalin-treated animals of model A+M and saline-treated animals of model B+M only. In model C, no neurodegenerative effects were detected. The protein expression of doublecortin showed a pain-related upregulation in the thalamus region, whereas protein kinase C epsilon expression was upregulated in the cortex. Conclusions: Severe inflammatory pain and pain caused by repetitive injections in neonatal rats may cause major changes in the developing brain during the first week of life. Morphine may only protect the newborn brain against these changes in specific situations.
Cognitive Impairment in Parkinson’s Disease: The Dual Syndrome Hypothesis
Authors: Kehagia Angie A. , Barker Roger A. , Robbins Trevor W.
Published: October 2012

Research into the heterogeneous nature of cognitive impairment documented in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) has focused on disentangling deficits that vary between individuals, evolve and respond differentially to pharmacological treatments, and relate differentially to PD dementia (PDD). We summarise studies conducted in our laboratory over the last 2 decades, outlining the incremental development of our hypotheses, the starting point for which is our early work on executive deficits mirroring fronto-striatal dysfunction. We present subsequent findings linking these deficits to a model of dopaminergic function that conforms to an inverted curvilinear function. We review studies that investigated the range of dopamine-independent attentional and visuospatial memory deficits seen in PD, demonstrating that abnormalities in these domains more accurately predict PDD. We conclude with an exposition of the dual syndrome hypothesis, which distinguishes between dopaminergically mediated fronto-striatal executive impairments and a dementia syndrome with distinctive prodromal visuospatial deficits in which cholinergic treatments offer some clinical benefits.
Loss of S100A14 Expression Is Associated with the Progression of Adenocarcinomas of the Small Intestine
Authors: Kim Gwangil , Chung Joon-Yong , Jun Sun-Young , Eom Dae Woon , Bae Young Kyung , Jang Kee-Taek , Kim Jihun , Yu Eunsil , Hong Seung-Mo
Published: October 2012

Objectives: Small intestinal adenocarcinoma (SIAC) is an exceedingly rare human malignant tumor, and its association with the S100A14 gene is not known yet. We aimed to investigate the clinicopathological correlations between S100A14 expression and SIAC. Methods: Immunohistochemical analyses of S100A14, p21 and p53 were performed using tissue microarray analysis of 175 surgically resected SIACs. Results: Of 175 SIACs, loss of S100A14 expression was observed in 128 cases (73.1%). Loss of S100A14 expression was associated with lymph node metastasis (p = 0.009) and advanced disease stage (p = 0.013), and was more frequently observed in distal than duodenal tumors (p = 0.043). The majority of SIACs lost p21 expression (93.7%), and significant loss of p21 expression was observed in cancers with high pT stages (pT3 and pT4; p = 0.011), lymph node metastasis (p = 0.029) and advanced cancer stage defined by the American Joint Committee on Cancer (p = 0.005). Overexpression of p53 was found in 23.4% of cases. Positive expression of p53 was associated with distally located SIACs (jejunum or ileum; p = 0.006). There was no association between the expression of S100A14 and p21 or p53. Conclusion: Loss of S100A14 in SIAC is common and is associated with higher metastatic potential and advanced clinical stage.
Surfactant Protein A Associated with Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Korean Preterm Infants: Evidence of Ethnic Difference
Authors: Jo Heui Seung , Cho Sung-Il , Chang Yoon Hwan , Kim Beyong Il , Choi Jung-Hwan
Published: October 2012

