bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Colorimetric Detection of Nitroaromatics Using Organic Photochromic Compounds
Authors: Vamvounis George , Sandery Nicholas
Published: August 2015

An organic photochromic compound is explored as a new portable colorimetric sensor for nitroaromatics. This photochromic compound switches from colourless to pink upon exposure to ultraviolet light. In the presence of nitroaromatic explosive derivatives the photoswitching behaviour of the dithienylethene is suppressed, while a potential false positive (toluene) has little effect. The degree of photoswitching inhibition was determined by comparing the integrated visible absorption with the concentration of the analyte to give the pseudo Stern–Volmer constant (KPSV). The KPSVs measured varied from 12900 (p-nitrotoluene) to 236 M–1 (toluene), which were directly related to the analyte absorption at the excitation wavelength.
Factors associated with women’s entry into the sex industry: findings from interviews conducted with female sex workers in Chinese detention centres
Authors: Zhang Xiaohu , Mao Limin , Aggleton Peter , Zhang Jun , Jing Jun , Cui Jia , Zhao Rui , Ren Jiehui , de Wit John
Published: August 2015

Background: To date, limited research has been conducted to identify the personal and contextual factors that contribute to women’s entry into the sex industry in China. Methods: The reasons for and factors associated with voluntary entry into the sex industry were explored through in-depth interviews conducted with 38 Chinese women who were held in detention centres for selling sex. Results: Women’s personal accounts reveal that entry into sex work is influenced by life aspirations, family responsibilities and social connections, which facilitate mobility to a new urban environment in which they encounter opportunities and challenges. Findings highlight the complex interactions between individual and contextual factors in relation to women’s entry into sex work. Conclusions: In a rapidly developing country such as China, entry into sex work may appeal to women of low socioeconomic status, particularly young women who have recently migrated to urban areas. For members of this mobile and relatively disadvantaged population, comprehensive social services and support are urgently needed.
Sexually transmissible infections and characteristics of men aged 60 years and over attending a public sexually transmitted diseases (STD) clinic in South Australia
Authors: Khaw Carole , Li Bin , Waddell Russell
Published: August 2015

Background
With society ageing, sexually transmissible infections (STIs) in the older population are of interest from an economic, health-related and social burden perspective. Few studies on STIs in men older than 60 years of age exist. Methods: A retrospective study was performed looking at characteristics of, and STIs in, 29 106 men (of which 689 were older than 60 years of age), at first presentation, visiting the only South Australian public sexually transmitted diseases (STD) clinic over a 13-year period. Results: Older men [men who have sex with men (MSM) and men who have sex with women (MSW)] were less likely than younger men to have been tested for HIV. Conclusion: There is a need for increased HIV testing in older men.
Countering antivaccination attitudes
Authors: Horne Zachary , Powell Derek , Hummel John E. , Holyoak Keith J.
Published: August 2015

Significance

Myths about the safety of vaccinations have led to a decline in vaccination rates and the reemergence of measles in the United States, calling for effective provaccine messages to curb this dangerous trend. Prior research on vaccine attitude change suggests that it is difficult to persuade vaccination skeptics and that direct attempts to do so can even backfire. Here, we successfully countered people’s antivaccination attitudes by making them appreciate the consequences of failing to vaccinate their children (using information provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). This intervention outperformed another that aimed to undermine widespread vaccination myths.
Identification of a functional hotspot on ubiquitin required for stimulation of methyltransferase activity on chromatin
Authors: Holt Matthew T. , David Yael , Pollock Sam , Tang Zhanyun , Jeon Jongcheol , Kim Jaehoon , Roeder Robert G. , Muir Tom W.
Published: August 2015

Significance

This article applies a range of protein ligation methods at the level of chromatin to understand the cross-talk mechanism between the well-established biomedical target the human Dot1 (hDot1L) methyltransferase and the ubiquitylation of H2B at lysine 120. Through a systematic structure–activity relationship study of the ubiquitin surface in regard to hDot1L-mediated H3K79 methylation and further investigation with precisely engineered chromatin substrates, a functional hotspot within ubiquitin was identified that is essential to the stimulation of hDot1L activity. More broadly, this work shows how chemical synthesis approaches can be used to precisely tailor protein posttranslational modifications to afford mechanistic insights that would be impossible by other methods.
Consecutive radical
S
-adenosylmethionine methylations form the ethyl side chain in thienamycin biosynthesis
Authors: Marous Daniel R. , Lloyd Evan P. , Buller Andrew R. , Moshos Kristos A. , Grove Tyler L. , Blaszczyk Anthony J. , Booker Squire J. , Townsend Craig A.
Published: August 2015

Significance

The antibacterial effectiveness of penicillins and cephalosporins is increasingly challenged by bacterial resistance, highlighting the increasing clinical importance of the carbapenems as the most potent, broad-spectrum class of β-lactam antibiotics. The carbapenems are produced commercially by total synthesis, rather than by lower-cost fermentation methods. The development of chemoenzymatic or semisynthetic means of manufacture requires elucidation of at least four central, undefined steps in the biosynthesis of thienamycin. The cobalamin-dependent radical
S
-adenosylmethionine (RS) superfamily enzyme ThnK performs two sequential methyl transfers in a stereodefined manner. This enzyme activity identifies critical intermediates in carbapenem biosynthesis, more clearly defining the enigmatic central steps of the pathway and exemplifying an unprecedented reaction sequence among RS enzymes.
The Life Story and the Study of Resilience and Response to Adversity
Authors: Cohler Bertram J.
Published: August 2015

