bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mutational analysis of FOXL2 codon 134 in granulosa cell tumour of ovary and other human cancers
Authors: Kim Min Sung , Hur Soo Young , Yoo Nam Jin , Lee Sug Hyung
Published: January 2010

A missense somatic mutation in the FOXL2 gene affecting codon 134 has recently been reported in granulosa cell tumour (GCT) and thecoma of the ovary. Such a recurrent nature of the mutation strongly suggests that the FOXL2 mutation may play an important role in the development of ovarian sex cord‐stromal tumours. The aim of this study was to characterize the FOXL2 mutation in human tumour tissues. We analysed 1353 tumour tissues from various origins, including ovarian tumours and other common cancers, by single‐strand conformation polymorphism analysis. We found the FOXL2 codon 134 missense mutation in 53 of 56 adult GCTs (94.6%) and two of the 16 thecomas (12.5%), but none in other tumours. Histologically, FOXL2 mutation‐negative adult GCT showed that GCT cells were admixed with fibrothecomatous cells, and FOXL2 mutation‐positive thecomas showed that luteinized theca cells were predominant. However, immunostaining of either inhibin α or FOXL2 did not differentiate the FOXL2 mutation status of adult GCTs and thecomas. There was no FOXL1 mutation and no common oncogenic mutation in the adult GCTs and thecomas. Our data indicate that the FOXL2 codon 134 mutation occurs exclusively in GCT and thecoma, and suggest the possibility that the development of most GCTs and a fraction of thecomas may be dependent on this mutation. Our data also suggest that the FOXL2 mutation status, as well as some histological features, may be important in the diagnosis of ovarian sex cord‐stromal tumours. Copyright © 2010 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
VHL and HIF signalling in renal cell carcinogenesis
Authors: Baldewijns Marcella M , van Vlodrop Iris JH , Vermeulen Peter B , Soetekouw Patricia MMB , van Engeland Manon , de Bruïne Adriaan P
Published: January 2010

Hypoxia‐inducible factor (HIF) plays an important role in renal tumourigenesis. In the majority of clear cell RCC (ccRCC), the most frequent and highly vascularized RCC subtype, HIF is constitutively activated by inactivation of the von Hippel–Lindau gene. Of the HIF subunits, HIF‐2α appears to be more oncogenic than HIF‐1α, in that HIF‐2α activates pro‐tumourigenic target genes. In addition, recent studies indicate that HIF‐1α, more than HIF‐2α, can undergo proteasomal degradation in VHL − /− RCC cells. A more detailed understanding of the molecular basis of hypoxia and angiogenesis in renal carcinogenesis has set the stage for the development of targeted therapies, inhibiting multiple HIF‐related pathways, such as the phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase–AKT–mTOR, RAS/RAF/MAP, and VEGF signalling routes. However, despite the positive results of these targeting agents in progression‐free survival, clinical resistance remains an issue. Recent pre‐clinical studies have suggested new targeting approaches such as inhibition of HIF‐driven key metabolic enzymes and have introduced new HIF targeting agents, such as histone deacetylase inhibitors, with successful anti‐neoplastic effects. In this review, we discuss existing and novel findings about RCC carcinogenesis, with subsequent clinical implications. Copyright © 2010 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effect of religion on the attitude of primiparous women toward genetic testing
Authors: Usta Ihab M. , Nassar Anwar H. , Abu‐Musa Antoine A. , Hannoun Antoine
Published: January 2010

Background

Factors that influence a pregnant woman's decision to accept or decline genetic tests are largely undefined. The objective of this study was to determine the acceptance rate of prenatal diagnostic testing in Lebanon according to religion.

Methods

Prenatal charts were reviewed to obtain information about prenatal genetic testing. Women were divided according to their religion and were compared regarding the acceptance of triple screen test (TST) or amniocentesis (AMN) and reasons for declining such tests. Differences between groups were examined using the student's t‐test, χ2‐test and multivariate analysis (age ≥ 35 years, religion, education and class).

Results

The religious distribution was 73.8% Moslems, 14.0% Christians and 11.2% Druze. Utilization of TST, AMN, and either (TST/AMN) was 61.2%, 7.6% and 67.0%, respectively. Uptake of TST/AMN was highest in Christians and lowest in Moslems and that of AMN higher in Christians ≥ 35 years compared with Moslems. On multivariate analysis, none of the factors studied significantly affected the utilization of TST or TST/AMN except for age ≥ 35 years which was associated with a borderline decrease in the utilization of TST Odds Ratio (OR) 0.485 (95% CI 0.21–1.12). The utilization of AMN significantly increased with age ≥ 35 years OR 7.19 (95% CI 2.65–19.56) and lower education.

Conclusion

Religion does not seem to affect utilization of prenatal diagnostic tests in Lebanon. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hematological characteristics in neonates with twin anemia–polycythemia sequence (TAPS)
Authors: Lopriore E. , Slaghekke F. , Oepkes D. , Middeldorp J. M. , Vandenbussche F. P. H. A. , Walther F. J.
Published: January 2010

Objective

To evaluate the neonatal hematological features of monochorionic twins with twin anemia–polycythemia sequence (TAPS) and to determine the additional diagnostic value of reticulocyte count measurement.

