bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The cytoplasmic domain of CEACAM1-L controls its lateral localization and the organization of desmosomes in polarized epithelial cells
Authors: Sundberg Ulla , Beauchemin Nicole , Öbrink Björn
Published: February 2004

Two CEACAM1 isoforms with different cytoplasmic domains, CEACAM1-L and CEACAM1-S, are unequally distributed in polarized epithelial MDCK cells. CEACAM1-S is exclusively apical whereas CEACAM1-L occurs both in apical and lateral cell surfaces. Using confocal microscopy and CEACAM1-L mutants, we identified several amino acids in the cytoplasmic domain that were instrumental for the lateral localization. Tyr515, but not Tyr488, constituted a prominent lateral targeting signal. Pervanadate-stimulated Tyr phosphorylation induced rapid phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-dependent disappearance of lateral CEACAM1-L, whereas staurosporine, a Ser/Thr kinase inhibitor, resulted in slower phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-independent disappearance. Both drugs caused accumulation of CEACAM1-L in a late endosome/lysosome compartment. Colocalization studies of occludin, ZO-1, E-cadherin, β-catenin and desmoplakin indicated that laterally localized CEACAM1-L was present in adherens junctions but not in tight junctions or desmosomes. Overexpressed CEACAM1-L did not affect the organization of tight junction or adherens junction proteins, but perturbed the arrangement of desmosomes. The abundance of desmosomes in the lateral cell surfaces decreased significantly and the submembraneous cytokeratin filaments became disorganized. The signal for desmosomal perturbance resided within amino acids 484-518 in the C-terminal part of the cytoplasmic domain, among which an intact Tyr515 was indispensable.
Microtubule motors control membrane dynamics of Salmonella-containing vacuoles
Authors: Guignot Julie , Caron Emmanuelle , Beuzón Carmen , Bucci Cecilia , Kagan Jonathan , Roy Craig , Holden David W.
Published: February 2004

Infection of host cells by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. typhimurium) leads to the formation of specialised membrane-bound compartments called Salmonella-containing vacuoles (SCVs). Bacteria remain enclosed by the vacuolar membrane as they divide, and by translocating effector proteins across the vacuolar membrane through the SPI-2 type III secretion system, they interfere with host cell processes in ways that promote bacterial growth. One such effector is SifA, which is required to maintain the integrity of the vacuolar membrane and for the formation in epithelial cells of long tubular structures called Sifs that are connected to SCVs. Unknown effector(s) mediate the assembly of a meshwork of F-actin around SCVs. We report that intracellular bacteria also cause a dramatic accumulation of microtubules around S. typhimurium microcolonies in both epithelial cells and macrophages. Although this process appears to be independent of SPI-2-mediated F-actin assembly, it does require bacterial protein synthesis. In epithelial cells, microtubule accumulation is accompanied by the recruitment of both kinesin and dynein. Inhibition of the activity of either motor prevented both Sif formation and the loss of vacuolar membrane from sifA mutant bacteria. It also resulted in morphologically abnormal vacuoles enclosing wild-type bacteria, and impaired their replication. Our experiments indicate that recruitment of dynein to SCVs is dependent on Rab7 activity. We show that the recently described Rab7 effector RILP is also recruited to SCVs in a Rab7-dependent manner. However, overexpression of RILP did not restore dynein recruitment to SCVs in cells expressing dominant negative Rab7, suggesting that RILP requires a functional Rab7 to be activated at the SCV membrane, or that dynein recruitment is mediated by an effector other than RILP. Together, these experiments indicate that microtubule motors play important roles in regulating vacuolar membrane dynamics during intracellular replication of S. typhimurium.
Caspase-mediated cleavage of syntaxin 5 and giantin accompanies inhibition of secretory traffic during apoptosis
Authors: Lowe Martin , Lane Jon D. , Woodman Philip G. , Allan Victoria J.
Published: February 2004

We report the caspase-dependent cleavage of two Golgi-associated transport factors during apoptosis. The tethering factor giantin is rapidly cleaved both in vitro and in vivo at a conserved site, to generate a stable membrane-anchored domain and a soluble domain that is subject to further caspase-dependent cleavage. The t-SNARE syntaxin 5 is also cleaved rapidly, resulting in the separation of the catalytic membrane-proximal domain from an N-terminal regulatory domain. Cleavage of giantin and syntaxin 5 is accompanied by a cessation of vesicular transport between the ER and the Golgi complex, which first manifests itself as a block in ER exit. The contribution that such an inhibition of trafficking may make towards the generation of an apoptotic phenotype is discussed.
Epidermal growth factor regulates ubiquitination, internalization and proteasome-dependent degradation of connexin43
Authors: Leithe Edward , Rivedal Edgar
Published: February 2004

