bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
One hundred and thirty years since Darwin: ‘Reshaping’ the theory of atoll formation
Authors: Terry James P , Goff James
Published: December 2012

April 2012 marked the 130th anniversary of the death of Charles Darwin. One of many significant contributions he made to science was the subsidence theory of atoll formation, which he penned on 12 April 1836 during the voyage of the Beagle through the Pacific. Darwin’s elegant theory, founded on the premise of a subsiding volcano and the corresponding upward growth of coral reef, was astonishing for the time considering the absence of an underpinning awareness of plate tectonics. His theory has endured until modern times in spite of a number of opposing ideas and permutations and has an enviable longevity amongst paradigms in geomorphology. Darwin frequently alluded to the generally circular morphology of the atoll shape, yet the reality is that many atolls are neither circular nor elliptical, instead possessing irregular morphologies. In particular, many exhibit major arcuate ‘bight-like’ structures (ABLS) in their plan form. These departures from the circular form are indicative of geomorphological processes that cannot be ignored. ABLS are the morphological expression of large submarine failures that are common on the slopes of volcanic edifices. Such failures can occur during any stage of atoll formation and are a valuable addition to Darwin’s theory because they indicate the instability of the volcanic foundations. Moreover, ABLS have fundamental implications for hazard research in the context of oceanic islands. Not only does our extension to the theory explain the diversity of atoll shape, but it also provides a mechanism for identifying a vast number of potential local tsunamigenic sources, which is critical for advancing modern understanding of tsunami hazards in oceanic environments.
Culture, community, consciousness: The Caribbean sporting diaspora
Authors: Joseph Janelle
Published: December 2012

This study shows the utility of the concept of diaspora for physical cultural studies, and particularly for thinking through sport in a Canadian setting. The capacity of diaspora theory to specify a matrix of real and imagined cross-border cultural, kinship, and social relationships makes it useful for understanding community (re)generation in sport settings. Relatively little about recreational cricket in the Caribbean and its diaspora has been documented, despite the sport’s power as a symbol of Caribbean unity. My findings indicate that a group of first-generation Afro-Caribbean immigrants living in the Greater Toronto Area use a particular form of cultural production, the sport of cricket, to generate and maintain diasporic communities, that is, cross-border interpersonal networks with other Afro-Caribbean people who remain in their nations of origin, and who are dispersed throughout the United States, elsewhere in Canada, and England. Regardless of where they play, cricket matches are “home games” that allow players and spectators to lime (hang out) and (re)generate diasporic consciousness, that is, a sense of themselves as one people through the “authentic” Afro-Caribbean environment they create. The reproduction of Afro-Caribbean culture, community, and consciousness includes conflicts with South Asian and Indo-Caribbean diasporic groups.
Challenges faced by trainee psychiatrists working towards competency in psychotherapies
Authors: Parker Stephen , Bylett Margaret , Leggett Andrew
Published: December 2012

Objective:

This paper explores the challenges that trainees of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists face as they work towards competency in psychotherapy during basic training.

Method:

The state of training programs in other countries including the trainee and supervisor perspectives on the outcomes of the shift to competency-based assessment is reviewed, and the limited literature examining the systemic problems impacting on the quality of the training experience in psychotherapies for Australian and New Zealand trainees is considered.

Results:

The risk of an increasing gap between the ideals and the reality of training expectations and experiences is discussed.

Conclusion:

The importance of auditing the adherence of training services to College guidelines and formally evaluating the training outcomes in the future is emphasised.
Revocation of Community Treatment Orders in a mental health service network
Authors: Owens Nicholas , Brophy Lisa
Published: December 2012

Objective:

Community Treatment Orders (CTOs) require patients to co-operate with involuntary treatment in the community or risk having their CTO revoked and being readmitted to hospital. CTOs are used frequently in Australia. Their revocation has been under-investigated but is important because of the significant impact this process has on patients, families/carers and service-providers. This paper reports on an investigation of CTO revocations in a Victorian area mental health service in the period 2008–2010.