Methods

A cohort of consecutive monochorionic twins with TAPS (n = 19) was included in the study and each twin pair was compared with two monochorionic twin pairs (n = 38) unaffected by TAPS or twin–twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), matched for gestational age at birth. We measured full blood counts on day 1 and determined the incidence of anemia, polycythemia, reticulocytosis and thrombocytopenia.

Results

Median inter‐twin hemoglobin (Hb) difference in monochorionic twins with and without TAPS was 13.7 g/dL and 2.4 g/dL, respectively (p < 0.01). Median inter‐twin reticulocyte count ratio in twins with and without TAPS was 3.1 and 1.0, respectively (p < 0.01). Thrombocytopenia (platelet count < 150 × 109/L) occurred more often in the TAPS group than in the control group, 45% (17/38) versus 11% (11/38), respectively (p < 0.01). In the TAPS group, mean platelet count was significantly lower in recipients than in donors, 133 × 109/L versus 218 × 109/L, respectively (p < 0.01).

Conclusions

TAPS twins have a large inter‐twin Hb difference in combination with a large inter‐twin reticulocyte count ratio. Recipients are more often thrombocytopenic than donors, probably due to polycythemia. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Elastic Modulus of β‐HMX Crystals Determined by Nanoindentation
Authors: Li Ming , Tan Wu‐Jun , Kang Bin , Xu Rui‐Juan , Tang Wei
Published: January 2010

This paper presents an investigation on the anisotropic modulus of energetic crystals of β‐HMX by using a Hysitron Triboindenter fitted with a Berkovich tip. High quality single crystals of β‐HMX, whose densities were determined by high precision density gradient tube (DGT), were used in order to extract the moduli of two orthogonal crystal faces: (010), the maximum growth habit face (termed face 1), and the face which is perpendicular to it (termed face 2). Contrary to common expectation, the moduli of face 1 and face 2 were found to be 23.4 and 26.1 GPa, respectively, indicating a negligible crystal anisotropy of the system. Nanoindentation measurement gave even narrower difference, with hardness values of 1.1 GPa for face 1 and 0.95 GPa for face 2, thus further supporting the above conclusion. The result obtained from nanoindentation contradicts with those from the impulse stimulated light scattering (ISLS) and the Brillouin scattering, but was close to the result predicted by molecular dynamics (MDs) simulation. It is also suggested that the modulus value of 31 GPa obtained from previous micro‐indentation measurement may be overestimated.
Coupling a mass‐conserving semi‐Lagrangian scheme (SLICE) to a semi‐implicit discretization of the shallow‐water equations: Minimizing the dependence on a reference atmosphere
Authors: Thuburn J. , Zerroukat M. , Wood N. , Staniforth A.
Published: January 2010

In a recent paper, a conservative semi‐Lagrangian mass transport scheme SLICE has been coupled to a semi‐implicit semi‐Lagrangian scheme for the shallow‐water equations. The algorithm involves the solution at each timestep of a nonlinear Helmholtz problem, which is achieved by iterative solution of a linear ‘inner’ Helmholtz problem; this framework, as well as the linear Helmholtz operator itself, are the same as would be used with a non‐conservative interpolating semi‐Lagrangian scheme for mass transport. However, in order to do this, a reference value of geopotential was introduced into the discretization. It is shown here that this results in a weak dependence of the results on that reference value. An alternative coupling is therefore proposed that preserves the same solution framework and linear Helmholtz operator but, at convergence of the nonlinear solver, has no dependence on the reference value. However, in order to maintain accuracy at large timesteps, this approach requires a modification to how SLICE performs its remapping. An advantage of removing the dependence on the reference value is that the scheme then gives consistent tracer transport. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society and Crown Copyright. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A radius –depth model for midlatitude cyclones in reanalysis data and simulations
Authors: Schneidereit Andrea , Blender Richard , Fraedrich Klaus
Published: January 2010

Geometric properties of winter (DJF) and summer (JJA) midlatitude cyclones are analysed in reanalysis data, present‐day and global warming simulations. Cyclone centres are identified by the minima of the 1000 hPa geopotential height. Fitting an azimuthally symmetric Gaussian function to the surrounding height field provides cyclone depth (difference between the cyclone centre and the synoptic environment), radius (standard deviation), geostrophic wind and vorticity. Analysing ERA‐40 reanalysis data of different resolutions and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenario simulations by the coupled atmosphere–ocean general circulation model ECHAM5/MPI‐OM yields mean radii of 300–500 km in winter and 300–400 km in summer. Depth maxima occur in the storm tracks (determined by the bandpass‐filtered variance of the geopotential height), and the smallest radii characterize oceanic cyclogenesis regions. The geostrophic vorticity, derived from the fitted Gaussian model, agrees reasonably well with the observed relative vorticity. Future warmer climate scenarios exhibit smaller radii and weaker depths during winter and summer. An intense growth of the depth is found during the 2 –10 day cyclone life cycles, while the radii reveal negligible growth. Compositing depths with respect to normalized total lifetime leads to rescaled depth life cycles, which collapse to a simple universal function, ã(1 − ã), for relative cyclone age ã. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
Generalizing ‘z‐less’ mixing length for stable boundary layers
Authors: Grisogono B.
Published: January 2010