Connexins are membrane-spanning proteins that form gap junction channels between adjacent cells. Connexin43 (Cx43), the most widely expressed member of the connexin family in tissues and cell lines, has a rapid turnover rate and its degradation involves both the lysosomal and ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. It was previously shown that the proteasome is involved in regulating the number of functional gap junctions at the plasma membrane. However, little is known about how proteasome-dependent turnover of Cx43 is controlled. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) induces hyperphosphorylation of Cx43 and a rapid, transient decrease in gap junctional intercellular communication. In this study, we show that, along with inhibition of gap junctional intercellular communication, EGF induces disorganization, internalization and degradation of Cx43 gap junction plaques in IAR20 rat liver epithelial cells. These EGF-induced modifications of Cx43 were counteracted by the MEK1 inhibitor PD98059, indicating that the effects were mediated by the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway. The EGF-induced destruction of Cx43 was proteasome-dependent, because the loss of Cx43 protein was counteracted by the proteasome inhibitor MG132 but not the lysosomal inhibitor leupeptin. Furthermore, EGF induced ubiquitination of Cx43, which was associated with the Cx43 hyperphosphorylation. The EGF-induced Cx43 ubiquitination was counteracted by PD98059. The EGF-induced internalization of Cx43 was blocked by hypertonic sucrose treatment, indicating that EGF mediates internalization of Cx43 via a clathrin-dependent mechanism. Our results indicate that ubiquitination of Cx43 occurs at the plasma membrane before Cx43 internalization. Taken together, these data provide the first evidence that EGF-induced phosphorylation of Cx43 induces binding of ubiquitin and targets Cx43 for internalization and degradation in a proteasome-dependent manner.
Auditory lexical decisions in children with specific language impairment
Authors: Crosbie Sharon L. , Howard David , Dodd Barbara J.
Published: February 2004

This study examined spoken‐word recognition in children with specific language impairment (SLI) and normally developing children matched separately for age and receptive language ability. Accuracy and reaction times on an auditory lexical decision task were compared. Children with SLI were less accurate than both control groups. Two subgroups of children with SLI, distinguished by performance accuracy only, were identified. One group performed within normal limits, while a second group was significantly less accurate. Children with SLI were not slower than the age‐matched controls or language‐matched controls. Further, the time taken to detect an auditory signal, make a decision, or initiate a verbal response did not account for the differences between the groups. The findings are interpreted as evidence for language‐appropriate processing skills acting upon imprecise or underspecified stored representations.
Automated Multicapillary Electrophoresis for Analysis of Human Serum Proteins
Authors: Gay-Bellile Cécile , Bengoufa Djaouida , Houze Pascal , Le Carrer Didier , Benlakehal Mourad , Bousquet Bernard , Gourmel Bernard , Le Bricon Thierry
Published: February 2004

Background: We evaluated a new, automated multicapillary zone electrophoresis (CE) instrument (Capillarys®, 4.51 software version; Sebia) for human serum protein analysis.

Methods: With the Capillarys β1-β2+® reagent set, proteins were separated at 7 kV for 4 min in 15.5 cm × 25 μm fused-silica capillaries (n = 8) at 35.5 °C in a pH 10 buffer with online detection at 200 nm. Serum samples with different electrophoretic patterns (n = 265) or potential interference (n = 69) were analyzed and compared with agarose gel electrophoresis (AGE; Hydrasys®-Hyrys®, Hydragel protein(e) 15/30® reagent set; Sebia).

Results: CVs were <3.5% for albumin, <11% for α1-globulin, <4.1% for α2-globulin, <7.4% for β-globulin, and <5.8% for γ-globulin (3 control levels); measured throughput was 60 samples/h. In patients without paraprotein (n = 116), the median differences between CE and AGE were −5.4 g/L for albumin, 4.0 g/L for α1-globulin, 0.7 g/L for α2-globulin, 0.6 g/L for β-globulin (P <0.001 for all fractions), and −0.1 g/L for γ-globulin (not significant). More samples had at least one γ-migrating peak detected by CE (n = 135 vs 130; paraprotein detection limit, ∼0.5–0.7 g/L), but fewer were quantified (n = 84 vs 91) because of γ- to β-migration shifts. There was a 1.2 g/L median difference between CE and AGE for γ-migrating paraprotein quantification (n = 69; P <0.001). Several ultraviolet-absorbing substances (lipid emulsion, hemoglobin) or molecules (contrast agent, gelatin-based plasma substitute) induced CE artifacts.

Conclusions:The Capillarys instrument is a reliable CE system for serum protein analysis, combining advantages of full automation (ease of use, bar-code identification, computer-assisted correction of α1-globulins) with high analytical performances and throughput.
Analyte Comigrating with Trisialotransferrin during Capillary Zone Electrophoresis of Sera from Patients with Cancer
Authors: Ramdani Brahim , Nuyens Vincent , Codden Thierry , Perpete Gael , Colicis Jacques , Lenaerts Anne , Henry Jean-Pol , Legros Franz J
Published: February 2004

Background: Serum concentrations of monoglycosylated isoforms of transferrin are increased by chronic ethanol intake. We investigated transferrin glycosylation in patients with cancer, in which aberrant glycosylation is also induced.

Methods: We used a P/ACE 5000 series capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) apparatus and a CZE carbohydrate-deficient transferrin reagent set to study 200 cancer patients who consumed alcohol moderately and 33 who were alcohol abusers; we then compared these patients with 56 healthy teetotalers, 89 moderate, and 112 excessive alcohol drinkers without known malignancies. Transferrin isoforms were identified by immunosubtraction with anti-human transferrin polyclonal antibody.

