bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparison of the AcrySof SA60 spherical intraocular lens and the AcrySof Toric SN60T3 intraocular lens outcomes in patients with low amounts of corneal astigmatism
Authors: Statham Michael , Apel Andrew , Stephensen David
Published: September 2009

Abstract

Background:  Toric intraocular lenses (IOLs) have been reported to be an effective method of reducing postoperative refractive astigmatism and spectacle dependence following cataract surgery. This study compares a series of patients with low corneal astigmatism implanted with either the AcrySof SA60 spherical IOL or the AcrySof Toric SN60T3 IOL in a quantitative fashion to establish the merit of toric IOLs in these cases.

Methods:  A retrospective chart audit was undertaken of 12 patients receiving the AcrySof Toric SN60T3 IOL (1.5 DC, Alcon, Fort Worth) and 10 patients receiving the AcrySof SA60 IOL (Alcon, Fort Worth). Preoperative corneal astigmatism and postoperative refractive astigmatism were recorded and converted into a non‐signed Astigmatic Power Vector for statistical analysis. Postoperative vision (uncorrected visual acuity, UCVA) was also recorded for both groups. A statistical analysis was performed to examine for differences in outcomes between groups.

Results:  The mean magnitude of the preoperative corneal Astigmatic Power Vector was not significantly different between the groups. The mean magnitude of the postoperative refractive vector was significantly smaller in the AcrySof Toric group. The mean UCVA was significantly better in the AcrySof Toric group compared with the AcrySof group.

Conclusion:  The AcrySof Toric IOL provides a significant improvement in postoperative astigmatism and UCVA when compared statistically with its spherical counterpart for patients with low degrees of corneal astigmatism.
Amniotic membrane extraction solution for ocular chemical burns
Authors: Liang Lingyi , Li Wei , Ling Shiqi , Sheha Hosam , Qiu Weiqiang , Li Chaoyang , Liu Zuguo
Published: September 2009

Abstract

Purpose:  To evaluate the efficacy of amniotic membrane extract (AME) for ocular chemical burns.

Methods:  Prospective non‐comparative interventional case series study. Consecutive 14 eyes of 11 patients with acute or chronic chemical burns, being recruited in one referral centre, received AME topically in combination with traditional treatment. Ocular discomfort, visual acuity, ocular surface inflammation, re‐epithelialization, corneal thickness, corneal neovascularization and symblepharon were evaluated.

Results:  Symptom relieved and ocular surface inflammation reduced dramatically in all eyes. Epithelial defect healed in all eyes with acute burns, in which less than 7 clock hours of limbus was involved, after 16.6 days (1–44 days) AME treatment. AME failed to close the epithelial defect in all eyes with chronic chemical burn coexisting diffuse limbal stem cell deficiency; however, the area of epithelial defect decreased to 58% (11.1%–68.2%) at final visit. During a follow‐up period of 8.2 months (6–11 months), visual acuity improved in 12 eyes (86%). There was mild neovascularization in three eyes with grade III and IV acute burns, and slow progress of neovascularization in chronic burns. Mild symblepharon developed in two eyes with grade III and IV acute burns, whereas there was no significant progress of symblepharon in chronic cases.

Conclusions:  Although it is a preliminary and uncontrolled study, topical application of AME is effective in reducing inflammation, promoting reepithelization in the treatment of chemical burns, especially for mild to moderate acute cases.
Role of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging in ischaemic heart disease
Authors: Wright J. , Bogaert J.
Published: September 2009

Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging is a new imaging method that has much to offer clinicians caring for patients with ischaemic heart disease. This article describes briefly the basic principles and practical aspects of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and summarizes the pathophysiology of ischaemic heart disease. Then it discusses in detail the use of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging for detection of coronary artery disease, and for assessment of acute and stable coronary syndromes.
Medicinal use of leeches in the texts of ancient Greek, Roman and early Byzantine writers
Authors: Papavramidou N. , Christopoulou‐Aletra H.
Published: September 2009

Blood‐letting was a common therapeutic method in antiquity; many means were used to draw blood, including the application of leeches. In this paper, ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine authors up to the 7th century AD were studied, a research that provided us with references that may be divided into two groups: those related to the medicinal use of leeches, and those related to cases in which leeches were swallowed and had to be removed. In the first group, detailed descriptions of the method of usage and of the diseases requiring leeching were found. In the second group, brief reference is made to the problems caused by swallowing leeches, and to the methods used to expel them from the human organism. The earliest references to the medicinal use of leeches may be found in the writings of Theocritus (3rd century BC), Nicander (2nd century BC) and Horace (1st century BC, while the phenomenon of swallowing a leech is first mentioned in one of the Epidaurian ‘iamata’ dating to the 4th century BC.
Fluoroquinolone‐induced immune thrombocytopenia: a report and review
Authors: Cheah C. Y. , De Keulenaer B. , Leahy M. F.
Published: September 2009

