bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Temperature and damage influence on electromechanical impedance method used for carbon fibre–reinforced polymer panels
Authors: Wandowski Tomasz , Malinowski Pawel H , Ostachowicz Wieslaw M
Published: July 2016

This article deals with damage detection process under varying temperature. Carbon fibre–reinforced polymer samples are investigated using electromechanical impedance method. In the article, influence of changing temperature on resistance in electromechanical impedance is investigated. Authors propose new approach for compensation of temperature influence on damage detection. Damage detection is based on root mean square deviation index. Due to strong damping of utilized composite material, low-frequency range is utilized in this research. Real part of electromechanical impedance is measured for frequency band 1–20 kHz. Damage is in the form of artificially made delamination with different sizes. Authors also discuss the problem of influence of structure’s boundary condition on low-frequency measurements. In the research, scanning laser vibrometry for guided wave propagation method is utilized for visualization of the introduced delamination.
Diagnosis and validation of damaged piezoelectric sensor in electromechanical impedance technique
Authors: Ai Demi , Luo Hui , Zhu Hongping
Published: July 2016

Piezoelectric sensor diagnosis and validity assessment as a prior component of structural health monitoring system are necessary in the practical application of electromechanical impedance technique. This article proposed an innovative sensor self-diagnosis process based on extracting the characterization of the real admittance (inverse of impedance) signature within a high-frequency range, which covered both diagnosis on damaged sensor after its installation and discrimination of sensor and structural damages during structural health monitoring process. Theoretical analysis was derived from the impedance model of piezoelectric-bonding layer-structure dynamic interaction system. Experimental investigations on piezoelectric sensor-bonded steel beam involved with structural damages of mass addition and notch damage were conducted to verify the process. It was found that the real admittance was reliable and critical in sensor diagnosis, and sensor faults of debonding, scratch, and breakage can be identified and differentiated from structural damage. Validity assessment of the diagnosed damaged sensor was addressed through resonant frequency shift method. The results showed that the validity of damaged sensor for structural health monitoring was inordinately depreciated by sensor damage. This article is expected to be useful for structural health monitoring application especially when damaged piezoelectric sensors existed.
Validation of a Spanish Version of the Marwit–Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory Short Form in a Puerto Rican Sample
Authors: Alvelo Jaime , Cancio-Gonzalez Rafael E. , Collazo Andrés
Published: July 2016

Purpose:

This study was intended to adapt into Spanish and validate the short form of the Marwit–Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory (MMCGI), an instrument for the assessment of levels of grief in caregivers of patients with dementia.

Method:

The adaptation was based on the cross-cultural equivalence model that included forward and backward translations, use of a bilingual committee, and a comprehension test. The validation study was carried out with 100 Puerto Rican caregivers.

Results:

Semantic and content equivalence were attained as judged by the bilingual committee. Conceptual equivalence was only partially supported as factor analysis failed to replicate the three-factor structure proposed for the original English version. A one-factor structure was the best suitable for the Spanish version. On the other hand, correlations of the total scores of this version of the instrument with measures of constructs expected to be related to grief supported conceptual equivalence.

Discussion:

The Spanish version of the MMCGI was found equivalent to the English counterpart except for its dimensionality.
Scaling Up Social Problems
Authors: Rodriguez Maria Y. , Ostrow Laysha , Kemp Susan P.
Published: July 2016

The Grand Challenges for Social Work Initiative aims to focus the profession’s attention on how social work can play a larger role in mitigating contemporary social problems. Yet a central issue facing contemporary social work is its seeming reticence to engage with social problems, and their solutions, beyond individual-level interventions. Social work research, we contend, must more consistently link case and cause, iteratively developing processes for bringing micro-, mezzo-, and macrostreams of information together. We further argue that meaningful engagement with the initiative requires social work scholars and practitioners to actively scale up practice and research inquiry. We detail two key strategies for employing a scaled-up social work practice and research ethos: (a) employing a critical economic lens and (b) engaging with diverse publics. As proof of concept for these arguments, we offer an early example of progressive era social workers scaling up responses to a pressing social issue: infant mortality.
A Historical Perspective on the Future of Innovation in Social Work
Authors: Okpych Nathanael J.
Published: July 2016

Changing social work from a profession with innovators to a profession that innovates will likely require an innovation movement. This article draws on lessons from a prior movement in social work to suggest implications for a future innovation movement. Empirical clinical practice (ECP), a movement in social work in the 1970–1990s, sought to transform social work into a profession that was thoroughly grounded in the empirical investigation. The success of ECP was stifled by four factors around investment from key stakeholders, developing useable and effective technologies, propagating the movement, and addressing workplace barriers. This article argues that an innovation movement will require early investment from many sectors and levels of the profession, effective arrangements for generating new options for addressing social problems, effective methods for diffusing and implementing the movement, and frank appraisal of organizational contexts that can stymie innovation.
Can Playing an End-of-Life Conversation Game Motivate People to Engage in Advance Care Planning?
Authors: Van Scoy Lauren J. , Green Michael J. , Reading Jean M. , Scott Allison M. , Chuang Cynthia H. , Levi Benjamin H.
Published: July 2016

Background:

Advance care planning (ACP) involves several behaviors that individuals undertake to prepare for future medical care should they lose decision-making capacity. The goal of this study was to assess whether playing a conversation game could motivate participants to engage in ACP.

