bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Critical Interaction Therapy: Couples Therapy in Combat‐Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Authors: JOHNSON DAVID READ , FELDMAN SUSAN , LUBIN HADAR
Published: July 2004

There is a need for family therapy interventions that are specific to the conditions found in families of traumatized people such as combat veterans. In these families, the historically “real” event of the trauma often continues to exert influence on the family system despite collusive arrangements that serve to keep it hidden. In families of combat veterans, a situation develops whereby the veteran becomes triangulated with a dead buddy without the spouse's knowledge. The discrepancy between past and present emerges in what we call the critical interaction between the spouses. This article outlines a method of couples therapy that attempts to demystify this critical interaction, and begins to integrate the discrepant narratives of each spouse. The establishment of a nascent mutuality of perspective within the couple releases energies that can be directed toward support rather than symptom‐formation in the family system.
Stability and Change in Family‐of‐Origin Recollections Over the First Four Years of Parenthood
Authors: LEWIS JERRY M. , OWEN MARGARET TRESCH
Published: July 2004

This article, one of several from a longitudinal family study, examines stability and change in family‐of‐origin recollections. Family‐of‐origin data were collected by means of a questionnaire from both husbands and wives prior to the birth of their first child and 4½ years later. The questionnaire probed the subjects’ recollections of their relationships with their mothers and fathers and of their parents’ marital relationships. With median correlations for the women and men of .70 and .72, family‐of‐origin recollections appear relatively stable over this 4½‐year period. One exception to the relative stability was that women recalled their fathers and the closeness of their parent's marriage less positively after 4 years of parenthood. These changes in women's recollections were related to contemporaneous experiences with husbands’ depression and qualities of the husband's parenting.
Family Themes: Transmission and Transformation
Authors: PAPP PEGGY , IMBER‐BLACK EVAN
Published: July 2004

This article describes a method for doing therapy that uses multisystemic themes that combine meaning and action to facilitate therapeutic change. By identifying central themes that operate at the individual, dyadic, triadic, whole family, inter‐generational, and sociocultural levels, the therapist is able to develop effective interview questions and design useful interventions. In this method, behavioral symptoms are framed as a current manifestation of an overarching theme. This orientation enables family and therapist to de‐pathologize symptoms and work collaboratively toward change. Case examples from a wide variety of families with differing presenting problems, interactional patterns, three‐generational histories, and cultural backgrounds, illustrate the efficacy of the method.
Adolescent‐Parent Attachments Family Problem‐Solving Styles
Authors: HILBURN COBB CATHRON L.
Published: July 2004

Variation in exploratory and collaborative behavior among family members define different problem‐solving styles or “paradigms” in families. Similar characteristics distinguish patterns of attachment within dyads. This suggests an association between these phenomena. The hypothesis was tested in a laboratory study of families with young adolescents. Using the Reiss Card Sort Procedure (CSP) and a newly developed scheme for classifying adolescent attachments, it was demonstrated that particular problem‐solving styles were linked to specific patterns of adolescent‐parent attachments. An association of paradigms and attachment patterns may afford a new perspective on the dialectical interplay between individual and family development. The probabilities of paradigm‐attachment association could prove useful when choosing an intervention model for family therapy.
Nonverbal Interactional Behavior in the Families of Persons with Schizophrenic and Bipolar Disorders
Authors: SIMONEAU TERESA L. , MIKLOWITZ DAVID J. , GOLDSTEIN MICHAEL J. , NUECHTERLEIN KEITH H. , RICHARDS JEFFREY A.
Published: July 2004

Whereas verbal interactional behaviors have been repeatedly found to distinguish the families of persons with and without major psychiatric disorders, there has been comparatively little examination of the discriminative value of nonverbal interactional behaviors. We developed the Nonverbal Interactional Coding System to measure “affiliative” and “distancing” nonverbal behaviors in 18 schizophrenic and 18 bipolar patients and their parents during 10‐minute interactions conducted during a posthospital period. Bipolar patients and their parents displayed affiliative nonverbal behaviors (“illustrator gestures” or “prosocial behaviors”) for longer durations than schizophrenic patients and their parents. In contrast, parents of schizophrenic patients displayed distancing nonverbal behaviors (looking away) for longer durations than those of bipolar patients. The nonverbal interactional data added to the statistical strength of patients’ and parents’ verbal interactional data in distinguishing between these diagnostic groups. Nonverbal interactional behaviors are important variables to consider in interventions aimed at improving the communication skills of families coping with psychiatric disorders.
A Short‐Term, Family‐Oriented, Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Inpatient Treatment Program
Authors: SOURANDER ANDRE , PIHA JORMA
Published: July 2004

We describe a short‐term inpatient treatment program whose purpose is to integrate the different interventions in the child, his or her family, and the outpatient professional network. The interaction between the family and the ward is the basic structural element of child psychiatric inpatient treatment. The child, the family, the professional outpatient network, and the ward community together form an extended therapeutic system. Inpatient treatment can be understood as a coevolving process between these systems. The essential feature in our working model is the continuous, daily nursing staff supervision and a focus on interactions in the extended therapeutic system.
Intrusiveness and Closeness‐Caregiving: Rethinking the Concept of Family “Enmeshment”
Authors: GREEN ROBERT‐JAY , WERNER PAUL D.
Published: July 2004

