bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Breastfeeding and Health Professionals in Britain, New Zealand and the United States, 1900–1970
Authors: Bryder Linda
Published: November 2012

Modern medical opinion is almost universally in favour of breastfeeding as the best food for newborn infants. Yet this was not always the case. American social historian Rima Apple has argued convincingly that medical attitudes in the United States undermined breastfeeding in the first half of the twentieth-century. She explains how the concept of “scientific motherhood”, successfully promoted by the medical profession during the first half of the twentieth century, “fostered the acceptance of, when not the wholesale commitment to, bottle feeding under physician-supervision”. In her recent book on breastfeeding in the United States, Jacqueline Wolf argues that while many doctors in the United States supported breastfeeding, they inadvertently undermined it by advocating routine feeding and by providing a viable alternative through milk formulas. Considering the experience of breastfeeding in two further environments, Britain and New Zealand, contributes to the discussion of the role of health professionals in promoting breastfeeding. Doctors in Britain and New Zealand did not promote the move from breast to bottle, as Apple found in America. Nor did they appear to undermine breastfeeding by their advocacy of routine feeding. The decline in breastfeeding occurred later than in America. It coincided with the new fashion for “demand feeding”, and with a new movement to medicalize breastfeeding itself. A study of breastfeeding in different countries and over time indicates that the attitudes and advice of health professionals were significant factors in the success or otherwise of breastfeeding.
The British Market for Medicine in the late Nineteenth Century: The Innovative Impact of S M Burroughs & Co
Authors: Church Roy
Published: November 2012

Historians of medicine have tended to be preoccupied primarily with scientific research, the development of therapeutically significant medicines, and ethical business practice. Roy Porter, however, adopted a wider conception. Referring to the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, he redefined the role of “the vile race of quacks” (so described by their own contemporaries) as a manifestation of a burgeoning medical entrepreneurship in an emerging consumer society. He maintained that “Irregular medicine … mobilised the growth of medicine as business”, an aspect of medical history which he believed to have been largely ignored hitherto and one which requires of historians an understanding of the market for pharmaceuticals. Anne Digby has examined the market for medical services during the nineteenth century in an analysis of interactions between doctors and patients at a time when self-dosing was prevalent. However, interactions between medical practitioners and suppliers of medicines in Britain for most of this period remain largely unexplored (with the significant exception of the work by Jonathan Liebenau) and as a result, it will be argued, have been misunderstood.
Doctoring Beauty: The Medical Control of Women's Toilettes in France, 1750–1820
Authors: Martin Morag
Published: November 2012

On 4 September 1818 the Gazette de France reported on the tumultuous scenes occurring outside Parisian booksellers. The journalist was surprised to find crowds of people all demanding one book:
Breast Cancer and the Politics of Abortion in the United States
Authors: Jasen Patricia
Published: November 2012

Epidemiology, like any branch of medical science, functions within a social and historical context. That context influences what questions are asked, how they are investigated, and how their conclusions are interpreted, both by researchers and by the public. The international debate over whether abortion increases breast cancer risk, which has been the subject of many studies and much heated controversy in recent decades, became so intensely politicized in the United States that it serves as a particularly stark illustration of how elusive the quest for scientific certainty can be. Although a growing interest in reproductive factors and breast cancer risk developed after the Second World War, it was not until the early 1980s, after induced abortion had been legalized in many countries, that studies began to focus on this specific factor. In the US these were the years following Roe v Wade, when anti-abortionists mounted their counterattack and pro-choice forces were on the defensive. As a result, epidemiologists found themselves at the centre of a debate which had come to symbolize a deepening divide in American culture. This paper traces the history of the scientific investigation of the alleged abortion-breast cancer link, against the backdrop of what was increasingly termed an “epidemic” of breast cancer in the US. That history, in turn, is closely intertwined with the anti-abortion movement's efforts, following the violence of the early 1990s, to regain respectability through changing its tactics and rhetoric, which included the adoption of the “ABC link” as part of its new “women-centred” strategy.
Health education policy 1916–1926: venereal disease and the prophylaxis dilemma
Authors: Towers Bridget A.
Published: November 2012

This paper seeks to account for the development of a public health education policy with respect to venereal disease during the period 1916–1926. Two competing pressure groups, the National Council for Combatting Venereal Disease and the Society for the Prevention of Venereal Disease, defended opposing programmes; the one based on moral education (NCCVD) and the other (SPVD) on medical prophylaxis. Many of the interests represented by the groups and the political dimensions that they took, were influenced by factors only very tangentially connected to health education.

