bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Conditional Probability-Based Significance Tests for Sequential Patterns in Multineuronal Spike Trains
Authors: Sastry P. S. , Unnikrishnan K. P.
Published: November 2009

We consider the problem of detecting statistically significant sequential patterns in multineuronal spike trains. These patterns are characterized by ordered sequences of spikes from different neurons with specific delays between spikes. We have previously proposed a data-mining scheme to efficiently discover such patterns, which occur often enough in the data. Here we propose a method to determine the statistical significance of such repeating patterns. The novelty of our approach is that we use a compound null hypothesis that not only includes models of independent neurons but also models where neurons have weak dependencies. The strength of interaction among the neurons is represented in terms of certain pair-wise conditional probabilities. We specify our null hypothesis by putting an upper bound on all such conditional probabilities. We construct a probabilistic model that captures the counting process and use this to derive a test of significance for rejecting such a compound null hypothesis. The structure of our null hypothesis also allows us to rank-order different significant patterns. We illustrate the effectiveness of our approach using spike trains generated with a simulator.
A Reanalysis System for the Generation of Mesoscale Climatographies
Authors: Hahmann Andrea N. , Rostkier-Edelstein Dorita , Warner Thomas T. , Vandenberghe Francois , Liu Yubao , Babarsky Richard , Swerdlin Scott P.
Published: November 2009

The use of a mesoscale model–based four-dimensional data assimilation (FDDA) system for generating mesoscale climatographies is demonstrated. This dynamical downscaling method utilizes the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Model (MM5), wherein Newtonian relaxation terms in the prognostic equations continually nudge the model solution toward surface and upper-air observations. When applied to a mesoscale climatography, the system is called Climate-FDDA (CFDDA). Here, the CFDDA system is used for downscaling eastern Mediterranean climatographies for January and July. The downscaling method performance is verified by using independent observations of monthly rainfall, Quick Scatterometer (QuikSCAT) ocean-surface winds, gauge rainfall, and hourly winds from near-coastal towers. The focus is on the CFDDA system’s ability to represent the frequency distributions of atmospheric states in addition to time means. The verification of the monthly rainfall climatography shows that CFDDA captures most of the observed spatial and interannual variability, although the model tends to underestimate rainfall amounts over the sea. The frequency distributions of daily rainfall are also accurately diagnosed for various regions of the Levant, except that very light rainfall days and heavy precipitation amounts are overestimated over Lebanon. The verification of the CFDDA against QuikSCAT ocean winds illustrates an excellent general correspondence between observed and modeled winds, although the CFDDA speeds are slightly lower than those observed. Over land, CFDDA- and the ECMWF-derived wind climatographies when compared with mast observations show similar errors related to their inability to properly represent the local orography and coastline. However, the diurnal variability of the winds is better estimated by CFDDA because of its higher horizontal resolution.
Radiation and Dissipation of Internal Waves Generated by Geostrophic Motions Impinging on Small-Scale Topography: Theory
Authors: Nikurashin Maxim , Ferrari Raffaele
Published: November 2009

Observations and inverse models suggest that small-scale turbulent mixing is enhanced in the Southern Ocean in regions above rough topography. The enhancement extends O(1) km above the topography, suggesting that mixing is supported by the breaking of gravity waves radiated from the ocean bottom. In this study, it is shown that the observed mixing rates can be sustained by internal waves generated by geostrophic motions flowing over bottom topography. Weakly nonlinear theory is used to describe the internal wave generation and the feedback of the waves on the zonally averaged flow. Vigorous inertial oscillations are driven at the ocean bottom by waves generated at steep topography. The wave radiation and dissipation at equilibrium is therefore the result of both geostrophic flow and inertial oscillations differing substantially from the classical lee-wave problem. The theoretical predictions are tested versus two-dimensional high-resolution numerical simulations with parameters representative of Drake Passage. This work suggests that mixing in Drake Passage can be supported by geostrophic motions impinging on rough topography rather than by barotropic tidal motions, as is commonly assumed.
Reconsidering Hispanic Gang Membership and Acculturation in a Multivariate Context
Authors: Ventura Miller Holly , Barnes J.C. , Hartley Richard D.
Published: November 2009

Previous qualitative research has suggested that Hispanic gang membership is linked to the process of acculturation. Specifically, studies have indicated that those who are less assimilated into mainstream American or “Anglo” society are at greater risk for joining gangs. Building on these observations, this study examines the relationship between acculturation and gang membership within a theoretically and empirically informed multivariate framework. Based on a sample of Hispanic adolescents residing in the American Southwest, results largely supported previous qualitative studies that have suggested that a number of factors, including acculturation, are necessary to an understanding of gang membership within this demographic. Findings from logistic regression analyses indicated that respondents’ grade in school, neighborhood drug availability, level of ethnic marginalization, and level of acculturation were all significantly associated with self-reported gang membership. Results also suggested that marginalization may partially mediate the effects of acculturation.
America’s Baseball Underground
Authors: Ring Jennifer
Published: November 2009