This article analyzes the concepts of “enmeshment” and “cohesion” and their entanglement in the field of family therapy. Early theories in this area were concerned primarily with processes of self/other differentiation. More recent theories have favored spatial metaphors that emphasize closeness‐distance. We contend that self/other differentiation and closeness‐distance are different classes of behavior and that their linkage in the literature has obscured useful distinctions. Our analysis reveals two separate dimensions that clinicians and researchers should consider: Intrusiveness (including coercive control, separation anxiety, possessiveness/jealousy, emotional reactivity, and projective mystification); and Closeness‐Caregiving (including warmth, time together, nurturance, physical intimacy, and consistency). We give definitions of these constructs and briefly examine their clinical and gender‐related implications.
Gender Dilemmas and Myth in the Construction of Marital Bargains: Issues for Marital Therapy
Authors: MARTIN CARMEN KNUDSON , MAHONEY ANNE RANKIN
Published: July 2004

Marital therapists are regularly confronted with issues of equality and fairness when working with couples. This article examines the social‐contextual factors that influence couples’ negotations about these issues. A common solution for couples, “the myth of equality,” is identified, together with the processes that maintain it. The role of the therapist in relation to gender equality is addressed.
Involvement, Collaboration, and Empowerment: A Model for Consultation with Human‐Service Agencies and the Development of Family‐Oriented Care
Authors: ELIZUR YOEL
Published: July 2004

Systems consultation to provider agencies can contribute considerably to the development of a collaborative, family‐oriented approach in these agencies. The possibilities for such an undertaking depend on the establishment of working relationships at two interfaces: between the system consultant and the agency, and between the agency and its client families. A framework for developing these relationships in three sequential phases is proposed: involvement, collaboration, and empowerment (ICE). Each phase is characterized by a dominant issue that is processed at the time. It is possible for relationships to begin at a more advanced phase and to work through two or more phases simultaneously. However, premature attempts to do so, which often occur in agencies’ work with involuntary clients and “difficult to engage” families, generate resistance and lead to an impasse. The applicability and usefulness of the ICE model is demonstrated by presenting the 6‐year development of a family involvement and partnership program in Israel's juvenile correction system.
Family Values, Religiosity, and Emotional Reactions to Schizophrenia in Mexican and Anglo‐American Cultures
Authors: WEISMAN AMY G. , LÓPEZ STEVEN R.
Published: July 2004

This study was designed to test whether two sociocultural variables, family cohesion and religiosity, related to affective reactions toward schizophrenia. It was hypothesized that increasing perceptions of one's family as cohesive and religious would be associated with the expression of more favorable and less unfavorable emotions toward patients with the disorder. Eighty‐eight Anglo‐American undergraduates from Los Angeles and 88 Mexican undergraduates from Guadalajara read vignettes of a hypothetical family member described as meeting DSM‐IV criteria for schizophrenia. Results of this study suggest that perceptions of family unity may be one important factor underlying emotional reactions toward schizophrenia. As expected, increasing perceptions of family cohesion were associated with greater reports of favorable emotion and decreased reports of unfavorable emotion toward the patient. However, after controlling for social desirability, family cohesion no longer significantly predicted unfavorable affect. Contrary to expectations, religiosity was not found to predict unfavorable or favorable emotions. However, religiosity was found to covary with nationality. Mexicans, compared to Anglos, reported greater moral‐religious values in their families. No national differences were found with respect to family cohesion. Implications of this study are discussed along with suggested directions for future research.
Translatability of Family Concepts into the Japanese Culture: Using the Family Environment Scale
Authors: SAITO SATORU , NOMURA NAOKI , NOGUCHI YUJI , TEZUKA ICHIRO
Published: July 2004

Family concepts and their measurements interest many family researchers. There is a question about the extent to which family concepts are universal or influenced by the culture in which the instrument originated. Using the Family Environment Scale (FES), the authors examine the translatability of family concepts into the Japanese culture. Forward‐and back‐translation processes and cross‐cultural assessment of reliability and validity are discussed. We suggest that there may be different degrees of translatability for each of the family concepts used in the FES and that evaluation of families in different societies necessitates culturally appropriate constructs and instruments. The discussion is built around Japanese data, which are compared to the American results.
“Speech After Long Silence”: The Use of Narrative Therapy in a Preventive Intervention for Children of Parents with Affective Disorder
Authors: FOCHT LYNN , BEARDSLEE WILLIAM R.
Published: July 2004