Method:

This was a mixed-methods study involving extraction of data from the Victorian statewide clinical database, a file audit and semi-structured group interviews with key stakeholders. Two different time periods were compared.

Results:

CTOs are commonly revoked within three months of discharge from the inpatient unit and multiple service-providers and family/carers have varying involvement that appears to depend on the timing of the referral to the Crisis Assessment and Treatment Team.

Conclusions:

The study identified opportunities for improving policy and practice, particularly in relation to reducing the amount of coercion experienced by people on CTOs and improving flexibility of service delivery.
“In the Beginning . . . ”
Authors: White Jocelyn , Fromme Erik K.
Published: December 2012

Quality standards no longer allow physicians to delay discussing goals of care and resuscitation. We propose 2 novel strategies for discussing goals and resuscitation on admission. The first, SPAM (determine Surrogate decision maker, determine resuscitation Preferences, Assume full care, and advise them to expect More discussion especially with clinical changes), helps clinicians discover patient preferences and decision maker during routine admissions. The second, UFO-UFO (Understand what they know, Fill in knowledge gaps, ask about desired Outcomes, Understand their reasoning, discuss the spectrum Feasible Outcomes), helps patients with poor or uncertain prognosis or family–team conflict. Using a challenging case example, this article illustrates how SPAM and UFO-UFO can help clinicians have patient-centered resuscitation and goals of care discussions at the beginning of care.
The bounded rate concept: A framework to deal with objective failure predictions in dynamic within a local constitutive model
Authors: Allix Olivier
Published: December 2012

This article deals with the objective prediction of damage localization and failure in dynamics within the framework of local constitutive model. A main limitation of such model with respect to failure prediction is that the results can be mesh dependent. In order to overcome this problem, spatial localization limiters have been proposed and widely studied. In this article some limitations of rate-dependent model with respect to localization are discussed. These limitations have given rise to the proposal of bounded rate constitutive model. The approach is illustrated in two cases: – the simulation of failure and perforation of laminated composite structures, – the prediction of failure of metallic structures in finite strain.
Propensity score matched assessment of treatment patterns and cost of erythropoiesis stimulating agent treatment in patients with cancer receiving myelosuppressive chemotherapy
Authors: Tunceli Ozgur , Bailey Robert A , Stephenson Judith J , Singer Joseph
Published: December 2012

Objective:

To examine epoetin alfa (EPO) and darbepoetin alfa (DARB) treatment patterns and erythropoiesis stimulating agent (ESA) costs in patients with cancer receiving chemotherapy (CRC), and to compare the results observed in the pre-matched total study population (TSP) with a propensity score matched population (PSMP).

Methods:

A medical claims analysis was conducted from 1 January 2004 through 31 July 2009 using the HealthCore Integrated Research Database. Patients were at least 18 years old, newly initiated on EPO or DARB, received ≥ 2 ESA doses, and had ≥ 1 claim for cancer and chemotherapy proximate to ESA treatment. Patients were matched using propensity scores. January 2010 Wholesale Acquisition Cost was used to calculate drug cost. Mean cumulative ESA dose and drug costs were evaluated in the TSP and PSMP.

Results:

4921 EPO and 9173 DARB patients with CRC were identified. In the TSP, mean cumulative ESA doses were EPO: 398,770 units and DARB: 1508 mcg, with similar treatment durations for each. Mean cumulative drug costs were EPO: $6041 and DARB: $7861 (30% higher for DARB). The cumulative dose ratio (EPO units: DARB mcg) was 264:1. The PSMP analysis identified 4831 ESA treated CRC patients in each group. Mean drug costs were EPO: $6055 and DARB: $7863 (30% higher for DARB). The observed dose ratio (EPO units: DARB mcg) was 265:1.

