bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Rehabilitation service utilization in children and youth with cerebral palsy
Authors: Majnemer A. , Shikako‐Thomas K. , Lach L. , Shevell M. , Law M. , Schmitz N. , Poulin C. ,   QUALA Group
Published: January 2013

Aim

To describe the pattern of use of rehabilitation services in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP), and to identify factors associated with use.

Methods

In this study, parents of 91 school‐age children and 167 adolescents with CP completed a questionnaire regarding educational and rehabilitation resources received within the last 6 months. Rehabilitation services included occupational therapy (OT), physical therapy (PT), speech language pathology (SLP), psychology and special education. Demographic characteristics were documented and developmental and functional status was assessed. Relationships between service utilization and sociodemographic factors, functioning and school setting were determined.

Results

Over half of children (53.2%) and adolescents (57.5%) were in regular schools; however, 41% of these required special education resources. The remainder (42.5–46.8%) was in special schools. The majority of children (84.6%) were receiving at least one rehabilitation service although this decreased (68.1%) in adolescence. PT and OT were most common and services were provided predominantly in the school setting. Services were primarily weekly direct interventions at school age, with weekly interventions or consultations most common for adolescents. Younger age was associated with service receipt at school age only. Children with greater motor limitations, lower IQ and greater activity limitations were more likely to receive OT, PT, SLP or special education. Children in segregated schools were significantly more likely to receive rehabilitation services, when compared with children in regular schools.

Conclusions

The majority of children and youth received one or more services. Individuals with greater motor or cognitive challenges were more likely to receive a range of school‐based services from rehabilitation specialists. When compared with children of school age, adolescents were less likely to receive services and when provided, services were more likely to be consultative. Services may need to be more optimally organized through childhood to enhance benefits to children with CP across activity limitation profiles.
A 5‐ to 6‐year radiological evaluation of titanium plasma sprayed/sandblasted and acid‐etched implants: results from private practice
Authors: Dam Hamasat Gheddaf , Najm Semaan Abi , Nurdin Nathalie , Bischof Mark , Finkelman Matthew , Nedir Rabah
Published: January 2013

Objectives

This study aimed to determine bone level changes after 5–6 years of follow‐up for a large group of one‐stage dental implants consecutively placed in private practice. Potential confounding factors influencing crestal bone loss (CBL) were also assessed.

Materials and methods

A total of 378 transmucosal Straumann® implants in 174 patients were examined radiographically. Half of the study population (189 implants) had a titanium plasma sprayed (TPS) surface, and the other half (189 implants) were sandblasted and acid‐etched (SLA). Mean CBL was measured from 5 to 6 years post‐operative radiographs on the basis of known implant landmarks. Correlations of increased CBL with various independent variables were also investigated. Statistical analyses were performed using generalized estimating equations.

Results

Radiographic measurements showed a CBL ≤ 1.5 mm for 65% of studied implants. A CBL > 1.5 mm was found for 28% of implants, while 7% of implants had a CBL ≥ 3 mm. Three factors significantly influenced CBL (P < 0.05): implant surface texture (TPS > SLA), smoking status (smokers > non‐smokers), and implant location (anterior > posterior).

Conclusions

CBL was ≤1.5 mm after 5–6 years for the majority of followed implants. For implants with a CBL > 1.5 mm, statistically significant correlations were found for TPS surface type, anterior jaw locations, and smoking. Implant length did not influence CBL.
Recommendations for healthier hydration: addressing the public health issues of obesity and type 2 diabetes
Authors: Armstrong L. E. , Barquera S. , Duhamel J. ‐F. , Hardinsyah R. , Haslam D. , Lafontan M.
Published: January 2013

Given the rapid increase in the prevalence of overweight, obesity, type 2 diabetes and other obesity‐related conditions across the world, despite a plethora of evidence‐based guidance for clinicians, innovative campaigns aimed at the general public and widespread government public health initiatives, it is clear that a novel approach is required. The importance of fluid intake has been overlooked in campaigns and guidelines and also in the clinical setting, where the question ‘what do you drink?’ is often omitted. It is a significant oversight that food pyramids and healthy‐eating plates across the world omit fluids from their graphics and advice. While guidelines include recommendations on changes in physical activity and diet, often little or no advice is offered on the importance of healthier hydration practices, neglecting to highlight the contribution of beverages high in sugar, alcohol or additives. An interdisciplinary group of experts in medicine, nutrition, physiology and public health discussed issues surrounding healthy‐hydration practices in March 2010 in Paris to create a consensus statement on hydration and gain of body weight and provide recommendations.
Essentialist Beliefs About Bodily Transplants in the United States and India
Authors: Meyer Meredith , Leslie Sarah‐Jane , Gelman Susan A. , Stilwell Sarah M.
Published: January 2013