Any account of the development of policy in this field needs placing in the context of the early history of nineteenth-century anti-vice crusades; the role of the Army Medical Corps during the 1914–18 war; and the bureaucratic protectionism of the Ministry of Health personnel.
A study of maternal mortality and midwifery on the Isle of Man, 1882 to 1961
Authors: Pantin C G
Published: November 2012

The living conditions and the health of Manx mothers continued to improve from 1881 to 1961. Against this background they were at first delivered conservatively and mostly by midwives. During this conservative phase the proportion of mothers surviving childbirth increased as their health improved: by the quinquennium 1907–1911 the maternal mortality rate on the Island was half what it had been twenty years earlier. Between 1912 and 1927 maternal mortality rose and during the quinquennium 1922–1926 the MD/BR was again at the level it had been thirty years before. Some of the maternal deaths during the quinquennium were among women who were subjected to intervention during childbirth by doctors in the unfavourable surroundings of their homes; conditions more suited to delivery by the conservative methods of kindly and patient handywomen. Following the opening of a small maternity home on 6 May 1927 the family doctors began to send their difficult deliveries into the Home where they were looked after by skilled staff and delivered in a well–equipped labour room. Throughout the subsequent decade the MD/BR remained at a level below that in 1907–1911.
Allocation Of Attention To Second Language Form And Meaning
Authors: Morgan-Short Kara , Heil Jeanne , Botero-Moriarty Andrea , Ebert Shane
Published: November 2012

The aims of the present study were twofold. The study addressed the issues of simultaneous attention to form and meaning in second language (L2) written input and reactivity of think-alouds. Specifically, the study examined the comprehension of L2 learners of Spanish who either attended to lexical or grammatical forms while reading for meaning or read for meaning alone. Learners completed these tasks while either thinking aloud or not. Results indicated only a minimal effect for thinking aloud that did not appear to compromise the internal validity of the study. Additionally, results showed that attending to grammatical or lexical form while reading for meaning did not affect comprehension. Indeed, learners who processed these forms more deeply evidenced greater comprehension. These findings are considered in light of methodological issues and the larger issue of simultaneous attention to form and meaning in a L2.
Neuropsychological Profiles of Children with Aqueductal Stenosis and Spina Bifida Myelomeningocele
Authors: Hampton Lyla E. , Fletcher Jack M. , Cirino Paul , Blaser Susan , Kramer Larry A. , Dennis Maureen
Published: November 2012

We compared neuropsychological profiles in children with shunted hydrocephalus secondary to aqueductal stenosis (AS), a rare form of congenital hydrocephalus, and spina bifida myelomeningocele (SBM), a common form of congenital hydrocephalus. Participants were 180 children with shunted hydrocephalus grouped according to etiology: SBM (n = 151), AS (n = 29), and typically developing (TD; n = 60) individuals. The group with AS performed below the TD group on all tasks except for reading, and their overall performance was higher than the group with SBM, who had the lowest performance in the sample. Both clinical groups significantly differed from the TD group on tasks of spatial function, concept formation, motor function, and memory. Performance of the subgroup of AS children with normal cerebellum status approximated that of the TD group, while those with cerebellar anomalies performed lower than others with AS. Cerebellar abnormalities (present in the whole SBM group and in a subset of the AD group) are associated with more compromise of cognitive as well as motor function. (JINS, 2012, 18, 1–10)
Social Cognition and Emotional Assessment (SEA) is a Marker of Medial and Orbital Frontal Functions: A Voxel-Based Morphometry Study in Behavioral Variant of Frontotemporal Degeneration
Authors: Bertoux Maxime , Volle Emmanuelle , Funkiewiez Aurélie , de Souza Leonardo Cruz , Leclercq Delphine , Dubois Bruno
Published: November 2012

The aim of this study was to explore the cerebral correlates of functional deficits that occur in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD). A specific neuropsychological battery, the Social cognition & Emotional Assessment (SEA; Funkiewiez et al., 2012), was used to assess impaired social and emotional functions in 20 bvFTD patients who also underwent structural MRI scanning. The SEA subscores of theory of mind, reversal-learning tests, facial emotion identification, and apathy evaluation were entered as covariates in a voxel-based morphometry analysis. The results revealed that the gray matter volume in the rostral part of the medial prefrontal cortex [mPFC, Brodmann area (BA) 10] was associated with scores on the theory of mind subtest, while gray matter volume within the orbitofrontal (OFC) and ventral mPFC (BA 11 and 47) was related to the scores observed in the reversal-learning subtest. Gray matter volume within BA 9 in the mPFC was correlated with scores on the emotion recognition subtest, and the severity of apathetic symptoms in the Apathy scale covaried with gray matter volume in the lateral PFC (BA 44/45). Among these regions, the mPFC and OFC cortices have been shown to be atrophied in the early stages of bvFTD. In addition, SEA and its abbreviated version (mini-SEA) have been demonstrated to be sensitive to early impairments in bvFTD (Bertoux et al., 2012). Taken together, these results suggest a differential involvement of orbital and medial prefrontal subregions in SEA subscores and support the use of the SEA to evaluate the integrity of these regions in the early stages of bvFTD. (JINS, 2012, 18, 972–985)
Twin Olympians: The Hard Science and the Lives Behind It / Research Summaries: Twin Study of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors; Postnatal Brain Maturation; Parental Responses to Rearing Triplets; Chimaeric Twins / General Interest: Lone Soccer Twin; Identical Triplet Birth; Life and Work of Twin Geoffrey D. Langlands; The Lone Twin
Authors: Segal Nancy L.
Published: November 2012

