bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Formation of ordered films of axially bridged aluminum phthalocyanine [(tBu)4PcAl]2O via magnetic field-induced reaction
Authors: Basova Tamara , Berezin Aleksei , Nadolinny Vladimir , Peisert Heiko , Chassé Thomas , Banimuslem Hikmat , Hassan Aseel
Published: November 2013

The μ-(oxo)bis[tetra-tert-butylphthalocyaninato] aluminum(III) [(tBu)4PcAl]2O films with the crystallites oriented preferably in one direction were obtained via chemical transformation of tetra-tert-butylsubstituted chloroaluminum(III) phthalocyanine (tBu)4PcAlCl film upon its annealing in magnetic field. A comparative analysis of the influence of post-deposition annealing process without and under applied magnetic field of 1 T, on the orientation and morphology of (tBu)4PcAlCl and [(tBu)4PcAl]2O films, has been carried out by the methods of UV-vis, Infrared and Raman spectroscopies, XRD as well as atomic force microscopy. The formation of [(tBu)4PcAl]2O films with elongated crystallites having preferential orientation was observed upon heating of the films in magnetic field while annealing without magnetic field under the same conditions does not demonstrate any effect on the structure and morphology of these films. The reasons of the sensitivity of this reaction to the presence of such magnetic field is discussed and studied by electronic paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy.
On the physics of multidrug efflux through a biomolecular complex
Authors: Mishima Hirokazu , Oshima Hiraku , Yasuda Satoshi , Amano Ken-ichi , Kinoshita Masahiro
Published: November 2013

Insertion and release of a solute into and from a vessel comprising biopolymers is a fundamental function in a biological system. A typical example is found in a multidrug efflux transporter. “Multidrug efflux” signifies that solutes such as drug molecules with diverse properties can be handled. In our view, the mechanism of the multidrug efflux is not chemically specific but rather has to be based on a physical factor. In earlier works, we showed that the spatial distribution of the solute-vessel potential of mean force (PMF) induced by the solvent plays imperative roles in the insertion/release process. The PMF can be decomposed into the energetic and entropic components. The entropic component, which originates from the translational displacement of solvent molecules, is rather insensitive to the solute-solvent and vessel inner surface-solvent affinities. This feature is not shared with the energetic component. When the vessel inner surface is neither solvophobic nor solvophilic, the solvents within the vessel cavity and in the bulk offer almost the same environment to any solute with solvophobicity or solvophilicity, and the energetic component becomes much smaller than the entropic component (i.e., the latter predominates over the former). Our idea is that the multidrug efflux can be realized if the insertion/release process is accomplished by the entropic component exhibiting the insensitivity to the solute properties. However, we have recently argued that the entropic release of the solute is not feasible as long as the vessel geometry is fixed. Here we consider a model of TolC, a cylindrical vessel possessing an entrance at one end and an exit at the other end for the solute. The spatial distribution of the PMF is calculated by employing the three-dimensional integral equation theory with rigid-body models in which the constituents interact only through hard-body potentials. Since the behavior of these models is purely entropic in origin, our analysis is focused on the entropic component. We show that the entropically inserted solute can be released by a continuous variation of the vessel geometry which forms a time-dependent entropic force continuing to accelerate the solute motion to the exit. Solutes with a wide range of sizes are entropically released using the same vessel-geometry variation. The results obtained are fairly general and also applicable to the efflux pump protein AcrB and ATP-binding cassette transporter.
Persistence of velocity fluctuations in non-Gaussian turbulence within and above plant canopies
Authors: Chamecki Marcelo
Published: November 2013

This study focuses on the distribution of time scales and its relation to integral time scales in non-Gaussian turbulence within plant canopies. We introduce the idea of persistence usually used to describe nonequilibrium systems to the analysis of time series of turbulence as a simple approach to characterize the distribution of time scales. Analysis of turbulence data within and above a cornfield shows that the integral time scale is not adequate to characterize the duration of long events in non-Gaussian turbulence. Positive and negative events have different time scales as a consequence of the skewness of the velocity fluctuations. Sweeps (u′ > 0 and w′ < 0) are stronger and have shorter durations, and dominate the behavior of the integral time scale. At the same time, ejections (u′ < 0 and w′ > 0) tend to be much longer lived, and their signature (which is not clearly seen in the integral time scale) is clearly identified in the distributions of persistence time.
Broadband three-photon near-infrared quantum cutting in Tm3+ singly doped YVO4
Authors: Wang Y. Z. , Yu D. C. , Lin H. H. , Ye S. , Peng M. Y. , Zhang Q. Y.
Published: November 2013

