bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
HISTAMINE RELEASE AND ANAPHYLACTIC SHOCK IN ISOLATED LUNGS OF GUINEA‐PIGS
Authors: Schild H.
Published: December 2015

1. The release of histamine from the isolated Ringer perfused lungs of guinea‐pigs has been studied.

2. Histamine was recovered in the perfusate: (a) during anaphylactic shock in the actively and the passively sensitised guinea‐pig; (b) on perfusing distilled water through the lungs of normal guinea‐pigs.

3. No histamine was recovered in the perfusate: (a) during an intensive smooth muscle contraction (BaCl2); (b) after the injection of substances causing anaphylactoid phenomena (Agar, Kaolin, H, OH, K, Ca ions).

4. The quantity of histamine released during anaphylactic shock in the passively sensitised animal depends on the time after sensitisation, and it is proportional to the bronchoconstriction.

5. A quantity of histamine 100 times greater than that released during anaphylactic shock must be injected in the atropinised lungs, in order to produce an effect equal to anaphylactic shock.

6. Adrenaline injected simultaneously with the antigen in doses which inhibit bronchoconstriction, diminishes the release of histamine in anaphylactic shock. It does not prevent desensitisation of the tissue.

I wish to thank Professor I. de Burgh Daly for the hospitality of his laboratory and for help and advice freely given. I am indebted to the Moray Research Fund for defraying the expenses of this investigation.
THE SITE OF ACTION OF THYROXIN ON WATER‐METABOLISM
Authors: Brull Lucien
Published: December 2015

1. Kidneys originating from thyroxinised dogs, when transplanted simultaneously with control kidneys to a donor anæsthetised with chloralosane, have been found to secrete more rapidly and to give larger responses to saline infusion and to hypophysectomy than the controls.

2. The method adopted and the results obtained demonstrate that the diuretic effect of thyroxin is due, at least in part, to a direct action on the kidney.
EFFECT OF LOCAL ISCHAEMIA ON THE MYOCARDIAL OXYGEN BALANCE AND ITS RESPONSE TO HEART RATE ELEVATION
Authors: Sonn J. , Mayevsky A. , Acad B. , Guggenheimer E. , Kedem J.
Published: December 2015

The capacity of ischaemic myocardium to respond to the inotropic stimulus of tachycardia was investigated in open‐chest anaesthetized dogs following ligation of a branch of the anterior descending coronary artery. In two areas of the left ventricular surface (ischaemic and non‐ischaemic), local coronary blood flow was measured by thermistors and isometric contractile force was recorded with strain gauge arches. NADH redox state was measured simultaneously in both regions using a two‐channel surface fluorometer. It was found that ligation was followed by an immediate fall in local coronary blood flow to the ischaemic region, accompanied by a sharp elevation in NADH redox level. Local contractile force in the ischaemic region was also reduced. The non‐ischaemic region showed little or no change following occlusion. Response to heart rate elevation before ligation was increased work, elevation of NADH redox levels, and increased coronary flow. Following ligation, this response was attenuated in the ischaemic region, but not abolished. It is concluded that ischaemic myocardium retains the capacity for inotropic response even when intracellular O2 levels are low.
Suppression of cat retinal ganglion cell responses by moving patterns.
Authors: Enroth‐Cugell C , Jakiela H G
Published: December 2015

1. Action potentials were recorded from single fibres in the optic tract of anaesthetized cats. 2. A sectored disk or ‘windmill', concentric with the receptive field, was rotated about its centre to cause local changes in illumination throughout the receptive field without changing the total amount of light falling on the receptive field centre or surround. 3. A cell's response to a flashing test spot centered on its receptive field was measured both while the windmill was stationary and while it rotated. While the windmill rotated, the test spot evoked a smaller average number of spikes than while the windmill was stationary. 4. The induction in response occurred in both on‐centre and off‐centre cells and in both X‐cells and Y‐cells, though the reduction in response was smaller in X‐cells. 5. Surround responses, evoked by an eccentric stimulus, were also reduced by a moving peripheral pattern. 6. Suppression was graded with the contrast of the moving pattern. 7. Gratings too fine to be resolved by the receptive field centre could suppress the response of Y‐cells. This suggests that the local elements responsible for the suppression are smaller than the receptive field centres of Y‐cells. 8. Response suppression started within the 100 msec of the onset of pattern motion.
Effects of cutaneous nerve and intraspinal conditioning of C‐fibre afferent terminal excitability in decerebrate spinal rats.
Authors: Fitzgerald M , Woolf C J
Published: December 2015

1. Changes in the threshold for antidromic activation of C‐fibre afferent terminals in the lumbar spinal cord of the decerebrate‐spinalized rat have been examined. 2. The antidromic compound action potential elicited by stimulation in the dorsal horn was recorded in a sectioned dorsal root. 3. The antidromic C wave had conduction velocities and strength‐duration properties similar to that described for other unmyelinated fibres. 4. The optimal position of the stimulating electrode within the spinal cord for eliciting the antidromic C wave was found to correlate with the site of entry and termination of C‐afferent fibres. 5. Local stimulation within the dorsal grey of the spinal cord was shown to produce prolonged increased excitability of the C‐afferent terminals in that segment. This effect was restricted to the terminals and could not be demonstrated in the stem axons of the C fibres. 6. Cutaneous afferent conditioning volleys from the sural nerve produced marked increases in the excitability of the C‐afferent terminals. This effect was present at A‐fibre strength sural stimulation, with no significant alteration when C‐fibre strength stimulation was used. The alteration in the threshold for antidromic stimulation produced by the sural conditioning stimuli only occurred at the C‐afferent terminals and not at their axons. 7. The results are discussed in terms of presynaptic inhibition of C‐fibre input at a segmental level.
Passive potassium transport in low potassium sheep red cells: dependence upon cell volume and chloride.
Authors: Dunham P B , Ellory J C
Published: December 2015

