bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Morphine administration modulates expression of Argonaute 2 and dopamine‐related transcription factors involved in midbrain dopaminergic neurons function
Authors: García‐Pérez D , Sáez‐Belmonte F , Laorden ML , Núñez C , Milanés MV
Published: December 2012

Background and Purpose

Alterations in transcription factors that regulate the development and maintenance of dopamine (DA) neurons (such as Nurr1 and Pitx3) play an important role in the pathogenesis of addiction diseases. We have examined the effects of acute and chronic morphine and morphine withdrawal on TH expression and activity as well as expression of Nurr1, Pitx3 and Ago2 in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) of the rat.

Experimental Approach

Rats were injected acutely with morphine and decapitated 1 or 2 h later. Another set of rats were made dependent on morphine by implantation of two morphine pellets. Precipitated withdrawal was induced by injection of naloxone. Ago2, Pitx3, Nurr1, total TH (tTH), TH phosphorylated at Ser31 and at Ser40, and 3,4‐Dihydroxyphenylacetic acid, and DA determination in the VTA and/or NAc were measured using immunoblotting, HPLC and immunofluorescence.

Key Results

Acute morphine produced a marked increase in TH activity and DA turnover in the NAc, concomitantly with increased Nurr1 and Pitx3 expression in the VTA. In contrast, precipitated morphine withdrawal decreased TH activation, TH expression and did not increase DA turnover in the NAc. These effects paralleled decreases in Ago2 expression, which was accompanied by increased Nurr1 and Pitx3, TH activity and normalized TH protein levels in the VTA.

Conclusions and Implications

The combined decrease in Ago2 and increases in Nurr1 and Pitx3 might represent some of the mechanisms that served to protect against accumbal TH regulation observed in morphine withdrawn rats, which may be critical for DA bioavailability to influence behaviour.
Microscopical and microbiologic characterization of customized titanium abutments after different cleaning procedures
Authors: Canullo Luigi , Micarelli Costanza , Lembo‐Fazio Luigi , Iannello Giuliano , Clementini Marco
Published: December 2012

Aim

To assess and characterize pollution micro‐particles and bacterial growth on customized titanium abutments after steaming, ultrasonic and plasma cleaning treatments.

Materials and methods

Thirty commercially available implant abutments, after customization, were randomly divided into 3 groups of 10 and cleansed by steam (considered as control group), ultrasonic cleaning (test group 1) and plasma of Argon (test group 2). For all specimens, SEM analysis and EDAX microanalysis were performed to count and characterize pollution micro‐particles, both on the abutment surface and implant–abutment connection. For the control and test groups, mean values and standard deviations were calculated for number and density of micro‐particles. Statistical differences were determined by one‐way ANOVA with Scheffe multiple comparison test. The level of statistical significance was set at P ≤ 0.05. Additional microbiologic analysis was performed to detect bacterial contamination on the abutment surface.

Results

In the control group, the number of micro‐particles on average was 117.5, and 14.1, respectively, on the abutment surface and connection. In the test groups, no pollution was revealed on the abutment (average of 1.09 and 1.13 spots, respectively, in test group 1 and test group 2) and connection (1.28 and 1.41, respectively, in test group 1 and test group 2). The analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a statistically significant difference for all the variables examined. For each variable, at least one of the groups differs from the others. Scheffe multiple comparison test showed that all comparisons for every variables between the control group and both groups are significant, while there were some comparisons between test group 1 and test group 2 that were not significant. EDAX microanalysis identified micro‐particles as residual of lubricant mixed with traces of Titanium and other metals. Microbiologic analysis demonstrated the presence of bacterial growth on the abutment surface only in the control group (111.5 ± 11.43 CFU/ml/implant–abutment as mean value). In the test groups, absence of growing microorganisms was found.

Conclusions

This study confirmed that both plasma and ultrasonic treatments can be beneficially adopted for abutment cleaning process after laboratory technical stages, to supposedly favor soft tissue healing and implant–prosthetic connection stability.
Burden of influenza in Latin America and the Caribbean: a systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Savy Vilma , Ciapponi Agustín , Bardach Ariel , Glujovsky Demián , Aruj Patricia , Mazzoni Agustina , Gibbons Luz , Ortega‐Barría Eduardo , Colindres Rómulo E.
Published: December 2012

Please cite this paper as: Savy et al. (2012) Burden of influenza in Latin America and the Caribbean: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses DOI: 10.1111/irv.12036.

Objective  Influenza causes severe morbidity and mortality. This systematic review aimed to assess the incidence, etiology, and resource usage for influenza in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Design  Meta‐analytic systematic review. Arcsine transformations and DerSimonian Laird random effects model were used for meta‐analyses.

Setting  A literature search from 1980 to 2008 in MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, LILACS, Ministries of Health, PAHO, proceedings, reference lists, and consulting experts.

Sample  We identified 1092 references, of which 31 were finally included, in addition to influenza surveillance reports. We also used information from the 10 reports from the collaborative group for epidemiological surveillance of influenza and other respiratory virus (GROG), and information retrieved from the WHO global flu database FLUNET.

