bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mutational Analysis of the Transmembrane Helix 2-HAMP Domain Connection in the
Escherichia coli
Aspartate Chemoreceptor Tar
Authors: Wright Gus A. , Crowder Rachel L. , Draheim Roger R. , Manson Michael D.
Published: September 2010

Transmembrane helix 2 (TM2) of the Tar chemoreceptor undergoes an inward piston-like displacement of 1 to 3 Å upon binding aspartate. This signal is transmitted to the kinase-control module via the HAMP domain. Within Tar, the HAMP domain forms a parallel four-helix bundle consisting of a dimer of two amphipathic helices connected by a flexible linker. In the nuclear magnetic resonance structure of an archaeal HAMP domain, residues corresponding to the MLLT sequence between Arg-214 at the end of TM2 and Pro-219 of Tar are an N-terminal helical extension of AS1. We modified this region to test whether it behaves as a continuous helical connection between TM2 and HAMP. First, one to four Gly residues were inserted between Thr-218 and Pro-219. Second, the MLLT sequence was replaced with one to nine Gly residues. Third, the sequence was shortened or extended with residues compatible with helix formation. Cells expressing receptors in which the MLLT sequence was shortened to MLL or in which the MLLT sequence was replaced by four Gly residues performed good aspartate chemotaxis. Other mutant receptors supported diminished aspartate taxis. Most mutant receptors had biased signal outputs and/or abnormal patterns of adaptive methylation. We interpret these results to indicate that a strong, permanent helical connection between TM2 and the HAMP domain is not necessary for normal transmembrane signaling.
A Putative ABC Transporter, HatABCDE, Is among Molecular Determinants of Pyomelanin Production inPseudomonas aeruginosa
Authors: Hunter Ryan C. , Newman Dianne K.
Published: September 2010

Pyomelanin overproduction is a common phenotype amongPseudomonas aeruginosaisolates recovered from cystic fibrosis and urinary tract infections. Its prevalence suggests that it contributes to the persistence of the producing microbial community, yet little is known about the mechanisms of its production. Using transposon mutagenesis, we identified factors that contribute to melanogenesis in a clinical isolate ofP. aeruginosa. In addition to two enzymes already known to be involved in its biosynthesis (homogentisate dioxygenase and hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase), we identified 26 genes that encode regulatory, metabolic, transport, and hypothetical proteins that contribute to the production of homogentisic acid (HGA), the monomeric precursor of pyomelanin. One of these, PA14_57880, was independently identified four times and is predicted to encode the ATP-binding cassette of an ABC transporter homologous to proteins inPseudomonas putidaresponsible for the extrusion of organic solvents from the cytosol. Quantification of HGA production byP. aeruginosaPA14 strains missing the predicted subcomponents of this transporter confirmed its role in HGA production: mutants unable to produce the ATP-binding cassette (PA14_57880) or the permease (PA14_57870) produced substantially less extracellular HGA after growth for 20 h than the parental strain. In these mutants, concurrent accumulation of intracellular HGA was observed. In addition, quantitative real-time PCR revealed that intracellular accumulation of HGA elicits upregulation of these transport genes. Based on their involvement inhomogentisicacidtransport, we rename the genes of this operonhatABCDE.
Differential progression of renal scarring and determinants of late renal recovery in sustained dialysis dependent acute kidney injury secondary to myeloma kidney
Authors: Basnayake Kolitha , Cheung Chee Kay , Sheaff Michael , Fuggle William , Kamel Dia , Nakoinz Sandra , Hutchison Colin A , Cook Mark , Stoves John , Bradwell Arthur R , Cockwell Paul
Published: September 2010

Background

Most cases of dialysis-dependent acute kidney injury due to myeloma cast nephropathy do not recover renal function. Renal biopsy typically shows cast formation, direct tubular injury and interstitial inflammation caused by nephrotoxic monoclonal free light chains (FLC). Established scarring at presentation is rarely severe. There is little data on in situ evolution of renal injury.

Aims

To conduct a detailed histological study of four patients with cast nephropathy.

Methods

Cast nephropathy was confirmed by renal biopsy. Treatment consisted of chemotherapy and high cut-off dialysis to maximise extracorporeal removal of FLC and reduce renal toxicity. All four patients remained dialysis dependent at 6 weeks, at which time they underwent a further biopsy.

Results

Three patients achieved independence from dialysis. Six-week biopsies showed differential changes in chronic damage from no progression, to accelerated progression of scarring from 10% to 42%, despite a rapid and sustained fall in FLC in all patients. In three patients there was a major reduction in intratubular cast numbers; these patients subsequently recovered renal function. In one patient who continued to have high cast formation at 6 weeks there was no subsequent renal recovery.

Conclusions

Some FLC clones can promote rapid renal scarring. Significant reductions in cast formation on repeat biopsy may identify the potential for late renal recovery. Early diagnosis and treatment may prove crucial in determining renal recovery. Patients who have not recovered renal function after a period of treatment may be usefully reassessed by repeat biopsy for quantitative analysis of chronic damage and cast numbers.
Relation between coagulation/fibrinolysis and lactate in the course of human septic shock
Authors: Hartemink Koen J , Hack C Erik , Groeneveld A B Johan
Published: September 2010

Background

The pathogenic role of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) during septic shock is incompletely understood.