The major pathway of passive K influx (ouabain‐insensitive) was characterized in low‐K type (LK) red cells of sheep. 1. Passive K transport in these cells was highly sensitive to variations in cell volume; it increased threefold or more in cells swollen osmotically by 10%, and decreased up to twofold in cells shrunken 5‐10%. Active K influx was insensitive to changes in cell volume. Three different methods for varying cell volume osmotically all gave similar results. 2. The volume‐sensitive pathway was specific for K in that Na influx did not vary with changes in cell volume. 3. The volume‐sensitive K influx was a saturable function of external K concentration. It was slightly inhibited by Na, whereas K influx in shrunken cells was unaffected by Na. 4. Passive K influx was dependent on the major anion in the medium in that replacement of Cl with any of six other anions resulted in a reduction of K influx by 50‐80% (replacement of Cl by Br caused an increase in K influx). The activation of K influx by Cl followed sigmoid kinetics. 5. Passive K influx is inhibited by anti‐L antibody. The antibody affected only that portion of influx which was Cl‐dependent and volume‐sensitve. Of the subfractions of the antibody, it is anti‐L1 which inhibits passive K transport. 6. Pretreatment of cells with iodoacetamide reduced the sensitivity of K influx to cell volume in that the influx was reduced in swollen IAA‐treated cells and increased in shrunken IAA‐cells. 7. Intracellular Ca has no role in altering passive K transport in LK sheep cells. Therefore, the major pathway of passive K transport in LK sheep red cells is sensitive to changes in cell volume, specific for K, dependent on Cl, and inhibited by anti‐L1 antibody, The minor pathway, observed in shrunken cells, has none of these properties.
Thresholds of action potentials evoked by synapses on the dendrites of pyramidal cells in the rat hippocampus in vitro.
Authors: Anderson P , Storm J , Wheal H V
Published: December 2015

1. In this study we have measured the thresholds of action potentials and some properties of e.p.s.p.s (excitatory post‐synaptic potentials) produced by activation of distal and proximal dendritic synapses in CA1 pyramidal cells in rat hippocampal slices. 2. Simultaneous intracellular and extracellular electrophysiological recordings were made from pyramidal cells. The two recording electrodes were positioned very close together to provide an accurate measurement of the transmembrane potential by subtraction of the extracellular field from the intracellular potential. 3. Two pairs of stimulating electrodes were placed in the stratum radiatum of area CA1. The proximal and distal afferents were stimulated alternately within a 15 s cycle and at an intensity to produce action potentials in about 50% of the trials. 4. At this stimulus intensity there was a slight difference in the mean 10‐90% rise times of the e.p.s.p.s produced by stimulation of proximal and distal afferents. The ratio of the distal: proximal rise time was 1.27. 5. In those trials where the action potential failed there was also a significant difference in the time‐to‐peak of the e.p.s.p.s evoked from proximal or distal sites. The times‐to‐peak of the e.p.s.p.s from proximal stimulation were between 1.5 and 3.8 ms, whilst the times‐to‐peak from distal stimulation were longer (2.1‐7.2 ms). 6. In 16/18 cells included in this study the thresholds for action potentials evoked by distal stimulation were significantly lower than those following proximal activation. The mean threshold for distal activation was 12 mV compared with 16 mV for proximal activation. 7. The threshold of action potentials activated by depolarizing current pulses appeared to be close to that for action potentials evoked from proximal synapses. 8. Whilst the shape indices of the e.p.s.p.s were slightly different when comparing transmembrane with conventional intracellular recordings, the thresholds of the action potentials were not affected by this procedure. 9. Possible explanations for the low threshold for action potentials evoked from distal synapses are discussed, including an active dendritic membrane and differences in inhibition.
Context effects on second-language learning of tonal contrasts
Authors: Chang Charles B. , Bowles Anita R.
Published: December 2015

Studies of lexical tone  learning generally focus on monosyllabic contexts, while reports of phonetic learning benefits associated with input variability are based largely on experienced learners. This study trained inexperienced learners on Mandarin tonal contrasts to test two hypotheses regarding the influence of context and variability on tone  learning. The first hypothesis was that increased phonetic variability of tones in disyllabic contexts makes initial tone  learning more challenging in disyllabic than monosyllabic words. The second hypothesis was that the learnability of a given tone varies across contexts due to differences in tonal variability. Results of a word learning experiment supported both hypotheses: tones were acquired less successfully in disyllables than in monosyllables, and the relative difficulty of disyllables was closely related to contextual tonal variability. These results indicate limited relevance of monosyllable-based data on Mandarin learning for the disyllabic majority of the Mandarin lexicon. Furthermore, in the short term, variability can diminish learning; its effects are not necessarily beneficial but dependent on acquisition stage and other learner characteristics. These findings thus highlight the importance of considering contextual variability and the interaction between variability and type of learner in the design, interpretation, and application of research on phonetic learning.
Postural Balance Parameters as Objective Surgical Assessments in Low Back Disorders: A Systematic Review
Authors: Yen Tzu Chuan , Toosizadeh Nima , Howe Carol , Dohm Michael , Mohler Jane , Najafi Bijan
Published: December 2015

