bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Age, growth, condition and reproduction of roach Rutilus rutilus (Teleostei : Cyprinidae), in south-eastern Australia
Authors: Stoessel Daniel J.
Published: October 2013

The roach, Rutilus rutilus, endemic to large portions of Europe, was introduced to Australia in 1861. Because of a lack of ecological knowledge of populations in Australia, life-history aspects of specimens collected in 2000 and 2001 from Lake Eildon were investigated. Fish ranged in length (LF) from 83 to 240 mm, in weight from 63 to 187 g and in age from 1.1 to 8.6 years. Parameters of growth for male R. rutilus were L∞ = 209 and t0 = –2.2 (n = 62), for female R. rutilus L∞ = 211 and t0 = –0.8 (n = 147), and for all aged individuals L∞ = 203 and t0 = –1.6 (n = 380). Mean size and age at sexual maturity (Lm50) was 161 mm and 3.6 years for males and 156 mm and 3.3 years for females. Latitudinal variation in environmental conditions, especially temperature, is suggested to be largely responsible for inter-population differences of growth and condition described in the present study.
Exocytosis acts as a modulator of the ILT4-mediated inhibition of neutrophil functions
Authors: Baudhuin Jeremy , Migraine Julie , Faivre Valerie , Loumagne Laure , Lukaszewicz Anne-Claire , Payen Didier , Favier Benoit
Published: October 2013

Significance

Neutrophils are key components of inflammatory responses and immune defense against pathogens. Neutrophil functions are tightly controlled by surface receptors. Our study shows that the engagement of immunoglobulin-like transcript 4 (ILT4) inhibitory receptor impairs phagocytosis and respiratory burst of neutrophils. Moreover, we found that following induction of neutrophil granule exocytosis, ILT4 expression increases as a result of the rapid translocation of an intracellular pool to the cell surface. This increase of ILT4 expression enhances the ILT4-mediated inhibition of neutrophil activity. Finally, ILT4 up-regulation on neutrophils is impaired in sepsis patients. These results reveal a unique mechanism of regulation of neutrophil functions through ILT4 and its exocytosis that may have implications in inflammatory disorders and immune responses.
Chromosome missegregation rate predicts whether aneuploidy will promote or suppress tumors
Authors: Silk Alain D. , Zasadil Lauren M. , Holland Andrew J. , Vitre Benjamin , Cleveland Don W. , Weaver Beth A.
Published: October 2013

Significance

Aneuploidy, an abnormal chromosome content that commonly occurs because of errors in chromosome segregation, can promote or suppress tumor formation. What determines how aneuploidy influences tumorigenesis has remained unclear. Here we show that the rate of chromosome missegregation, rather than the level of accumulated aneuploidy, determines the effect on tumors. Increasing the rate of chromosome missegregation beyond a certain threshold suppresses tumors by causing cell death. Increasing errors of chromosome segregation did not affect tumor formation caused by genetic mutations that do not themselves alter chromosome inheritance. These results suggest that accelerating chromosome missegregation in chromosomally unstable tumors may be a useful strategy therapeutically.
Discretized Gaussian mixture for genotyping of microsatellite loci containing homopolymer runs
Authors: Tae Hongseok , Kim Dong-Yun , McCormick John , Settlage Robert E. , Garner Harold R.
Published: October 2013

Motivation: Inferring lengths of inherited microsatellite alleles with single base pair resolution from short sequence reads is challenging due to several sources of noise caused by the repetitive nature of microsatellites and the technologies used to generate raw sequence data.

Results: We have developed a program, GenoTan, using a discretized Gaussian mixture model combined with a rules-based approach to identify inherited variation of microsatellite loci from short sequence reads without paired-end information. It effectively distinguishes length variants from noise including insertion/deletion errors in homopolymer runs by addressing the bidirectional aspect of insertion and deletion errors in sequence reads. Here we first introduce a homopolymer decomposition method which estimates error bias toward insertion or deletion in homopolymer sequence runs. Combining these approaches, GenoTan was able to genotype 94.9% of microsatellite loci accurately from simulated data with 40x sequence coverage quickly while the other programs showed <90% correct calls for the same data and required 5∼30× more computational time than GenoTan. It also showed the highest true-positive rate for real data using mixed sequence data of two Drosophila inbred lines, which was a novel validation approach for genotyping.

Availability: GenoTan is open-source software available at http://genotan.sourceforge.net.

Contact:  garner@vbi.vt.edu

Supplementary Information:  Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online
A probabilistic approach to explore human miRNA targetome by integrating miRNA-overexpression data and sequence information
Authors: Li Yue , Goldenberg Anna , Wong Ka-Chun , Zhang Zhaolei
Published: October 2013

Motivation: Systematic identification of microRNA (miRNA) targets remains a challenge. The miRNA overexpression coupled with genome-wide expression profiling is a promising new approach and calls for a new method that integrates expression and sequence information.

Results: We developed a probabilistic scoring method called targetScore. TargetScore infers miRNA targets as the transformed fold-changes weighted by the Bayesian posteriors given observed target features. To this end, we compiled 84 datasets from Gene Expression Omnibus corresponding to 77 human tissue or cells and 113 distinct transfected miRNAs. Comparing with other methods, targetScore achieves significantly higher accuracy in identifying known targets in most tests. Moreover, the confidence targets from targetScore exhibit comparable protein downregulation and are more significantly enriched for Gene Ontology terms. Using targetScore, we explored oncomir–oncogenes network and predicted several potential cancer-related miRNA–messenger RNA interactions.