Current research shows, recent and former research suggests, that the nature and evolution of the stable atmospheric boundary layer(s) (SABL) is still understood and modelled inadequately. The ‘classical’ SABL, almost always stratified weakly (i.e. gradient Richardson number Ri ≪ ∞, typically 0 < Ri ≤ 1), has been modelled reasonably well during the last few decades or so, but the very stable case, i.e. the VSABL (Ri ≫ 1), is generally not well understood. Excessively diffusive and much too deep VSABL flows, as often appearing in numerical models, were recently addressed; the over‐diffusion was alleviated by improving the local turbulent mixing length. This demands an explicit inclusion of the vertical shear of horizontal wind, S, in the mixing length, besides the previously known role of buoyancy frequency, N. A generalization of this recent work is given here by a simplified turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) equation and a set of subsequent parametrizations for the eddy diffusivity and conductivity, i.e. K‐parametrizations, in terms of a generalized ‘z‐less’ mixing length, Λ. The aim is to produce a parametrization that is uniformly valid for all Ri ≥ 0. It is shown that Λ ∼ (TKE)1/2/ | S | ·f(Ri, Pr), uniformly valid for 0 ≤ Ri, regardless of the other parametrization details (the details appear as corrections); Pr is the turbulent Prandtl number and f(Ri, Pr) is a simple set of derived functions depending on the parametrization properties.

A couple of important shortcomings of the current turbulence parametrizations for the SABL, as modelled in numerical weather prediction, air‐chemistry and climate models, will be remedied by using this new generalized ‘z‐less’ mixing length. This approach also recommends that it should be better if various mixing length scales were derived from simplified main principles, instead of only being guessed from plausible reasoning or dimensional analysis. In particular, it has often been assumed that K and Λ profiles could be chosen for modelling purposes more or less independently from each other. It is shown, based on a simple renormalization for Λ, that this is not the case if one wishes to use a more consistent parametrization scheme. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
Convergence properties of the primal and dual forms of variational data assimilation
Authors: Akkraoui Amal El , Gauthier Pierre
Published: January 2010

The variational data assimilation problem can be solved in either its primal (3D/4D‐Var) or dual (3D/4D‐PSAS) form. The methods are equivalent at convergence but the dual method exhibits a spurious behaviour at the beginning of the minimization which leads to less probable states than the background state. This is a serious concern when using the dual method in operational implementations when only a finite number of iterations can be afforded. Two classes of minimization algorithms are examined in this article: the conjugate gradient (CG) and the minimum residual (MINRES) methods. While the CG algorithms ensure a monotonic reduction of the cost function, those based on the MINRES enforce instead a monotonic decrease of the norm of the gradient. In this article, it is shown that when applied to the minimization of the dual problem, the MINRES algorithms also lead to iterates for which their ‘image’ in physical space leads to a monotonic decrease of the primal cost function. A relationship is established showing that the primal objective function is related to the value of the dual cost function and the norm of its gradient. This holds for the incremental forms of both the three‐ and four‐dimensional cases. A new convergence criterion is introduced based on the error norm in model space to make sure that, for the dual problem, the same accuracy is obtained in the analysis when only a finite number of iterations is completed. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
The influence of rotational frontogenesis and its associated shearwise vertical motions on the development of an upper‐level front
Authors: Lang Andrea A. , Martin Jonathan E.
Published: January 2010

The total quasi‐geostrophic (QG) vertical motion is partitioned into transverse and shearwise couplets oriented parallel to, and along, the geostrophic vertical shear, respectively, in order to examine the role of rotational frontogenesis, and its associated shearwise circulation, in the life cycle of an upper‐front/jet system in northwesterly flow. In particular the analysis emphasizes two aspects of that role: (1) the influence of shearwise ω on scalar frontogenesis, and (2) the effect of rotational frontogenesis, and its associated vertical circulation, on the initiation of along‐flow cold air advection during upper frontogenesis.

The case‐study analysis reveals that shearwise subsidence persistently and significantly contributes to scalar frontogenesis throughout the life cycle. The transverse subsidence contribution to scalar frontogenesis is initially weak but grows more substantial after the establishment of along‐flow cold air advection near the base of the thermal trough.