Psychological essentialism is the belief that some internal, unseen essence or force determines the common outward appearances and behaviors of category members. We investigated whether reasoning about transplants of bodily elements showed evidence of essentialist thinking. BothAmericans andIndians endorsed the possibility of transplants conferring donors' personality, behavior, and luck on recipients, consistent with essentialism. Respondents also endorsed essentialist effects even when denying that transplants would change a recipient's category membership (e.g., predicting that a recipient of a pig's heart would act more pig‐like but denying that the recipient wouldbecomea pig). This finding runs counter to predictions from the strongest version of the “minimalist” position (Strevens,2000), an alternative to essentialism. Finally, studies asking about a broader range of donor‐to‐recipient transfers indicated thatIndians essentialized more types of transfers thanAmericans, but neither sample essentialized monetary transfer. This suggests that results from bodily transplant conditions reflect genuine essentialism rather than broader magical thinking.
Species richness and representation in protected areas of theWestern hemisphere: discrepancies between checklists and range maps
Authors: Cantú‐Salazar Lisette , Gaston Kevin J.
Published: January 2013

Aim

We use data based on species checklists and geographical range maps for 3096 amphibian, 4100 bird and 1878 terrestrial mammal species to explore possible discrepancies in estimates of species richness for protected areas. We predict substantial differences between checklist and range map richness for smaller areas, where higher errors of commission from range maps are likely to occur. We also explore how discrepancies between species inventories and range maps may affect assessments of reserve prioritization and representation.

Location

Continental America and associated islands.

Methods

We obtained species numbers based on checklists for 619 protected areas from a variety of sources, including management plans, technical reports, environmental assessments, official websites, biodiversity databases and conservation agencies, and evaluated how these correlate with species richness estimates from geographical range map databases, also testing for an effect of reserve size on range map omission and commission errors.

Results

Species richness estimates obtained from checklists and range maps showed a significant positive relationship for all three groups of vertebrates, although for most protected areas, estimates of richness from range overlap maps tended to be overestimates, especially for amphibians and mammals in species‐rich regions. Protected area size explained little of the discrepancies between checklist and range map richness. Species representation in protected areas based on checklists was in general lower than representation based on range maps.

Main conclusions

Our results suggest that range maps, although far from perfect, have the advantage of reducing geographical biases and filling gaps that exist in point locality data at least in species‐rich protected areas, while most available checklists in these regions were extremely variable in quality and availability, lacking of basic information on survey design, reliability and completeness. However, range maps will likely overestimate species representation in protected areas and should thus be treated with caution in this context.
Topographic wetness index predicts the occurrence of bird species in floodplains
Authors: Besnard A. G. , La Jeunesse I. , Pays O. , Secondi J.
Published: January 2013

Aim

Selecting informative variables is crucial for species distribution modelling and ecological studies in general. Proxies quantifying water accumulation may have suitable properties because hydromorphy partly determines plant and animal communities. Topographic wetness index (TWI) was developed to locate wetlands but has largely been ignored from ecological studies despite the value of these areas for biodiversity and the ecosystem services they provide. We assessed here the ability of TWI to predict the occurrence of grassland passerines and tested different settings to determine which was the best predictor for our dataset.

Location

Floodplain meadows in the Loire valley, France, Western Europe.

Methods

We recorded the occurrence of four grassland passerines on 64 transects in large hay meadow patches. We computed four TWIs based on digital elevation models (DEMs). TWIs compute water accumulation as a function of slope and catchment. We tested two DEM resolutions (50 m and 250 m) and four TWI algorithms to identify which combination yielded the best model fits to our dataset.

Results

Results depended on the predictor settings and the species considered. TWI predicted the occurrence of the Whinchat, the most specialized species, and the combined occurrence of the others three passerines. One TWI algorithm (SWI) yielded the poorest fit, and we could not determine the best algorithm among the others three. The coarser DEM resolution (250 m pixel size) also yielded better fitting model than the finer resolution (50 m).

Main conclusions

Topographic wetness index appears as an informative predictor of species occurrence, at least for the Whinchat, and a useful proxy to detect suitable areas for floodplain grassland birds. This family of indices may improve our ability to model the habitat of wetlands species. However, DEM resolution and algorithm should be selected with caution as they may impact the predictive potential of the proxy.
Using plant distributions to predict the current and future range of a rare lizard
Authors: Delean Steven , Bull C. Michael , Brook Barry W. , Heard Lee M. B. , Fordham Damien A.
Published: January 2013

Aim

To investigate the use of bioclimatic envelope models for predicting distributions of species that have experienced severe human‐induced geographical range contractions. Bioclimatic envelope model predictions of current and future distributions were contrasted with those from models that used biotic indicators of suitable habitat as predictors rather than climate.

Location

Temperate grassy woodlands of South Australia.

Methods

We modelled the distribution of two native grassland plant species, key habitat indicators of the endangered and geographically restricted pygmy bluetongue lizard (Tiliqua adelaidensis), using climate and landscape variables with aggregated boosted regression trees. We forecast annual changes in the plant species distributions from 2000 to 2100 under a no‐climate‐policy ‘Reference’ scenario (high global greenhouse gas emissions) and a climate stabilization ‘Policy’ scenario. We compared current and future predicted distributions of the lizard estimated directly using bioclimatic envelope models with those derived indirectly from climate‐driven changes in habitat suitability of the grassland plant species with which the lizard has a strong association (termed plant‐habitat models).