Availability and implementation: TargetScore is available at Bioconductor: http://www.bioconductor.org/packages/devel/bioc/html/TargetScore.html.

Contact: yueli@cs.toronto.edu or zhaolei.zhang@utoronto.ca

Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Novel NLRP3/cryopyrin mutations and pro-inflammatory cytokine profiles in Behçet’s syndrome patients
Authors: Yüksel Şahru , Eren Elif , Hatemi Gülen , Sahillioğlu Ali Can , Gültekin Yetiş , Demiröz Duygu , Akdiş Cezmi , Fresko İzzet , Özören Nesrin
Published: October 2013

Behçet’s syndrome (BS) is a systemic inflammatory disorder with unknown etiology. Features of both innate and adaptive immunity have been claimed in the pathogenesis of BS. To test the possible dysregulation of the NLRP3/cryopyrin (Nod-like receptor with a pyrin domain 3) inflammasome, as a result of mutation(s), we performed single-strand conformation polymorphism analyses and/or sequencing of all the coding regions and intron–exon boundaries of NLRP3/cryopyrin and ASC (apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing CARD) genes from Turkish BS patients and healthy controls. At the same time, we determined pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion profiles of peripheral blood cells in response to LPS treatment using ELISA. BS patients with vascular involvement showed significantly increased levels of TNF-α release at 2-, 4- and 8-h post-treatment and significantly increased IL-1β levels were detected at 2h (P = 0.005) and 4h (P = 0.025) (n = 10). We identified four mutations in the NLRP3/cryopyrin gene, V200M (n = 3/104) and T195M (n = 1/104), in BS patients but none in control samples. No mutations were detected in the ASC gene. The effect of these NLRP3/cryopyrin mutants on ASC speck assembly and IL-1β secretion was tested and the V200M mutant was shown to induce IL-1β secretion. Thus, it is likely that certain mutations in NLRP3/cryopyrin in combination with yet unknown other factors may contribute to the pro-inflammatory cytokine profiles in BS patients.
OxyR-dependent expression of a novel glutathione S-transferase (Abgst01) gene in Acinetobacter baumannii DS002 and its role in biotransformation of organophosphate insecticides
Authors: Longkumer Toshisangba , Parthasarathy Sunil , Vemuri Sujana Ghanta , Siddavattam Dayananda
Published: October 2013

While screening a genomic library ofAcinetobacter baumanniiDS002 isolated from organophosphate (OP)-polluted soils, nine ORFs were identified coding for glutathioneS-transferase (GST)-like proteins. These GSTs (AbGST01–AbGST09) are phylogenetically related to a number of well-characterized GST classes found in taxonomically diverse groups of organisms. Interestingly, expression ofAbgst01(GenBank accession no. KF151191) was upregulated when the bacterium was grown in the presence of an OP insecticide, methyl parathion (MeP). The gene product, AbGST01, dealkylated MeP to desMeP. An OxyR-binding motif was identified directly upstream ofAbgst01. AnAbgst–lacZgene fusion lacking the OxyR-binding site showed a drastic reduction in promoter activity. Very low β-galactosidase activity levels were observed when theAbgst–lacZfusion was mobilized into anoxyR(GenBank accession no. KF151190) null mutant ofA. baumanniiDS002, confirming the important role of OxyR. The OxyR-binding sites are not found upstream of otherAbgst(Abgst02–Abgst09) genes. However, they contained consensus sequence motifs that can serve as possible target sites for certain well-characterized transcription factors. In support of this observation, theAbgstgenes responded differentially to different oxidative stress inducers. TheAbgstgenes identified inA. baumanniiDS002 are found to be conserved highly among all known genome sequences ofA. baumanniistrains. The versatile ecological adaptability ofA. baumanniistrains is apparent if sequence conservation is seen together with their involvement in detoxification processes.
Induction of mucosal immunity and protection by intranasal immunization with a respiratory syncytial virus subunit vaccine formulation
Authors: Garg R. , Latimer L. , Simko E. , Gerdts V. , Potter A. , van Drunen Littel‐van den Hurk S.
Published: October 2013

The majority of infections, including those caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), occur at mucosal surfaces. As no RSV vaccine is available our goal is to produce an effective subunit vaccine with an adjuvant suitable for mucosal delivery and cross-presentation. A truncated secreted version of the RSV fusion (ΔF) protein formulated with polyI : C, an innate defence regulator peptide and polyphosphazene, induced local and systemic immunity, including affinity maturation of RSV F-specific IgG, IgA and virus-neutralizing antibodies, and F-specific CD8+T-cells in the lung, when delivered intranasally. Furthermore, this ΔF protein formulation promoted the production of CD8+central memory T-cells in the mediastinal lymph nodes and provided protection from RSV challenge. Formulation of ΔF protein with this adjuvant combination enhanced uptake by lung dendritic cells and trafficking to the draining lymph nodes. The ΔF protein formulation was confirmed to be highly efficacious and safe in cotton rats.
The Tomato 14-3-3 Protein TFT4 Modulates H+ Efflux, Basipetal Auxin Transport, and the PKS5-J3 Pathway in the Root Growth Response to Alkaline Stress
Authors: Xu Weifeng , Jia Liguo , Shi Weiming , Balu¡ka Franti¡ek , Kronzucker Herbert J. , Liang Jiansheng , Zhang Jianhua
Published: October 2013