Prior work has argued that the development of along‐flow cold air advection arises from a cyclonic rotation of ∇θ promoted either by contributions from tilting or horizontal kinematics. From the QG perspective adopted in the present study, the tilting and kinematic rotations are seen as interconnected aspects of a single, underlying dynamical process: rotational frontogenesis, in which the rotation of ∇θ produced by vertical vorticity is accompanied by a discrete vertical circulation (the shearwise circulation) that provides the subsidence upshear of the vorticity maximum required to initiate along‐flow cold air advection. It is further suggested that the characteristic distribution of the kinematic and tilting contributions to rotation of ∇θ in the vicinity of an upper‐tropospheric vorticity maximum underlies the observed preference for the development of upper‐level fronts in northwesterly flow. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
Intraseasonal variability of the ocean — atmosphere coupling in the Gulf of Guinea during boreal spring and summer
Authors: Coëtlogon Gaëlle de , Janicot Serge , Lazar Alban
Published: January 2010

Statistical analyses of the satellite TMI sea‐surface temperature (SST) and QuikSCAT surface winds in boreal spring and summer are performed to investigate the intraseasonal variability of air–sea interactions in the Gulf of Guinea. There, empirical orthogonal function decomposition shows the existence of peaks around 15 days, and their lagged cross‐correlation the signature of an expected 5‐day lag wind forcing and 3‐day lag strong negative SST feedback. Lagged linear regressions are performed onto a reference SST index of the cold tongue northern front in the Gulf of Guinea. A cold SST anomaly covering the equatorial and coastal upwelling is forced after about one week by stronger‐than‐usual south‐easterlies linked to the St Helena anticyclone, suggesting that intraseasonal variability in the Gulf of Guinea is connected to large‐scale fluctuations in the South Atlantic. Within about 5°S and 5°N, two retroactions between SST and surface wind appear to dominate near‐surface atmosphere conditions. When the wind leads the SST, stronger monsoonal winds north of 2°N are partly sustained by the developing SST anomaly and bring more humidity and rainfall toward the continent. When the SST leads the wind, a reversal of anomalous winds is observed mainly south of 2°N, closing a negative feedback loop with a biweekly periodicity. Eventually, further investigation with an ocean model emphasizes the contribution of the horizontal advection in shaping these intraseasonal SST signals. The contribution of vertical processes may also be important but was more difficult to estimate. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
A composite look at short‐time‐scale sea‐surface temperature changes in the western North Pacific based on ships and buoys
Authors: Danielson Richard E. , Gyakum John R.
Published: January 2010

A simple method of interpolating sea‐surface temperature (SST) and its measurement method is applied to western North Pacific ship and buoy observations taken between 1970 and 2000. Comparisons are made between the resulting quasi‐daily in situ analyses and more inclusive analyses based mainly on satellite infrared observations. In terms of analysis differences, spatial correlation, and temporal spectra, the in situ analyses are found to be of moderate quality and are taken to be appropriate for composite diagnoses. This use is illustrated in a novel comparison of short‐time‐scale SST changes observed during the passage of two groups of midlatitude cold‐season cyclones.

Transient cooling is found to be preferentially associated with the stronger of the two cyclone groups. The significance of this cooling is quantified and the possibility of oceanic mixed‐layer cooling and heat loss from bucket observations is explored. Although the bias in bucket observations is confirmed using composites constructed without such observations, the signature of transient cooling is still apparent. (Independent bucket observations also permit composite analysis errors to be estimated.) Engine intake observations are then identified as a primary source of both SST information in general and of the transient cooling signal in particular. A related bias in this type of observation is proposed. Greater sophistication in the analysis of in situ observations is also briefly discussed. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
Dose‐response analyses using restricted cubic spline functions in public health research
Authors: Desquilbet Loic , Mariotti François
Published: January 2010

Taking into account a continuous exposure in regression models by using categorization, when non‐linear dose‐response associations are expected, have been widely criticized. As one alternative, restricted cubic spline (RCS) functions are powerful tools (i) to characterize a dose‐response association between a continuous exposure and an outcome, (ii) to visually and/or statistically check the assumption of linearity of the association, and (iii) to minimize residual confounding when adjusting for a continuous exposure. Because their implementation with SAS® software is limited, we developed and present here an SAS macro that (i) creates an RCS function of continuous exposures, (ii) displays graphs showing the dose‐response association with 95 per cent confidence interval between one main continuous exposure and an outcome when performing linear, logistic, or Cox models, as well as linear and logistic‐generalized estimating equations, and (iii) provides statistical tests for overall and non‐linear associations. We illustrate the SAS macro using the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data to investigate adjusted dose‐response associations (with different models) between calcium intake and bone mineral density (linear regression), folate intake and hyperhomocysteinemia (logistic regression), and serum high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol and cardiovascular mortality (Cox model). Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A U‐statistics‐based approach for modeling Cronbach coefficient alpha within a longitudinal data setting
Authors: Yan Ma , Alejandro Gonzalez Della Valle , Hui Zhang , Tu X. M.
Published: January 2010

