bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evidence of Major Genes Effects on Serum Homocysteine and Fibrinogen Levels, and Premature Ischemic Heart Disease in Italian Extended Families
Authors: Grassi Mario , Kisialiou Aliaksei , Assanelli Deodato , Mozzini Chiara , Archetti Silvana , Pezzini Alessandro
Published: January 2008

Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of novel genetic factors on plasma levels of total homocysteine (tHcy) and fibrinogen (FIB). As tHcy and FIB have been consistently associated to increased risk of ischemic heart disease (IHD) and acute myocardial infarction (MI) also genes-trait-MI mediational effects were tested. Methods: A complex segregation analysis, and a mediation analysis of a highly selected group of 44 extended families (302 subjects), each including at least one member with fatal premature (<50 years) IHD were carried out. Results: tHcy and FIB levels turned out to be influenced by at least two major genes. A significant tHcy latent class-MI association (OR = 3.24; 95% CI, 1.37 to 7.68), and a non-significant tHcy plasma level-MI association (OR = 1.65 per 1 = log 10 µmol/l, 95% CI, 0.56 to 4.81) were estimated, suggesting a direct influence of the homocysteine major gene as suppressor of plasma tHcy levels effect. In contrast, FIB latent class-MI association (OR = 0.97; 95% CI, 0.31 to 3.05) and FIB level-MI association (OR = 1.32 per 1 = 70 g/l; 95% CI, 0.88 to 2.00) were not statistically significant. Conclusion: These data provide evidence for a major latent gene effect influencing variation in tHcy plasma levels, which is independent on C677T MTHFR polymorphism, and significantly affecting the risk of MI.
Vascular Calcification Is Associated with Impaired Microcirculatory Function in Chronic Haemodialysis Patients
Authors: Sigrist Mhairi K. , McIntyre Christopher W.
Published: January 2008

Although vascular calcification (VC) in dialysis patients is associated with increased cardiovascular events, the pathophysiology is still largely obscure. Microcirculatory dysfunction may contribute to demand myocardial ischaemia. We have studied cutaneous microcirculatory function in haemodialysis (HD) patients with and without large-vessel VC. 37 non-diabetic subjects (20 HD and 17 healthy controls) were studied. VC was assessed using CT scanning of a standardised segment of superficial femoral artery (11 VC+, 9 VC–). Laser Doppler imaging was undertaken using a Periscan PIM II® at rest and under vasodilator challenge. Baseline perfusion was not statistically different in VC+ patients than VC– patients or controls (1.03 ± 0.2, 1.08 ± 0.2, 0.93 ± 0.3 PU respectively). Overall, the maximum vasodilatory response to both ACh (p < 0.001) and SNP (p = 0.004) was lower in the HD than the control group. In addition, the HD patients took longer to reach a maximum vasodilatation than the controls (p = 0.008 for ACh, n.s. for SNP). Further, the maximum vasodilatory response in the VC+ patients was lower and patients took longer to reach maximum vasodilatation than the VC– group. We have demonstrated, for the first time, impaired and dysregulated microcirculatory function in patients with VC. This may be important in understanding the pathophysiology of the complications and cardiovascular consequences of VC.
Relation between Fatty Acid Composition and Clinical Status or Genotype in Cystic Fibrosis Patients
Authors: Van Biervliet Stephanie , Vanbillemont Griet , Van Biervliet Jean-Pierre , Declercq Dimitri , Robberecht Eddy , Christophe Armand
Published: January 2008

Objective: To evaluate the relation of clinical parameters and genotype with the serum phospholipid fatty acid (FA) composition in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. Methods: A blood sample was taken from CF patients with stable pulmonary disease for the determination of phospholipid FA composition and vitamin E concentration who had been followed for at least 6 months at our Cystic Fibrosis Centre. Genotype, age, pancreatic function, nutritional status, caloric intake, pulmonary function and presence of Pseudomonas colonization, liver disease or diabetes mellitus were recorded. Patients were divided into two groups according to their genotype (group A: mutation class I, II, or III, group B: mutation class IV, V). Results: CF patients (group A and B together) have significantly lower docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) (p < 0.007) and linoleic acid (LA) (p < 0.0001) and higher dihomogammalinolenic acid (DHGLA) (p < 0.0001), oleic acid (OA) (p < 0.0001) and Mead acid (MA) (p < 0.0001), resulting in an increased ratio of arachidonic acid (AA)/DHA (p < 0.004), MA/AA (p < 0.0001) and OA/LA (p < 0.0001). Compared to group B, group A had a lower LA (p < 0.002) and a higher DHGLA (p < 0.002), 22:4ω–6 (p < 0.03), 22:5ω–6 (p < 0.03) and 20:3ω–9 (p < 0.04). There was however no significant difference between the groups for age, pulmonary function, nutritional status and vitamin E concentration. There was no relation of serum FA composition with nutritional status, caloric intake, pancreatic function, gender, pulmonary function, Pseudomonas colonization or diabetes mellitus. In CF with liver disease the DHA was lower than in the patients of the same genotype. Conclusion: FA disturbances are more pronounced in the severe CF genotypes and the presence of CF-related liver disease. Future studies on supplementation should take these parameters into account.
Systematic Review of Fatty Acid Composition of Human Milk from Mothers of Preterm Compared to Full-Term Infants
Authors: Bokor Szilvia , Koletzko Berthold , Decsi Tamás
Published: January 2008