An efficient three-photon near-infrared (NIR) quantum cutting (QC) is reported in Tm3+ singly doped YVO4 polycrystalline phosphors, where an optimized content of Tm3+ is determined to be 1.0 mol. %. Upon the absorption of a visible photon around 473 nm, three NIR photons emitting at 1180, 1479, and 1800 nm can be obtained efficiently by the sequential three-step radiative transitions of Tm3+. The underlying mechanisms are analyzed in terms of the steady and dynamic fluorescence spectra measurements. Internal quantum yield is calculated to be 161.8% as a theoretical value when luminescence quenching due to defect species can be overcome. In addition, the broadband ultraviolet (UV)-excited [VO4]3− can strongly sensitize the 1G4 level of Tm3+ in the wavelength range likely from 250 to 360 nm, greatly increasing the UV photo-response and NIR fluorescent intensity of Tm3+. The further development of this broadband three-photon NIR QC material would explore the new route to improve the photo-response of novel photoelectronic devices, particularly in 250–360 nm.
Multi-channel conduction in redox-based resistive switch modelled using quantum point contact theory
Authors: Miranda E. , Mehonic A. , Suñé J. , Kenyon A. J.
Published: November 2013

A simple analytic model for the electron transport through filamentary-type structures in Si-rich silica (SiOx)-based resistive switches is proposed. The model is based on a mesoscopic description and is able to account for the linear and nonlinear components of conductance that arise from both fully and partially formed conductive channels spanning the dielectric film. Channels are represented by arrays of identical scatterers whose number and quantum transmission properties determine the current magnitude in the low and high resistance states. We show that the proposed model not only reproduces the experimental current-voltage (I-V) characteristics but also the normalized differential conductance (dln(I)/dln(V)-V) curves of devices under test.
Influence of chromium interaction with native and impurity defects on optical and luminescence properties of ZnSe:Cr crystals
Authors: Radevici I. , Sushkevich K. , Colibaba G. , Sirkeli V. , Huhtinen H. , Nedeoglo N. , Nedeoglo D. , Paturi P.
Published: November 2013

Luminescent properties of the chromium doped zinc selenide crystals with various concentrations of the doping impurity in 0.03–0.30 at. % range within the temperature interval from 6 K to 300 K were studied. Chromium doping was performed in various technological processes: during the growth by chemical vapor transport method; during the growth from melt; by thermal diffusion from the Bi + Cr melt or by thermal diffusion from gas. Possibility of chromium-bound excitons formation was shown, as well as chromium impurity participation in formation of emission bands in IR spectral region. A mechanism of chromium doping impurity interaction with uncontrolled background impurities and zinc selenide structural defects was proposed based on experimental data. An assumption about resonant energy transfer between double charged chromium ions and complexes based on crystals vacancy defects was made.
Tunable nanostructured composite with built-in metallic wire-grid electrode
Authors: Micheli Davide , Pastore Roberto , Gradoni Gabriele , Marchetti Mario
Published: November 2013

In this paper, the authors report an experimental demonstration of microwave reflection tuning in carbon nanostructure-based composites by means of an external voltage supplied to the material. DC bias voltages are imparted through a metal wire-grid. The magnitude of the reflection coefficient is measured upon oblique plane-wave incidence. Increasing the bias from 13 to 700 V results in a lowering of ∼20 dB, and a “blueshift” of ∼600 MHz of the material absorption resonance. Observed phenomena are ascribed to a change of the dielectric response of the carbon material. Inherently, the physical role of tunneling between nanofillers (carbon nanotubes) is discussed. Achievements aim at the realization of a tunable absorber. There are similar studies in literature that focus on tunable metamaterials operating at either optical or THz wavelengths.
Coupling of (ultra-) relativistic atomic nuclei with photons
Authors: Apostol M. , Ganciu M.
Published: November 2013

The coupling of photons with (ultra-) relativistic atomic nuclei is presented in two particular circumstances: very high electromagnetic fields and very short photon pulses. We consider a typical situation where the (bare) nuclei (fully stripped of electrons) are accelerated to energies ≃ 1 TeV per nucleon (according to the state of the art at LHC, for instance) and photon sources like petawatt lasers ≃ 1 eV-radiation (envisaged by ELI-NP project, for instance), or free-electron laser ≃ 10 keV-radiation, or synchrotron sources, etc. In these circumstances the nuclear scale energy can be attained, with very high field intensities. In particular, we analyze the nuclear transitions induced by the radiation, including both one- and two-photon proceses, as well as the polarization-driven transitions which may lead to giant dipole resonances. The nuclear (electrical) polarization concept is introduced. It is shown that the perturbation theory for photo-nuclear reactions is applicable, although the field intensity is high, since the corresponding interaction energy is low and the interaction time (pulse duration) is short. It is also shown that the description of the giant nuclear dipole resonance requires the dynamics of the nuclear electrical polarization degrees of freedom.
Trading Industry Clusters amid the Legacy of Industrial Land-Use Planning in Southern California
Authors: Funderburg Richard G , Zhou Xiaoxue
Published: November 2013

This paper tests for excessive employment agglomeration among twenty southern California manufacturing industry clusters using two methods claiming to control for the natural and planned geography constraining industrial location generally. We find broad consistency across the alternative tests; although fewer industry clusters test statistically significant for agglomeration or dispersion using the weighted kernel density estimator than when we use the more established weighted case-control approach. Similarly, the observed values for the former statistic test significant over a subset of the spatial scales over which the case-control method tests significant.
Assembling Market B/Orders: Violence, Dispossession, and Economic Development in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
Authors: Berndt Christian
Published: November 2013