Results: Seven peaks, P0–P6, were visualized and completely or partly immunosubtracted when CZE separation was performed at pH 8.5. P0 was present in 95% of alcohol abusers with or without cancer. P3 was significantly higher in cancer patients and was only partly immunosubtracted as trisialotransferrin in all groups. The comigrating analyte was not altered by papain, precipitation by ethanol, or extraction by organic solvents, but was sensitive to acid hydrolysis, suggesting a polysaccharide structure. When isolated at pH 8.25, this analyte was higher in cancer patients. ROC curve analysis identified localized malignant neoplasia at P3 values above 5.8% of total transferrin (sensitivity, 0.78; specificity, 0.87), regardless of alcohol consumption. Disseminated cancers were better differentiated above 8% (sensitivity, 0.94; specificity, 0.96).

Conclusions: Malignant neoplasia, unlike excessive ethanol intake, did not alter the addition of two N-glycans to transferrin. A peak comigrating with trisialotransferrin had characteristics of a polysaccharide in all adults and was increased in sera of patients with cancer.
Critique of the Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement Method of Estimating and Reporting Uncertainty in Diagnostic Assays
Authors: Krouwer Jan S
Published: February 2004

Background: The Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement (GUM) provides instructions for constructing uncertainty intervals for a measurement. This method is usually reserved for reference materials, but GUM has been recently proposed as a way to express uncertainty for commercial diagnostic assays.

Methods: Using the official GUM standard and published applications of GUM to commercial diagnostic assays, I undertook an analysis to evaluate whether applying GUM to commercial diagnostic assays is warranted.

Results: Certain important assays, such as troponin I, would not be candidates for GUM because troponin I is not a well-defined physical quantity. Unlike definitive methods, in which efforts are taken to detect and eliminate all systematic error sources, commercial assays often trade off features such as ease of use and cost with accuracy and allow systematic errors to be present as long as the overall accuracy meets the medical need goal. Laboratories are hindered in preparing GUM models because the knowledge required to specify some systematic errors is often available only to manufacturers. Some non-GUM methods to estimate uncertainty rely on observed data, which include both known and unknown sources of error. The occurrence of large, unknown errors for assays in routine use (e.g., outliers) is not unusual because diagnostic assays must be chemically specific in the presence of thousands of potentially interfering substances. There is no provision in GUM to deal with unexplained outliers, which may lead to uncertainty intervals that are not wide enough. Some clinicians assume that diagnostic assay results have little uncertainty. This situation may be made worse by including an uncertainty interval, which implies certification.

Conclusions: Evaluations for accuracy (total analytical error) based on describing the distribution of result differences between commercial assays and reference methods indicate that some assays have a few results with large differences (e.g., outliers). This leads to a wide accuracy interval (total analytical error limits). It is unlikely that GUM would be able to predict these wide intervals, especially because there is little or no provision for outlier treatment in GUM. Presenting too narrow GUM uncertainty intervals to clinicians would be misleading. The modeling used by practitioners of the GUM method is potentially useful in improving quality, but commercial diagnostic assays are not ready for GUM uncertainty statements.
Capillary Electrophoresis in Diagnosis and Monitoring of Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency
Authors: Carlucci Filippo , Tabucchi Antonella , Aiuti Alessandro , Rosi Francesca , Floccari Federica , Pagani Roberto , Marinello Enrico
Published: February 2004

Background: The diagnosis and monitoring of severe combined immunodeficiency disease (SCID) attributable to adenosine deaminase (ADA) deficiency requires measurements of ADA, purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP), and S-adenosyl-l-homocysteine-hydrolase (SAHH) activity and of deoxyadenosine metabolites. We developed capillary electrophoresis (CE) methods for the detection of key diagnostic metabolites and evaluation of enzyme activities.

Methods: Deoxyadenosine metabolites were separated in 30 mmol/L sodium borate–10 mmol/L sodium dodecyl sulfate (pH 9.80) at 25 °C on a 60-cm uncoated capillary. For determination of enzyme activities, substrate–product separation and measurements were carried out in 20 mmol/L sodium borate (pH 10.00) at 25 °C on a 42-cm uncoated capillary.

Results: Deoxynucleotides and deoxyadenosine were readily detectable in erythrocytes and urine, respectively. Both methods were linear in the range 2–500 μmol/L (r >0.99). Intra- and interassay CV were <4%. Enzyme activities were linear with respect to sample amounts in the incubation mixture and to incubation time (r >0.99 for both). In erythrocytes from healthy individuals, mean (SD) ADA activity was 5619 (2584) nmol/s per liter of packed cells. In erythrocytes of SCID patients at diagnosis, ADA activity was 56.9 (48.3) nmol/s per liter of packed cells; SAHH activity was also much reduced. PNP activity was similar in patients and controls.

Conclusions: CE can be used to test ADA deficiency and enables rapid assessment of ADA expression in hematopoietic cells of SCID patients during therapy.
Use of Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Multianalyte Screening of Dried Blood Specimens from Newborns
Authors: Chace Donald H , Kalas Theodore A , Naylor Edwin W
Published: February 2004

Background: Over the past decade laboratories that test for metabolic disorders have introduced tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS), which is more sensitive, specific, reliable, and comprehensive than traditional assays, into their newborn-screening programs. MS/MS is rapidly replacing these one-analysis, one-metabolite, one-disease classic screening techniques with a one-analysis, many-metabolites, many-diseases approach that also facilitates the ability to add new disorders to existing newborn-screening panels.