Aim

To study the relation between indicators of DIC and lactate concentrations over time to evaluate whether a coagulation/fibrinolysis imbalance could directly contribute to tissue hypoxygenation.

Methods

14 consecutive septic shock patients with a pulmonary artery catheter in place were prospectively studied. For 3 days after admission, haemodynamic variables and plasma concentrations of lactate, thrombin–antithrombin complexes, tissue plasminogen activator, plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI), plasmin–α2-antiplasmin complexes, fibrinogen, and the inflammatory mediators tumour necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6, as well as activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), prothrombin time (PT) and platelet counts were serially measured.

Results

Eight of the 14 patients died in the intensive care unit. All patients had a hyperdynamic circulation with an increased cardiac index and mild hyperlactataemia. They had prolonged PT, thrombocytopenia and raised inflammatory, coagulation and fibrinolysis variables. The time course of PAI best predicted the time course of lactate, independently of haemodynamics, inflammatory mediators, PT, fibrinogen and platelet counts. High lactate, PAI and PT concentrations persisted in non-survivors compared with survivors.

Conclusions

The course of human septic shock, particularly inhibition of activated fibrinolysis during DIC, may be independently associated with hyperlactataemia; therefore a coagulation/fibrinolysis imbalance may contribute to tissue hypoxygenation and ultimately thereby to demise.
Inter- and intraobserver variation in the histopathological evaluation of early oesophageal adenocarcinoma
Authors: Grotenhuis Brechtje A , van Heijl Mark , ten Kate Fiebo J W , Biermann Katharina , Offerhaus G Johan A , Wijnhoven Bas P L , van Berge Henegouwen Mark I , Tilanus Hugo W , van Lanschot J Jan B
Published: September 2010

Aims

According to the classification established by the Japanese Society for Oesophageal Disease, early oesophageal cancer can be subdivided into six successive layers of the mucosa or submucosa, which influences the treatment strategy and prognosis of the individual patient. However, the reproducibility of this classification in terms of inter- and intraobserver variability is unclear.

Methods

Histological slides from 105 surgical resection specimens of patients who had undergone oesophagectomy for early oesophageal adenocarcinoma were reviewed independently by three gastrointestinal pathologists, and were classified according to the Japanese criteria (m1/m2/m3/sm1/sm2/sm3 tumours). Inter- and intraobserver variation was determined by κ-statistics.

Results

The interobserver reproducibility was good between pathologist 1 and 2 (κ=0.61, 95% CI 0.55 to 0.67), and moderate between pathologist 1 and 3 (κ=0.51, 95% CI 0.45 to 0.57) and between pathologist 2 and 3 (κ=0.50, 95% CI 0.38 to 0.61). The intraobserver agreement as assessed by the expert pathologist was good (κ=0.76), with a 95% CI that was interpreted as good to very good (0.67 to 0.85). Most agreement was achieved at the lower (m1) and upper site (sm2, sm3) of the spectrum, whereas the m2 tumours reflected the most discrepant stage. The majority of the observed discrepancy included the variation in one substage only.

Conclusions

The reproducibility of the Japanese classification is good in terms of inter- and intraobserver variability when grading early oesophageal adenocarcinoma on surgical resection specimens. The present data confirm that dedicated gastrointestinal pathologists with broad experience are preferred when grading the resection specimens of patients with early oesophageal adenocarcinoma.
Four years of experience of telemedicine for paediatric care in three Punjab hospitals, North India: achievements and lessons
Authors: Singh Meenu , Das Rashmi Ranjan
Published: September 2010

Children in India constitute a very high risk group from mortality and morbidity due to lack of specialised healthcare. Remote care of paediatric patients by offsite specialists using telemedicine technology is a highly potential solution for coping up with the shortage of specialists in Indian subcontinent. We at a tertiary care teaching hospital in North India assessed the application of telemedicine services for diagnosis and management of paediatric illnesses, through prospective analyses of electronic databases over 4 years. The age groups covered were from newborn up to children of 15 years of age. The outcomes assessed were: feasibility, diagnostic possibilities, management, outcomes, referral and mean costs per patient. The results were as follows: major consultations involved children <5 years age, with neonates contributing to 5.5% of the total consultations. The major system-related problems were: gastrointestinal, respiratory, neurological, infectious and haematological. Referral was advised in 14.3% of cases. Ten percent of children were critically ill and could not have been in a position to be transported safely. Videoconferencing was done in 21.4% patients. There was a paucity of feedback and follow up of these consultations (12% of the total). The total savings for all the consultations per child was ≈1000 Indian rupees (approximately US$22) leaving behind the telemedicine consultation charges. To conclude, telepaediatrics in India is still in its fetal stage. The hurdles and medico-legal issues need to be addressed before the telepaediatrics service is widely accepted in India.
Factors affecting the concentration of electrolyte infusions prepared from stock solutions
Authors: Donaldson Thomas M , Mani Vaithianadan , Wheeler Daniel W
Published: September 2010

Background

Wide variation in the concentrations of electrolyte infusions prepared from stock solutions has previously been reported. Layering of viscous stock electrolyte solutions in their diluent can lead to high concentrations being delivered during the infusion, resulting in potentially very serious medication errors which have caused deaths.