Conclusion:

In both analyses, the costs of DARB were higher, even after accounting for baseline differences in the PSMP. Similar trends in dose ratios were also observed in both groups.
High incidence of ‘Dag-like’ sperm defect in the domestic cat
Authors: Villaverde Ana Izabel S Balbin , Fioratti Eduardo G , Ramos Renata S , Neves Renato C F , Cardoso Guilherme S , Landim-Alvarenga Fernanda C , Lopes Maria Denise
Published: December 2012

The occurrence of a high incidence of sperm tail defects in a male domestic cat resembling the known ‘Dag-like’ defect is reported. Sperm analyses were performed in ejaculated samples collected by an artificial vagina and in testicular and epididymal sperm cells after castration. The following alterations were observed using transmission electron microscope: heavily coiled sperm tails containing several axonemal units enclosed in the same common cell membrane; aberrations in the axonemal main structure; and swollen and unevenly distributed mitochondria in the midpiece. Abnormal modifications in the mitochondrial sheath were also found in sperm cells retrieved from testes and epididymides. Considering these findings, we can conclude that this is the Dag-like defect, described previously in other domestic species and a testicular origin may be involved.
Urinary tract infections in cats with chronic kidney disease
Authors: White Joanna D , Stevenson Mark , Malik Richard , Snow David , Norris Jacqueline M
Published: December 2012

Routine urine cultures were performed in cats with chronic kidney disease (CKD) to assess the overall prevalence and clinical signs associated with a positive urine culture (PUC). An occult urinary tract infection (UTI) was defined as a PUC not associated with clinical signs of lower urinary tract disease or pyelonephritis. Multivariate logistic and Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to evaluate the risk factors for an occult UTI and its relationship with survival. There were 31 PUCs from 25 cats. Eighty-seven percent of PUCs had active urine sediments. The most common infectious agent was Escherichia coli and most bacteria were sensitive to amoxicillin-clavulanate. Eighteen of 25 cats had occult UTIs. Among cats with occult UTI, increasing age in female cats was significantly associated with PUC; no significant association between occult UTI and survival was found and serum creatinine was predictive of survival in the short term (200 days) only. In conclusion, among cats with CKD, those with occult UTI were more likely to be older and female, but there was no association with severity of azotaemia. The presence of an occult UTI, when treated, did not influence survival.
Youth and Politics in Democratic Argentina: Inventing Traditions, Creating New Trends (1983–2008)
Authors: Chaves Mariana , Nuñez Pedro
Published: December 2012

This article has three objectives. First, to present the trajectories of youth studies, in particular about youth and politics, in Argentina from 1983 to 2008. This section is the centre of the article and it is organized in three axes, we will first show the link between the historical context and the possibility of research on youth, both for their appearance as objects of study and for the development of social sciences in Argentina. Then we will detail this background that constitutes what we call ‘the invention of tradition’, and we will pass on to a characterization of current tendencies in the field of youth studies and politics. The second objective is to present through a case study (participation in secondary schools) some discussions regarding the link between youth and politics. Finally, we will discuss youth and politics as an academic and societal preoccupation in the light of the aforementioned processes.
Sexy stories and postfeminist empowerment: From Häutungen to Wetlands1
Authors: Binswanger Christa , Davis Kathy
Published: December 2012

This article explores shifts in feminist and postfeminist discourse on sexuality using two influential novels about women’s sexual agency and empowerment as a case in point. The first novel, Häutungen [ Shedding], appeared in the mid-1970s at the peak of the New German Women’s Movement and went on to become one of the most important feminist fictional texts. The second novel, Feuchtgebiete [ Wetlands] was published in 2008 in the wake of what has been called postfeminism. Both books are discovery narratives about young women coming of age and both have been heralded by the media as having ruptured sexual taboos and old ways of talking about women’s bodies and sexuality. In different ways, both have also been influential in feminist and postfeminist debates about the possibilities for empowering women as sexual subjects. Both texts show how fiction can draw upon and help shape a transgressive sexual politics, making it instrumental in women’s sexual empowerment. In this article, we examine the resonances and the differences between these two texts, paying particular attention to the kind of narratives that are produced and how in each case a sexual subject is constructed in and through the text. Specific exclusions in terms of race, ethnicity, class, and sexuality are explored, as well as the sexual political strategies that each text generates with an eye toward the possibilities each creates for women’s sexual (dis)empowerment and critique of normalised sexuality.
The dance of disclosure: Online self-disclosure of sexual assault
Authors: Moors Rosetta , Webber Ruth
Published: December 2012