Cronbach coefficient alpha (CCA) is a classic measure of item internal consistency of an instrument and is used in a wide range of behavioral, biomedical, psychosocial, and health‐care‐related research. Methods are available for making inference about one CCA or multiple CCAs from correlated outcomes. However, none of the existing approaches effectively address missing data. As longitudinal study designs become increasingly popular and complex in modern‐day clinical studies, missing data have become a serious issue, and the lack of methods to systematically address this problem has hampered the progress of research in the aforementioned fields. In this paper, we develop a novel approach to tackle the complexities involved in addressing missing data (at the instrument level due to subject dropout) within a longitudinal data setting. The approach is illustrated with both clinical and simulated data. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The dialectical systems theory's capacity for multi‐criteria decision‐making
Authors: Čančer Vesna , Mulej Matjaž
Published: January 2010

The article introduces the Quantified Dialectical Systems Theory (DST), which is one of the cases of new systems theories. It arises from the need for the appropriate knowledge about the basics of both systems theory and the applied computer supported qualitative and quantitative methods that can help individuals or groups in researching important complex decision‐making problems; among them we emphasize the multi‐criteria decision‐making (MCDM) ones. Moreover, the article presents the framework procedure for MCDM, based on assigning weights, which we developed by following the original procedures of several MCDM methods, adapted mainly by the conclusions of experts in practice regarding the suitability of different multi‐criteria methods, and own experience. We demonstrate how the DST's guidelines defining the subjective starting points can be followed when approaching MCDM problems step‐by‐step, as well as the DST's guidelines concerning implementation of starting points. In the efforts to support creating and decision‐making it helps a lot, if the application of theory can take place in an informal style. This article introduces ways of incorporation of informal systemic thinking and the DST's guidelines in the framework procedure for MCDM when solving several real‐life complex problems, presented by example cases. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Intrabiliary Rupture of Hepatic Echinococcosis, a Risk Factor for Developing Postoperative Morbidity: A Cohort Study
Authors: Manterola Carlos , Vial Manuel , Sanhueza Antonio , Contreras Juan
Published: January 2010

Background

The aim of this study was to determine if intrabiliary rupture (IBR), an evolutive complication of hepatic echinococcosis (HE), is a risk factor for developing postoperative morbidity (POM).

Methods

This was a concurrent cohort study that included patients operated on for HE between 1996 and 2006 and who had clinical check‐ups at 1, 6, 12, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months postoperatively. Principal outcome variable was “development POM,” considered dichotomously. The exposure variable was the presence of IBR, analyzed dichotomously (present or absent) and according to the number of IBR (without, with one, and with two or more). The sample size was considered on the basis of a 95% confidence interval (95% CI), a power of 80%, a 1:2 ratio of patients without and with IBR, and a 10% proportion of POM in patients without IBR and 26% in patients with IBR. Descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate analyses were used. Relative risks (RR) and 95% CI were calculated.

Results

The cohorts (median age of 42 years, 56.4% female, a median cyst diameter of 15 cm, and a follow‐up of 118 months) were composed of 96 patients without IBR (38.1%) and 156 patients with IBR (61.9%). A morbidity rate of 17.1% was verified (9.4% in the group without IBR and 21.8% in the group with IBR [p = 0.011]). An adjusted RR of 3.4 (95% CI = 2.64, 4.18) was verified for the comparison of subgroups without IBR vs. with two or more IBR (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

The presence of two or more IBR constitutes a risk factor for developing POM in patients with HE.
Improving Donor Organ Function—Cold to Warm Preservation
Authors: Jeevanandam Valluvan
Published: January 2010

This paper explores the evolution of organ preservation methods from cold preservation to the more sophisticated method of warm preservation. Both methods are detailed, and the benefits and limitations of both methods are discussed.
Advancing a Community Psychology of Men
Authors: Watts Roderick J.
Published: January 2010

This commentary reviews and integrates several themes described in this special issue on men. Social forces of the past and present such as colonialism and hegemonic masculinity are noted as a continuing influence on men's social roles, as are the social‐justice movements that contribute to the liberation of women and sexual minorities. The early sections of the commentary examine the studies in the context of these forces and movements, emphasizing how men both resist and accept traditional masculinities. In the latter sections the commentary turns to the research process –first with a discussion of the structural and constructionist themes in the studies, followed by the issue of how men are classified (implicitly or otherwise) as either agents or targets of oppression. The implications of these for community psychology research with men are considered, along with the idea that research is a social “performance” in which a researcher's concern about her or his audience influence the research process. The conclusion summarizes the challenges of conducting research with men while making the case that community psychology offers some distinct advantages in managing them. Of particular value is the field's emphasis on diversity, social justice, and social ecology.
No relationship between the ins del polymorphism of the serotonin transporter promoter and pain perception in fibromyalgia patients and healthy controls
Authors: Potvin Stéphane , Larouche Annie , Normand Edith , de Souza Juliana Barcellos , Gaumond Isabelle , Marchand Serge , Grignon Sylvain
Published: January 2010

Background:In animals, decades of research have shown that serotonin (5‐HT) is involved in endogenous pain inhibition systems, which are deficient in chronic pain disorders such as fibromyalgia (FM). In humans, there is preliminary evidence showing that 5‐HT is involved in the FM pathophysiology. In the current endophenotyping study, we sought to investigate, for the first time in humans, the relationships between the serotonin transporter promoter region (5‐HTTLPR) polymorphism and experimentally‐induced pain perception/inhibition in healthy controls (HC) and FM patients.