Objective

To determine the safest way of preparing homogenous electrolyte solutions for parenteral infusion.

Methods

The study examined how the concentration of potassium and magnesium varied during infusions after concentrated stock solutions had been diluted to 400 mmol/l with 0.9% sodium chloride. It also examined the use of syringes compared to polyvinyl chloride (PVC) bags, agitating vigorously with a ‘vortex’ mixer compared to inversion, and the influence of allowing the infusions to stand for 24 h before administration. The study was conducted in November 2009.

Results

It was found that, in general, the concentrations of potassium and magnesium solutions are less variable if they are prepared in PVC bags rather than syringes. Vigorous mixing of concentrated stock solutions with diluent and allowing preparations to stand for 24 h also improved the homogeneity of the infusions. However, even with meticulous preparation, some infusions deviated from the expected concentration by more than 10%.

Conclusion

It is recommended that electrolyte infusions are prepared and provided by the pharmaceutical industry in prefilled syringes or bags. Given the likely cost of these products, an alternative would be to prepare infusions in pharmacy in advance, using PVC bags rather than syringes, and that they should be agitated vigorously with a ‘vortex’ mixer.
The case for OFSMOKE: how tobacco price regulation is needed to promote the health of markets, government revenue and the public
Authors: Gilmore Anna B , Branston J Robert , Sweanor David
Published: September 2010

Mainstream economic theory outlines four main causes of market failure and it is already well established that two of these (information failure and externalities) exist in a tobacco market. A third cause of market failure, market power, is also a serious problem in many tobacco markets. Market power—combined with unintended and often overlooked consequences of tobacco tax policies, notably that gradual increases in specific taxes may allow the industry to disguise significant price increases—has, at least in high income countries, given cigarette manufacturers considerable pricing power and profits. This paper examines ways this market failure could be addressed and proposes as a solution a system of price cap regulation wherein a cap is placed on the pre-tax cigarette manufacturers' price but not on the retail price that consumers face. Well established in the utilities industry, price cap regulation would set a maximum price that cigarette companies can charge for their product based on an assessment of the genuine costs each firm faces in its operations and an assumption about the efficiency savings it would be expected to make. Such a system would achieve three main benefits. First, it would address the problem of market failure and excess profits while simultaneously allowing current tobacco control policies, including tax and price increases, to expand—thus tax increases would remain a central tenet of tobacco control policies and retail prices could continue to increase. Second, it would increase government revenue by transferring the excess profits from the industry to the government purse. Third, it would bring numerous public health benefits. In addition to addressing market power, while simultaneously allowing tobacco control policies to expand, it could offer a means of preventing down-trading to cheaper products and controlling unwanted industry practices such as cigarette smuggling, price fixing and marketing to the young. The paper outlines in some detail how such a system might be developed in the UK, while briefly exploring how it could be applied elsewhere, including in markets with state monopolies.
Ending appreciable tobacco use in a nation: using a sinking lid on supply: Figure 1
Authors: Thomson George , Wilson Nick , Blakely Tony , Edwards Richard
Published: September 2010

We discuss some of the practical and ethical questions that may arise for a jurisdiction where a sinking lid endgame strategy for tobacco supply is implemented. Such a strategy would involve regular required reductions in the amount of tobacco released to the market for sale, sufficient to achieve the desired level of commercial sales by a target date. Tobacco manufacturers would periodically bid to the government for a residual quota. Prices would increase as supply reduced. The price level would be influenced by demand, which in turn would reflect the impact of other interventions to reduce demand and the changing normality of smoking.

Higher priced tobacco could result in increased smuggling, theft, illegal sales and short-to-medium-term aggravation of some social inequalities. We suggest that the strategy be introduced in conjunction with a range of complementary interventions that would help reduce demand, and thus help ensure that the possible adverse effects are minimised. These complementary interventions include: providing comprehensive best practice smoking cessation support, better information to smokers and the public, strengthened regulation of tobacco retailing and supply, further controlling the pack and product design, measures to restrict supplies that bypass the increases in product price, strengthened enforcement and combating industry attacks.