This article is an attempt to explain why the stories of those who suffer from affective disorder have gone unspoken, and to describe how the Preventive Intervention Project (PIP) helps to elaborate a narrative process within families. The PIP is a short‐term, psychoeducational intervention focused on enhancing family understanding of affective disorder, and on building resiliency in children. Detailed descriptions of interventions with two families are used to demonstrate how the PIP works with parents and children: to move the narrative process from private to shared meaning. We discuss how cultural “canons” regarding affective illness reinforce a tendency to keep that experience private. We then show how the PIP provides an alternative, “schematic base” of understanding that facilitates a family's ability to begin a dialogue about their illness. We hope to demonstrate how this modernist, psychoeducational framework can be integrated with a more open‐ended, postmodern construction of meaning.
Narrative Child Family Therapy
Authors: LARNER GLENN
Published: July 2004

In this article, child family therapy is presented as a hermeneutic activity shaped by an interest in the evolving narrative. Over brief, analytic play interviews, the therapist documents a child's narrative understanding of the presenting family problem. This allows psychological meaning to be jointly constructed in therapeutic conversation with the child and family. The idea of play as narrative integrates child psychotherapy into recent social constructionist thinking in family therapy. The article also discusses how narrative therapists can use prior theory and training.
Multiple Views on Family Data: The Sample Case of Adolescent, Maternal, and Paternal Perspectives on Family Differentiation Levels
Authors: BARTLE‐HARING SUZANNE , GAVAZZI STEPHEN M.
Published: July 2004

The major objective of this article is to demonstrate a data analysis technique — confirmatory factor analysis with structural equation modeling — that can be used when the researcher has multiple perspectives on the same variables. The present data set was constructed from two samples that contained information collected on adolescents', mothers', and fathers' perspectives on family differentiation levels as measured by the Differentiation in the Family System Scale (DIFS; Anderson & Sabatelli, 1992). Results of the combined sample confirmatory factor analysis procedures indicated that the family members’ perspectives converged and could be used as a single latent variable. The methodological implications of these findings are discussed.
Connecting Bowen Theory with Its Human Origins
Authors: INNES MAX
Published: July 2004

Murray Bowen recognized the importance of grounding clinical practice within a clearly articulated theoretical framework, which could claim its place within the general scientific tradition. Bowen theory has established itself as a significant contribution to the field of family therapy. However, in its insistence on excluding, in the interests of rigorous inquiry, all contributions except those from a natural science perspective, Bowen theory has neglected the very elements that are the identifying characteristics of Homo sapiens. As well as recognizing the common systemic characteristics of all life forms, a theory of the family and family therapy that does justice to the human condition will also need to attend to the ways in which human systems are distinct from those of other life forms. In this enterprise, the social sciences will be as important as the natural sciences.
Measuring disordered personality functioning: to love and to work reprised
Authors: Parker G. , Hadzi‐Pavlovic D. , Both L. , Kumar S. , Wilhelm K. , Olley A.
Published: July 2004

Objective:  Current limitations to diagnosing and measuring the personality disorders encouraged a set of studies seeking to provide an alternate approach to modeling and measuring disordered personality function.

Method:  A large set of self‐reported descriptors of disordered personality function were factor analyzed in a sample of patients with clinician‐diagnosed personality dysfunction, generating 11 lower‐order and two higher‐order constructs. Subjects and non‐clinical controls also completed a measure of personality styles underpinning formalized personality disorder groupings. Properties of the refined self‐report (SR) measure were assessed in an independent sample of patients with a clinically diagnosed personality disorder.

Results:  Limitations in ‘cooperativeness’ and ‘coping’ formed the higher‐order constructs defining disordered personality function, with these constructs relevant to all personality styles. Analyses of SR, corroborative witness (CW) and clinician‐rated data in an independent sample supported measuring disordered personality function by our derived 20‐item SR measure, and exposed limitations to clinician‐based assessment.

Conclusion:  Study findings build to a multi‐axial strategy for measuring personality disorder, involving separate dimensional assessment of both disordered personality function and of personality style.
Is SCL‐90R helpful for the clinician in assessing DSM‐IV symptom disorders?
Authors: Pedersen G. , Karterud S.
Published: July 2004

Objective:  To investigate associations between six of the Symptom Check‐List 90R (SCL‐90R) subscales and specific DSM‐IV symptom disorders in a sample of patients with high comorbidity of axis I and axis II disorders.

Method:  SCL‐90R questionnaires from 1202 patients admitted for treatment in the Norwegian Network of Psychotherapeutic Day Hospitals. Mean score differences on subscales among diagnostic categories were investigated. With diagnoses as external criteria, cut‐off scores for different diagnostic groups were used to calculate diagnostic efficacy. Multiple regressions were conducted in order to disentangle variance of the subscales accounted for by symptom disorders. Frequency distributions of subscales for patients with and without symptom disorders were compared.

Results:  Poor diagnostic efficacy was found for most of the subscales, except for the phobic anxiety subscale. The strongest association with each subscale was with its associated symptom disorder, except for dysthymia.