Methods: During the past few years experts have authored many valuable articles describing various approaches to newborn metabolic screening by MS/MS. We attempted to document key developments in the introduction and validation of MS/MS screening for metabolic disorders. Our approach used the perspective of the metabolite and which diseases may be present from its detection rather than a more traditional approach of describing a disease and noting which metabolites are increased when it is present.

Content: This review cites important historical developments in the introduction and validation of MS/MS screening for metabolic disorders. It also offers a basic technical understanding of MS/MS as it is applied to multianalyte metabolic screening and explains why MS/MS is well suited for analysis of amino acids and acylcarnitines in dried filter-paper blood specimens. It also describes amino acids and acylcarnitines as they are detected and measured by MS/MS and their significance to the identification of specific amino acid, fatty acid, and organic acid disorders.

Conclusions: Multianalyte technologies such as MS/MS are suitable for newborn screening and other mass screening programs because they improve the detection of many diseases in the current screening panel while enabling expansion to disorders that are now recognized as important and need to be identified in pediatric medicine.
Fractional Esterification Rate of Cholesterol and Ratio of Triglycerides to HDL-Cholesterol Are Powerful Predictors of Positive Findings on Coronary Angiography
Authors: Frohlich Jiri , Dobiášová Milada
Published: February 2004

Background: We examined the predictive value of various clinical and biochemical markers for angiographically defined coronary artery disease (aCAD). Specifically, we assessed the value of the ratio of plasma triglyceride (TGs) to HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) and the fractional esterification rate of cholesterol in plasma depleted of apolipoprotein B (apoB)-containing lipoproteins (FERHDL), a functional marker of HDL and LDL particle size.

Methods: Patients (788 men and 320 women) undergoing coronary angiography were classified into groups with positive [aCAD(+)] and negative [aCAD(−)] findings. Patient age, body mass index, waist circumference, blood pressure (BP), medications, drinking, smoking, exercise habits, and plasma total cholesterol (TC), LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C), HDL-unesterified cholesterol, HDL-C, TGs, FERHDL, apoB, log(TG/HDL-C), and TC/HDL-C were assessed. Lipids and apoproteins were measured by standard laboratory procedures; FERHDL was determined by a radioassay.

Results: Members of the aCAD(+) group were older and had a higher incidence of smoking and diabetes than those in the aCAD(−) group. The aCAD(+) group also had higher TG, apoB, FERHDL, and log(TG/HDL-C) and lower HDL-C values. aCAD(+) women had greater waist circumference and higher plasma TC and TC/HDL-C. aCAD(+) men, but not women, had higher plasma LDL-C. In the multivariate logistic model, the significant predictors of the presence of aCAD(+) were FERHDL, age, smoking, and diabetes. If only laboratory tests were included in the multivariate logistic model, FERHDL appeared as the sole predictor of aCAD(+). Log(TG/HDL-C) was an independent predictor when FERHDL was omitted from multivariate analysis.

Conclusions: FERHDL was the best laboratory predictor of the presence of coronary atherosclerotic lesions.
Report of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Workshop on Lipoprotein(a) and Cardiovascular Disease: Recent Advances and Future Directions
Authors: Marcovina Santica M , Koschinsky Marlys L , Albers John J , Skarlatos Sonia
Published: February 2004

It has been estimated that ∼37% of the US population judged to be at high risk for developing coronary artery disease (CAD), based on the National Cholesterol Education Program guidelines, have increased plasma lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], whereas Lp(a) is increased in only 14% of those judged to be at low risk. Therefore, the importance of establishing a better understanding of the relative contribution of Lp(a) to the risk burden for CAD and other forms of vascular disease, as well as the underlying mechanisms, is clearly evident. However, the structural complexity and size heterogeneity of Lp(a) have hindered the development of immunoassays to accurately measure Lp(a) concentrations in plasma. The large intermethod variation in Lp(a) values has made it difficult to compare data from different clinical studies and to achieve a uniform interpretation of clinical data. A workshop was recently convened by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to evaluate our current understanding of Lp(a) as a risk factor for atherosclerotic disorders; to determine how future studies could be designed to more clearly define the extent to which, and mechanisms by which, Lp(a) participates in these processes; and to present the results of the NHLBI-supported program for the evaluation and standardization of Lp(a) immunoassays. This report includes the most recent data presented by the workshop participants and the resulting practical and research recommendations.
Selective oestrogen receptor modulators: an update
Authors: Papaioannou Spyros , Purdie David W , Cochrane Geoffrey W
Published: February 2004

This paper discusses new developments in the area of selective oestrogen receptor modulators and more specifically raloxifene. The most exciting of these developments is the observed reduction in the risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women on raloxifene therapy. The license of the product has now been extended to cover treatment as well as prevention of osteoporosis. Furthermore, raloxifene appears to have a positive impact on the serum lipid profile and there are continuing trials investigating whether these changes translate to a reduction in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.
Ethical frameworks for obstetrics and gynaecology
Authors: Bewley Susan , Lupton Martin
Published: February 2004