A look at scientific studies of sports performance is informative in view of the 2012 Olympic games in London. The athletic life histories of selected twin competitors supplement the scientific data. Reviews of recent twin studies concerning cardiometabolic risk factors, postnatal brain maturation, parental responses to rearing triplets, and the birth of an unusual chimaeric twin pair are presented. General interest items include the separate careers of twin soccer players, an unexpected identical triplet birth, the interesting life of twin Geoffrey D. Langlands, and the Lone Twin Boat Project.
Incorporating temperature‐sensitive Q10 and foliar respiration acclimation algorithms modifies modeled ecosystem responses to global change
Authors: Wythers Kirk R. , Reich Peter B. , Bradford John B.
Published: November 2012

Evidence suggests that respiration acclimation (RA) to temperature in plants can have a substantial influence on ecosystem carbon balance. To assess the influence of RA on ecosystem response variables in the presence of global change drivers, we incorporated a temperature‐sensitive Q10 of respiration and foliar basal RA into the ecosystem model PnET‐CN. We examined the new algorithms' effects on modeled net primary production (NPP), total canopy foliage mass, foliar nitrogen concentration, net ecosystem exchange (NEE), and ecosystem respiration/gross primary production ratios. This latter ratio more closely matched eddy covariance long‐term data when RA was incorporated in the model than when not. Averaged across four boreal ecotone sites and three forest types at year 2100, the enhancement of NPP in response to the combination of rising [CO2] and warming was 9% greater when RA algorithms were used, relative to responses using fixed respiration parameters. The enhancement of NPP response to global change was associated with concomitant changes in foliar nitrogen and foliage mass. In addition, impacts of RA algorithms on modeled responses of NEE closely paralleled impacts on NPP. These results underscore the importance of incorporating temperature‐sensitive Q10 and basal RA algorithms into ecosystem models. Given the current evidence that atmospheric [CO2] and surface temperature will continue to rise, and that ecosystem responses to those changes appear to be modified by RA, which is a common phenotypic adjustment, the potential for misleading results increases if models fail to incorporate RA into their carbon balance calculations.
The influence of radiatively active water ice clouds on the Martian climate
Authors: Madeleine J.‐B. , Forget F. , Millour E. , Navarro T. , Spiga A.
Published: November 2012

Radiatively active water ice clouds (RAC) play a key role in shaping the thermal structure of the Martian atmosphere. In this paper, RAC are implemented in the LMD Mars Global Climate Model (GCM) and the simulated temperatures are compared to Thermal Emission Spectrometer observations over a full year. RAC change the temperature gradients and global dynamics of the atmosphere and this change in dynamics in turn implies large‐scale adiabatic temperature changes. Therefore, clouds have both a direct and indirect effect on atmospheric temperatures. RAC successfully reduce major GCM temperature biases, especially in the regions of formation of the aphelion cloud belt where a cold bias of more than 10 K is corrected. Departures from the observations are however seen in the polar regions, and highlight the need for better modeling of cloud formation and evolution.
Quantifying the seasonal “breathing” of the Antarctic ice sheet
Authors: Ligtenberg S. R. M. , Horwath M. , van den Broeke M. R. , Legrésy B.
Published: November 2012

One way to estimate the mass balance of an ice sheet is to convert satellite observed surface elevation changes into mass changes. In order to do so, elevation and mass changes due to firn processes must be taken into account. Here, we use a firn densification model to simulate seasonal variations in depth and mass of the Antarctic firn layer, and assess their influence on surface elevation. Forced by the seasonal cycle in temperature and accumulation, a clear seasonal cycle in average firn depth of the Antarctic ice sheet (AIS) is found with an amplitude of 0.026 m, representing a volume oscillation of 340 km3. The phase of this oscillation is rather constant across the AIS: the ice sheet volume increases in austral autumn, winter and spring and quickly decreases in austral summer. Seasonal accumulation differences are the major driver of this annual ‘breathing’, with temperature fluctuations playing a secondary role. The modeled seasonal elevation signal explains ∼31% of the seasonal elevation signal derived from ENVISAT radar altimetry, with both signals having similar phase.
3D direct impacts of urban aerosols on dynamics during the CAPITOUL field experiment
Authors: Aouizerats B. , Tulet P. , Gomes L.
Published: November 2012

Evaluating the radiative impacts of aerosol particles is of great interest for understanding atmospheric physics and processes feedbacks. To respond to such objectives, the online fully coupled model Meso‐NH is applied to a real case during a two‐day Intensive Observation Period (IOP) of the CAPITOUL campaign. The aerosol optical properties are computed from the chemical composition and the size distribution of the particle population, and are compared to observations and analysed at local and regional scales. The differences between two simulations are then studied in order to isolate the direct radiative impacts of aerosols on dynamics. Results show that the aerosol particles generate a forcing on shortwave flux by a decrease of the amount reaching the surface up to 30 Wm−2. The resulting feedbacks lead to a cooling up to 0.6 K on the 2‐meter temperature over the city of Toulouse and over the larger 125 km by 125 km area around Toulouse. This cooling is also modeled along the whole boundary layer, leading to a decrease of the boundary layer height up to −50 m during the afternoon and a decrease of the vertical velocities with an average of −3 %.
Experimental simulations of CH4 evaporation on Titan
Authors: Luspay‐Kuti A. , Chevrier V. F. , Wasiak F. C. , Roe L. A. , Welivitiya W. D. D. P. , Cornet T. , Singh S. , Rivera‐Valentin E. G.
Published: November 2012