Fluoroquinolones are an emerging but underrecognized cause of drug‐induced thrombocytopenia. Due to their broad spectrum they are often used in empirical treatment of febrile neutropenic, thrombocytopenic patients following myelosuppressive chemotherapy. They are associated with a range of immunohaematopathology. A 76‐year‐old male developed severe thrombocytopenia following treatment with ciprofloxacin on two occasions for community‐acquired pneumonia. The temporal association, response to dechallenge, dramatic response to rechallenge and exclusion of other causes combined with detection of platelet‐reactive antibodies of the immunoglobulin G class against glycoprotein IIb/IIIa following ciprofloxacin rechallenge makes causality probable. We present a brief review of immunohaematopathology associated with fluoroquinolones and draw attention to the structural similarity between quinolones and quinine to explore potential mechanisms for the phenomenon. Fluoroquinolones can induce drug‐dependent, platelet‐reactive antibodies causing complement‐mediated destruction of platelets. The underlying mechanism to explain this is unclear; however, we hypothesize that the chemical similarities shared with quinine may be contributory. When using these agents clinicians should be aware of the possibility of drug‐induced thrombocytopenia or thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.
A case of uterine tumour resembling ovarian sex cord tumour responding to second‐line, single agent anastrazole
Authors: Blinman P. , Tattersall M. H. N.
Published: September 2009

Uterine tumour resembling ovarian sex cord tumour (UTROSCT) are a histological variant of endometrial stromal sarcomas (ESS). There is no established medical management of metastatic UTROSCT or ESS, although there is evidence supporting the use of hormonal therapy. Given the success of aromatase inhibitors in breast cancer, their potential role in ESS and UTROSCT is of current interest. We report the first case of response to second‐line, single agent anastrazole in a patient with metastatic UTROSCT.
Preventing healthcare‐associated infection: risks, healthcare systems and behaviour
Authors: Ferguson J. K.
Published: September 2009

More than 177 000 potentially preventable healthcare‐associated infections (HAIs) occur per annum in Australia with sizable attributable mortality. Organizational systems to protect against HAI in hospitals in Australia are relatively poorly developed. Awareness and practice of infection control by medical and other healthcare staff are often poor. These lapses in practice create significant risk for patients and staff from HAI. Excessive patient exposure to antimicrobials is another key factor in the emergence of antibiotic‐resistant bacteria and Clostridium difficile infection. Physicians must ensure that their interactions with patients are safe from the infection prevention standpoint. The critical preventative practice is hand hygiene in accord with the World Health Organization 5 moments model. Improving the use of antimicrobials, asepsis and immunization also has great importance. Hospitals should measure and feed back HAI rates to clinical teams. Physicians as leaders, role models and educators play an important part in promoting adherence to safe practices by other staff and students. They are also potentially effective system engineers who can embed safer practices in all elements of patient care and promote essential structural and organizational change. Patients and the public in general are becoming increasingly aware of the risk of infection when entering a hospital and expect their carers to adhere to safe practice. Poor infection control practice will be regarded in a negative light by patients and their families, regardless of any other manifest skills of the practitioner.
Frequency Domain Tests of Semiparametric Hypotheses for Locally Stationary Processes
Authors: SERGIDES MARIOS , PAPARODITIS EFSTATHIOS
Published: September 2009

Abstract. Many time series in applied sciences obey a time‐varying spectral structure. In this article, we focus on locally stationary processes and develop tests of the hypothesis that the time‐varying spectral density has a semiparametric structure, including the interesting case of a time‐varying autoregressive moving‐average (tvARMA) model. The test introduced is based on aL2‐distance measure of a kernel smoothed version of the local periodogram rescaled by the time‐varying spectral density of the estimated semiparametric model. The asymptotic distribution of the test statistic under the null hypothesis is derived. As an interesting special case, we focus on the problem of testing for the presence of a tvAR model. A semiparametric bootstrap procedure to approximate more accurately the distribution of the test statistic under the null hypothesis is proposed. Some simulations illustrate the behaviour of our testing methodology in finite sample situations.
RESPONSIBILITY AND DISABILITY
Authors: SHOEMAKER DAVID
Published: September 2009

Abstract:This essay explores the boundaries of the moral community—the collection of agents eligible for moral responsibility—by focusing on those just inside it and those just outside it. In particular, it contrasts mild mental retardation with psychopathy, specifically among adults. For those who work with and know them, adults with mild mental retardation are thought to be obvious members of the moral community (albeit not full‐fledged members). For those who work with and theorize about adult psychopaths, by contrast, they are not members of the moral community (albeit not in such a full‐fledged fashion as the insane). Both psychopaths and adults with MMR have a disability, and the essay is interested in how disability sometimes exempts one from the moral community and sometimes doesn't. It will be through two associated puzzles that we will eventually come to see the complicated tripartite relation between disability, responsibility, and moral community.
AGENCY AND MORAL RELATIONSHIP IN DEMENTIA
Authors: JENNINGS BRUCE
Published: September 2009

Abstract: This essay examines the goals of care and the exercise of guardianship authority in the long‐term care of persons with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of chronic, progressive dementia. It counters philosophical views that deny both agency and personhood to individuals with Alzheimer's on definitional or analytic conceptual grounds. It develops a specific conception of the quality of life and offers a critique of hedonic conceptions of quality of life and models of guardianship that are based on a hedonic legal standard of “best interests.” As an alternative, it proposes a conception of quality of life based on the notions of “semantic agency” and “memorial personhood.”
HOLDING ONE ANOTHER (WELL, WRONGLY, CLUMSILY) IN A TIME OF DEMENTIA
Authors: LINDEMANN HILDE
Published: September 2009