Background: Insufficiency of the pulmonary surfactant system is the primary cause of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in preterm infants. Genetic factors, including specific single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the genetic components of surfactant protein A (SP-A1 and SP-A2), affect protein structure and function, as well as risk of RDS. Objective: We investigated the association between variations in SP-A genotypes and RDS within the genetically homogeneous Korean population. Methods: We used TaqMan® real-time polymerase chain reaction technology to assess nine single-nucleotide polymorphisms of SP-A in 261 full-term and 152 preterm infants. Among the preterm infants, 76 infants with RDS were matched with 76 control infants with respect to gestation, use of antenatal steroids and gender. Results: The SP-A2 1A⁰ variant and the homozygous 1A⁰/1A⁰ genotype were associated with protection from RDS (OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.13–0.78). In addition, the 1A1 carrier genotype (containing one copy of the 1A1 variant) was associated with increased risk of RDS (OR 2.42, 95% CI 1.06–5.52). The significance of these results is that the association of patterns with RDS was opposite to the findings of previous research with Finnish and North American study populations. Conclusions: We have identified associations between specific variants of the SP-A genes and RDS risk in the Korean preterm study population. Our data strongly support SP-A as a candidate gene for susceptibility to RDS, and reveal the dissimilarity of the associated risk/protective genetic variants between different ethnic study populations.
Fighting Outbreaks with Bacterial Genomics: Case Review and Workflow Proposal
Authors: Cheung M.K. , Kwan H.S.
Published: October 2012

Background: Disease outbreak investigation is a key aspect of public health. Whole-genome sequencing of bacterial pathogen based on new generation high-throughput sequencing technologies has facilitated outbreak investigations recently. Whilst the approach has become more affordable and accessible to research and clinical laboratories, a system for adequate and efficient analyses of genome data in the context of bacterial outbreak investigations is missing. Methods: We performed a literature review of timely genomic investigations performed during the course of bacterial outbreaks that are based on new generation sequencing technologies. Currently available bioinformatics tools for genomic analyses are also reviewed here. Results: Genomic investigations in early stages of bacterial outbreaks have shown to provide timely information on evolutionary origin, transmission route, pathogenic potential, and resistance information of the outbreak strains and allow development of strain-specific typing methods. A systematic genomic analytical workflow is proposed here for the first time to facilitate efficient extraction of epidemiologically useful information from genome data of bacterial pathogens in future bacterial outbreak investigations. Conclusion: With the continuous reduction of genome sequencing cost and development of user-friendly analytical tools, it is expected that high-throughput genome sequencing will be applied routinely for timely genomic analysis in bacterial outbreaks in the near future.
Dexamethasone Intravitreal Implant: An Effective Adjunctive Treatment for Recalcitrant Noninfectious Uveitis
Authors: Miserocchi E. , Modorati G. , Pastore M.R. , Bandello F.
Published: October 2012

Purpose: To describe our experience in treating recalcitrant and severe cases of noninfectious posterior uveitis with the 0.7-mg dexamethasone intravitreal implant as adjunctive anti-inflammatory treatment. Procedures: Retrospective study. Twelve patients (8 females; 4 males; 14 affected eyes, 15 implants) with severe recalcitrant uveitis were treated. Patients had an inadequate control of uveitis despite different immunosuppressants and periocular corticosteroid therapy. Primary outcome measures evaluated were: decrease in uveitis activity, improvement in visual acuity, reduction of macular thickness, and occurrence of adverse events. Results: Uveitis activity decreased in all patients after the implant. The mean follow-up time from injection was 9 months. Best-corrected visual acuity improved from 20/80 to 20/40 at the end of follow-up. The mean retinal thickness improved from 496 to 226 µm. Adverse events encountered were: 3 eyes with intraocular pressure elevation, 1 vitreous hemorrhage and 1 subconjunctival hemorrhage. Three patients reduced the daily systemic corticosteroid dosage after treatment. Conclusions: The 0.7-mg dexamethasone intravitreal implant appears to be a novel and promising adjunctive treatment for patients with severe posterior noninfectious uveitis recalcitrant to different immunosuppressive agents.
N-terminal Pro-B-Type Natriuretic Peptide, Left Ventricular Mass, and Incident Heart Failure
Authors: Choi Eui-Young , Bahrami Hossein , Wu Colin O. , Greenland Philip , Cushman Mary , Daniels Lori B. , Almeida Andre L.C. , Yoneyama Kihei , Opdahl Anders , Jain Aditya , Criqui Michael H. , Siscovick David , Darwin Christine , Maisel Alan , Bluemke David A. , Lima Joao A.C.
Published: October 2012