America’s national pastime has long been associated with masculinity and more recently has acknowledged its problems with racial exclusivity. Yet from the time it was professionalized in the 19th century to the aftermath of the Little League Lawsuits of 1973, baseball has excluded girls and women, regarding itself as “too strenuous” or “too violent”, in spite of American girls’ and women’s post-Title IX participation in other more violent contact sports. The contrived exclusion of girls and women ignores their long-abiding affection for and participation in baseball from the early 19th century onward. What explains sequestering baseball for boys only? What are the civic implications of the insistence on masculine exclusivity for the game associated with American national identity?
Adolescent Girls’ Involvement in Disability Sport: Implications for Identity Development
Authors: Anderson Denise
Published: November 2009

The social institution of sport reflects a society that presupposes the values, mores, norms, and standards of the majority and subsequently determines who can participate in sport and who can be identified as an athlete. Recognizing the growing importance of disability sport to people with disabilities, the purpose of this study was to use the construct of symbolic interactionism to examine the identity development of adolescent girls with physical disabilities who participate in organized wheelchair sports with a specific focus on athletic identity development. An understanding of how the girls’ interaction with various socializing agents through a wheelchair sport program to develop an athletic identity was developed through interviews. Results are presented utilizing Keliber’s framework for identity development through leisure participation, including sport.
‘Illegal Aliens’ and the State, or: Bare Bodies vs the Zombie
Authors: Schinkel Willem
Published: November 2009

This article focuses on the opposite poles of what Agamben, following Schmitt, calls the state of exception: the irregular migrant as homo sacer and the sovereign state. It takes the practice of detaining ‘illegal immigrants’ as a starting point for reflection on two central features of debates about globalization: (1) the declining relevance of space and (2) the declining relevance of nation-states. The author argues that both may be taking place, but they are being countered by states adapting themselves to the condition of globalization. By turning itself from welfare state into penal state, the state seeks new ways of defining itself in a globalizing world. This involves the detention centre for ‘illegal immigrants’ as a space of exception. The author uses three notions in order to capture the nature of the space occupied by the detention centre, which escapes traditional social scientific notions of space. Ranging from the more ‘formal’ characteristics of the spaces in question to their full political substance, they are Augé’s notion of the non-place, Foucault’s notion of the heterotopia and Agamben’s notion of the camp. The author argues that the global is networked through localities, and that the exceptional space of the detention centre for ‘illegal aliens’ is a political node in the global network. The incarceration of irregular immigrants as homines sacri is part of a response to the global by means of an absolute relevance of the local: the detention centre, which is at once the model of binding locality and the site of a space ‘outside’ regular social space.
High intertester reliability of the Cumulated Ambulation Score for the evaluation of basic mobility in patients with hip fracture
Authors: Kristensen Morten Tange , Andersen Lene , Bech-Jensen Rie , Moos Malene , Hovmand Bente , Ekdahl Charlotte , Kehlet Henrik
Published: November 2009

Objective: To examine the intertester reliability of the three activities of the Cumulated Ambulation Score (CAS) and the total CAS, and to define limits for the smallest change in basic mobility that indicates a real change in patients with hip fracture.

Design: An intertester reliability study.

Setting: An acute 20-bed orthopaedic hip fracture unit.

Subjects: Fifty consecutive patients with a median age of 83 (25—75% quartile, 68—86) years.

Interventions: The CAS, which describes the patient’s independency in three activities — (1) getting in and out of bed, (2) sit to stand from a chair, and (3) walking ability — was assessed by two independent physiotherapists at postoperative median day 3. Each activity was assessed on a three-point ordinal scale from 0 (not able to) to 2 (independent of human assistance). The cumulated score for each activity provides a total CAS from 0 to 6, with 6 indicating independent ambulation.

Main measures: Reliability was evaluated using weighted kappa statistics, the standard error of measurement (SEM) and the smallest real difference (SRD).

Results: The kappa coefficient, the SEM and the SRD in the three activities and the total CAS were ≥0.92, ≤0.20 and ≤0.55 CAS points, respectively.

Conclusions: The intertester reliability of the CAS is very high, and a change of more than 0.20 and 0.55 CAS points for the total CAS indicates a real change in basic mobility, at group level and for an individual patient, respectively.
Homeless, Street-Involved Emerging Adults: Attitudes Toward Substance Use
Authors: Thompson Sanna J. , Barczyk Amanda N. , Gomez Rebecca , Dreyer Lauren , Popham Amelia
Published: November 2009

Research has indicated that a high proportion of homeless emerging adults use substances. This article aims to understand the attitudes of these young adults concerning their substance use and its effect on their lives. A mixed methods study using semistructured interviews and self-report instruments was conducted with 87 emerging adults who received homeless services from a community drop-in center. Qualitative analyses found that participants reported positive attitudes of substance use; however, many recognized the benefits of a life without drugs or alcohol. Findings suggest attitudes toward substance use and the role of substance use in the lives of homeless emerging adults are viewed as a valuable means of coping with street life, connecting with peers, and managing physical and mental health symptoms.
Diurnal Variations in Natural and Drug Reward, Mesolimbic Tyrosine Hydroxylase, and Clock Gene Expression in the Male Rat
Authors: Webb Ian C. , Baltazar Ricardo M. , Wang Xu , Pitchers Kyle K. , Coolen Lique M. , Lehman Michael N.
Published: November 2009