Alkaline stress is a common environmental stress, in particular in salinized soils. Plant roots respond to a variety of soil stresses by regulating their growth, but the nature of the regulatory pathways engaged in the alkaline stress response (ASR) is not yet understood. Previous studies show that PIN-FORMED2, an auxin (indole-3-acetic acid [IAA]) efflux transporter, PKS5, a protein kinase, and DNAJ HOMOLOG3 (J3), a chaperone, play key roles in root H+ secretion by regulating plasma membrane (PM) H+-ATPases directly or by targeting 14-3-3 proteins. Here, we investigated the expression of all 14-3-3 gene family members (TOMATO 14-3-3 PROTEIN1 [TFT1]–TFT12) in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) under ASR, showing the involvement of four of them, TFT1, TFT4, TFT6, and TFT7. When these genes were separately introduced into Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and overexpressed, only the growth of TFT4 overexpressors was significantly enhanced when compared with the wild type under stress. H+ efflux and the activity of PM H+-ATPase were significantly enhanced in the root tips of TFT4 overexpressors. Microarray analysis and pharmacological examination of the overexpressor and mutant plants revealed that overexpression of TFT4 maintains primary root elongation by modulating PM H+-ATPase-mediated H+ efflux and basipetal IAA transport in root tips under alkaline stress. TFT4 further plays important roles in the PKS5-J3 signaling pathway. Our study demonstrates that TFT4 acts as a regulator in the integration of H+ efflux, basipetal IAA transport, and the PKS5-J3 pathway in the ASR of roots and coordinates root apex responses to alkaline stress for the maintenance of primary root elongation.
The adjudication of Shari'ah issues in Islamic financial contracts
Authors: Trakic Adnan
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– This research aims to explore the possibility of raising and adjudicating Shari'ah issues in Islamic financial contracts before the secular courts with specific reference to the UK and Malaysia.

Design/methodology/approach

– This is a legal research, and therefore, the paper uses the qualitative research methodology whereby a content analysis, in-depth case study, and library-based research were mainly used.

Findings

– Shari'ah issues raised before the UK courts, and arguably, before the secular courts in other Western jurisdictions, would not be adjudicated and enforced. English courts, in particular, would decide Islamic financial contracts according to the English law, disregarding Shari'ah issues. Conversely, Shari'ah issues raised before Malaysian civil courts would be duly adjudicated and enforced. The civil court is bound, by the new Central Bank of Malaysia Act 2009, to refer those issues to the Shari'ah Advisory Council of the Central Bank of Malaysia for them to be ascertained. The subsequent ruling of the SAC is binding on the courts.

Originality/value

– The Malaysian model for the adjudication of Shari'ah issues in Islamic financial contracts is very effective. Therefore, the research proposes to the parties in international Islamic financial contracts to choose Malaysian law as the law of reference and Malaysian courts as the forum for settlement of disputes. The Malaysian model, being already tested, can also be successfully exported to other countries wishing to introduce or develop Islamic finance.
Anomaly detection based on hybrid artificial immune principles
Authors: Salah Sobh Tarek
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– Anomaly detection of network attacks has become a high priority because of the need to guarantee security, privacy and reliability. This work aims to describe both intelligent immunological approaches and traditional monitoring systems for anomaly detection.

Design/methodology/approach

– Author investigated different artificial immune system (AIS) theories and proposes how to combine different ideas to solve problems of network security domain. An anomaly detection system that applies those ideas was built and tested in a real time environment, to test the pros and cons of AIS and clarify its applicability. Rather than building a detailed signature based model of intrusion detection system, the scope of this study tries to explore the principle in an immune network focusing on its self-organization, adaptive learning capability, and immune feedback.

Findings

– The natural immune system has its own intelligent mechanisms to detect the foreign bodies and fight them and without it, an individual cannot live, even just for several days. Network attackers evolved new types of attacks. Attacks became more complex, severe and hard to detect. This results in increasing needs for network defense systems, especially those with ability to extraordinary approaches or to face the dynamic nature of continuously changing network threats. KDD CUP'99 dataset are used as a training data to evaluate the proposed hybrid artificial immune principles anomaly detection. The average cost of the proposed model was 0.1195 where that the wining of KDD99 dataset computation had 0.233.

Originality/value

– It is original to introduce investigation on the vaccination biological process. A special module was built to perform this process and check its usage and how it could be formulated in artificial life.
Estimates on the effectiveness of web application firewalls against targeted attacks
Authors: Holm Hannes , Ekstedt Mathias
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to estimate the effectiveness of web application firewalls (WAFs) at preventing injection attacks by professional penetration testers given presence or absence of four conditions: whether there is an experienced operator monitoring the WAF; whether an automated black box tool has been used when tuning the WAF; whether the individual tuning the WAF is an experienced professional; and whether significant effort has been spent tuning the WAF.