Abstract The concept of the life story is discussed as an important means for under-standing continuity and change within lives over time, including means used to make sense of lived experience, particularly response to adversity. This per-spective on the study of the life history is based on current approaches to the study of narrative within both the human sciences and the humanities, and views the life history as a story that is continually revised over time, and with age. The life story may be evaluated, both by its teller and by those listening or reading, in the same terms as any good or "followable" story within our own culture (Ricoeur, 1977). Explanation of the origins, impact, and resolu-tion of adversity appears essential both in the "good" story and the life his-tory understood as a personal narrative or story, and is necessary to maintain continuing experience of personal integrity or coherence across the course of life. Some representative accounts of response to adversity are reviewed which are consistent with the life story approach, focusing on means used in making sense and maintaining a life story that is followable both to self and others.(Psychology)
Women's Diaries as Ethnographic Resources
Authors: West Barbara A.
Published: August 2015

Abstract This article is concerned with the use of diaries and journals as appropriate source material for anthropologists. I focus specifically on the written works of women; however, I argue that all diaries and journals should be considered by anthropologists as important sources for the analysis of individual thought, feeling, and voice as experienced within a specific social and cultural arena. My concentration on the voices of American women springs in part from a desire to make heard voices that have often been silenced by traditional anthropological discourse. Also, I would like to suggest a relationship between the feelings of deviance and alienation experienced by many women as they attempt to reconcile their own experiences and feelings with those of the society and culture in which they live, and the feelings of the anthropologist who experiences culture shock during the period of fieldwork. These similar feelings explain the reflection in some diaries and journals of themes and ideas prevalent in much ethnographic writing.(Anthropology)
"I'm Not Just Talking to the Victims of Oppression Tonight- I'm Talking to Everybody": Rhetorical Authority and Narrative Authenticity in an African-American Poetics of Political Engagement
Authors: Briggs Charles L.
Published: August 2015

Abstract A number of scholars have recently followed Bakhtin's lead in recognizing the analytic importance of discourse that contains more than one genre. This article discusses the opening lines of an address by a civil rights activist, the Reverend Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., to an audience that consisted mainly of college stu-dents. After adumbrating the general themes he planned to address, Chavis told a personal narrative regarding his success in desegregating the library in his home town in the 1950s. Although Chavis initially drew on academic lecturing style in establishing textual authority, linguistic features of the narrative linked the form of the discourse to the social milieu he was representing, thus estab-lishing narrative authenticity. Both sections contain a stylistic overlap of fea-tures found in performed African-American sermons. Drawing on Gates's (1988) use of the term Signifyin(g) and a new model of genre (Briggs & Bau-man, 1992), I suggest that this dialogue of genres enables Chavis to Signify on the ongoing speech event and its political-economic location as well as to critique the textual economy of segregation.(Linguistic Anthropology)
Mistaken Identities: First-Person Narration in Kazuo Ishiguro
Authors: Scanlan Margaret
Published: August 2015

Abstract Contemporary theorists tend to agree on the death of the subject and therefore, it seems, on the death of the first-person realistic novel. Novels likeDavid CopperfieldandJane Eyreseem like extended metaphors for humanism itself-the outmoded view that human beings are the center of their world, that they can know themselves, that their psychology and moral character develop con-sistently, and that they are largely responsible for the courses their lives take. In two recent first-person novels,An Artist of the Floating World(1986) andThe Remains of the Day(1989), Kazuo Ishiguro explores such assumptions, providing us with narrators whose selves do seem to be socially constructed and consequently decentered and unstable. Although Ishiguro fully understands and displays the appeal of posthumanist models of the subject, he ends by suggesting that a self no longer author of itself is a self in search of authority.(Cultural criticism, literary criticism)
Salomon's Work
Authors: van Alphen Ernst
Published: August 2015

Abstract
Charlotte Salomon's painted life history took shape in an extremely gruesome period: World War II. But Salomon's personal family history is also excep-tional: Almost her whole family committed suicide. This article explores the question of whether it is meaningful, or even legitimate, to refer to a work emerging from such a violent reality as a work of art. The article focuses on the many self-reflective passages in the images and text that deal with the function of art and the ways it is made. It is argued that Salomon did not provide the fate of her family and the horrible war with a deeper meaning in order to liberate herself from their horror. She did not write a realistic account of her reality, nor did she create an alternative world for it. Rather, her life history is a performance in the strictest sense: doing the work of working through her reality. (History; art criticism)
A "life-testimony" is not simply a testimony to a private life, but a point of conflation between text and life, a textual testimony which can penetrate us like an actual life. (Shoshana Felman & Dori Laub, 1992, Testimony. Crises of Witnessing in Literature, Psychoanalysis, and History, p.
Popular Culture, Curriculum, and Historical Representation: The Situation of Native Americans in American History and the Perpetuation of Stereotypes
Authors: Wills John S.
Published: August 2015