Methods:

Sixty-eight English-speaking, adult volunteers (n = 17 games) from communities around Hershey, Pennsylvania, and Lexington, Kentucky, played a conversation card game about end-of-life issues. Readiness to engage in 4 ACP behaviors was measured by a validated questionnaire (based on the transtheoretical model) immediately before and 3 months postgame and a semistructured phone interview. These behaviors were (1) completing a living will; (2) completing a health-care proxy; (3) discussing end-of-life wishes with loved ones; and (4) discussing quality versus quantity of life with loved ones.

Results:

Participants’ (n = 68) mean age was 51.3 years (standard deviation = 0.7, range: 22-88); 94% of the participants were caucasian and 67% were female. Seventy-eight percent of the participants engaged in ACP behaviors within 3 months of playing the game (eg, updating documents, discussing end-of-life issues). Furthermore, 73% of the participants progressed in stage of change (ie, readiness) to perform at least 1 of the 4 behaviors. Scores on measures of decisional balance and processes of change increased significantly by 3 months postintervention.

Conclusion:

This pilot study found that individuals who played a conversation game had high rates of performing ACP behaviors within 3 months. These findings suggest that using a game format may be a useful way to motivate people to perform important ACP behaviors.
Sense of Place Among Hunter-Gatherers
Authors: Thompson Barton
Published: July 2016

This research examines sense of place among hunter-gatherers. More specifically, it assesses whether or not hunter-gatherers are focused on social parameters when they form their sense of place. Most previous research of sense of place has taken place in industrial society where humans have become disconnected from the surrounding lands and spaces. As hunter-gatherers are dependent on the surrounding lands and spaces, this research will add valuable insights about the phenomenon of sense of place. The findings indicate that sense of place among hunter-gatherers is closely associated with the social group that they identify with. The most significant social unit in terms of sense of place for hunter-gatherers is the conglomeration of multifamily units. Overall, this study implies that sense of place among hunter-gatherers adds a spatial component to an individual’s overall sense of social identification.
Radiographic Evaluation of Intermetatarsal Angle Correction Following First MTP Joint Arthrodesis for Severe Hallux Valgus
Authors: McKean R. Matthew , Bergin Patrick F. , Watson Geoffrey , Mehta Siddhant K. , Tarquinio Thom A.
Published: July 2016

Background:

Arthrodesis is a standard operative treatment for symptomatic arthritis of the first metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint. Patients with degenerative joint disease (DJD), severe hallux valgus, and metatarsus primus varus may also require fusion of the first MTP joint. An important question in the latter group of patients is whether a proximal first metatarsal osteotomy is required, in addition to the first MTP joint fusion. Our hypothesis was that patients with severe hallux valgus and metatarsus primus varus, treated with first MTP joint arthrodesis alone, would have correction of the first-to-second intermetatarsal angle (1-2 IMA) and hallux valgus angle (HVA) to near population norms, without the addition of a proximal first metatarsal osteotomy.

Methods:

Preoperative and postoperative radiographs of 19 feet, in 17 patients, with preoperative IMA greater than 15 were analyzed. Weight-bearing radiographs were divided into pre- and postoperative cohorts. Three independent reviewers measured these radiographs and mean 1-2 IMA and HVA were calculated. Mean follow-up was 10 months.

Results:

The mean preoperative 1-2 IMA was 19.2 degrees (15.6-24.3). The mean preoperative HVA was 48.5 (36-56.6). The mean postoperative values for 1-2 IMA and HVA were 10.8 and 12.3 degrees, respectively. The mean change in IMA was 8.3 degrees and in the hallux valgus angle was 36.4 degrees. The differences between pre- and postoperative measurement for both angles were statistically significant ( P < .001). Seven of 19 (37%) feet were corrected to an IMA of less than 9 degrees (normal), whereas in 15/19 feet the postoperative IMA was 12.3 degrees or less. The postoperative HVA was less than 15 degrees in 15/19 (79%) feet.

Conclusion:

This pre- and postoperative radiographic analysis of patients with severe bunion deformity demonstrated that HVA and 1-2 IMA were acceptably corrected without the addition of a proximal first metatarsal osteotomy.