Main outcome measures  Incidence, percentage of influenza specimens out of the total received by influenza centers and resource‐use outcomes.

Results  A total of 483 130 specimens of patients with influenza were analyzed. Meta‐analysis showed an annual rate of 36 080 (95%CI 28 550 43 610) influenza‐like illness per 100 000 persons‐years. The percentage of influenza out of total specimens received by influenza centers ranged between 4.66% and 15.42%, with type A the most prevalent, and A subtype H3 predominating. The mean length of stay at hospital due to influenza ranged between 5.8 12.9 days, total workdays lost due to influenza‐like illnesses were 17 150 days, and the mean direct cost of hospitalization was US$575 per laboratory‐confirmed influenza case.

Conclusions  Our data show that seasonal influenza imposes a high morbidity and economic burden to the region. However, the vaccine‐uptake rate has been low in this region. Population‐based cohort studies are required to improve the knowledge about incidence and resource utilization, which would inform healthcare authorities for decision making.
Cap‐assisted water immersion for minimal sedation colonoscopy: Prospective, randomized, single‐center trial
Authors: Falt Přemysl , Šmajstrla Vít , Fojtík Petr , Liberda Martin , Kliment Martin , Tvrdík Josef , Urban Ondřej
Published: December 2012

Background and Aim

Water immersion insertion is able to reduce discomfort and need for sedation during colonoscopy. A cap attached to the colonoscope tip may improve insertion during air insufflation colonoscopy. According to several reports, both techniques alone may result in higher detection of neoplastic lesions. Our study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of cap‐assisted water immersion compared to water immersion colonoscopy in minimally sedated patients.

Methods

A total of 208 consecutive outpatients were randomized to either cap‐assisted water immersion (Cap Water) or water immersion colonoscopy (Water). The primary endpoint was cecal intubation time.

Results

Cecal intubation time was 6.9 ± 2.9 min in Cap Water and 7.4 ± 4.2 min in the Water arm (P = 0.73). Success rate of minimal sedation colonoscopy was equal in both groups (92.9%, P = 1.00). From the endoscopist's point of view, there were non‐significant trends towards lower discomfort (P = 0.06), less need for abdominal compression (P = 0.06) and lower difficulty score (P = 0.05) during Cap Water colonoscopy. Adenoma detection rate was similar in both arms (44% in Cap Water vs 45% in the Water group, P = 0.88). There were no complications recorded in the present study.

Conclusions

In comparison with water immersion without cap, cap‐assisted water immersion colonoscopy was not able to shorten the cecal intubation time. However, it has the possibility of reducing patient discomfort and difficulty of colonoscope insertion. Potential impact on improved detection of neoplastic lesions has to be evaluated by further studies.
Kennedy Axis V: Clinimetric properties assessed by mental health nurses
Authors: Faay Margo D. M. , van de Sande Roland , Gooskens Floor , Hafsteinsdóttir Thóra B.
Published: December 2012

The Kennedy Axis V is a routine outcome measurement instrument which can assist the assessment of the short‐term risk for violence and other adverse patient outcomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the interrater reliability and clinical utility of the instrument when used by mental health nurses in daily care of patients with mental illness. This cross‐sectional study was conducted in inpatient and outpatient adult psychiatric care units and in one adolescent inpatient unit at a university hospital in the Netherlands. Interrater reliability was measured based on the independent scores of two different nurses for the same patients. The clinical utility of the instrument was evaluated by means of a clinical utility questionnaire. To gain a deeper understanding of rating difficulties at the adolescent unit, additional data were collected in two focus group interviews. The overall results revealed a substantial level of agreement between nurses (intraclass correlation coefficient and Pearson 0.79). Some rating challenges were identified, including difficulties with scoring the instrument and using tailor‐made interventions related to the scores. These challenges can be resolved using refined training and implementation strategies. When the Kennedy Axis V is accompanied by a solid implementation strategy in adult mental health care, the instrument can be used for short‐term risk assessment and thereby contribute in efforts to reduce violence, suicide, self‐harm, severe self‐neglect, and enhanced objectivity in clinical decision‐making.
THE EFFECTS OF INCREASED ACCESS TO EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION ON SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASE AND ABORTION RATES
Authors: DURRANCE CHRISTINE PIETTE
Published: December 2012

In 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved access to emergency contraception through pharmacies without a prescription. Several states, however, had previously allowed pharmacy access to emergency contraception. In particular, Washington State was the first state to implement such a program in 1998. If emergency contraception is used as a substitute for a surgical abortion, then pharmacy access could reduce unintended pregnancy. Pharmacy access, however, could lead to an increase in risk taking, especially among teens or young adults, and hence lead to increased rates of sexually transmitted diseases. In this article, we use county‐level data as well as specific timing of changes in pharmacy access to consider the intended and unintended consequences of pharmacy access to emergency contraception in Washington. The results indicate that while county‐level access to emergency contraception was unrelated to trends in sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and abortions before access changed, access afterwards led to a statistically significant increase in STD rates (gonorrhea rates), both overall and for females. We do not find, however, an impact of pharmacy access on abortion or birth rates. These results are robust to several specification tests (including use of Oregon counties as additional control counties) as well as several falsification tests. (JEL I1, I18, J13)
Selecting the Select Few: The Discuss List and the U.S. Supreme Court's Agenda‐Setting Process
Authors: Black Ryan C. , Boyd Christina L.
Published: December 2012

Objective

We investigate whether informational cues differentially affect a petition for review at each stage of the U.S. Supreme Court's agenda‐setting process. We specifically test how the cost of identifying a cue and the degree of information provided within it affect the cue's impact.