Methods:Participants were 58 FM patients and 60 HC, who did not differ in age, sex or menstrual cycle. Thermal stimuli were used to measure pain thresholds. Pain inhibition was elicited using a tonic thermal test (Peltier thermode) administered before and after activation of the diffuse noxious inhibitory controls (DNIC) by means of a cold‐pressor test (CPT).

Results:Thermal pain thresholds were higher in HC compared to FM patients. Pain ratings during the CPT were lower in HC, relative to FM patients. Also, DNIC efficacy was stronger in HC compared to FM patients. However, there was no relationship between 5‐HTTLPR and experimentally‐induced pain perception/inhibition.

Discussion:Our results further confirm that FM is associated with thermal hyperalgesia and deficient DNIC. However, we found no evidence showing that the 5‐HTTLPR polymorphism influences pain perception and DNIC. Potential reasons for this negative result will be discussed. Further endophenotyping studies of 5‐HT‐related gene polymorphisms are required to ascertain the potential relationships between 5‐HT and human pain perception/inhibition.
The N‐terminal domain of human holocarboxylase synthetase facilitates biotinylation via direct interaction with the substrate protein
Authors: Lee Chung-Kyung , Cheong Chaejoon , Jeon Young Ho
Published: January 2010

MINT‐7543070: hHCS (uniprotkb:P50747) enzymaticly reacts (MI:0414) ACC75 (uniprotkb:O00763) by enzymatic study (MI:0415)
The enigma of the CLIC proteins: Ion channels, redox proteins, enzymes, scaffolding proteins?
Authors: Littler Dene R. , Harrop Stephen J. , Goodchild Sophia C. , Phang Juanita M. , Mynott Andrew V. , Jiang Lele , Valenzuela Stella M. , Mazzanti Michele , Brown Louise J. , Breit Samuel N. , Curmi Paul M.G.
Published: January 2010

Chloride intracellular channel proteins (CLICs) are distinct from most ion channels in that they have both soluble and integral membrane forms. CLICs are highly conserved in chordates, with six vertebrate paralogues. CLIC‐like proteins are found in other metazoans. CLICs form channels in artificial bilayers in a process favoured by oxidising conditions and low pH. They are structurally plastic, with CLIC1 adopting two distinct soluble conformations. Phylogenetic and structural data indicate that CLICs are likely to have enzymatic function. The physiological role of CLICs appears to be maintenance of intracellular membranes, which is associated with tubulogenesis but may involve other substructures.
Neuropathology of the intermediolateral nucleus of the spinal cord in sudden unexplained perinatal and infant death
Authors: Lavezzi Anna M. , Corna Melissa F. , Mehboob Riffat , Matturri Luigi
Published: January 2010

Experimental studies have demonstrated that breathing activity in rats is generated early in embryonic stages in rostral spinal cord, precisely in the intermediolateral nucleus, then establishing a spinal cord–brainstem network.

In this study we aimed to individuate and to define the developmental steps of the intermediolateral nucleus, still inadequately known in humans, in the thoracic spinal cord of a large series of perinatal and infant death victims, aged from 17 gestational weeks to 10 months of life. Besides we investigated a possible link between alterations of this nucleus and sudden unexplained perinatal and infant death.

The normal developmental pattern of the human intermediolateral nucleus consists of a progressive maturation of its neurons, that change from a round to a polygonal shape with long axons and significantly decrease in number.

Various degrees of intermediolateral nucleus hypodevelopment (neuronal immaturity in a normal structure/hypoplasia/agenesis) were found almost exclusively in unexplained fetal and infant death victims. Besides, a significant correlation was found between maternal smoking in pregnancy and the neuropathological results.

In conclusion this work underlines the negative effects of prenatal nicotine exposure on the development of autonomic nervous centers checking the vital functions, already in early gestational stages, when the integrity of the intermediolateral nucleus is indispensable for the first breathing bursts.
Advanced Model Order Reduction Techniques in VLSI Design
Authors: Tan Sheldon , He Lei
Published: January 2010

Model order reduction (MOR) techniques reduce the complexity of VLSI designs, paving the way to higher operating speeds and smaller feature sizes. This 2007 book presents a systematic introduction to, and treatment of, the key MOR methods employed in general linear circuits, using real-world examples to illustrate the advantages and disadvantages of each algorithm. Following a review of traditional projection-based techniques, coverage progresses to more advanced MOR methods for VLSI design, including HMOR, passive truncated balanced realization (TBR) methods, efficient inductance modeling via the VPEC model, and structure-preserving MOR techniques. Where possible, numerical methods are approached from the CAD engineer's perspective, avoiding complex mathematics and allowing the reader to take on real design problems and develop more effective tools. With practical examples and over 100 illustrations, this book is suitable for researchers and graduate students of electrical and computer engineering, as well as practitioners working in the VLSI design industry.
Innovation, Policy and Law
Authors: Arup Christopher
Published: January 2010