Level of Evidence:

Level III, retrospective comparative series.
Development and Testing of the Partnership Scale for Primary Family Caregivers Caring for Patients With Dementia
Authors: Kiriake Ayumi , Moriyama Michiko
Published: July 2016

This article reports the development and preliminary testing of a new scale named “Partnership Scale for Primary Family Caregivers Caring for Patients With Dementia” that measures the ability of primary family caregivers to establish partnerships while providing care for patients with dementia in Japan. The first draft of the scale was developed using qualitative data from interviews with five primary family caregivers; a pool of 39 items was created through a review process with dementia care experts and researchers. An exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted with data from 261 primary family caregivers who completed the instrument. This resulted in a multidimensional scale that consists of three factors with 13 items. The suitability of the model and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) values (1, 1) obtained by the test–retest method satisfied statistical standards. The criterion-related validity of the scale was significantly correlated to an external reference, which was the desired outcome. However, some subscales exhibited low internal consistency, demonstrating the need for further research.
Of Kith and Kin: Perceptual Enrichment, Expectancy, and Reciprocity in Face Perception
Authors: Correll Joshua , Hudson Sean M. , Guillermo Steffanie , Earls Holly A.
Published: July 2016

Race powerfully affects perceivers’ responses to faces, promoting biases in attention, classification, and memory. To account for these diverse effects, we propose a model that integrates social cognitive work with two prominent accounts of visual processing: perceptual learning and predictive coding. Our argument is that differential experience with a racial ingroup promotes both (a) perceptual enrichment, including richer, more well-integrated visual representations of ingroup relative to outgroup faces, and (b) expectancies that ingroup faces are normative, which influence subsequent visual processing. By allowing for “top-down” expectancy-based processes, this model accounts for both experience- and non-experience-based influences, such as motivation, context, and task instructions. Fundamentally, we suggest that we treat race as an important psychological dimension because it structures our social environment, which in turn structures mental representation.
Elephant Trunk
Authors: Tanaka Akiko , Estrera Anthony L.
Published: July 2016

Background. Since Borst and colleagues first applied the elephant trunk technique more than 30 years ago, it has become a standard method in approach for staged repair of an extensive thoracic aneurysm. While the original technique was cumbersome, a number of innovations have significantly improved the results over the past 3 decades. Conclusions. Today, total arch replacement with elephant trunk provides simplified staged surgery but, nonetheless, remains a complex surgical procedure. Although many proximal aortic procedures may be addressed with ascending and partial transverse arch replacement, when total or complete transverse arch replacement is required, then the use of the elephant trunk technique, whether standard or frozen, should be considered.
A Bullous Flare of a Hyperkeratotic Affair
Authors: Klimas Natasha , West Cameron , Tarbox Michelle
Published: July 2016

Background:

Darier’s disease is an autosomal dominant genodermatosis typified by hyperkeratotic papules and plaques in a predominately seborrheic distribution. The vesiculo-bullous variant of Darier’s disease is rare. Several previously reported cases have demonstrated clinical and microscopic features resembling familial benign chronic pemphigus or Hailey-Hailey disease.

Objectives:

The objective of this report is to describe an uncommon presentation of Darier’s disease, which has been infrequently described in the literature.

Methods:

The authors present a case of bullous flare of long-standing Darier’s disease.

Conclusions:

Darier’s disease may assume several atypical morphologies, including vesiculo-bullous lesions.
Contesting discourses about physical education
Authors: Svendsen Annemari Munk , Svendsen Jesper Tinggaard
Published: July 2016

This article investigates and problematises how contesting discourses about Physical Education (PE) as a school subject are immersed within textbooks used in Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) in Denmark. The paper considers PETE textbooks as powerful documents that construct and maintain discourses about PE, and at the same time as central texts for the reading of such discourses. Fairclough’s and Foucault’s notions of discourse and discourse analysis are applied to identify dominant patterns in those 20 textbooks that are most used in PETE in Denmark. The findings reveal three different discourses that represent contesting philosophies about the value and practice of PE. These are termed: (1) Developing the potential for sport, (2) Basis for creative sensing and (3) Being part of a cultural ballast. The paper analyses these three discourses critically and concludes that PETE textbooks are deeply involved in the (re)construction, struggling and ‘working’ of classical discourses in PE. The discussion deals with the way that PETE textbooks comprise powerful documents that through their recurrent use of high modality are unequivocal in their suggestions for PE practices, and how pre-service teachers in this way are exposed to antagonistic discourses in PETE textbooks. We suggest that PETE teachers may use textbook analysis in the educational programme as a tool for reflection upon the working of discourses in PE in general and for discussing central ideological dilemmas in PE.
Three-dimensional dynamic modeling and analysis of moving elevator traveling cables
Authors: Zhu WD , Fan W , Mao YG , Ren GX
Published: July 2016

This paper addresses three-dimensional dynamic modeling of an elevator traveling cable with bending and torsional stiffnesses and arbitrarily moving ends. Two different types of elements are introduced to model the traveling cable: one is based on Rayleigh beam theory and the other Kirchhoff plate theory. Dynamic equations of motion, which are presented as differential algebraic equations, are solved by the backward differentiation formula. Equilibria of a traveling cable with different cable parameters and car positions are first calculated. Motions of cable ends are prescribed next to simulate the free response of the traveling cable due to motion of the car. Finally, effects of different types of building sways on dynamic responses of the traveling cable are examined.
Chronic p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase inhibition improves vascular function and remodeling in angiotensin II-dependent hypertension
Authors: Potthoff SA , Stamer S , Grave K , Königshausen E , Sivritas SH , Thieme M , Mori Y , Woznowski M , Rump LC , Stegbauer J
Published: July 2016

Introduction:

An excess of angiotensin II (Ang II) causes hypertension and vascular injury. Activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase p38 (p38-MAPK) plays a substantial role in Ang II-dependent organ damage. Recently, we showed that p38-MAPK activation regulates the pressor response to Ang II. This study evaluates the effect of chronic p38-MAPK inhibition in Ang II-dependent hypertension.