We present the first experimental results on the evaporation of liquid CH4 under simulated Titan surface conditions similar to those observed at the Huygens landing site. An average evaporation rate of (3.1 ± 0.6) × 10−4 kg s−1 m−2 at 94 K and 1.5 bar was measured. While our results are generally higher than previous models based on energy balance, they show an excellent match with a theoretical mass transfer approach. Indeed, we find that evaporation in the Titan environmental chamber is predominantly diffusion driven and affected by the buoyancy of lighter CH4 in the heavier N2 atmosphere. After correcting for the difference in gravity of Earth and Titan, the resulting evaporation rate is (1.6 ± 0.3) × 10−4 kg s−1m−2 (or 1.13 ± 0.3 mm hr−1). Using our experimental evaporation rates, we determine that the low‐latitude storm recently observed by Cassini ISS would have resulted in a maximum evaporated mass of (5.4 ± 1.2) × 1010 kg of CH4 equivalent to a 2.4 ± 0.5 m thick layer over 80 days. Based on our results, a sufficient amount of CH4 can accumulate in the otherwise arid equatorial regions to produce transient ponds and liquid flows.
Cumulative rate analysis (CURATE): A clustering algorithm for swarm dominated catalogs
Authors: Jacobs Katrina M. , Smith Euan G. C. , Savage Martha K. , Zhuang Jiangcang
Published: November 2012

We present a new cumulative rate (CURATE) clustering method to identify earthquake sequences especially in regions with swarm activity. The method identifies sequences by comparing observed rates to an average rate. It is distinct from previous clustering techniques in that no direct assumptions about physical processes relating to temporal decay or earthquake‐earthquake interaction are made. Instead these assumptions are replaced by a more general one, that earthquakes occurring within a sequence likely share a common physical trigger, which is manifested by a change in rate. The use of rate as the primary selection parameter emphasizes that temporal proximity is the main commonality among different sequence types. To investigate catalog‐scale earthquake sequence characteristics, we apply the method along with four standard (de‐)clustering methods to a catalog of 4845 M ≥ 2.45 earthquakes from 1993 through 2007 in the Central Volcanic Region of New Zealand. Despite the distinct focus of the method on sequence formation, the declustered catalog of the CURATE method sits within the suite of declustered catalogs produced by other methods. A stochastic reconstruction based on epidemic‐type aftershock sequence parameters is also presented to test the differences between catalogs that exclusively contain mainshock‐aftershock sequences and areas that exhibit multiple physical processes. We test the declustered catalogs produced by all methods for a Poisson temporal distribution and propose that this be used to ensure reasonable selection parameters. The CURATE method will be especially useful for identifying swarms, creating likelihoods of the size and duration of sequences, and refining earthquake forecasts that include swarms at regional and local scales.
Measurements of shoaling internal waves and turbulence in an estuary
Authors: Richards Clark , Bourgault Daniel , Galbraith Peter S. , Hay Alex , Kelley Dan E.
Published: November 2012

The shoaling of horizontally propagating internal waves may represent an important source of mixing and transport in estuaries and coastal seas. Including such effects in numerical models demands improvements in the understanding of several aspects of the energetics, especially those relating to turbulence generation, and observations are needed to build this understanding. To address some of these issues in the estuarine context, we undertook an intensive field program for 10 days in the summer of 2008 in the St. Lawrence Estuary. The sampling involved shore‐based photogrammetry, ship‐based surveys, and an array of moorings in the shoaling region that held both conventional and turbulence‐resolving sensors. The measurements shed light on many aspects of the wave shoaling process. Wave arrivals were generally phase‐locked with the M2 tide, providing hints about far‐field forcing. In the deeper part of the study domain, the waves propagated according to the predictions of linear theory. In intermediate‐depth waters, the waves traversed the field site perpendicularly to isobaths, a pattern that continued as the waves transformed nonlinearly. Acoustic Doppler velocimeters permitted inference of the turbulent energetics, and two main features were studied. First, during a period of shoaling internal waves, turbulence dissipation rates exceeded values associated with tidal shear by an order of magnitude. Second, the evolving spectral signatures associated with a particular wave‐shoaling event suggest that the turbulence is at least partly locally generated. Overall, the results of this study suggest that parameterizations of wave‐induced mixing could employ relatively simple dynamics in deep water, but may have to handle a wide suite of turbulence generation and transport mechanisms in inshore regions.
Estimation of the sunglint radiance field from optical satellite imagery over open ocean: Multidirectional approach and polarization aspects
Authors: Harmel Tristan , Chami Malik
Published: November 2012