The impact of the circadian timing system upon behavior and physiology is pervasive, and previous evidence suggests a circadian modulation of drug-seeking behavior and responsiveness to drugs of abuse. To further characterize daily rhythms in reward and to extend these observations to natural reinforcers, diurnal variation in the rewarding value of sex and systemic amphetamine was assessed via the conditioned place preference paradigm. To identify potential mechanisms for rhythmicity in reward, levels of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and core clock proteins (Period1 and Bmal1) were examined across the day in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and the nucleus accumbens (NAcc). During an initial training period, male rat sexual performance varied diurnally with a nadir near the light-to-dark transition. Diurnal rhythms also were evident for both mating and amphetamine-related reward. However, the rhythms for these particular stimuli exhibited differences in their pattern of timing, with sex reward showing a peak during the middark period and amphetamine reward exhibiting high points during the late night and midday with a nadir prior to the light-to-dark transition. A diurnal variation also was seen for the locomotor-activating effect of acute amphetamine administration with a peak during the late night. Western blot analyses revealed that Period1 and Bmal1 protein levels were rhythmic in the NAcc but not in the VTA. By contrast, TH protein levels were rhythmic in both the NAcc and VTA, but the peaks differed with that in the NAcc coinciding with the peak of sex reward and that in the VTA associated with the peak in amphetamine reward. Thus, it appears that both natural and drug-related reward vary in a diurnal fashion but differ in the timing of their peak and nadir levels. The phase relationships between reward rhythms and mesolimbic TH protein levels suggest that an increased capacity for the release of dopamine in the NAcc may underlie the rhythms in sex-related reward, while amphetamine-related reward occurs at a time when the likelihood of evoked NAcc DA release is relatively low.
Millisecond Light Pulses Make Mice Stop Running, then Display Prolonged Sleep-Like Behavior in the Absence of Light
Authors: Morin L.P. , Studholme K.M.
Published: November 2009

Masking, measured as a decrease in nocturnal rodent wheel running, is a visual system response to rod/cone and retinal ganglion cell photoreception. Here, the authors show that a few milliseconds of light are sufficient to initiate masking, which continues for many minutes without additional photic stimulation. C57J/B6 mice were tested using flash stimuli previously shown to elicit large circadian rhythm phase shifts. Ten flashes, 2 msec each and equally distributed over 5 min, activate locomotor suppression that endures for an additional 25 to 35 min in the dark and does not differ in magnitude or duration from that elicited by 5-min saturating light pulse. Locomotor activity by mice without access to running wheels is also suppressed by light flashes. The effects of various light flash patterns on mouse locomotor suppression are similar to those previously described for hamster phase shifts. Video analysis of active mice indicates that light flashes initiated at ZT13 rapidly induce an interval of behavioral quiescence that lasts about 10 min at which time the animals assume a typical sleep posture that is maintained for an additional 25 min. Thus, the period coincident with light-induced wheel running suppression appears to consist of two distinct behavioral states, one interval during which locomotor quiescence is initiated and maintained, followed by a second interval characterized by behavioral sleep. Given this sequence effected by light stimulation, we suggest that it be referred to as “photosomnolence,” the term reflecting upon both the nature of the stimulus and the associated behavioral change.
Photoperiod History Differentially Impacts Reproduction and Immune Function in Adult Siberian Hamsters
Authors: Prendergast Brian J. , Pyter Leah M.
Published: November 2009

Seasonal changes in numerous aspects of mammalian immune function arise as a result of the annual variation in environmental day length (photoperiod), but it is not known if absolute photoperiod or relative change in photoperiod drives these changes. This experiment tested the hypothesis that an individual’s history of exposure to day length determines immune responses to ambiguous, intermediate-duration day lengths. Immunological (blood leukocytes, delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions [DTH]), reproductive, and adrenocortical responses were assessed in adult Siberian hamsters ( Phodopus sungorus) that had been raised initially in categorically long (15-h light/day; 15L) or short (9L) photoperiods and were subsequently transferred to 1 of 7 cardinal experimental photoperiods between 9L and 15L, inclusive. Initial photoperiod history interacted with contemporary experimental photoperiods to determine reproductive responses: 11L, 12L, and 13L caused gonadal regression in hamsters previously exposed to 15L, but elicited growth in hamsters previously in 9L. In hamsters with a 15L photoperiod history, photoperiods ≤ 11L elicited sustained enhancement of DTH responses, whereas in hamsters with a 9L photoperiod history, DTH responses were largely unaffected by increases in day length. Enhancement and suppression of blood leukocyte concentrations occurred at 13L in hamsters with photoperiod histories of 15L and 9L, respectively; however, prior exposure to 9L imparted marked hysteresis effects, which suppressed baseline leukocyte concentrations. Cortisol concentrations were only enhanced in 15L hamsters transferred to 9L and, in common with DTH, were unaffected by photoperiod treatments in hamsters with a 9L photoperiod history. Photoperiod history acquired in adulthood impacts immune responses to photoperiod, but manifests in a markedly dissimilar fashion as compared to the reproductive system. Prior photoperiod exposure has an enduring impact on the ability of the immune system to respond to subsequent changes in day length.
Role of Chloride Formed on Anodized Titanium Surfaces Against an Oral Microorganism
Authors: Deng Jia-Yin , Arimoto Takafumi , Shibata Yo , Omori Sayuri , Miyazaki Takashi , Igarashi Takeshi
Published: November 2009