Materials and methods:

C57Bl/6J mice were infused with Ang II for 14 days and either treated with the p38-MAPK inhibitor BIRB796 (50 mg/kg/day) or the vehicle as the control. We assessed vascular function in the aorta and isolated perfused kidneys.

Results:

Chronic p38-MAPK inhibition did not alter blood pressure at the baseline, but attenuated Ang II-induced hypertension significantly (baseline: 122 ± 2 versus 119 ± 4 mmHg; Ang II: 173 ± 3 versus 155 ± 3 mmHg; p < 0.001). In addition, BIRB796 treatment improved vascular remodeling by reducing the aortic media-to-lumen ratio and decreasing the expression of the membrane metalloproteinases (MMP) MMP-1 and MMP-9. Moreover, renal vascular dysfunction induced by chronic Ang II infusion was significantly ameliorated in the BIRP796-treated mice. Acute p38-MAPK inhibition also improved vascular function in the aorta and kidneys of Ang II-treated mice, highlighting the important role of p38-MAPK activation in the pathogenesis of vascular dysfunction.

Conclusions:

Our findings indicated there is an important role for p38-MAPK in regulating blood pressure and vascular injury, and highlighted its potential as a pharmaceutical target.
Monroe’s Molly: Three Reflections on Eve Arnold’s Photograph of Marilyn Monroe Reading Ulysses
Authors: Pollock Griselda
Published: July 2016

It is often said that Marilyn Monroe was even more brilliant in posing for still photography than for cinematic performances. She posed for a range of remarkable photographers creating a secondary archive of ‘still Monroe’. Eve Arnold was one of the only women who contributed to this archive. Does gender inflect the images she made of this complex modernist woman of the 1950s? The photo-shoot that brought Arnold and Monroe together in 1955 has incited comment from both cultural and literary scholars because of the seemingly bizarre combination of the sex-goddess reading the most challenging modernist text, Ulysses by James Joyce. As part of the author’s current project to re-‘read’ the Monroe still and moving image archive using the tools of a Warburgian art history focusing on gestures and affects, a postcolonial feminist class analysis of modern women as creative agents within/against sexist and racist cultural institutions, and as a feminist cultural theorist using psychoanalytically-inflected image analysis within historical specificity, this article seeks to revisit and re-read the double agency of the two women at work together making images mediated by what was offered to Baker-Monroe – and knowingly incorporated by her – by the gendered voice of Penelope-Molly in the final section of Ulysses.
Biography, identity, improvisation, sound: Intersections of personal and social identity through improvisation
Authors: Smilde Rineke
Published: July 2016

This essay addresses the relationship of improvisation and identity. Biographical research that was conducted by the author into professional musicians’ lifelong learning showed the huge importance of improvisation for personal expression. Musically, the concept of sound appeared to serve as a strong metaphor for identity. In addition, ethnographic research conducted as part of the project Music for Life in London, and published by Smilde, Page and Alheit in 2014, where musicians work in creative music workshops with people with dementia and their caregivers, shed light on the use of improvisation as an expression of the identity of ‘the other’ (i.e. the person with dementia). Sound again appeared to serve as a metaphor for identity. The essay draws on the work of George Herbert Mead on identity, which distinguishes between the personal ‘I’ and the social ‘Me’, and points out that both aspects are essential for the self. In this sense, improvisation can be conceived as a means of communication that connects the personal with the social. Furthermore, drawing on Paul Ricoeur’s Oneself as Another (1992), it is shown that this concept of improvisation in relation to personal and social identity may be transferred to forms of community engagement through music. However, despite its huge importance, improvisation is still often marginalised in specialist higher music education, particularly in conservatoires, and the essay finishes with a strong plea for conservatoires to take up their role in the midst of society and embed improvisation in the core of the curriculum.
ICON: Radical professional development in the conservatoire
Authors: Duffy Celia
Published: July 2016

The idea for the Innovative Conservatoire (ICON) was first proposed at the Reflective Conservatoire Conference in 2006. An international collaboration which stimulates knowledge exchange, innovation and reflective practice in conservatoires, ICON has opened up an area of work that is often carried out behind closed doors. Working via creative methods in an experimental, artistically orientated and safe environment, it has enabled both scrutiny and development of established pedagogies. It has become a beacon of innovative thinking and practice in specialist professional development for conservatoire teachers and leaders. This essay will draw on the author’s experiences as an ICON participant and Creative Director and interviews with a number of senior conservatoire personnel. It will reflect on future directions for ICON and for professional and leadership development in conservatoires.
The role of ‘creative transfer’ in professional transitions
Authors: Triantafyllaki Angeliki
Published: July 2016

