bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On high heels: A praxiography of doing Argentine tango
Authors: Littig Beate
Published: August 2013

Argentine tango has been investigated by scholars of various disciplinary backgrounds. A broad range of empirical methods has been used in this research. But little attention has been paid to the artefacts which participate in the practice of Argentine tango. Following the programmatic claims of the ‘practical turn’ in the social sciences and in cultural studies, practices are always linked with the materiality of the practising bodies and of the artefacts participating in practices. Thus materiality is indispensable for the analysis of any practice. How materiality can be included into the generating of data and the analysis is little discussed in practice theories. High heels in Argentine tango are the example to demonstrate the necessary application of various qualitative research instruments to investigate the role of artefacts in practice. High heeled female dancing shoes as used in Argentine tango are analysed with respect to their gendered performative and symbolic impact.
Constructing an adaptive care model for the management of disease-related symptoms throughout the course of multiple sclerosis—performance improvement CME
Authors: Miller Aaron E , Cohen Bruce A , Krieger Stephen C , Markowitz Clyde E , Mattson David H , Tselentis Helen N
Published: August 2013

Background:

Symptom management remains a challenging clinical aspect of MS.

Objective:

To design a performance improvement continuing medical education (PI CME) activity for better clinical management of multiple sclerosis (MS)-related depression, fatigue, mobility impairment/falls, and spasticity.

Methods:

Ten volunteer MS centers participated in a three-stage PI CME model: A) baseline assessment; B) practice improvement CME intervention; C) reassessment. Expert faculty developed performance measures and activity intervention tools. Designated MS center champions reviewed patient charts and entered data into an online database. Stage C data were collected eight weeks after implementation of the intervention and compared with Stage A baseline data to measure change in performance.

Results:

Aggregate data from the 10 participating MS centers (405 patient charts) revealed performance improvements in the assessment of all four MS-related symptoms. Statistically significant improvements were found in the documented assessment of mobility impairment/falls ( p=0.003) and spasticity ( p<0.001). For documentation of care plans, statistically significant improvements were reported for fatigue ( p=0.007) and mobility impairment/falls ( p=0.040); non-significant changes were noted for depression and spasticity.

Conclusions:

Our PI CME interventions demonstrated performance improvement in the management of MS-related symptoms. This PI CME model (available at www.achlpicme.org/ms/toolkit ) offers a new perspective on enhancing symptom management in patients with MS.
Religion and religious discrimination in the French workplace
Authors: Frégosi Franck , Kosulu Deniz
Published: August 2013

The visibility of religious identities in workplaces has become a recurrent topic of certain public debates and tensions in France. It is generally the visibility of Muslim identities and practices of Islam that are at the centre of these tensions. This article shows in the context of French republican laïcité that religious issues are considered as private issues that should not play out openly in the workplace, which is considered to have a more public character. With a focus on the French labour law framework and religious discrimination issues, interviews with elected politicians, religious leaders, unionists, representatives of civil society organisations and legal experts show that religious discrimination in the French workplace is a more complex phenomenon than it seems. Discrimination of religious employees, in a direct or indirect manner, happens more often than is officially reported in France. Many respondents suggested that a great deal of religious discrimination is, at best, reframed as ethnicity-based or gender-based discrimination. The article also discusses some recent examples of businesses that treat the issue of religious diversity in the French workplace in a more pragmatic manner, opening up more possibilities for reasonable accommodation.
The developmental sequence of social-communicative skills in young children with autism: A longitudinal study
Authors: Wu Chin-Chin , Chiang Chung-Hsin
Published: August 2013

To explore the different developmental trajectories of social-communicative skills in children with autism and typically developing infants, two longitudinal studies were conducted. In Study 1, we examined the developmental sequence of social-communicative skills in 26 typically developing infants when they were 9 months old and reexamined them when they were 12 and 15 months old. The results indicated a reliable developmental sequence of social-communicative skills in infants with typical development. In Study 2, we explored the emergence sequence of social-communicative skills of 23 children with autism and 23 children with developmental delay between the ages of 2 and 4 years. The results demonstrated that the developmental sequence of social-communicative skills in young children with autism and children with developmental delays was different.
Abrasive water-jet milling of aeronautic aluminum 2024-T3
Authors: Cenac François , Zitoune Redouane , Collombet Francis , Deleris Michel
Published: August 2013

The abrasive water jet is a 30-year old technology widely used to compete conventional machining capabilities. While it is mainly used for cutting applications, studies demonstrated its ability for milling, turning and micro-piercing. But as long as abrasive water jet issues are not clearly identified and analyzed, these processes can hardly be industrialized. This paper proposes an innovative methodology for studying abrasive water jet milling. Its main purpose is to consider the machined depth as an experimental factor and the feed rate as a product. A large-domain full-experimental-design on the pressure, the orifice diameter, abrasive mass flow rate, the milled depth and the feed rate on milling of aluminum 2024 T3 is presented. Finally, a mathematical model on the optimal abrasive mass flow rate and the milled depth are developed. The good correlation of these models within the large experimental domain suggests the pertinence of the proposed methodology.
Study on mechanical and erosion wear performance of granite filled glass-epoxy hybrid composites
Authors: Rout Arun Kumar , Satapathy Alok
Published: August 2013