Conclusion:  Diagnostic inferences about DSM‐IV symptom disorders based on SCL‐90R should be conducted with care.
Development of an antidepressant compliance questionnaire
Authors: Demyttenaere K. , Bruffaerts R. , Albert A. , Mesters P. , Dewé W. , Debruyckere K. , Sangeleer M.
Published: July 2004

Objective:  The development of the Antidepressant Compliance Questionnaire (ADCQ), assessing patients’ attitudes and beliefs on depression and antidepressants.

Method:  A 51‐item questionnaire was applied to 85 psychiatric out‐patients with a DSM‐IV diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD). This data set was used to assess psychometric properties of the ADCQ. The questionnaire was also applied to 272 primary care out‐patients with MDD.

Results:  A principal component analysis revealed four dimensions with good internal consistency and acceptable test–retest reliability: ‘perceived doctor–patient relationship’, ‘preserved autonomy’, ‘positive beliefs on antidepressants’ and ‘partner agreement’, resulting in a final questionnaire comprising 33‐items. Responses were independent from depression severity and patient age. The response patterns of both psychiatric and primary care patients are provided and illustrate the many erroneous beliefs on antidepressants.

Conclusion:  The ADCQ has good psychometric properties; further investigation should investigate whether this questionnaire is predictive of patient compliance.
The Public Presidency, Personal Approval Ratings, and Policy Making
Authors: CANES‐WRONE BRANDICE
Published: July 2004

In this article, I argue that personal popularity is less essential to how a president's public activities affect policy making than commonly presumed, and provide two types of evidence for this argument. First, I show that unpopular as well as popular presidents can increase their prospects for legislative success by appealing to the public. Second, I demonstrate that on prominent issues, unpopular presidents are no more likely than popular ones to take positions favored by mass opinion. After relating these findings to a perspective of the public presidency that differs from the conventional wisdom, I discuss enduring questions concerning the topic.
The Second Face of the Public Presidency: Presidential Polling and the Shift from Policy to Personality Polling
Authors: JACOBS LAWRENCE R. , BURNS MELANIE
Published: July 2004

Scholars have tended to define the “public presidency” as facing outward—the president talks and travels to the country. What makes the “public presidency” public, however, is not only its outward oriented activities but also its systematic monitoring of the attitudes of the mass public. This article describes and explains two significant changes over time in the presidential polling of Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Reagan based on extensive research in presidential libraries: an increase in the amount of presidential polling, and a shift from polling the public's policy preferences to polling its non‐policy evaluations related to personal image and appeal—a potentially potent basis for appealing to voters. We trace the changing extent and purpose of presidential polling to the evolution of the American political system and its strategic incentives, survey research capability, and political learning. We conclude by suggesting that the development of the public‐talking and the public‐listening dimensions of the presidency pose potentially significant threats to American democracy.
Presidential Rhetoric and Economic Leadership
Authors: WOOD B. DAN
Published: July 2004

This article reports descriptive research concerning past presidents’ rhetorical leadership of the economy. Using the PERL logical text language, every presidential remark on the economy, unemployment, inflation, and the federal deficit is extracted from Public Papers of the Presidents from the Truman administration through April 2002. These data are coded for the frequency and relative optimism of presidential remarks on the economy. Statistical analysis shows that through time presidents have increasingly discussed the economy, and in more optimistic tones. Additionally, after controlling for actual economic performance and election year effects, some presidents spoke more often and more optimistically about the economy than others. The study also reports case studies of the president's economic rhetoric during the Carter, Reagan, and Clinton administrations that illustrate the nature of presidential rhetoric during economic crises.
Elections: The American Process of Selecting a President: A Comparative Perspective
Authors: SHUGART MATTHEW SOBERG
Published: July 2004

The United States has fallen well behind worldwide trends in presidential elections. Its electoral college regionalizes the contest for the national executive, contrary to a worldwide trend toward direct election. U.S. states continue to select presidential electors via plurality rule, resulting in vulnerability to third‐party “spoilers,” even at a time when third‐party voting is on the upswing. The worldwide trend is toward runoffs to guard against spoilers. Only in nomination methods is the United States the trendsetter, as primary elections only recently have been adopted in other countries, mainly in Latin America. Yet the American regionalized and sequential nomination process contrasts with the national primaries preferred elsewhere.
Source Material:New Presidents and Network News: Covering the First Year in Office of Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush03
Authors: FARNSWORTH STEPHEN J. , LICHTER S. ROBERT
Published: July 2004

Content analysis of ABC, CBS, and NBC evening news programs during the first years of the presidencies of Ronald Reagan (1981), Bill Clinton (1993), and George W. Bush (2001) revealed a heavy focus on the executive branch rather than the legislative and judicial branches. The negative tone of network news coverage was very similar across the three presidents and their administrations. Coverage of presidents in their first year in office consistently was far more substantial than campaign coverage of presidential candidates, where issues of the campaign “horse race” trump matters of substance. Network news coverage of George W. Bush after the 2001 attacks was more positive in tone when compared to coverage before September 11, even though the amount of coverage of Bush personally fell after the attacks. Network news coverage of the rest of the Bush administration increased after September 11, but it turned more negative in tone during the final months of 2001.
QUANTUM-MECHANICAL DUALITIES ON THE TORUS
Authors: ISIDRO JOSÉ M.
Published: July 2004