Background: Fatty acid composition of human milk serves as guidance for the composition of infant formulae. The aim of the study was to systematically review data on the fatty acid composition of human milk of mothers of preterm compared to full-term infants. Methods: An electronic literature search was performed in English (Medline and Medscape) and German (SpringerLink) databases and via the Google utility. Fatty acid compositional data for preterm and full-term human milk were converted to differences between means and 95% confidence intervals. Results: We identified five relevant studies publishing direct comparison of fatty acid composition of preterm versus full-term human milk. There were no significant differences between the values of the principal saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. In three independent studies covering three different time points of lactation, however, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) values were significantly higher in milk of mothers of preterm as compared to those of full-term infants, with an extent of difference considered nutritionally relevant. Conclusion: Higher DHA values in preterm than in full-term human milk underlines the importance of using own mother’s milk for feeding preterm babies and raises the question whether DHA contents in preterm formulae should be higher than in formulae for full-term infants.
Determinants and Correlates of Serum Undercarboxylated Osteocalcin
Authors: Nimptsch Katharina , Hailer Susanne , Rohrmann Sabine , Gedrich Kurt , Wolfram Günther , Linseisen Jakob
Published: January 2008

Background/Aims: To assess dietary and nondietary determinants of serum undercarboxylated osteocalcin (ucOC) as a measure of vitamin K status. Methods: UcOC and total intact osteocalcin (iOC) concentrations were determined by specific ELISA tests in serum samples of 231 male and 320 female participants (18–81 years) of the representative, cross-sectional Bavarian Food Consumption Survey II. Determinants of ucOC were investigated by analysis of variance, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients and logistic regression models. Results: Mean ucOC serum concentration was 2.46 ng/ml in men and 2.34 ng/ml in women. Corresponding means of the ratio of ucOC to iOC (ucOC/iOC) were 0.28 and 0.29. Concentrations of ucOC and iOC, as well as the ratio of ucOC/iOC, strongly depended on the participant’s age. UcOC was influenced by smoking status, sports activity, and the season when blood was collected. Dietary intake of the dominant vitamin K sources, green leafy vegetables and dairy products, as well as the plasma concentration of the carotenoid lutein were inversely associated with serum ucOC values. Conclusions: In studies using serum ucOC as a measure of vitamin K supply, determinants, especially age, need to be taken into account.
A Rare Cutaneous Case of Carotenosis Cutis: Lycopenaemia
Authors: Caroselli Costantino , Bruno Guglielmo , Manara Francesco
Published: January 2008

Objective: To report a rare adult case of lycopenaemia associated with ingestion of excessive amounts of kaki fruit. Methods: We describe the clinical manifestation and laboratory findings in our patient and the possible causes that induce this cutaneous disease. Results: A 68-year-old Caucasian woman presented with red-orange tinged skin of the palms and soles. Her diet included about 1 kg of kaki fruit daily. High-performance liquid chromatography showed increased lycopene levels. Conclusion: Our case of lycopenaemia is a benign condition, secondary to an excessive dietary intake of lycopene-rich fruits. The discoloration of the palms and soles resulted from pigment deposits, due to the slow conversion of carotene to vitamin A. This condition disappeared after changes in her dietary habits.
Xanthomatous Pleuritis Mimicking Mesothelioma
Authors: McGuire Franklin R. , Gourdin Todd , Finley James L. , Downie Gordon
Published: January 2008

Recurrent non-malignant exudative effusions remain a diagnostic and potentially management dilemma. Fluid characteristics frequently narrow the differential but fail to offer a definitive diagnosis. Medical thoracoscopy is well tolerated and allows direct visualization and biopsy of pleural processes under conscious sedation. Rarely, macroscopic appearance and even histology may be misleading. We present a case of xanthomatous pleuritis that mimicked early mesothelioma. Our patient was a 69-year-old female with a large left pleural effusion. Her medical history was significant for a recent small pericardial effusion without cardiac dysfunction. Thoracentesis revealed a non-malignant exudative effusion. Thoracoscopy demonstrated two foci of raised soft plaques with petechial hemorrhage and adhesions. Preliminary evaluation suggested chronic inflammation admixed with proliferating spindle cells and necrosis. The immunohistochemical phenotype of the spindle cells favored a spindle and epithelioid cell neoplasm, mesothelioma. Because of discord between pathologists, we repeated the thoracoscopy through the existing chest tube/thoracoscopy site. We acquired more tissue for special stains and outside review. Following extensive immunohistochemistry, the diagnosis of xanthomatous pleuritis was made. Our patient quickly recovered with steroid therapy and is without recurrence 18 months later. This case demonstrates the utility and nuances of medical thoracoscopy in a perplexing case of xanthomatous pleuritis.
New Drugs for the Treatment of Diabetes
Authors: Inzucchi Silvio E. , McGuire Darren K.
Published: January 2008

This is the second of a 2-part series focusing on newer therapies for type 2 diabetes and their cardiovascular implications. In the first segment, we reviewed the thiazolidinediones, highlighting emerging data concerning their cardiovascular effects, both positive and negative. Here, we present a corresponding discussion of the newest antihyperglycemic category, modulators of the incretin system, which include the glucagon-like peptide-1 mimetics and the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors. In addition, we briefly survey several novel drug classes in development, provide summary recommendations for glucose-lowering regimens in specific patient types, underscore the importance of nonglucose cardiovascular risk reduction strategies, and comment on present and future considerations for the regulatory review of diabetes drugs.
Considering Culturally Relevant Parenting Practices in Intervention Development and Adaptation
Authors: Coard Stephanie I. , Foy-Watson Shani , Zimmer Catherine , Wallace Amy
Published: January 2008