In this study, a new class of low cost hybrid composites consisting of glass-epoxy and filled with four different weight proportions (0 wt%, 10 wt%, 15 wt% and 20 wt%) of granite particulates (a solid waste generated from stone processing industries) are developed. Mechanical study reveals that hardness, tensile modulus and impact energy of these composites are improving with filler addition while a steady decline in tensile and flexural strength is observed. The erosion rates of these composites are evaluated at different impingement angles (30–90°), impact velocities (33–68 m/s) and erodent sizes (100–250 µm) following the erosion test experiments in an air jet type test rig. An optimal parameter setting is determined for minimum erosion rate and subsequently validated by conducting confirmation experiment as per Taguchi methodology. Erosion test results indicate that the incorporation of granite particulates results in improvement of erosion wear resistance of glass-epoxy composites. Different modes of material removal, wear craters and other qualitative attributes are examined by a scanning electron microscopy during erosion experiment of the samples.
The Independent Group Looks at London’s West End
Authors: Hornsey Richard
Published: August 2013

In the early 1950s, British culture was dominated by welfare-state visions of urban reconstruction. These projections of a stable civic society were premised on a particular way of looking at and reading the metropolitan environment. At odds with this project, the Independent Group’s discussions and collaborative work developed an alternative urban semiology, which found the city to be already rich in visual resources for fashioning a more profound form of social democracy. Soon, this critical engagement would develop in different directions, represented here by Lawrence Alloway’s commentary on Piccadilly Circus in his essay ‘City Notes’ and the London footage inserted by John McHale into his film for the Smithsons’ Berlin Hauptstadt project (both 1959). By the end of the 1950s, members of the erstwhile Independent Group had produced two contrasting critical accounts of how the metropolitan centre should be looked at, which challenged the strictures of post-war reconstruction in distinct and conflicting ways.
The Mother of Pop? Dorothy Morland and the Independent Group
Authors: Massey Anne
Published: August 2013

The historiography of the Independent Group, dominated at present by art and architectural history, positions it within the trajectory of modernism. This Themed Issue demonstrates that there are other readings of the Group, which foreground both its multidisciplinary approach and contestation of cultural boundaries. The author is concerned here with the ways in which the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) and its Director, Dorothy Morland (1906–1999), acted as a catalyst for the Group. As an arts administrator rather than a practitioner, Morland’s contribution is often overlooked in the histories of art and architecture. Using the disciplinary approach of visual culture, a more inclusive view is opened up. Claims for prescience are in themselves, problematic, but by positioning Morland as the ‘Mother of Pop’, the commonly accepted view of the Independent Group as the ‘Fathers of Pop’ is contested. Morland trained as a singer at the Royal College of Music, and this background gave her a non-specialist and inclusive approach towards the visual. She managed to facilitate certain kinds of interdisciplinary debate and made it possible for certain kinds of art, design and architectural practice to flourish within the context of the ICA. She also facilitated the exhibition and dissemination of this interdisciplinary practice, acting as a bridge between the ICA management and the Independent Group, as well as being key to the preservation of the ICA’s history and archives.
Colin St John Wilson and the Independent Group: Art, Science and the Psychologising of Space
Authors: Kite Stephen
Published: August 2013

As an architect with the London County Council (LCC), a newspaper columnist, friend of artists and an incipient collector, Colin St John Wilson is a fascinating figure in the interacting circles of 1950s London. It was Wilson’s sketch-plan that ordered the ‘market-stalls’ of the This is Tomorrow exhibition and – in the opinion of Theo Crosby – the display he created with architect Peter Carter, engineer Frank Newby and sculptor Robert Adams most closely achieved the exhibition’s original aim of an anonymous synthesis of the arts. In this article, the author interprets Wilson’s life, work and theory as both critique and commentary in an examination of three pertinent issues within the Independent Group: the possibilities of artistic collaboration in architecture; the creative tension in architecture between science/technology and art/humanism; and the potential for a deeper psychologising of space – linked to psychoanalytical debates of the time. Interrogating these concerns is of importance, the author proposes, as they were so central to the discourses and form-making of architecture both at the time and in the immediate futures of the 1960s, the 1970s and afterwards.
Reordering and Redistributing the Visual: The Expanded ‘Field’ of Pattern-Making in Parallel of Life and Art and Hammer Prints
Authors: Walsh Victoria
Published: August 2013