Using an ongoing land conflict in Ciudad Juárez as a case study, I seek to show how maquiladora decision makers stabilize a regional development model even at times of extreme social and economic crisis. I argue that the current killings associated with drug trafficking play an ambivalent role in the reproduction of order in Juárez. At first sight, the violence is represented as a threat, unmasking as it does a regional development model as failure. Decision makers accordingly respond by doing everything possible to distance the maquiladora industry from the violence. On the one hand, this is being done by familiar means, not unlike in previous moments of crises. But on the other hand the events around Lomas del Poleo additionally assume a new quality, as maquiladorization goes hand in hand with an explicit strategy of spatial distanciation, integrating places and people that have hitherto been linked only marginally to the industry. And it is here that the narco-related violence plays different roles: As a convenient veil that allows what might be termed ‘ordinary’ assertions of brute force to be used under the cover of extraordinary, excessive, violence; and as a welcome excuse in moments of emergency that legitimize violent measures for the sake of a greater good.
Breaking the Chains: Coffee, Crisis, and Farmworker Struggle in Nicaragua
Authors: Wilson Bradley R
Published: November 2013

In the early 2000s the coffee crisis emerged as a central object of study for commodity chain scholars. In this paper I revisit the scene of the coffee crisis in Nicaragua to understand violent processes of devaluation and disinvestment that devastated the countryside for more than five years (2000–05). Employing a commodity disarticulations approach, I argue that conventional explanations of the coffee crisis as one of overproduction and devaluation generally failed to unravel the layered spatiality of dispossession that enables coffee chain formations. Digging below the surface text of the crisis narrative, I illustrate how the coffee crisis in the central highlands was exacerbated by an aggressive land grab by a consortium of agroindustrial capitalists called CONSAGRA-AGRESAMI that had dispossessed farmworkers of land rights and accumulated the spoils of the Sandinista-led agrarian reform over the previous decade. When CONSAGRA-AGRESAMI folded in 2000, an unemployed farmworkers movement surged to reclaim land promised to farmworkers in the popular revolution. Using this alternative reading of the crisis in Nicaragua, I aim to bring into focus the ongoing processes of dispossession that render coffee workers vulnerable to hunger, exploitation, and abuse.
Not Physically Present Contours Can Yield Illusory Motion
Authors: Altschuler Eric L , Kim Hee J , Huang Abigail E , Hon Alice J , McCormick Meghan C , Roncato Sergio
Published: November 2013

We demonstrate a perceptual effect whereby contours not physically present in a visual scene can yield striking illusory motion. The not physically present contours are paths of invariant contrast polarity (CP). For example, when a square checkerboard composed of dark and light square checks with small black and white discs covering the vertices is put in lateral motion, there is the striking perception of vertical expansion/contraction. Such a checkerboard has (not physically present) diagonal paths of CP presentation with vertical components. However, when a square checkerboard made up of square black and very light checks with gray discs of luminance intermediate to the checks is put in lateral motion, no expansion/contraction is seen. For this checkerboard the vertical components of paths of CP preservation cancel each other out, predicting the lack of perception of vertical expansion/contraction. We also discuss how not physically present contours can explain previously described effects and suggest new effects to be explored.
Size-Invariant Facial Expression Categorization and Associated Gaze Allocation within Social Interaction Space
Authors: Guo Kun
Published: November 2013

As faces often appear under very different viewing conditions (eg brightness, viewing angle, or viewing distance), invariant facial information recognition is a key to our social interactions. Although we would clearly benefit from differentiating different facial expressions (eg angry vs happy) at a distance, there is surprisingly little research examining how expression categorization and associated gaze allocation are affected by viewing distance within the range of typical social space. In this study I systematically varied the size of faces displaying six basic facial expressions of emotion with varying intensities to mimic viewing distances ranging from arms length to 5 m, and employed a self-paced expression categorization task to measure participants' categorization performance and associated gaze patterns. Irrespective of the displayed expression and its intensity, the participants showed indistinguishable categorization accuracy and reaction time across the tested face sizes. Reducing face size decreased the number of fixations directed at the faces but increased individual fixation durations, and shifted gaze distribution from scanning all key internal facial features to fixating at mainly the central face region. The results suggest size-invariant facial expression categorization behaviour within social interaction distance which could be linked to a holistic gaze strategy for extracting expressive facial cues.
Facial Features Influence the Categorization of Female Sexual Orientation
Authors: Tskhay Konstantin O , Feriozzo Melissa M , Rule Nicholas O
Published: November 2013

Social categorization is a rapid and automatic process, and people rely on various facial cues to accurately categorize each other into social groups. Recently, studies have demonstrated that people integrate different cues to arrive at accurate impressions of others' sexual orientations. The amount of perceptual information available to perceivers could affect these categorizations, however. Here, we found that, as visual information decreased from full faces to internal facial features to just pairs of eyes, so did the accuracy of judging women's sexual orientation. Yet and still, accuracy remained significantly greater than chance across all conditions. More important, however, participants' response bias varied significantly depending on the facial feature judged. Perceivers were significantly more likely to consider that a target may be lesbian as they viewed less of the faces. Thus, although facial features may be continuously integrated in person construal, they can differentially affect how people see each other.
Description of Bond Pseudorotation, Bond Pseudolibration, and Ring Pseudoinversion Processes Caused by the Pseudo-Jahn–Teller Effect: Fluoro Derivatives of the Cyclopropane Radical Cation
Authors: Zou Wenli , Cremer Dieter
Published: November 2013