Most aspects of the doctor‐patient relationship have an ethical dimension and the potential to pose ethical dilemmas. The depth and breadth of ethical issues in obstetrics and gynaecology cannot possibly be covered in a short article. However, this article offers a guide to help discussion. Three main philosophical frameworks used by professional ethicists to examine ethical dilemmas are described, together with some of their methodology. We end with some practical suggestions of how to avoid ethical conflicts and of how to approach ethical dilemmas when they arise.
Principles of screening
Authors: Cuckle Howard
Published: February 2004

Obstetricians and gynaecologists are involved in a wide spectrum of screening activities. These can lead to prenatal diagnosis of congenital abnormalities and treatment of gynaecological diseases at earlier, more tractable stages. This article introduces the principles behind the design of screening tests and explains commonly used specialist terminology. Many factors may influence the results of screening studies so care must be taken in their interpretation. For example, the type of test(s) used, characteristics of the population studied, length of follow‐up and various sources of bias or confounding variables may affect interpretation of results. The decision to use a particular screening test must be based on careful evaluation of its potential advantages and disadvantages, in both human and financial terms, and its suitability for its intended use.
Tocolysis for the treatment of preterm labour ‐ a clinically based review
Authors: Groom Katie M. , Bennett Phillip R.
Published: February 2004

Preterm labour (labour occurring between 20 to 36 completed weeks of gestation) is a relatively common complication of pregnancy. It is a major cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity, especially when delivery occurs very early. There are a number of risk factors for preterm delivery and management centres around prolonging the pregnancy and promoting fetal lung maturity in order to reduce neonatal morbidity. This review concentrates on the acute management of preterm labour and considers the mechanisms of action of tocolytic drugs, the rationale for their use and their possible benefits and adverse effects.
Prolonged impact of five imprinters on the serotonin content of white blood cells and mast cells of weanling rats: outstanding effect of benzpyrene and chlorpheniramine
Authors: Csaba G. , Kovács P. , Pállinger Éva
Published: February 2004

In previous experiments, treatment at weaning or adult age with endorphin, serotonin or an antihistamine (late hormonal imprinting) durably influenced the serotonin content of white blood cells and mast cells of rat. In the present experiments, five molecule (approved imprinters in other indexes) were studied for imprinting effect of immune cells, 3 weeks after a single treatment at weaning. Three steroid hormone‐like molecule (vitamin D3, mifepristone and dexamethasone) were ineffective (except dexamethasone in 1/4 indexes), while benzpyrene (aromatic hydrocarbon) and chlorpheniramine (H1‐receptor blocker antihistamine) were highly effective (5/6 and 4/4 respectively). The results indicate: (1) a prolonged (late imprinting) effect of a single treatment with certain molecules acting at receptor level; (2) non‐generality of late imprinting, and (3) the very extensive effects of benzpyrene, which in earlier experiments was one of the strongest imprinter at receptorial and behavioral level at any periods of life studied.
Leptin‐induced signal transduction pathways
Authors: Hegyi Krisztina , Fülöp Kristóf , Kovács Krisztina , Tóth Sára , Falus András
Published: February 2004

Leptin is a multifunctional cytokine and hormone that primarily acts in the hypothalamus and plays a key role in the regulation of food intake and energy expenditure. In addition, it has direct effects on many cell types on the periphery. Leptin acts through its receptor, the product of the db gene, which has six isoforms. Only one of them (OB‐Rb) has full signalling capabilities and is able to activate the Jak/STAT pathway, the major pathway used by leptin to exert its effects. However, some signalling events can be initiated by the short isoforms. Besides Jak/STAT, other pathways, such as MAPK and the 5′‐AMP‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathway, are also involved in leptin signalling. Leptin also interacts with insulin signalling. In this paper, we give an overview of the signal transduction mechanisms that are related to the actions of leptin.
Twenty-five cases of feline bronchial disease (1995–2000)
Authors: Foster S.F. , Allan G.S. , Martin P. , Robertson I.D. , Malik R.
Published: February 2004

Twenty-five cases of feline bronchial disease were identified retrospectively. The criteria for inclusion were consistent clinical signs or histopathology and no other identifiable aetiology. Patient records were analysed to determine historical, clinical, clinicopathologic and radiographic features. The main presenting complaints were coughing and dyspnoea. The most common physical finding was dyspnoea. The majority of radiographs had a bronchial pattern either as the sole change or as a component of a mixed pattern. Bronchoalveolar lavage cytology was neutrophilic or eosinophilic in the majority of cats. There was no association between age, breed, sex, clinical signs, bronchoalveolar lavage cytology or radiographic severity and disease severity.
The impact of operational failures on hospital nurses and their patients
Authors: Tucker Anita L.
Published: February 2004