A randomized prevention pilot trial compared caregivers who participated in the Black Parenting Strengths and Strategies (BPSS) Program with control caregivers. BPSS is a strengths- and culturally based parenting program designed to improve aspects of parenting associated with the early development of conduct problems and the promotion of social and cultural competence. Parenting variables included monitoring, positive parenting, harsh discipline, and the use of proactive racial socialization. Child variables included conduct problems and social competence. Relative to control caregivers, intervention caregivers used significantly more racial socialization strategies, positive parenting practices, and less harsh discipline. Also, despite caregivers' multiple risk factors, high rates of attendance and satisfaction were achieved. Results of this pilot support the feasibility, acceptability, and potential efficacy of a culturally relevant intervention program.
Patterns of Crime and Drug Use Trajectories in Relation to Treatment Initiation and 5-Year Outcomes
Authors: Prendergast Michael , Huang David , Hser Yih-Ing
Published: January 2008

Drug abusers vary considerably in their drug use and criminal behavior over time, and these trajectories are likely to influence drug treatment participation and treatment outcomes. Drawing on longitudinal natural history data from three samples of adult male drug users, we identify four groups with distinctive drug use and crime trajectories during the 5 years prior to their first treatment episode. The groups' characteristics of initial treatment are compared. The trajectory groups are then included in Poisson growth curve models to predict drug use, incarceration, and employment during the 5 years following first treatment. Findings indicate that posttreatment drug use decreased and posttreatment employment increased. There was little change in posttreatment incarceration. Posttreatment trajectories for drug use, incarceration, and employment were significantly different across the four trajectory groups.
Remaking laissez-faire
Authors: Peck Jamie
Published: January 2008

`Only ideas can overcome ideas', Ludwig von Mises once remarked. Exploring this contention in relation to the long and winding ascendancy of neoliberalism, the paper presents a spatialized genealogy of the free-market ideational programme. From its multiple beginnings, in a series of situated, sympathetic critiques of nineteenth-century laissez-faire, neoliberalism has always been an open-ended, plural and adaptable project. The prehistories of neoliberalism are messy and nonlinear; there was no straight-line evolution from ideas to implementation, from blueprint to ballot box, or philosophy to practice. Rather like the various state projects of neoliberalization that have followed in its wake, the ideational project of neoliberalism was clearly a constructed one. There was nothing spontaneous about neoliberalism; it was speculatively planned, it was opportunistically built and it has been repeatedly reconstructed.
Critical geographies and the uses of sexuality: deconstructing queer space
Authors: Oswin Natalie
Published: January 2008

Scholarship on queer geographies has called attention to the active production of space as heterosexualized and has levelled powerful critiques at the implicit heterosexual bias of much geographical theorizing. As a result, critical geographers have begun to remark upon the resistance of gays, lesbians and other sexual subjects to a dominant heterosexuality. But such a liberal framework of oppression and resistance is precisely the sort of mapping that poststructuralist queer theory emerged to write against. So, rather than charting the progress of queer geographies, this article offers a critical reading of the deployment of the notion of `queer space' in geography and highlights an alternative queer approach that is inseparable from feminist, materialist, postcolonial and critical race theories.
Assessing the accuracy of diatom-based transfer functions in defining reference pH conditions for acidified lakes in the United Kingdom
Authors: Battarbee Richard W. , Monteith Donald T. , Juggins Stephen , Simpson Gavin L. , Shilland Ewan W. , Flower Roger J. , Kreiser Annette M.
Published: January 2008

A key concern in the assessment of the recovery of acidified lakes from the effect of acid deposition is the reference pH of acidified lakes and how reference values can be used to establish targets for restoration. In this paper we evaluated the accuracy of three different, although overlapping, diatom-pH transfer functions using UK Acid Waters Monitoring Network (AWMN) data to compare inferred pH from diatoms collected in annually exposed sediment traps with measured water column pH for 11 acid-sensitive lakes. We then used these transfer functions to infer lake-water pH from approximately AD 1850 (taken as the reference date) to AD 1990 (the core-top date) for radiometrically dated sediment cores from each site. When applied to the sediment-trap samples all three models tended to underpredict measured pH in the less acidic sites, with the SWAP model being the most biased. All three models were in good agreement in reconstructing pH for the AD 1850 reference period. Reference pH varied between sites from approximately 4.9 to 6.4, and was correlated with modern base-cation status. In the acidification phases of the cores discrepancies in pH inference between models appear to be linked to differences in pH optima for a minority of taxa. Current (2006) diatom-inferred pH values from the most recent sediment traps, when compared with sediment core tops, provide evidence of recovery at most sites but its extent, so far, is slight when compared with the reference period. The substantial difference between sites in their reference conditions indicates clearly that recovery success can not be measured against a single target pH or, by inference, ANC value and must be assessed on a site-specific basis.
Dating the Glen Garry tephra: a widespread late-Holocene marker horizon in the peatlands of northern Britain
Authors: Barber Keith , Langdon Peter , Blundell Antony
Published: January 2008