Methods

We use a random sample of archival data obtained from the private papers of Justice Harry A. Blackmun to jointly analyze the Court's discuss list and final outcome decisions.

Results

Confirming our expectations, we find that both positive cues and negative cues play different roles across the two stages of the Court's agenda‐setting process.

Conclusions

These findings are noteworthy since they suggest that the impact of some commonly studied case attributes differs between when a case is selected for the initial level of review versus when it is added to the Court's plenary docket.
The Nature and Bases of Environmental Concern among Chinese Citizens
Authors: Xiao Chenyang , Dunlap Riley E. , Hong Dayong
Published: December 2012

Objectives

Despite growing efforts to assess the views of Chinese citizens toward environmental issues, a crucial question remains unanswered: Do Chinese have a coherent system of environmental attitudes and beliefs as has been found among North Americans, making it appropriate to speak of “environmental concern” or “environmental consciousness” in China? To answer this question we use the belief system perspective and examine the degree of constraint among various environmental attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors reported by Chinese citizens, and also examine the social bases of their environmental concern.

Methods

We use data from a 2003 nation‐wide survey in China and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to test a relatively comprehensive model of environmental concern. Then we construct a structural equation model (SEM) to examine the social bases of such concern.

Results

The CFA results suggest that Chinese citizens have a reasonably coherent sense of generalized environmental concern, and the SEM results show that the higher educated, males, government employees, residents of large cities, and those affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party are more environmentally concerned than their counterparts.

Conclusion

The general public in China possesses a relatively coherent environmental belief system, similar to that found among North Americans, and education is a powerful predictor of environmental concern among the Chinese.
What is Important? The Impact of Interpersonal Political Discussion on Public Agendas
Authors: van Doorn Bas W.
Published: December 2012

Objective

This article investigates the role of discussion networks in agenda‐setting. More specifically, the focus is on the question whether the partisan composition of people's discussion networks affects what they judge to be the most important problems facing the country.

Method

Using data from the 2000 American National Election Studies (ANES), I employ logistic regression analysis.

Results

The findings suggest that discussion networks indeed play a significant role in setting the public agenda, even taking into consideration people's media use and several other potentially relevant variables.

Conclusion

While prior research has already linked political discussion to participation and vote choice, this study provides evidence that it also affects what issues people prioritize.
The physiology of bacterial cell division
Authors: Egan Alexander J. F. , Vollmer Waldemar
Published: December 2012

Bacterial cell division is facilitated by the divisome, a dynamic multiprotein assembly localizing at mid‐cell to synthesize the stress‐bearing peptidoglycan and to constrict all cell envelope layers. Divisome assembly occurs in two steps and involves multiple interactions between more than 20 essential and accessory cell division proteins. Well before constriction and while the cell is still elongating, the tubulin‐like FtsZ and early cell division proteins form a ring‐like structure at mid‐cell. Cell division starts once certain peptidoglycan enzymes and their activators have moved to the FtsZ‐ring. Gram‐negative bacteria like Escherichia coli simultaneously synthesize and cleave the septum peptidoglycan during division leading to a constriction. The outer membrane constricts together with the peptidoglycan layer with the help of the transenvelope spanning Tol–Pal system.
Vascular plant diversity on the roof of the world: Spatial patterns and environmental determinants
Authors: MAO Ling‐Feng , CHEN Sheng‐Bin , ZHANG Jin‐Long , HOU Yan‐Hui , ZHOU Guang‐Sheng , ZHANG Xin‐Shi
Published: December 2012

The Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (QTP), known as “the Roof of the World”, is one of the most unique and vulnerable biodiversity regions on Earth. However, the spatial patterns and determinants of vascular plant diversity on the QTP are still poorly documented, despite a number of publications focusing on its flora. Using extensively compiled data gathered from local flora and specimen records, we evaluated the relative importance of water, energy, and habitat heterogeneity‐related variables in shaping the distribution of vascular plant diversity (species, genus, family, herb, woody plants). We found that higher richness always occurred in the south and east of the QTP, especially along the Himalayas, and that habitat heterogeneity, water, and energy variables are important determinants of vascular plant richness patterns on the QTP. The explanatory power of most single predictors was obviously different across life forms, with woody plant richness generally more sensitive to most environmental factors than herb richness. In addition, the explanatory power of habitat heterogeneity models, combined water and energy models, and environmental models increased as the taxonomic level increased from species to family. The results highlight that correlations between plant richness and environmental variables vary with life form and taxonomic scale, and suggest that the explanatory power of variables will change in different spatial scales due to the proportion of life forms and the asymmetric effects of these drivers on life form richness.
Role of endoplasmic reticulum stress in light‐induced photoreceptor degeneration in mice
Authors: Nakanishi Tomohiro , Shimazawa Masamitsu , Sugitani Sou , Kudo Takashi , Imai Shunsuke , Inokuchi Yuta , Tsuruma Kazuhiro , Hara Hideaki
Published: December 2012