This paper discusses the concept of ‘knowledge transfer’ in terms of expansion of prior knowledge, creativity and approaches to generating new knowledge. It explores professional transitions in which knowledge restructuring and identity reformation are pathways into greater work flexibility and adjustment. Two studies, exploring musicians’ experiences of transitioning into school teaching and undergraduates’ community music placements, exemplify key elements of transfer in unexpected work and work-based situations.
Peer learning in specialist higher music education
Authors: Hanken Ingrid Maria
Published: July 2016

Research on peer learning in higher education indicates that learning from and together with peers can benefit students in a number of ways. Within higher music education in Western, classical music, however, the master–apprentice tradition with its dominant one-to-one mode of tuition focuses predominantly on knowledge transmission from teacher to student. The role students can play in one another’s learning processes is often less articulated. In this essay peer learning is discussed based on experiences from projects carried out at the Centre of Excellence in Music Performance Education, which explore peer learning as part of the students’ principal instrument study. Peer learning in music academies is not restricted to students, however. Teachers can also benefit from engaging in collaborative learning with their fellow teachers. Drawing on experiences from a series of international seminars for teachers in higher music education, the potential and challenges of peer learning among conservatoire teachers are also discussed.
Intermittent hypoxia training as non-pharmacologic therapy for cardiovascular diseases: Practical analysis on methods and equipment
Authors: Serebrovskaya Tatiana V , Xi Lei
Published: July 2016

The global industrialization has brought profound lifestyle changes and environmental pollutions leading to higher risks of cardiovascular diseases. Such tremendous challenges outweigh the benefits of major advances in pharmacotherapies (such as statins, antihypertensive, antithrombotic drugs) and exacerbate the public healthcare burdens. One of the promising complementary non-pharmacologic therapies is the so-called intermittent hypoxia training (IHT) via activation of the human body's own natural defense through adaptation to intermittent hypoxia. This review article primarily focuses on the practical questions concerning the utilization of IHT as a non-pharmacologic therapy against cardiovascular diseases in humans. Evidence accumulated in the past five decades of research in healthy men and patients has suggested that short-term daily sessions consisting 3–4 bouts of 5–7 min exposures to 12–10% O2 alternating with normoxic durations for 2–3 weeks can result in remarkable beneficial effects in treatment of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, and heart failure. Special attentions are paid to the therapeutic effects of different IHT models, along with introduction of a variety of specialized facilities and equipment available for IHT, including hypobaric chambers, hypoxia gas mixture deliver equipment (rooms, tents, face masks), and portable rebreathing devices. Further clinical trials and thorough evaluations of the risks versus benefits of IHT are much needed to develop a series of standardized and practical guidelines for IHT. Taken together, we can envisage a bright future for IHT to play a more significant role in the preventive and complementary medicine against cardiovascular diseases.
Developing an Academic Lifestyle Medicine Clinic Model
Authors: Drozek David
Published: July 2016

An introduction to lifestyle medicine as a patient, has led to the development of a lifestyle medicine program, website and practice. Having the advantage of practicing in an academic setting and a part time endoscopy practice has allowed for exploration and experimentation of different models of delivery of lifestyle medicine, the goal being to provide affordable accessible lifestyle medicine in a manner that is reproducible and sustainable for medical residents and students.
Twinkle artefact in the ultrasound diagnosis of superficial epidermoid cysts
Authors: Clarke Richard , Suresh Priya , Thomas Rose , Freeman Simon
Published: July 2016

Aim

The aim of the study was to evaluate whether the twinkle artefact is a valuable feature in the sonographic diagnosis of superficial epidermoid cysts.

Materials and methods

A retrospective search was undertaken of our institution’s Radiology Information System and pathology database to identify cases of superficial masses showing the twinkle artefact that proceeded to surgical excision.

Results

Eighteen superficial masses demonstrating the twinkle artefact were identified that were submitted for pathological analysis. Of these, 17 were confirmed to represent epidermoid cysts and only 1 case had an alternative diagnosis (proliferating trichilemmal cyst).