In August 1954, the artist–photographer Nigel Henderson and the sculptor Eduardo Paolozzi set-up Hammer Prints Ltd to sell and promote their designs for wallpapers, curtains and ceramics. Marginalised by art history as a category of applied arts, Hammer Prints was, however, inextricably tied into the ideas and experimental cross-media work of both artists at this time. This article resituates the ethos and designs of Hammer Prints within the wider aesthetic concerns and strategies of the Independent Group which the two artists were engaged with and, in particular, to the reordering of the visual first proposed by the artists in collaboration with the architects Alison and Peter Smithson in the seminal exhibition Parallel of Life and Art (Institute of Contemporary Arts, 1953), the year before Hammer Prints was established. As the article argues, a more complex account of Hammer Prints exists once it is reconnected to both artists’ interest in gestalt principles of perception, contemporary theorisations of ‘pattern’, and ontological questions of art posed by Malraux’s idea of the ‘imaginary museum’ and Duchamp’s idea of the ‘portable museum’. It concludes by locating the designs of Hammer Prints within the new field of communication theory developed by Gregory Bateson.
The psychological impact of a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Lee Suzanne M , Roen Katrina , Thornton Amanda
Published: August 2013

Research on the experience of receiving and living with a diagnosis of dementia is sparse. Existing studies have focused on the initial reactions to the diagnosis rather than longer term adjustment and coping. The current study uses interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore personal experiences of receiving a diagnosis and to investigate aspects of the experience of adjusting and adapting to dementia. This is a cross-sectional study drawing on semi-structured interviews with 10 participants who had a diagnosis of mild Alzheimer’s disease. The findings illustrated the importance, to people with Alzheimer’s disease, of understanding and making sense of the diagnosis to help them deal with issues of loss and to make positive adjustments to their lives through employing specific coping strategies. The findings also appeared to challenge misconceptions held by some professionals in relation to possible negative effects of disclosing a diagnosis of dementia.
Gnosall Primary Care Memory Clinic: Eldercare facilitator role description and development
Authors: Greaves Ian , Greaves Nicola , Walker Elaine , Greening Lesley , Benbow Susan Mary , Jolley David
Published: August 2013

The Gnosall Primary Care Memory Clinic has been operating since 2006 and adds the skills of a specialist old age psychiatrist to the extensive skills and knowledge available in primary care. Key to the organisation and function of the clinic is the eldercare facilitator, a new role situated in primary care and linking with the specialist and a wide range of other agencies and people. In order to facilitate replication of the model elsewhere, the function, role and competencies of existing and previous eldercare facilitators in the clinic have been reviewed, clarified and related to a competency framework and to similar initiatives in the literature. The selection and training of people with the attributes and skills required to become an eldercare facilitator will determine whether extension of the model is successful elsewhere.
Authentic Leadership and Safety Climate Among Seafarers
Authors: Borgersen Hanne C. , Hystad Sigurd W. , Larsson Gerry , Eid Jarle
Published: August 2013

This study examined relationships between authentic leadership and safety climate among 463 seafarers sailing on 23 merchant vessels in the international shipping industry. A multiple regression analysis was performed, where authentic leadership made a statistically significant contribution to explaining variance in safety climate, controlling for age, rank on board, and social desirable responding. Adding an interaction between authentic leadership and rank on board (officers vs. crew) to the multiple regression analysis did not add to the amount of explained variance ( R2 = .38). Implications for leadership training and safety in shipping are discussed.
Fabrication and characterization of SnO2 nanospheres for hydrogen detection
Authors: Liu Xifeng , Dong Hanpeng , Bian Chao , Tong Jianhua , Sun Jizhou , He Xiuli , Xia Shanhong
Published: August 2013

This article demonstrates a novel chemical vapor deposition strategy of tin oxide (SnO2) by vapor phase material reaction at room temperature and presents the applications to hydrogen detection using this material. Tin chloride anhydrate was used as the precursor, and it reacted with NH3 to form Sn(OH)4 nanospheres. The samples with Sn(OH)4 nanospheres were subject to drying up at 80 °C, and then they transformed to polycrystalline SnO2 nanospheres. The X-ray diffraction measurement was carried out to investigate the structural properties of the SnO2 films annealed at various temperatures. The morphology of the samples was investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy. Micropellistor was fabricated based on the SnO2 catalyst for hydrogen detection. Compared with the traditional method to make SnO2 sensing material (hydrolysis of SnCl4·5H2O in basic solutions), the SnO2 nanospheres prepared by this method have a higher relative sensitivity and a good linearity for the concentration of H2 ranging from 0% v/v to 4% v/v. A short response time about 6 s was achieved.
Design of an integrated polarization band-pass filter
Authors: Wang Zhiwen , Chu Jinkui , Zhang Yingjie , Cui Yan
Published: August 2013

In this study, an integrated polarization band-pass filter was designed; it consists of a bilayer nanowire-grid polarizer and a multilayer dielectric band-pass filter. The grating parameters were optimized by rigorous coupled-wave analysis theory and analyzed by effective medium theory. Transverse magnetic transmission higher than 81% and extinction ratio higher than 1000 were obtained at 400–500 nm, and extremely low transmission in the other spectrum was also realized.
Electric resistance of carbon nanotube with a Cu chain: A first-principle calculation
Authors: Yang Chengyu , Chen Quanfang
Published: August 2013