General prerequisites for a sinking lid strategy include public support for the goal of a tobacco-free society, and strong political leadership. The likely context for initial success in jurisdictions includes geographical isolation and/or strong border controls, absence of significant tobacco production and/or manufacturing and low government corruption.
Use of the static penetration test in frozen soils
Authors: Ladanyi B.
Published: September 2010

Within the scope of a study on the use in frozen soils of some geotechnical field investigation methods, a series of deep, static and quasi-static, penetration tests was carried out in July 1974 at a permafrost site near Thompson, Manitoba. The field study included stress – and penetration rate – controlled tests, performed with an electric penetrometer, as well as several short-term and stage-loaded pressuremeter tests. The study shows that a static penetration test can furnish valuable information on the time-dependent strength of frozen soil, provided the test is conducted either with a very accurate control of the penetration rate, or as a stage-loaded test. It is considered that a comparison of frozen soil strengths deduced from such a test, with those determined by pressuremeter tests or triaxial compression tests, can only be made at comparable strain rates. An attempt was, therefore, made in the paper to find a relationship between the penetration rate and an equivalent time to failure for the soil surrounding the penetrometer tip, which enabled this comparison to be carried out.
Performance of a high precision multi-point borehole extensometer in soft rock
Authors: Smith P. D. K. , Burland J. B.
Published: September 2010

A simple and accurate method of measuring relative displacements along a borehole using circular magnets as markers and reed switches as sensors has been developed and is now widely used.This note describes a new precise sensing system which is easily assembled and installed, together with a modified method of placing magnets. Details are given of the performance of the new system over a 2 year period for an investigation into the deformation properties of an heavily loaded week rock.
Normal freezing and thawing degree-days from normal monthly temperatures
Authors: Boyd Donald W.
Published: September 2010

A method has been devised for using normal monthly mean temperatures to compute normal freezing and thawing degree-days in change-over months with adequate accuracy. The tedious calculation of daily departures from freezing for 30 years can, therefore, be avoided. The method has been applied to over 800 Canadian stations and the resulting freezing and thawing indices used to prepare the charts accompanying this note.
Use of polyvinyl chloride liners for large irrigation canals in Alberta
Authors: Weimer N. F.
Published: September 2010

In 1982, the Government of Alberta began a program to rehabilitate and expand existing irrigation headworks systems within southern Alberta. Particular emphasis was placed on effectively minimizing future seepage from these canal systems. To fulfill this requirement, Alberta Environment undertook an extensive study of methods of seepage control that would be most appropriate for use in this program. The study concluded that the installation of a complete canal buried membrane lining was one of the most effective methods for controlling seepage. The geomembrane material selected for use as the buried liner for this installation was 0.5 mm (20 mil) thick polyvinyl chloride (PVC). This paper presents the basis on which the complete canal buried membrane lining system was selected, the reasons for selecting the 0.5 mm (20 mil) thick PVC as the lining material, the quality control program for monitoring the purchasing of the PVC material, and the installation procedures used for placing the membrane within the canal cross section. The design criteria and construction procedures relevant to the earth cover material being placed on the membrane liner are also presented. Key words: irrigation, canals, seepage, lining, geomembrane, performance.
Performance of a small tunnel in clay shale
Authors: Wong R. C. K. , Kaiser P. K.
Published: September 2010

The tunnel described in this paper was hand-excavated through Upper Cretaceous clay shale and temporarily supported by steel ribs and spruce laggings. A cast-in-place concrete lining was installed for permanent support. Tunnel wall convergences and support stresses and strains were monitored for more than 100 days. In addition to the field instrumentation, in situ pressuremeter tests and laboratory triaxial tests on specimens taken from a block sample were performed to determine the rock mass properties. These properties were used to interpret (by finite element analysis) the measured tunnel wall deformations. In general, the short-term rock properties determined from laboratory testing agreed well with the observed in situ behaviour. The long-term response was, however, difficult to predict from laboratory measurements and this was further investigated by application of the convergence–confinement method. It was found that the equivalent, long-term modulus of the rock mass decreased with time to between 50 and 70% of the short-term modulus. The deformation rates decreased significantly after 70–100 days and the support load levelled off accordingly. Key words: tunnel, monitoring, clay shale, temporary support.
Shear resistance of remoulded soils by viscometric and fall-cone methods: a comparison for the Canadian sensitive marine clays
Authors: Torrance J. Kenneth
Published: September 2010

The coaxial viscometer can be used to extend the measurement of the shear resistance of a soil below the range of applicability of the fall cone and other standard geotechnical methods. The factors affecting the relationship between yield stress determined by the viscometer and remoulded shear strength determined by the fall cone are such that the correlation must be separately determined for each soil material. Approaches to determining this correlation, for quick clays and other soils, are proposed. Key words: sensitive clays, yield stress, shear strength, rheology.
Effect of multiple contaminant migration on diffusion and adsorption of some domestic waste contaminants in a natural clayey soil
Authors: Barone F. S. , Yanful E. K. , Quigley R. M. , Rowe R. K.
Published: September 2010