Abstract: This essay takes a close look at a species of care that is particularly needed by people with progressive dementias but that has not been much discussed in the bioethics literature: the activity of holding the person in her or his identity. It presses the claim that close family members have a special responsibility to hold on to the demented person's identity for her or him, and offers some criteria for doing this morally well or badly. Finally, it considers how even those with dementia can hold others in their identities, and suggests that this kind of holding too can have great moral worth.
EQUALITY, FREEDOM, AND/OR JUSTICE FOR ALL: A RESPONSE TO MARTHA NUSSBAUM
Authors: BÉRUBÉ MICHAEL
Published: September 2009

Abstract: This essay is a reply to Martha Nussbaum's “Capabilities and Disabilities.” It endorses Nussbaum's critique of the social‐contract tradition and proposes that it might be productively contrasted with Michael Walzer's critique of John Rawls in Spheres of Justice. It notes that Nussbaum's emphasis on surrogacy and guardianship with regard to people with severe and profound cognitive disabilities poses a challenge to disability studies, insofar as the field tends to emphasize the self‐representation of people with disabilities and to concentrate primarily on the aesthetic and political representation of physical disability. The essay concludes with an account of a recent exchange with Peter Singer on the question of our social expectations of people with Down syndrome.
THE PERSONAL IS PHILOSOPHICAL IS POLITICAL: A PHILOSOPHER AND MOTHER OF A COGNITIVELY DISABLED PERSON SENDS NOTES FROM THE BATTLEFIELD
Authors: KITTAY EVA FEDER
Published: September 2009

Abstract:Having encountered landmines in offering a critique of philosophy based on my experience as the mother of a cognitively disabled daughter, I ask, “Should I continue?” I defend the idea that pursuing this project is of a piece with the invisible care labor that is done by people with disabilities and their families. The value of attempting to influence philosophical conceptions of cognitive disability by virtue of this experience is justified by an inextricable relationship between the personal, the political, and the philosophical. If one grants that the “special relationship” between mother and child requires moral recognition, then I need first to make vivid the case that this relationship in the case of a child who lacks some “normal capacities” is indistinguishable from any mother‐child relationship. If this is so, then I believe I can make a case that has as its conclusion that the moral personhood of even the severely cognitively disabled must be granted. Moreover, such recognition, I argue, necessitates the recognition of others who bear no special relationships to the child.
THE THOUGHT AND TALK OF INDIVIDUALS WITH AUTISM: REFLECTIONS ON IAN HACKING
Authors: MCGEER VICTORIA
Published: September 2009

Abstract: Ian Hacking proposes that ways of talking about autistic experience can shape, or even transform, what it is like to be autistic. I explore the grounds for two nonexclusive interpretations of this thesis. The informative interpretation holds that, because nonautistics cannot read mental states into autistic behaviour as they normally do with one another, autistic self‐narratives give nonautistics unique insights into what it is like to be autistic. This in turn affects how nonautistics interact with autistic individuals, enriching their social environment in various ways. The more radical, transformative interpretation holds that autistic experience is itself moulded under the influence of developing a language‐game for talking about autistic experience. I endorse both theses, albeit with some cautionary remarks.
RESPECTING HUMAN DIGNITY: CONTRACT VERSUS CAPABILITIES
Authors: STARK CYNTHIA A.
Published: September 2009

Abstract: There appears to be a tension between two commitments in liberalism. The first is that citizens, as rational agents possessing dignity, are owed a justification for principles of justice. The second is that members of society who do not meet the requirements of rational agency are owed justice. These notions conflict because the first commitment is often expressed through the device of the social contract, which seems to confine the scope of justice to rational agents. So, contractarianism seems to ignore the justice claims of the severely cognitively impaired. To solve this problem, Martha Nussbaum proposes the capabilities approach. The justifiability condition, on this approach, is met by the idea of overlapping consensus. This essay argues that overlapping consensus cannot meet liberalism's justifiability condition, nor is it more inclusive of the cognitively impaired. Therefore, we have reason to retain the contract device and look for another way to ensure that liberalism respects the justice claims of all.
THE CAPABILITIES OF PEOPLE WITH COGNITIVE DISABILITIES
Authors: NUSSBAUM MARTHA
Published: September 2009

Abstract: People with cognitive disabilities are equal citizens, and law ought to show respect for them as full equals. To do so, law must provide such people with equal entitlements to medical care, housing, and other economic needs. But law must also go further, providing people with disabilities truly equal access to education, even when that is costly and involves considerable change in current methods of instruction. The central theme of this essay is what is required in order to give such people political and civil rights on a basis of genuine equality.
SPECIESISM AND MORAL STATUS
Authors: SINGER PETER
Published: September 2009