Abstract
An examination of how Native Americans come to be represented in classroom history lessons demonstrates how the shared cultural biases of teachers and students mediate the representation of different racial and ethnic groups in American history. Although multiple representations of Native Americans are present in the curriculum, a romanticized and stereotypical representation of Native Americans as nomadic, buffalo-hunting Plains Indians is privileged over alternative representations in the classroom. This is due not only to the influence of popular images of Indians found in mainstream American culture, but also to the use of a Eurocentric narrative that emphasizes the presence of nomadic Plains Indians in American history while marginalizing the existence of other Native Americans. These findings suggest that efforts to create a multicultural history curriculum through the addition of women and people of color to the existing narrative of American history may do little to challenge the perpetuation of racial and ethnic stereotypes. (Sociology; Education; Culture)
Case Studies of Exceptional People: What Can They Teach Us?
Authors: Colby Anne
Published: August 2015

Abstract
This article describes the use of the case study method for the investigation of exceptional moral commitment. William Damon and I used the case study method in this research because we were interested in sustained, long-term moral commitment and in the transformation of moral goals over time within the context of life histories, social relationships, and other influences. The study yielded in-depth life history interviews with 23 people who were selected for having worked for many years to address such issues as civil rights, poverty, and peace. Case material was used to illustrate and flesh out a theoretical account of a developmental process called the transformation of goals through social influence. The use of 23 diverse cases also allowed us to identify common characteristics that cut across the interviews. The three main themes that emerged from the case material were certainty, positivity, and unity of self and moral goals. (Psychology; Human Development; Case Study)
One Story Map Does Not Fit All: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Children's Written Story Retellings
Authors: Invernizzi Marcia A. , Abouzeid Mary P.
Published: August 2015

Abstract
Narrative is acknowledged to be a primary means by which children develop the voice of their own culture. In recent years, and as a result of the increased interest in story grammar research, retellings have also become a useful tool for assessing children's understanding of stories and teaching comprehension. The assumption across most previous studies is that narrative, especially folktales, provides the same story-schema support, no matter what the culture of the child may be. This cross-cultural study examines the relative effects of literacy and culture on the narrative form of written story retellings. Empirical findings confirm the hypothesis that two disparate populations, otherwise equated for levels of literacy, western-style schooling, and cognitive development, differ significantly in the structural components of their written story retellings. The story grammar of Mandler and Johnson (1977) was evaluated for discrimina-tory power. Categorizations of specific components of the story grammar showed qualitative differences from culture to culture. Results support culture-specific theories of story schema. (Sociolinguistics, Education)
Lars-Christer Hyden
Authors: Hydén Lars-Christer
Published: August 2015

Abstract After the occurrence of a disruptive illness, questions tend to arise about oneself and one's way of life and its moral meaning. These questions concern what kind of person one is and how one can sustain one's identity and self-image in the face of disruptive events. In this sense, the reconstruction of a life narrative is a moral quest. In this article, an analysis is presented of an interview with a former psychiatric patient concerning his mental illness and experience of psychosis. The analysis of this man's reconstructive work shows that he assigns the disruptive event a particular place in his life narrative to invest it with meaning and sense. This means not only establishing what has happened but also why it has happened. An important condition for the narrativization of disruptive events is the identification of a "platform," which can serve as a basis from which the reconstructive work can start. The platform defines the point from which a connection with one's previous life can be established. The identification of a platform can be viewed as the formulation of a voice; that is to say, a kind of normative order of the relation among the actions, events, and persons who figure in the life narrative.(Psychology)
Structural Configuration of Magic Realism in the Works of Gabriel García Márquez, Leslie Marmon Silko, Charles Johnson, and Julie Dash
Authors: Aldama Frederick Luis
Published: August 2015

Abstract

This article raises the question of how contemporary multicultural authors and film directors build upon the magic-realist convention, with its specific narra-tive-discourse configurations (the way the story is told) to allow their audience access to foreign, often bizarre worlds. The first section of the analysis deals with understanding the precise structural configurations that make a text work as magic realism and explores variations that complicate the schemata. The second section relies on the first section's discussion of magic-realist codes to look closely at Julie Dash's film
Daughters of the Dust
, a text type that utilizes its visual and auditory tracks to work as magic realism.

(Magic Realism; Visual and Literary Theory; Multicultural Images)
On a Certain Emotional Blindness in Human Beings
Authors: Scheibe Karl E.
Published: August 2015

Abstract
This essay examines the conditions surrounding emotional blindness, indiffer-ence, or the syndrome that is known clinically as alexithymia. Indifference to events or circumstances is related to the narrative construction of those events, is selective within the same person, and is dependent upon a person's con-structed identity. Our capacity to story ourselves and the world about us removes our indifference. A clinical case of alexithymia and several biographical examples are employed to illustrate and fortify these points. (Social and Clinical Psychology)
Neither the whole of truth nor the whole of good is revealed to any single observer, although each observer gains a partial superiority of insight from the peculiar position in which he stands.
William James, 1900, p. 264
Persistence Stories and Survival Strategies of Cambodian Americans in College
Authors: Kiang Peter N.
Published: August 2015

Abstract Contrary to traditional models of student persistence, Cambodian refugee students' survival strategies reflect and enhance the significance of reference points external to the academic and social domains of the university. Authorizing Cambodian student voices reveals the strengths and needs of their multidimensional backgrounds—particularly in relation to the curriculum and dynamics of teaching and learning in the classroom.(Cambodian Students, Southeast Asian Students, College Student Persistence, Student Voices)
Life Stories, Status, and Symbolic Typing: Exploring Beggars As an Interpretive Community
Authors: Meir-Dviri Mina , Raz Aviad E.
Published: August 2015