On classical phase spaces admitting just one complex-differentiable structure, there is no indeterminacy in the choice of the creation operators that create quanta out of a given vacuum. In these cases the notion of a quantum is universal, i.e. independent of the observer on classical phase space. Such is the case in all standard applications of quantum mechanics. However, recent developments suggest that the notion of a quantum may not be universal. Transformations between observers that do not agree on the notion of an elementary quantum are called dualities. Classical phase spaces admitting more than one complex-differentiable structure thus provide a natural framework to study dualities in quantum mechanics. As an example we quantise a classical mechanics whose phase space is a torus and prove explicitly that it exhibits dualities.
THERMAL PHOTONS IN STRONG INTERACTIONS
Authors: RAPP RALF
Published: July 2004

A brief survey is given on the current status of evaluating thermal production of photons from a strongly interacting medium. Emphasis is put on recent progress in assessing equilibrium emission rates in both hadronic and quark–gluon matter. We also give an update on the status of comparing theoretical calculations with experimental data from heavy-ion collisions at the SPS, as well as prospects for RHIC. Finally, applications of photon rate calculations to colorsuperconducting quark matter are discussed.
INTERSUBBAND OPTICAL ABSORPTION IN QUANTUM WELLS UNDER APPLIED ELECTRIC AND INTENSE LASER FIELDS
Authors: OZTURK E. , SARI H. , SOKMEN I.
Published: July 2004

Within the framework of the effective mass approximation, we have theoretically investigated the linear intersubband optical absorption in a quantum well under external electric and intense laser field. Results obtained show that intersubband optical transition and energy levels in quantum wells can significantly be modified and controlled by the electric field and intense laser field. Generally there is a distinct feature for the case of the intersubband absorption compared with intersubband optical absorption in a quantum well with an applied electric field.
SCATTERING AND LOCALIZATION OF SPIN WAVES IN QUASI-2D HEISENBERG FERROMAGNETS WITH EXTENDED FLAT INTERFACE BOUNDARIES
Authors: BELHADI M. , CHADLI R.
Published: July 2004

The influence of extended flat interface boundaries on the scattering and localization of spin waves in disordered quasi-two-dimensional Heisenberg ferromagnets is studied. The two ferromagnets are considered as two dissimilar semi-infinite slabs in contact, joined together at an extended flat interface between two adjacent planes. The mathematical framework of the matching method is used to analyze both the localization and the scattering phenomena on the extended flat interface boundaries in the harmonic approximation with nearest neighbor magnetic exchange interactions. The energy of spin-wave-localized modes arising from the absence of magnetic translation symmetry in the direction normal to the interface boundaries is determined. The transmission and reflection probabilities, as well as the average transmittance of magnetic excitations across the interface, are calculated in full accordance with the Landauer–Büttiker description of electron transport, and numerical results are presented for the most representative sets of system parameters in a large range of scattering energies. Results show that there are several localized modes, which may be either optical or acoustical modes (depending on the system parameters), and the scattering properties of the system are a strong function of scattering energy and model parameters, which are assumed to be different at the interface compared with those of the bulk.
APPROXIMATE EXPRESSIONS FOR INTERACTION OF TWO SIMILAR PLANE PARALLEL DOUBLE LAYERS AT ARBITRARY POTENTIAL
Authors: ZHANG SHI-MIN
Published: July 2004