Results

Both coupled plant‐habitat models and bioclimatic envelope models described the current distribution of the pygmy bluetongue lizard almost equally well; however, future projections of changes in the species range were markedly more pessimistic (i.e. greater range contraction) for bioclimatic envelope models. Further, bioclimatic envelope models that included interactions among variables projected rapid increases in area of occupancy that are unlikely to be attainable given dispersal constraints, but no such increases were projected from plant‐habitat models.

Main conclusions

Capturing species–environment relationships for threatened and range‐restricted species using surrogate biotic variables that represent resource requirements of the focal species – which themselves respond to environmental variation and are in stable equilibrium – allows more confident and ecologically realistic forecasts of potential range changes for species most susceptible to climate change.
Diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection in gastric mucosa by endoscopic features: A multicenter prospective study
Authors: Kato Takahiro , Yagi Nobuaki , Kamada Tomoari , Shimbo Takuro , Watanabe Hidenobu , Ida Kazunori ,   the Study Group for Establishing Endoscopic Diagnosis of Chronic Gastritis
Published: January 2013

Background

Endoscopic features corresponding to pathological findings in the Sydney System have not been identified, and endoscopic diagnosis of chronic gastritis has not yet been established. To establish the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection in gastric mucosa by endoscopic features, a prospective multicenter study was carried out.

Patients and Methods

Two hundred and ninety‐seven registered patients from 24 facilities between March 2008 and February 2009 were enrolled. Association between endoscopic findings (conventional findings and indigocarmine contrast (IC) method findings) and diagnosis of H. pylori infection made by microscopic observation of biopsy specimens was investigated in the corpus and antrum and their diagnostic accuracies were investigated.

Results

Two hundred and seventy‐five patients were analyzed. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for H. pylori infection of conventional endoscopy was 0.811 in thecorpus and 0.707 in the antrum (P = 0.006). Evaluation of diffuse redness, spotty redness and mucosal swelling by conventional endoscopy and swelling of areae gastricae by the indigocarmine contrast (IC) method were useful for diagnosing H. pylori infection. Regular arrangement of collecting venules (RAC) in the angle, fundic gland polyposis, hemorrhagic erosion and bleeding spot in the corpus and red streaks, and erosions (flat, raised, hemorrhagic and bleeding spot) in the antrum may be used as diagnostic features suggesting negative H. pylori infection.

Conclusion

It is suggested that endoscopic diagnosis of H. pylori infection in gastric mucosa by conventional endoscopy and the IC method is mostly possible.
Clinical features of childhood‐onset paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia with PRRT2 gene mutations
Authors: Silveira‐Moriyama Laura , Gardiner Alice R , Meyer Esther , King Mary D , Smith Martin , Rakshi Karl , Parker Alasdair , Mallick Andrew A , Brown Richard , Vassallo Grace , Jardine Philip E , Guerreiro Marilisa M , Lees Andrew J , Houlden Henry , Kurian Manju A
Published: January 2013

Aim

To define better the phenotype and genotype of familial and sporadic cases of paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia (PKD) caused by mutations in the PRRT2 gene presenting in the paediatric age group.

Method

We report the detailed clinical and molecular genetic features of 11 patients (six females, five males) with childhood‐onset PRRT2‐mutation‐positive PKD.

Results

Mean age at disease onset was 8 years 7.5 months (range 5–11y), and clinical presentation was characterized by daily short paroxysmal episodes of dystonia/dyskinesia. Most patients also had non‐kinesigenic attacks in addition to the classical movement‐induced paroxysmal episodes. One family demonstrated great phenotypic variability with PKD, infantile convulsions, and/or hemiplegic migraine affecting different family members with the same mutation. All patients in whom antiepileptics (carbamazepine/phenytoin) were tried showed a dramatic improvement with complete abolition of dyskinetic episodes.

Interpretation

Our case series provides a detailed clinical description of patients with PRRT2‐PKD, and reports a spectrum of disease‐causing mutations, thereby expanding both the clinical phenotype and mutation spectrum of disease.
Prevalence and risk factors for neurological disorders in children aged 6 months to 2 years in northern India
Authors: Kumar Rashmi , Bhave Anupama , Bhargava Roli , Agarwal Girdhar G
Published: January 2013

Aim

To study prevalence and risk factors for neurological disorders – epilepsy, global developmental delay, and motor, vision, and hearing defects – in children aged 6 months to 2 years in northern India.

Method

A two‐stage community survey for neurological disorders was conducted in rural and urban areas of Lucknow. After initial screening with a new instrument, the Lucknow Neurodevelopment Screen, screen positives and a random proportion of screen negatives were validated using predefined criteria. Prevalence was calculated by weighted estimates. Demographic, socio‐economic, and medical risk factors were compared between validated children who were positive and negative for neurological disorders by univariate and logistic regression analysis.