Design/methodology/approach

– Estimates on the effectiveness of WAFs are made for 16 operational scenarios utilizing judgments by 49 domain experts participating in a web survey. The judgments of these experts are pooled using Cooke's classical method.

Findings

– The results show that the median prevention rate of a WAF is 80 percent if all measures have been employed. If no measure is employed then its median prevention rate is 25 percent. Also, there are no strong dependencies between any of the studied measures.

Research limitations/implications

– The results are only valid for the attacker profile of a professional penetration tester who prepares one week for attacking a WA protected by a WAF.

Practical implications

– The competence of the individual(s) tuning a WAF, employment of an automated black box tool for tuning and the manual effort spent on tuning are of great importance for the effectiveness of a WAF. The presence of an operator monitoring it has minor positive influence on its effectiveness.

Originality/value

– WA vulnerabilities are widely considered a serious concern. To manage them in deployed software, many enterprises employ WAFs. However, the effectiveness of this type of countermeasure under different operational scenarios is largely unknown.
The impact of institutional ownership and corporate debt on audit quality
Authors: R. Almutairi Ali
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of institutional holdings and corporate debts on audit quality, proxied by auditor industry specialization.

Design/methodology/approach

– The tests use regression analysis for a sample of 396 company-years from 2003 to 2008 and control for factors known to affect auditor industry specialization.

Findings

– The results show a positive association between institutional ownership and auditor industry specialization. These results are consistent across most measures of auditor industry specialization and different thresholds of audit firm market share. In addition, a positive link is reported between corporate debt and industry specialization by auditors. This result, however, holds under the composite proxy in terms of total assets only.

Research limitations/implications

– The major limitation is the unavailability of data on audit fees and sales (revenues) to measure auditor market share.

Practical implications

– Institutional investors and debtholders have preference for auditors who can enhance the credibility of financial reporting and improve the quality of financial information and the results document that the choice of specialist auditors can potentially influence this objective.

Originality/value

– The paper provides information to academics, regulators, companies, and auditors concerning the impact of institutional investors and creditors on the choice of industry specialists. Also, it shows the importance of industry specialization on audit quality.
Key factors for entrepreneurial success
Authors: Javier Maqueda Lafuente Francisco , María Gil Lafuente Anna , F. Guzman-Parra Vanesa , Gil Lafuente Jaime
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– The purpose of this study is to explore the incidence between the actions to be taken by business promoters and the degree or level of success in creating new businesses.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper matches data from market research based on a questionnaire sent to Spanish startups (years 2006-2010). The paper uses a methodology that is based on the “forgotten effects model”.

Findings

– Results show the elements that make up the target objectives are financing needs, marketing actions, continued innovation, and efforts in the areas of internationalization and sustainability.

Originality/value

– Using the forgotten effects model approach, this research tries to analyze the role that entrepreneurship actions play in the success of a project's objectives, taking into account not only the direct effects but also the indirect objectives.
Modified macroporous adsorption resin (LX1180) used to adsorb flavonoid
Authors: Chen Zhenbin , Long Jiapeng , Kang Lei , Du Xueyan , Di Duolong , Liu Jingbo
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to prepare a higher chloromethylation degree (CD) modified macroporous adsorption resin (MAR, LX1180-Cl) and further study their adsorption performance.

Design/methodology/approach

– CD and crosslinking degree were evaluated using stationary potential step and rotating-disk method, the adsorption performance of LX1180-Cl and LX1180 for flavonoids were studied using the UV-VIS spectrophotometry.

Findings

– This research realized high CD (9.6 mass %) on high crosslinking MAR, LX1180. In tandem, the adsorption performance of them to flavonoids finds that the matching degree of polarity (presented with CD) and size were the critical factor to adsorption. It was also found that the reaction time had reduced to 24 h with the addition of iron particles into the zinc chloride (ZnCl2) catalyst.

Research limitations/implications

– The study on reaction mechanism and the function principle of hybrid catalyst were speculated, but not the rigid experimental result.

Practical implications

– This contribution can provide a rule for the separation and purification of natural products with the aim to improve food additive removal or isolation and purification of flavonoids used for healthcare applications.

Originality/value

– This contribution provided a novel way to obtain high degree of CD with high crosslinking MAR, CD of commercially available MAR was improved by 2.5 times to 9.6 percent under crosslinking degree at 58.2 percent, compared with reported CD value (ca. 4.2 percent under crosslinking degree at 20.0 percent), which will be useful in the following further systematically research about the adsorption and separation selectivity of MAR. Besides, the primitive chosen principle of MAR according to the substrate was also presented. Moreover, the chloromethylation mechanism, although speculative, was briefly presented, which will stimulate the related study.
Learning from experience or learning for convenience?
Authors: Martelli Duccio
Published: October 2013

Purpose

– This paper aims to understand whether the initiative of financial education through the use of simulations effectively teaches participants to operate in the markets in a profitable manner, while avoiding some cognitive biases.

Design/methodology/approach

– The use of simulations and computer applications in financial markets is now recognized as effective teaching methodology in the field of financial education, thanks to the active involvement of the participants in the learning process. This paper analyses a case study, taking into consideration from a qualitative point of view transactions made in the financial markets, with real money, by a group of teams composed of university students.