Curvilinear coordinates are used to describe the molecular geometry and the pseudo-Jahn–Teller surface of F-substituted cyclopropane radical cations using the equation-of-motion coupled cluster EOMIP-CCSD/cc-pVTZ approach. The monofluoro derivative 2 undergoes bond pseudolibration (incomplete bond pseudorotation) between two symmetry-equivalent biradicaloid forms separated by a barrier of 2.2 kcal mol–1 (1 kcal mol–1 = 4.186 kJ mol–1) at low temperature. Bond pseudorotation and ring pseudoinversion have barriers of 12.1 and 16.5 kcal mol–1 respectively. The relative energies of 2 are affected by the distribution of the positive charge in the C3 ring and the formation of a CF bond with partial π character. There is a change of the CF bond length from 1.285 to 1.338 Å along the bond pseudorotation path. The changes of the CF bond outweigh the deformation effects of the C3 ring; however, both are a result of the pseudo-Jahn–Teller effect according to an (A′ + A′′) ⊗ (a′ + a′′) interaction. For the pentafluoro derivative 3 of the cyclopropane radical cation, bond pseudorotation has a barrier of 16.3 kcal mol–1 whereas ring pseudoinversion is hindered by a barrier of 21.7 kcal mol–1. Radical cation 3 is the first example of a trimethylene radical cation.
Inducing host protection in pneumococcal sepsis by preactivation of the Ashwell-Morell receptor
Authors: Grewal Prabhjit K. , Aziz Peter V. , Uchiyama Satoshi , Rubio Gabriel R. , Lardone Ricardo D. , Le Dzung , Varki Nissi M. , Nizet Victor , Marth Jamey D.
Published: November 2013

Significance

Sepsis occurs in the presence of a pathogen in the blood, often with increased blood clotting and inflammation that can cause severe tissue damage and organ failure leading to death. This article reports the mechanism of host protection mediated by the Ashwell-Morell receptor (AMR) of hepatocytes during sepsis caused byStreptococcus pneumoniae. The AMR protects the host primarily by diminishing the abundance of circulating platelets that have been remodeled by pathogen neuraminidase activity, thereby reducing the severity of coagulopathy, diminishing organ failure, and permitting host survival. The AMR is further selective in moderating circulating coagulation factors that are primarily prothrombotic. This study also presents an approach to preactivate AMR function early in sepsis to augment host protection and survival.
Free energy landscapes for initiation and branching of protein aggregation
Authors: Zheng Weihua , Schafer Nicholas P. , Wolynes Peter G.
Published: November 2013

Significance

This study leverages a predictive protein-folding simulation model to study the free energy landscapes of fused oligomeric constructs to quantify the conditions under which these constructs spontaneously misfold. Constructs of this type have been used to probe the early stages of aggregation in the laboratory. Oligomeric species may be the toxic agents in misfolding-related diseases. The critical structures that initiate aggregation are shown to depend on specific sequence signals and thermodynamic conditions. Our results also suggest that branching due to the presence of multiple amyloidogenic segments may determine the morphology of protein aggregates.
Multimodality and Cognitive Linguistics
Authors: Pinar Sanz María Jesús
Published: November 2013

This Special Volume of Review of Cognitive Linguistics includes 13 papers dealing with Multimodality and Cognitive Linguistics. The introduction provides an overview of three of the main approaches dealing with multimodality – Cognitive Linguistics and multimodal metaphors (Forceville & Urios-Aparisi, 2009), social semiotics and systemic functional grammar, and multimodal interactional analysis (Jewitt, 2009, p. 29). The paper summarizes the contributions to the volume, highlighting the main objectives and conclusions of each of the papers.
Woven emotions
Authors: Díaz-Vera Javier E.
Published: November 2013

Following Forceville (2005, 2011), in this paper I show that the same conceptual models underlie the expression of Old English emotions in both the language and the visual modes. Kövecses (2000, 2005) and Stefanowitsch (2004, 2006) have shown that verbal expressions and idioms used to describe emotions can be traced back to a limited number of conceptual metaphors. In the light of these findings, I will analyze here the pictorial representations of emotions in the Bayeux Tapestry, an 11th century embroidered cloth that narrates and depicts the events that led up to the Norman Conquest of England and the invasion itself. The tapestry, which has been described as an example of early narrative art (McCloud, 1993, pp. 12–14), shows hundreds of human figures in an astounding range of poses and circumstances.
My analysis of the set of pictorial signals used in the Anglo-Norman Bayeux Tapestry to represent emotion types such as ‘anger’, ‘grief’ and ‘fear’ shows that (1) Anglo-Norman artists used a well-organized set of visual stimuli to convey emotion-related meanings in a patterned way, that (2) the same idealised conceptual models are shared by verbal and visual modalities, and that (3) whereas verbal expressions of emotions regularly draw on non-embodied, behavioural concepts, visual representations show a clear preference for embodied container concepts.
Intermedial cognitive semiotics
Authors: López-Varela Asunción
Published: November 2013