Two approximate expressions used to compute the interaction energy between two similar plane parallel double layers are derived by expanding the interaction energy in the power series of [Formula: see text] at low dimensionless surface potential y0 or the power series of [Formula: see text] at high dimensionless surface potential y0, respectively. Two series converge very fast. In the range of dimensionless surface potential of colloid particles y0 from 1.00000×10-1 to 3.00000×10, when C<-4.30000, the high potential expression is usable; when C≥-4.30000, the low potential expression is usable. The required series terms will not exceed four to obtain the interaction energy with six significant figures if a low potential expression and a high potential expression are combined.
CHEMICAL BIOLOGY OF MULTI-HOST/PATHOGEN INTERACTIONS: Chemical Perception and Metabolic Complementation
Authors: Palmer Andrew G. , Gao Rong , Maresh Justin , Erbil W. Kaya , Lynn David G.
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  The xenognostic mechanisms of two multi-host pathogens, the causative agent of crown gall tumors Agrobacterium tumefaciens and the parasitic plant Striga asiatica, are compared. Both organisms are general plant pathogens and require similar information prior to host commitment. Two mechanistic strategies, chemical perception and metabolic complementation, are used to ensure successful host commitment. The critical reactions at host-parasite contact are proton and electron transfer events. Such strategies may be common among multi-host pathogens.
EVOLUTION OF PLANT PARASITISM AMONG NEMATODES
Authors: Baldwin J.G. , Nadler S.A. , Adams B.J.
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  Despite extraordinary diversity of free-living species, a comparatively small fraction of nematodes are parasites of plants. These parasites represent at least three disparate clades in the nematode tree of life, as inferred from rRNA sequences. Plant parasites share functional similarities regarding feeding, but many similarities in feeding structures result from convergent evolution and have fundamentally different developmental origins. Although Tylenchida rRNA phylogenies are not fully resolved, they strongly support convergent evolution of sedentary endoparasitism and plant nurse cells in cyst and root-knot nematodes. This result has critical implications for using model systems and genomics to identify and characterize parasitism genes for representatives of this clade. Phylogenetic studies reveal that plant parasites have rich and complex evolutionary histories that involve multiple transitions to plant parasitism and the possible use of genes obtained by horizontal transfer from prokaryotes. Developing a fuller understanding of plant parasitism will require integrating more comprehensive and resolved phylogenies with appropriate choices of model organisms and comparative evolutionary methods.
COMPARATIVE GENOMICS ANALYSES OF CITRUS-ASSOCIATED BACTERIA
Authors: Moreira Leandro M. , de Souza Robson F. , Almeida Jr Nalvo F. , Setubal João C. , Oliveira Julio Cezar F. , Furlan Luiz R. , Ferro Jesus A. , da Silva Ana C.R.
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  Xylella fastidiosa 9a5c (XF-9a5c) and Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri (XAC) are bacteria that infect citrus plants. Sequencing of the genomes of these strains is complete and comparative analyses are now under way with the genomes of other bacteria of the same genera. In this review, we present an overview of this comparative genomic work. We also present a detailed genomic comparison between XF-9a5a and XAC. Based on this analysis, genes and operons were identified that might be relevant for adaptation to citrus. XAC has two copies of a type II secretion system, a large number of cell wall–degrading enzymes and sugar transporters, a complete energy metabolism, a whole set of avirulence genes associated with a type III secretion system, and a complete flagellar and chemotatic system. By contrast, XF-9a5c possesses more genes involved with type IV pili biosynthesis than does XAC, contains genes encoding for production of colicins, and has 4 copies of Type I restriction/modification system while XAC has only one.
MOLECULAR ASPECTS OF PLANT VIRUS TRANSMISSION BY OLPIDIUM AND PLASMODIOPHORID VECTORS
Authors: Rochon D'Ann , Kakani Kishore , Robbins Marjorie , Reade Ron
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  The genome structures of a large number of viruses transmitted by olpidium and plasmodiophorid vectors have been determined. The viruses are highly diverse, belonging to 12 genera in at least 4 families. Plasmodiophorids are now classified as protists rather than true fungi. This finding, along with the recognition of the great variety of viruses transmitted by olpidium and plasmodiophorid vectors, will likely lead to an elaboration of the details of in vitro and in vivo transmission mechanisms. Recent progress in elucidating the interaction between Cucumber necrosis virus (CNV) and its zoospore vector suggests that specific sites on the capsid as well as on the zoospore are involved in transmission. Moreover, some features of CNV/zoospore attachment are similar to poliovirus/host cell interactions, suggesting evolutionary conservation of functional features of plant and animal virus capsids.
BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF CHESTNUT BLIGHT WITH HYPOVIRULENCE: A Critical Analysis
Authors: Milgroom Michael G. , Cortesi Paolo