Exposure to excessive levels of light induces photoreceptor apoptosis and can be a causative factor in age‐related macular degeneration (AMD). However, the cellular events that mediate this apoptotic response are poorly understood. Here, we investigated the roles of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in light‐induced cell death in the murine retina and murine photoreceptor cells (661W). Excessive light exposure induced retinal dysfunction, photoreceptor degeneration, and apoptosis. Furthermore, the accumulation of polyubiquitinated proteins and the transcriptional expression of ER stress‐related factors, including 78‐kDa glucose‐regulated protein (GRP78)/immunoglobulin‐binding protein (BiP) and C/EBP‐homologous protein (CHOP), were increased in light‐exposed retinas. Light exposure also induced both cell death and up‐regulation of polyubiquitinated proteins, S‐opsin aggregation, bip and chop mRNAs in 661W cells in vitro. Knock‐down of chop mRNA inhibited photoreceptor cell death induced by light exposure. Furthermore, treatment with BiP inducer X (BIX), an ER stress inhibitor, induced bip mRNA and reduced both chop expression and light‐induced photoreceptor cell death. These data indicate that excessive ER stress may induce photoreceptor cell death in light‐exposed retinas via activation of the CHOP‐dependent apoptotic pathway, suggesting that the ER stress may play a pivotal role in light exposure‐induced retinal damage.
Practice‐based clinical evaluation of metal–ceramic and zirconia molar crowns: 3‐year results
Authors: Rinke S. , Schäfer S. , Lange K. , Gersdorff N. , Roediger M.
Published: December 2012

This practice‐based study evaluates the clinical performance of conventionally luted metal–ceramic and zirconia molar crowns fabricated with pronounced anatomical core design and a prolonged cooling period of the veneering porcelain. Fifty‐three patients were treated from 07/2008 until 07/2009 with either metal–ceramic crowns (MCC) (high‐noble alloy + low‐fusing porcelain) or zirconia crowns (Cercon System, DeguDent, Germany). Forty‐nine patients (30 women/19 men) with 100 restorations (metal–ceramic: 48/zirconia: 52, mean observational period: 36·5 ± 6 months) participated in a clinical follow‐up examination and were included in the study. Time‐dependent survival (in situ criteria), success (event‐free restorations) and chipping rates (defects of the veneering ceramics) were calculated according to the Kaplan–Meier method and analysed in relation to the crown fabrication technique, using a Cox regression model (P < 0·05). Three complete failures (metal–ceramic: 1, zirconia: 2) were recorded (survival rate after 3 years: metal–ceramic: 97·6%, zirconia: 95·2%). Of the metal–ceramic restorations, 90·9% remained event‐free (two ceramic fractures, one endodontic treatment), whereas the success rate for the zirconia was 86·8% (two ceramic fractures, one endodontic treatment, one secondary caries). No significant differences in survival (P = 0·53), success (P = 0·49) and ceramic fracture rates (P = 0·57) were detected. The combination of a pronounced anatomical core design and a modified firing of the veneering porcelain for the fabrication of zirconia molar crowns resulted in a 3‐year survival, success and chipping rate comparable to MCC.
Population genetics of the American eel (Anguilla rostrata): FST = 0 and North Atlantic Oscillation effects on demographic fluctuations of a panmictic species
Authors: Côté Caroline L. , Gagnaire Pierre‐Alexandre , Bourret Vincent , Verreault Guy , Castonguay Martin , Bernatchez Louis
Published: December 2012

We performed population genetic analyses on the American eel (Anguilla rostrata) with three main objectives. First, we conducted the most comprehensive analysis of neutral genetic population structure to date to revisit the null hypothesis of panmixia in this species. Second, we used this data to provide the first estimates of contemporary effective population size (Ne) and to document temporal variation in effective number of breeders (Nb) in American eel. Third, we tested for statistical associations between temporal variation in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the effective number of breeders and two indices of recruit abundance. A total of 2142 eels from 32 sampling locations were genotyped with 18 microsatellite loci. All measures of differentiation were essentially zero, and no evidence for significant spatial or temporal genetic differentiation was found. The panmixia hypothesis should thus be accepted for this species. Nb estimates varied by a factor of 23 among 12 cohorts, from 473 to 10 999. The effective population size Ne was estimated at 10 532 (95% CI, 9312–11 752). This study also showed that genetically based demographic indices, namely Nb and allelic richness (Ar), can be used as surrogates for the abundance of breeders and recruits, which were both shown to be positively influenced by variation during high (positive) NAO phases. Thus, long‐term genetic monitoring of American glass eels at several sites along the North American Atlantic coast would represent a powerful and efficient complement to census monitoring to track demographic fluctuations and better understand their causes.
Marker‐assisted breeding of Pi‐1 and Piz‐5 genes imparting resistance to rice blast in PRR78, restorer line of Pusa RH‐10 Basmati rice hybrid
Authors: Gouda Patil K. , Saikumar Surapaneni , Varma Chejerla M. K. , Nagesh Kancharla , Thippeswamy Sanka , Shenoy Vinay , Ramesha Mugalodim S. , Shashidhar Halagappa E.
Published: December 2012