The distal Icelandic tephra known as the Glen Garry layer has been dated by AMS 14C at eight ombrotrophic peat bogs from northern England and Scotland. The geochemistry of all the tephra layers is consistent with there being only one Glen Garry tephra, rather than two or more from eruptions of the same volcanic source. At seven of the sites, all in Scotland, the tephra layer was bracketed by 1 cm contiguous samples below, at and above the horizon. At the one English site, Walton Moss, Cumbria, a suite of 16 AMS dates was applied to a 116 cm section of a peat core containing the tephra. The resulting dates were calibrated and wiggle-matched using the BCal and Bpeat programmes to give an estimated age for the Glen Garry tephra of 2176 cal. BP, with a 2σ range of 2210—1966 cal. BP. This 244 year range is an improvement on the 410 years calibrated date range for the date without the wiggle-match. This age estimate will allow future work on peat profiles and other sediments containing the tephra to use the date as a pinning-point in age/depth models and obviate the need for radiocarbon dating at this period.
Suspended sediment characterization and tracing using a magnetic fingerprinting technique: Bassenthwaite Lake, Cumbria, UK
Authors: Hatfield Robert G. , Maher Barbara A.
Published: January 2008

Robust identification of catchment suspended sediment sources is a prerequisite both for understanding sediment delivery processes and targeting of effective mitigation measures. Fine sediment delivery can pose universal management problems, especially with regard to nutrient run-off and lake siltation. Here, 19 suspended sediment samplers were located within the three main tributary inflows to Lake Bassenthwaite, a key but vulnerable site of special scientific interest, with water quality problems linked to accelerated delivery of fine sediment. Magnetic properties of contemporary suspended sediments, collected on a monthly basis, were measured on a particle size-specific basis and compared with the lake sediment core-tops. Ferrimagnetic grain size and magnetic `hardness' vary significantly between the suspended sediments collected from the different tributaries, with the 8—31 µm and 31—63 µm clastic grain fractions displaying greatest magnetic contrasts. Postdepositional formation of bacterial magnetosomes is evident in the 2—8 µm and < 2 µm fractions of the lake sediments. Thus, for comparison with the potential source suspended sediments, we use only the detrital, clastic fractions, 8—31 µm and 31—63 µm. The lake sediment magnetic properties show little spatial variation, indicating through-lake transport of sediment (no evidence was found of postdepositional diagenetic sulphide formation). Magnetic comparisons between the potential sources and the lake surface sediments indicate that Newlands Beck, providing only ~ 10% of the lake's hydraulic load, is the main contributor of sediment to the deep basin of the lake. Sediments from the River Derwent subcatchment, contributing ~ 80% of the hydraulic load, are possibly stored either on the floodplain or in shallower areas of the lake.
Landscape change and resilience theory: a palaeoenvironmental assessment from Yunnan, SW China
Authors: Dearing J.A.
Published: January 2008

The paper explores the use of Resilience Theory to provide an improved theoretical framework for the analysis of socio-ecological interactions over decadal—millennial timescales. It identifies landscape system behaviour through analysis of proxy records for land use, erosion and monsoon intensity over the past 3000 years in the Erhai lake-catchment system, Yunnan, SW China. Analysis of the records shows the possibility of alternative steady states in the landscape, as expressed by the relationship between land use and erosion. In particular, a period of agricultural expansion ~1400 cal. yr BP triggered rapid gully erosion that led to the formation of an eroded landscape state that has existed since ~800 cal. yr BP to the present day. Comparison of detrended time-series data suggests that over 3000 years erosion and land use should be considered `slow' processes relative to the `faster' monsoon intensity and flooding. In the past, the effects of high monsoon variance on flooding have been suppressed by paddy farming and the maintenance of terraced field systems. Mapping the Adaptive Cycle on to the millennial record of land use and erosion suggests that the modern landscape may be approaching a `conservation' phase characterized by minimum resilience. Such `historical profiling' of modern landscapes offers a new dimension for hypothesis testing, for the development and testing of simulation models and for the creation of appropriate management strategies.
Holocene environmental reconstruction of sediment-source linkages at Crummock Water, English Lake District, based on magnetic measurements
Authors: Zhixiong Shen  , Bloemendal Jan , Mauz Barbara , Chiverrell Richard C. , Dearing John A. , Lang Andreas , Qingsong Liu
Published: January 2008

To reconstruct Lateglacial and Holocene environmental changes in the British uplands, two c. 5.8 m long sediment cores from Crummock Water (NW England), together with several hundred soil samples from the Crummock Water catchment, were studied using magnetic techniques. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating using fine silt quartz and14C dating of terrestrial plant macrofossils were used to establish a chronology for the lake sediments. A good agreement between optical and14C ages indicates first, that the OSL dating method can be used to date lake sediments in the British Isles; second that macrofossil-based14C dating can be used to avoid the problem of `old carbon' error associated with bulk sample14C dating of lake sediments and third, that the established chronology is robust. The lake sediment magnetic properties indicate a series of changes in sediment composition during the Holocene, which correlate well with sediment lithology, water content and weight-loss-on-ignition. The first change corresponds to the Lateglacial/Postglacial climatic shift at around 11400 years ago; the subsequent suite of changes corresponds to a probable regional onset of human activity at 2000 BC, and particularly to the intensification of human activity at around AD 900. A comparison of the lake sediment magnetic properties and those of the catchment soils shows a clear linkage for the Lateglacial period, and for the period after AD 900. In contrast, detailed magnetic measurements of the early- through mid-Holocene sediments suggest that their magnetic properties are dominated by bacterial magnetosomes.
Palaeomagnetic and rock magnetic analysis of Holocene deposits from the Adriatic Sea: detecting and dating short-term fluctuations in sediment supply
Authors: Vigliotti L. , Verosub K.L. , Cattaneo A. , Trincardi F. , Asioli A. , Piva A.
Published: January 2008