Background—

Elevated N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is associated with clinically overt heart failure (HF). However, whether it provides additive prognostic information for incident HF beyond traditional risk factors and left ventricular (LV) mass index among multi-ethnic asymptomatic individuals has not yet been determined. We studied the associations of plasma NT-proBNP and magnetic resonance imaging defined LV mass index with incident HF in an asymptomatic multi-ethnic population.

Methods and Results—

A total of 5597 multi-ethnic participants without clinically apparent cardiovascular disease underwent baseline measurement of NT-proBNP and were followed for 5.5±1.1 years. Among them, 4163 also underwent baseline cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. During follow-up, 111 participants experienced incident HF. Higher NT-proBNP was significantly associated with incident HF, independent of baseline age, sex, ethnicity, systolic blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, smoking, estimated glomerular filtration rate, medications (anti-hypertensive and statin), LV mass index, and interim myocardial infarction (hazard ratio: 1.95 per 1U log NT-proBNP increment, 95% CI 1.54–2.46,
P
<0.001). This relationship held among different ethnic groups, non-Hispanic whites, African-Americans, and Hispanics. Most importantly, NT-proBNP provided additive prognostic value beyond both traditional risk factors and LV mass index for predicting incident HF (integrated discrimination index=0.046,
P
<0.001; net reclassification index; 6-year risk probability categorized by <3%, 3–10%, >10% =0.175,
P
=0.019; category-less net reclassification index=0.561,
P
<0.001).

Conclusions—

Plasma NT-proBNP provides incremental prognostic information beyond traditional risk factors and the magnetic resonance imaging-determined LV mass index for incident symptomatic HF in an asymptomatic multi-ethnic population.

Clinical Trial Registration—

URL:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT00005487.
Moderate Aortic Enlargement and Bicuspid Aortic Valve Are Associated With Aortic Dissection in Turner Syndrome
Authors: Carlson Misty , Airhart Nathan , Lopez Leo , Silberbach Michael
Published: October 2012

Background—

Girls and women with Turner syndrome are at risk for aortic dissection and rupture. However, the size of the aorta and the clinical characteristics among those with Turner syndrome and dissection have received little attention.

Methods and Results—

We obtained medical records from 20 individuals who voluntarily participated in the International Turner Syndrome Aortic Dissection Registry. Type A dissections occurred in 17 of 20 (85%) cases, and type B occurred in 3 cases of which 1 occurred after coarctation stent placement. Of those with spontaneous aortic dissections, 18 of 19 (95%) had an associated cardiac malformation that included a bicuspid aortic valve. In 1 individual there was no predisposing finding other than the presence of Turner syndrome. Associated pregnancy was documented in 1 of 19 (5%). More than half (13/19, 68%) came to medical attention >24 hours after the onset of symptoms. For those with type A dissections, the mean ascending aortic size index was 2.7±0.6 cm/m
2
(n=9).

Conclusions—

Aortic dissection in Turner syndrome occurs in young individuals at smaller aortic diameters than in the general population or other forms of genetically triggered aortopathy. The absence of aortic valve or other cardiac malformations appears to markedly reduce the risk of aortic dissection However, aortic dissection can occur in Turner syndrome without cardiac malformations or hypertension. Individuals with Turner syndrome who are >18 years of age with an ascending aortic size index >2.5 cm/m
2
should be considered for an aortic operation to prevent aortic dissection.
Trends in the Incidence of Atrial Fibrillation in Older Patients Initiating Dialysis in the United States
Authors: Goldstein Benjamin A. , Arce Cristina M. , Hlatky Mark A. , Turakhia Mintu , Setoguchi Soko , Winkelmayer Wolfgang C.
Published: October 2012

Background—

One sixth of US dialysis patients 65 years of age have been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation/flutter (AF). Little is known, however, about the incidence of AF in this population.