Balance assessments could render useful objective performance measures to evaluate the efficacy of low back surgeries, yet these assessments have not been collectively examined to determine longitudinal sensitivity across surgical interventions. The purpose of this review was to determine sensitivity of balance measurements for disparate spinal disorders after surgical intervention. We searched PubMed, Embase, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and CINAHL. Articles were selected based on: (1) sample consisted of low back disorder individuals and (2) balance measurements were obtained both pre- and postsurgery. Most of the articles addressed 2 specific low back disorders: (1) adolescent idiopathic scoliosis/spinal fusion and (2) disc herniation/decompression surgery. For scoliosis patients, body sway increased (14–97%) immediately following surgery but gradually reduced (1–33%) approaching the 1-year post spinal fusion assessment. For patients with disc herniation, sway range, sway velocity, sway area, and sway variability all decreased (19–42%) immediately postsurgery. Balance assessments for adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis who underwent surgical intervention should be performed with visual occlusion, focus on time domain parameters, and evaluated with longer follow-up times. Patients with disc herniation who underwent decompression surgery should have balance assessments with visual deprivation, test conditions specifically addressing hip strategy, and correlation with pain.
The spectrum of unhealthy drug use and quality of care for hypertension and diabetes: a longitudinal cohort study
Authors: Kim Theresa W , Samet Jeffrey H , Cheng Debbie M , Bernstein Judith , Wang Na , German Jacqueline , Saitz Richard
Published: December 2015

Objectives

Although it is well known that addiction is associated with adverse medical consequences, the effects of the spectrum of unhealthy drug use (illicit drug or prescription misuse) on chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes are understudied. This study evaluated the associations between measures of drug use (ie, frequency, severity and type) and standard quality metrics for inadequate blood pressure (BP) and blood glucose (BG) control.

Design

Longitudinal cohort study.

Participants

Adult primary care patients with unhealthy drug use and hypertension or diabetes.

Setting

Urban hospital-based primary care practice.

Measurements

Outcomes were (1) inadequate BP (systolic BP ≥140 or diastolic BP ≥90) and (2) inadequate BG (glycated haemoglobin ≥8%) control (Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set criteria). Drug use was characterised by a primary independent variable, drug use frequency, and two secondary variables, severity of use and drug type. We fit separate regression models for each drug use measure and outcome.

Results

Overall, 40% (65/164) of the sample with hypertension had inadequate BP control and 44% (24/54) of those with diabetes had inadequate BG control. More frequent drug use was not significantly associated with inadequate BP control (adjusted OR (AOR) 0.67; 95% CI 0.31 to 1.46, highest vs lowest tertile; AOR 0.72; 95% CI 0.36 to 1.41, middle vs lowest tertile) or BG control (AOR 0.27; 95% CI 0.07 to 1.10, highest vs lowest tertile; AOR 1.01; 95% CI 0.38 to 2.69, middle vs lowest tertile). Drug use severity was also not associated with BP or BG control. Cocaine use was associated with inadequate BG control compared to marijuana use (AOR 8.82; 95% CI1.86 to 41.90).

Conclusions

Among primary care patients with recent drug use and hypertension or diabetes, drug type was significantly associated with inadequate BG, but not BP control. Frequency and severity of use were not significant predictors of either outcome.
Dementia risk estimates associated with measures of depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Cherbuin Nicolas , Kim Sarang , Anstey Kaarin J
Published: December 2015

Objectives

To perform a systematic review of reported HRs of all cause dementia, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VaD) for late-life depression and depressive symptomatology on specific screening instruments at specific thresholds.

Design

Meta-analysis with meta-regression.

Setting and participants

PubMed, PsycInfo, and Cochrane databases were searched through 28 February 2014. Articles reporting HRs for incident all-cause dementia, AD and VaD based on published clinical criteria using validated measures of clinical depression or symptomatology from prospective studies of general population of adults were selected by consensus among multiple reviewers. Studies that did not use clinical dementia diagnoses or validated instruments for the assessment of depression were excluded. Data were extracted by two reviewers and reviewed by two other independent reviewers. The most specific analyses possible using continuous symptomatology ratings and categorical measures of clinical depression focusing on single instruments with defined reported cut-offs were conducted.

Primary outcome measures

HRs for all-cause dementia, AD, and VaD were computed where possible for continuous depression scores, or for major depression assessed with single or comparable validated instruments.

Results

Searches yielded 121 301 articles, of which 36 (0.03%) were eligible. Included studies provided a combined sample size of 66 532 individuals including 6593 cases of dementia, 2797 cases of AD and 585 cases of VaD. The increased risk associated with depression did not significantly differ by type of dementia and ranged from 83% to 104% for diagnostic thresholds consistent with major depression. Risk associated with continuous depression symptomatology measures were consistent with those for clinical thresholds.