Results

Of 4801 children screened (mean age [SD] 15.32mo [5.96]; 2542 males, 2259 females), 196 were positive; 190 screen positives and 269 screen negatives were validated. Prevalence of neurological disorders was 27.92 per 1000 (weighted 95% confidence interval 12.24–43.60). Significant risk factors (p≤0.01) for neurological disorders were higher age in months (p=0.010), lower mean number of appliances in the household (p=0.001), consanguineous marriage of parents (p=0.010), family history of neurological disorder (p=0.001), and infants born exceptionally small (parental description; p=0.009). On logistic regression, the final model included age (p=0.0193), number of appliances (p=0.0161), delayed cry at birth (p=0.0270), postneonatal meningoencephalitis (p=0.0549), and consanguinity (p=0.0801).

Interpretation

Perinatal factors, lower socio‐economic status, and consanguinity emerged as predictors of neurological disorders. These factors are largely modifiable.
Is Gender Responsible for Everything? The Relationship between Sex and Right Ventricular Remodeling in Metabolic Syndrome
Authors: Tadic Marijana V. , Ivanovic Branislava A. , Petrovic Milan
Published: January 2013

Background

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of metabolic syndrome (MS) on right ventricular (RV) remodeling in different genders.

Methods

The study included 341 subjects (216 subjects with MS and 125 controls). MS was defined by the presence of ≥3 ATP‐NCEP‐III criteria. All subjects underwent complete two‐dimensional echocardiography.

Results

RV structure, diastolic, and global function were significantly impaired in MS subjects, in both genders. The multiple regression analysis of MS parameters showed that systolic blood pressure (BP) and waist circumference were independently associated with RV wall thickness in women, whereas the only independent predictor in men was systolic BP. The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that increased BP, impaired fasting glucose, and dyslipidemia were a combination of MS risk factors related with RV hypertrophy solely in women. Increased systolic BP, impaired fasting glucose, and abdominal obesity were independently associated with tricuspid E/e′ in women, whereas increased systolic BP was the only independent predictor in men. Impaired fasting glucose, abdominal obesity, and dyslipidemia were a combination of MS criteria, which was independently associated with RV diastolic dysfunction only in women.

Conclusions

Different parameters of MS are responsible for RV remodeling in women and men. The metabolic parameters of MS are more important for RV remodeling in women.
Analysis of the ‘Educational Climate’ in Spanish Public Schools of Dentistry using the Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure: a multicenter study
Authors: Tomás I. , Millán U. , Casares M. A. , Abad M. , Ceballos L. , Gómez‐Moreno G. , Hidalgo J. J. , Llena C. , López‐Jornet P. , Machuca M. C. , Monticelli F. , Palés J.
Published: January 2013

Aim

To analyse the ‘Educational Climate’ (EC) of dental students in Spain.

Methods

The study group consisted of 1391 students from nine Spanish Public Schools of Dentistry, who responded to the questionnaire based on ‘Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure’ (DREEM). This questionnaire has 50 items that are grouped into five domains: Learning, Teachers, Academic, Atmosphere and Social.

Results

The global score on the EC was 123.1 (interpretation: ‘EC more positive than negative’). The scores obtained in the different domains were: 28.0 in Learning (interpretation: ‘a generally positive perception of learning’), 26.8 in Teachers (interpretation: ‘teachers are going in the right direction’), 20.8 in Academic (interpretation: ‘feeling more on the positive side’), 29.7 in Atmosphere (interpretation: ‘a generally positive atmosphere’) and 17.7 in Social (interpretation: ‘social perception acceptable’). In seven items (14%), an average of <2 was detected, showing that there are some educational problem areas. Regarding the EC in the different Schools of Dentistry, an average of >100 was achieved in all of them, although there were two centres that showed significantly higher values of EC.

Conclusions

Spanish dental students felt that their EC was more positive than negative and considered that the different domains were positive and acceptable. However, they pointed out the existence of several educational problem areas associated with the development of a traditional curriculum. Accordingly, and in parallel with the implementation of an innovative curriculum in all Spanish Dental Schools in the coming years, immediate educational goals must address the problem areas identified, thereby further promoting a more positive perception of EC.
Estrogen‐related receptor β deletion modulates whole‐body energy balance via estrogen‐related receptor γ and attenuates neuropeptide Y gene expression
Authors: Byerly Mardi S. , Al Salayta Muhannad , Swanson Roy D. , Kwon Kiwook , Peterson Jonathan M. , Wei Zhikui , Aja Susan , Moran Timothy H. , Blackshaw Seth , Wong G. William
Published: January 2013