Radiometric satellite measurements over the ocean are greatly affected by the contribution of the direct sunlight reflected on the ruffled ocean (so‐called sunglint). Sunglint produces radiance that can far exceed the radiance scattered by both the atmosphere and ocean layers. Knowledge of the sunglint radiance is required in many remote sensing applications using radiance and polarization information (e.g., retrieval of aerosol or hydrosol optical properties, sensor calibration). The Cox and Munk model is currently used for estimating sunglint signal, but its accuracy is mainly limited by the mandatory use of wind speed data sets. An algorithm (so‐called polarization‐based atmospheric correction glint) was developed based on the original multidirectional and polarization radiometric measurements of the Polarization and Anisotropy of Reflectances for Atmospheric Sciences Coupled with Observations from a Lidar satellite mission. The method enables to accurately estimate the radiance and the polarization terms of the sunglint signal. The strength of the algorithm is to quantify the sunglint radiation using the Polarization and Anisotropy of Reflectances for Atmospheric Sciences Coupled with Observations from a Lidar data without any a priori information on the actual sea state A relevant application of the algorithm is proposed to better detect the pixels influenced by clouds provided that ancillary data of wind speed are used.
Sensitivity of net ecosystem exchange and heterotrophic respiration to parameterization uncertainty
Authors: Exbrayat J.‐F. , Pitman A. J. , Abramowitz G. , Wang Y.‐P.
Published: November 2012

We examine the uncertainty in net ecosystem exchange due to the model treatment of heterotrophic respiration in a variety of hydroclimatic conditions using a land surface model. Multiple soil temperature‐respiration functions and soil moisture‐respiration functions are incorporated into the Carnegie‐Ames‐Stanford Approach with Carbon‐Nitrogen‐Phosphorus (CASA‐CNP) biogeochemical model coupled to the Community Atmosphere Biosphere Land Exchange land surface model. Every possible combination of the newly implemented functions is then used to simulate heterotrophic respiration and net ecosystem exchange at 10 different flux towers covering a large range of global vegetation types. Results show that a large uncertainty in the simulated net ecosystem exchange is attributable to differences in the soil respiration parameterization. No single combination of soil temperature and moisture‐respiration functions appears to show superior performance across all sites. Large variations in the simulated evolution of soil carbon storages emphasize the problem that to use an observationally based soil temperature or soil moisture response function requires a land surface model to capture the observed soil temperature and soil moisture mean and variability correctly. Land surface models are known to vary dramatically in their simulation of the soil moisture state and probably in their simulation of soil temperature. Resolving how to simulate heterotrophic respiration and net ecosystem exchange will therefore require an accurate simulation of temperature and moisture combined with a realistic soil heterotrophic respiration parameterization, and these cannot be developed and implemented in isolation.
Dramatherapy with Homeless Clients: The Necessary Theatre
Authors: Bruun Ellen Foyn
Published: November 2012

The article presents a dramatherapy intervention with homeless clients. It introduces the concept of ‘the necessary theatre’ as a theatrical frame to encapsulate the healing potential of drama and arts practice. The term, first introduced by Peter Brook, refers to the ‘blessed moments’ of shared artistic experience by actors and witnesses in attuned presence and level of energetic presence. During the dramatherapy work with the homeless clients it became clear that the aim of the intervention was to contribute to creating conditions for such moments to occur and happen as events. The article argues that the case study with this ‘vulnerable’ client group created useful knowledge and innovative practice concerning epistemological dilemmas for arts practice as therapy. The case study reinforced the tradition of arts therapy that insists on working from within the artistic media, such as the Jungian Sesame approach to drama and movement therapy that acknowledges each individual's healthy and creative drive for self-regulation and agency.
The episodic engram transformed: Time reduces retrieval-related brain activity but correlates it with memory accuracy
Authors: Furman Orit , Mendelsohn Avi , Dudai Yadin
Published: November 2012

We took snapshots of human brain activity with fMRI during retrieval of realistic episodic memory over several months. Three groups of participants were scanned during a memory test either hours, weeks, or months after viewing a documentary movie. High recognition accuracy after hours decreased after weeks and remained at similar levels after months. In contrast, BOLD activity in a retrieval-related set of brain areas during correctly remembered events was similar after hours and weeks but significantly declined after months. Despite this reduction, BOLD activity in retrieval-related regions was positively correlated with recognition accuracy only after months. Hippocampal engagement during retrieval remained similar over time during recall but decreased in recognition. Our results are in line with the hypothesis that hippocampus subserves retrieval of real-life episodic memory long after encoding, its engagement being dependent on retrieval demands. Furthermore, our findings suggest that over time episodic engrams are transformed into a parsimonious form capable of supporting accurate retrieval of the crux of events, arguably a critical goal of memory, with only minimal network activation.
Structures from MnX
2 and proline: isomorphous racemic compounds and a series of chiral non-isomorphous chain polymers
Authors: Lamberts Kevin , Englert Ulli
Published: November 2012