This paper describes laboratory model tests involving the placement of domestic landfill leachate on top of a layer of saturated undisturbed clayey soil and allowing chemical constituents to migrate into the soil by diffusion only. During the testing period (15 days), samples from the overlying leachate were regularly collected and analyzed for the chemical constituents of interest (i.e., Cl−, Na+, K+, Mg++, and Ca++). At the end of the test, the soil layer was sectioned to determine the pore-water and adsorbed concentration variations with depth for each species. Mathematical model POLLUTE was then used to back-figure both the diffusion coefficient (D) and the adsorption term (ρK). The measured diffusion coefficients at a temperature of 10 °C were determined to be [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text]. The corresponding adsorption terms were [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text].Ca++ and Mg++, originally predominant on the clay exchange sites, were heavily desorbed to accommodate the adsorption of migrating Na+, K+, and possibly NH4+, causing hardness halo effects that the model could not fit. This behaviour corresponds to that commonly observed at domestic waste sites in southern Ontario.The importance of multiple contaminant migration on diffusion rates was assessed by comparing the leachate models with similar models using a variety of single salts dissolved in distilled water as the source solutions. For the single-salt models, all species considered, including Ca++ and Mg++, behaved in a way that could be described by conventional Fickian theory. A comparison of the diffusion and adsorption parameters obtained from the two types of models indicated that for both Na+ and K+, the measured D and ρK from the leachate models were 20 and 60% lower, respectively, than the values obtained from the single-salt models. For Cl−, the diffusion coefficient obtained from the leachate models was 25% higher than that obtained from the single-salt models.For the Sarnia grey soil used, both D and ρK are significantly influenced by the types and amounts of co-diffusing species present in the initial source solutions. Laboratory tests conducted to determine diffusion parameters for use in design should be run with soils and source solutions chemically identical to those expected in the field. Key words: domestic waste leachate, multiple contaminant migration, clayey soil, diffusion, adsorption, laboratory study.
Effect of soil suction on slope stability at Notch Hill
Authors: Krahn J. , Fredlund D. G. , Klassen M. J.
Published: September 2010

The side slopes of a railway embankment in central British Columbia, constructed with local lacustrine silt, on relatively flat ground, began to fail several years after construction. Shallow instability ultimately developed on both sides of the embankment over a distance of several kilometres. Initially, the soil had a significant apparent cohesive strength. With time, the strength appeared to diminish owing to the dissipation of negative pore-water pressures. The remaining frictional strength was not sufficient to maintain stability, since the slopes were constructed at angles close to the peak effective friction angle of the soil. This case history, together with the laboratory saturated and unsaturated strength test results and field suction measurements, demonstrates the dramatic effect of negative pore-water pressures on near-surface slope stability. Key words: soil suction, slope stability, nonsaturated soils, shear resistance, tensiometers.
Strength and volume change behaviour of a sand–bentonite mixture
Authors: Graham J. , Saadat F. , Gray M. N. , Dixon D. A. , Zhang Q.-Y.
Published: September 2010

Triaxial and one-dimensional swelling tests have been performed at pressures up to 3 MPa on a compacted sand–bentonite mixture with potential use for containing nuclear and other toxic wastes. The material expands in a low stress range up to 0.6 MPa, with the volumetric expansion depending on the confining pressure and the duration of the tests. Swelling is inhibited by confining pressures in excess of 0.8 MPa. The strength of the material corresponds to that of the bentonite fraction. The material is dilatant at low stresses (below about 0.8 MPa) and compressive at higher stresses. Normalized bulk moduli are significantly affected by stress level, whereas normalized tangent shear moduli at 0.5qmax decrease with increasing confining stresses. The data suggest a modified critical state model for the stress–strain–time behaviour of the material. Key words: bentonite, sand–bentonite, mixtures, compaction, triaxial, strength, compressibility, critical state, nuclear waste, containment.
Detailed observations on the nature of frost heaving at a field scale
Authors: Smith M. W. , Patterson D. E.
Published: September 2010

Observations made using a system of ring magnets have provided a detailed picture of differential soil strain associated with frost heaving at a field scale. The results reveal the evolution of heave as freezing advances through the soil and the variation of soil strain with depth and time, and with soil temperature conditions. The results indicate that soil strain characteristically continues within frozen soil, sustained, it is proposed, by continuing water migration into the frozen soil. Consequently a considerable thickness of frozen soil appears to be actively involved with moisture movement and ice accumulation during frost heaving. The observations support the view that frost heave generally depends in a complex manner on the thermodynamic conditions of temperature and water and ice pressures as they are modified by the rheological properties of the soil. Key words: frost heave, differential soil strain, frost heave measurement.
Utilisation d'un modèle stochastique de réseaux de fractures pour étudier les propriétés hydrauliques d'un massif fissuré
Authors: Ait-Ssi Lahcen , Villeneuve Jean-Pierre , Rouleau Alain
Published: September 2010