Estrogen‐related receptors (ERRs) α, β and γ are orphan nuclear hormone receptors with no known ligands. Little is known concerning the role of ERRβ in energy homeostasis, as complete ERRβ‐null mice die mid‐gestation. We generated two viable conditional ERRβ‐null mouse models to address its metabolic function. Whole‐body deletion of ERRβ in Sox2‐Cre:ERRβlox/lox mice resulted in major alterations in body composition, metabolic rate, meal patterns and voluntary physical activity levels. Nestin‐Cre:ERRβlox/lox mice exhibited decreased expression of ERRβ in hindbrain neurons, the predominant site of expression, decreased neuropeptide Y (NPY) gene expression in the hindbrain, increased lean body mass, insulin sensitivity, increased energy expenditure, decreased satiety and decreased time between meals. In the absence of ERRβ, increased ERRγ signaling decreased satiety and the duration of time between meals, similar to meal patterns observed for both the Sox2‐Cre:ERRβlox/lox and Nestin‐Cre:ERRβlox/lox strains of mice. Central and/or peripheral ERRγ signaling may modulate these phenotypes by decreasing NPY gene expression. Overall, the relative expression ratio between ERRβ and ERRγ may be important in modulating ingestive behavior, specifically satiety, gene expression, as well as whole‐body energy balance.
Vitiligo: interplay between oxidative stress and immune system
Authors: Laddha Naresh C. , Dwivedi Mitesh , Mansuri Mohmmad S. , Gani Amina R. , Ansarullah Md , Ramachandran A. V. , Dalai Sarat , Begum Rasheedunnisa
Published: January 2013

Vitiligo is a multifactorial polygenic disorder with a complex pathogenesis, linked with both genetic and non‐genetic factors. The precise modus operandi for vitiligo pathogenesis has remained elusive. Theories regarding loss of melanocytes are based on autoimmune, cytotoxic, oxidant–antioxidant and neural mechanisms. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) in excess have been documented in active vitiligo skin. Numerous proteins in addition to tyrosinase are affected. It is possible that oxidative stress is one among the main principal causes of vitiligo. However, there also exists ample evidence for altered immunological processes in vitiligo, particularly in chronic and progressive conditions. Both innate and adaptive arms of the immune system appear to be involved as a primary event or as a secondary promotive consequence. There is speculation on the interplay, if any, between ROS and the immune system in the pathogenesis of vitiligo. The article focuses on the scientific evidences linking oxidative stress and immune system to vitiligo pathogenesis giving credence to a convergent terminal pathway of oxidative stress–autoimmunity‐mediated melanocyte loss.
Small‐scale fisheries through the wellbeing lens
Authors: Weeratunge Nireka , Béné Christophe , Siriwardane Rapti , Charles Anthony , Johnson Derek , Allison Edward H , Nayak Prateep K , Badjeck Marie‐Caroline
Published: January 2013

Despite longstanding recognition that small‐scale fisheries make multiple contributions to economies, societies and cultures, assessing these contributions and incorporating them into policy and decision‐making has suffered from a lack of a comprehensive integrating ‘lens’. This paper focuses on the concept of ‘wellbeing’ as a means to accomplish this integration, thereby unravelling and better assessing complex social and economic issues within the context of fisheries governance. We emphasize the relevance of the three key components of wellbeing – the material, relational and subjective dimensions, each of which is relevant to wellbeing at scales ranging from individual, household, community, fishery to human‐ecological systems as a whole. We review nine major approaches influential in shaping current thinking and practice on wellbeing: the economics of happiness, poverty, capabilities, gender, human rights, sustainable livelihoods, vulnerability, social capital, and social wellbeing. The concept of identity is a thread that runs through the relational and subjective components of social wellbeing, as well as several other approaches and thus emerges as a critical element of small‐scale fisheries that requires explicit recognition in governance analysis. A social wellbeing lens is applied to critically review a global body of literature discussing the social, economic and political dimensions of small‐scale fishing communities, seeking to understand the relevance and value addition of applying wellbeing concepts in small‐scale fisheries.
Coenzyme Q10 supplementation and diastolic heart functions in hemodialysis patients: A randomized double‐blind placebo‐controlled trial
Authors: Turk Suleyman , Baki Aysegul , Solak Yalcin , Kayrak Mehmet , Atalay Huseyin , Gaipov Abduzhappar , Aribas Alpay , Akilli Hakan , Biyik Zeynep , Okudan Nilsel , Gokbel Hakki
Published: January 2013