Abstract Based on fieldwork in a central bus station in Israel, this article focuses on the theme of life stories as an analytical venue into the social world of beggars. Beggars were found to have three statuses, or symbolic types: the handicapped, the prostitute, and the mad. The ethnography describes the interplay between the status and life stories of beggars, and analyzes how life stories are changed vis-a-vis a beggar's change of status.(Sociology, Anthropology)
Telogen elongation in the hair cycle ofob/obmice
Authors: Tasaki Natsumi , Minematsu Takeo , Mugita Yuko , Ikeda Shin-ichi , Nakagami Gojiro , Sanada Hiromi
Published: August 2015

Alopecia impairs the physical and mental health of patients. We have previously shown that 8-week-old ob/ob mice have no reactivity to depilation, which is a stimulus that induces anagen transition in normal mice, while no hair cycle abnormalities have been reported in other studies until mice reach 7 weeks of age. Therefore, we hypothesized that ob/ob mice have abnormalities in hair cycle progression beyond 7 weeks of age. We examined 6- to 24-week-old ob/ob and 6- to 10-week-old normal mice. After acclimation, the dorsal skin was harvested and the hair cycle phase was identified histologically and immunohistochemically. Normal mice showed catagen–telogen and telogen–anagen transitions at 6 and 8–9 weeks old, respectively. In contrast, the anagen–catagen transition was observed in 7-week-old mice and the telogen phase was maintained from 10 to 24 weeks in most ob/ob mice. These results suggests that ob/ob mice are a possible model animal for telogen effluvium.
PtdIns(4,5)P2 and PtdIns3P coordinate to regulate phagosomal sealing for apoptotic cell clearance
Authors: Cheng Shiya , Wang Kun , Zou Wei , Miao Rui , Huang Yaling , Wang Haibin , Wang Xiaochen
Published: August 2015

Phagocytosis requires phosphoinositides (PIs) as both signaling molecules and localization cues. How PIs coordinate to control phagosomal sealing and the accompanying switch of organelle identity is unclear. In this study, we followed dynamic changes in PIs during apoptotic cell clearance in Caenorhabditis elegans. We found that phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P2) and phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PtdIns3P), which accumulate transiently on unsealed and fully sealed phagosomes, respectively, are both involved in phagosome closure. We identified PtdIns3P phosphatase MTM-1 as an effector of PtdIns(4,5)P2 to promote phagosomal sealing. MTM-1 coordinates with the class II PI3 kinase PIKI-1 to control PtdIns3P levels on unsealed phagosomes. The SNX9 family protein LST-4 is required for sealing, and its association with unsealed phagosomes is regulated by PtdIns(4,5)P2, PIKI-1, and MTM-1. Loss of LST-4 or its retention on phagosomes disrupts sealing and suppresses PtdIns3P accumulation, indicating close coupling of the two events. Our findings support a coincidence detection mechanism by which phagosomal sealing is regulated and coupled with conversion from PtdIns(4,5)P2 enrichment on unsealed phagosomes to PtdIns3P enrichment on fully sealed phagosomes.
Rapid pairing and resegregation of distant homologous loci enables double-strand break repair in bacteria
Authors: Badrinarayanan Anjana , Le Tung B.K. , Laub Michael T.
Published: August 2015

Double-strand breaks (DSBs) can lead to the loss of genetic information and cell death. Although DSB repair via homologous recombination has been well characterized, the spatial organization of this process inside cells remains poorly understood, and the mechanisms used for chromosome resegregation after repair are unclear. In this paper, we introduced site-specific DSBs in Caulobacter crescentus and then used time-lapse microscopy to visualize the ensuing chromosome dynamics. Damaged loci rapidly mobilized after a DSB, pairing with their homologous partner to enable repair, before being resegregated to their original cellular locations, independent of DNA replication. Origin-proximal regions were resegregated by the ParABS system with the ParA structure needed for resegregation assembling dynamically in response to the DSB-induced movement of an origin-associated ParB away from one cell pole. Origin-distal regions were resegregated in a ParABS-independent manner and instead likely rely on a physical, spring-like force to segregate repaired loci. Collectively, our results provide a mechanistic basis for the resegregation of chromosomes after a DSB.
Pulmonary Hypertension is a Manifestation of Congestive Heart Failure and Left Ventricular Diastolic Dysfunction in Octogenarians with Severe Aortic Stenosis
Authors: Raina Amresh , Gertz Zachary M. , O'Donnell William T. , Herrmann Howard C. , Forfia Paul R.
Published: August 2015