The painful route that many survivors take to disclosing sexual assault is well documented, as is the low rate of formal reporting of such incidents. Previous research has examined self-disclosure in traditional settings but not online, where this research found a small but significant amount of help-seeking behaviour occurring. An in-depth analysis of 31 questions and answers on Yahoo! Answers in Australia containing disclosures of sexual assault was conducted. Drawing on interpretive descriptive methodology, clear patterns of help-seeking behaviours and responses were identified and categorized. These patterns constitute what we termed the ‘dance of disclosure’, a theme that could form the basis for further research in this area. Survivors disclosing on this site frequently expressed feeling ‘nowhere else to turn’. In particular a highly vulnerable group was identified as utilizing this medium – survivors who had been abused by people close to them in the past when they were under the age of puberty. Although most responses were supportive, a small number of negative comments were of concern, given survivors’ particular sensitivity to feedback and the influence initial responses have on their inclination to disclose further. As these sites attract survivors reluctant to make contact with social workers and online disclosure can leave victims open to internet predators, we encourage sexual assault counselling centres to consider new outreach methods such as informal monitoring of these sites to offer support and notify survivors of available professional services. It concludes by mentioning some innovative online outreach methods currently being practiced.
Learning from the world and learning for the world: An essay on world schools
Authors: McKenzie Malcolm
Published: December 2012

This essay draws on the author’s personal experiences as a head of school on three continents, over 20 years, as well as on some of his recent writings and talks. From Martin Luther King Jr’s idea of a world house is derived the concept of a ‘world school’. This project charts a way for national schools to develop world-minded graduates. It is claimed that the current state of international education has created an open space for all interested schools to learn both from and for the world. Five thematic visions of learning for the benefit of our world are discussed. Also outlined is a teacher profile for world school teaching, and the article concludes with a case study drawing on the author’s current school and changes that it has implemented over five years.
Challenges and pitfalls facing international education in a post-international world
Authors: Tate Nicholas
Published: December 2012

Taking as its starting point that the adjective international is an inadequate, but unavoidable, label to describe the content of a contemporary international education, this article sets out to explore some of the issues facing international education in a post-international world. It draws mainly on writings in French as a deliberate counterweight to international education’s over-reliance on anglophone sources. The article’s main theme is that the practice of international education is determined, in ways of which we are often unaware, by the social, cultural, political and ideological context in which we live. It tries to identify some of the areas in which the impact of this context is most apparent. The first part of the article focuses on the continuing role of the nation state and on education for citizenship and multiple identities, stressing that citizenship education cannot be subsumed within ‘education for inter-cultural understanding and respect’ and drawing attention to Amartya Sen’s warning about the dangers of ‘plural monoculturalism’. The remainder of the article explores other areas in which hidden and sometimes unexamined presuppositions influence thinking and practice in ways that would benefit from challenge. These include the following: the impact of western utopianism; the balance between reason and emotion and the need for ‘an intelligent heart’; the pitfalls of service education and education for rights; the balance between contemporaneity and transmission; and attitudes towards happiness, adversity and language.
Is global citizenship possible, and can international schools provide it?
Authors: Bates Richard
Published: December 2012