Operational failures in healthcare can hinder employees, potentially decreasing both productivity and quality of care. At the same time, regulatory agencies, industry experts, and consumers increasingly demand that health care organizations learn from prior failures to prevent recurrence. Building on the notion that learning from operational failures requires an accurate understanding of their nature, this paper reports on an in‐depth study of operational failures encountered by hospital nurses. Data analysis suggests that in this context (1) most operational failures stem from breakdowns in the supply of materials and information across organizational boundaries and (2) employees quickly compensate for most failures. We propose that these two conditions—lack of control of processes that create failures and the ease with which employees restore functioning—make it difficult for organizations to recognize these incidents as learning opportunities, and if they do, to capitalize on the opportunity. This has an important implication for efforts to generate organizational learning and improvement from employees’ experiences with failures. Highly interdependent front‐line workers do not control organizational processes responsible for the majority of failures they encounter and have a difficult task convincing powerful associates that these obstacles warrant solution efforts, making it likely operational failures will persist.
The role of heat shock protein 70 in the thermoresistance of prostate cancer cell line spheroids
Authors: Khoei Samideh , Goliaei Bahram , Neshasteh-Riz Ali , Deizadji Abdolkhalegh
Published: February 2004

Heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70), a protein induced in cells exposed to sublethal heat shock, is present in all living cells and has been highly conserved during evolution. The aim of the current study was to determine the role of heat shock proteins in the resistance of prostate carcinoma cell line spheroids to hyperthermia. In vitro, the expression of Hsp70 by the DU 145 cell line, when cultured as monolayer or multicellular spheroids, was studied using Western blotting and enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay methods. The level of Hsp70 in spheroid cultures for up to 26 days at 37°C remained similar to monolayer cultures. However, in samples treated with hyperthermia at 43°C for 120 min, the spheroid cultures expressed a higher level of Hsp70 as compared to monolayer culture. Under similar conditions of heat treatment, the spheroids showed more heat resistance than monolayer cultures as judged by the number of colonies that they formed in suspension cultures. The results suggest that cells cultured in multicellular spheroids showed more heat resistance as compared to monolayer cultures by producing higher levels of Hsp70.
Effect of hyperosmotic shock on phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase gene expression and gluconeogenic activity in the crab muscle
Authors: Schein Vanessa , Waché Yann , Etges Rodrigo , Kucharski Luiz Carlos , van Wormhoudt Alain , Da Silva Roselis S.M
Published: February 2004

Chasmagnathus granulata phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) cDNA from jaw muscle was cloned and sequenced, showing a specific domain to bind phosphoenolpyruvate in addition to the kinase‐1 and kinase‐2 motifs to bind guanosine triphosphate (GTP) and Mg2+, respectively, specific for all PEPCKs. In the kinase‐1 motifs the GK was changed to RK. The first 19 amino acids of the putative enzyme contain hydrophobic amino acids and hydroxylated residues specific to a mitochondrial type signal. The PEPCK is expressed in hepatopancreas, muscles, nervous system, heart, and gills. Hyperosmotic stress for 24 h increased the PEPCK mRNA level, gluconeogenic and PEPCK activities in muscle.
Novel biological function of sialic acid (N‐acetylneuraminic acid) as a hydrogen peroxide scavenger
Authors: Iijima Ryosuke , Takahashi Hideyo , Namme Rie , Ikegami Shiro , Yamazaki Masatoshi
Published: February 2004

We have found that N‐acetylneuraminic acid (NANA) consumes toxic hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) under physiological conditions. Close investigation of this finding revealed that NANA was oxidized by an equimolar amount of H2O2 to provide its decarboxylated product, 4‐(acetylamino)‐2,4‐dideoxy‐D‐glycero‐D‐galacto‐octonic acid (ADOA). To date, there have been little data on this reaction, and its physiological significance has not been discussed. Examining the detoxification of H2O2 in cultured cells with NANA, we were able to confirm that the cell death caused by H2O2 was suppressed by NANA in a dose‐dependent manner. These results revealed a novel role for NANA as a reactive oxygen scavenger. It is known that terminal NANA residues are removed by neuraminidase and that free NANA molecules are recycled or degraded by enzymes. We propose that released monomeric NANA is the potent defense molecule against oxidative damage.
Phenotype of the Triplo-lethal locus of Drosophila melanogaster and its suppression by hyperoxia
Authors: SMOYER LAURA K. , DORER DOUGLAS R. , NICKERSON KENNETH W. , CHRISTENSEN ALAN C.
Published: February 2004

The Triplo-lethal locus (Tpl) of Drosophila is both triplo-lethal and haploinsufficient, but the function of the locus is unknown. We have examined Tpl-aneuploid embryos and find that, in both trisomics and monosomics, the midgut shows extensive cell death and the tracheae are abnormal. Shortly thereafter, all tissues die. PCR-based genotyping of individual embryos and larvae show that this phenotype occurs in the trisomics after hatching and in the monosomics before hatching. Weak alleles of the interacting gene Su(Tpl) delay the death of Tpl trisomics, but they still show the same tracheal and midgut phenotypes before dying. Hyperoxia (45% oxygen) partially suppresses the phenotype of Tpl aneuploids, even though the use of a hypoxia reporter strain shows that dying Tpl aneuploids are not hypoxic. This is the first report of a phenotype associated with the Tpl locus and the first report of an environmental condition that suppresses the phenotype.
Variation over space and time of Aedes aegypti in Phnom Penh (Cambodia): genetic structure and oral susceptibility to a dengue virus
Authors: PAUPY CHRISTOPHE , CHANTHA NGAN , VAZEILLE MARIE , REYNES JEAN-MARC , RODHAIN FRANCOIS , FAILLOUX ANNA-BELLA
Published: February 2004