Previous studies have suggested that pulmonary hypertension (PH) in severe aortic stenosis (AS) is a risk factor for operative mortality with aortic valve replacement (AVR). Conversely, others have shown that patients with AS and PH extract a large symptomatic and survival benefit from AVR compared with those patients not treated surgically. We sought to evaluate the prevalence, severity, and mechanism of PH in an elderly patient cohort with severe AS. We prospectively evaluated 41 patients aged ≥80 years with severe AS. All patients underwent cardiac catheterization and transthoracic echocardiography within 24 hours. We found that PH was common in this cohort: 32 patients (78%) had PH; however, the predominant mechanism of PH was left heart congestion. Patients with PH had nearly double the pulmonary artery wedge pressure of patients without PH (23 vs. 13 mmHg; P ≤ 0.001). In patients with PH compared with those without, pulmonary vascular resistance was higher yet still under 3 Wood units (WU; 2.9 vs. 1.5 WU; P = 0.001), and the transpulmonary gradient (11 vs. 7 mmHg; P = 0.01) and diastolic pulmonary gradient (DPG; 3.0 vs. 2.7 mmHg; P = 0.74) were in normal range. Left ventricular diastolic abnormalities were more common in patients with severe AS and PH. Right ventricular (RV) dysfunction was common (13/41 patients, 32%), but the PH and non‐PH groups had similar tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (2.0 vs. 2.3 cm; P = 0.15). Only 2 subjects had both RV dysfunction and an elevated DPG. In conclusion, PH is common in elderly patients with severe AS. This occurs largely due to left heart congestion, with a relative absence of pulmonary vascular disease and RV dysfunction, and as such, PH may serve as a heart failure equivalent in these patients.
Differential Effect of Initiating Moderate Red Wine Consumption on 24-h Blood Pressure by Alcohol Dehydrogenase Genotypes: Randomized Trial in Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Gepner Yftach , Henkin Yaakov , Schwarzfuchs Dan , Golan Rachel , Durst Ronen , Shelef Ilan , Harman-Boehm Ilana , Spitzen Shosana , Witkow Shula , Novack Lena , Friger Michael , Tangi-Rosental Osnat , Sefarty Dana , Bril Nitzan , Rein Michal , Cohen Noa , Chassidim Yoash , Sarusi Benny , Wolak Talia , Stampfer Meir J. , Rudich Assaf , Shai Iris
Published: August 2015

AIMS

Observational studies report inconsistent associations between moderate alcohol intake and blood pressure (BP). In a sub-study of a larger randomized controlled trial, we assessed the effect of initiating moderate red wine consumption on 24-h BP recordings and the effect of a common genetic variant of alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH) among patients with type 2 diabetes.

METHODS

Fifty-four type 2 diabetes, alcohol abstainers were randomized to consume 150ml/dinner dry red wine or mineral water. Both groups were guided to adhere to a Mediterranean diet, without caloric restriction. We measured 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) at baseline and after 6 months.

RESULTS

Participants (age = 57 years; 85% men; mean 24-h BP = 129/77mm Hg) had 92% 6-month retention. After 6 months of intervention, the average 24-h BP did not differ between the wine and water groups. A transient decrease in BP was observed in the red wine group at midnight (3–4 hours after wine intake: systolic BP: red wine = −10.6mm Hg vs. mineral water = +2.3mm Hg; P = 0.031) and the following morning at 7–9 am (red wine: −6.2mm Hg vs. mineral water: +5.6mm Hg; P = 0.014). In a second post hoc sub-analysis among the red wine consumers, individuals who were homozygous for the gene encoding ADH1B*2 variant (Arg48His; rs1229984, TT, fast ethanol metabolizers), exhibited a reduction in mean 24-h systolic BP (−8.0mm Hg vs. +3.7mm Hg; P = 0.002) and pulse pressure (−3.8mm Hg vs. +1.2mm Hg; P = 0.032) compared to heterozygotes and those homozygous for the ADH1B*1 variant (CC, slow metabolizers).

CONCLUSIONS

Initiating moderate red wine consumption at dinner among type 2 diabetes patients does not have a discernable effect on mean 24-h BP. Yet, a modest temporal BP reduction could be documented, and a more pronounced BP-lowering effect is suggested among fast ethanol metabolizers.

CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00784433.
Pretreatment HIV Drug Resistance Increases Regimen Switches in Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Boender T. Sonia , Hoenderboom Bernice M. , Sigaloff Kim C. E. , Hamers Raph L. , Wellington Maureen , Shamu Tinei , Siwale Margaret , Labib Maksimos Eman E. F. , Nankya Immaculate , Kityo Cissy M. , Adeyemo Titilope A. , Akanmu Alani Sulaimon , Mandaliya Kishor , Botes Mariette E. , Ondoa Pascale , Rinke de Wit Tobias F.
Published: August 2015

Background.  After the scale-up of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in Africa, increasing numbers of patients have pretreatment drug resistance.

Methods.  In a large multicountry cohort of patients starting standard first-line ART in six African countries, pol genotyping was retrospectively performed if viral load (VL) ≥1000 cps/mL. Pretreatment drug resistance was defined as a decreased susceptibility to ≥1 prescribed drug. We assessed the effect of pretreatment drug resistance on all-cause mortality, new AIDS events and switch to second-line ART due to presumed treatment failure, using Cox models.

Results.  Among 2579 participants for whom a pretreatment genotype was available, 5.5% had pretreatment drug resistance. Pretreatment drug resistance was associated with an increased risk of regimen switch (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 3.80; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.49–9.68; P = .005) but was not associated with mortality (aHR 0.75, 95% CI, .24–2.35; P = .617) or new AIDS events (aHR 1.06, 95% CI, .68–1.64; P = .807). During three years of follow up, 106 (4.1%) participants switched to second-line, of whom 18 (17.0%) switched with VL < 1000 cps/mL, 7 (6.6%) with VL ≥ 1000 cps/mL and no drug resistance mutations (DRMs), 46 (43.4%) with VL ≥ 1000 cps/mL and ≥1 DRMs; no HIV RNA data was available for 32 (30.2%) participants.