This article questions the notion of global citizenship, arguing that it is not possible in strictly legal terms as there is no global state that could guarantee citizenship. However, metaphorically there are several possible conceptions of global citizenship. These are examined along with associated notions of global education. The issue of for whom such global citizenships might be possible is addressed, as is the issue of what citizenship might mean in failed states. It is suggested that international schools will respond variously to this variety of conceptions of global citizenship, and that where they locate themselves within this complex of metaphors will have major impact on their presentation of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment.
International education research and the sociology of knowledge
Authors: Cambridge James
Published: December 2012

The ontology of the field of international education is described and analysed in terms of singular, regional and generic modes of pedagogized knowledge. In contrast to singular and regional modes of knowledge which synthesize introjection (orientation onto themselves) and projection (orientation towards external contingencies), generic modes concentrate solely on projection onto the demands of the market. Generic knowledge is characterized as a reductive discourse that couples education to the acquisition of skills and competences. International education may be characterized as a region in which singulars (academic disciplines) are brought together in an integrating framework. ‘Internationally minded values’ are identified as constituting an overarching master view that weakens classification between the contents of the field of international education. It is proposed that the International Baccalaureate Learner Profile, as a specification for international education, constitutes pedagogized knowledge in the generic mode. Possible directions for future research in international education are discussed in the context of these contrasting modes of knowledge.
Five Perspectives on the Leadership–Management Relationship
Authors: Simonet Daniel V. , Tett Robert P.
Published: December 2012

How management and leadership are best conceptualized with respect to each other has been a frequent topic of debate. Five distinct perspectives are identified in the literature, including bipolar, unidimensional, bidimensional, hierarchical—management within leadership, and hierarchical—leadership within management. We assessed the viability of these perspectives by having Academy of Management and Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology experts ( N = 43) map a comprehensive set of 63 managerial and leadership competencies, as a “common language,” onto defined and undefined management and leadership dimensions. Results reveal interpretable patterns of uniqueness and overlap, suggesting a hybrid co-dimensional/bidimensional configuration. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in light of the precedence of “what” over “how” in developing leadership and management theory.
Unblinding following trial participation: Qualitative study of participants’ perspectives
Authors: Armstrong Natalie , Jackson Clare J , McNicol Sarah , Dixon-Woods Mary , Kenyon Sara , Tarrant Carolyn
Published: December 2012

Background

The implications of offering unblinding to trial participants to treatment arm after trial completion have been little explored.

Purpose

We sought to explore trial participants’ perspectives on whether they would like to be unblinded as to the treatment arm to which they were allocated following involvement in a large randomised controlled trial (RCT).

Methods

We conducted semi-structured interviews with 38 women who had participated in a trial during suspected preterm labour and had received the results of a long-term follow-up study that identified adverse outcomes for children in some of the treatment groups. Participants were sampled purposively. Analysis was based on the constant comparative method.

Results

Most women reported that they wanted to know the treatment arm to which they had been allocated. While the primary motive for some was curiosity, many others wanted to know as part of an attempt to understand or explain their child’s current health problems. These women were motivated by a search for a coherent causal narrative, even though unblinding was unlikely to be able to meet their aspirations. Some participants identified potential disadvantages in discovering their treatment allocation, including feeling responsible for their child’s health status, and some women were very clear that they did not want to know their treatment group.

Limitations

A purposive sample was used and the extent to which it represents the views of all participants in the study is not established.

Conclusions

Important challenges arise in offering to unblind trial participants, whatever the trial results. Participants may need help and support to understand the limitations of the knowledge they gain through being unblinded and to decide whether they wish to know to which treatment arm they were allocated.
Cost–utility analysis conducted alongside randomized controlled trials: Are economic end points considered in sample size calculations and does it matter?
Authors: Hollingworth William , McKell-Redwood Denise , Hampson Lisa , Metcalfe Chris
Published: December 2012

Background

Many randomized controlled trials (RCTs) collect cost-effectiveness data. Without appropriate sample size calculations, patient recruitment may cease before the cost-effectiveness of the intervention can be established or continue after the cost-effectiveness of the intervention is established beyond doubt.