Methods and Results—

We identified 258 605 older patients (≥67 years of age) with fee-for-service Medicare initiating dialysis in 1995 to 2007, who had not been diagnosed with AF within the previous 2 years. Patients were followed for newly diagnosed AF. Multivariable proportional hazard regression was used to examine temporal trends and associations of race and ethnicity with incident AF. We also studied temporal trends in the mortality and risk of ischemic stroke after new AF. Over 514 395 person-years of follow-up, 76 252 patients experienced incident AF for a crude AF incidence rate of 148/1000 person-years. Incidence of AF increased by 11% (95% confidence interval, 5–16) from 1995 to 2007. Compared with non-Hispanic whites, blacks (−30%), Asians (−19%), Native Americans (−42%), and Hispanics (−29%) all had lower rates of incident AF. Mortality after incident AF decreased by 22% from 1995 to 2008. Even more pronounced reductions were seen for incident ischemic stroke during these years.

Conclusions—

The incidence of AF is high in older patients initiating dialysis in the United States and has been increasing over the 13 years of study. Mortality declined during that time but remained >50% during the first year after newly diagnosed AF. Because data on warfarin use were not available, we were unable to study whether trends toward better outcomes could be explained by higher rates of oral anticoagulation.
Toward the Neurovascular Unit A Journey in Clinical Translation
Authors: del Zoppo Gregory J.
Published: October 2012

The Nobel laureate Max Delbrück often said that it is the crossover between disciplines where advances are possible in science. This certainly has been true for our understanding of the vascular biology of the central nervous system in the setting of ischemic stroke. The ability to cross the boundaries of hemostasis, neurology, hematology, and neuroscience has facilitated our research direction to define the relation of the microvasculature to neuron function. Work begun with the clinical scientific exploration of the contributions of arterial thrombosis to the acute injury processes initiated by focal cerebral ischemia has led to an increased understanding of the effects of ischemia on microvessel integrity.
Antihypertensive Treatment Prolongs Tissue Plasminogen Activator Door-to-Treatment Time
Authors: Skolarus Lesli E. , Scott Phillip A. , Burke James F. , Adelman Eric E. , Frederiksen Shirley M. , Kade Allison M. , Kalbfleisch Jack D. , Ford Andria L. , Meurer William J.
Published: October 2012

Background and Purpose—

Identifying modifiable tissue plasminogen activator treatment delays may improve stroke outcomes. We hypothesized that prethrombolytic antihypertensive treatment (AHT) may prolong door-to-treatment time (DTT).

Methods—

We performed an analysis of consecutive tissue plasminogen activator–treated patients at 24 randomly selected community hospitals in the Increasing Stroke Treatment through Interventional Behavior Change Tactics (INSTINCT) trial between 2007 and 2010. DTT among stroke patients who received prethrombolytic AHT were compared with those who did not receive prethrombolytic AHT. We then calculated a propensity score for the probability of receiving prethrombolytic AHT using logistic regression with demographics, stroke risk factors, home medications, stroke severity (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale), onset-to-door time, admission glucose, pretreatment blood pressure, emergency medical service transport, and location at time of stroke as independent variables. A paired
t
test was performed to compare the DTT between the propensity-matched groups.

Results—

Of 534 tissue plasminogen activator–treated stroke patients analyzed, 95 received prethrombolytic AHT. In the unmatched cohort, patients who received prethrombolytic AHT had a longer DTT (mean increase, 9 minutes; 95% confidence interval, 2–16 minutes) than patients who did not. After propensity matching, patients who received prethrombolytic AHT had a longer DTT (mean increase, 10.4 minutes; 95% confidence interval, 1.9–18.8) than patients who did not receive prethrombolytic AHT.