The electric resistance and transport properties of a carbon nanotube (5,5) adsorbed with a copper chain connected with two copper electrodes have been calculated by employing nonequilibrium Green’s functions and Density Functional Theory. The properties of the pure carbon nanotube (5,5) with the Cu junction electrodes have also been calculated as a reference. Both the equilibrium and nonequilibrium conditions have been investigated. The results show that the resistance of the metallic carbon nanotube (5,5) has been reduced by the adsorption of a Cu chain due to the interaction between the Cu and the carbon nanotube. The change of the current–voltage curve slope is also explained in terms of transmission spectrum.
Selecting the right drug
Authors: Avery Tony , Gookey Gill , Spencer Rachel , Knox Richard , Marsden Kate , Salema Ndeshi
Published: August 2013

Around 1 in 10 of the prescribing errors detected in the General Medical Council-funded PRACtICe study involved incorrect drug selection or unnecessary prescriptions. In this article we focus on the principles involved in selecting the right drug for individual patients. We also highlight the usefulness of prescribing formularies and explain when it is appropriate to prescribe generically and when it is necessary to prescribe by brand. The article gives the reader opportunities to reflect upon different scenarios involving prescribing decisions, and there are also suggestions for additional continuing professional development activities.
Selecting the right dose
Authors: Avery Tony , Gookey Gill , Spencer Rachel , Knox Richard , Marsden Kate , Salema Ndeshi
Published: August 2013

Around one in six of the prescribing errors detected in the General Medical Council-funded PRACtICe study involved either the wrong dose or the wrong strength of medication. Around one in 10 of the prescribing errors involved giving a medicine at the wrong time. In this article we focus on the factors that need to be taken into consideration when selecting the right dose for an individual patient. We also highlight the importance of selecting the right timing for particular medicines. The article gives the reader opportunities to reflect upon different scenarios, and there are also suggestions for additional continuing professional development activities.
Providing the right medication monitoring
Authors: Avery Tony , Gookey Gill , Spencer Rachel , Knox Richard , Marsden Kate , Salema Ndeshi
Published: August 2013

In order for medication to be prescribed effectively and safely, many medications require monitoring. Medication monitoring may involve blood tests but can also include other monitoring such as blood pressure, weight or electrocardiograms. Monitoring can be required before initiating medication, soon after starting, or regularly over the course of treatment. Ensuring that this monitoring has been undertaken is an important part of medication review involving repeat prescribing. The General Medical Council-funded PRACtICe study looked at prescribing and monitoring errors in primary care. Out of the 302 errors identified, 55 (18%) were monitoring errors. Of those drugs that required blood test monitoring, 7% of prescriptions contained a monitoring error. This article gives the reader opportunities to reflect upon different scenarios that involve medication that requires monitoring decisions and how monitoring could be managed in primary care. There are also suggestions for additional continuing professional development activities.
Undertaking effective medication reviews
Authors: Avery Tony , Gookey Gill , Spencer Rachel , Knox Richard , Marsden Kate , Salema Ndeshi
Published: August 2013

In the General Medical Council-funded PRACtICe study around half the prescribing and monitoring errors identified involved repeat prescriptions. This suggests a need to improve the effectiveness of medication reviews in order to ensure that any errors are detected and corrected. In this article we focus on identifying the elements of an effective medication review; providing examples of medication reviews, and identifying and tackling adherence issues. The article gives the reader opportunities to reflect upon different scenarios, and there are also suggestions for additional continuing professional development activities.
Avoiding hazardous prescribing
Authors: Avery Tony , Gookey Gill , Spencer Rachel , Knox Richard , Marsden Kate , Salema Ndeshi
Published: August 2013

Around one in 13 of the prescribing errors detected in the General Medical Council-funded PRACtICe study involved either contraindications or hazardous drug-drug combinations In this article we focus on these issues and also cover the problem of selecting the wrong drug, or drug strength, from computer-based drop-down menus. The article gives the reader opportunities to reflect upon different scenarios involving hazardous prescribing, and there are also suggestions for additional continuing professional development activities.
In-game Management of Common Joint Dislocations
Authors: Skelley Nathan W. , McCormick Jeremy J. , Smith Matthew V.
Published: August 2013

Context:

Sideline management of sports-related joint dislocations often places the treating medical professional in a challenging position. These injuries frequently require prompt evaluation, diagnosis, reduction, and postreduction management before they can be evaluated at a medical facility. Our objective is to review the mechanism, evaluation, reduction, and postreduction management of sports-related dislocations to the shoulder, elbow, finger, knee, patella, and ankle joints.

Evidence Acquisition:

A literature review was performed using the PubMed database to evaluate previous and current publications focused on joint dislocations. This review focused on articles published between 1980 and 2013.

Study Design:

Clinical review.

Level of Evidence:

Level 4.

Results:

The clinician should weigh the benefits and risks of on-field reduction based on their knowledge of the injury and the presence of associated injuries.