Abstract: Many people believe that all human life is of equal value. Most of them also believe that all human beings have a moral status superior to that of nonhuman animals. But how are these beliefs to be defended? The mere difference of species cannot in itself determine moral status. The most obvious candidate for regarding human beings as having a higher moral status than animals is the superior cognitive capacity of humans. People with profound mental retardation pose a problem for this set of beliefs, because their cognitive capacities are not superior to those of many animals. I argue that we should drop the belief in the equal value of human life, replacing it with a graduated view that applies to animals as well as to humans.
Structure of α6β3δ GABAAreceptors and their lack of ethanol sensitivity
Authors: Baur Roland , Kaur Kuldeep H. , Sigel Erwin
Published: September 2009

Delta (δ) subunit containing GABAAreceptors are expressed extra‐synaptically and mediate tonic inhibition. In cerebellar granule cells, they often form a receptor together with α6subunits. We were interested to determine the architecture of these receptors. We predefined the subunit arrangement of 24 different GABAAreceptor pentamers by subunit concatenation. These receptors (composed of α6, β3and δ subunits) were expressed in Xenopus oocytes and their electrophysiological properties analyzed. Currents elicited in response to GABA were determined in presence and absence of 3α, 21‐dihydroxy‐5α‐pregnan‐20‐one and to 4,5,6,7‐tetrahydroisoxazolo[5,4‐c]‐pyridin‐3‐ol. α6‐β3‐α6/δ receptors showed a substantial response to GABA alone. Three receptors, β3‐α6‐δ/α6‐β3, α6‐β3‐α6/β3‐δ and β3‐δ‐β3/α6‐β3, were only uncovered in the combined presence of the neurosteroid 3α, 21‐dihydroxy‐5α‐pregnan‐20‐one with GABA. All four receptors were activated by 4,5,6,7‐tetrahydroisoxazolo[5,4‐c]‐pyridin‐3‐ol. None of the functional receptors was modulated by physiological concentrations (up to 30 mM) of ethanol. GABA concentration response curves indicated that the δ subunit can contribute to the formation of an agonist site. We conclude from the investigated receptors that the δ subunit can assume multiple positions in a receptor pentamer composed of α6, β3and δ subunits.
Sequestosome 1/p62 links familial ALS mutant SOD1 to LC3 via an ubiquitin‐independent mechanism
Authors: Gal Jozsef , Ström Anna‐Lena , Kwinter David M. , Kilty Renée , Zhang Jiayu , Shi Ping , Fu Weisi , Wooten Marie W. , Zhu Haining
Published: September 2009

The p62/sequestosome 1 protein has been identified as a component of pathological protein inclusions in neurodegenerative diseases including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). P62 has also been implicated in autophagy, a process of mass degradation of intracellular proteins and organelles. Autophagy is a critical pathway for degrading misfolded and/or damaged proteins, including the copper‐zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD1) mutants linked to familial ALS. We previously reported that p62 interacted with ALS mutants of SOD1 and that the ubiquitin‐association domain of p62 was dispensable for the interaction. In this study, we identified two distinct regions of p62 that were essential to its binding to mutant SOD1: the N‐terminal Phox and Bem1 (PB1) domain (residues 1–104) and a separate internal region (residues 178–224) termed here as SOD1 mutant interaction region (SMIR). The PB1 domain is required for appropriate oligomeric status of p62 and the SMIR is the actual region interacting with mutant SOD1. Within the SMIR, the conserved W184, H190 and positively charged R183, R186, K187, and K189 residues are critical to the p62–mutant SOD1 interaction as substitution of these residues with alanine resulted in significantly abolished binding. In addition, SMIR and the p62 sequence responsible for the interaction with LC3, a protein essential for autophagy activation, are independent of each other. In cells lacking p62, the existence of mutant SOD1 in acidic autolysosomes decreased, suggesting that p62 can function as an adaptor between mutant SOD1 and the autophagy machinery. This study provides a novel molecular mechanism by which mutant SOD1 can be recognized by p62 in an ubiquitin‐independent fashion and targeted for the autophagy–lysosome degradation pathway.
Mechanism of abnormal growth in astrocytes derived from a mouse model of GM2 gangliosidosis
Authors: Kawashima Nagako , Tsuji Daisuke , Okuda Tetsuya , Itoh Kohji , Nakayama Ken‐ichi
Published: September 2009

Sandhoff disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder caused by mutations in the HEXB gene which encodes the β‐subunit of N‐acetyl‐β‐hexosaminidase A and B, resulting in the accumulation of the ganglioside GM2. We isolated astrocytes from the neonatal brain of Sandhoff disease model mice in which the N‐acetyl‐β‐hexosaminidase β‐subunit gene is genetically disrupted (ASD). Glycolipid profiles revealed that GM2/GA2 accumulated in the lysosomes and not on the cell surface of ASD astrocytes. In addition, GM3 was increased on the cell surface. We found remarkable differences in the cell proliferation of ASD astrocytes when compared with cells isolated from wild‐type mice, with a faster growth rate of ASD cells. In addition, we observed increased extracellular, signal‐regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation in ASD cells, but Akt phosphorylation was decreased. Furthermore, the phosphorylation of ERK in ASD cells was not dependent upon extracellular growth factors. Treatment of ASD astrocytes with recombinant N‐acetyl‐β‐hexosaminidase A resulted in a decrease of their growth rate and ERK phosphorylation. These results indicated that the up‐regulation of ERK phosphorylation and the increase in proliferation of ASD astrocytes were dependent upon GM2/GA2 accumulation. These findings may represent a mechanism in linking the nerve cell death and reactive gliosis observed in Sandhoff disease.
How to prioritize rat management for the benefit of petrels: a case study of the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man
Authors: RATCLIFFE NORMAN , MITCHELL IAN , VARNHAM KAREN , VERBOVEN NANETTE , HIGSON PAUL
Published: September 2009