This study of the hydraulic properties of a fractured rock mass is based on data from field injection tests and fracture measurements, and on simulations of the fracture system in the bedrock upstream from the Daniel Johnson dam at Manic 5. Analysis of water injection tests indicates that the bedrock can be divided into two zones with respect to the permeability. The more permeable zone, which is the object of this study, shows a log-normal distribution of the hydraulic conductivities.Using several stochastic simulations of fracture networks, the fracture aperture has been adjusted gradually to reproduce the rock mass permeability estimated from injection tests. The results show that the fracture system geometry, as well as the fracture porosity and the fracture lengths and densities, influences widely the hydraulic properties of a fractured medium and particularly the fracture porosity. Also, the estimation of the fracture porosity is sensitive to a number of other factors, including the assumed hydraulic boundary conditions, the field estimation of the hydraulic conductivities, and the orientation of the simulation planes. Key words: fissured media, fracture porosity, stochastic model, simulation, sensitivity analysis, dam.
ELECTROMAGNETISM AND MULTIPLE-VALUED LOOP-DEPENDENT WAVE FUNCTIONALS
Authors: LEAL LORENZO
Published: September 2010

We quantize the Maxwell theory in the presence of an electric charge in a "dual" Loop Representation, i.e. a geometric representation of magnetic Faraday's lines. It is found that the theory can be seen as a theory without sources, except for the fact that the wave functional becomes multivalued. This can be seen as the dual counterpart of what occurs in Maxwell theory with a magnetic pole, when it is quantized in the ordinary Loop Representation. The multivaluedness can be seen as a result of the multiply-connectedness of the configuration space of the quantum theory.
STUDY OF SYMMETRY IN F(R) THEORY OF GRAVITY
Authors: SANYAL ABHIK KUMAR
Published: September 2010

An action in which the Ricci scalar is non-minimally coupled with a scalar field and contains higher order curvature invariant terms carries a conserved current under certain conditions that decouples geometric part from the scalar field. The conserved current relates the pair of arbitrary coupling parameters f(ϕ) and ω(ϕ) with the gravitational field variable, where ω(ϕ) is the Brans–Dicke coupling parameter. The existence of such conserved current may be helpful to sketch the cosmological evolution from its early age till date in a single frame.
EFFECTS OF CHERN–SIMONS CORRECTIONS ON CONSERVED QUANTITIES OF RELATIVISTIC FLUID
Authors: KONNO KOHKICHI , MATSUYAMA TOYOKI , TANDA SATOSHI
Published: September 2010

We consider relativistic fluid flow under Chern–Simons modified Maxwell theory and under Chern–Simons modified gravity theory. We take account of the effects of Chern–Simons corrections on the quantities of fluid flow that is conserved without the Chern–Simons corrections. We find that the conservations of several quantities are generally broken by the Chern–Simons corrections.
EFFECT OF GAUGE BOSON MASS ON THE PHASE STRUCTURE OF QED3
Authors: LI JIAN-FENG , ZHOU YU-QING , FENG HONG-TAO , SUN WEI-MIN , ZONG HONG-SHI
Published: September 2010

Dynamical chiral symmetry breaking (DCSB) in QED3 with finite gauge boson mass is studied in the framework of the rainbow approximation of Dyson–Schwinger equations. By adopting a simple gauge boson propagator ansatz at finite temperature, we first numerically solve the Dyson–Schwinger equation for the fermion self-energy to determine the chiral phase diagram of QED3 with finite gauge boson mass at finite chemical potential and finite temperature, then we study the effect of the finite gauge mass on the phase diagram of QED3. It is found that the gauge boson mass ma suppresses the occurrence of DCSB. The area of the region in the chiral phase diagram corresponding to DCSB phase decreases as the gauge boson mass ma increases. In particular, chiral symmetry gets restored when ma is above a certain critical value. In this paper, we use DCSB to describe the antiferromagnetic order and use the gauge boson mass to describe the superconducting order. Our results give qualitatively a physical picture on the competition and coexistence between antiferromagnetic order and superconducting orders in high temperature cuprate superconductors.
EXISTENCE AND CONVERGENCE RESULTS FOR THE GALERKIN APPROXIMATION OF AN ELECTRONIC DENSITY FUNCTIONAL
Authors: LANGWALLNER BERNHARD , ORTNER CHRISTOPH , SÜLI ENDRE
Published: September 2010

We formulate and analyze a model for the study of finite clusters of atoms or localized defects in infinite crystals based on orbital-free density functional theory. We show that the resulting constrained optimization problem has a minimizer and we provide a careful analysis of the solvability of the associated Euler–Lagrange equation. Based on these results, and using tools from saddle-point theory and nonlinear analysis, we then show that a Galerkin discretization has a solution that converges to the correct limit.
A Class of Commutative Dynamics of Open Quantum Systems
Authors: Chruściński Dariusz , Kossakowski Andrzej , Aniello Paolo , Marmo Giuseppe , Ventriglia Franco
Published: September 2010

We analyze a class of dynamics of open quantum systems which is governed by the dynamical map mutually commuting at different times. Such evolution may be effectively described via the spectral analysis of the corresponding time-dependent generators. We consider both Markovian and non-Markovian cases.
How to Classify Influenza A Viruses and Understand Their Severity
Authors: Sato Keiko , Tanabe Tomonori , Ohya Masanori
Published: September 2010