Conclusion—

Prethrombolytic AHT is associated with modest delays in DTT. This represents a potential target for quality-improvement initiatives. Further research evaluating optimum prethrombolytic hypertension management is warranted.
Bleeding During Treatment With Aspirin Versus Apixaban in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation Unsuitable for Warfarin
Authors: Flaker Greg C. , Eikelboom John W. , Shestakovska Olga , Connolly Stuart J. , Kaatz Scott , Budaj Andrzej , Husted Steen , Yusuf Salim , Lip Gregory Y. H. , Hart Robert G.
Published: October 2012

Background and Purpose—

Apixaban reduces stroke with comparable bleeding risks when compared with aspirin in patients with atrial fibrillation who are unsuitable for vitamin
k
antagonist therapy. This analysis explores patterns of bleeding and defines bleeding risks based on stroke risk with apixaban and aspirin.

Methods—

The Apixaban versus Acetylsalicylic Acid to Prevent Stroke in Atrial Fibrillation Patients Who Have Failed or Are Unsuitable for Vitamin
k
Antagonist Treatment (AVERROES) trial randomized 5599 patients with atrial fibrillation and risk factors to receive either apixaban or aspirin. Bleeding events were defined as the first occurrence of either major bleeding or clinically relevant nonmajor bleeding.

Results—

The rate of a bleeding event was 3.8%/year with aspirin and 4.5%/year with apixaban (hazard ratio with apixaban, 1.18; 95% CI, 0.92–1.51;
P
=0.19). The anatomic site of bleeding did not differ between therapies. Risk factors for bleeding common to apixaban and aspirin were use of nonstudy aspirin >50% of the time and a history of daily/occasional nosebleeds. The rates of both stroke and bleeding increased with higher CHADS
2
scores but apixaban compared with aspirin was associated with a similar relative risk of bleeding (
P
interaction 0.21) and a reduced relative risk of stroke (
P
interaction 0.37) irrespective of CHADS
2
category.

Conclusions—

Anatomic sites and predictors of bleeding are similar for apixaban and aspirin in these patients. Higher CHADS
2
scores are associated with increasing rates of bleeding and stroke, but the balance between risks and benefits of apixaban compared with aspirin is favorable irrespective of baseline stroke risk.

Clinical Trial Registration Information—

www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT 00496769.
Atmosphere–Land Surface Interactions over the Southern Great Plains: Characterization from Pentad Analysis of DOE ARM Field Observations and NARR
Authors: Ruiz-Barradas Alfredo , Nigam Sumant
Published: October 2012

The Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM) Southern Great Plains (SGP) site data are analyzed to provide insight into atmosphere–land surface interactions generating summertime precipitation variability. Pentad-averaged (5 days) data are analyzed; the average is long enough to suppress synoptic variability but sufficiently short to resolve atmosphere–land surface interactions. Intercomparison with the precipitation-assimilating North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) helps with in-depth investigation of the processes. The analysis seeks to ascertain the process sequence, especially the role of evapotranspiration and soil-moisture–radiation feedbacks in the generation of regional precipitation variability at this temporal scale.

Transported moisture dominates over evapotranspiration in precipitation variability over the region, from both magnitude of the contribution to regional water balance and its apparent temporal lead at pentad resolution. Antecedent and contemporaneous evapotranspiration are found to be negatively correlated with precipitation, albeit statistically insignificant; only lagging correlations are positive, peaking at 2-pentad lag following precipitation, substantiating the authors’ characterization of the water balance over SGP, and extending the authors’ previous findings on the dominance of moisture flux convergence in generating precipitation variability at monthly scales.