Rice blast, caused by fungus Magnaporthe grisea, is a serious disease causing considerable economic damage worldwide. Best way to overcome disease is to breed for disease‐resistant cultivars/parental lines of hybrids. Pusa RH10, first aromatic, fine‐grain rice hybrid released and cultivated extensively in India. Hybrid and its parental lines, Pusa 6A and PRR78, are highly susceptible to blast. CO39 pyramid carrying two dominant, broad‐spectrum blast‐resistance genes, viz. Pi‐1 and Piz‐5, used as a donor parent to introgress these genes into PRR78 using marker‐assisted backcrossing (MABC). Microsatellite markers RM5926 and AP5659‐5 tightly linked to Pi‐1 and Piz‐5 genes, respectively, were used for foreground selection to derive introgression lines. Further, these lines were evaluated for agronomic performance, disease reaction and cooking quality traits along with PRR78. Most of the improved lines were on par with PRR78 for all traits evaluated except gelatinization temperature. Recurrent parent genome percentage (RPG) study also revealed similarity of these lines with PRR78. Hybrids derived using improved PRR78 lines were superior over Pusa RH10 in terms of yield.
Improving Tilting Pad Journal Bearing Predictions—Part I: Model Development and Impact of Rotor Excited Versus Bearing Excited Impedance Coefficients
Authors: Wilkes Jason C. , Childs Dara W.
Published: December 2012

The floating-bearing-test-rig concept was initially developed by Glienicke in 1966 and has since been used to test many tilting-pad journal bearings (TPJBs). The impedances measured during these tests have been compared to rotor/journal-perturbed impedance predictions. Since the inertial acceleration of a pad is different for bearing-perturbed and rotor-perturbed motions, the bearing's reaction force components for bearing-perturbed and journal-perturbed motions will also differ. An understanding of how bearing-perturbed and rotor-perturbed impedances differ is needed to assess the validity of past, present, and future comparisons between TPJB test data and predictions. A new TPJB perturbation model is developed including the effects of angular, radial, and transverse pad motion and changes in pad clearance due to pad bending compliance. Though all of these pad variables have previously been included in different analyses, there are no publications containing perturbations of all four variables. In addition, previous researchers have only perturbed the rotor, while both the bearing and rotor motions are perturbed in the present analysis. The applicability of comparing rotor-perturbed bearing impedance predictions to impedances measured on a bearing-perturbed test rig is assessed by comparing rotor-perturbed and bearing-perturbed impedance predictions for an example bearing.
A Common Mediator of Resistance
Authors: Wong Wei
Published: December 2012

MED12 inhibits TGF-β signaling through a nontranscriptional mechanism.
The Rise and Fall of an Immune Response
Authors: Obhrai Jagdeep S.
Published: December 2012

The same signals that initiate B cell–T cell interactions may be responsible for regulatory B cell differentiation.
Twin Towers, Twin Epidemics: Obesity and Asthma
Authors: Zeki Amir A.
Published: December 2012

Obesity hinders the clearance of dead inflammatory cells in asthmatic lungs and is associated with reduced glucocorticoid responsiveness and oxidative stress.
A New Way for Natural Killers to Find Their “Missing-Self”
Authors: Anandasabapathy Niroshana
Published: December 2012

Noncanonical major histocompatibility complex class I may contribute to natural killer cell licensing.
Coffee Consumption: It Does a Body Good
Authors: Reznik Marina
Published: December 2012

Coffee and tea intake is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes.
Complicated rheumatic mitral stenosis presenting in an elderly patient and the challenges in its management
Authors: Ganeshpure Swapnil , Vaidya Gaurang Nandkishor , Gattani Vipul
Published: December 2012

A 76 -year-old lady with a recent diagnosis of rheumatic heart disease (RHD), and a history of repeated lower respiratory tract infections, came with symptoms of gastritis unrelated to the primary disease but further diagnostic study in the hospital revealed poorly controlled atrial fibrillation, grossly dilated left atrium with two large left atrial thrombi and mitral valve area<1 cm2. It was decided that the best approach in our patient would be mitral valve replacement with mechanical prosthesis. Despite the usual trend of using bioprosthesis in the elderly, our decision was influenced by the fact that the patient would need chronic anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation in any case. The purpose of our case presentation is to illustrate a late-presenting case of RHD with unusual associations and the challenges to choose the best possible management.
A rare combination of rare conditions:Salmonellaseptic sacroiliitis and hepatitis
Authors: Penney Nicholas , Konan Sujith , Hulme Alison
Published: December 2012