Conclusion

The presence of the twinkle artefact appears to be a specific and valuable ancillary sonographic feature for the diagnosis of superficial epidermoid cysts.
Challenges of being new to Canada: considerations for physical activity
Authors: Curtin Kimberley D. , Loitz Christina C. , Spencer-Cavaliere Nancy , Khalema Ernest Nene
Published: July 2016

Immigrants to Canada are less likely to be physically active compared with non-immigrants, and the interrelations between personal and environmental factors that influence physical activity for immigrants are largely unexplored. The goal of this qualitative descriptive study was to understand how the experience of being new to Canada impacts opportunities and participation in physical activity. Two focus group interviews with immigrants to Canada were conducted. The first group ( n=7) included multicultural health brokers. The second group ( n=14) included English as a second language students. Qualitative content analysis was used to determine three themes consistent with the research question: transition to Canadian life, commitments and priorities, and accessibility. Discussion was framed using a social ecological model. Implications for practice and policy are suggested including enhanced community engagement, and organizational modifications. Overall, the development and implementation of physical activity policies and practices for newcomers to Canada should be centered on newcomers’ perspectives and experiences.
Osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells promotes mineralization within a biodegradable peptide hydrogel
Authors: Castillo Diaz Luis A , Elsawy Mohamed , Saiani Alberto , Gough Julie E , Miller Aline F
Published: July 2016

An attractive strategy for the regeneration of tissues has been the use of extracellular matrix analogous biomaterials. Peptide-based fibrillar hydrogels have been shown to mimic the structure of extracellular matrix offering cells a niche to undertake their physiological functions. In this study, the capability of an ionic-complementary peptide FEFEFKFK (F, E, and K are phenylalanine, glutamic acid, and lysine, respectively) hydrogel to host human mesenchymal stem cells in three dimensions and induce their osteogenic differentiation is demonstrated. Assays showed sustained cell viability and proliferation throughout the hydrogel over 12 days of culture and these human mesenchymal stem cells differentiated into osteoblasts simply upon addition of osteogenic stimulation. Differentiated osteoblasts synthesized key bone proteins, including collagen-1 (Col-1), osteocalcin, and alkaline phosphatase. Moreover, mineralization occurred within the hydrogel. The peptide hydrogel is a naturally biodegradable material as shown by oscillatory rheology and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, where both viscoelastic properties and the degradation of the hydrogel were monitored over time, respectively. These findings demonstrate that a biodegradable octapeptide hydrogel can host and induce the differentiation of stem cells and has the potential for the regeneration of hard tissues such as alveolar bone.
Methods for culturing retinal pigment epithelial cells: a review of current protocols and future recommendations
Authors: Fronk Aaron H , Vargis Elizabeth
Published: July 2016

The retinal pigment epithelium is an important part of the vertebrate eye, particularly in studying the causes and possible treatment of age-related macular degeneration. The retinal pigment epithelium is difficult to access in vivo due to its location at the back of the eye, making experimentation with age-related macular degeneration treatments problematic. An alternative to in vivo experimentation is cultivating the retinal pigment epithelium in vitro, a practice that has been going on since the 1970s, providing a wide range of retinal pigment epithelial culture protocols, each producing cells and tissue of varying degrees of similarity to natural retinal pigment epithelium. The purpose of this review is to provide researchers with a ready list of retinal pigment epithelial protocols, their effects on cultured tissue, and their specific possible applications. Protocols using human and animal retinal pigment epithelium cells, derived from tissue or cell lines, are discussed, and recommendations for future researchers included.
Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy occurring after autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation for multiple sclerosis
Authors: Simonsen Cecilia Smith , Hansen Gunnar , Piehl Fredrik , Edland Astrid
Published: July 2016

We describe the case of a man in his 40 s with aggressive multiple sclerosis (MS) who received autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) and subsequently developed probable, if not definite, Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) and haematological complications. Autoimmune conditions occurring as a side effect of allogenic transplantations are well known in the context of haematological malignancies, but only rarely reported for autologous transplantations. Our case demonstrates that although AHSCT may be effective for suppressing MS inflammatory activity, the profound changes to the immune repertoire may lead to other clinically relevant autoimmune phenomena. A careful benefit-risk evaluation should be conducted in all cases where AHSCT is considered.
Curcumin activates the p38MPAK-HSP25 pathway in vitro but fails to attenuate diabetic nephropathy in DBA2J mice despite urinary clearance documented by HPLC
Authors: Ma Jun , Phillips Lynetta , Wang Ying , Dai Tiane , LaPage Janine , Natarajan Rama , Adler Sharon G
Published: July 2016

Background

Curcumin has anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-proliferative properties, and depending upon the experimental circumstances, may be pro- or anti-apoptotic. Many of these biological actions could ameliorate diabetic nephropathy.

Methods/Design

Mouse podocytes, cultured in basal or high glucose conditions, underwent acute exposure to curcumin. Western blots for p38-MAPK, COX-2 and cleaved caspase-3; isoelectric focusing for HSP25 phosphorylation; and DNase I assays for F- to G- actin cleavage were performed forin vitroanalyses.In vivostudies examined the effects of dietary curcumin on the development of diabetic nephropathy in streptozotocin (Stz)-induced diabetes in DBA2J mice. Urinary albumin to creatinine ratios were obtained, high performance liquid chromatography was performed for urinary curcuminoid measurements, and Western blots for p38-MAPK and total HSP25 were performed.

Results

Curcumin enhanced the phosphorylation of both p38MAPK and downstream HSP25; inhibited COX-2; induced a trend towards attenuation of F- to G-actin cleavage; and dramatically inhibited the activation of caspase-3 invitro. In curcumin-treated DBA2J mice with Stz-diabetes, HPLC measurements confirmed the presence of urinary curcuminoid. Nevertheless, dietary provision of curcumin either before or after the induction of diabetes failed to attenuate albuminuria.