Precipitation episodes are linked with net negative surface radiation anomalies (i.e., with an energy-deprived land surface state that cannot fuel evapotranspiration), ruling out radiatively driven positive feedback on precipitation. Although the net longwave signal is positive because of a colder land surface (less upward terrestrial radiation), it is more than offset by the cloudiness-related reduction in downward shortwave radiation. Thus, ARM (NARR) data do not support the soil-moisture–precipitation feedback hypothesis over the SGP at pentad time scales; however, it may work at subpentad resolution and over other regions.
Buying In to Social Change
Authors: Atkinson Lucy
Published: October 2012

Drawing on depth interviews with eight socially conscious consumers, this study explores the way socially conscious consumer orientations can help to foster the kinds of prosocial orientations, such as a concern for others, that facilitate civic and political engagement. The data suggest that these consumers reap several private benefits from their socially conscious choices (authenticity, social embeddedness, empowerment, and self-actualization) while also helping to secure broader public virtues, such as a clean environment or workers’ rights. In so doing, they face certain costs (such as inconvenience and limited choice), but these sacrifices are reframed as pleasurable. This perspective challenges conventional, republican views of citizenship that see individuals as selfless and sacrificing for the sake of a common, greater good. Instead, these socially conscious consumers embody an alternative kind of citizenship in which the acquisition of private, self-serving benefits is inextricably linked to the pursuit of broader, collective virtues.
Examining Overconsumption, Competitive Consumption, and Conscious Consumption from 1994 to 2004
Authors: Carr D. Jasun , Gotlieb Melissa R. , Lee Nam-Jin , Shah Dhavan V.
Published: October 2012

Taken together, Robert Putnam’s work on the decline of social capital (2000) and Juliet Schor’s insights about the rise of “the new consumerism” (1999) suggest a shift in values in which our responsibilities as citizens have taken a backseat to our desires as consumers. This article complicates this shift in civic and consumer culture by examining generational differences in overconsumption, competitive consumption, and conscious consumption between 1994 and 2004. Using survey proxies for these concepts from the annual DDB Needham Life Style Study, the authors find that Generation X exhibits the highest rates of overconsumption and competitive consumption while also displaying the lowest rates of conscious consumption. Notably, the trends for these three aspects of consumer behavior vary in terms of overtime stability, general tendency, and economic responsiveness. These differing patterns of spending and consumption have far-reaching implications for society as a whole, particularly as the Civic Generation fades, the Boomers move out of the workforce, and Generation X becomes mature and culturally dominant.
The Personalization of Politics
Authors: Bennett W. Lance
Published: October 2012

This article proposes a framework for understanding large-scale individualized collective action that is often coordinated through digital media technologies. Social fragmentation and the decline of group loyalties have given rise to an era of personalized politics in which individually expressive personal action frames displace collective action frames in many protest causes. This trend can be spotted in the rise of large-scale, rapidly forming political participation aimed at a variety of targets, ranging from parties and candidates, to corporations, brands, and transnational organizations. The group-based “identity politics” of the “new social movements” that arose after the 1960s still exist, but the recent period has seen more diverse mobilizations in which individuals are mobilized around personal lifestyle values to engage with multiple causes such as economic justice (fair trade, inequality, and development policies), environmental protection, and worker and human rights.
The Politics of Consumer Debt
Authors: Hyman Louis
Published: October 2012

Facing a crisis of idle capital during the Great Depression, policy-makers developed new ways to promote private investment for public ends. Throughout the twentieth century, the use of state power to guide investment has been a powerful, and now largely ignored, tool of economic policy.
Constructing Sustainable Consumption
Authors: Holt Douglas B.
Published: October 2012