Conclusions.  Given rising pretreatment HIV drug resistance levels in sub-Saharan Africa, these findings underscore the need for expanded access to second-line ART. VL monitoring can improve the accuracy of failure detection and efficiency of switching practices.
The confidence effects of fiscal consolidations
Authors: Beetsma Roel , Cimadomo Jacopo , Furtuna Oana , Giuliodori Massimo
Published: August 2015

We explore how fiscal consolidations affect private sector confidence, a possible channel for the transmission of fiscal policy that has received particular attention recently as a result of governments embarking on austerity trajectories in the aftermath of the crisis. Panel regressions based on the annual action-based datasets of Devries et al. (2011) and Alesina et al. (2014a) show that consolidations, and in particular their unanticipated components, affect confidence negatively. To obtain a more accurate picture of how consolidations affect confidence, we construct a monthly dataset of consolidation announcements, so that we can investigate the confidence effects in real time using an event study. The results suggest that consumer confidence falls around announcements of consolidation measures, an effect likely driven by revenue-based measures. Moreover, these effects are highly relevant for European countries with weak institutional arrangements, as measured by the tightness of fiscal rules or budgetary transparency. The effects on producer confidence are generally similar, but weaker than for consumer confidence. Long-term interest rates, as a measure of confidence in the sovereign, tend to fall around spending-based consolidation announcements. We have no evidence that the confidence effects of consolidation announcements are worse in slumps than in booms. Generally, strengthening institutional arrangements may help in mitigating adverse confidence effects of consolidations.
Efficacy and safety of treatment simplification to atazanavir/ritonavir + lamivudine in HIV-infected patients with virological suppression: 144 week follow-up of the AtLaS pilot study
Authors: Mondi A. , Fabbiani M. , Ciccarelli N. , Colafigli M. , D'Avino A. , Borghetti A. , Gagliardini R. , Cauda R. , De Luca A. , Di Giambenedetto S.
Published: August 2015

Objectives

AtLaS was a single-arm pilot study that demonstrated promising efficacy and safety of treatment simplification to a dual regimen with atazanavir/ritonavir + lamivudine in virologically suppressed HIV-positive patients. Here, we report data from the 144 week follow-up.

Methods

At baseline, patients treated with a three-drug atazanavir/ritonavir-based regimen were switched to 300/100 mg of atazanavir/ritonavir plus 300 mg of lamivudine once daily. Major clinical events, laboratory parameters, neurocognitive performance, bone composition and body fat distribution were monitored. Treatment failure was defined as a discontinuation/switch of the regimen or virological failure (HIV-RNA >50 copies/mL in two consecutive determinations or a single level above 1000 copies/mL).

Results

After 144 weeks, 9/40 (22.5%) treatment failures occurred, including two virological failures (Weeks 48 and 53, without resistance). A significant increase in the CD4 count was observed at Week 96 (+124 cells/mm3; P = 0.002) and Week 144 (+94 cells/mm3; P = 0.008). After 144 weeks, a significant increase in total cholesterol (+25 mg/dL; P = 0.001), HDL cholesterol (+6 mg/dL; P = 0.024) and LDL cholesterol (+12 mg/dL; P = 0.008) was observed, without any change in triglyceride levels, total cholesterol/HDL ratio or LDL/HDL ratio. A significant increase in the estimated glomerular filtration rate (+25 mL/min/1.73 m2; P < 0.001) and lumbar spine T-score and Z-score (+0.2, P = 0.011; and +0.35, P = 0.001, respectively) and a decrease in trunk fat (−1.898 g; P = 0.005) were also observed. Neurocognitive function did not decline over time. Concerning safety, 10 moderate to severe adverse events were recorded in eight patients; overall seven cases of renal colic (possibly treatment related) were observed, leading to a discontinuation of treatment in two patients.

Conclusions

Data from the 144 week follow-up suggested good long-term efficacy of the simplification strategy that was investigated, with rare virological failure and a potential for improvement of the CD4 count, renal function and bone mineral density. This strategy warrants further investigation in a randomized trial.
Neuropathies associated with lymphoma†
Authors: Grisold Wolfgang , Grisold Anna , Marosi Christine , Meng Stefan , Briani Chiara
Published: August 2015

Neuropathy occurs with various manifestations as a consequence of lymphoma, and an understanding of the etiology is necessary for proper treatment. Advances in medical imaging have improved the detection of peripheral nerve involvement in lymphoma, yet tissue diagnosis is often equally important. The neoplastic involvement of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) in lymphoma can occur within the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), inside the dura, or outside of the CSF space, affecting nerve root plexuses and peripheral nerves. The infiltration of either cranial or peripheral nerves in lymphoma is termed neurolymphomatosis (NL). These infiltrations can occur as mononeuropathy, multifocal neuropathy, symmetric neuropathies, or plexopathies. In rare cases, intravascular lymphoma (IL) can affect the PNS and an even rarer condition is the combination of NL and IL. Immune-mediated and paraneoplastic neuropathies are important considerations when treating patients with lymphoma. Demyelinating neuropathies, such as Guillain-Barré syndrome and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy, occur more frequently in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma than in Hodgkin's disease. Paraproteinemic neuropathies can be associated with lymphoma and paraneoplastic neuropathies are rare. While the treatment of lymphomas has improved, a knowledge of neurotoxic, radiotherapy, neoplastic, immune-mediated and paraneoplastic effects are important for patient care.
Limited Open Quadriceps Release for Treatment of Congenital Dislocation of the Knee
Authors: Youssef Ahmed Omar
Published: August 2015

Background:

Congenital dislocation of the knee (CDK) is a rare condition for which the treatment is difficult and remains controversial. The aim of this case series is to evaluate the results of limited open quadriceps release for treatment of CDK.