A modified titanium surface, anodized after being discharged in electrolytes, provides antibacterial activity against oral bacteria as well as osteoconductivity. However, the mechanism of this antibacterial effect against oral bacteria is still unclear. This study aims to investigate whether it is the chloride or the hydrophilicity properties of the anodized titanium, which is effective against the oral bacteria. Titanium plates are anodized in various electrolytes with or without chloride and are characterized. Then the survival of Streptococcus mutans on each specimen is evaluated. The results demonstrate that the peroxidation effects of HClO generated from the TiCl3 formed on the titanium surface anodized in various chloride solutions efficiently killed adherent S. mutans on the surface whereas the presence of hydrophilicity alone do not demonstrate antibacterial activity. This method of anodizing titanium surface in a chloride solution may provide a novel strategy for use in orthopedic or dental implant systems.
Correlates of Grief Among Older Adults Caring for Children and Grandchildren as a Consequence of HIV and AIDS in South Africa
Authors: Boon Hermien , Ruiter Robert A. C. , James Shegs , van den Borne Bart , Williams Eka , Reddy Priscilla
Published: November 2009

Objectives: Over the past few years, older people have become the main caregivers for their sick adult children and orphaned grandchildren due to HIV/AIDS in South Africa. This article aims to investigate the scope of care provided by older people, with a specific focus on the experience of grief due to multiple losses and its correlates. Methods: Quantitative interviews were conducted among 820 isiXhosa speaking caregivers of 60 years and older in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Results: Older persons are involved in a wide range of care activities with several dependents to care for. Grief among older adults is most strongly predicted by perceived stigma around HIV and AIDS and worries about providing the care. Discussion: This study provides insight into correlates of grief among older caregivers and results in useful information to inform the development of interventions to assist older persons in coping with their responsibilities as caregivers.
New Clinical End Points in Rehabilitation Medicine: Tools for Measuring Quality of Life
Authors: Abresch Richard T. , Carter Gregory T. , Han Jay J. , McDonald Craig M.
Published: November 2009

Traditional clinical end points in rehabilitation medicine have centered on objective measures of human performance, including quantitative muscle strength testing, functional independence measurements (FIM), and timed motor performance (TMP). However, it is now increasingly recognized that health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is a valid clinical end point. Health-related quality of life is a broad concept involving an individual’s physical health, psychological state, personal beliefs, and interpersonal and social support relationships. The goals for this article are to show the value of performing HRQoL measurements and briefly describe methods used to assess quality of life (QoL).
Adolescent Cardiovascular Risk Factors: A Follow-up Study
Authors: Kilty Heather Lee , Prentice Dawn
Published: November 2009

Purpose: To assess the outcomes of a school nurse referral to a family physician for adolescents identified with elevated cholesterol or blood pressure risk factors. Method: Telephone survey interviews were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data. Findings: Data were collected on 178 adolescents through parent and adolescent interviews over a 3-month period. The main theme reported for not complying with the follow-up referral was that respondents did not perceive it as necessary or urgent. Of the approximately 60% who reportedly went to the physician, 58% had further tests, 10% were referred to specialists, and 3% were prescribed medications. Eating and exercise changes were reported by those who went for follow-up. Conclusion: Adolescent health-seeking behaviors can be influenced positively by school programs that involve families in discussion, nurses in risk identification, and referrals to physicians for follow-up.
Varieties of Carbon Governance: Taking Stock of the Local Carbon Market in India
Authors: Benecke Gudrun
Published: November 2009

Judged by the sheer number of clean development mechanism (CDM) projects registered and in the pipeline, India undoubtedly can be seen as a success story as far as the functioning of the local carbon market is concerned. However, questions are repeatedly raised about the efficient working of the CDM, its distributional quality, its effectiveness in meeting broader societal goals, its impacts on sustainable development, to name but a few.This calls for a careful scrutiny and understanding of how exactly carbon governance works in the specific case of India. As demonstrated in the article, India presents a case of market-dominated carbon governance taking place under a weak shadow of hierarchy and with little civil society involvement. This article derives at the overall conclusion that the specific trajectories characterizing the local Indian carbon market point toward globally diverging carbon governance.
Varieties of Carbon Governance: The Clean Development Mechanism in Brazil—a Success Story Challenged
Authors: Friberg Lars
Published: November 2009