Twenty years of major policy and activist interventions that seek to promote sustainable consumption have been guided by what I term the ethical values paradigm, despite that this paradigm has significant conceptual flaws and has not produced impressive results. This article critiques the ethical values paradigm and proposes an alternative by adapting the market constructionist paradigm. The author analyzes the development of the American market for bottled water and demonstrates that this unsustainable consumption is an unintended consequence of the construction of a consumption ideology that is specific to the bottled water market, what the author terms ideological lock-in. This model explains why activist interventions have not worked and points the way toward more effective strategies. The author argues that we should reallocate the vast government, NGO, and foundation sustainability investments from promoting consumer value transformations toward a federation of market-focused social movements aimed at leapfrogging the ideological lock-in in key unsustainable markets.
Between Complacency and Paternalism
Authors: Hove Thomas
Published: October 2012

Consumer culture researchers need to acknowledge theoretical problems that can arise when ethical assumptions inform social scientific claims. To identify the origins of these problems, the sociologist Andrew Abbott has developed a framework to illustrate how social scientific claims are continually mapped and remapped onto rival moral perspectives. These perspectives are defined by the relative emphasis that they place on freedom and determinism, agency and structure. When consumer culture researchers attempt to diagnose or influence people’s political and consumer choices, they emphasize either one side of these dichotomies or the other. This article adapts Abbott’s framework to show how these differing emphases lead to different conclusions about the techniques that educators, social scientists, activists, marketers, and policy-makers should use to improve people’s political and consumer choices.
What Does It Mean to Be a Good Citizen? Citizenship Vocabularies as Resources for Action
Authors: Thorson Kjerstin
Published: October 2012

This article introduces the concept of citizenship vocabularies and argues that these vocabularies serve as resources for civic and political action. Drawing on interviews with young adults, the author presents a conceptual mapping of citizenship vocabularies. Examples show how citizenship vocabularies play a role in constraining or enabling emerging repertoires of participation such as political consumption. The article concludes by briefly outlining an agenda for exploring the connections among political socialization, citizenship vocabularies, and political participation.
The Civic Consequences of “Going Negative”
Authors: Wang Ming , Gabay Itay , Shah Dhavan V.
Published: October 2012

This study explores whether negative political advertising has any impact on adolescents. Two datasets are merged for this inquiry: (1) content-coded ad-buy data on the placement of campaign messages on a market-by-market and program-by-program basis and (2) national survey data of parent-child dyads collected immediately after the 2008 presidential election. The authors’ analysis finds that the negativity of political advertising to which adolescents were exposed predicted human-interest candidate knowledge, but not policy-relevant candidate knowledge. In addition, the negativity of political advertising exposure suppressed political consumerism among adolescents, but had no effect on their levels of political participation. This study shows that political campaigns can affect adolescents’ knowledge and participation in unconventional and potentially deleterious ways.
Gender and Generation in the Social Positioning of Taste
Authors: Lee Nam-Jin , Garlough Christine L. , Friedland Lewis A. , Shah Dhavan V.
Published: October 2012

The authors examine the intersection of gender and generation for the field of cultural consumption in the United States, considering their interplay in the social positioning of taste. The authors’ prior work found that while cultural capital in the United States largely parallels the field structure observed in 1960s France, the form of cultural capital in the United States discriminates between nurturance and community, on one side, and aggressiveness and individualism, on the other. To investigate this seemingly gendered and ideological positioning of taste, the authors locate individuals as “occupants” of this social field, distinguishing them by gender and age, and find that gender no longer structures a preference for a particular form of cultural capital among younger citizens. This blending of gendered identities in younger Americans suggests a realignment of the notions of gentility and community as defining femininity and coarseness and individualism as defining masculinity. The gendered patterns of cultural consumption that defined older generations do not define younger ones.
Does Changing a Light Bulb Lead to Changing the World? Political Action and the Conscious Consumer
Authors: Willis Margaret M. , Schor Juliet B.
Published: October 2012