Conclusions

Apart from species, strain, early differences in glycemic control, and/or dosing effects, the failure to modulate albuminuria may have been due to a decrement in renal HSP25 or stimulation of the 12/15 lipoxygenase pathway in DBA2J mice fed curcumin. In addition, these studies suggest that timed urine collections may be useful for monitoring curcumin dosing and renal pharmacodynamic effects.
Relating proton pumps with gap junctions: colocalization of ductin, the channel-forming subunit c of V-ATPase, with subunit a and with innexins 2 and 3 during Drosophila oogenesis
Authors: Lautemann Julia , Bohrmann Johannes
Published: July 2016

Background

Ion-transport mechanisms and gap junctions are known to cooperate in creating bioelectric phenomena, like pH gradients, voltage gradients and ion fluxes within single cells, tissues, organs, and whole organisms. Such phenomena have been shown to play regulatory roles in a variety of developmental and regenerative processes. Using Drosophila oogenesis as a model system, we aim at characterizing in detail the mechanisms underlying bioelectric phenomena in order to reveal their regulatory functions. We, therefore, investigated the stage-specific distribution patterns of V-ATPase components in relation to gap-junction proteins.

Results

We analysed the localization of the V-ATPase components ductin (subunit c) and subunit a, and the gap-junction components innexins 2 and 3, especially in polar cells, border cells, stalk cells and centripetally migrating cells. These types of follicle cells had previously been shown to exhibit characteristic patterns of membrane channels as well as membrane potential and intracellular pH. Stage-specifically, ductin and subunit a were found either colocalized or separately enriched in different regions of soma and germ-line cells. While ductin was often more prominent in plasma membranes, subunit a was more prominent in cytoplasmic and nuclear vesicles. Particularly, ductin was enriched in polar cells, stalk cells, and nurse-cell membranes, whereas subunit a was enriched in the cytoplasm of border cells, columnar follicle cells and germ-line cells. Comparably, ductin and both innexins 2 and 3 were either colocalized or separately enriched in different cellular regions. While ductin often showed a continuous membrane distribution, the distribution of both innexins was mostly punctate. Particularly, ductin was enriched in polar cells and stalk cells, whereas innexin 2 was enriched in the oolemma, and innexin 3 in centripetally migrating follicle cells. In lateral follicle-cell membranes, the three proteins were found colocalized as well as separately concentrated in presumed gap-junction plaques.

Conclusions

Our results support the notion of a large variety of gap junctions existing in the Drosophila ovary. Moreover, since ductin is the channel-forming part of a proton pump and, like the innexins, is able to form junctional as well as non-junctional membrane channels, a plethora of cellular functions could be realized by using these proteins. The distribution and activity patterns of such membrane channels are expected to contribute to developmentally important bioelectric signals.
Predictors of foot pain in the community: the North West Adelaide health study
Authors: Gill Tiffany K. , Menz Hylton B. , Landorf Karl B. , Arnold John B. , Taylor Anne W. , Hill Catherine L.
Published: July 2016

Background

Foot pain has been shown to be prevalent across all age groups. The presence of foot pain may reduce mobility and impact on the ability to undertake activities of daily living. The aim of this study was to determine factors that are predictive of foot pain in a community based sample of the general population.

Methods

This study analysed data from the North West Adelaide Health Study, a cohort study located in the northwestern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. Data were obtained between 2004–2006 and 2008–2010, using a self‐completed questionnaire, computer assisted telephone interviewing, and a clinical assessment. The sensitivity, specificity and positive predictive values of variables were determined and generalised linear models ascertained the variables associated with the highest relative risk of self‐reporting foot pain in 2008–2010 based on the data obtained in 2004–2006.

Results

The prevalence of foot pain in 2004–2006 was 14.9 % (95 % CI 13.6–16.4) and in 2008–2010, 29.9 % (95 % CI 27.5–32.5). Variables with the highest sensitivity were: female sex, ever having back pain, self‐reported arthritis, body mass index (BMI) classified as obese and having foot pain in 2004–2006, while most variables demonstrated high specificity. Those with the highest risk of reporting foot pain in 2008–2010 were those with depressive symptoms, self‐reported arthritis, high BMI, self‐reported upper limb pain and foot pain (in general or in specific regions of the foot) in 2004–2006.

Conclusion

Foot pain is common in the general population and those with the greatest risk of foot pain potentially represent a high level of chronicity and potential burden on the health system. Addressing the factors that predict foot pain, as well as the provision of targeted messages to highlight the importance of managing foot pain, may help reduce the impact on the population.
Effects of custom‐made textile insoles on plantar pressure distribution and lower limb EMG activity during turning
Authors: Lo W. T. , Wong D. P. , Yick K. L. , Ng S. P. , Yip J.
Published: July 2016

Background

Turning during locomotion involves considerable changes of the body's center of mass and reduced stability, as well as lower limb kinematics and kinetics. However, many previous studies have been carried out to evaluate the effectiveness and applications of orthotic insoles as well as different types of orthotic materials in various clinical symptoms, which are focused primarily on straight line walking. Hence, the influence of custom‐made insoles with the use of advanced three‐dimensional spacer fabrics on biomechanics parameters in terms of plantar pressure distribution and lower limb electromyography during turning movement was studied.