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation has been shown to improve diastolic heart function in various patient cohorts. Systolic and diastolic dysfunctions are common in patients with end‐stage renal disease. Favorable effects of CoQ10 on cardiac functions are yet to be seen in hemodialysis patients. We aimed to evaluate effect of CoQ10 supplementation on diastolic function in a cohort of maintenance hemodialysis patients. This was a prospective, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, crossover study in which all patients received placebo and oral CoQ10 200 mg/d during the 8 weeks in each phase, with a 4‐week washout period. Participants underwent conventional and tissue Doppler echocardiography before and after each study phase. Parameters characterizing left ventricle diastolic function and other standard echocardiographic measurements were recorded. Twenty‐eight patients were randomized, but 22 patients completed study protocol. Intraventricular septum (IVS) thickness and left ventricle mass were significantly decreased in CoQ10 group (P = 0.03 and P = 0.01, respectively). Myocardial peak systolic and early diastolic velocities derived from IVS were significantly increased (P = 0.048 and P = 0.04, respectively). Isovolumetric relaxation time and E/Em ratio calculated for IVS also significantly reduced in CoQ10 group (p = 0.02 and p = 0.04, respectively). There was no significant difference in any of the studied echocardiographic parameters in placebo group. The results of this study showed that CoQ10 supplementation did not significantly improved diastolic heart functions compared with placebo in maintenance hemodialysis patients.
The biology of hair diversity
Authors: Westgate Gillian E , Botchkareva Natalia V , Tobin Desmond J
Published: January 2013

Synopsis

Hair diversity, its style, colour, shape and growth pattern is one of our most defining characteristics. The natural versus temporary style is influenced by what happens to our hair during our lifetime, such as genetic hair loss, sudden hair shedding, greying and pathological hair loss in the various forms of alopecia because of genetics, illness or medication. Despite the size and global value of the hair care market, our knowledge of what controls the innate and within‐lifetime characteristics of hair diversity remains poorly understood. In the last decade, drivers of knowledge have moved into the arena of genetics where hair traits are obvious and measurable and genetic polymorphisms are being found that raise valuable questions about the biology of hair growth. The recent discovery that the gene for trichohyalin contributes to hair shape comes as no surprise to the hair biologists who have believed for 100 years that hair shape is linked to the structure and function of the inner root sheath. Further conundrums awaiting elucidation include the polymorphisms in the androgen receptor (AR) described in male pattern alopecia whose location on the X chromosome places this genetic contributor into the female line. The genetics of female hair loss is less clear with polymorphisms in the AR not associated with female pattern hair loss. Lifestyle choices are also implicated in hair diversity. Greying, which also has a strong genetic component, is often suggested to have a lifestyle (stress) influence and hair follicle melanocytes show declining antioxidant protection with age and lowered resistance to stress. It is likely that hair research will undergo a renaissance on the back of the rising information from genetic studies as well as the latest contributions from the field of epigenetics.
Ability of preoperative 3.0‐Tesla magnetic resonance imaging to predict the absence of side‐specific extracapsular extension of prostate cancer
Authors: Hara Tomohiko , Nakanishi Hiroyuki , Nakagawa Tohru , Komiyama Motokiyo , Kawahara Takashi , Manabe Tomoko , Miyake Mototaka , Arai Eri , Kanai Yae , Fujimoto Hiroyuki
Published: January 2013

Objective

Recent studies have shown an improvement in prostate cancer diagnosis with the use of 3.0‐Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. We retrospectively assessed the ability of this imaging technique to predict side‐specific extracapsular extension of prostate cancer.

Methods

From October 2007 to August 2011, prostatectomy was carried out in 396 patients after preoperative 3.0‐Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. Among these, 132 (primary sample) and 134 patients (validation sample) underwent 12‐core prostate biopsy at the National Cancer Center Hospital of Tokyo, Japan, and at other institutions, respectively. In the primary dataset, univariate and multivariate analyses were carried out to predict side‐specific extracapsular extension using variables determined preoperatively, including 3.0‐Tesla magnetic resonance imaging findings (T2‐weighted and diffusion‐weighted imaging). A prediction model was then constructed and applied to the validation study sample.

Results

Multivariate analysis identified four significant independent predictors (P < 0.05), including a biopsy Gleason score of ≥8, positive 3.0‐Tesla diffusion‐weighted magnetic resonance imaging findings, ≥2 positive biopsy cores on each side and a maximum percentage of positive cores ≥31% on each side. The negative predictive value was 93.9% in the combination model with these four predictors, meanwhile the positive predictive value was 33.8%. Good reproducibility of these four significant predictors and the combination model was observed in the validation study sample.

Conclusions

The side‐specific extracapsular extension prediction by the biopsy Gleason score and factors associated with tumor location, including a positive 3.0‐Tesla diffusion‐weighted magnetic resonance imaging finding, have a high negative predictive value, but a low positive predictive value.
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION RESEARCH IN MAINLAND CHINA AND TAIWAN: AN ASSESSMENT OF JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS, 1998–2008
Authors: WU XUN , HE YAN‐LING , SUN MILAN TUNG‐WEN
Published: January 2013

Public Administration (PA) as a field of study in China has made tremendous strides over the last three decades. This paper provides an overview of PA research in China from a sample of 2,877 articles published in six top PA journals in mainland China and Taiwan between 1998 and 2008. Our analysis based on these journal publications reveals several critical shortcomings of PA research in China in research reporting, approaches, and methodologies, pointing to a long journey ahead before the full potential of such research can be unleashed. Our comparison of journal publications between mainland China and Taiwan suggests that scholars in Taiwan have made great strides in improving quality of research in a short period of time, and that such experience could provide their colleagues across the Taiwan Strait with valuable insights into the future direction of the field.
How to Deal with Resource Productivity
Authors: Gan Yu , Zhang Tianzhu , Liang Sai , Zhao Zhongnan , Li Nan
Published: January 2013