We studied spatial and temporal variation in 20–23 Aedes aegypti samples collected in Phnom Penh and its suburbs to estimate the population genetic structure using allozymes and the susceptibility to a dengue-2 virus. Based on seven allozyme systems, we detected low levels of genetic exchanges (i.e. high, significant FST values) between populations collected in the city centre, and different patterns of genetic structure for samples collected in the suburbs, depending on the type of environment and the date of collection. In the southern suburbs and the Chroy Chang Var Peninsula, differentiation became highly significant at the end of the dry season, whereas the opposite situation was observed for collections from the northern suburbs. Vector competence assessed by oral infections with a dengue-2 virus was lower for samples collected in the city centre than in the suburbs. A significant decrease of dengue susceptibility was observed in populations during the dry season. This study allows a model of Ae. aegypti population functioning in Phnom Penh to be suggested. Dynamics of dengue virus diffusion depend on the population genetic structure of the vector and its evolution over space and time.
Coalescence times and the Meselson effect in asexual eukaryotes
Authors: CEPLITIS ALF
Published: February 2004

In asexual eukaryotes, the two allelic gene copies at a locus are expected to become highly divergent as a result of the independent accumulation of mutations in the absence of segregation. If sexual reproduction was abandoned millions of generations ago, intra-individual allelic divergences can be significantly larger than in species that reproduce sexually. Owing to the disputed existence of truly ancient asexual species, this so-called ‘Meselson effect’ has been put forward as a means of confirming the complete loss of sexual reproduction. Very few attempts have, however, been made at quantifying the effect of sexual reproduction on the degree of divergence between gene copies in an asexual population. Here, I describe how asexual reproduction can be regarded as a special case of population subdivision. Using a slightly modified version of the standard two-deme structured coalescent, I derive the expected coalescence time for a pair of gene copies in an asexual population and show that the Meselson effect is compatible with low rates of sexual reproduction.
Social Change and Political Reform in China: Meeting the Challenge of Success
Authors: Lewis John W. , Litai Xue
Published: February 2004

This article discusses how two decades of economic reforms have intensified popular unrest and redefined the composition, interests and political attitudes of China's ever more complex social strata. It then analyses some of the fundamental domestic and international issues facing Beijing in the course of those reforms and the social problems that have accompanied economic growth. The Communist Party has responded to the challenges generated by these problems and been forced to undertake more active political reforms or face an even greater loss of its authority. The article explains how the Party under the slogan the “three represents” cast its lot with the emerging beneficiaries of its economic reforms in the belief that only continued rapid development can mitigate the most pressing social problems and ensure stability.
Power Transition and the Making of Beijing's Policy towards Taiwan
Authors: Chu Yun-han
Published: February 2004

Few policy domains can come close to Taiwan affairs in exemplifying the way Jiang's reigning authority has been self-extended beyond his official tenure. Fighting for his place in history, Jiang's desire to reset the cross-Strait scoreboard before his full retirement remains strong. Also, the structure of the newly elected SCP clearly reinforces Jiang's ability to cast a long shadow over Hu for some time to come. Hu is thus expected to adhere with great caution to Jiang's updated policy guidelines on Taiwan affairs, as laid out in the retiring general secretary's farewell Party work report to the CCP 16th Congress. Besides, Hu has few incentives not to because the Taiwan affairs portfolio carries excessive risk and a slow return, in addition to being one of the policy areas that he is least prepared for. However, the symbolic significance of the Taiwan issue also means that the generational turnover from Jiang to Hu cannot be considered complete until Hu takes full command over Beijing's policy towards Taiwan.
Democratizing Urban Politics and Civic Environmentalism in Taiwan
Authors: Tang Ching-Ping
Published: February 2004

What makes urban policies more responsive to environment problems? Local politics in Taiwan is considered to have combined features of both the pro-growth urban regimes of Western democracies and the clientele network of an authoritarian regime. Such features have made the sector resistant to democratic reforms: long after the introduction of competitive elections, urban policies were still overwhelmingly controlled by a handful of power elites and thus the interest of disadvantaged groups was seriously under-represented. Nevertheless, cases of anti-growth politics in different localities indicate the possibility of democracy trickling down to the local level, thereby moving local politics beyond a mere preoccupation in rent-seeking activities towards a civic activism based on a shared agenda of social and environmental issues. How such a transformation can occur can be illustrated by the Hsiangshan Tidal Flat Development Project in Hsinchu city. That incident demonstrated that such procedural requirements as environmental impact assessment in public policy-making provided civic groups with a very powerful tool to prevent an unpopular developmental project from destroying the local ecosystem. The Hsinchu case illustrates the dynamics among institutional reforms, informal political arrangements and strategic responses of civil groups that have resulted in a transformation of traditional urban politics in Taiwan.
Hong Kong and Japan: Commerce, Culture and Contention
Authors: Bridges Brian
Published: February 2004