Rats have been introduced to islands throughout the world. They have caused breeding failures, population declines and complete extirpation of vulnerable bird species. Such impacts can be difficult to diagnose in situations where extirpation occurred prior to the vulnerable species being recorded. Mitigating the impacts of rats on seabirds depends on quarantine measures for islands where rats are currently absent, and eradication or control campaigns on those where they are present. These measures can be challenging in terms of both costs and practicalities, and so can seldom be applied to all islands within a given region. Hence a prioritization exercise is often required to identify those islands where management would be most cost‐effective. In this review we present a case study of rat management in the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man. We review rat management for the study area to date and present a simple scoring approach to prioritize islands for eradication campaigns, including those where the procellariiform priority species are currently absent. We recommend further research into rat management for the study area and on the applicability of this approach elsewhere in the world.
Are avian eggshell colours effective intraspecific communication signals in the Muscicapoidea? A perceptual modelling approach
Authors: CASSEY PHILLIP , EWEN JOHN G. , MARSHALL N. JUSTIN , VOROBYEV MISHA , BLACKBURN TIM M. , HAUBER MARK E.
Published: September 2009

Diversity in the colour and appearance of avian eggshells has been proposed to serve a variety of visual functions, including crypsis from predation, mimicry and discrimination in facultative and obligate brood parasitism, and sexually selected intraspecific signalling of the extent of maternal investment in the egg. Here, we apply a photoreceptor noise‐limited colour opponent model of avian perception to assess a necessary corollary of any intraspecific signalling hypothesis, namely that individual birds are able to discriminate between colours of eggs in different conspecific clutches. Clutches from 46 species in the superfamily Muscicapoidea were measured at the Natural History Museum collection in Tring, UK. The results demonstrate that, for these particular species, most eggs are predicted not to be easily discriminable from those in other conspecific clutches in terms of the shells’ background coloration. These findings are of fundamental concern to any signalling hypothesis that looks to explain the evolution of avian‐visible egg colour polymorphism through selection at the intraspecific level. Importantly, future studies should combine both the proximate mechanisms and the ultimate functions of trait variability when testing hypotheses of the variability in eggshell appearance.
Multilocus molecular DNA variation in Winifred’s Warbler Scepomycter winifredae suggests cryptic speciation and the existence of a threatened species in the Rubeho–Ukaguru Mountains of Tanzania
Authors: BOWIE RAURI C. K. , FJELDSÅ JON , KIURE JACOB
Published: September 2009

Winifred’s Warbler Scepomycter winifredae has a disjunct but very restricted distribution in the mountains of central Tanzania. It was once known only from the Uluguru Mountains. Subsequently, this rare warbler has been recorded from the Ukaguru Mountains, and more recently from the Rubeho Mountains, as well as from Mwanihana Forest on the eastern scarp of the Udzungwa Highlands (single record). These three localities are isolated from the Uluguru Mountains by more than 100 km of lowland savannah. Here we characterize the populations morphologically and estimate demographic parameters using a multilocus molecular approach. Birds from the Uluguru Mountains differed from those of the Rubeho–Ukaguru Mountains in mtDNA by 1.6% (uncorrected) sequence divergence, or at 16 sites: one at each of the first and second codon positions, and at 14 third codon position sites. Five autosomal introns were also sequenced for a total of 2922 bp of nuclear DNA. No single nucleotide polymorphisms were completely fixed between the Uluguru and Rubeho–Ukaguru populations. Results from our coalescent analyses suggest that there is currently unlikely to be any exchange of birds between the Uluguru and Rubeho–Ukaguru populations and that the shared nuclear alleles are a consequence of lineage sorting not yet having been completed due to the recent divergence (upper Pleistocene) between these two populations. In view of the lack of gene flow between the Uluguru and Rubeho–Ukaguru populations, and morphological diagnosability, we propose to recognize the latter populations as a separate species, which we name Rubeho Warbler Scepomycter rubehoensis.
The importance of ant‐rich habitats for the persistence of the Wryneck Jynx torquilla on farmland
Authors: MERMOD MURIELLE , REICHLIN THOMAS S. , ARLETTAZ RAPHAËL , SCHAUB MICHAEL
Published: September 2009