Conclusions

Late-life depression is consistently and similarly associated with a twofold increased risk of dementia. The precise risk estimates produced in this study for specific instruments at specified thresholds will assist evidence-based medicine and inform policy on this important population health issue.
Collaborative care for comorbid depression and coronary heart disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials
Authors: Tully Phillip J , Baumeister Harald
Published: December 2015

Objectives

To systematically review the efficacy of collaborative care (CC) for depression in adults with coronary heart disease (CHD) and depression.

Design

Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Data sources

Electronic databases (Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO and CINAHL) were searched until April 2014.

Inclusion criteria

Population, depression comorbid with CHD; intervention, randomised controlled trial (RCT) of CC; comparison, either usual care, wait-list control group or no further treatment; and outcome, (primary) major adverse cardiac events (MACE), (secondary) standardised measure of depression, anxiety, quality of life (QOL) and cost-effectiveness.

Data extraction and analysis

RevMan V.5.3 was used to synthesise the data as risk ratios (RRs), ORs and standardised mean differences (SMD) with 95% CIs in random effect models.

Results

Six RCTs met the inclusion criteria and comprised 655 participants randomised to CC and 629 participants randomised to the control group (total 1284). Collaborative depression care led to a significant reduction in MACE in the short term (three trials, RR 0.54; 95% CI 0.31 to 0.95, p=0.03) that was not sustained in the longer term. Small reductions in depressive symptoms were evident in the short term (6 trials, pooled SMD −0.31; 95% CI −0.43 to −0.19, p<0.00001) and depression remission was more likely to be achieved with CC (5 trials, OR 1.77; 95% CI 1.28 to 2.44, p=0.0005). Likewise, a significant effect was observed for anxiety symptoms (SMD −0.36) and mental QOL (SMD 0.24). The timing of the intervention was a source of between-group heterogeneity for depression symptoms (between groups p=0.04, I2=76.5%).

Conclusions

Collaborative depression care did not lead to a sustained reduction in the primary MACE end point. Small effects were observed for depression, depression remission, anxiety and mental QOL.

Trials registration number

PROSPERO CRD42014013653.
Republished: Marfan syndrome, inherited aortopathies and exercise: What is the right answer?
Authors: Cheng Andrew , Owens David
Published: December 2015

Exercise recommendations for those who have Marfan syndrome or other genetic predisposition for thoracic aortic disease remain controversial and at times ambiguous. There are no outcomes studies to help guide recommendations. In this review, we examine the guidelines regarding exercise and inherited aortic conditions, the theoretical reasoning and circumstantial evidence that support the guidelines, as well as the knowledge gaps that continue to exist.
Formation of 8-RS-BODIPYs via direct substitution of 8-MeS-BODIPY by RSH (R = Et, Pr, Bu, tBu, n-C12H25, C6H5, p-MeC6H4, p-MeOC6H4, and 2,6-Me2C6H3)
Authors: Roacho Robinson I. , Metta-Magaña Alejandro , Belmonte-Vázquez José L. , Peña-Cabrera Eduardo , Pannell Keith H.
Published: December 2015

Reactions between 8-RS-BODIPY (R = Me, 1) and alkyl and aryl thiols were readily accomplished in dichloromethane to provide a synthetic pathway to a range of new 8-organothio-BODIPYs in good yield. The new alkyl 8-RS-BODIPYs (R = Et, 2; Pr, 3; Bu, 4; tBu, 5; n-dodecyl, 6) exhibit absorption and emission properties essentially unchanged from those of 1 whereas the arylthio analogs (R = Ph, 7; 2,6-Me2C6H3, 8; p-MeC6H4, 9; p-MeOC6H4, 10) exhibit no fluorescence with the exception of 7, and then only in hexane. In common with other related 8-substituted BODIPYs, the new 8-alkylthio-BODIPY dyes show decreasing fluorescence intensity as solvent polarity increases. Compounds 2, 3, 7, and 8 were characterized via single-crystal X-ray analysis; the alkyl derivatives 2 and 3 exhibited planar BODIPY cores with co-planar organothio- substituents whereas the aryl derivatives exhibited both BODIPY core deformation and significant twisting about the S–C (8) bond removing co-planarity between the aryl group and the distorted BODIPY core. These deformations coincide with the significantly reduced emission properties.
Pioglitazone and exenatide enhance cognition and downregulate hippocampal beta amyloid oligomer and microglia expression in insulin-resistant rats
Authors: Gad Enas S. , Zaitone Sawsan A. , Moustafa Yasser M.
Published: December 2015