Methods:

Sixteen patients with CDK were managed at our institute from May 2006 to May 2014, and included 10 boys and 6 girls, with a mean age at presentation of 5 weeks (range, 1 to16 wk). Three patients who had an underlying neuromuscular syndrome were excluded. The remaining 13 patients had no identifiable syndrome. There were 9 bilateral cases and 4 unilateral, with a total of 22 dislocated knees. Treatment began with gentle manipulation and serial weekly long-leg plaster casting in the outpatient clinic. Limited open quadriceps release was performed after failure of conservative treatment or in cases that presented late (>12 wk). The mean follow-up was 26.8 months (range, 12 to 48 mo).

Results:

Manipulation and serial casting were successful in 6 knees. The mean postmanipulation passive arc of range of motion of the affected knees was 118 degrees (range: 100 to 140 degrees). At final follow-up, the knee outcome was excellent in 2 knees and good in 4 knees. Sixteen knees were managed by limited open quadriceps release. The age of the patients at the time of surgery ranged between 8 and 16 weeks with a mean of 10 weeks. The mean postoperative passive arc of range of motion of the affected knees was 110 degrees (range: 95 to 145 degrees). Minor degrees of flexion deformity at the knee were encountered frequently (mean 8.5 degrees). Slight instability was observed in 6 cases. At final follow-up, the knee outcome was excellent in 6 knees and good in 10 knees.

Conclusions:

Management of CDK preferably should be started early with gentle manipulation and serial casting. Failure of conservative treatment or delayed presentation will need surgical intervention. Limited open quadriceps release has satisfactory results.

Level of Evidence:

Level IV–case series.
The Anterolateral Ligament of the Knee: An Inconsistent Finding in Pediatric Cadaveric Specimens
Authors: Shea Kevin G. , Polousky John D. , Jacobs John C. , Yen Yi-Meng , Ganley Theodore J.
Published: August 2015

Background:

The anterolateral ligament (ALL) of the knee has been identified as a structure that limits internal rotation, and thus, affects the pivot shift mechanism. It has previously been reported in a high percentage of adult subjects. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate whether the ALL could be identified on pediatric cadaveric knee specimens and compare these findings to previously published reports.

Methods:

Eight skeletally immature cadaver knee specimens were examined through gross dissection: ages 3 months, 4 months, 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, 3 years, 8 years, and 10 years. There were 3 male and 5 female (7 right, 1 left) specimens. The presence or absence of the ALL was documented in each specimen, through dissection, intermittent internal and external rotation of the tibia, and anterior translation of the tibia, to produce tension of the lateral collateral tissues and joint capsule. These dissections were performed by a group of fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeons.

Results:

The iliotibial band, entire lateral joint capsule, lateral collateral ligament, and popliteus were readily identified in each specimen. In 7 specimens, a distinct ALL structure was not identified during dissection. The ALL was identified in 1 of 8 specimens (1-year-old female, right knee). The ALL was further delineated under applied internal rotational stress.

Conclusions:

Previous research has suggested that this ligament is present in the majority of adult specimens. This finding was not reproduced in the current study of pediatric cadaveric specimens, where only one of 8 specimens had an identifiable ALL. This suggests that this ligament may develop later in life, after physiological loads are applied to the joint capsule. Further research in both adult and pediatric knees needs to be conducted to further elucidate the development of this ligament, and the role of this structure in knee stability.

Clinical Relevance:

The ALL is a knee ligament that has been described in adults. However, it is unclear whether this structure is present or fully developed in younger populations. The current study sought to identify the ALL in pediatric cadaver knee specimens, identifying this structure in only one of 8 specimens. The findings of this study suggest that the ALL may be an inconsistent structure in the pediatric population.
A neurocognitive model for understanding treatment action in depression
Authors: Warren Matthew B. , Pringle Abbie , Harmer Catherine J.
Published: August 2015

The way in which emotion is represented and processed in the human brain is an expanding area of research and has key implications for how we understand and potentially treat affective disorders such as depression. Characterizing the effects of pharmacological manipulations of key neurotransmitter systems can also help reveal the neurochemical underpinnings of emotional processing and how common antidepressant drugs may work in the treatment of depression and anxiety. This approach has revealed that depression is associated with both neural and behavioural biases towards negative over positive stimuli. Evidence from pharmacological challenge studies suggests that antidepressant treatment acts to normalize these biases early on in treatment, resulting in patients experiencing the world in a more positive way, improving their mood over time. This model is supported by evidence from both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. The unique perspective on antidepressant treatment offered by this approach provides some insights into individual response to treatment, as well as novel approaches to drug development.
The impact of neuroscience on society: cognitive enhancement in neuropsychiatric disorders and in healthy people
Authors: Sahakian Barbara J. , Bruhl Annette B. , Cook Jennifer , Killikelly Clare , Savulich George , Piercy Thomas , Hafizi Sepehr , Perez Jesus , Fernandez-Egea Emilio , Suckling John , Jones Peter B.
Published: August 2015