We report an unusual presentation of sacroiliitis and hepatitis secondary toSalmonellasystemic infection. A high index of suspicion, early blood cultures, prompt investigations and treatment with parenteral antibiotics can result in complete resolution of symptoms and prevent long-term sequelae of either condition.
Unannounced in situ simulations: integrating training and clinical practice
Authors: Walker Susanna T , Sevdalis Nick , McKay Anthony , Lambden Simon , Gautama Sanjay , Aggarwal Rajesh , Vincent Charles
Published: December 2012

Simulation-based training for healthcare providers is well established as a viable, efficacious training tool, particularly for the training of non-technical team-working skills. These skills are known to be critical to effective teamwork, and important in the prevention of error and adverse events in hospitals. However, simulation suites are costly to develop and releasing staff to attend training is often difficult. These factors may restrict access to simulation training. We discuss our experiences of ‘in situ’ simulation for unannounced cardiac arrest training when the training is taken to the clinical environment. This has the benefit of decreasing required resources, increasing realism and affordability, and widening multidisciplinary team participation, thus enabling assessment and training of non-technical team-working skills in real clinical teams. While there are practical considerations of delivering training in the clinical environment, we feel there are many potential benefits compared with other forms of simulation training. We are able to tailor the training to the needs of the location, enabling staff to see a scenario that is relevant to their practice. This is particularly useful for staff who have less exposure to cardiac arrest events, such as radiology staff. We also describe the important benefit of risk assessment for a clinical environment. During our simulations we have identified a number of issues that, had they occurred during a real resuscitation attempt, may have led to patient harm or patient death. For these reasons we feel in situ simulation should be considered by every hospital as part of a patient safety initiative.
The hidden endoscopic burden of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery
Authors: Steed Helen , Golar Harjeet , Manjunath Srikantaiah
Published: December 2012

Background and aims

Complication rates of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) vary from centre to centre, but anastomotic stricture is the commonest, and is managed in the majority by endoscopic pneumatic dilatation. The aim of this study was to assess the endoscopic burden of RYGB surgery.

Patients and methods

All patients undergoing RYGB surgery over a 29-month period were included and were followed-up retrospectively and prospectively for a minimum of 180 days to monitor for endoscopic procedures performed in relation to the RYGB at Walsall Manor Hospital, UK. Five hundred and fifty-three patients underwent RYGB surgery during the study period.

Results

One hundred and thirteen patients had 147 endoscopic procedures, including 65 pneumatic dilatations, at a cost to the NHS of £58 077 over a 29-month study period, with an average cost of £2003 a month. or £105 per RYGB operation performed. The anastomotic stricture rate for the group was 11.39%. The complication rate for dilatation of anastomotic strictures was 0%.

Conclusions

RYGB anastomotic strictures can be safely managed by dilatation. If bariatric surgery is performed locally, then endoscopy departments must expect to factor in, not only the burden of dealing with actual complications, but also the burden of investigating for potential complications.
Modulation of adipokines by n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and ensuing changes in skeletal muscle metabolic response and inflammation
Authors: Tishinsky Justine M.
Published: December 2012

Adipose tissue represents an important endocrine organ that secretes a multitude of adipokines known to mediate inflammation, lipid metabolism, and insulin sensitivity in peripheral tissues, such as skeletal muscle. Specifically, adiponectin stimulates skeletal muscle fatty acid oxidation and is associated with improvements in insulin response. Long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are well known for their anti-inflammatory and insulin-sensitizing properties, and their dietary consumption is associated with a more favourable circulating adipokine profile, including increased adiponectin. However, whether n-3 PUFA can directly stimulate adiponectin secretion from human adipocytes, as well as the underlying mechanisms involved, is unknown. In contrast to n-3 PUFA, diets high in saturated fatty acids (SFA) are thought to decrease adiponectin and increase pro-inflammatory adipokines, as well as blunt skeletal muscle response to both adiponectin and insulin, possibly via activation of inflammatory pathways. The role of n-3 PUFA in mediating the communication between adipose tissue and skeletal muscle, as well as preventing SFA-induced impairments in skeletal muscle function, has yet to be examined. In this thesis, it was found that long-chain n-3 PUFA increase adiponectin secretion from human adipocytes via a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ-dependent mechanism. The effects of n-3 PUFA on adiponectin secretion were additive when combined with the thiazolidinedione, rosiglitazone. Second, incorporation of n-3 PUFA into a high SFA diet prevented impairments in adiponectin response and both prevented and restored impairments in insulin response in rodent skeletal muscle. Interestingly, these findings were paralleled by prevention of SFA-induced increases in toll-like receptor 4 expression by n-3 PUFA, suggesting inflammatory changes may be involved. Finally, dietary n-3 PUFA and SFA modulated the secretion of adipose tissue-derived factors from visceral rodent adipose tissue and subsequent exposure of isolated skeletal muscle to such factors induced acute changes in inflammatory gene expression without affecting insulin sensitivity. Together, the findings in this thesis suggest that n-3 PUFA modulate adipokine secretion from adipose tissue and that adipose-derived factors mediate skeletal muscle inflammation and response to adiponectin and insulin. Ultimately, this work highlights the importance of considering n-3 PUFA as a therapeutic strategy in the prevention and treatment of obesity and related pathologies.
Palladium chloride catalyzed photochemical Heck reaction
Authors: Waghmode Suresh B. , Arbuj Sudhir S. , Wani Bina N. , Gopinath C.S.
Published: December 2012