Reactions of manganese(II) chloride, bromide and iodide with proline as an enantiopure and racemic ligand result in six crystalline solids for which diffraction experiments have been performed at 100 K. For two of these compounds, crystal structures at ambient temperature had been reported previously. The most surprising outcome of our systematic comparison lies in the role of chirality: with enantiopure proline three different coordination polymers have been obtained, whereas racemic proline yields isomorphous mononuclear complexes under the same reaction conditions.
The polymorphs of ROY: application of a systematic crystal structure prediction technique
Authors: Vasileiadis Manolis , Kazantsev Andrei V. , Karamertzanis Panagiotis G. , Adjiman Claire S. , Pantelides Constantinos C.
Published: November 2012

We investigate the ability of current ab initio crystal structure prediction techniques to identify the polymorphs of 5-methyl-2-[(2-nitrophenyl)amino]-3-thiophenecarbonitrile, also known as ROY because of the red, orange and yellow colours of its polymorphs. We use a methodology combining the generation of a large number of structures based on a computationally inexpensive model using the CrystalPredictor global search algorithm, and the further minimization of the most promising of these structures using the CrystalOptimizer local minimization algorithm which employs an accurate, yet efficiently constructed, model based on isolated-molecule quantum-mechanical calculations. We demonstrate that this approach successfully predicts the seven experimentally resolved structures of ROY as lattice-energy minima, with five of these structures being within the 12 lowest energy structures predicted. Some of the other low-energy structures identified are likely candidates for the still unresolved polymorphs of this molecule. The relative stability of the predicted structures only partially matches that of the experimentally resolved polymorphs. The worst case is that of polymorph ON, whose relative energy with respect to Y is overestimated by 6.65 kJ mol−1. This highlights the need for further developments in the accuracy of the energy calculations.
P‐type calcium ATPase functions as a core regulator of Beauveria bassiana growth, conidiation and responses to multiple stressful stimuli through cross‐talk with signalling networks
Authors: Wang Jie , Zhou Gang , Ying Sheng‐Hua , Feng Ming‐Guang
Published: November 2012

P‐type Ca2+‐ATPase (Pmr1) is a core element in calcium‐calcineurin pathway and evidence for its cross‐talk with other signalling pathways in filamentous fungi is of scarcity. Here, we characterized the striking functions of a Golgi Ca2+‐ATPase (Bbpmr1) in Beauveria bassiana (fungal entomopathogen) by multi‐phenotypic and transcriptional analyses under normal and stressful conditions. Bbpmr1 inactivation caused severe defects in nutritional uptake, growth, conidiation and germination under normal conditions, drastic reductions in cell tolerances to oxidative, hyperosmotic, cell wall disturbing and fungicidal stresses and toxic metal ions during colony growth and/or conidial germination, and half loss of the fungal biocontrol potential represented by conidial virulence, thermotolerance and UV‐B resistance. Accompanied with the multi‐phenotypic defects, four important genes associated with asexual development were repressed by ≥ 75% in ΔBbpmr1 versus wild type, and all or most of stress‐responsive genes encoding 14 cascaded proteins in MAPK pathways, two Ras GTPases, two protein kinases, Ssk1‐type response regulator, TOR signalling protein, and many downstream enzymes and proteins were greatly downregulated in ΔBbpmr1 under the chemical stresses. Conclusively, Bbpmr1 regulates positively fundamental aspects on B. bassiana biology and environmental adaptation through wide cross‐talk with cellular signalling networks including MAPK cascades and those upstream or independent of the cascades.
The impacts of burning on Thomson's gazelles', Gazella thomsonii, vigilance in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Authors: Eby Stephanie , Ritchie Mark E.
Published: November 2012

Alterations to habitats that increase the distance at which prey can detect predators can decrease the risk of predation. In grasslands, burning may have this effect for mammalian herbivores by decreasing vegetation height, potentially making burned areas safer habitats. However, few studies have tested the impacts of burning on the perceived predation risk of herbivores. Vigilance can be used as a measure of habitat safety and therefore should be lower in burned areas than unburned areas. We tested the impacts of prescribed burning on vigilance by Thomson's gazelles in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Both individual vigilance, proportion of time an individual spends looking, and group vigilance, proportion of a group looking, of Thomson's gazelles was observed in burned and unburned areas before and after presenting a model cheetah to each group. Surprisingly, both individual and group vigilance was the same in both habitats pre‐ and post‐cheetah addition and removal. This is despite the fact that both vegetation height and biomass were lower in burned areas than unburned areas. Thus, it does not appear that Thomson's gazelles perceive burned areas to be safer habitats than unburned areas.
Histamine suppresses epidermal keratinocyte differentiation and impairs skin barrier function in a human skin model
Authors: Gschwandtner M. , Mildner M. , Mlitz V. , Gruber F. , Eckhart L. , Werfel T. , Gutzmer R. , Elias P. M. , Tschachler E.
Published: November 2012

Background

Defects in keratinocyte differentiation and skin barrier are important features of inflammatory skin diseases like atopic dermatitis. Mast cells and their main mediator histamine are abundant in inflamed skin and thus may contribute to disease pathogenesis.