Insulin resistance is known to be a risk factor for cognitive impairment, most likely linked to insulin signaling, microglia overactivation, and beta amyloid (Aβ) deposition in the brain. Exenatide, a long lasting glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analogue, enhances insulin signaling and shows neuroprotective properties. Pioglitazone, a peroxisome proliferated-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ) agonist, was previously reported to enhance cognition through its effect on Aβ accumulation and clearance. In the present study, insulin resistance was induced in male rats by drinking fructose for 12 weeks. The effect of monotherapy with pioglitazone (10 mg·kg−1) and exenatide or their combination on memory dysfunction was determined and some of the probable underlying mechanisms were studied. The current results confirmed that (1) feeding male rats with fructose syrup for 12 weeks resulted in a decline of learning and memory registered in eight-arm radial maze test; (2) treatment with pioglitazone or exenatide enhanced cognition, reduced hippocampal neurodegeneration, and reduced hippocampal microglia expression and beta amyloid oligomer deposition in a manner that is equal to monotherapies. These results may give promise for the use of pioglitazone or exenatide for ameliorating the learning and memory deficits associated with insulin resistance in clinical setting.
Some properties of dark matter field in the complex octonion space
Authors: Weng Zi-Hua
Published: December 2015

The paper aims to consider the electromagnetic adjoint-field in the complex octonion space as the dark matter field, describing some properties of the dark matter, especially the origin, particle category, existence region, force and so forth. Since Maxwell applied the algebra of quaternions to depict the electromagnetic theory, some scholars adopt the complex quaternion and octonion to study the physics property of electromagnetic and gravitational fields. In the paper, by means of the octonion operator, it is found that the gravitational field accompanies with one adjoint-field, whose property is partly similar to that of electromagnetic field. The electromagnetic field accompanies with another adjoint-field, whose feature is partly similar to that of gravitational field. As a result, the electromagnetic adjoint-field can be chosen as one candidate of the dark matter field. According to the electromagnetic adjoint-field, it is able to predict a few properties of the dark matter, for instance, the particle category, interaction intensity, interaction distance, existence region and so forth. The study reveals that the dark matter particle and the gravitational resource will be influenced by the gravitational strength and force. The dark matter field is capable of making a contribution to physics quantities of gravitational field, including the angular momentum, torque, energy, force and so on. Further, there may be comparatively more chances to discover the dark matter in some regions with the ultrastrong field strength, surrounding the neutral star, white dwarf, galactic nucleus, black hole, astrophysical jet and so on.
The chaos machine
Authors: Armour Phillip G.
Published: December 2015

Complexity, predictability, and modern projects.
More than you ever wanted to know about synchronization: synchrobench, measuring the impact of the synchronization on concurrent algorithms
Authors: Gramoli Vincent
Published: December 2015

In this paper, we present the most extensive comparison of synchronization techniques. We evaluate 5 different synchronization techniques through a series of 31 data structure algorithms from the recent literature on 3 multicore platforms from Intel, Sun Microsystems and AMD. To this end, we developed in C/C++ and Java a new micro-benchmark suite, called Synchrobench, hence helping the community evaluate new data structures and synchronization techniques. The main conclusion of this evaluation is threefold: (i) although compare-and-swap helps achieving the best performance on multicores, doing so correctly is hard; (ii) optimistic locking offers varying performance results while transactional memory offers more consistent results; and (iii) copy-on-write and read-copy-update suffer more from contention than any other technique but could be combined with others to derive efficient algorithms.
NUMA-aware graph-structured analytics
Authors: Zhang Kaiyuan , Chen Rong , Chen Haibo
Published: December 2015

Graph-structured analytics has been widely adopted in a number of big data applications such as social computation, web-search and recommendation systems. Though much prior research focuses on scaling graph-analytics on distributed environments, the strong desire on performance per core, dollar and joule has generated considerable interests of processing large-scale graphs on a single server-class machine, which may have several terabytes of RAM and 80 or more cores. However, prior graph-analytics systems are largely neutral to NUMA characteristics and thus have suboptimal performance. This paper presents a detailed study of NUMA characteristics and their impact on the efficiency of graph-analytics. Our study uncovers two insights: 1) either random or interleaved allocation of graph data will significantly hamper data locality and parallelism; 2) sequential inter-node (i.e., remote) memory accesses have much higher bandwidth than both intra- and inter-node random ones. Based on them, this paper describes Polymer, a NUMA-aware graph-analytics system on multicore with two key design decisions. First, Polymer differentially allocates and places topology data, application-defined data and mutable runtime states of a graph system according to their access patterns to minimize remote accesses. Second, for some remaining random accesses, Polymer carefully converts random remote accesses into sequential remote accesses, by using lightweight replication of vertices across NUMA nodes. To improve load balance and vertex convergence, Polymer is further built with a hierarchical barrier to boost parallelism and locality, an edge-oriented balanced partitioning for skewed graphs, and adaptive data structures according to the proportion of active vertices. A detailed evaluation on an 80-core machine shows that Polymer often outperforms the state-of-the-art single-machine graph-analytics systems, including Ligra, X-Stream and Galois, for a set of popular real-world and synthetic graphs.
Self-Efficacy, Learner Satisfaction, and Associated Factors of Simulation Based Education among Midwifery Students: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Gudayu Temesgen Worku , Badi Marta Berta , Asaye Mengstu Melkamu
Published: December 2015