As the prevalence of “conscious” consumption has grown, questions have arisen about its relationship to political action. An influential argument holds that political consumption individualizes responsibility for environmental degradation and “crowds out” genuine forms of activism. While European and Canadian empirical research contradicts this perspective, finding that conscious consumption and political engagement are positively connected, no studies of this relationship have been conducted for the United States. This article presents ordinary least squares (OLS) regression models for two datasets, the 2004 General Social Survey and a detailed survey of approximately 2,200 conscious consumers conducted by the authors, to assess the nature of the relationship between conscious consumption and political activism. The authors find that measures of conscious consumption are significantly and positively related to political action, even when controlling for political involvement in the past. The results suggest that greater levels of political consumption are positively related to a range of political actions.
The Shifting Sands of Citizenship
Authors: Kim Young Mie
Published: October 2012

Identifying the emerging trends in contemporary politics as life politics, this article revisits the notion of issue publics (an auxiliary concept developed to explain variability in attitudes and behavior within the public) and extends its theoretical concept in the context of life politics (a term relating to the choices people make every day and the politics of personal interests). It argues that publics consist of pluralistic groups of people who consider particular issues personally important based on self-interest, collective identity, and values. This article pays particular attention to how the new media environment, characterized by the development of digital media and the adoption of entertainment-oriented, personalized media in politics, contributes to the facilitation of issue publics in life politics.
Communication, Consumers, and Citizens
Authors: Shah Dhavan V. , Friedland Lewis A. , Wells Chris , Kim Young Mie , Rojas Hernando
Published: October 2012

The year 2011 was defined by the intersection of politics and economics: the Wisconsin protests, the Occupy Movement, anti-austerity demonstrations, the Buffett Rule, and so on. These events drew attention to the role of politics in the erosion of labor power, the rise of inequality, and the excesses of overconsumption. Moving beyond periodic and dutiful action directed at an increasingly unresponsive government, citizens tested the boundaries of what we consider civic engagement by embracing personalized forms of “lifestyle politics” enacted in everyday life and often directed at the market. These issues are the focus of this volume, which we divide into four sections. The first section attempts both to situate consumption in politics as a contemporary phenomenon and to view it through a wider historical lens. The second section advances the notion of sustainable citizenship at the individual/group level and the societal/institutional level, and understands consumption as socially situated and structured. Extending this thinking, the third section explores various forms of conscious consumption and relates them to emerging modes of activism and engagement. The fourth section questions assumptions about the effectiveness of the citizen-consumer and the underlying value of political consumerism and conscious consumption. We conclude by distilling six core themes from this collection for future work.
Ship Management Attitudes and Their Relation to Behavior and Performance
Authors: Röttger Stefan , Vetter Saskia , Kowalski Jens T.
Published: October 2012

Objective:

The aim of this study was to adapt the Crew Resource Management (CRM) Attitudes Questionnaire (CMAQ) to the maritime domain, to assess the ship management attitudes of junior naval officers, and to determine the extent to which these attitudes correlate with behavior and performance in a naval exercise.

Background:

CRM attitudes have been shown to be associated with performance in aviation, but it is unclear whether this construct is applicable and relevant to the maritime domain.

Method:

Participants were 121 active seafarers and 101 junior officers of the German Navy who completed the Ship Management Attitudes Questionnaire–German Navy (SMAQ-GN). Ratings of nontechnical skills and ratings of mission success of the junior officers were collected during a real-world naval exercise.

Results:

Internal consistencies of SMAQ-GN were similar to those of the original CMAQ and retest reliability was rather high. Attitudes of junior officers toward communication and coordination were positive. Regarding command responsibility and the recognition of stressor effects, positive as well as neutral and negative attitudes were found. Overall, attitudes did not correlate with behavior and performance. Separate analysis of those participants reporting negative to neutral ship management attitudes showed substantial positive correlations of attitudes with behavior and performance.

Conclusion:

Ship management attitudes play a significant role in commanding ships. The attitude–performance linkage is not linear. Behavior and perfor-mance are less effective in officers with negative attitudes and equally effective in officers with slightly positive and very positive attitudes.

Application:

Ship management attitudes can be used to assess training needs for nautical teams.