Methods

Human primary keratinocytes were cultured under differentiation‐promoting conditions in the presence and absence of histamine, histamine receptor agonists and antagonists. The expression of differentiation‐associated genes and epidermal junction proteins was quantified by real‐time PCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescence labeling. The barrier function of human skin models was tested by the application of biotin as tracer molecule.

Results

The addition of histamine to human keratinocyte cultures and organotypic skin models reduced the expression of the differentiation‐associated proteins keratin 1/10, filaggrin, and loricrin by 80–95%. Moreover, the addition of histamine to skin models resulted in the loss of the granular layer and thinning of the epidermis and stratum corneum by 50%. The histamine receptor H1R agonist, 2‐pyridylethylamine, suppressed keratinocyte differentiation to the same extent as did histamine. Correspondingly, cetirizine, an antagonist of H1R, virtually abrogated the effect of histamine. The expression of tight junction proteins zona occludens‐1, occludin, claudin‐1, and claudin‐4, as well as that of desmosomal junction proteins corneodesmosin and desmoglein‐1, was down‐regulated by histamine. The tracer molecule biotin readily penetrated the tight junction barrier of skin cultures grown in the presence of histamine, while their diffusion was completely blocked in nontreated controls.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest a new mechanism by which mast cell activation and histamine release contribute to skin barrier defects in inflammatory skin diseases.
Asthma severity in childhood and metabolomic profiling of breath condensate
Authors: Carraro S. , Giordano G. , Reniero F. , Carpi D. , Stocchero M. , Sterk P.J. , Baraldi E.
Published: November 2012

Background

Asthma is a heterogeneous disease and its different phenotypes need to be better characterized from a biochemical‐inflammatory standpoint. This study aimed to apply the metabolomic approach to exhaled breath condensate (breathomics) to discriminate different asthma phenotypes, with a particular focus on severe asthma in children.

Methods

In this cross‐sectional study, we recruited 42 asthmatic children (age, 8–17 years): 31 with nonsevere asthma (treated with inhaled steroids or not) and 11 with severe asthma. Fifteen healthy children were enrolled as controls. Children performed exhaled nitric oxide measurement, spirometry, exhaled breath condensate (EBC) collection. Condensate samples were analyzed using a metabolomic approach based on mass spectrometry.

Results

A robust Bidirectional‐Orthogonal Projections to Latent Structures‐Discriminant Analysis (O2PLS‐DA) model was found for discriminating both between severe asthma cases and healthy controls (R2 = 0.93; Q2 = 0.75) and between severe asthma and nonsevere asthma (R2 = 0.84; Q2 = 0.47). The metabolomic data analysis leads to a robust model also when the 3 groups of children were considered altogether (K = 0.80), indicating that each group is characterized by a specific metabolomic profile. Compounds related to retinoic acid, adenosine and vitamin D (Human Metabolome Database) were relevant for the discrimination between groups.

Conclusion

The metabolomic profiling of EBC could clearly distinguish different biochemical‐metabolic profiles in asthmatic children and enabled the severe asthma phenotype to be fully discriminated. The breathomics approach may therefore be suitable for discriminating between different asthma metabolic phenotypes.
Sharing experiences to improve bereavement support and clinical care after stillbirth: report of the 7th annual meeting of the international stillbirth alliance
Authors: Heazell Alexander E.P. , Leisher Susannah , Cregan Mairie , Flenady Vicki , Frøen J. Frederik , Gravensteen Ida K. , de Groot‐Noordenbos Mariëtte , de Groot Paul , Hale Sue , Jennings Belinda , McNamara Karen , Millard Caron , Erwich Jan Jaap H. M.
Published: November 2012

Stillbirth remains a global health challenge which is greatly affected by social and economic inequality, particularly the availability and quality of maternity care. The International Stillbirth Alliance (ISA) exists to raise awareness of stillbirth and to promote global collaboration in the prevention of stillbirth and provision of appropriate care for parents whose baby is stillborn. The focus of this ISA conference was to share experiences to improve bereavement support and clinical care. These issues, relevant throughout the globe, are not discrete but closely interrelated, with both similarities and differences depending on the specific country and cultural context. Counting stillbirths and understanding the causes of stillbirth are essential not only for providing optimal care and support to parents whose babies die, but also for reducing the future burden of stillbirth. This summary highlights novel work from obstetricians, midwives, psychologists, parents and peer support organizations that was presented at the ISA meeting. It covers topics including the bereavement process, peer support for parents, support and training for staff, evidence for clinical care, and the need for accurate data on stillbirths and perinatal audits. Representatives from the maternity services of the region presented their outcome data and shared their experiences of clinical and bereavement care. Data and developments in practice within stillbirth and bereavement care must be widely disseminated and acted upon by those responsible for maternity care provision, both to prevent stillbirths and to provide high‐quality care when they do occur.
Elective induction of labor and the risk of cesarean section in low‐risk parous women: a cohort study
Authors: Jonsson Maria , Cnattingius Sven , Wikström Anna‐Karin
Published: November 2012

Objective

To estimate the association between elective induction of labor and cesarean section in low‐risk parous women, and to assess whether the association is influenced by induction method.

Design

Cohort study.

Setting

University hospital in Sweden.