We present palaeomagnetic and rock magnetic results from five cores collected in the basin of the Adriatic Sea. Four cores (PRAD2-4; KS02-246; CSS00-23 and CSS00-07) were collected along a shore-parallel transect whereas the fifth core (AMC99-01) was retrieved in the central Adriatic in 250 m water depth, on the floor of the Meso-Adriatic Depression. After alternating field demagnetization, the natural remanent magnetization (NRM) directions show a characteristic and primary magnetization of the sediments that is representative of secular variation of the geomagnetic field. By combining 14C dating and the ages of magnetic inclination features, it has been possible to establish an age—depth model for all of the cores. Precise identification of the secular variation features provides a refined chronology that allows us to quantify short-term changes in sediment flux from the Adriatic catchment as well as changes in sediment routing within the basin. Rock magnetic parameters indicate a homogeneous magnetic mineralogy dominated by fine-grained magnetite. Variations in both concentration and grain-size related magnetic parameters reflect changes in sediment supply between glacial and interglacial stages, as well as changes in environmental conditions. Selective dissolution of magnetic grains is associated with the formation of sapropel S1 during the first part of the Holocene, although the duration of the anoxic interval varies between cores. A significant modification in sediment supply characterizes the late-Holocene deposits with a marked increase in sedimentation rate occurring during the last few centuries. We interpret this as a far-reaching response to the rapid construction of the modern Po delta under increasing anthropogenic impact.
Late-Holocene climate variability in the Adriatic Sea (Central Mediterranean)
Authors: Piva Andrea , Asioli Alessandra , Trincardi Fabio , Schneider Ralph R. , Vigliotti Luigi
Published: January 2008

Planktic and benthic foraminifera assemblages from a set of sediment cores, collected on the Adriatic shelf and the Southern Adriatic deep basin, provide compelling evidence of submillennial-scale environmental changes during the last 6000 years. Repeated peaks in Globigerinoides sacculifer represent warm-dry intervals, including the `Mediaeval Warm Period', the `Roman Age', the late `Bronze Age' and the `Copper Age'. The Last Occurrence (LO) of G. sacculifer (550 years BP) approximates the base of the `Little Ice Age' (LIA). Significant turnovers in the structure of the water column reflect changes in the rate of formation and depth of flow of the North Adriatic Dense Water (NAdDW) and the Levantine Intermediate Water (LIW). About 7500 years BP the benthic oxygen isotope records mark the timing when the NAdDW formation intensified on the slope and shifted to its modern route. About 5500 years BP, when sea level reached its modern high stand, oxygen isotope records of intermediate planktic dwellers indicate a northward intrusion of the LIW on the slope. The oscillating isotope trends during the last five millennia document a discontinuous invasion of LIW into the Central Adriatic, possibly reflecting short-term climate changes with weakened LIW production during colder and wetter intervals.
A record of climate over the last millennium based on varved lake sediments from the Canadian High Arctic
Authors: Besonen M.R. , Patridge W. , Bradley R.S. , Francus P. , Stoner J.S. , Abbott M.B.
Published: January 2008

A varved sediment record that extends back over the last millennium was recovered from Lower Murray Lake, northern Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada (81°20′N, 69°30′W). Flatbed scan images and backscattered electron images were analysed to provide varve thickness and other quantitative sedimentary indices on an annual basis. In many studies of lakes from the High Arctic, varve thickness is a good proxy for summer temperature and we interpret the Lower Murray Lake varves in this way. On that basis, the Lower Murray Lake varve thickness record suggests that summer temperatures in recent decades were among the warmest of the last millennium, comparable with conditions that last occurred in the early twelfth and late thirteenth centuries, but estimates based on the sediment accumulation rate do not show such a recent increase. The coldest conditions of the `Little Ice Age' were experienced from ~AD 1700 to the mid-nineteenth century, when extensive ice cover on the lake led to widespread anoxic conditions in the deepest parts of the lake basin. An overall decline in median grain size over the last 1000 years indicates a reduction in the energy available to transport sediment to the lake. Many of these features of the record are also observed in other palaeoclimatic records from the North American Arctic. The very recent appearance of the diatom Campylodiscus, which was not observed throughout the record of the last millennium, suggests that a new threshold in the ontogenetic development of the lake has now been passed.
Frank Oldfield and his contributions to environmental change research
Authors: Battarbee Richard W. , Birks H. John B. , Barber Keith E. , Thompson Roy , Dearing John A. , Matthews John A.
Published: January 2008

Frank Oldfield's immense contribution to palaeoenvironmental science is summarized in relation to: pollen analysis, vegetation history and peat stratigraphy; palaeolimnology and210Pb dating; environmental magnetism, catchment—lake relationships and soil erosional history; multiproxy approaches; PAGES; and editing The Holocene. The tribute includes an introduction to the 14 other papers in this Special Issue, which were inspired in diverse ways by this remarkable scientist.
The Comparison of Four Types of Everyday Interdependencies
Authors: Dijkstra Jacob , van Assen Marcel A. L. M.
Published: January 2008