In this chapter, intermediality is explored from an interdisciplinary perspective that uses neuroscience as well as cognitive-semiotic concerns and insights from online digital communication, presenting it as a process where biophysical, technological, and interpersonal factors interact. Shared attention as well as spatial and temporal cueing – eye contact and the sonic modality – are explored from a task-oriented and social interactive dimension. The spatiotemporal impact of the mediating context is highlighted by moving from the role of visual cueing, in a brief reference to Al Davison’s autobiographical graphic novel The spiral cage, to a more detailed analysis of Annie Abrahams’ (2010) online project A fragmented relation, where cueing is dependent not just on spatial frames but also on the temporal dynamics introduced by the aural dimension recorded in an online environment. The paper tangentially touches upon the role of affect in communication.
Salinity.
Authors: Erskine W. , Upadhyaya H. D. , Malik A. I.
Published: November 2013

This chapter focuses on salinity caused by Na+ and Cl- ions. The situation of salinity today and in 2050; physiology of salinity tolerance; variation among crops to salinity tolerance; and the inheritance of salinity tolerance are described. A mini-core approach to screen germplasm collections for salt tolerance and some methods (wide hybridization and genetic modification) to increase salt tolerance in crops are described. Four examples of ongoing domestications for saline environments are presented. Salt tolerance in plants seems to be a developmentally regulated process because tolerance varies with growth stage, generally increasing with the age of the plant. Given these diverse components of salinity tolerance, the future screening of genetic resources can focus on identifying the extremes for the individual components, which breeders can then recombine.
Building synthetic cellular organization
Authors: Polka Jessica K. , Silver Pamela A.
Published: November 2013

The elaborate spatial organization of cells enhances, restricts, and regulates protein–protein interactions. However, the biological significance of this organization has been difficult to study without ways of directly perturbing it. We highlight synthetic biology tools for engineering novel cellular organization, describing how they have been, and can be, used to advance cell biology.
Prostaglandins temporally regulate cytoplasmic actin bundle formation duringDrosophilaoogenesis
Authors: Spracklen Andrew J. , Kelpsch Daniel J. , Chen Xiang , Spracklen Cassandra N. , Tootle Tina L.
Published: November 2013

Prostaglandins (PGs)—lipid signals produced downstream of cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes—regulate actin dynamics in cell culture and platelets, but their roles during development are largely unknown. Here we define a new role for Pxt, the Drosophila COX-like enzyme, in regulating the actin cytoskeleton—temporal restriction of actin remodeling during oogenesis. PGs are required for actin filament bundle formation during stage 10B (S10B). In addition, loss of Pxt results in extensive early actin remodeling, including actin filaments and aggregates, within the posterior nurse cells of S9 follicles; wild-type follicles exhibit similar structures at a low frequency. Hu li tai shao (Hts-RC) and Villin (Quail), an actin bundler, localize to all early actin structures, whereas Enabled (Ena), an actin elongation factor, preferentially localizes to those in pxt mutants. Reduced Ena levels strongly suppress early actin remodeling in pxt mutants. Furthermore, loss of Pxt results in reduced Ena localization to the sites of bundle formation during S10B. Together these data lead to a model in which PGs temporally regulate actin remodeling during Drosophila oogenesis by controlling Ena localization/activity, such that in S9, PG signaling inhibits, whereas at S10B, it promotes Ena-dependent actin remodeling.
Role of SWI/SNF in acute leukemia maintenance and enhancer-mediated Myc regulation
Authors: Shi Junwei , Whyte Warren A. , Zepeda-Mendoza Cinthya J. , Milazzo Joseph P. , Shen Chen , Roe Jae-Seok , Minder Jessica L. , Mercan Fatih , Wang Eric , Eckersley-Maslin Melanie A. , Campbell Amy E. , Kawaoka Shinpei , Shareef Sarah , Zhu Zhu , Kendall Jude , Muhar Matthias , Haslinger Christian , Yu Ming , Roeder Robert G. , Wigler Michael H. , Blobel Gerd A. , Zuber Johannes , Spector David L. , Young Richard A. , Vakoc Christopher R.
Published: November 2013

Cancer cells frequently depend on chromatin regulatory activities to maintain a malignant phenotype. Here, we show that leukemia cells require the mammalian SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex for their survival and aberrant self-renewal potential. While Brg1, an ATPase subunit of SWI/SNF, is known to suppress tumor formation in several cell types, we found that leukemia cells instead rely on Brg1 to support their oncogenic transcriptional program, which includes Myc as one of its key targets. To account for this context-specific function, we identify a cluster of lineage-specific enhancers located 1.7 Mb downstream from Myc that are occupied by SWI/SNF as well as the BET protein Brd4. Brg1 is required at these distal elements to maintain transcription factor occupancy and for long-range chromatin looping interactions with the Myc promoter. Notably, these distal Myc enhancers coincide with a region that is focally amplified in ∼3% of acute myeloid leukemias. Together, these findings define a leukemia maintenance function for SWI/SNF that is linked to enhancer-mediated gene regulation, providing general insights into how cancer cells exploit transcriptional coactivators to maintain oncogenic gene expression programs.
Predator effects on a detritus‐based food web are primarily mediated by non‐trophic interactions
Authors: Majdi Nabil , Boiché Anatole , Traunspurger Walter , Lecerf Antoine
Published: November 2013

Predator effects on ecosystems can extend far beyond their prey and are often not solely lethally transmitted. Change in prey traits in response to predation risk can have important repercussions on community assembly and key ecosystem processes (i.e. trait‐mediated indirect effects). In addition, some predators themselves alter habitat structure or nutrient cycling through ecological engineering effects. Tracking these non‐trophic pathways is thus an important, yet challenging task to gain a better grasp of the functional role of predators.