Population

Parous women without pregnancy complications or previous cesarean section, and with a planned vaginal term (37–41 weeks), singleton birth, in vertex position were included.

Methods

Information was collected from a local database containing prospectively entered antenatal and delivery data. Odds ratios for cesarean section were calculated using generalized estimating equations logistic regression and adjusted for parity, maternal age, gestational length, birthweight, use of epidural anesthesia and year of birth.

Main outcome measures

Emergency cesarean section.

Results

Among 7973 pregnancies that fulfilled the inclusion criteria, 343 (4%) had an elective induction of labor. Intravenous oxytocin was administered in 5% of these inductions, amniotomy was performed in 62%, and a cervical ripening agent was used in 33%. Electively induced labor more than doubled the risk of cesarean section compared with spontaneous labor onset (OR 2.5, 95% CI 1.4–4.2) and this risk was more than tripled when cervical ripening was used (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.7–7.6).

Conclusions

In low‐risk parous women, electively induced labor has an increased risk of emergency cesarean section compared with spontaneous onset labor. This risk increase is more pronounced if cervical ripening agents are required. Women need to be counseled about these risks before elective induction of delivery is decided.
Classification of stillbirths and risk factors by cause of death – a case‐control study
Authors: Helgadóttir Linda Björk , Turowski Gitta , Skjeldestad Finn Egil , Jacobsen Anne Flem , Sandset Per Morten , Roald Borghild , Jacobsen Eva‐Marie
Published: November 2012

Objective

To investigate risk factors for stillbirths by cause, using the Causes of Death and Associated Conditions (CODAC) classification system for perinatal deaths.

Design

Case‐control study.

Setting

Two university hospitals in Oslo, Norway, January 1990 through December 2003.

Sample

Women with stillbirth after 22 gestational weeks (n = 377) and controls with live births (n = 1 215), and a subsample of 105 cases and 262 controls.

Methods

Socio‐demographic, clinical and thrombophilic risk factors for stillbirths were assessed by cause of death in univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses. Stillbirths were classified according to CODAC based on information from medical records and validated placenta histology.

Main outcome measures

Causes of stillbirths in percentages, prevalence, odds ratios and adjusted odds ratios for potential risk factors.

Results

Approximately half of the women (n = 190) had placental and 19.4% (n = 73) unknown cause of stillbirth. Placental‐associated conditions were registered in 18% (n = 68) of cases with a non‐placental or an unknown cause. Smoking and small‐for‐gestational age were more prevalent in all causal groups, compared with controls, whereas twin pregnancy, hypertension and diabetes were more prevalent only among women with placental and unknown causes of stillbirth. The F2rs179963 polymorphism and combined thrombophilia were significant risk factors for stillbirth with placental causes and antiphospholipid antibodies for stillbirth with non‐placental causes.

Conclusions

Two‐thirds of all stillbirths (68%) were caused by or associated with placental pathology. Risk factors differed somewhat according to cause, apart from smoking and small‐for‐gestational age, which were significant risk factors across the causal groups.
Preoperative and intraoperative assessment of myometrial invasion in endometrial cancer: comparison of magnetic resonance imaging and frozen sections
Authors: Kisu Iori , Banno Kouji , Lin Li‐Yu , Ueno Akihisa , Abe Takayuki , Kouyama Keisuke , Okuda Shigeo , Masugi Yohei , Umene Kiyoko , Nogami Yuya , Tsuji Kosuke , Masuda Kenta , Ueki Arisa , Kobayashi Yusuke , Yamagami Wataru , Susumu Nobuyuki , Aoki Daisuke
Published: November 2012

Objective

To compare the diagnostic characteristics of the evaluation of myometrial invasion (MI) retrospectively between preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and intraoperative frozen sections.

Design

A retrospective study.

Setting

University hospital.

Sample

201 women diagnosed with endometrial carcinoma.

Methods

All women underwent preoperative MRI and 111 of them also underwent intraoperative frozen section assessment. The final pathological evaluation was used as the definitive diagnosis.

Main outcome measures

In women who underwent MRI and frozen sections (n = 111), the accuracies of detection of MI and of deep invasion (defined as ≥50% invasion) were compared.

Results

The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of MRI for detection of MI were 65.8, 58.8, and 88.5%, and those in frozen sections were 90.1, 90.6, and 88.5%, respectively. The accuracy and sensitivity of frozen sections were significantly higher (p < 0.001, p < 0.001), whereas the specificity of the two methods did not differ (p = 1.000). The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of MRI for detection of deep invasion were 83.8, 69.2, and 88.2%, and those of frozen sections were 93.7, 73.1, and 100.0%, respectively. The accuracy and specificity of frozen sections were significantly higher (p = 0.007 and p < 0.001, respectively), whereas sensitivity did not show a significant difference (p = 0.999).

Conclusion

In assessment of MI, the accuracy of frozen sections was significantly higher than that of MRI. Since the diagnostic characteristics differ between two methods, additional intraoperative frozen sections are recommended for more accurate assessment of MI when MRI is negative for the presence of any MI or positive for the presence of deep invasion.