As an application of the chaos degree introduced in the framework of information adaptive dynamics, we study the classification of the Influenza A viruses. What evolutional processes determine the severity and the ability for transmission among human of influenza A viruses? We performed phylogenetic classifications of influenza A viruses that were sampled between 1918 and 2009 by using a measure called entropic chaos degree, that was developed through the study of chaos in information dynamics. The phylogenetic analysis of the internal protein (PB2, PB1, PA, NS, M1, M2, NS1, and NS2) indicated that Influenza A viruses adapting to human and transmitting among human were clearly distinguished from swine lineage and avian lineage. Furthermore, the HA, NA, and internal proteins of the influenza strain that caused a pandemic or a severe epidemic with high mortality were phylogenetically different from those from previous pandemic and severe epidemic strains. We have come to the conclusion that the internal protein has a significant impact on the ability for transmission among human. Based of this study, we are convinced that entropic chaos degree is very useful as a measure of understanding the classification and severity of an isolated strain of influenza A virus.
BINARY TISSUE CLASSIFICATION STUDIES ON RESECTED HUMAN BREAST TISSUES USING OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY IMAGES
Authors: BHATTACHARJEE M. , ASHOK P. C. , RAO K. DIVAKAR , MAJUMDER S. K. , VERMA Y. , GUPTA P. K.
Published: September 2010

We report the results of a comparative study of Fourier domain analysis (FDA) and texture analysis (TA) of optical coherence tomography (OCT) images of resected human breast tissues for binary classification between normal–abnormal classes and benign–malignant classes. With the incorporation of Fisher linear discriminant analysis (FLDA) in TA for feature extraction, the TA-based algorithm provided improved diagnostic performance as compared to the FDA-based algorithm in discriminating OCT images corresponding to breast tissues with three different pathologies. The specificity and sensitivity values obtained for normal–abnormal classification were both 100%, whereas they were 90% and 85%, respectively for benign–malignant classification.
Ritual and Oratory Revisited: The Semiotics of Effective Action
Authors: Stasch Rupert
Published: September 2010

Scholars have converged on a theory that ritual involves poetically dense figuration of macrocosmic order in microcosmic action. I illustrate this by surveying work on how ritual and oratory involve coordination of action across multiple semiotic media. I review at greater length the “poetic density” theory's interest in how ritual and oratory causally shape people's worlds, and the theory's interest in the edginess of ritual as a site of articulation between actors with disparate political positionalities. Much scholarship now examines norms of the pragmatics of sign use (not just signification's semantics, so to speak) as being of a piece with the poetic, figurational organization of ritual and oratorical processes. This turn of attention is important for understanding what it means that ritual seems to be action about the organization of action itself. A final element in ritual and oratory's poetic density surveyed here is their nesting in culturally variable ideologies of ritual and oratorical genres themselves.
The Human Microbiota as a Marker for Migrations of Individuals and Populations
Authors: Dominguez-Bello Maria Gloria , Blaser Martin J.
Published: September 2010

In this review, we discuss evidence that the microbes that constitute the human microbiota coevolved with humans and maintain complex community and host interactions. Because these microbes are mostly vertically transmitted, they have evolved within each human group and provide a view of human ancestry. In particular, we discuss using Helicobacter pylori as a marker of ancestry and migrations. Other organisms with more mixed vertical and horizontal transmission are not suitable to trace migrations with any fidelity. Human mixing affects microbial phylogeographic signals, and lifestyles impact the human microbiome population structure. A decade after the human genome was sequenced, we are gaining insights into the population structure of the human microbiome. We also examine whether, rather than focus on the genetics of single microbial populations, a wider approach to the study of human ancestry based on the human microbiome is now possible.
From Mirror Neurons to Complex Imitation in the Evolution of Language and Tool Use
Authors: Arbib Michael A.
Published: September 2010

The mirror system hypothesis suggests that evolution expanded a basic mirror system for grasping, in concert with other brain regions first to support simple imitation (shared with the common ancestor of humans and great apes) and thence to complex imitation (unique to the hominin line), which includes overimitation, the apparent drawbacks of which are in fact essential to human skill transmission. These advances in praxis supported the emergence of pantomime and thence protosign and protospeech. This capacity, we claim, was adequate for cultural evolution to then yield language. We argue that Oldowan tool making corresponds to simple imitation and ape gestural communication and Acheulean tool making corresponds to complex imitation and protolanguage, whereas the explosion of innovations in tool making and social organization of the past 100,000 years correlates with the emergence of language. Care is taken, however, to distinguish brain mechanisms for praxis from those supporting language.
The Archaeology of Consumption
Authors: Mullins Paul R.
Published: September 2010

A vast range of archaeological studies could be construed as studies of consumption, so it is perhaps surprising that relatively few archaeologists have defined their scholarly focus as consumption. This review examines how archaeology can produce a distinctive picture of consumption that remains largely unaddressed in the rich interdisciplinary consumer scholarship. Archaeological research provides concrete evidence of everyday materiality that is not available in most documentary records or ethnographic resources, thus offering an exceptionally powerful mechanism to examine complicated consumption tactics. In a broad archaeological and anthropological context, consumption studies reflect the ways consumers negotiate, accept, and resist goods' dominant meanings within rich social, global, historical, and cultural contexts.
Diabetes and Culture
Authors: Ferzacca Steve
Published: September 2010