Conclusion:

When properly evaluated and diagnosed, most sports-related dislocations can be reduced and initially managed at the game.
The Hidden Curriculum
Authors: Karanxha Zorka , Agosto Vonzell , Bellara Aarti P.
Published: August 2013

The authors describe a process of self-assessment attuned to equity and justice in the policies and practices that affect student diversity, namely, those associated with the selection of candidates. The disproportionate rate of rejection for applicants from underrepresented groups and the unsystematic process of applicant selection operated as hidden curriculum affecting the opportunities for the program to enhance meaningful relationships among diverse groups of students. The authors describe institutional and sociopolitical conditions, and individual actions reflecting a faculty’s will to policy. Faculty efforts supported and challenged systemic change to increase racial and ethnic diversity among aspiring educational administrators.
Advances and controversies in yellow fever vaccination
Authors: Jonker Emile F. F. , Visser Leonardus G. , Roukens Anna H.
Published: August 2013

Ever since its development in 1937, the live-attenuated 17D yellow fever (YF) vaccine has been one of the most effective vaccines available to man. In this review we highlight the major steps in the development of 17D YF vaccine. We discuss the use of neutralizing antibodies as a surrogate marker for protection, and explore the strengths and weaknesses of the current plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT), a technique developed in the 1960s that continues to be superior to every modern test in both sensitivity and specificity. The neutralizing antibodies demonstrated by the PRNT can be detected for several decades after vaccination, possibly even for the remainder of the recipient’s natural life. We review the available evidence on the duration of protection after primary vaccination, a topic that has been the subject of controversy over the last few months. For persons who are immunocompromised due to disease, medication or advancing age, the duration of protection may be shorter: they should always have their vaccine response checked by PRNT. Due to the higher risk of severe adverse events after vaccination with 17D YF in this group, the development of a new, inactivated vaccine will have substantial benefits in this population.
The Effects of Situated Learning Through a Community Partnership in a Teacher Preparation Program
Authors: Meyers Shelly , Lester David
Published: August 2013

This article examines the value of using an alternative approach to college course instruction in an off-campus location, an agency for individuals with developmental disabilities. The situated learning model is an alternative to the traditional college course instructional approach for preservice teachers. This model immerses students in the actual setting where they can practice the skills and apply the concepts emphasized in the curriculum. Through a partnership between the college, the community agency, and a public school, graduate students in the special education program developed and implemented a life-skills curriculum for individuals with developmental disabilities, at the same time learning essential principles of delivering instruction. The school-aged students who participated in the study were from a racially mixed urban school district, while the adult clients from the community agency attended the program at the end of their community-based workday. Based on the results of surveys and focus group discussions, participants in the study indicated that the situated learning model of instruction in a community setting better prepared them in the acquisition and application of their teaching skills, and built their competence in developing educational programs for individuals with disabilities.
The Impact of Interactive Factors on Romanian Students’ Understanding of Place Value
Authors: Tanase Madalina
Published: August 2013

Students’ mathematics learning is influenced by school factors (i.e., teachers’ knowledge of content, pedagogy, students, and curriculum) and nonschool factors (parental involvement, expectations, and teaching techniques). This study looks holistically at the way these factors impact the learning of mathematics of first-grade Romanian students, examining the interactions between teachers, students, and their parents, as well as the interactions between parents and their children. Findings reveal that successful mathematics learning occurs when teachers and parents meet frequently to discuss the mathematics teaching and learning that takes place at school and at home.
Importance of the Media in Scaling-Up HIV Testing in Kenya
Authors: Onsomu Elijah O. , Moore DaKysha , Abuya Benta A. , Valentine Peggy , Duren-Winfield Vanessa
Published: August 2013

The main objective of this study was to examine the association between media exposure and voluntary counseling and testing (VCT), and factors that influenced VCT among Kenyan women and men. Retrospective cross-sectional data from Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2003 were used, adjusting for weights and strata to account for survey complex design. The study sample comprised women aged 15 to 49 ( n = 8,050) and men aged 15 to 54 ( n = 3,539). Among those who read newspapers/magazines almost every day, fewer women (15%) had been tested for HIV than men (31%), p < .001. Among women, those who read newspapers/magazines at least once a week (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.29, p < .001) and almost every day (AOR = 1.3, p < .001) were more likely to be tested than those who did not read at all. Among men, this was nonsignificant. However, those who read newspapers/magazines almost every day (AOR = 1.14, p < .05) were more likely to be tested than those who did not read at all. Significant odds of being tested for HIV were observed among men who watched television almost every day (AOR = 1.21, p < .001) versus women (AOR = 1.07, p < .05) compared with those who did not watch television at all. Results suggest a need to increase HIV messages in all media to scaling-up HIV testing in Kenya.
Family Caregivers for Cancer Patients in Thailand
Authors: Meecharoen Warunee , Northouse Laurel L. , Sirapo-ngam Yupapin , Monkong Supreeda
Published: August 2013