The frequency of territory occupancy is a good indicator of territory quality. We studied territory occupancy in a Swiss population of the Wryneck Jynx torquilla, a declining farmland woodpecker, with the aim of identifying key habitat features for conservation management. Both static and dynamic approaches were applied using data on nest‐site occupancy of 100 territories from six successive years. The static approach models the probability of territory occupancy; the dynamic approach estimates territory colonization and extinction. Frequently occupied territories were settled earlier in the season, suggesting that they may be of better quality, and birds settling in these territories had higher breeding success. Probability of territory occupancy increased with the area of old pear orchards and decreased with the area of vegetable cultivation. Both the area of old pear orchards and the presence of conspecifics within a territory were positively related to territory colonization, whereas territory extinction was negatively related to habitat heterogeneity. Old pear orchards were characterized by having both the highest density of ant nests and the greatest amount of bare ground. The latter is likely to facilitate access to ant prey. To ensure persistence of Wryneck populations in farmland, heterogeneous habitat matrices with high ant nest density and bare ground should be promoted. Finally, provision of artificial nesting cavities is likely to enhance territory occupancy. Providing that these key resources are present, Wrynecks are likely to persist even in intensively farmed areas.
Haemoglobin concentration and body condition of nestling Great Tits Parus major : a comparison of first and second broods in two contrasting seasons
Authors: KALIŃSKI ADAM , WAWRZYNIAK JAROSŁAW , BAŃBURA MIROSŁAWA , SKWARSKA JOANNA , ZIELIŃSKI PIOTR , BAŃBURA JERZY
Published: September 2009

The physiological condition of nestling altricial birds depends on the quantity and quality of food delivered to them by parents. One indicator of the condition of Great Tit Parus major nestlings is the haemoglobin concentration in their blood. The present study demonstrates the influence of weather conditions (temperature and rainfall) on nestling haemoglobin concentrations during two consecutive breeding seasons in two different habitat types (parkland vs. woodland) in the city of Łódź in Central Poland. This influence probably results from the effects of weather on the trophic base of the Tits. Dry, hot weather strongly affected bush and herbal foliage later in the breeding season (mid‐June to mid‐July) in 2006, presumably by interfering with the development of herbivorous arthropod populations. This in turn caused food shortages for second broods of Great Tits, which resulted in nestlings having low haemoglobin levels. In the following year, temperature was on average lower, and rainfall was regular but not very heavy. These conditions enabled the development of arthropod assemblages, and the trophic base for birds was much richer. Haemoglobin concentrations in the blood of nestlings from second broods were significantly higher than those of first broods and, unexpectedly, second‐brood nestlings in 2007 were on average in better physiological state than first‐brood nestlings in 2006 in both habitats. The relationship between haemoglobin concentration, brood category and year was very similar to that for nestling body mass. However, it was independent of both body mass and brood size. In some years and under certain conditions, second broods can be more successful than first broods.
Haematozoa infections in a Great TitParus majorpopulation in Central Portugal: relationships with breeding effort and health
Authors: NORTE ANA C. , ARAÚJO PEDRO M. , SAMPAIO HUGO L. , SOUSA JOSÉ P. , RAMOS JAIME A.
Published: September 2009

Blood parasites may act as modulators of their hosts’ ecology, life histories and fitness. We studied the prevalence ofPlasmodiumsp.,Haemoproteussp. andLeucocytozoonsp. and their effects on morphological, biochemical and haematological variables and on breeding effort of Great TitsParus major. Total prevalence (percentage of individuals infected by any parasite) ranged from 7.7% to 61.1%. There was an overall positive association in prevalence between the three haematozoan parasites. No effect of sex or age on infection status was observed. Negative impacts of infection on physiological condition depended largely on year and/or season and included effects on body condition index, plasma protein and haemoglobin index. There were also indications that parasite infection increased immune response and stress levels and activated antioxidant defence mechanisms. Males with higher fledging success had a higher probability ofHaemoproteusinfection, and females laying heavier eggs had a higher probability ofPlasmodiuminfection. However, clutch size was negatively associated with the probability of infection byLeucocytozoonandHaemoproteus. Surprisingly, males raising second broods had a lower prevalence of bothHaemoproteusandLeucocytozoon. Only 5.7% of first‐brood nestlings were infected, but those in infected nestboxes had a lower heterophil/lymphocyte ratio. This study confirms the pathogenicity of blood parasites to the host by demonstrating negative effects of infection on both physiology and breeding performance.
Habitat selection by Ortolan Buntings Emberiza hortulana in post‐fire succession in Catalonia: implications for the conservation of farmland populations
Authors: MENZ MYLES H. M. , BROTONS LLUÍS , ARLETTAZ RAPHAËL
Published: September 2009