Purpose

We determined the frequency with which cost-effectiveness is considered in sample size calculations and whether RCT-based economic evaluations are likely to come to inconclusive results at odds with the clinical findings.

Methods

We searched the National Health Service Economic Evaluation Database (NHS EED) to identify RCT-based cost-utility analyses. RCTs that collected individual patient data on costs and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were eligible. Studies using models to extrapolate the results of RCTs or with insufficient information on incremental costs and QALYs were excluded.

Results

In total, 38 trials met eligibility criteria. Only one considered cost-effectiveness in sample size calculations. RCTs were less likely to reach definitive conclusions based on the cost-effectiveness results than the primary clinical outcome (15.8% vs. 42.1%; McNemar; p = 0.01). In trials that provided sufficient data, exploratory analysis indicated that the median power to detect important differences was 29.5% for QALYs, 94.1% for costs, and 78.7% for the primary clinical outcome. In three trials (7.9%), a definitely more effective intervention was found to be expensive and probably not cost-effective.

Limitations

Our results reflect trials where authors considered within-trial estimates of cost-effectiveness to be meaningful. In focusing on one primary clinical outcome from each RCT, we have simplified the clinical effectiveness results, although the primary outcome will usually be one that policy makers use in judging the ‘success’ of the intervention.

Conclusions

Economic evaluations conducted alongside RCTs are valuable, but often present inconclusive evidence. Trial results may lead to discordant messages when the most effective intervention is probably not the most cost-effective. Despite methodological advances, trialists rarely assessed the extent to which their trial might resolve the key uncertainties about the cost-effectiveness of interventions. We recommend that grant funders should do more to encourage trialists to include economic end points in sample size calculations, particularly when the majority of costs and benefits of the intervention occur within the time frame of the trial.
News on the rocks: Exploring the agenda-setting effects of Blood Diamond in print and broadcast news
Authors: Sharma Rekha
Published: December 2012

This article explores cinematic and journalistic treatments of issues, focusing on the movie Blood Diamond (2006, dir. Edward Zwick) and news coverage of conflict diamonds. First, the author examines Hollywood’s impact on news, highlighting central ideas of agenda-setting theory and framing as well as the potential for synergistic influences on news due to concentration of media ownership. Second, she discusses the themes and narrative techniques of Blood Diamond, as well as its messages about the diamond trade, American consumerism, and journalistic norms and responsibilities. Third, she assesses print and broadcast news regarding conflict diamonds in the wake of the movie’s release. Finally, she suggests areas for research into linkages between film and news as industries and forms of mass communication.
A case of pulmonary veno-occlusive disease: diagnostic dilemmas and therapeutic challenges
Authors: Sourla Evdokia , Paspala Asimina , Boutou Afroditi , Kontou Paschalina , Stanopoulos Ioannis , Pitsiou Georgia
Published: December 2012

Pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) is a rare cause of pulmonary hypertension (PH). Misdiagnosis of the disease is common since PVOD presents with clinical and radiographic features mimicking idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension or even PH due to interstitial lung disease. Vasodilators may not be efficacious in PVOD and may in fact worsen hemodynamic status with the development of pulmonary edema. Lung transplantation represents the best treatment option. In the present report we describe the challenging diagnosis of PVOD in a patient with PH referred to our department. Final diagnosis was established by surgical lung biopsy. The patient was offered sequential combination therapy under close monitoring and maintained remarkable clinical stabilization while being on the waiting list for lung transplantation.
Clinical development of two innovative pharmaceutical forms of leuprorelin acetate
Authors: Geiges Goetz , Schapperer Elisabeth , Thyroff-Friesinger Ursula , Engert Zoltán Vendel , Gravel Patricia
Published: December 2012

Objectives:

Two innovative pharmaceutical forms of leuprorelin acetate have been developed as 1-month and 3-month implants for the treatment of advanced hormone-dependent prostate cancer. These products contain active substance dispersed homogeneously in a biodegradable polymer. Here we present the key results from the clinical development of these slow-release implant formulations of leuprorelin.