Introduction.Midwifery training needs intensive skill practice. Simulation based teaching is found to be a good alternative to fill skill teaching gaps and to safeguard human patients.Objective.To assess self-efficacy, learner satisfaction, and associated factors of simulation based education among Midwifery students in Gondar University, 2015.Methods.Cross-sectional study was conducted among Midwifery students. A total of 144 students participated in the study. SPSS version 20 statistical software was used for analysis. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analysis were done to assess associations of explanatory variables with outcome variables. Finally the strength of association was determined by adjusted odds ratio with 95% confidence interval andpvalue < 0.05.Result.In this study the proportion of satisfaction and confidence in simulation learning was 54.2% and 50.7% among participants, respectively. Students who perceived instructors’ assistance during skill practice as “good” showed statistically significant satisfaction, while those students who were satisfied and perceived instructors’ assistance as “good” showed statistically significant confidence during skill practice.Conclusion and Recommendation.levels of satisfaction and self-efficacy of simulation based teaching among Midwifery students are low. Designing a mechanism to improve instructors’ assistance at simulation based teaching is recommended.
VEGFR-2 Expression in Glioblastoma Multiforme Depends on Inflammatory Tumor Microenvironment
Authors: Jaal Jana , Kase Marju , Minajeva Ave , Saretok Mikk , Adamson Aidi , Junninen Jelizaveta , Metsaots Tõnis , Jõgi Tõnu , Joonsalu Madis , Vardja Markus , Asser Toomas
Published: December 2015

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most angiogenic tumors. However, antiangiogenic therapy has not shown significant clinical efficacy. The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of inflammatory tumor microenvironment on the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR-2). Surgically excised primary GBM tissues were histologically examined for overall extent of inflammation (score 1–3). After immunohistochemistry, the tissue expression of ICAM-1 (optical density), the number of VEGFR-2 positive (VEGFR-2+) blood vessels (per microscopic field), and the endothelial staining intensity of VEGFR-2 (score 0–3) were determined. In GBM, the extent of inflammation was 1.9 ± 0.7 (group mean ± SD). Mean optical density of inflammatory mediator ICAM-1 was 57.0 ± 27.1 (pixel values). The number of VEGFR-2+ blood vessels and endothelial VEGFR-2 staining intensity were 6.2 ± 2.4 and 1.2 ± 0.8, respectively. A positive association was found between endothelial VEGFR-2 staining intensity and the extent of inflammation (p=0.005). Moreover, VEGFR-2 staining intensity correlated with the expression level of ICAM-1 (p=0.026). The expression of VEGFR-2, one of the main targets of antiangiogenic therapy, depends on GBM microenvironment. Higher endothelial VEGFR-2 levels were seen in the presence of more pronounced inflammation. Target dependence on inflammatory tumor microenvironment has to be taken into consideration when treatment approaches that block VEGFR-2 signaling are designed.
Effect of Short-Term Stimulation with Interleukin-1βand Differentiation Medium on Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Paracrine Activity in Coculture with Osteoblasts
Authors: Voss Jan O. , Loebel Claudia , Bara Jennifer J. , Fussinger Marc Anton , Duttenhoefer Fabian , Alini Mauro , Stoddart Martin J.
Published: December 2015

Introduction.Human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs) exhibit the potential to accelerate bone healing by enhanced osteogenic differentiation. Interleukin-1βis highly expressed during fracture healing and has been demonstrated to exert a significant impact on the differentiation behaviour of hMSCs. Here, we investigate the effect of 2-hour IL-1βstimulation on the differentiation and paracrine activity of hMSCs in coculture with osteosarcoma cellsin vitro.Methods.hMSCs from 3 donors were incubated for 2 hours with 10 ng/mL IL-1βand subsequently cocultured with MG63-GFP cells either in control or in differentiation medium in a transwell system for 28 days. Genetic and functional effects were investigated.Results.hMSCs cultured in control medium exhibited a regulatory effect on cocultured MG63-GFP cells, resulting in upregulation of osteogenic gene expression in combination with increased ALP activity. However, while stimulated hMSCs cultured under differentiation conditions exhibit signs of osteogenic differentiation, osteogenic differentiation also caused an impaired regulatory effect on the cocultured MG63-GFP cells.Conclusion.Short stimulation of hMSCs has the potential to modify their long-term behaviour. In addition, undifferentiated hMSCs are able to regulate osteoblast differentiation; however, this regulatory function is lost upon osteogenic differentiationin vitro. This offers a novel approach for clinical cell therapy protocols.
Measured Effects of Wnt3a on Proliferation of HEK293T Cells Depend on the Applied Assay
Authors: Reischmann Patricia , Fiebeck Johanna , von der Weiden Nadine , Müller Oliver
Published: December 2015

The Wnt signaling pathway has been associated with many essential cell processes. This study aims to examine the effects of Wnt signaling on proliferation of cultured HEK293T cells. Cells were incubated with Wnt3a, and the activation of the Wnt pathway was followed by analysis of the level of theβ-catenin protein and of the expression levels of the target genesMYCandCCND1. The level ofβ-catenin protein increased up to fourfold. While the mRNA levels of c-Myc and cyclin D1 increased slightly, the protein levels increased up to a factor of 1.5. Remarkably, MTT and BrdU assays showed different results when measuring the proliferation rate of Wnt3a stimulated HEK293T cells. In the BrdU assays an increase of the proliferation rate could be detected, which correlated to the applied Wnt3a concentration. Oppositely, this correlation could not be shown in the MTT assays. The MTT results, which are based on the mitochondrial activity, were confirmed by analysis of the succinate dehydrogenase complex by immunofluorescence and by western blotting. Taken together, our study shows that Wnt3a activates proliferation of HEK293 cells. These effects can be detected by measuring DNA synthesis rather than by measuring changes of mitochondrial activity.
A Rare Case of Central Pontine Myelinolysis in Overcorrection of Hyponatremia with Total Parenteral Nutrition in Pregnancy
Authors: Janga Kalyana C. , Khan Tazleem , Khorolsky Ciril , Greenberg Sheldon , Persaud Priscilla
Published: December 2015