PdCl2 catalyzed carbon–carbon bond formation (Heck reaction) between substituted aryl halides and olefins was carried out without a ligand, under irradiation with UV–visible light. The results demonstrated that UV–visible light accelerated the rate of the reaction, leading to an excellent yield of corresponding products. The recovered palladium nanoparticles could be thermally recycled several times. PdCl2 gave excellent conversion up to the fifth addition of substrate.
Effects of spatial scale and choice of statistical model (linear versus tree-based) on determining species–habitat relationships
Authors: Sharma Sapna , Legendre Pierre , Boisclair Daniel , Gauthier Stéphane
Published: December 2012

The choice of spatial scale and modelling technique used to capture species–habitat relationships needs to be considered when ascertaining environmental determinants of habitat quality for species and communities. Fish densities and environmental data were collected at three Laurentian lakes using underwater surveys by four snorkelers collecting fine spatial data acquired through geographic positioning systems. At both fine (20 m) and broad (100 m) spatial scales, tree-based approaches, which incorporated both linear and nonlinear relationships, explained more variation than their linear counterparts. At the finest spatial scale considered (20 m), local environmental conditions, such as habitat structure and heterogeneity, were important determinants of fish habitat selection. At the broadest spatial scale considered (100 m), fish tended to select habitat based on both local environmental features and riparian development. Moran’s eigenvector maps further revealed that fish–habitat associations were operating at broader spatial scales than the predefined analytical units, which can be partially attributed to the spatial structure of environmental conditions acting at spatial scales greater than 100 m. This study highlights the importance of evaluating statistical approaches at different spatial scales to identify key determinants of habitat quality for species, ultimately to assess the effects of perturbations on ecosystems.
Accumulation and decay of woody detritus in a humid subtropical secondary pine forest
Authors: Mobley Megan L. , Richter Daniel deB. , Heine Paul R.
Published: December 2012

The contribution of coarse woody detritus (CWD) to forest C budgets is poorly quantified in general, and especially so for secondary forests. This study quantifies C and N storage in logs and snags and compares the decomposition of this aboveground CWD with that of dead taproots in a 50-year-old secondary pine forest in a humid subtropical climate. We estimated rates of CWD input due to tree mortality over 50 years of forest development and conducted a field inventory of aboveground CWD of four decay classes. Belowground CWD was characterized by excavating 13 taproots of three decay classes. We found that aboveground CWD in this warm and humid climate decays relatively rapidly, with an exponential decay constant of 0.122 and mean time to decomposition of 50% and 95% log mass of 5.6 and 24.3 years, respectively. Our data suggest that most dead trees proceed through the earliest stage of decomposition as standing snags before falling to the ground. We found that changes in wood chemistry during decomposition were similar above and below ground. After 50 years of forest development, logs, snags, and dead taproots comprised 13% of total forest ecosystem C in this secondary pine forest.
Vibrio fischeriexhibit the growth advantage in stationary-phase phenotype
Authors: Petrun Branden , Lostroh C. Phoebe
Published: December 2012

Vibrio fischeri are bioluminescent marine bacteria that can be isolated from their symbiotic animal partners or from ocean water. A V. fischeri population increases exponentially inside the light organ of the Hawaiian bobtail squid (Euprymna scolopes) while the host is quiescent during the day. This bacterial light organ population reaches stationary phase and then remains high during the night, when the squid use bacterial bioluminescence as a counter-predation strategy. At dawn, host squid release 90%–95% of the light organ contents into the ocean water prior to burying in the sand for the day. As the squid sleeps, the cycle of bacterial population growth in the light organ begins again. These V. fischeri cells that are vented into the ocean must persist under typical marine low nutrient conditions until they encounter another opportunity to colonize a host. We hypothesized that because V. fischeri regularly encounter cycles of feast and famine in nature, they would exhibit the growth advantage in stationary phase (GASP) phenotype. We found that older V. fischeri cells exhibit a Class 2 GASP response in which old cells increase dramatically in frequency while the population of young V. fischeri cells remains almost constant during co-incubation.
A short formal total synthesis of (±)-hirsutic acid
Authors: Revol Guillaume , Fuchs Christian , Zard Samir Z.
Published: December 2012