Findings

– The first results of the analysis show how the simulation does not allow for a significant improvement in the performance of the teams over the course of the game; on the contrary, most of the teams seem to show increasingly speculative, and indeed opportunistic, behavior as the end of the competition approaches. These conclusions can be extended to most simulations carried out in the financial markets that, as with the game studied in this analysis, demonstrate an asymmetry in the final phase and the remuneration of the participants.

Originality/value

– This contribution is therefore unique due to the subject of the analysis: up to this point there have not been any other trading simulations at the international level where the money invested was actually real.
Making Traceability Work across the Entire Food Supply Chain
Authors: Bhatt Tejas , Buckley Greg , McEntire Jennifer C. , Lothian Paul , Sterling Brian , Hickey Caitlin
Published: October 2013

The Institute of Food Technologists held Traceability Research Summits on July 14, August 22, and November 1, 2011, to address how to meet the growing requirement for agriculture and food traceability. Each meeting had a group of about 50 individuals who came from food companies, trade associations, local, state, and federal governments, 3rd‐party traceability solution providers, not‐for‐profit corporations, consultants, and consumer groups. They discussed and deliberated the objectives of traceability and the means to develop product tracing in the food system. A total of 70 people participated in the 3 summits. These individuals were invited to participate in a small workgroup responsible for considering the details related to product tracing and presenting draft concepts to the larger group on November 1, 2011, in Chicago. During this meeting, the larger assembly further refined the concepts and came to an agreement on the basic principles and overall design of the desired approach to traceability.
Metabolic Changes during the Pu‐erh Tea Pile‐Fermentation Revealed by a Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass‐Spectrometry‐Based Metabolomics Approach
Authors: Chen Hongxia , Cui Fengxia , Li Hao , Sheng Jun , Lv Jie
Published: October 2013

In the current study, liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry combined with multivariate statistical analyses was employed to investigate the time‐varying biochemical changes during the pile‐fermentation process with the emphasis on the active ingredients to clarify the manufacturing process of ripened pu‐erh tea as a whole. The metabolite profiles of different manufacturing processes were unique and could be distinguished with the aid of principal component analysis. Furthermore, partial least‐squares discriminant analysis revealed a pairwise discrimination between the raw material group and pile‐fermentation process groups or the final product group, and 48 differential metabolites with variable importance in the projection value greater than 1 were identified, which was confirmed by the subsequent hierarchical cluster analysis. These results highlight our current understanding of the exact changing process of the bioactive compounds during the pile fermentation, and the global change of these bioactive compounds provides the special flavor, taste, and health promoting effects of ripened pu‐erh tea.
Serum vitamin D level and disease activity in patients with recent onset rheumatoid arthritis
Authors: Zakeri Zahra , Sandoughi Mahnaz , Mashhadi Mohammad A. , Raeesi Vajihollah , Shahbakhsh Sogol
Published: October 2013

Introduction

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is one of the most prevalent autoimmune diseases. Due to the significance of the relationship between serum vitamin D levels and autoimmune diseases, this study aimed to determine the relationship between serum vitamin D level and the severity of disease activity in patients with newly diagnosed RA.

Method

This cross‐sectional study was conducted on 66 patients meeting the American College of Rheumatology – European League Against Rheumatism classification criteria for RA. It was performed in 2012 using simple sampling. The disease activity was measured based on Disease Activity Score of 28 joints – erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28‐ESR) and serum 25‐OH vitamin D (25(OH)D) levels using the chemiluminescent immunoassay method. In addition, the levels of ESR and C‐reactive protein (CRP), the duration of morning stiffness, and the number of joints with tenderness and swollen were calculated as well. The data were analyzed using the Pearson correlation coefficient.

Results

In this study, 10 patients were male (15.2%) and 56 were female (84.8%). The average age of the participants was 45.2 ± 15.3 years. The average level of 25(OH)D in the patients' serum was 30.5 ± 28.9 ng/mL and the mean DAS28‐ESR was 5.6 ± 1.1. The correlation coefficient showed that there was an inverse relationship between 25(OH)D and DAS28‐ESR, the number of tender and swollen joints, global patient assessment and duration of morning stiffness (P < 0.01). However, the average 25(OH)D level was not related to ESR (P = 0.779) and CRP (P = 0.269).

Conclusion

The results of this analysis indicated that patients with more active RA have a lower serum vitamin D level.
A new thermoregulatory index for heterothermy
Authors: Muñoz‐Garcia Agustí , Ben‐Hamo Miriam , Korine Carmi , Pinshow Berry , Williams Joseph B.
Published: October 2013

The controlled adjustment of body temperature (Tb) by animals in relation to ambient temperature (Ta), or heterothermy, is a phenomenon that has a clear adaptive value. Heterothermy results in a substantial reduction in energy expenditure and water loss, but it also incurs costs, such as the energy cost required for rewarming, energy cost of excretion of metabolic wastes, delayed development of offspring and fitness costs of increased vulnerability to predators. A general index quantifying heterothermy would be useful, since heterothermy is often correlated with important physiological variables that determine fitness.

We used metabolic rate (MR), Tb and Ta to develop a thermoregulatory index (TRi), a continuous variable that describes the thermoregulatory effort of animals. TRi is expressed by an equation with two terms: the deviation of actual heat gain/dissipation to heat gain/dissipation predicted by first principles and the temperature dependence of metabolic reactions.