This integrative review was conducted to describe findings from Thai studies concerning family caregivers for cancer patients. Twenty-three studies that were published from 1994 to 2009 were considered. There were 15 quantitative studies and 8 qualitative studies. The stress and coping model developed by Lazarus and Folkman was the most popular theory that was used to guide the studies. The variables that were explored in the quantitative studies consisted of social support, stress, coping, caregiver burden, quality of life (QOL), and others. The qualitative findings revealed that there were several themes such as the following: the meaning of being family caregivers for cancer patients, the meaning of care, the experiences of caregivers, and the problems and needs of family caregivers in the Thai context. The evidence from the 23 studies reviewed showed that the state of knowledge of cancer caregivers in the Thai context is at an early stage compared with the state of knowledge in Western countries. More research needs to be done to explore the concepts related to negative and positive outcomes of caregiving.
Settlement Pattern Change in the Morea (Peloponnisos), c.A.D. 1700-1830
Authors: Frangakis Elena , Wagstaff Malcolm
Published: August 2013

The historiography of the Ottoman period (Tourkokratia) in what is now the state of Greece contains many untested propositions about both the nature and the consequences of Turkish rule (Hatzidimitriou 1982). Amongst these is the notion that during the Ottoman occupation the Christian population — or at least a sizeable proportion of it — was driven into the mountains. Our paper sets out to test the hypothesis — for such it is — using readily available published information on the settlements of the Morea (Peloponnisos) dating from c.1700 and c.1830. First, though, we specify the hypothesis and indicate the types of evidence which appear to give it support.
Recent French archaeological work in Syria and Jordan
Authors: Kennedy Hugh
Published: August 2013

The French connection with the late antique and Byzantine archaeology of the Levant is now more than a century old. Between 1864 and 1877 Melchoir de Vogüé published his great Syrie Centrale:architecture civile et religieuse, a work which revealed for the first time the great richness of the archaeological record for the period. With its superb drawings and elegant plans it remains indispensable, especially since it describes some buildings, like the praetorium at Mismiyya, south of Damascus, which have long since disappeared. In these days when so much worthless nineteenth-century travel literature about the Middle East has been reprinted, it is sad that this masterpiece remains unavailable. The French Mandate for Syria and Lebanon from 1921 onwards gave a great impetus to these studies. Although most attention was given to great classical sites like Palmyra or Crusader ones like Crac des Chevaliers, late antiquity was not neglected and there was a growing interest in the deserted towns of the limestone hills of the north from J. Mattern, À travers les villes mortes de Haute Syre (Beirut 1944) and J. Lassus’ study of the ecclesiastical architecture, Sanctuaires chrétiens de Syrie (1947). This activity culminated in G. Tchalenko’s great work Les villages antiques de la Syrie du Nord (1958) which was based on field work done before 1939.
The Rhetoric of Poverty: The Lives and Opinions of Theodore Prodromos
Authors: Beaton Roderick
Published: August 2013

There has been an upsurge of interest recently in the Greek literary revival of the twelfth century that followed upon the Byzantine defeat at Manzikert in 1071, creating by an accident of history a largely Greek-speaking state out of a former ‘universal’ empire. The leading part played in this revival by the court poet Theodore Prodromos who lived from c. 1100 until perhaps the 1170s, and by works attributed to him, has long been recognised, although the dichotomy imposed by nineteenth- and twentieth-century scholars between literature in the learned language and literature in the vernacular has obscured the fact that, whether or not the entire ‘Prodromic’ corpus is the work of a single individual, large parts of it are thematically and stylistically unified. Margaret Alexiou’s article in the last volume of BMGS, an in-depth analysis of the fourth of the vernacular Poems of Poor Prodromos, goes a long way towards opening up this area to new methods of inquiry (Alexiou, M. 1986). Much however still remains to be done in establishing the nature and context of these innovative works of the twelfth century. The present paper looks at the literary context for the earliest extant use of the Greek vernacular in twelfth-century ‘begging poetry’, and is intended as ‘prolegomena’ to a forthcoming literary analysis of the four Poems of Poor Prodromos, or Ptochoprodromika.
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Val66Met) polymorphism and olfactory ability in young adults
Authors: Tonacci Alessandro , Borghini Andrea , Mercuri Antonella , Pioggia Giovanni , Andreassi Maria Grazia
Published: August 2013

Background

Brain- derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is linked to neurodegenerative diseases (e.g. Alzheimer disease and Parkinson disease) which are often characterized by olfactory impairment. A specific single nucleotide polymorphism of the BDNF gene, the Val66Met, modulates intracellular trafficking and activity-dependent secretion of BDNF protein. The aim of this study was to investigate a possible association between brain- derived neurotrophic factor Val66Met polymorphism and olfactory function, a well-known biomarker for neurodegeneration, in healthy young adults. A total of 101 subjects (45 males, age 38.7 ± 9.4 years) were assessed using the Sniffin’ Sticks Extended Test, a highly reliable commercial olfactory test composed of three sub-parts, calculating olfactory threshold (sensitivity), odor discrimination and odor identification. The Val66Met polymorphism was determined by polymerase chain reaction -restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis.