Multiple lines of evidence suggest that, in detritus‐based food webs, non‐trophic interactions may prevail over purely trophic interactions in determining predator effects on plant litter decomposition. This hypothesis was tested in a headwater stream by modulating the density of a flatworm predator (Polycelis felina) in enclosures containing oak (Quercus robur) leaf litter exposed to natural colonization by small invertebrates and microbial decomposers. Causal path modelling was used to infer how predator effects propagated through the food web.

Flatworms accelerated litter decomposition through positive effects on microbial decomposers. The biomass of prey and non‐prey invertebrates was not negatively affected by flatworms, suggesting that net predator effect on litter decomposition was primarily determined by non‐trophic interactions.

Flatworms enhanced the deposition and retention of fine sediments on leaf surface, thereby improving leaf colonization by invertebrates – most of which having strong affinities with interstitial habitats. This predator‐induced improvement of habitat availability was attributed to the sticky nature of the mucus that flatworms secrete in copious amount while foraging. Results of path analyses further indicated that this bottom‐up ecological engineering effect was as powerful as the top‐down effect on invertebrate prey.

Our findings suggest that predators have the potential to affect substantially carbon flow and nutrient cycling in detritus‐based ecosystems and that this impact cannot be fully appreciated without considering non‐trophic effects.
Current approach to masked hypertension: From diagnosis to clinical management
Authors: Dolan Eamon , James Kirstyn
Published: November 2013

The term ‘masked hypertension phenomenon’ was first described by the late Professor Thomas Pickering and is commonly defined as having a normal clinic blood pressure (BP) but an elevated ‘out of office’ reading. In the main, these elevated readings have been provided through ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM), but sometimes home BP monitoring is used. It is now largely accepted that ABPM gives a better classification of risk than clinic BP. Thus, the elevated ABPM levels should relate to higher cardiovascular risk, and it follows that these people may be regarded as being genuinely hypertensive and at higher cardiovascular risk.

The problem for clinical practice is how to identify and manage these individuals. The phenomenon should be suspected in individuals who have had an elevated clinic BP at some time, in young individuals with normal or normal–high clinic BP who have early left ventricular hypertrophy, in individuals with a family history of hypertension in both parents, patients with multiple risks for cardiovascular disease and perhaps diabetic patients. Masked hypertension appears to be more prevalent in individuals of male gender, with younger age, higher heart rate, obesity or high cholesterol levels and in smokers.

Those with masked hypertension are at higher risk of events such as stroke and have a higher prevalence of target organ damage, for example, nephropathy.

In conclusion, most of the debate around this topic relates to its reliable identification. Given the higher ambulatory mean blood pressure values there is an increased cardiovascular risk making this diagnosis important.
Effect of Inflation Targeting on Inflation Uncertainty: A SWARCH Analysis
Authors: Tas Bedri Kamil Onur , Ertugrul Hasan Murat
Published: November 2013

We analyse the success of inflation targeting (IT) in decreasing inflation volatility by investigating inflation variance before and after IT. We contribute to the literature by implementing Markov‐Switching AutoRegressive Conditional Heteroscedastic methodology to model inflation volatility. After determining the unbiased conditional variances of inflation in each inflation‐targeting country, we investigate structural breaks in inflation variability by both analysing individual countries and conducting a panel data analysis. All of these methods conclude that IT helps most of the countries to achieve lower inflation uncertainty (volatility). We also examine the country‐specific factors that determine the effectiveness of inflation‐targeting adoption.
Australia's Productivity: Past, Present and Future
Authors: Parham Dean
Published: November 2013

A terms‐of‐trade shock boosted growth in income and living standards over the past decade. It also brought on Australia's productivity growth slump. Now that the terms of trade have peaked, re‐invigorated productivity growth is needed to boost income and living standards. However, the economy is still going through the adjustments that have stifled productivity growth. Australians may not enjoy the same growth in prosperity as they have over the past two decades.
Factor Growth and Foreign Investment under Product Market Imperfection in the Harris–Todaro Economy
Authors: Yu Eden S. H. , Choi Jai‐Young
Published: November 2013

This paper examines the ramifications of an imperfect product market, with reference to factor growth and foreign investment, for a small Harris–Todaro economy with the agricultural (manufacturing) sector under perfect competition (monopoly protected by an import quota). It is shown that factor growth entails multiple component effects of conflicting signs (i.e. the primary growth effect, the distortionary production effect, and production and employment effects induced by changes in the domestic commodity prices), and, hence, can be welfare‐reducing. Similarly, an inflow of foreign capital can be immiserizing when the foreign capital earnings are repatriated at the domestic rental rate.
Community‐based distribution of misoprostol to prevent postpartum haemorrhage at home births: results from operations research in rural Ghana
Authors: Geller S , Carnahan L , Akosah E , Asare G , Agyemang R , Dickson R , Kapungu C , Owusu‐Ansah L , Robinson N , Mensah‐Homiah J
Published: November 2013

Objective

To report on a rigorous distribution and monitoring plan to track misoprostol for community‐based distribution to reduce postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) in rural Ghana.