A 42-year-old high risk pregnant female presented with hyponatremia from multiple causes and was treated with total parenteral nutrition. She developed acute hypernatremia due to the stage of pregnancy and other comorbidities. All the mechanisms of hyponatremia and hypernatremia were summarized here in our case report. This case has picture (graph) representation of parameters that led to changes in serum sodium and radiological findings of central pontine myelinolysis on MRI. In conclusion we present a complicated case serum sodium changes during pregnancy and pathophysiological effects on serum sodium changes during pregnancy.
Periodontal Disease and Breast Cancer: Prospective Cohort Study of Postmenopausal Women
Authors: Freudenheim Jo L. , Genco Robert J. , LaMonte Michael J. , Millen Amy E. , Hovey Kathleen M. , Mai Xiaodan , Nwizu Ngozi , Andrews Christopher A. , Wactawski-Wende Jean
Published: December 2015

Background: Periodontal disease has been consistently associated with chronic disease; there are no large studies of breast cancer, although oral-associated microbes are present in breast tumors.

Methods: In the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study, a prospective cohort of postmenopausal women, 73,737 women without previous breast cancer were followed. Incident, primary, invasive breast tumors were verified by physician adjudication. Periodontal disease was by self-report. HRs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated by Cox proportional hazards, adjusted for breast cancer risk factors. Because the oral microbiome of those with periodontal disease differs with smoking status, we examined associations stratified by smoking.

Results: 2,124 incident, invasive breast cancer cases were identified after mean follow-up of 6.7 years. Periodontal disease, reported by 26.1% of women, was associated with increased breast cancer risk (HR 1.14; 95% CI, 1.03–1.26), particularly among former smokers who quit within 20 years (HR 1.36; 95% CI, 1.05–1.77). Among current smokers, the trend was similar (HR 1.32; 95% CI, 0.83–2.11); there were few cases (n = 74) and the CI included the null. The population attributable fraction was 12.06% (95% CI, 1.12–21.79) and 10.90% (95% CI, 10.31–28.94) for periodontal disease among former smokers quitting within 20 years and current smokers, respectively.

Conclusion: Periodontal disease, a common chronic inflammatory disorder, was associated with increased risk of postmenopausal breast cancer, particularly among former smokers who quit in the past 20 years.

Impact: Understanding a possible role of the oral microbiome in breast carcinogenesis could impact prevention. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(1); 43–50. ©2015 AACR.
SMARCA4/BRG1 Is a Novel Prognostic Biomarker Predictive of Cisplatin-Based Chemotherapy Outcomes in Resected Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer
Authors: Bell Erica Hlavin , Chakraborty Arup R. , Mo Xiaokui , Liu Ziyan , Shilo Konstantin , Kirste Simon , Stegmaier Petra , McNulty Maureen , Karachaliou Niki , Rosell Rafael , Bepler Gerold , Carbone David P. , Chakravarti Arnab
Published: December 2015

Purpose: Identification of predictive biomarkers is critically needed to improve selection of patients who derive the most benefit from platinum-based chemotherapy. We hypothesized that decreased expression of SMARCA4/BRG1, a known regulator of transcription and DNA repair, is a novel predictive biomarker of increased sensitivity to adjuvant platinum-based therapies in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Experimental Design: The prognostic value was tested using a gene-expression microarray from the Director's Challenge Lung Study (n = 440). The predictive significance of SMARCA4 was determined using a gene-expression microarray (n = 133) from control and treatment arms of the JBR.10 trial of adjuvant cisplatin/vinorelbine. Kaplan–Meier method and log-rank tests were used to estimate and test the differences of probabilities in overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) between expression groups and treatment arms. Multivariate Cox regression models were used while adjusting for other clinical covariates.

Results: In the Director's Challenge Study, reduced expression of SMARCA4 was associated with poor OS compared with high and intermediate expression (P < 0.001 and P = 0.009, respectively). In multivariate analysis, compared with low, high SMARCA4 expression predicted a decrease in risk of death [HR, 0.6; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.4–0.8; P = 0.002]. In the JBR.10 trial, improved 5-year DSS was noted only in patients with low SMARCA4 expression when treated with adjuvant cisplatin/vinorelbine [HR, 0.1; 95% CI, 0.0–0.5, P = 0.002 (low); HR, 1.0; 95% CI, 0.5–2.3, P = 0.92 (high)]. An interaction test was highly significant (P = 0.01).