This article analyzes the interaction between stakeholders in the clean development mechanism (CDM) in Brazil and assesses the impacts this market mechanism has had on institutions and on the climate change policy discourse in Brazil. Brazil ranks as the third largest host country for CDM projects, even though it has maintained a strong commitment to the environmental integrity of the CDM system. Despite its positive experience with the CDM, the government is opposing the inclusion of tradable carbon credits for reduced deforestation in the post-2012 climate regime.The main benefits of the CDM for Brazil have been its contribution to diversifying the energy system and to creating human and institutional capacity for carbon governance. These are important assets as Brazil develops its own national policies to tackle climate change.
State Adoption of Nursing Home Pay-for-Performance
Authors: Werner Rachel M. , Tamara Konetzka R. , Liang Kevin
Published: November 2009

Whereas numerous policies have been adopted to improve quality of care in nursing homes over the past several decades—with varying degrees of success—health care payment has been a largely untapped but potentially powerful policy tool to improve quality of care. Recently, however, payers have invested significant resources in the development and implementation of pay-for-performance (P4P) programs for nursing homes. The authors present results from a survey of state Medicaid agencies documenting the use and structure of P4P in nursing homes. Although the number of states that are implementing nursing home P4P is growing, the structure of these incentives varies across states, and little evidence exists to guide the planning or implementation of these initiatives.
A Sheriffs Office as a Learning Organization
Authors: Crank John P. , Giacomazzi Andrew
Published: November 2009

The purpose of this article is to describe a strategic methodology, which is developed from learning organization theory and used to assess a Western Sheriff ’s Office. The authors use learning organization theory to augment four programmatic innovations carried out by the Ada County Sheriff ’s Office in Idaho. The learning model is mixed method: Quantitatively, it makes use of a stratified citizen survey and a deputy survey. Qualitatively, citizen and sheriff ’s deputy focus groups provide meaning from the point of view of environmental actors. The primary products of this method are presented here as narratives that present a comprehensive perspective on the way in which environmental actors viewed programs carried out by the Sheriff ’s Office.
An Examination of the Workplace Experiences of Police Patrol Officers: The Role of Race, Sex, and Sexual Orientation
Authors: Hassell Kimberly D. , Brandl Steven G.
Published: November 2009

Reform efforts in many police departments have diversified the workforce, especially with regard to race, sex, and sexual orientation. Research, however, has demonstrated that the assimilation of these officers has not been problem-free. Using data collected from a large, municipal police department, this article examines the workplace experiences of patrol officers and a potential consequence of those experiences: stress. We find that being female and being a racial/ethnic minority brings with it substantially different experiences on the job compared to male and White officers. Our findings also confirm previous research that workplace climate has an effect on workplace stress.
Clinical efficacy and benefit of natalizumab
Authors: Coyle Patricia K , Jeffery Douglas R
Published: November 2009

Natalizumab is the first α4-integrin antagonist indicated for the treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS). Natalizumab has been shown to delay the accumulation of physical disability and reduce relapses. In two large, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 3 clinical trials, natalizumab was effective as a monotherapy as compared with placebo, and in combination with interferon β as compared with placebo and interferon β. Natalizumab in combination with glatiramer acetate was also effective in a phase 2 clinical trial when compared with placebo and glatiramer acetate. Natalizumab monotherapy achieved a 68% relative reduction in annualized relapse rate, and 42% and 54% reductions in disability progression sustained for 12 and 24 weeks, respectively. In a subset of patients with highly active disease, natalizumab proved more effective, decreasing relapse rates by 81% and progression of disability (sustained for 24 weeks) by 64%. Natalizumab-treated patients experienced significant improvements in quality of life, as measured by the Short Form-36, as well as a 35% reduction in risk of clinically significant vision loss. Recent analyses also have demonstrated the potential for natalizumab to induce a state of ‘no disease activity’ and actual improvement in physical disability. The purpose of this paper is to review evidence for the efficacy of natalizumab, and put its use in MS into perspective.
A wait-list controlled pilot study of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) for children with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms from motor vehicle accidents
Authors: Kemp Michael , Drummond Peter , McDermott Brett
Published: November 2009

The present study investigated the efficacy of four EMDR sessions in comparison to a six-week wait-list control condition in the treatment of 27 children (aged 6 to 12 years) suffering from persistent PTSD symptoms after a motor vehicle accident. An effect for EMDR was identified on primary outcome and process measures including the Child Post-Traumatic Stress — Reaction Index, clinician rated diagnostic criteria for PTSD, Subjective Units of Disturbance and Validity of Cognition scales. All participants initially met two or more PTSD criteria. After EMDR treatment, this decreased to 25% in the EMDR group but remained at 100% in the wait-list group. Parent ratings of their child’s PTSD symptoms showed no improvement, nor did a range of non-trauma child self-report and parent-reported symptoms. Treatment gains were maintained at three and 12 month follow-up. These findings support the use of EMDR for treating symptoms of PTSD in children, although further replication and comparison studies are required.
Mediated intimacy and postfeminism: a discourse analytic examination of sex and relationships advice in a women’s magazine
Authors: Gill Rosalind
Published: November 2009