A short formal total synthesis of (±)-hirsutic acid is described using a Claisen rearrangement and a radical cascade as the key steps. The radical sequence involves an intermolecular addition of a radical derived from a xanthate followed by a cyclization and transfer of the xanthate group.
2-(Selenocyanatomethyl)-2-propenol — A convenient synthon for ligation via the deselenative allylic rearrangement of allyl selenosulfides: preparation, functional group compatibility, and application
Authors: Lachkar David , Boudet Caroline , Guinchard Xavier , Crich David
Published: December 2012

The preparation and reactions of 2-(selenocyanatomethyl)-2-propenol are described and reveal the compatibility of the allylic selenocyanate group with a range of mild oxidizing and Lewis acidic conditions. 2-(Selenocyanatomethyl)-2-propenol and its derivatives are employed in the functionalization of simple and amino acid derived thiols in methanolic solution at room temperature to give 2-(hydroxymethyl)allyl sulfides in good to excellent yield.
DATA PRIVACY: DEFINITIONS AND TECHNIQUES
Authors: DE CAPITANI DI VIMERCATI SABRINA , FORESTI SARA , LIVRAGA GIOVANNI , SAMARATI PIERANGELA
Published: December 2012

The proper protection of data privacy is a complex task that requires a careful analysis of what actually has to be kept private. Several definitions of privacy have been proposed over the years, from traditional syntactic privacy definitions, which capture the protection degree enjoyed by data respondents with a numerical value, to more recent semantic privacy definitions, which take into consideration the mechanism chosen for releasing the data.

In this paper, we illustrate the evolution of the definitions of privacy, and we survey some data protection techniques devised for enforcing such definitions. We also illustrate some well-known application scenarios in which the discussed data protection techniques have been successfully used, and present some open issues.
PHOTOCATALYTIC ACTIVITY OF BISMUTH VANADATE FOR THE DEGRADATION OF ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
Authors: KUMAR SURENDER , SAHARE P. D.
Published: December 2012

We synthesized the nanoparticles of Bi4V2O11 with particle size less than 30 nm by combustion method and they were found to be in monoclinic phase (i.e., α-phase), confirmed by X-ray diffraction, Raman and Fourier transform Infrared spectroscopy. Morphology of the α- Bi4V2O11 was analyzed by transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy techniques. Photocatalytic activity of α- Bi4V2O11 in degradation of common organic dyes, such as, Rhodamine B (Rh B) and Methylene Blue (MB) was investigated under UV irradiation. Furthermore, γ- Bi4V2O11 was obtained by post annealing treatment of α- Bi4V2O11 to investigate the phase transition and size dependent effects on photocatalytic activity. α- Bi4V2O11 has shown better photocatalytic activity compared to γ- Bi4V2O11 which is attributed to its smaller particle size enhancing its surface to volume ratio and being in a different phase. BET measurement is also performed in order to observe the effect of surface area on photocatalytic activity. Complete removal of aqueous Rh B dye was realized after UV light irradiation for 45 min with α- Bi4V2O11 as the photocatalyst.
Algorithm 924
Authors: Abad Alberto , Barrio Roberto , Blesa Fernando , Rodríguez Marcos
Published: December 2012

This article introduces the software package TIDES and revisits the use of the Taylor series method for the numerical integration of ODEs. The package TIDES provides an easy-to-use interface for standard double precision integrations, but also for quadruple precision and multiple precision integrations. The motivation for the development of this package is that more and more scientific disciplines need very high precision solution of ODEs, and a standard ODE method is not able to reach these precision levels. The TIDES package combines a preprocessor step in M
athematica
that generates Fortran or C programs with a library in C. Another capability of TIDES is the direct solution of sensitivities of the solution of ODE systems, which means that we can compute the solution of variational equations up to any order without formulating them explicitly. Different options of the software are discussed, and finally it is compared with other well-known available methods, as well as with different options of TIDES. From the numerical tests, TIDES is competitive, both in speed and accuracy, with standard methods, but it also provides new capabilities.
Recognizing Inference in Texts with Markov Logic Networks
Authors: Qiu Xipeng , Cao Ling , Liu Zhao , Huang Xuanjing
Published: December 2012

Recognizing inference in texts (RITE) attracts growing attention of natural language processing (NLP) researchers in recent years. In this article, we propose a novel approach to recognize inference with probabilistic logical reasoning. Our approach is built on Markov logic networks (MLNs) framework, which is a probabilistic extension of first-order logic. We design specific semantic rules based on the surface, syntactic, and semantic representations of texts, and map these rules to logical representations. We also extract information from some knowledge bases as common sense logic rules. Then we utilize MLNs framework to make predictions with combining statistical and logical reasoning. Experiment results shows that our system can achieve better performance than state-of-the-art RITE systems.
The Best Assessment Tools for the Online Classroom
Authors: Sivula Martin
Published: December 2012

More and more students at all levels of education submit “e-documents” for assessment, grading, and instructor review. While retaining an electronic format, there are several free or low cost software tools available to facilitate this process. Each of the tools mentioned here have been empirically tested in the classroom and/or online setting—giving feedback to more than 100 students. Results suggest selecting tools that fit your instructional methods and assignments (while not sacrificing quality) can save you time and actually improve your feedback to students.