Actor behavior is compared theoretically and experimentally in four well-known everyday interdependence situations; (i) the market, (ii) the tragedy of the commons or resource dilemma, (iii) the public good problem, and (iv) the household. It is shown that the four situations can be studied within one general framework of exchange networks with externalities. Core theory is generalized to exchange networks with externalities and applied to derive predictions concerning differences in behavior in the four situations. The experiments corroborate the prediction that competition is most fierce in the resource dilemma, fierce in the market, and absent in the public good problem and household.
Interpretation of authigenicvs.allogenic green peloids of ferric clay in the Proterozoic Penganga Group, southern India
Authors: Bandopadhyay P. C.
Published: January 2008

Ferric illite in the Neoproterozoic Penganga Group, southern India, occurs in a lenticular unit of reworked arkoses conformably enclosed in carbonate mudstones, deposited in a shelf-margin carbonate slope setting influenced by deep marine sediment gravity flows. The structures and textures of the arkoses suggest emplacement by fine-grained debris flows and deposition in channels incised into the carbonate slope.

Ferric illite is sparse in the arkoses and has small concentrations and grainsizes within the same size fraction of the associated detritus, uniform chemical composition and an association with reworked facies. It consists predominantly of granular grains that are mostly sorted spherical, ovoid, capsule-shaped and vermicular peloids; many broken and micaceous. These attributes provide a comprehensive framework for suggesting an allogenic origin for the ferric illite previously interpreted as authigenic. The methodology adopted here is a useful approach in the interpretation of in situ vs. reworked origins of glauconitic minerals.
Illite ‘crystallinity’, maturation of organic matter and microstructural development associated with lowest-grade metamorphism of Neoproterozoic sediments in the Teplá-Barrandian unit, Czech Republic
Authors: Suchý V. , Sýkorová I. , Melka K. , Filip J. , Machovič V.
Published: January 2008

Metamorphic grade, palaeothermal history and the influence of tectonic strain on clay minerals and organic matter transformation were studied in the eastern part of the Teplá-Barrandian unit in the Czech Republic. The metamorphic grade of pelitic sediments ranges from the lower anchizone (IC ~0.30–0.36Δº2θ) to the lowermost epizone (IC ~0.24–0.26Δº2θ). Increase in metamorphic grade is paralleled by the development of anastomosing cleavage and lenticular quartz grains in the anchizone which give way to slaty cleavage and dynamically recrystallized ribbon quartz grains in the lower epizone. White mica in highly strained rocks generally has greater IC values whereas chlorite displays reduced values in deformed and cleaved samples. The organic matter dispersed in the sediments represents a complex assemblage of highly matured particles of uncertain origin, pyrobitumen and ‘transitional matter’. The reflectance of organic fragments generally varies from 3.1% to 7.7% ofRmaxwhich suggests anthracite to meta-anthracite rank progrades to semigraphite in higher-grade samples, although the overall link betweenRmaxand IC values is weak, if present at all. Newly formed shear-induced graphite appears abruptly near the anchizone-epizone boundary and correlates with the onset of plastic deformation and dynamic recrystallization of quartz grains in the host sediments.

Maximum metamorphic temperatures within the Neoproterozoic sequence in the range of 250–350ºC were attained during the Cadomian (Pan-African) orogeny at 540–550 Ma. Apatite fission-track analysis reveals a subsequent decrease in rock temperature over the period 340–350 Ma that persisted throughout the late Palaeozoic. The most recent episode of accelerated cooling occurred between 20 and 40 Ma, corresponding with the regional uplift of the Bohemian Massif due to the Alpine orogeny.
Characterization of a Mg-rich and low-charge saponite from the Neogene lacustrine basin of Eskisşehir, Turkey
Authors: Yeniyol M.
Published: January 2008

The saponite examined occurs as two 0.1 m thick layers in a Pliocene sequence consisting of dolomite and dolomitic marl. To characterize this material, mineralogical and structural analyses (XRD, SEM and FTIR), thermal analyses (DTA, TG) and chemical analyses (ICP-ES) were performed. From XRD patterns of randomly-oriented powder samples, the first basal reflection appears as an asymmetric and broad peak withd001values varying between 16.55 and 17.32 Å. In oriented and air-dried samples, this reflection occurs between 14.45 and 16.42 Å and is fairly symmetrical with FWHM of 2.7º2θ. Oriented and ethylene glycol-solvated samples produce a rational series of basal reflections, where 001 occurs at ~17.8 Å as an intense, narrow (1.1º2θ) and fairly symmetrical reflection. Upon solvation with glycerol, the 001 reflection shifts to ~18.7 Å.

The chemical composition of this saponite is similar to stevensite. However, the structural formula of Na0.114Ca0.013K0.003(Mg2.957Al0.004Fe0.028Ti0.004)(Si3.826Al0.174)O10(OH)2indicates that vacancies in the octahedral sheet do not exist. The negative layer charge arises nearly entirely from the substitutions in the tetrahedral sheet, with the net layer charge of –0.148, smaller than for common smectites.