This article uses a discourse analytic perspective to analyse sex and relationship advice in a best-selling women’s magazine. It identifies three different interpretative repertoires which together structure constructions of sexual relationships: the intimate entrepreneurship repertoire, organized around plans, goals and the scientific management of relationships; men-ology, in which women are instructed in how to learn to please men; and transforming the self, which calls on women to remodel their interior lives in order to construct a desirable subjectivity. The article considers each repertoire in turn, and also looks at how they work together in order to privilege men and heterosexuality. Discussion focuses in particular on the postfeminist nature of the advice, in which pre-feminist, feminist and anti-feminist ideas are entangled in such a way as to make gender ideologies more pernicious and difficult to contest.
Sulphur reduction in fluid catalytic cracking using a kaolin in situ crystallization catalyst modified with vanadium
Authors: Dai Ya-Li , Zheng Shu-Qin , Qian Dong
Published: November 2009

Sulphur reduction catalysts represent a viable option for S reduction in the fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) process. In this paper, a kaolin in situ crystallization catalyst was modified with vanadium and evaluated in a fixed fluid bed (FFB) reactor. The relation between the acidity of the catalyst, the S reduction rate and the catalyst activity is discussed. The results show that increasing weak Lewis acid acidity favours S reduction in the FCC process. Increasing the V content enhances the weak Lewis acidity, so causing the S reduction rate to increase. The kaolin in situ crystallization catalyst modified with 0.6 wt.% of V leads to a 34.5% reduction in the S content of the liquid product. Comprehensive evaluation of the FFB results and the S reduction ability indicates that the catalyst modified with 0.45 wt.% V provided the best performance.
Copper substitution alone and in the presence of chromium, zinc, cadmium and lead in goethite (α-FeOOH)
Authors: Kaur N. , Singh B. , Kennedy B. J.
Published: November 2009

A series of Cu-substituted goethites, single and co-substituted with Cr, Zn, Cd and/or Pb was prepared, having molar ratios equal to 2.00, 3.33 and 5.00 mol%. All the samples contained only goethite, except Cu-, (Cu,Zn)- and (Cu,Pb)-samples synthesized at 5.00 mol% where hematite was also formed. The presence of Cr/Cd suppressed the hematite-forming effects of Cu. The general sequence of metal entry into the single-metal-substituted goethites was Zn = Cr > Cd > Cu > Pb and in di- (5.00 mol%) and tri- (3.33 mol%) metal-substituted goethites was Cu > Zn > Cd > Cr >> Pb. Cu incorporation increased all the unit-cell parameters in single-metal-substituted goethite, and these parameters increased in combination with other metals as follows: Cd > Zn > Cr > Pb in the multimetal-substituted goethites. The Cu-substituted goethite dissolved faster than pure goethite. Co substitutions of Cr/Pb reduced the dissolution rate (kFe), while substitutions of Cd/Zn increased kFe.
Mechano-chemical effects on surface properties and molybdate exchange on hydrotalcite
Authors: Bonifacio-Martínez J. , Serrano-Gómez J. , Del Carmen López-Reyes Ma. , Granados-Correa F.
Published: November 2009

The effects of mechano-chemical treatment on the surface characteristics and sorption properties of hydrotalcite were studied. Non-milled (crushed) and milled samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), particle size analysis and specific area. A milling time of 2 h decreased the particle size of the hydrotalcite samples from 21 to 8.0 nm, the specific area from 97 to 5.7 m2g–1and the total pore volume from 0.41 to 0.01 cm3. After the crushed and milled samples had been separately calcined at 500ºC, they were agitated with 10–2M Na2MoO4aqueous solutions for 48 h. The molybdate ion content in the regenerated non-milled hydrotalcite samples (HTc-MoO4) was found to be 6.0 meq g–1while in the milled hydrotalcite (HTm-MoO4) samples this content was 2.5 meq g–1. The lower molybdate content was thought to be a result of compaction and, hence, reduced reactivity of the milled HT samples.
Cis/trans-but-2-ene adsorption on natural and modified clinoptilolite
Authors: Faghihian H. , Pirouzi M.
Published: November 2009

Adsorption of cis-2-butene and trans-2-butene on clinoptilolite-rich tuff and ion-exchanged forms was investigated. Clinoptilolite samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, chemical analysis and nitrogen adsorption techniques. Adsorption isotherms for cis and trans 2-butene on purified clinoptilolite (Cp) and modified forms (Na-Cp, K-Cp, Ca-Cp and Mg-Cp) were obtained at pressures up to 2.7 atm. and at 25ºC. The results show that natural clinoptilolite has a considerable potential for separation of the two hydrocarbons. Mg-Cp samples showed maximal uptake of both cis-2-butene and trans-2-butene.
A new technique for preparation of porous bioceramics with controllable macrostructures
Authors: Zeng Chuisheng , Zhang Jing , Zeng Yanjun , Chen Xiaoming , Yan Yuhua
Published: November 2009