This article analyses the nature of contemporary Hong Kong–Japan relations in their economic, political and cultural dimensions, setting the relationship within the broader context of Sino-Japanese relations, concerns about identity and nationalism within Hong Kong, and changing Japanese commercial priorities. While the commercial and popular cultural ties between Japan and Hong Kong remain dominant, since the mid-1990s political issues have become more visible in Hong Kong–Japan relations. Changing moods within Hong Kong about the handover and, after 1997, about the nature of the redefined relationship with China have had an important influence on the political economy of Hong Kong–Japan relations.
Symbiotic Neighbour or Extra-Court Judge? The Supervision over Courts by Chinese Local People's Congresses
Authors: Cho Young Nam
Published: February 2004

This article explores the Chinese local people's congresses' supervision over courts in an attempt to understand the pattern of emerging state organs' development in the reform era. During their development, people's congresses and courts could not expect to have institutionally based independent authority in a party-state. They instead had to make full use of opportunities to expand clarified jurisdictions and to intensify organizational capacities. As a result, the developmental pattern of newly emerging forces became more complicated than expected: a series of intertwined relationships of state organs with the Party at the apex, based on their legal and political statuses rather than independent and autonomous development, and their desperate efforts to exploit each and every opportunity. And this pattern will continue until there is a radical reform of the Chinese political system.
Integrating China into the Global Economy. By Nicholas Lardy [Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution Press, 2002. x+244 pp. Hard cover $48.95, ISBN 0-8157-5136-2; paperback $19.95, ISBN 0-8157-51235-4.]
Authors: Sun Laixiang
Published: February 2004

This book assesses the extent of China's increasing integration into the global economy during the reform era and explores the likely global impact of China's membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO). The five chapters of the book cover China's pre-WTO trade reforms; the terms of China's final WTO accession package; and the implications of China's WTO membership for foreign companies, world trade, the international trading system, and US-China relations. It presents sober and reasoned analyses of these issues and represents a solid attempt to take stock of China's economic progress to date and its prospects over the coming decade.

Witnessing the mounting publications on this subject, one may wonder what perspectives or insights from this book are still worth repeating and remembering. Within this short review, I would like to highlight the following three.

First, Lardy contends that, contrary to popular wisdom in the media and research literature, China's economy had become far more open than Japan's and it was ready to join the WTO. Before WTO entry China had already achieved the lowest tariff protection of any developing country and had also shrunk non-tariff barriers impressively. Most price distortions were eliminated in the decade before WTO entry and much of the necessary industrial and agricultural restructuring was already underway before accession. Other substantial progress included expansion of trade rights, adoption of current account convertibility, vast expansion of the legal scope for foreign investment, legalized development of the private sector, and establishment of basic social security systems in urban areas. If this assessment is correct, why did it take 15 years for China to get into the WTO? Lardy argues that the long waiting “reflects as much the rising bar imposed by members of the Working Party . . . as China's slowness to embrace the principles of the multilateral trading system” (p. 9). This leads to the second insightful message.
Chinese Entrepreneurship and Asian Business Networks. Edited by Thomas Menkhoff and Solvay Gerke. [London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2002. xv+335 pp. £65.00. ISBN 0-7007-1653-X.]
Authors: Christiansen Flemming
Published: February 2004

Chinese Entrepreneurship and Asian Business Networks< contributes to a growing and contested field of scholarship. The introduction presents the volume as a corrective to what it regards as misconceived, popular perceptions of Chinese entrepreneurs and business networks in Asia, and expends much energy criticizing prominent examples of these misconstrued ideas. The major claim is that the culturalist perceptions of bamboo networks and business tribes (pp. 4–7) are not sustained by “sober empirical facts” (p. 8). The aims are to “counteract” the myths about Chinese entrepreneurs with the use of “data” revealing the “actual patterns,” and to present “alternative” interpretations of concepts such as “guanxi” that are “essentialised” in “mainstream literature on Chinese business” (p. 8). To judge by the introduction and the last chapter (both written by the editors), the volume's agenda is dominated more by the will to engage in a polemic than by the urge to get on with the job of exploring how Chinese businesses in Asia function.
The Chinese Coal Industry: An Economic History. By Elspeth Thomson. [London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. xx+412 pp. £75.00. ISBN 0-7007-1727-7.]
Authors: Bramall Chris
Published: February 2004

The performance of the Chinese coal industry in the 20th century is undeniably important given the pivotal role played by coal as a source of energy for Chinese industry and consumers alike until very recently. Was the coal industry a binding constraint on Chinese economic growth across the 1949 divide? And if so, can we identify some form of managerial failure as its root cause?

The answer offered by Tim Wright, in his well-known Coal Mining in China's Economy and Society 1895–1937 (1984), is that the coal shortages did not constrain pre-war economic growth. On the contrary: it was the slow growth of the Chinese economy in aggregate that limited the expansion of the coal industry. The main obstacle to the expansion of coal production was thus to be found on the demand side, and not in entrepreneurial failure or some other supply-side cause. Accepting this (rather Keynesian) conclusion, the question naturally arises as to whether the coal industry fared any better under Mao, and after. In particular, this framework of analysis invites us to consider whether the Maoist regime (and its successors) lifted the demand-side constraint, only to substitute a supply-side constraint in the form of state ownership and management.