Methods

Twelve subjects performed 180‐degree turning at a speed 3.07‐3.74 km/h for five successful trials under 3 insoles conditions: wearing traditional ethylene vinyl acetate insoles and two different spacer‐fabricated insoles, with the plantar pressure and lower limb muscle activity collected simultaneously. Turning movement was broken down into 3 phases for analysis: Turning initiation, turn around and turn termination.

Results

There was a statistically significance difference in plantar pressure between the traditional insoles and the insoles made of a spacer fabric as the top layer (p < 0.05). Compared to the traditional insoles, insoles made of a spacer fabric reduced the peak pressure (>12 %) and pressure–time integral (>13 %) in toes, metatarsal head 1 and metatarsal heads 2–3 at turning initiation; (>15 %) and (>17 %) in medial midfoot and medial heel at turn around. Insoles with spacer fabrics on the top and middle layer reduced both pressure parameters (>18 %) in toes and MTH 1 at turn termination. In terms of muscle activities, insoles with two‐layer spacer fabrics could lower maximum muscle activities of vastus lateralis (>16 %; p < 0.05) at turn around.

Conclusions

Insoles with different fabrications could offer various pressure offloading patterns across the plantar and muscle activity changes while turning. Insoles with a spacer fabric on the top tend to reduce plantar pressure loading at different regions during turn initiation and turn around phases, while two‐layer spacer‐fabricated insoles may contribute to reduced vastus lateralis muscle activation during turn around. More importantly, this study provides a new dimension in the potential use of the textile‐fabricated insoles which may widen the range of insole materials selection in the design and development of insoles so as to enhance the effectiveness of orthotic treatment.
Elite controller CD8+ T cells exhibit comparable viral inhibition capacity, but better sustained effector properties compared to chronic progressors
Authors: Shasha David , Karel Dan , Angiuli Olivia , Greenblatt Adam , Ghebremichael Musie , Yu Xu , Porichis Filippos , Walker Bruce D
Published: July 2016

Mechanisms modulating HIV-specific CD8+ T cell-mediated viral inhibition are not well defined. To delineate features of effective control, we compared the ability of CD8+ T cells from HIV ECs and CPs to inhibit HIV ex vivo. ECs showed superior inhibition compared to HAART-treated or untreated CPs in a typical VIA in which CD8+ T cells are rested 3 d before use (P = 0.025). In contrast, comparable antiviral activity was observed in freshly thawed cells. Rested CD8+ T cells underwent apoptosis with preferential loss of HIV-specific cells. EC CD8+ T cells showed greater capacity to sustain polyfunctionality ex vivo compared with those of CPs, and incubation of CD8+ T cells with IL-15 augmented inhibition. These results indicate that superior ex vivo inhibition of viral replication by CD8+ T cells from ECs is associated with enhanced retention of functional qualities and that in vitro antiviral function is enhanced by IL-15.
Angiogenesis and wound repair: when enough is enough
Authors: DiPietro Luisa A
Published: July 2016

All animals heal, and the ability to heal is requisite for human health. One aspect of repair that has always been considered to be essential for adequate healing is the creation of a new vasculature via angiogenesis. As adult skin wounds heal, a period of rapid and robust capillary growth creates a vascular bed that has many fold more capillaries than does normal tissue. Over time, most of the newly formed capillaries regress, resulting in a final vascular density similar to that of normal skin. Certainly, new capillaries are necessary to bring nutrients, immune cells, and oxygen to healing wounds. Yet, the presumed functional importance of an overabundance of capillaries has recently been challenged, creating questions about whether excess capillary growth is truly necessary for healing. In particular, studies of wounds that heal exceptionally quickly and with less scar formation, such as those in fetal skin and oral mucosa, show that these tissues heal with a reduced angiogenic burst composed of more mature vessels that provide better oxygenation. The level of angiogenesis in wounds often correlates with the inflammatory response, largely because inflammatory cells produce an abundance of proangiogenic mediators. Both the selective reduction of inflammation and the selective reduction of angiogenesis have now been suggested as ways to improve scarring. These concepts link excessive inflammation and the production of a dense but poorly perfused capillary bed to inferior healing outcomes.
Bulking up the hippocampus in schizophrenia: a role for 5-HT1A agonists?
Authors: Frangou Sophia
Published: July 2016

The volume of the hippocampus is reduced in patients with schizophrenia, and this deficit tends to become more pronounced with chronicity. Newer antipsychotics may protect against the progressive reductions in hippocampal volume while preliminary data offer hope that specific antipsychotics may act to reverse it.