Resource productivity enhancement stands at the center of tackling issues on environmental pollution and resource scarcity. Identifying influential socioeconomic factors should be the first step in establishing and improving resource management policy. This study compares and analyzes data from multiple countries to construct a resource productivity simulation model. The socioeconomic factors and their characteristic patterns are discussed in detail. The results demonstrate that the major factors influencing resource productivity include income level, population density, economic structure, energy structure, and raw material trade. Among these factors, the three most important are income level, population density, and economic structure. The influencing patterns can be summarized as follows: (1) Resource productivity increases with increasing income levels. (2) Countries with high population density are inclined to demonstrate high resource productivity. (3) The economic structure shows a biphase influence on resource productivity, that is, during industrialization, decreased agricultural activity and increased industrial activity lead to higher resource productivity. On the other hand, after industrialization, decreasing industrial activity and an expanding service sector become the major impetus of resource productivity enhancement. (4) Raw material export demonstrates a negative effect on resource productivity. Countries that depend heavily on raw material export show a unique resource productivity evolution pattern. For these countries, relatively high resource productivity in low income phases and relatively low resource productivity in high income phases show only small increases in resource efficiency and economic growth. Finally, insights from the study are transformed into suggestions for sustainable resource management and resource productivity enhancement.
“That's the one I wanted”: when do competitors copy their opponents' choices?
Authors: Zitek Emily M. , Monin Benoît
Published: January 2013

This paper explores the interactive effect of competitiveness and choice structure on symbolic (noninstrumental) choices in competitive situations. When individuals in competitive situations learn the stated preference of their opponent, their own choice depends on their competitiveness and on whether they are in an inclusive‐choice situation (in which both competitors can end up with the same option) or an exclusive‐choice situation (in which they cannot). We obtained this predicted interaction in an imagined video game challenge (Studies 1 and 3), cooking contest (Study 2), and March Madness bracket competition (Study 4). Highly competitive people copied their opponent's choices in exclusive‐choice situations, and seemed to do this because they wanted to frustrate their opponent (Studies 3 and 4).
Recent developments in the experimental investigation of the illusion of control. A meta‐analytic review
Authors: Stefan Simona , David Daniel
Published: January 2013

The present study analyzes recent developments in the experimental investigation of the illusion of control by using the methods of meta‐analysis. The aim of the study was to estimate the effect sizes associated with different factors thought to induce the illusion of control considering different conceptualizations of the phenomenon. The overall weighted mean effect size (D) was.62, with the 95% confidence interval about the mean.49 to.75. Generally, experiments tend to obtain moderate to large effect sizes, and the illusion of control is constantly present as an effect of several situational and psychological factors. Nevertheless, the large heterogeneity of the studies in terms of dependent measures suggests that the underlying phenomena can be of a different nature.
On the Effects of Capacity Agent on Market Equilibrium
Authors: Jiang Li
Published: January 2013

We consider a setting of two firms and one capacity agent. Each firm serves a primary market, and the capacity agent sustains a common market to draw demand for capacity from the external firms. The firms can partner with the capacity agent under her contract to serve the common market. When they use the common market mainly as an outlet for their unused capacities, the capacity agent will only specify a variable fee for each capacity unit deployed through her, and prefer to partner with one firm in most circumstances. When the firms adjust capacities to accommodate the businesses created by serving the common market, the capacity agent will specify a lump‐sum payment and a variable fee, and will be more likely to incentivize only one firm to partner with her, when the common market is sufficiently large or the demands in the common and primary markets are strongly correlated. She will always use a fixed fee to extract, while not necessarily all, the profit gains to the firms serving the common market, but will use a variable fee only when partnering with both firms. The key results are robust with respect to market configuration and contract type.
Supply Chain Contracting Under Competition: Bilateral Bargaining vs. Stackelberg
Authors: Feng Qi , Lu Lauren Xiaoyuan
Published: January 2013

We analyze contracting behaviors in a two‐tier supply chain system consisting of competing manufacturers and competing retailers. We contrast the contracting outcome of a Stackelberg game, in which the manufacturers offer take‐it‐or‐leave‐it contracts to the retailers, with that of a bargaining game, in which the firms bilaterally negotiate contract terms via a process of alternating offers. The manufacturers in the Stackelberg game possess a Stackelberg‐leader advantage in that the retailers are not entitled to make counteroffers. Our analysis suggests that whether this advantage would benefit the manufacturers depends on the contractual form. With simple contracts such as wholesale‐price contracts, which generally do not allow one party to fully extract the trade surplus, the Stackelberg game replicates the boundary case of the bargaining game with the manufacturers possessing all the bargaining power. In contrast, with sophisticated contracts such as two‐part tariffs, which enable full surplus extraction, the two games lead to distinct outcomes. We further show that the game structure being Stackelberg or bargaining critically affects firms' preferences over contract types and thus their equilibrium contract choices. These observations suggest that the Stackelberg game may not be a sufficient device to predict contracting behaviors in reality where bargaining is commonly observed.
Similar but Different: The Beliefs of Foreign Language Teachers
Authors: Kissau Scott P. , Algozzine Bob , Yon Maria
Published: January 2013