The purpose of this study was to develop a simple and economic method for the preparation of porous bioceramics with controllable macrostructure. Raw materials, including very small organic foam balls as the pore-creating reagent, wax (or paraffin) as the solvent, and oleic acid as the surface active agent, were selected along with bioactive materials such as β-TCP ceramic powder as the main component. The selected components were mixed into a slurry at 30–120ºC and shaped into a green body with a hot die-casting machine at 30–90ºC. The green body was then sintered and porous bioceramics were obtained. The main characteristics of porous bioceramics such as weight loss, compressive strength, connection and size of pores, percolation rate of water, apparent porosity and bulk density were measured. The results indicated that the apparent porosity and the specific surface area were large; the pores were connected in three dimensions and the compressive strength was >1.6 MPa. This study demonstrated that the methods used here are simple and effective in generating porous bioceramics with controllable macrostructures.
Impaired fibrinolysis as a risk factor for Budd-Chiari syndrome
Authors: Hoekstra Jildou , Guimarães Ana H. C. , Leebeek Frank W. G. , Darwish Murad Sarwa , Malfliet Joyce J. M. C. , Plessier Aurelie , Hernandez-Guerra Manuel , Langlet Philippe , Elias Elwyn , Trebicka Jonel , Primignani Massimo , Garcia-Pagan Juan-Carlos , Valla Dominique C. , Rijken Dingeman C. , Janssen Harry L. A. ,   for the European Network for Vascular Disorders of the Liver (EN-Vie)
Published: November 2009

In Budd-Chiari syndrome (BCS), thrombosis develops in the hepatic veins or inferior vena cava. To study the relationship between hypofibrinolysis and BCS, we measured plasma levels of fibrinolysis proteins in 101 BCS patients and 101 healthy controls and performed a plasma-based clot lysis assay. In BCS patients, plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) levels were significantly higher than in controls (median, 6.3 vs 1.4 IU/mL, P < .001). Thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor and plasmin inhibitor levels were lower than in controls (13.8 vs 16.9 μg/mL and 0.91 vs 1.02 U/L, both P < .001). Median plasma clot lysis time (CLT) was 73.9 minutes in cases and 73.0 minutes in controls (P = .329). A subgroup of cases displayed clearly elevated CLTs. A CLT above the 90th or 95th percentile of controls was associated with an increased risk of BCS, with odds ratios of 2.4 (95% confidence interval, 1.1-5.5) and 3.4 (95% confidence interval, 1.2-9.7), respectively. In controls, only PAI-1 activity was significantly associated with CLT. Analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms of fibrinolysis proteins revealed no significant differences between cases and controls. This case-control study provides the first evidence that an impaired fibrinolytic potential, at least partially caused by elevated PAI-1 levels, is related to the presence of BCS.
Eosinophil and T cell markers predict functional decline in COPD patients
Authors: D'Armiento Jeanine M , Scharf Steven M , Roth Michael D , Connett John E , Ghio Andrew , Sternberg David , Goldin Jonathan G , Louis Thomas A , Mao Jenny T , O'Connor George T , Ramsdell Joe W , Ries Andrew L , Schluger Neil W , Sciurba Frank C , Skeans Melissa A , Voelker Helen , Walter Robert E , Wendt Christine H , Weinmann Gail G , Wise Robert A , Foronjy Robert F
Published: November 2009

Background

The major marker utilized to monitor COPD patients is forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1). However, asingle measurement of FEV1 cannot reliably predict subsequent decline. Recent studies indicate that T lymphocytes and eosinophils are important determinants of disease stability in COPD. We therefore measured cytokine levels in the lung lavage fluid and plasma of COPD patients in order to determine if the levels of T cell or eosinophil related cytokines were predictive of the future course of the disease.

Methods

Baseline lung lavage and plasma samples were collected from COPD subjects with moderately severe airway obstruction and emphysematous changes on chest CT. The study participants were former smokers who had not had a disease exacerbation within the past six months or used steroids within the past two months. Those subjects who demonstrated stable disease over the following six months (ΔFEV1 % predicted = 4.7 ± 7.2; N = 34) were retrospectively compared with study participants who experienced a rapid decline in lung function (ΔFEV1 % predicted = -16.0 ± 6.0; N = 16) during the same time period and with normal controls (N = 11). Plasma and lung lavage cytokines were measured from clinical samples using the Luminex multiplex kit which enabled the simultaneous measurement of several T cell and eosinophil related cytokines.