The Ortolan Bunting Emberiza hortulana is a long‐distance migrant that has suffered major population declines across much of its European breeding range. While northern populations are bound largely to farmland, Mediterranean populations are largely confined to habitats subject to recurrent wildfires. Habitat selection of the Ortolan Bunting was assessed in a recently burnt area in Catalonia at landscape and habitat scales. A Zero‐inflated Poisson procedure was used to model the abundance of birds in relation to landscape and habitat variables. The most parsimonious landscape model predicted the highest abundance on south‐facing slopes, with a gradient above 10°. The most parsimonious habitat model showed a positive quadratic effect of bare ground and regenerating oak Quercus spp., with predicted optima for abundance around 20–30% and 20% cover, respectively. There was a clear relationship between predicted abundance of the Ortolan Bunting and post‐fire regenerating oak shrubs. South‐facing, moderately sloping areas were favoured and bare ground was a key feature of the species’ habitat. A matrix combining patches of sparse oak shrubs and patches of bare ground appears to be the optimal breeding habitat in the Mediterranean. The maintenance or provision of similar habitat features, especially patches of bare ground, may prove crucial for the conservation of rapidly declining Ortolan Bunting populations on farmland across temperate Europe.
DETERMINATION OF PIGMENTS AND BINDERS IN POMPEIAN WALL PAINTINGS USING SYNCHROTRON RADIATION – HIGH‐RESOLUTION X‐RAY POWDER DIFFRACTION AND CONVENTIONAL SPECTROSCOPY – CHROMATOGRAPHY
Authors: DURAN A. , JIMENEZ DE HARO M. C. , PEREZ‐RODRIGUEZ J. L. , FRANQUELO M. L. , HERRERA L. K. , JUSTO A.
Published: September 2009

The employment of synchrotron techniques complemented by conventional laboratory systems has allowed us to deepen and improve our knowledge of Roman wall painting procedures. The palette identified in wall paintings from Pompeii and Herculaneum from the second century bc includes goethite, hematite, cinnabar, glauconite, Egyptian blue, and other components such as calcite and aragonite. Proof of the use of organic binders is provided by FTIR and PY–GC/MS. Therefore, the possibility of the use of ‘a secco’ techniques cannot be ruled out. Pigments in wall paintings are usually found in small percentages and conventional X‐ray diffractometers do not detect them. Synchrotron radiation – high‐resolution X‐ray powder diffraction has allowed identification with only a few micrograms of sample.
Circuits of scrap: closed loop industrial ecosystems and the geography of US international recyclable material flows 1995–2005
Authors: LYONS DONALD , RICE MURRAY , WACHAL ROBERT
Published: September 2009

The recycling of scrap material has been identified as an important strategy in the larger theory of industrial ecology. Industrial ecology argues that the traditional model of industrial activity needs to be transformed into a ‘closed loop’ industrial ecosystem where used materials (scrap) and by‐products would substitute for virgin materials during production processes. The recycling of scrap material forms part of this larger effort to reduce the overall environmental impact of production and consumption. A key, but as yet, unresolved question in this process is the geographic scale (local, regional, national, global) at which loop closing should take place. This preliminary empirical research examines the export and import geography of the seven largest (by weight) US scrap commodities (iron and steel, paper, plastics, aluminium, copper, nickel and zinc) between 1995 and 2005 to ascertain the extent to which US scrap flows overseas and how that might affect our understanding of how material loops can close. Other than an integrated export and import relationship with Canada, the results suggest that there are two distinct circuits of scrap flows in the USA. The USA exports a substantial portion of the recyclable scrap generated each year to rapidly developing countries, while importing smaller quantities of scrap from the EU. With the major exception of exporting higher value iron and steel scrap to China, the US tends to export lower value scrap and import higher value scrap. In part this reflects imbalances in the supply and demand for scrap between the USA and the developing world, the lack of potentially available scrap and the absence of a robust recycling infrastructure in the developing world. Although such scrap circuits are probably not ideal, the use of US scrap in the developing world is both a realistic and preferable alternative in the short to medium term than virgin production.
Arginase: an emerging key player in the mammalian immune system
Authors: Munder Markus
Published: September 2009

The enzyme arginase metabolizes L‐arginine to L‐ornithine and urea. Besides its fundamental role in the hepatic urea cycle, arginase is also expressed the immune system of mice and man. While significant interspecies differences exist regarding expression, subcellular localization and regulation of immune cell arginase, associated pathways of immunopathology are comparable between species. Arginase is induced in murine myeloid cells mainly by Th2 cytokines and inflammatory agents and participates in a variety of inflammatory diseases by down‐regulation of nitric oxide synthesis, induction of fibrosis and tissue regeneration. In humans, arginase I is constitutively expressed in polymorphonuclear neutrophils and is liberated during inflammation. Myeloid cell arginase‐mediated L‐arginine depletion profoundly suppresses T cell immune responses and this has emerged as a fundamental mechanism of inflammation‐associated immunosuppression. Pharmacological interference with L‐arginine metabolism is a novel promising strategy in the treatment of cancer, autoimmunity or unwanted immune deviation.
Women's Views of Different Models of Antenatal Care in Victoria, Australia
Authors: Laslett Anne‐Marie L. , Brown Stephanie , Lumley Judith
Published: September 2009

Background:

This study assessed women's views of care in pregnancy, contrasting the experiences and satisfaction of women using different models of care in Victoria, Australia.

Methods:

A statewide postal survey of women who gave birth during a 2‐week period in 1993 was carried out 6 to 7 months after birth.