Results

An impaired function in Met carriers was found, especially when compared to subjects with Val/Val genotype, in the threshold (5.5 ± 2.0 vs 6.5 ± 1.8, p = 0.009), discrimination (10.3± 2.5 vs 11.9 ± 2.2, p = 0.002), and identification task (13.3 ± 1.6 vs 14.1 ± 1.3, p = 0.007), as well as in the overall TDI Score (29.1 ± 4.5 vs 32.6 ± 3.9, p < 0.001).

Conclusions

These findings appear to have implications for the evaluation of olfactory function and the relation of its impairment to cognitive decline and neurodegenerative disease.
Chlamydia trachomatis homotypic inclusion fusion is promoted by host microtubule trafficking
Authors: Richards Theresa S , Knowlton Andrea E , Grieshaber Scott S
Published: August 2013

Background

The developmental cycle of the obligate intracellular pathogen Chlamydia is dependant on the formation of a unique intracellular niche termed the chlamydial inclusion. The inclusion is a membrane bound vacuole derived from host cytoplasmic membrane and is modified significantly by the insertion of chlamydial proteins. A unique property of the inclusion is its propensity for homotypic fusion. The vast majority of cells infected with multiple chlamydial elementary bodies (EBs) contain only a single mature inclusion. The chlamydial protein IncA is required for fusion, however the host process involved are uncharacterized.

Results

Here, through live imaging studies, we determined that the nascent inclusions clustered tightly at the cell microtubule organizing center (MTOC) where they eventually fused to form a single inclusion. We established that factors involved in trafficking were required for efficient fusion as both disruption of the microtubule network and inhibition of microtubule trafficking reduced the efficiency of fusion. Additionally, fusion occurred at multiple sites in the cell and was delayed when the microtubule minus ends were either no longer anchored at a single MTOC or when a cell possessed multiple MTOCs.

Conclusions

The data presented demonstrates that efficient homotypic fusion requires the inclusions to be in close proximity and that this proximity is dependent on chlamydial microtubule trafficking to the minus ends of microtubules.
Cardio-metabolic risk factors and prehypertension in persons without diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease
Authors: Chiang Peggy PC , Lamoureux Ecosse L , Shankar Anoop , Tai E Shyong , Wong Tien Y , Sabanayagam Charumathi
Published: August 2013

Background

Prehypertension has been shown to be an early risk factor of cardiovascular disease (CVD). We investigated the prevalence and pattern of cardiometabolic risk factors in prehypertension in three ethnic Asian populations in Singapore.

Methods

We examined data from Chinese (n = 1177), Malay (n = 774), and Indian (n = 985) adults aged 40–80 years who participated in three independent population based studies conducted from 2004–2011 in Singapore who were free of diabetes, hypertension and previous CVD. Prehypertension was defined as systolic blood pressure (BP) 120–139 mm Hg or diastolic BP 80–89 mm Hg. Random blood glucose, glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), body mass index (BMI), triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol were examined as indicators of adverse cardiometabolic profile. The association between metabolic variables and prehypertension was examined using logistic regression models adjusting for potential confounders.

Results

The prevalence of prehypertension was 59.8% (Chinese), 68.9% (Malays) and 57.7% Indians. Higher levels of blood glucose, HbA1c and BMI were significantly associated with prehypertension in all three ethnic groups, odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of prehypertension in Chinese, Malays and Indians were: 1.42 (1.10, 1.83), 1.53 (1.05, 2.24), 1.49 (1.13, 1.98) for high-glucose; 3.50 (1.01, 12.18), 3.72 (1.29, 10.75), 2.79 (1.31, 5.94) for high-HbA1c; 1.86 (1.34, 2.56), 2.96 (2.10, 4.18), 1.68 (1.28, 2.20) for high-BMI. In addition, higher levels of LDL cholesterol in Chinese and higher levels of triglycerides were significantly associated with prehypertension. These associations persisted when metabolic variables were analysed as continuous variables.

Conclusions

Higher levels of blood glucose, HbA1c and BMI were associated with prehypertension in all three ethnic groups in Singapore. Screening for prehypertension and lifestyle modifications could potentially reduce the burden of CVD in otherwise healthy Asian adults living in Singapore.
Reports of police beating and associated harms among people who inject drugs in Bangkok, Thailand: a serial cross-sectional study
Authors: Hayashi Kanna , Ti Lianping , Csete Joanne , Kaplan Karyn , Suwannawong Paisan , Wood Evan , Kerr Thomas
Published: August 2013

Background

Thailand has for years attempted to address illicit drug use through aggressive drug law enforcement. Despite accounts of widespread violence by police against people who inject drugs (IDU), the impact of police violence has not been well investigated. In the wake of an intensified police crackdown in 2011, we sought to identify the prevalence and correlates of experiencing police beating among IDU in Bangkok.