Results and Discussion

Stable COPD participants had significantly higher plasma IL-2 levels compared to participants with rapidly progressive COPD (p = 0.04). In contrast, plasma eotaxin-1 levels were significantly lower in stable COPD subjects compared to normal controls (p < 0.03). In addition, lung lavage eotaxin-1 levels were significantly higher in rapidly progressive COPD participants compared to both normal controls (p < 0.02) and stable COPD participants (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

These findings indicate that IL-2 and eotaxin-1 levels may be important markers of disease stability in advanced emphysema patients. Prospective studies will need to confirm whether measuring IL-2 or eotaxin-1 can identify patients at risk for rapid disease progression.
SitesIdentify: a protein functional site prediction tool
Authors: Bray Tracey , Chan Pedro , Bougouffa Salim , Greaves Richard , Doig Andrew J , Warwicker Jim
Published: November 2009

Background

The rate of protein structures being deposited in the Protein Data Bank surpasses the capacity to experimentally characterise them and therefore computational methods to analyse these structures have become increasingly important. Identifying the region of the protein most likely to be involved in function is useful in order to gain information about its potential role. There are many available approaches to predict functional site, but many are not made available via a publicly-accessible application.

Results

Here we present a functional site prediction tool (SitesIdentify), based on combining sequence conservation information with geometry-based cleft identification, that is freely available via a web-server. We have shown that SitesIdentify compares favourably to other functional site prediction tools in a comparison of seven methods on a non-redundant set of 237 enzymes with annotated active sites.

Conclusion

SitesIdentify is able to produce comparable accuracy in predicting functional sites to its closest available counterpart, but in addition achieves improved accuracy for proteins with few characterised homologues. SitesIdentify is available via a webserver at http://www.manchester.ac.uk/bioinformatics/sitesidentify/
The isochore patterns of invertebrate genomes
Authors: Cammarano Rosalia , Costantini Maria , Bernardi Giorgio
Published: November 2009

Background

Previous investigations from our laboratory were largely focused on the genome organization of vertebrates. We showed that these genomes are mosaics of isochores, megabase-size DNA sequences that are fairly homogeneous in base composition yet belong to a small number of families that cover a wide compositional spectrum. A question raised by these results concerned how far back in evolution an isochore organization of the eukaryotic genome arose.

Results

The present investigation deals with the compositional patterns of the invertebrates for which full genome sequences, or at least scaffolds, are available. We found that (i) a mosaic of isochores is the long-range organization of all the genomes that we investigated; (ii) the isochore families from the invertebrate genomes matched the corresponding families of vertebrates in GC levels; (iii) the relative amounts of isochore families were remarkably different for different genomes, except for those from phylogenetically close species, such as the Drosophilids.

Conclusion

This work demonstrates not only that an isochore organization is present in all metazoan genomes analyzed that included Nematodes, Arthropods among Protostomia, Echinoderms and Chordates among Deuterostomia, but also that the isochore families of invertebrates share GC levels with the corresponding families of vertebrates.
Genomic and phenotypic variation in epidemic-spanning Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis isolates
Authors: Betancor Laura , Yim Lucia , Fookes Maria , Martinez Araci , Thomson Nicholas R , Ivens Alasdair , Peters Sarah , Bryant Clare , Algorta Gabriela , Kariuki Samuel , Schelotto Felipe , Maskell Duncan , Dougan Gordon , Chabalgoity Jose A
Published: November 2009

Background

Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis (S. Enteritidis) has caused major epidemics of gastrointestinal infection in many different countries. In this study we investigate genome divergence and pathogenic potential in S. Enteritidis isolated before, during and after an epidemic in Uruguay.

Results

266 S. Enteritidis isolates were genotyped using RAPD-PCR and a selection were subjected to PFGE analysis. From these, 29 isolates spanning different periods, genetic profiles and sources of isolation were assayed for their ability to infect human epithelial cells and subjected to comparative genomic hybridization using a Salmonella pan-array and the sequenced strain S. Enteritidis PT4 P125109 as reference. Six other isolates from distant countries were included as external comparators.

Two hundred and thirty three chromosomal genes as well as the virulence plasmid were found as variable among S. Enteritidis isolates. Ten out of the 16 chromosomal regions that varied between different isolates correspond to phage-like regions. The 2 oldest pre-epidemic isolates lack phage SE20 and harbour other phage encoded genes that are absent in the sequenced strain. Besides variation in prophage, we found variation in genes involved in metabolism and bacterial fitness. Five epidemic strains lack the complete Salmonella virulence plasmid. Significantly, strains with indistinguishable genetic patterns still showed major differences in their ability to infect epithelial cells, indicating that the approach used was insufficient to detect the genetic basis of this differential behaviour.

Conclusion

The recent epidemic of S. Enteritidis infection in Uruguay has been driven by the introduction of closely related strains of phage type 4 lineage. Our results confirm previous reports demonstrating a high degree of genetic homogeneity among S. Enteritidis isolates. However, 10 of the regions of variability described here are for the first time reported as being variable in S. Enteritidis. In particular, the oldest pre-epidemic isolates carry phage-associated genetic regions not previously reported in S. Enteritidis. Overall, our results support the view that phages play a crucial role in the generation of genetic diversity in S. Enteritidis and that phage SE20 may be a key marker for the emergence of particular isolates capable of causing epidemics.