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  Most hypovirulence in the chestnut blight fungus, Cryphonectria parasitica, is associated with infection by fungal viruses in the family Hypoviridae. Hypovirulence has controlled chestnut blight well in some locations in Europe and in Michigan in the United States. In contrast, with few exceptions, biological control has failed almost completely in eastern North America. Therapeutic treatment of individual cankers is successful in most cases, but the success of hypovirulence at the population level depends on the natural spread of viruses. Characteristics of three interacting trophic levels (virus, fungus, and tree), plus the environment, determine the success or failure of hypovirulence. Vegetative incompatibility restricts virus transmission, but this factor alone is a poor predictor of biological control. Any factor reducing the rate of chestnut blight epidemics enhances hypovirus invasion. Overall, however, not enough is understood about the epidemiological dynamics of this system to determine the crucial factors regulating the establishment of hypovirulence in chestnut forests.
PLANT VIRUS SATELLITE AND DEFECTIVE INTERFERING RNAS: New Paradigms for a New Century
Authors: Simon Anne E. , Roossinck Marilyn J. , Havelda Zoltán
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  Although many subviral RNAs reduce or intensify disease symptoms caused by the helper virus, only recently have clues concerning the mechanism of disease modulation been revealed. New models for DI RNA-mediated reduction in helper virus levels and symptom attenuation include DI RNA enhancement of posttranscriptional gene silencing (PTGS), which is an antiviral defense mechanism in plants. Symptom enhancement by the satRNA of Cucumber mosaic virus is caused by minus-strand induction of the programmed cell death pathway. In contrast, symptom enhancement by satC of Turnip crinkle virus is due to satC interference with virion formation, leading to increased levels of free coat protein, which is the viral suppressor of PTGS. Mutualism between satRNA and helper virus can be seen for the satRNA of Groundnut rosette virus, which contributes to the virus by allowing virion assembly. These novel findings are leading to re-evaluation of the relationships between subviral RNAs, helper viruses, and hosts.
ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF SOIL MICROBIAL COMMUNITY STRUCTURE FOR DISEASE SUPPRESSION
Authors: Mazzola Mark
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  Identification of the biological properties contributing to the function of suppressive soils is a necessary first step to the management of such systems for use in the control of soilborne diseases. The development and application of molecular methods for the characterization and monitoring of soil microbial properties will enable a more rapid and detailed assessment of the biological nature of soil suppressiveness. Although suppressive soils have provided a wealth of microbial resources that have subsequently been applied for the biological control of soilborne plant pathogens, the full functional capabilities of the phenomena have not been realized in production agricultural ecosystems. Cultural practices, such as the application of soil amendments, have the capacity to enhance disease suppression, though the biological modes of action may vary from that initially resident to the soil. Plants have a distinct impact on characteristics and activity of resident soil microbial communities, and therefore play an important role in determining the development of the disease-suppressive state. Likewise, plant genotype will modulate these same biological communities, and should be considered when developing strategies to exploit the potential of such a natural disease control system. Implementation of consistently effective practices to manage this resource in an economically and environmentally feasible manner will require more detailed investigation of these biologically complex systems and refinement of currently available methodologies.
SYSTEMIC ACQUIRED RESISTANCE
Authors: Durrant W.E. , Dong X.
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) is a mechanism of induced defense that confers long-lasting protection against a broad spectrum of microorganisms. SAR requires the signal molecule salicylic acid (SA) and is associated with accumulation of pathogenesis-related proteins, which are thought to contribute to resistance. Much progress has been made recently in elucidating the mechanism of SAR. Using the model plant Arabidopsis, it was discovered that the isochorismate pathway is the major source of SA during SAR. In response to SA, the positive regulator protein NPR1 moves to the nucleus where it interacts with TGA transcription factors to induce defense gene expression, thus activating SAR. Exciting new data suggest that the mobile signal for SAR might be a lipid molecule. We discuss the molecular and genetic data that have contributed to our understanding of SAR and present a model describing the sequence of events leading from initial infection to the induction of defense genes.
ANALYSIS OF DISEASE PROGRESS AS A BASIS FOR EVALUATING DISEASE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
Authors: Jeger M.J.
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  The relationship between epidemiology and disease management is long-standing but sometimes tenuous. It may seem self-evident that improved understanding of epidemic processes will lead to more effective control practices but this remains a testable proposition rather than demonstrated reality. A wide range of models differing in mathematical sophistication and computational complexity has been proposed as a means of achieving a greater understanding of epidemiology and carrying this through to improved management. The potential exists to align these modeling approaches to evaluation of control practices and prediction of the consequent epidemic outcomes, but these have yet to make a major impact on practical disease management. For the immediate future simpler pragmatic approaches for analysis of disease progress, using nonlinear growth functions and/or integrated measures such as area under disease progress curves, will play a key role in informing tactical and strategic decisions on control treatments. These approaches have proved useful in describing control effectiveness and, in some cases, optimizing or changing control practices.
MICROBIAL DYNAMICS AND INTERACTIONS IN THE SPERMOSPHERE
Authors: Nelson Eric B.
Published: July 2004