Due to the XRD characteristics and particularly the layer-charge distribution, it was concluded that this mineral is a Mg-rich saponite with low layer charge. The saponite was formed by direct precipitation in an alkaline lake environment from Mg- and Si-rich solutions at high pH.
CCL3 and CXCL12 regulate trafficking of mouse bone marrow NK cell subsets
Authors: Bernardini Giovanni , Sciumè Giuseppe , Bosisio Daniela , Morrone Stefania , Sozzani Silvano , Santoni Angela
Published: January 2008

Herein we have analyzed chemokine involvement in the trafficking of developing and mature mouse natural killer (NK) cells in the bone marrow (BM). We observed drastic changes of CCR1, CXCR3, and CXCR4 expression and function during progression from precursor NK (pNK) cells to immature DX5− NK (iNK) and mature DX5+ NK (mNK) cells. pNK and mNK cells expressed the 3 receptors, while only CXCR4 was detected on iNK cells. Correspondingly, mNK cells migrated to CXCL12, CXCL10, and CCL3, and pNK and iNK cells to CXCL12, whereas pNK cells migrated to CCL3 and CXCL10 only after CXCL12 stimulation. Comparison of BM, peripheral blood, and spleen mNK cell populations revealed that CXCL12, CXCL10, and CCL3 preferentially affected BM mNK cell migration. Administration of the CXCR4 antagonist, AMD-3100, to C57BL/6 mice induced strong reduction of mNK and iNK cells in the BM and increased their number in blood and spleen. Conversely, CCL3 administration selectively mobilized mNK cells from the BM and this effect correlated with its ability to inhibit CXCL12-mediated mNK cell responses in vitro. Our results suggest that the combined action of chemokines selectively regulates localization of NK cell subsets in the BM and direct their maturation and migration to the periphery.
Development of a New Test Method for Air Intrusion Quantification of Roofing Assemblies
Authors: Molleti Suda , Baskaran Bas A. , Ko Steven Kee Ping
Published: January 2008

In North America, approximately one-fourth of low-slope buildings are roofed with a mechanically attached assembly (MAA) with a single-ply membrane. During wind suctions, the membrane can lift and billow. This creates localized suction under the membrane. If design provisions are not made to control the air intruison at the deck level, this suction pressure can draw the indoor conditioned air into the assembly. Two main factors influence the air intrusion: the air permeability of the components and shape or volume changes during the wind uplift. Available standard test procedures can quantify the former for roof materials. However, there is no widely accepted standard specification or test to address the air intrusion characteristics of roofing assemblies. Air leakage measurement techniques used for walls are also not applicable for roof assemblies due to the membrane shape and volume changes in the roof assembly. Research efforts are under way at the National Research Council of Canada to quantify the air intrusion rate of roof assemblies. This paper presents the details of the experimental setup, test procedure, and validation effort of this newly developed test method.
Cartilage-hair hypoplasia
Authors: Erdős Melinda , Tóth Beáta , Almássy Zsuzsanna , Tímár László , Maródi László
Published: January 2008

A porc-haj hypoplasia ritka, autoszomális recesszív öröklődésmenetű primer immunhiány-betegség, amelyre a döntően T-sejtes immundeficiencia mellett metaphysealis chondrodysplasia jellemző. A közleményben a szerzők egy esetismertetés kapcsán mutatják be a betegség klinikumát és a jellemző laboratóriumi leleteket, összefoglalják a kórkép molekuláris patomechanizmusával kapcsolatos ismereteket és a kezelés lehetőségeit.
The epoch-changing influence of the Nuremberg Doctor’s Trial on the ethical judgment of human experiments
Authors: Kerpel-Fronius Sándor
Published: January 2008

A rövid történelmi áttekintés igyekszik megvilágítani azt a rögös utat, melyen a 20. század elejétől a társadalom végighaladt a humán kísérletek gondolatának általános elfogadásáig. Sajnos az emberiségnek rá kellett döbbennie arra, hogy egyes orvosok, antihumánus vagy elnéző politikai vezetés mellett, tudásukat embertársaik ellen fordíthatják, vagy embertársaikat veszélyeztethetik tudományos céljaik megvalósítása során. Ezért vált szükségessé az orvosi kísérletek etikai követelményeinek rendeletekbe foglalása, melyre először 1900-ban, Poroszországban került sor. A nürnbergi orvosper történelmi érdeme, hogy a tárgyalás során az emberkísérletek korszakalkotó tudományos jelentőségét felismerve, a humán vizsgálatokra vonatkozó, általános érvényű etikai elveket fogalmazott meg, melyek Nürnbergi Kódként váltak ismertté. Nemzetközi, átfogó szabályozásra a per hatására került sor. Sajnos a per során, beleegyező nyilatkozat adása esetén, etikailag elfogadhatónak ítélték a rabokon végzett kísérleteket. Ezzel a lehetőséggel visszaélve, számos etikátlan vizsgálatra került sor a háború után, elsősorban Amerikában. Az etikátlan börtönkísérletek és a nagy felháborodást kiváltó Tuskegee-vizsgálat nyilvánosságra kerülése vezetett a hetvenes években a független etikai bizottságok széles körű elterjedéséhez, melyeken keresztül a humán vizsgálatok társadalmi ellenőrzése valósult meg. Súlyos betegek esetében azonban az orvos magára maradhat a helyzethez alkalmazkodó, etikailag helyes döntés gyors meghozatalában. A humán vizsgálati alanyok biztonsága és etikai védelme végső soron a társadalom és a kísérletező orvosok együttes felelőssége marad.
Antidepressant Drug Use and Risk of Venous Thromboembolism
Authors: Jick Susan S. , Li Lin
Published: January 2008

Study Objective.: To evaluate the risk of idiopathic venous thromboembolism associated with antidepressant use and to further assess the risk by class of antidepressant and by individual antidepressant drug.