Using data from a large‐scale, mixed‐method study involving 222 K–12 foreign language (L2) teachers and their supervisors (see Kissau, Yon, & Algozzine, 2011), in this article the researchers explore differences in beliefs across four demographic groups: experienced and inexperienced teachers, teachers with L2 teacher training and those without, teachers of different foreign languages, and immersion and traditional L2 teachers. While survey responses were similar in each of the comparisons, interview data emphasized that members of each group faced unique challenges that influenced their beliefs and classroom practices. The results speak to the need to tailor training to meet the needs of different groups of L2 teachers and for contextual factors to be incorporated into future research related to teacher beliefs.
The Impact of Study Abroad on Students' Self‐Efficacy Perceptions
Authors: Cubillos Jorge H. , Ilvento Thomas
Published: January 2013

This article reports the findings of an investigation into the impact of study abroad experiences on self‐efficacy perceptions among foreign language (FL) learners. Thirty‐nine American college students taking part in both short‐term and semester‐long academic programs in France and Spain completed self‐efficacy surveys at the beginning and at the end of their foreign sojourns. Students were also asked to complete a questionnaire documenting the nature and extent of their interactions with members of the host country. Statistical analysis of the self‐efficacy measures in this investigation revealed that participation in a study abroad program (regardless of its length or destination) had a significant impact on self‐efficacy perceptions in all FL subskills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking). Furthermore, the extent of self‐efficacy gains was found to be associated with the extent and type of interaction with members of the host country. Pedagogical implications of these finds are discussed, along with suggestions on how to maximize the motivational benefits of foreign study programs.
A High School Intensive Summer Mandarin Course: Program Model and Learner Outcomes
Authors: Xu Xiaoqiu , Padilla Amado M. , Silva Duarte , Masuda Norman
Published: January 2013

This article describes a STARTALK intensive summer high school Mandarin language and culture program that was conducted for three summers. Participants across the three years included 40 Mandarin Level II and 53 Mandarin Level III high school students. Quantitative and qualitative data are presented to show the effectiveness of the program. Students' language proficiency scores showed significant improvement between pre‐ and posttests for listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Interview and observational data are also discussed to show students' improvement in all four Mandarin language skills, as well as their increased knowledge of Chinese culture. A detailed program description including program goals, curriculum, instruction, and assessment is also shared for those who are interested in replicating the program model.
Phylogeography of the Arizona hairy scorpion (Hadrurus arizonensis) supports a model of biotic assembly in the Mojave Desert and adds a new Pleistocene refugium
Authors: Graham Matthew R. , Jaeger Jef R. , Prendini Lorenzo , Riddle Brett R.
Published: January 2013

Aim

As data accumulate, a multi‐taxon biogeographical synthesis of the Mojave Desert is beginning to emerge. The initial synthesis, which we call the ‘Mojave Assembly Model’, was predominantly based on comparisons of phylogeographical patterns from vertebrate taxa. We tested the predictions of this model by examining the phylogeographical history of Hadrurus arizonensis, a large scorpion from the Mojave and Sonoran deserts.

Location

Mojave and Sonoran deserts, United States and Mexico.

Methods

We sequenced mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) data from 256 samples collected throughout the range of H. arizonensis. We analysed sequence data using a network analysis, spatial analysis of molecular variance (SAMOVA), and a Mantel test. We then used a molecular clock to place the genetic patterns in a temporal framework. We tested for signals of expansion using neutrality tests, mismatch distributions and Bayesian skyline plots. We used Maxent to develop current and late‐glacial species distribution models from occurrence records and bioclimatic variables.

Results

Phylogenetic and structure analyses split the maternal genealogy basally into a southern clade along the coast of Sonora and a northern clade that includes six lineages distributed in the Mojave Desert and northern Sonoran Desert. Molecular dating suggested that the main clades diverged between the late Pliocene and early Pleistocene, whereas subsequent divergences between lineages occurred in the middle and late Pleistocene. Species distribution models predicted that the distribution of suitable climate was reduced and fragmented during the Last Glacial Maximum.

Main conclusions

Genetic analyses and species distribution modelling suggest that the genetic diversity within H. arizonensis was predominantly structured by Pleistocene climate cycles. These results are generally consistent with the predictions of Pleistocene refugia for arid‐adapted taxa described in the Mojave Assembly Model, but suggest that a northern area of the Lower Colorado River Valley may have acted as an additional refugium during Pleistocene glacial cycles.