Design

Operations research.

Setting

Rural Ghana.

Sample

Women in third trimester of pregnancy presenting to primary health centres (PHCs) for antenatal care (ANC).

Methods

Ghana Health Service (GHS), Millennium Village Projects, and the University of Illinois at Chicago conducted an operations research study designed to assess the safety, feasibility, and acceptability of community‐based distribution of misoprostol to prevent PPH at home deliveries in rural Ghana. One thousand doses (3000 tablets, 200 μg each) were obtained from the Family Health Division of GHS. Three 200‐μg tablets of misoprostol (600 μg) in foil packets were packaged together in secured transparent plastic packets labelled with pictorial messages and distributed to midwives at seven PHCs for distribution to pregnant women.

Main outcome measures

Correct use of misoprostol in home deliveries and retrieval of unused misoprostol doses, PPH rates and maternal mortality.

Results

Of the 999 doses distributed to midwives, 982 (98.3%) were successfully tracked, with a 1.7% lost to follow‐up rate. Midwives distributed 654 doses to women at third‐trimester ANC visits. Of women who had misoprostol to use at home, 81% had an institutional delivery and were able to return the misoprostol safely to the midwife. Of the women that used misoprostol, 99% used the misoprostol correctly.

Conclusions

This study clearly demonstrates that misoprostol distributed antenatally to pregnant women can be used accurately and reliably by rural Ghanaian women, and should be considered for policy implementation across Ghana and other countries with high home birth rates and maternal mortality ratios.
Primary mediastinal pleomorphic liposarcoma involving the superior vena cava
Authors: Chen Gang , Qiu Xiaoming , Liu Yi , Qiao Yanjie , Shi Tao , Chen Jun , Zhou Qinghua
Published: November 2013

Primary mediastinal liposarcomas are extremely rare. They are primarily diseases of adults; however, they may be encountered in children. They are characterized by their large size and variable histologic subtypes, which correlate with clinical behavior and prognosis. Although the overall prognosis is poor, it is dependent upon the histologic subtype and completeness of surgical excision. Herein we present a case of a primary mediastinal pleomorphic liposarcoma in a 49‐year‐old male who received an en‐bloc resection and superior vena cava replacement with Gortex graft. The patient has been disease‐free after surgery for over 14 months.
Neoliberal Reason and Its Forms: De‐Politicisation Through Economisation
Authors: Madra Yahya M. , Adaman Fikret
Published: November 2013

This paper offers a historically contextualised intellectual history of the entangled development of three competing post‐war economic approaches, viz the Austrian, Chicago and post‐Walrasian schools, as three forms of neoliberalism. Taking our cue from Foucault's reading of neoliberalism as a mode of governmentality under which the social is organised through “economic incentives”, we engage with the recent discussions of neoliberal theory on three accounts: neoliberalism is read as an epistemic horizon including not only “pro‐” but also “post‐market” positions articulated by post‐Walrasian economists who claim that market failures necessitate the design of “incentive‐compatible” remedial mechanisms; the Austrian tradition is distinguished from the Chicago‐style pro‐marketism; and the implications of the differences among the three approaches on economic as well as socio‐political life are discussed. The paper maintains that all three approaches promote the de‐politicisation of the social through its economisation albeit by way of different theories and policies. © 2013 The Author. Antipode © 2013 Antipode Foundation Ltd.
Genetic variation in the monoamine oxidase A and serotonin transporter genes in sudden infant death syndrome
Authors: Opdal Siri H , Vege Åshild , Rognum Torleiv O
Published: November 2013

Aim

The purpose of this study was to investigate common polymorphisms in the genes encoding monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) and serotonin transporter (5‐HTT) in Norwegian cases of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). This was done to further elucidate the role of genetic variation in these genes and SIDS.

Methods

A variable number of tandem repeat area in the promoter of the MAOA gene and rs25531 in the promoter region of the gene encoding 5‐HTT were investigated in 193 SIDS cases and 335 controls. The methods used were polymerase chain reaction, restriction fragment analysis and gel electrophoresis.

Results

There were no differences between SIDS cases and controls for any of the investigated polymorphisms. This was also true when male and female SIDS cases were analysed separately.