In addition to causing distress and disability to the individual, neuropsychiatric disorders are also extremely expensive to society and governments. These disorders are both common and debilitating and impact on cognition, functionality and wellbeing. Cognitive enhancing drugs, such as cholinesterase inhibitors and methylphenidate, are used to treat cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, respectively. Other cognitive enhancers include specific computerized cognitive training and devices. An example of a novel form of cognitive enhancement using the technological advancement of a game on an iPad that also acts to increase motivation is presented. Cognitive enhancing drugs, such as methylphenidate and modafinil, which were developed as treatments, are increasingly being used by healthy people. Modafinil not only affects ‘cold’ cognition, but also improves ‘hot’ cognition, such as emotion recognition and task-related motivation. The lifestyle use of ‘smart drugs' raises both safety concerns as well as ethical issues, including coercion and increasing disparity in society. As a society, we need to consider which forms of cognitive enhancement (e.g. pharmacological, exercise, lifelong learning) are acceptable and for which groups (e.g. military, doctors) under what conditions (e.g. war, shift work) and by what methods we would wish to improve and flourish.
Halobellus ramosii sp. nov., an extremely halophilic archaeon isolated from a saline-wetland wildfowl reserve
Authors: Pérez-Davó Azahara , Aguilera Margarita , González-Paredes Ana , Luján Jiménez-Pranteda María , Monteoliva-Sánchez Mercedes
Published: August 2015

An extremely halophilic archaeon, strain S2FP14T, was isolated from a brine sample from the inland hypersaline lake Fuente de Piedra, a saline-wetland wildfowl reserve located in the province of Málaga in southern Spain. Colonies were red-pigmented and the cells were Gram-staining-negative, motile and pleomorphic. S2FP14T was able to grow in media containing 12.5–30 % (w/v) total salts (optimum 20 %) at pH 7–8.5 (optimum 7.5) and at 25–50 °C (optimum 37 °C). The 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that this strain represented a member of the genus Halobellus. S2FP14T showed a similarity of 99.5 % to Halobellus inordinatus YC20T, 96.1 % to Halobellus litoreus GX31T, 95.9 % to Halobellus limi TBN53T, 95.5 % to Halobellus rarus YC21T, 95.2 % to Halobellus rufus CBA1103T, 94.6 % to Halobellus salinus CSW2.24.4T and 94.6 % to Halobellus clavatus TNN18T. The rpoB′ gene sequence similarity of strain S2FP14T was 97.4 % to 87.6 % with members of genus Halobellus. The major phospholipids of strain S2FP14T were phosphatidylglycerol phosphate methyl ester and phosphatidylglycerosulfate, plus a very small amount of phosphatidylglycerol and an archaeal analogue of bisphosphatidylglycerol. With regard to glycolipid composition, the most abundant glycolipids were the sulfated diglycosyl diphytanilglyceroldiether and a glycosyl-cardiolipin. The G+C content of strain S2FP14T genomic DNA was 61.4 mol%. The DNA–DNA hybridization between strain S2FP14T and Halobellus inordinatus JCM 18361T was 51 %. Based on the phylogenetic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic features, a novel species, Halobellus ramosii sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is S2FP14T ( = CECT 8167T = DSM 26177T).
Amycolatopsis stemonae sp. nov., isolated from a Thai medicinal plant
Authors: Klykleung Nattaporn , Tanasupawat Somboon , Pittayakhajonwut Pattama , Ohkuma Moriya , Kudo Takuji
Published: August 2015

A novel actinomycete, strain ST1-08T, was isolated from the stem of Stemona sp. in Thailand. The taxonomic position of this isolate was determined by using a polyphasic approach. Strain ST1-08T contained meso-diaminopimelic acid in the cell-wall peptidoglycan, and arabinose and galactose as diagnostic sugars of the whole-cell hydrolysate, which are typical properties of members of the genus Amycolatopsis. Strain ST1-08T grew at 15–40 °C, pH 6–9 and on 5 % (w/v) NaCl. Gelatin liquefaction, starch hydrolysis and skimmed milk peptonization were positive. The strain utilized l-arabinose, d-glucose, glycerol, myo-inositol, d-mannitol and l-rhamnose. The predominant menaquinone was MK-9(H4) and the major cellular fatty acids were iso-C16 : 0 and iso-C15 : 0.The major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, hydroxyl-phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylglycerol. The 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that the strain was closely related to Amycolatopsis pretoriensis JCM 12673T (98.99 %) and Amycolatopsis lexingtonensis JCM 12672T (98.87 %). The DNA G+C content of strain ST1-08T was 71.2 mol%. The DNA–DNA relatedness values among strain ST1-08T, A. pretoriensis JCM 12673T and A. lexingtonensis JCM 12672T were lower than 70 %, the cut-off level for assigning strains to the same species. On the basis of phenotypic and genotypic characteristics, strain ST1-08T represents a novel species of the genus Amycolatopsis, for which the name Amycolatopsis stemonae is proposed. The type strain is ST1-08T( = JCM 30050T = PCU 339T = TISTR 2278T).