Conclusions: Low expression of SMARCA4/BRG1 is significantly associated with worse prognosis; however, it is a novel significant predictive biomarker for increased sensitivity to platinum-based chemotherapy in NSCLC. Clin Cancer Res; 22(10); 2396–404. ©2015 AACR.
Dermoscopy Pattern, Histopathology and Immunophenotype of Primary Cutaneous B-Cell Lymphoma Presenting as a Solitary Skin Nodule
Authors: Mascolo Massimo , Piccolo Vincenzo , Argenziano Giuseppe , Costa Claudia , Lo Presti Maurizio , De Rosa Gaetano , Scalvenzi Massimiliano , Staibano Stefania
Published: December 2015

Importance: To date, no dermoscopic features have been described for the diagnosis of primary cutaneous B-cell lymphoma (PCBCL). This tool might be helpful for the clinical differential diagnosis in the context of single erythematous nodules of the skin. Observations: Ten cases of PCBCL, presenting clinically as solitary red/pinkish nodules, were retrospectively retrieved. Patient data were collected along with dermoscopic and histopathological features of each lesion. Most lesions (9/10) showed white circles with a salmon-colored background/area (6 lesions), scales (7 lesions), arborizing vessels (5 lesions) or a polymorphous vascular pattern (2 lesions). Histology revealed a cutaneous marginal zone lymphoma in 6 lesions, a follicle center lymphoma in 2 lesions and a diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in 2 lesions. Conclusions and Relevance: Dermoscopic examination may be helpful for improving the clinical recognition of PCBCL although skin biopsy remains mandatory.
Confronting Oracular Contradiction in Acts 21:1-14
Authors: White Devin L.
Published: December 2015

In Acts 21:1-14, several Tyrian prophets order Paul to abandon his journey to Jerusalem, but Paul ignores them, travelling to Jerusalem anyway. Modern commentators have struggled to explain how Paul’s behavior was not impious. The present study attempts to resolve this tension by interpreting Paul’s behavior in light of Jewish and Hellenistic practices for evaluating oracles. The argument proceeds in three stages: an exegetical survey of Acts 21:1-14, a discussion of relevant Jewish and Hellenistic strategies for interpreting oracles, and a conclusion arguing that Luke’s depiction of Paul may be understood in light of these complex practices of oracle reception.
The Challenges of the Judicial Dialogue in Mercosur
Authors: Almeida Paula Wojcikiewicz
Published: December 2015

Since its inception, Mercosur has opted for a non-coercive and diplomatic dispute settlement system. State Parties still oscillate between institutionalization based on the European model and the maintenance of an arbitral system for the settlement of disputes. This choice is linked to the possibility and limits of judicial dialogue in Mercosur. In this context, this article aims to analyse the existing horizontal ‘dialogue’ between Mercosur judges and international judges, on the one hand, and the vertical dialogue between Mercosur judges and national judges, on the other hand. In terms of the horizontal ‘dialogue’, the objective is to evaluate the use of precedents and references to other international, regional, and sub-regional Tribunals. As for the supposed vertical ‘dialogue’ between Mercosur judges and national judges, this article analyses the interaction with national courts through the cooperation mechanism established by advisory opinions (which is similar to preliminary rulings under the auspices of the eu), as well as via judicial ‘dialogue’ with representatives of national supreme courts of Mercosur State Parties. The importance of the advisory opinion mechanism is well known, as is the preliminary ruling mechanism in the European Union. Similar to the eu, several important principles of Mercosur law have been laid down by advisory opinions.
Morphometric analysis of the Rio Apaporis Caiman (Reptilia, Crocodylia, Alligatoridae)
Authors: ESCOBEDO-GALVÁN ARMANDO H. , VELASCO JULIÁN A. , GONZÁLEZ-MAYA JOSÉ F. , RESETAR ALAN
Published: December 2015

Caiman crocodilus apaporiensis has been considered by several authors as an extreme of morphological variation within the Caiman crocodilus complex. Here, we evaluate its position in the Caiman crocodilus complex morphospace using morphological traits from head shape. We examined the holotype and seventeen paratypes of Caiman crocodilus apaporiensis Medem 1955 deposited at the Field Museum of Natural History. We performed multivariate morphometric analyses: principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant function analysis (DFA), based on 21 cranial traits of of C. c. apaporiensis, C. yacare and the C. crocodilus complex (C. c. chiapasius, C. c. fuscus andC. c. crocodilus). We find a notable separation of C.c. apaporiensis from C. yacare and C. crocodilus complex in the morphospace. We suggest that geographic isolation might have driven this morphological separation from the C. crocodilus complex, but further analysis are necessary to confirm whether these differences are related with genetic differentiation within the complex. In addition, we suggest that environmental heterogeneity might drive the evolution of independent lineages within the C. crocodilus complex.
Police Perceptions of Their External Legitimacy in High and Low Crime Areas of the Community
Authors: Nix Justin
Published: December 2015

Until recently, police legitimacy research has primarily focused on citizen perceptions of the police. However, it may be that the police believe citizens associate other factors, such as distributive justice or performance, with legitimacy. The present study adds to the literature by surveying a nationally representative sample of U.S. police officers about how they believe citizens residing in high and low crime areas of the community evaluate police in terms of legitimacy. Findings suggest that respondents believe procedural justice and distributive justice are important to citizens of both areas in terms of generating trust. At the same time, respondents believe that citizens of high and low crime areas feel obligated to obey the police for different reasons.