Diabetes and its many manifestations articulate well with the four-field approach in anthropology, providing an almost seamless example of the relationship between human biology, behavior, society, and culture in both the past and the present tense. In general, publications on diabetes and culture echo Enlightenment philosophies on change and progress that posit the increasing prevalence of diabetes as a “crisis in human relations” ( Bendix 1967 , p. 302) for which culture plays a significant role. The undermining of racial approaches due to what now appears to be diabetes-without-borders has also directed anthropological research into the contingent temporal frameworks of history. The recent attention to society and the social production of the disease may portend the end of culture in research on diabetes and culture.
Migration-Religion Studies in France: Evolving Toward a Religious Anthropology of Movement
Authors: Bava Sophie
Published: September 2010

The emergence and visibility of the religious on the African and European migratory scenes are generating much debate; thus this article explores how scientific thought and analysis of the subject of “religion-migration” has gradually been built up in France. Over three decades, the developing academic debate about issues of migration, identity, then religion within migration, and migrants' religion has revealed many tensions, especially about the question of Islam and/or religious minorities within migration.

Through selective review of these debates, I attempt to comprehend perceptions and research about the religion-migration scene since the 1980s. From an anthropologist's viewpoint, I also explore whether studies of African migration in France have opened the door to a new research field in terms of method and inquiry. Thus, as we observe, anthropologists studying African migrations have enabled us to reexamine the object of religion within migration and to remove it from an ethnicizing, identity-based approach.
Policing Borders, Producing Boundaries. The Governmentality of Immigration in Dark Times
Authors: Fassin Didier
Published: September 2010

The governmentality of immigration has become a crucial issue of contemporary societies. Ironically, although globalization meant facilitated circulation of goods, it has also signified increased constraints on the mobility of men and women. This evolution has been characterized by the policing of physical borders and the production of racialized boundaries, primarily studied by the social sciences in North America and Western Europe. Anthropological studies highlight the renewed role of the nation-state to impose a surveillance apparatus of the frontiers and the territories, regimes of exception for the detention and deportation of illegal aliens, and a dramatic decline in the right to asylum, sometimes replaced by forms of discretionary humanitarianism. These logics are embodied in the everyday work of bureaucracies as well as in the experience of immigrants.
The Balkan Languages and Balkan Linguistics
Authors: Friedman Victor A.
Published: September 2010

The Balkans were the first linguistic area (sprachbund) to be identified as such. The concept was originally proposed to explain diffusion among languages that were genealogically unrelated or distantly related in terms of normal linguistic change as opposed to notions of corruption and impurity. The fact that the sprachbund cannot be as neatly bounded as the traditional language family has led to some calls for abandoning the concept, but it remains a useful heuristic referring to the results of historical and social processes of language contact. Recent conflations of areal linguistics and typology miss these processes, which are themselves grounded in speaker interaction. Issues of causation in the emergence of sprachbunds involve both language shift and language maintenance, influenced by various social factors playing roles. This review examines both the history and the current state of Balkan linguistics as a part of the study of language.
Phenomenological Approaches in Anthropology
Authors: Desjarlais Robert , Jason Throop C.
Published: September 2010

This review explores the most significant dimensions and findings of phenomenological approaches in anthropology. We spell out the motives and implications inherent in such approaches, chronicle their historical dimensions and precursors, and address the ways in which they have contributed to analytic perspectives employed in anthropology. This article canvasses phenomenologically oriented research in anthropology on a number of topics, including political relations and violence; language and discourse; neurophenomenology; emotion; embodiment and bodiliness; illness and healing; pain and suffering; aging, dying, and death; sensory perception and experience; subjectivity; intersubjectivity and sociality; empathy; morality; religious experience; art, aesthetics, and creativity; narrative and storytelling; time and temporality; and senses of place. We examine, and propose salient responses to, the main critiques of phenomenological approaches in anthropology, and we also take note of some of the most pressing and generative avenues of research and thought in phenomenologically oriented anthropology.
Approaches to Capturing and Designing Biologically Active Small Molecules Produced by Uncultured Microbes
Authors: Piel Jörn
Published: September 2010

Bacteria are one of the most important sources of bioactive natural products for drug discovery. Yet, in most habitats only a small percentage of all existing prokaryotes is amenable to cultivation and chemical study. There is strong evidence that the uncultivated diversity represents an enormous resource of novel biosynthetic enzymes and secondary metabolites. In addition, many animal-derived drug candidates that are structurally characterized but difficult to access seem to be produced by uncultivated, symbiotic bacteria. This review provides an overview about established and emerging techniques for the investigation and exploitation of the environmental metabolome. These include metagenomic library construction and screening, heterologous expression, community sequencing, and single-cell methods. Such tools, the advantages and shortcomings of which are discussed, have just begun to reveal the full metabolic potential of free-living and symbiotic bacteria, providing exciting new avenues for natural product research and environmental microbiology.