TRi can be interpreted as a measure of the amount of time an animal needs to generate an amount of heat, estimated from physical principles, to reach a certain Tb along a temperature gradient.

TRi eliminates the need to define a threshold for Tb and can be used to compare positions of animals along a thermoregulatory continuum within and among species of diverse taxonomic affiliation. In addition, TRi unveils the relationship between the energy expended for thermoregulation and important physiological variables that determine survival and reproduction. TRi requires knowledge of MR, which may be a disadvantage since information on MR for free‐living animals may be difficult to obtain. However, with the advent of methods to measure field metabolism, this impediment may be surmountable in many species.
Degraded Work, Declining Community, Rising Inequality, and the Transformation of the Protestant Ethic inAmerica: 1870–1930
Authors: Wisman Jon D. , Davis Matthew E.
Published: October 2013

The Protestant ethic has been depicted as declining inAmerica between 1870 and 1930, due to new consumer durables and less rewarding work. This study finds that the Protestant ethic did not so much decline as become transformed. The work ethic remained in force, while frugality weakened. This transformation is traced to three dynamic social forces: degradation in the quality of work due to industrialization, the decline of community with urbanization, and a dramatic increase in inequality. Consequently, social respect and social standing came increasingly to be sought through consumption, which became a proxy for hard work, entailing a weakening of asceticism.
Schumpeter, Commons, and Veblen on Institutions
Authors: Papageorgiou Theofanis , Katselidis Ioannis , Michaelides Panayotis G.
Published: October 2013

This article compares Schumpeter, Veblen, and Commons with regard to institutions setting up the paradigm of institutional evolutionary economics. Their theories are of a complex nature, and as such, it is very difficult to situate them in a clear‐cut tradition. The main similarity is their opposition to the thesis that market economy is an independent and self‐regulating system, in an attempt to integrate economic, sociological, and political perspectives with regard to the functioning of the system. Also, change per se is in contrast to the notion of equilibrium. Of course, despite the parallels, the existence of differences is undeniable.
Are Mainstream and Heterodox Economists Different? An Empirical Analysis
Authors: Maio Michele Di
Published: October 2013

We explore the differences between mainstream and heterodox economists based on the responses to a questionnaire from a representative sample of Italian economists. Using different definitions for mainstream and heterodox economics, we compare the individual and academic characteristics of the economists belonging to these groups. We measure the within and between disagreement for each group and we test whether belonging to one or the other group predicts differences in economists' opinions on economic policy. Results show that: 1) mainstream and heterodox economists differ as to individual and academic characteristics and political views; 2) the disagreement within heterodox economics is lower than within mainstream economics; 3) some of commonly used ways of grouping heterodox and mainstream schools of thought have little explicative power in relation to individual opinions; 4) on critical economic policies, the opinions of heterodox and mainstream economists are significantly different even after controlling for a number of individual characteristics, including political opinions.
Leptin – A Link between Obesity and Osteoarthritis. Applications for Prevention and Treatment
Authors: Vuolteenaho Katriina , Koskinen Anna , Moilanen Eeva
Published: October 2013

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common cause of musculoskeletal disability and pain in the world. The current drug treatment for OA is symptom relieving, and there is an urgent need for treatments that could retard, prevent or repair cartilage destruction in OA. Obesity is a major risk factor for OA. Traditionally, it has been thought to contribute to the development of OA by increasing the load on weight‐bearing joints. However, this appears to be an over‐simplification, because obesity is also linked to OA in the hand and finger joints. Recent studies have shown that adipocytokine leptin is a possible link between obesity and OA: Leptin levels in synovial fluid are increased in obese patients, leptin receptor (Ob‐R) is expressed in cartilage, and leptin induces the production of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), pro‐inflammatory mediators and nitric oxide (NO) in chondrocytes. Furthermore, according to the very recent findings, not only leptin levels in the joint but also leptin sensitivity in the cartilage are enhanced in obese OA patients. The findings supporting leptin as a causative link between obesity and OA offer leptin as a potential target to the development of disease‐modifying drugs for osteoarthritis (DMOAD), especially for obese patients.
Monocyte implication in renal allograft dysfunction
Authors: Guillén-Gómez E , Guirado L , Belmonte X , Maderuelo A , Santín S , Juarez C , Ars E , Facundo C , Ballarín J A , Vidal S , Díaz-Encarnación M M
Published: October 2013