Innovation is widely held to be a central concern of economic policy and a key element in the transformation of the economy. This book, first published in 1993, illustrates the connections between innovation, policy and law and shows the ways in which the law can work as a key instrument of innovation policy. A cross-disciplinary study, it considers the ways in which the law has accommodated innovation, and the ways in which a legal framework for facilitating and managing new technologies has developed. As well as canvassing broad theoretical issues, the book presents a number of case studies. These include: intellectual property: patents and living organisms: copyright and computer software: competition and trade: competition law and foreign investment review: and government sponsorship and entrepreneurship: direct grants and tax concessions: telecommunications licensing. Innovation, Policy and Law examines issues in public and industrial policy from the viewpoint of legal studies. The book will increase understanding of the ways in which legal processes can promote innovation and assist in capturing the benefits that innovation brings.
Ecological Versatility and Community Ecology
Authors: MacNally Ralph C.
Published: January 2010

This book was first published in 1995, a time when, like today, there were mounting concerns that the management of our natural global heritage was failing to arrest the rapid loss of biodiversity. The problem may be traced to the extinction of enormous numbers of 'specialised' species, especially in the tropics. Tropical species either have highly particular resource requirements, such as food or nesting hollows, or specific needs for certain types of habitat, such as wetlands, making them vulnerable to changing global conditions. This book is about specialisation and generalisation in the use of resources and habitats. The author uses a broad ecological perspective to address three main questions. How do ecologists study variation in resource and habitat use, and what do we know from these studies? How well does theory account for observations, and what are the common threads between disciplines? Finally, what is the relationship between resource and habitat use? This book provides a comprehensive analysis of ecological versatility.
Henry VI and the Politics of Kingship
Authors: Watts John
Published: January 2010

Henry VI (1422–61) was one of the most spectacularly inadequate kings of England, and his reign dissolved into the conflict known as the Wars of the Roses. Yet he held on to his throne for thirty-nine years and, for almost thirty of them, without much difficulty. What was the nature of Henry's inadequacy, and why did it have such ambivalent and complicated results? Since the 1970s most histories of fifteenth-century England have focused on the individual interests and private connections of politicians as a means of making sense of politics. By contrast, this 1996 work argues that we can understand what happened in Henry VI's reign only if we look at common interests and public connections as well. Ultimately it is the problem of establishing royal authority which emerges as paramount, with the supposedly factious and 'overmighty' nobility appearing as doomed but devoted servants of the state.
Genealogies of the Text
Authors: Mehlman Jeffrey
Published: January 2010

In this 1995 book, which includes a substantial introduction, Jeffrey Mehlman confronts the politically devastating resonances in the work of several leading French writers. The essays focus on the series of enigmas surrounding the 'Blanchot affair' - a scandal provoked by Mehlman's revelation in 1977 that Maurice Blanchot, one of the tutelary figures of contemporary French thought, had in the 1930s been a prominent fascist journalist. Mehlman takes the issue of Blanchot's forgotten political essays deep into the most revered - and misunderstood - of his novels, L'Arrêt de mort. Using this affair as a point of departure, Mehlman sheds light on the question of the usability of psychoanalysis for literary readings (examining, for example, Baudelaire, Mallarmé and Valéry); he also investigates the ideological and political connotations of similar literary and theoretical material. The volume as a whole provides a consistently provocative meditation on literature, ethics, and the experience of the French in World War II.
Agents and Lives
Authors: Goldberg S. L.
Published: January 2010

Agents and Lives offers an important rethinking of the traditional 'humanist' view of literature. That tradition's valuation of literature for its 'moral import' is extended in a wider, more complex, open, and exploratory understanding of those terms. Goldberg demonstrates the way in which literature combines a sense of people as voluntary agents and as moral beings whose lives extend well beyond the voluntary and deliberate, manifesting themselves in feeling and suffering as well as in action. The book argues that this double way of thinking about people corresponds to traditional literary criticism's most vital insights into the way works of literature both depict and themselves manifest modes of human life. Goldberg's argument ranges across literature since the Renaissance, focusing on examples from George Eliot's novels and Pope's poetry. An appendix assesses the relationship of his argument to recent accounts of literature offered by a variety of moral philosophers.
Effects of topography on the environment
Authors: Jackson A.C.
Published: January 2010