Conclusion

This article indicates that neither the VNTR in the promoter of the MAOA gene, nor rs25531 in the gene encoding 5‐HTT, is involved in SIDS. However, as medullary serotonergic abnormalities most likely contribute to the death in at least some SIDS cases, it is important to investigate these genes, as well as other genes involved in the serotonergic network, in more detail.
Herd Management: Labor Strategies in Local Food Production
Authors: Janssen Brandi
Published: November 2013

Local food has become one of the fastest growing sectors of the natural food industry. Nationwide, farmers' market attendance and memberships in Community Supported Agriculture have increased dramatically. This increased demand for locally produced food puts producers in the position of having to decide whether or not to rapidly scale up their operations, collaborate with other producers, or turn business away. One of the major obstacles to growth faced by producers is access to reliable, affordable labor. This paper explores several mechanisms by which producers may obtain and retain reliable labor sources. The typical options include hiring paid employees, using volunteers, or hiring interns. Each of these strategies has advantages and disadvantages, both socially and economically for the producer and the community.
Substandard drugs: a potential crisis for public health
Authors: Johnston Atholl , Holt David W.
Published: November 2013

Poor‐quality medicines present a serious public health problem, particularly in emerging economies and developing countries, and may have a significant impact on the national clinical and economic burden. Attention has largely focused on the increasing availability of deliberately falsified drugs, but substandard medicines are also reaching patients because of poor manufacturing and quality‐control practices in the production of genuine drugs (either branded or generic). Substandard medicines are widespread and represent a threat to health because they can inadvertently lead to healthcare failures, such as antibiotic resistance and the spread of disease within a community, as well as death or additional illness in individuals. This article reviews the different aspects of substandard drug formulation that can occur (for example, pharmacological variability between drug batches or between generic and originator drugs, incorrect drug quantity and presence of impurities). The possible means of addressing substandard manufacturing practices are also discussed. A concerted effort is required on the part of governments, drug manufacturers, charities and healthcare providers to ensure that only drugs of acceptable quality reach the patient.
Physiologically based pharmacokinetic modelling and in vivo [I]/Ki accurately predict P‐glycoprotein‐mediated drug‐drug interactions with dabigatran etexilate
Authors: Zhao Yuansheng , Hu Zhe‐Yi
Published: November 2013

Background and purpose

In vitro inhibitory potency (Ki)‐based predictions of P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp)‐mediated drug‐drug interactions (DDIs) are hampered by the substantial variability in inhibitory potency. In this study, in vivo‐based [I]/Ki values were used to predict the DDI risks of a P‐gp substrate dabigatran etexilate (DABE) using physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modelling.

Experimental approach

A baseline PBPK model was established with digoxin, a known P‐gp substrate. The Km (P‐gp transport) of digoxin in the baseline PBPK model was adjusted to Kmi to fit the change of digoxin pharmacokinetics in the presence of a P‐gp inhibitor. Then ‘in vivo’ [I]/Ki of this P‐gp inhibitor was calculated using Kmi/Km. Baseline PBPK model was developed for DABE, and the ‘in vivo’ [I]/Ki was incorporated into this model to simulate the static effect of P‐gp inhibitor on DABE pharmacokinetics. This approach was verified by comparing the observed and the simulated DABE pharmacokinetics in the presence of five different P‐gp inhibitors.

Key results

This approach accurately predicted the effects of five P‐gp inhibitors on DABE pharmacokinetics (98–133% and 89–104% for the ratios of AUC and Cmax respectively). The effects of 16 other P‐gp inhibitors on the pharmacokinetics of DABE were also confidently simulated.

Conclusions and implications

‘In vivo’ [I]/Ki and PBPK modelling, used in combination, can accurately predict P‐gp‐mediated DDIs. The described framework provides a mechanistic basis for the proper design of clinical DDI studies, as well as avoiding unnecessary clinical DDI studies.
A systematic review of instruments for assessment of capacity in activities of daily living in children with developmental co‐ordination disorder
Authors: van der Linde B. W. , van Netten J. J. , Otten E. , Postema K. , Geuze R. H. , Schoemaker M. M.
Published: November 2013

Children with developmental co‐ordination disorder (DCD) face evident motor difficulties in activities of daily living (ADL). Assessment of their capacity in ADL is essential for diagnosis and intervention, in order to limit the daily consequences of the disorder. The aim of this study is to systematically review potential instruments for standardized and objective assessment of children's capacity in ADL, suited for children with DCD. As a first step, databases of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO were searched to identify studies that described instruments with potential for assessment of capacity in ADL. Second, instruments were included for review when two independent reviewers agreed that the instruments (1) are standardized and objective; (2) assess at activity level and comprise items that reflect ADL; and (3) are applicable to school‐aged children that can move independently. Out of 1507 publications, 66 publications were selected, describing 39 instruments. Seven of these instruments were found to fulfil the criteria and were included for review: the Bruininks‐Oseretsky Test of Motor Performance‐2 (BOT2); the Do‐Eat (Do‐Eat); the Movement Assessment Battery for Children‐2 (MABC2); the school‐Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (schoolAMPS); the Tuffts Assessment of Motor Performance (TAMP); the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD); and the Functional Independence Measure for Children (WeeFIM). As a third step, for the included instruments, suitability for children with DCD was discussed based on the ADL comprised, ecological validity and other psychometric properties. We concluded that current instruments do not provide comprehensive and ecologically valid assessment of capacity in ADL as required for children with DCD.