Macrophages are involved in the development and progression of kidney fibrosis. The aim of this study was to analyse the phenotype of circulating monocytes and their ability to predict kidney allograft dysfunction in living kidney transplant recipients. Whole blood samples from 25 kidney recipients and 17 donors were collected at five time-points. Monocyte phenotype was analysed by flow cytometry, and interleukin (IL)-10 and soluble CD163 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. One week after transplantation, surface CD163 and IL-10 levels increased significantly from baseline [2·99 ± 1·38 mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) to 5·18 ± 2·42 MFI for CD163; 4·5 ± 1·46 pg/ml to 6·7 ± 2·5 pg/ml for IL-10]. This CD163 increase correlated with 4-month creatinine levels (r = 0·4394, P = 0·04). However, soluble CD163 decreased significantly from baseline at 1 week (797·11 ± 340·45 ng/ml to 576·50 ± 293·60 ng/ml). CD14+CD16– monocytes increased at 4 months and correlated positively with creatinine levels at 12 and 24 months (r = 0·6348, P = 0·002 and r = 0·467, P = 0·028, respectively) and negatively with Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) at 12 months (r = 0·6056, P = 0·003). At 4 months, IL-10 decreased significantly (P = 0·008) and correlated positively with creatinine at 2 years (r = 0·68, P = 0·010) and with CD14+ CD16– monocytes at 4 months (r = 0·732, P = 0·004). At 24 h, levels of human leucocyte antigen D-related declined from 12·12 ± 5·99 to 5·21 ± 3·84 and CD86 expression decreased from 2·76 ± 1·08 to 1·87 ± 0·95. Both markers recovered progressively until 12 months, when they decreased again. These results indicate that monitoring monocytes could be a promising new prognostic tool of graft dysfunction in renal transplant patients.
Perforating elastic fibers (‘elastic fiber trapping’) in the differentiation of keratoacanthoma, conventional squamous cell carcinoma and pseudocarcinomatous epithelial hyperplasia
Authors: Shah Kabeer , Kazlouskaya Viktoryia , Lal Karan , Molina David , Elston Dirk M.
Published: October 2013

Keratoacanthoma (KA), an epithelial neoplasm occurring in sun‐exposed skin of the elderly, is considered a well‐differentiated form of conventional squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) that often follows a course of spontaneous regression. Distinguishing KA from conventional SCC or pseudocarcinomatous epithelial hyperplasia ensures proper diagnosis, treatment and management. For some time, perforating elastic fibers have been utilized in differentiating KA from SCC. This phenomenon may also occur in association with scars and hypertrophic lupus erythematosus (LE). To assess the diagnostic utility of perforating elastic fibers, we compared their incidence in KA, SCC, scars with overlying pseudocarcinomatous hyperplasia, hypertrophic LE, hypertrophic lichen planus (LP) and lichen simplex chronicus (LSC). A retrospective case search identified 359 lesions and the presence of perforating elastic fibers was evaluated using routinely stained sections. This phenomenon was documented in all studied groups except hypertrophic LP. The incidence was found to be 71% in KA, 37% in SCC, and was lowest in inflammatory conditions with associated pseudocarcinomatous hyperplasia (hypertrophic LP 0%, hypertrophic LE 5.9% and LSC 28.2%). The observed frequency in pseudocarcinomatous hyperplasia overlying scars (57.8%) vs. KA (71%) was not statistically different. Although elastic fiber trapping has potential value as a diagnostic criterion for KA, dermatopathologists should consider its limitations. Its diagnostic utility was greatest in distinguishing KA from hypertrophic LE and hypertrophic LP. Conversely, elastic trapping is not helpful differentiating pseudocarcinomatous hyperplasia from recurrent/persistent KA following surgery.
Combined Baseline Strain Dyssynchrony Index and Its Acute Reduction Predicts Mid‐Term Left Ventricular Reverse Remodeling and Long‐Term Outcome after Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy
Authors: Tatsumi Kazuhiro , Tanaka Hidekazu , Matsumoto Kensuke , Miyoshi Tatsuya , Hiraishi Mana , Tsuji Takayuki , Kaneko Akihiro , Ryo Keiko , Fukuda Yuko , Norisada Kazuko , Onishi Tetsuari , Yoshida Akihiro , Kawai Hiroya , Hirata Ken‐ichi
Published: October 2013

The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that combining assessment of baseline radial strain dyssynchrony index (SDI), that expressed both left ventricular (LV) dyssynchrony and residual myocardial contractility, and of acute changes in this index can yield more accurate prediction of mid‐term responders and long‐term outcome after cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Radial SDI for 75 CRT patients was calculated as the average difference between peak and end‐systolic speckle tracking strain from 6 segments of the mid‐LV short‐axis view before and 8 ± 2 days after CRT. Mid‐term responder was defined as ≥15% decrease in LV end‐systolic volume 6 ± 2 months after CRT. Long‐term outcome was tracked over 5 years. Baseline radial SDI ≥6.5% is considered predictive of responder and favorable outcome, as previously reported. Acute reduction in radial SDI ≥1.5% was found to be the best predictor of mid‐term responders with CRT. Furthermore, patients with acute reductions in radial SDI ≥1.5% were associated with a significantly more favorable long‐term outcome after CRT than those with radial SDI <1.5% (log rank P < 0.001). An important findings were that baseline radial SDI ≥6.5% and acute reductions in radial SDI ≥1.5% in 42 patients were associated with the highest event‐free survival rate of 92%, whereas, 21 patients corresponding values of <6.5% and <1.5% were associated with low event‐free survival rate of 46% (log rank P < 0.001). Combined assessment of baseline radial SDI and its acute reduction after CRT may have clinical implications for predicting responders and thus patients' care.
New Approach for Rotational Dyssynchrony Using Three‐Dimensional Speckle Tracking Echocardiography
Authors: Lee Yasuharu , Mori Naoki , Nakamura Daisuke , Yoshimura Takahiro , Taniike Masayuki , Makino Nobuhiko , Kato Hiroyasu , Egami Yasuyuki , Shutta Ryu , Tanouchi Jun , Yamada Yoshio , Nishino Masami
Published: October 2013