Methods

Community-recruited samples of IDU in Bangkok were surveyed between June 2009 and October 2011. Multivariate log-binomial regression was used to identify factors associated with reporting police beating.

Results

In total, 639 unique IDU participated in this serial cross-sectional study, with 240 (37.6%) participants reporting that they had been beaten by police. In multivariate analyses, reports of police beating were associated with male gender (Adjusted Prevalence Ratio [APR] = 4.43), younger age (APR = 1.69), reporting barriers to accessing healthcare (APR = 1.23), and a history of incarceration (APR = 2.51), compulsory drug detention (APR = 1.22) and syringe sharing (APR = 1.44), and study enrolment in 2011 (APR = 1.27) (all p < 0.05). Participants most commonly reported police beating during the interrogation process.

Conclusions

A high proportion of IDU in Bangkok reported having been beaten by the police. Experiencing police beating was independently associated with various indicators of drug-related harm. These findings suggest that the over-reliance on enforcement-based approaches is contributing to police-perpetrated abuses and the perpetuation of the HIV risk behaviour among Thai IDU.
Promoting universal financial protection: how the Thai universal coverage scheme was designed to ensure equity
Authors: Tangcharoensathien Viroj , Pitayarangsarit Siriwan , Patcharanarumol Walaiporn , Prakongsai Phusit , Sumalee Hathaichanok , Tosanguan Jiraboon , Mills Anne
Published: August 2013

Background

Empirical evidence demonstrates that the Thai Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) has improved equity of health financing and provided a relatively high level of financial risk protection. Several UCS design features contribute to these outcomes: a tax-financed scheme, a comprehensive benefit package and gradual extension of coverage to illnesses that can lead to catastrophic household costs, and capacity of the National Health Security Office (NHSO) to mobilise adequate resources. This study assesses the policy processes related to making decisions on these features.

Methods

The study employs qualitative methods including reviews of relevant documents, in-depth interviews of 25 key informants, and triangulation amongst information sources.

Results

Continued political and financial commitments to the UCS, despite political rivalry, played a key role. The Thai Rak Thai (TRT)-led coalition government introduced UCS; staying in power 8 of the 11 years between 2001 and 2011 was long enough to nurture and strengthen the UCS and overcome resistance from various opponents. Prime Minister Surayud’s government, replacing the ousted TRT government, introduced universal renal replacement therapy, which deepened financial risk protection.

Commitment to their manifesto and fiscal capacity pushed the TRT to adopt a general tax-financed universal scheme; collecting premiums from people engaged in the informal sector was neither politically palatable nor technically feasible. The relatively stable tenure of NHSO Secretary Generals and the chairs of the Financing and the Benefit Package subcommittees provided a platform for continued deepening of financial risk protection. NHSO exerted monopsonistic purchasing power to control prices, resulting in greater patient access and better systems efficiency than might have been the case with a different design.

The approach of proposing an annual per capita budget changed the conventional line-item programme budgeting system by basing negotiations between the Bureau of Budget, the NHSO and other stakeholders on evidence of service utilization and unit costs.

Conclusions

Future success of Thai UCS requires coverage of effective interventions that address primary and secondary prevention of non-communicable diseases and long-term care policies in view of epidemiologic and demographic transitions. Lessons for other countries include the importance of continued political support, evidence informed decisions, and a capable purchaser organization.
Oxidative stress and hepatitis C virus
Authors: Paracha Usman Zafar , Fatima Kaneez , Alqahtani Mohammad , Chaudhary Adeel , Abuzenadah Adel , Damanhouri Ghazi , Qadri Ishtiaq
Published: August 2013

The disproportionate imbalance between the systemic manifestation of reactive oxygen species and body’s ability to detoxify the reactive intermediates is referred to as oxidative stress. Several biological processes as well as infectious agents, physiological or environmental stress, and perturbed antioxidant response can promote oxidative stress. Oxidative stress usually happens when cells are exposed to more electrically charged reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as H2O2 or O2-. The cells’ ability to handle such pro-oxidant species is impeded by viral infections particularly within liver that plays an important role in metabolism and detoxification of harmful substances. During liver diseases (such as hepatocellular or cholestatic problems), the produced ROS are involved in transcriptional activation of a large number of cytokines and growth factors, and continued production of ROS and Reactive Nitrogen Species (RNS) feed into the vicious cycle. Many human viruses like HCV are evolved to manipulate this delicate pro- and antioxidant balance; thus generating the sustainable oxidative stress that not only causes hepatic damage but also stimulates the processes to reduce treatment of damage. In this review article, the oxidant and antioxidant pathways that are perturbed by HCV genes are discussed. In the first line of risk, the pathways of lipid metabolism present a clear danger in accumulation of viral induced ROS. Viral infection leads to decrease in cellular concentrations of glutathione (GSH) resulting in oxidation of important components of cells such as proteins, DNA and lipids as well as double strand breakage of DNA. These disorders have the tendency to lead the cells toward cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in adults due to constant insult. We have highlighted the importance of such pathways and revealed differences in the extent of oxidative stress caused by HCV infection.