Results:

Of 1336 women, 62.5 percent responded, and of these, 62.4 percent rated their antenatal care as very good, 27.7 percent as good, 8.2 percent as mixed, and 1.8 percent as poor or very poor. Although social factors, obstetric factors, and model of care had significant associations with satisfaction in univariate analyses, only model of care, mother's country of birth, and medical risk remained significant in a multivariate analysis using logistic regression. Women were most likely to be satisfied when antenatal care was provided by an obstetrician in private practice or a birth center. When comparisons were restricted to options available to women without private health insurance, using public hospital clinics as the baseline in a multivariate analysis, women were significantly more likely to be satisfied with birth center care, and significantly less likely to be satisfied with shared care. Contributing factors were waiting times, staff seeming rushed, and lack of continuity of caregiver.

Conclusion:

The expansion of shared antenatal care has not succeeded in improving satisfaction with antenatal care for women in the public health care sector. (BIRTH 24:2, June 1997)
A prospective study of multiple donor exposure blood recipients: surveillance value and limitations for hemovigilance
Authors: Zou Shimian , Wu Yanyun , Cable Ritchard , Dorsey Kerri , Tang Yanlin , Hapip Cheryl Anne , Melmed Russell , Trouern‐Trend Jonathan , Carrano Donna , Champion Melanie , Fujii Karen , Fang Chyang , Dodd Roger
Published: September 2009

BACKGROUND: There have been few recent systematic studies of blood recipients for direct evidence of blood safety, especially for emerging pathogens that may pose a threat to the blood supply.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Recipients who would likely require transfusion from multiple donors were recruited and a blood specimen was collected before their first study transfusion and at intervals after their study transfusion(s). Blood samples associated with the units that were transfused to enrolled recipients were also collected. Part of each recipient specimen and selected donor specimens was tested for the targeted blood‐borne agents, parvovirus B19 (B19) and Chlamydia pneumoniae (Cp), that were piloted in this study, and the remaining material was kept in a repository.

RESULTS: Between April 2004 and December 2006, a total of 120 recipients were recruited with 4047 subsequent donor exposures. On average, each recipient was followed up seven times. Of recipients who were adequately followed up and were initially immunoglobulin G antibody negative, one in 31 and one to two in 49 seroconverted to B19 and Cp after a total of 922 and 1413 evaluable transfusions, respectively. The detection of seroconversion was complicated by passively acquired donor antibodies for these two seroprevalent agents. Negative results for nucleic acids of the agents limited our ability to further clarify the relationship of these seroconversions to transfusion‐transmitted infection.

CONCLUSION: The risk of transfusion‐associated B19 infection appears to be low but no conclusion of transfusion transmission can be made for Cp. The approach piloted through this study offers added value beyond the current hemovigilance strategy in the United States.
Civic Engagement and Education: An Empirical Test of the Sorting Model
Authors: Campbell David E.
Published: September 2009

According to the sorting model of education, the impact of education on civic engagement is relative, rather than absolute. Education correlates with greater engagement because it is a marker of social status; the degree of status conferred by your level of education is determined by the average level of education within your environment. This article tests the sorting model by paying strict heed to its assumptions. The analysis confirms the model, but considerably narrows its reach. Sorting applies only to one particular type (electoral activity), only when the educational environment accounts for variation across age and place, and only when one models the interactive relationship between education at the individual and environmental levels. Furthermore, sorting applies more to men than women. The same analytical framework demonstrates that being in a more highly educated environment amplifies the relationship between education and democratic enlightenment (political knowledge and tolerance).
Don't Forget to Vote: Text Message Reminders as a Mobilization Tool
Authors: Dale Allison , Strauss Aaron
Published: September 2009

Current explanations of effective voter mobilization strategies maintain that turnout increases only when a potential voter is persuaded to participate through increased social connectedness. The connectedness explanation does not take into account, however, that registered voters, by registering, have already signaled their interest in voting. The theory presented in this article predicts that impersonal, noticeable messages can succeed in increasing the likelihood that a registered voter will turn out by reminding the recipient that Election Day is approaching. Text messaging is examined as an example of an impersonal, noticeable communication to potential voters. A nationwide field experiment (n = 8,053) in the 2006 election finds that text message reminders produce a statistically significant 3.0 percentage point increase in the likelihood of voting. While increasing social connectedness has been shown to positively affect voter turnout, the results of this study, in combination with empirical evidence from prior studies, suggest that connectedness is not a necessary condition for a successful mobilization campaign. For certain voters, a noticeable reminder is sufficient to drive them to the polls.
Learning and Opinion Change, Not Priming: Reconsidering the Priming Hypothesis
Authors: Lenz Gabriel S.
Published: September 2009

According to numerous studies, campaign and news media messages can alter the importance individuals place on an issue when evaluating politicians, an effect called priming. Research on priming revived scholarly interest in campaign and media effects and implied, according to some, that campaigns and the media can manipulate voters. There are, however, alternative explanations for these priming findings, alternatives that previous studies have not fully considered. In this article, I reanalyze four cases of alleged priming, using panel data to test priming effects against these alternatives. Across these four cases, I find little evidence of priming effects. Instead, campaign and media attention to an issue creates the appearance of priming through a two‐part process: Exposing individuals to campaign and media messages on an issue (1) informs some of them about the parties’ or candidates’ positions on that issue. Once informed, (2) these individuals often adopt their preferred party's or candidate's position as their own.