▪ Abstract  The spermosphere represents a short-lived, rapidly changing, and microbiologically dynamic zone of soil surrounding a germinating seed. It is analogous to the rhizosphere, being established largely by the carbon compounds released into the soil once the seed begins to hydrate. These seed exudations drive the microbial activities that take place in the spermosphere, many of which can have long-lasting impacts on plant growth and development as well as on plant health. In this review, I discuss the nature of the spermosphere habitat and the factors that give rise to its character, with emphasis on the types of microbial activities in the spermosphere that have important implications for disease development and biological disease control. This review, which represents the first comprehensive synthesis of the literature on spermosphere biology, is meant to illustrate the unique nature of the spermosphere and how studies of interactions in this habitat may serve as useful experimental models for testing hypotheses about plant-microbe associations and microbial ecology.
Lipopolysaccharide stimulates nitric oxide synthase-2 expression in murine skeletal muscle and C2C12 myoblasts via Toll-like receptor-4 and c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase pathways
Authors: Frost Robert A. , Nystrom Gerald J. , Lang Charles H.
Published: July 2004

The inducible form of nitric oxide synthase (NOS2) catalyzes the synthesis of nitric oxide (NO) from arginine in response to injury and infection. NOS2 is expressed predominantly by macrophages and lymphocytes. However, skeletal muscle also expresses NOS2 in response to inflammatory stimuli. The present study sought to determine whether lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulates NOS2 in skeletal muscle via Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4). Intraperitoneal injection of LPS in wild-type mice (C3H/HeSnJ) increased NOS2 mRNA fourfold in skeletal muscle, while no change in NOS2 mRNA was observed in C3H/HeJ mice that harbored a mutation in the LPS receptor. NOS2 coimmunoprecipitated with the muscle-specific caveolin-3 protein, suggesting that myofibers per se respond to LPS in vivo. LPS stimulated NOS2 mRNA expression in C2C12 myocytes, and the regulation of NOS2 mRNA was comparable in myoblasts and differentiated myotubes. LPS transiently stimulated the phosphorylation of the interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase (IRAK-1) in C2C12 cells and decreased the total amount of IRAK-1 both in vitro and in vivo over time. LPS stimulated the expression of an NF-κβ reporter plasmid, and this was inhibited by the proteasomal inhibitor MG-132. Both myoblasts and myotubes expressed TLR2 and TLR4 mRNA. Expression of a dominant negative form of TLR4 in C2C12 cells blocked LPS-induced NF-κβ reporter activity. SP-600125 [a c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) inhibitor] also prevented LPS stimulation of NOS2 expression. Moreover, the JNK inhibitor prevented the LPS-induced increase in NO synthesis. These data indicate that LPS increases NOS2 mRNA expression in muscle via a TLR4-dependent mechanism.
Parathyroid hormone-related protein regulates apoptosis in lung cancer cells through protein kinase A
Authors: Hastings Randolph H. , Araiza Flavio , Burton Douglas W. , Bedley Maxwell , Deftos Leonard J.
Published: July 2004

Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP)-(1–34) and PTHrP-(140–173) protect lung cancer cells from apoptosis after ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. This study evaluated upstream signaling in PTHrP-mediated alteration of lung cancer cell sensitivity to apoptosis. The two peptides increased cAMP levels in BEN lung cancer cells by 15–35% in a dose-dependent fashion, suggesting signaling through protein kinase A (PKA). In line with this view, the PKA inhibitor H89 abrogated the protective effects of PTHrP-(1–34) and PTHrP-(140–173) against caspase activation and DNA loss. PKA activation by forskolin, 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX), or 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)adenosine 3′,5′-cyclic monophosphate attenuated and H89 augmented apoptosis after UV exposure as indicated by caspase-3 activation, cell DNA loss, and morphological criteria. Studies with IBMX and varying doses of forskolin indicated that small increases in cAMP, on the order of those generated by IBMX alone and the PTHrP peptides, were sufficient to protect lung cancer cells from apoptosis. In summary, PTHrP-(1–34) and PTHrP-(140–173) stimulate PKA in lung carcinoma cells and protect cells against UV-induced caspase-3 activation and DNA fragmentation. PKA activation by other means also induces resistance to apoptosis, and the protective effect of the PTHrP peptide is blocked by PKA inhibition. Thus PKA appears to have a role in the regulatory effects of PTHrP on lung cancer cell survival.
Reversal of Hippocampal LTP by Spontaneous Seizure-Like Activity: Role of Group I mGluR and Cell Depolarization
Authors: Hu Bin , Karnup Sergei , Zhou Lei , Stelzer Armin
Published: July 2004

Memory impairment is a common consequence of epileptic seizures. The hippocampal formation is particularly prone to seizure-induced amnesia due to its prominent role in mnemonic processes. We used the isolated CA1 slice preparation to examine effects of seizure-like activity on hippocampal plasticity, long-term potentiation (LTP), and long-term depression (LTD). Repeated spontaneous ictal events, generated in the presence of antagonists of GABAAreceptor function, led to a stepwise erasure of LTP (termed spontaneous depotentiation, SDP). SDP could be initiated at various stages of LTP consolidation (tested ≤120 min after the induction of LTP). Renewed tetanic stimulation re-established LTP. SDP was remarkably specific: baseline transmission and other forms of hippocampal plasticity, i.e., Ca2+-induced LTP and two forms of LTD [(RS)-3,5-dihydroxyphenyglycine (DHPG) mediated and low-frequency stimulation mediated] were not affected by the same type of seizure activity. SDP was blocked in the presence of the group I mGluR antagonist ( S)-4-carboxyphenylglycine. The mGluR1 antagonist ( S)-(+)-α-amino-methylbenzeneacetic acid blocked ∼80%, the mGluR5-specific antagonist 2-methyl-6-(phenylethynyl)-pyridine ∼30% of SDP. Most efficient implementation of SDP was observed during seizures in the combined presence of the group I mGluR agonist DHPG and the GABAAantagonist bicuculline. However, similar ictal activity generated in the presence of DHPG alone did not lead to SDP in the vast majority of recordings. Complete disinhibition and at least partial activation of group I mGluR were necessary conditions for the induction of SDP. The depotentiating pharmacological conditions were accompanied by tonic membrane depolarization of CA1 pyramidal cells. Since hyperpolarization (by negative current injection) prevented intracellular SDP under depotentiating pharmacological conditions and depolarization (by positive current injection) led to selective intracellular SDP in the non-depotentiating seizure protocol of DHPG, it is concluded that cell depolarization was a sufficient condition for seizure-like activity to reverse hippocampal LTP.