Design.: Nested case‐control study.

Data Source.: United Kingdom General Practice Research Database.

Subjects.: Seven hundred eighty‐two case patients with a confirmed diagnosis of venous thromboembolism who were taking an antidepressant drug and 3085 matched control subjects.

Measurements and Main Results.: We identified all people in the database aged 70 years or younger with venous thromboembolism who had filled at least one prescription for an antidepressant drug between 1990 and 2005; up to four control subjects were matched to each case patient by age, sex, practice attended, index date, and duration of computerized medical record. We compared the risks of current and recent use of antidepressant drugs with nonuse of an antidepressant before the index date (date of diagnosis of venous thromboembolism) by using conditional logistic regression. Current exposure to tricyclic antidepressants was associated with a small increased risk of idiopathic venous thromboembolism compared with nonuse (odds ratio [OR] 1.4, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1‐1.8), whereas we found no increased risk among users of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or other antidepressant drugs. When we evaluated individual drugs, we found that amitriptyline conferred an increased risk of thromboembolism (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.2‐2.4) that increased with increasing dose (> 25 mg/day). No other individual antidepressant drug was associated with an increase in risk of venous thromboembolism.

Conclusion. Current exposure to amitriptyline, particularly at high doses, was associated with an increased risk of idiopathic venous thromboembolism.

Current exposure to amitriptyline, particularly at high doses, was associated with an increased risk of idiopathic venous thromboembolism.
Skeletal Muscle Relaxants
Authors: See Sharon , Ginzburg Regina
Published: January 2008

Health care providers prescribe skeletal muscle relaxants for a variety of indications. However, the comparative efficacy of these drugs is not well known. Skeletal muscle relaxants consist of both antispasticity and antispasmodic agents, a distinction prescribers often overlook. The antispasticity agents—baclofen, tizanidine, dantrolene, and diazepam—aid in improving muscle hypertonicity and involuntary jerks. Antispasmodic agents, such as cyclobenzaprine, are primarily used to treat musculoskeletal conditions. Much of the evidence from clinical trials regarding skeletal muscle relaxants is limited because of poor methodologic design, insensitive assessment methods, and small numbers of patients. Although trial results seem to support the use of these agents for their respective indications, efficacy data from comparator trials did not particularly favor one skeletal muscle relaxant over another. Therefore, the choice of a skeletal muscle relaxant should be based on its adverse‐effect profile, tolerability, and cost.
Treatment of Selective Mutism: Focus on Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors
Authors: Kaakeh Yaman , Stumpf Janice L.
Published: January 2008

Selective mutism is a pediatric psychiatric disorder that occurs when a child consistently fails to speak in specific situations in which speaking is expected, such as at school and social gatherings, but speaks appropriately in other settings. Selective mutism often is diagnosed when a child starts school and does not talk to teachers or peers, but talks to family members at home; the condition is frequently accompanied by anxiety and shyness. Although the underlying etiology of the condition remains unclear, psychotherapy is the preferred initial treatment, with the support of parents and teachers. If the child does not respond to psychotherapy, addition of pharmacologic treatment should be considered, depending on the severity of symptoms and presence of other illnesses. Although data are limited to case reports and trials with small patient populations and short follow‐up periods, some patients with selective mutism respond to therapy with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Fluoxetine is the most studied SSRI as treatment for the condition, although further investigation is required to determine the optimal dosage and duration of therapy.
Clopidogrel Desensitization: Case Report and Review of Published Protocols
Authors: Owen Phillip , Garner John , Hergott Lawrence , Page Robert Lee
Published: January 2008

The antiplatelet drug clopidogrel is an oral thienopyridine derivative that has been extensively used for the treatment and secondary prevention of a variety of cardiovascular diseases. Although clopidogrel is well tolerated by most patients, rare but serious hypersensitivity reactions have been documented, including cutaneous reactions and angioedema. An alternative thienopyridine that may be substituted for clopidogrel is ticlopidine; however, deleterious side effects from ticlopidine may occur, including diarrhea, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia purpura, and cross‐reactivity has been documented between these two thienopyridines. In cases of bare‐metal stent deployment, cilostazol may be a safe and effective alternative; however, limited therapeutic data are available. In such cases, providers may need to administer a clopidogrel desensitization protocol; three clopidogrel desensitization protocols have been published. We describe a 58‐year‐old man who developed a generalized diffuse rash along his abdomen within 2 weeks of exposure to clopidogrel after drug‐eluting stent placement. Clopidogrel was discontinued, and ticlopidine was begun. The rash resolved within 3 days of clopidogrel discontinuation. Using the Naranjo adverse drug reaction probability scale, we determined that the probability of clopidogrel causing the rash was probable (score of 8). Ticlopidine was subsequently discontinued due to severe diarrhea. Because of the patient's implanted stent and high risk for possible thrombosis, an 8‐hour clopidogrel desensitization protocol was devised and successfully used in this patient, who continued to receive clopidogrel over the next year without rash recurrence. Based on our experience and the literature reviewed, administration of a clopidogrel desensitization protocol in patients with a history of isolated cutaneous hypersensitivity reactions, including angioedema, to clopidogrel can be a safe therapeutic alternative to ticlopidine or cilostazol.