Left ventricular (LV) twist can be evaluated using two‐dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2DSTE) by analyzing difference between apical and basal rotation. However, it is unable to evaluate global rotational dyssynchrony because it cannot assess mid‐wall rotation. Recently developed three‐dimensional STE (3DSTE) can investigate LV global rotational dyssynchrony. In this study, we investigated the role of torsion on the long‐term effects of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) using 3DSTE. We evaluated 43 patients by 3DSTE: 12 CRT responders, 14 CRT nonresponders, and 17 healthy normal controls. Regional torsion and rotation were assessed using 3DSTE across 16 segments during CRT‐off (native conduction) and CRT‐on. The following parameters were calculated: global peak twist, Δ global peak twist (difference between CRT‐on and CRT‐off), and torsion delay index. The torsion delay index was considered to be the rotational energy lost by rotational dyssynchrony. Global peak twist did not show significant differences between the responders and nonresponders during CRT‐off (4.0 ± 3.4° vs. 2.8 ± 2.3°, P = 0.295), but it significantly improved in responders compared to nonresponders after CRT‐on (5.4 ± 3.5° vs. 2.6 ± 2.6°, P = 0.029). The torsion delay index during CRT‐off was significantly higher in responders compared to nonresponders and normal controls (18.5 ± 11.3 vs. 8.6 ± 3.8 and 7.8 ± 5.5, P = 0.010 and P = 0.004, respectively). The torsion delay index during CRT‐off significantly correlated with the Δ global peak twist (r = 0.503, P = 0.009). Improvement in LV global peak twist, which is one of the mechanisms for the long‐term effects of CRT correlated with the torsion delay index during native conduction that can only be calculated by 3DSTE.
DECOMPOSING TRENDS IN INCOME VOLATILITY: THE “WILD RIDE” AT THE TOP AND BOTTOM
Authors: HARDY BRADLEY , ZILIAK JAMES P.
Published: October 2013

We use 2‐year panels from the Current Population Survey to provide a detailed accounting of family income volatility from 1980 to 2009. Volatility doubled overall, and the increase was most pronounced among the top 1% of the income distribution, but in any given year the level of volatility among the bottom 10% exceeds that of the top. The increased volatility comes from higher instability of head and spouse earnings, other nonlabor income, and from reduced covariance between these income sources with the tax system. This suggests that current tax policy is less effective in mitigating income shocks than previous decades. (JEL J31, I30)
LOST IN THE MAIL: A FIELD EXPERIMENT ON CRIME
Authors: CASTILLO MARCO , PETRIE RAGAN , TORERO MAXIMO , VICEISZA ANGELINO
Published: October 2013

Stealing, shirking, and opportunistic behavior in general can create barriers to the development of markets. The costs associated with such behavior are shared by both firms and individuals and can be large enough to even prevent the initiation of trade. Measurement of these costs is difficult because information is not available for transactions that fail to occur. We use a field experiment to identify opportunistic crime in a task that is important and relevant for trade: the delivery of mail. We subtly manipulate the content and information available in mail sent to households across neighborhoods that vary by income, and detected high levels of shirking and stealing. Eighteen percent of the mail never arrived at its destination, and significantly more was lost if there was even a slight hint of something additional inside the envelope. Our results demonstrate the importance of transaction costs created by crime and that not all populations are equally affected. Middle‐income neighborhoods suffer the most. (JEL C93, K42, H41, L87, O21)
Moral Pluralism and Sex Education
Authors: Corngold Josh
Published: October 2013

How should common schools in a liberal pluralist society approach sex education in the face of deep disagreement about sexual morality? Should they eschew sex education altogether? Should they narrow its focus to facts about biology, reproduction, and disease prevention? Should they, in addition to providing a broad palette of information about sex, attempt to cover a range of alternative views about sexual morality in a “value‐neutral” manner? Should they seek to impart a “thick” conception of sexual morality, which precisely articulates how individuals should lead their sexual lives? In this essay, Josh Corngold cautions against the adoption of each of these various approaches. He argues that schools should instead adopt an “autonomy‐promoting” approach, which will aim to empower students, cognitively and emotionally, to exercise sovereignty over their own sexuality.
The Aims of Sex Education: Demoting Autonomy and Promoting Mutuality
Authors: McAvoy Paula
Published: October 2013

In this essay, Paula McAvoy critiques a commonly held view that teaching young people to be good choice makers should be a central aim of sex education. Specifically, she argues against David Archard's recommendation that sex educators ought to focus on the development of autonomy and teaching young people that “choice should be accorded the central role in the legitimation of sexual conduct.” Instead, McAvoy argues that under conditions of gender inequality this view advantages boys and disadvantages girls. Juxtaposing a case of a culturally arranged marriage with a spring break scene from Ariel Levy's Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture, McAvoy shows that focusing on sexual choice making obscures and reifies the unequal social conditions that young people navigate. She concludes by suggesting an alternative that is in line with Sharon Lamb's argument in “Just the Facts? The Separation of Sex Education from Moral Education” that intimate encounters are better governed by attending to our ethical obligations to others.