Greater understanding of patterns of distributions of organisms and their causal mechanisms are required if the consequences of climatic change are to be fully realized. Associations between topographic features of the environment and distributions of organisms are frequently assumed to be a consequence of provision or modification of local conditions by those features. Such assumptions are rarely supported empirically and there is increasing evidence that topographic features do not always influence variables in the way we might anticipate. Thus, data about how features of habitat influence environmental conditions, including availability of food, are likely to be useful for understanding how and why organisms are found where they are. Such data are few and rigorous descriptions about what defines particular features of habitat are seldom provided or are simplistic. For hard substrata in aquatic environments, crevices are often prominent features with which many species associate. Crevices have frequently been assumed, but not demonstrated, to ameliorate conditions by increasing humidity, moderating (usually reducing) temperatures and by decreasing forces from wave-impacts and water-flow. This study provided clear definitions and tests of various hypotheses about how crevices altered the local environment. The main predictions were that crevices would be cooler, more humid, more sheltered from water-movement and support more micro-algae than areas away from crevices. Manipulative experiments using artificial habitats and measurements on natural rocky shores were carried out on multiple shores over two years to understand how crevices affected local conditions. Crevices were indeed cooler, more humid, supported more micro-algae and more sheltered from water-flow than open areas nearby, but conditions did not always vary in ways that were expected. Effects were often complex, with factors such as season, height on the shore and tidal conditions interacting to influence how crevices affect environmental conditions. Without this detailed information, assumptions about the reasons animals associate with features of habitat cannot be tested.
The fallacy of the willing victim
Authors: Naiden F.S.
Published: January 2010

Following the lead of Walter Burkert, scholars have believed that the ancient Greeks required that sacrificial animals assent to being killed, or at least appear to assent. The literary evidence for this view, however, is weak, being confined mostly to dramatic scholia and Pythagorean sources, and ample visual evidence suggests an alternate view: the Greeks required that sacrificial animals make some display of vitality that would show that they were fit to present to a god. The Greek practice of inspecting sacrificial animals supports this alternate view.
Agamemnon437:ChrysamoibosAres, Athens and Empire
Authors: Bakewell Geoffrey
Published: January 2010

The chorus' depiction of Ares as a ‘gold-changer of bodies’ and trader in precious metals underscores the increased intersection of finances and war in fifth-century Athens. The metaphor's details point to three contemporary developments (in addition to thepatrios nomosallusion noted by Fraenkel): the increased conscription of citizens, the institution of pay for military service, and the payment of financial support for war orphans. And as leader of the Delian League, Athens itself resembled the war-god, establishing equivalents between men and money, and profiting from its acceptance of tribute payments in a variety of currencies. Taken together, the metaphor's contemporary dimensions probably had an unsettling effect on the Athenian audience.
What was the colour of Athena's Aegis?
Authors: Deacy Susan , Villing Alexandra
Published: January 2010

The aegis is Athena's most intimate and widely-discussed attribute, yet one of its vital aspects has so far been largely neglected: its colour. We shall argue that the nature and the role of the aegis and of its bearer are reflected not only in its shape and decoration, but also in its colour and luminosity. As with Athena'sglaukoseyes, the key to chromatic characterization and meaning lies in brightness rather than hue. Most often in literature and art, Athena's aegis is characterized by a yellow or gold reminiscent of the gleam of the sun or of metal, which expresses a general divine gleaming brightness but also Athena's specificcharis, namely the beauty, vitality and sparkling (or cunning) attractiveness that she can bestow on mortals under her protection. The dark or even black aegis (kyanaigisormelanaigis), by contrast, expresses the dark, wrathful and furious side of the goddess. Brightly shimmering or darkly obscuring, the aegis refers to Athena's protective, yet also potentially destructive, power. Its variable characterization in terms of ‘colour language’ constituted one tool among the many that were available to the Greeks for the construction of her divine personality.
Some Recent Developments in Charting
Authors: Ritchie G. S.
Published: January 2010

Since the last Institute meeting on the Admiralty chart in 1967 the compilation office, formerly at Cricklewood, has been moved to a new building at Taunton, alongside our printing works established there in 1940. Thus, except for a small office in Whitehall, which keeps in touch with the ever changing defence scene, the whole of our organization is now concentrated at Taunton, from where every week between 30,000 and 40,000 Admiralty charts are despatched, through our agents, to navigators in every part of the world.

As readers of the Institute'sJournalwill know, to mark the 21st anniversary of the Institute a special edition, entitledThe Navigation Explosionwas published. Papers published in this edition highlight the very rapid advances which have been made during those 21 years as a result of a happy marriage between the ancient art of navigation and modern science and technology.
The International Chart
Authors: Pascoe L. N.
Published: January 2010

At the 9th International Hydrographic Conference in 1967 it was agreed to set up a Commission to study the constitution of an international set of charts, confining the study initially to charts on scale smaller than 1 in 1 million. This set should eventually enable all the members of the International Hydrographic Bureau (I.H.B.) to print in facsimile all such small-scale charts required for world-wide navigation in international waters. Among the factors which influenced this decision were:

(1) The duplication of charting which exists at present; as an example, six nations compile and publish a general chart of the Mediterranean, all with almost the same scale and limits.

(2) The large degree of standardization of chart symbols achieved by the work of the Bureau.

(3) The great and continuing increase in the work load of all the national hydrographic offices.