Methods:

Two therapeutic studies of the 1-month implant were performed: a randomized, controlled study comparing the leuprorelin implant with leuprorelin prolonged-release microspheres (Enantone) as the active control; and a single-arm study of the leuprorelin implant. For the 3-month implant, four therapeutic studies were performed: a randomized, controlled study comparing the leuprorelin implant with leuprorelin prolonged-release microspheres (Trenantone) as the active control; a single-arm study of the leuprorelin implant; and two long-term studies with the 3-month implant administered twice, either 12 or 16 weeks apart. A pooled analysis of data from the comparator-controlled and single-arm studies of the 3-month implant was also conducted. The main inclusion criterion for all studies was histologically confirmed advanced prostate cancer, with primary endpoints based around successful testosterone suppression (≤0.5 ng/ml).

Results:

In the comparator-controlled studies, both implants were as effective as the microspheres for achieving successful testosterone suppression and normalization of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. Data from the single-arm and long-term studies were consistent with those from the comparator-controlled studies. In the pooled analysis, significantly more patients treated with the 3-month implant achieved successful testosterone suppression compared with the comparator ( p ≤ 0.01). The safety profile of the implants in the comparator-controlled studies was similar to that of the prolonged-release microsphere formulation, and consistent with that of the luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist class.

Conclusions:

The innovative 1-month and 3-month implants of leuprorelin acetate are at least as effective as leuprorelin acetate prolonged-release microspheres for achieving successful testosterone suppression and normalization of PSA in men with advanced hormone-dependent prostate cancer, with a comparable safety profile.
Failed back surgery syndrome: a suggested algorithm of care
Authors: Ganty Praveen , Sharma Manohar
Published: December 2012

Failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS) is a complex condition which can be very difficult to treat. In this article, we propose a pragmatic algorithm for the management of the syndrome. The management of this condition should include a comprehensive initial assessment to rule out treatable cause, pharmacological optimisation, psychological techniques and neuromodulation. There is good evidence to support early application of conventional spinal cord stimulation for FBSS patients suffering from predominant buttock and leg pain. Emerging techniques in neuromodulation such as high-frequency spinal cord stimulation, peripheral nerve field stimulation and dorsal root ganglion stimulation hold promise for the future, but long-term outcome regarding efficacy and safety is not yet established. Intrathecal drug delivery systems should also be considered in those who are unsuitable or unresponsive to neuromodulation and still warrant further treatment. However, the long-term outcome may not be as good as with other treatments mentioned above.
Reflections on Communication and Sport
Authors: Lenskyj Helen Jefferson
Published: December 2012

In this essay, Helen Jefferson Lenskyj reflects on how heternormativity and gender identities have been characterized in sport media for more than a century. In light of these issues, Lenskyj reflects on why communication about sport may have particular importance in fueling heternormativity and a climate of homophobia. In reflecting on her journey as a scholar focused on the nexus of sport, gender, and media, Lenskyj notes that researchers have identified homophobia more readily than heterosexism, and lesbians’ experiences have been investigated in greater depth than those of gay men. The body of this essay focuses on trends in research, comments on the common perception that in sport “all the men are straight and all the women are gay,” considers heternormativity as social control, and assesses the potential of “the new muscular woman and the new metrosexual man” in the context of mediated sport. The conclusion focuses on more progressive trends in media treatment of sexuality issues in sport and considers both the standpoint and the key questions for future research.
Reflections on Communication and Sport
Authors: Trujillo Nick
Published: December 2012

In this essay, Nick Trujillo considers his research agenda and interest in communication and sport. The opening section reflects on why communication and sport matters and the many challenges that research faced in this area to be seen as important in communication studies. The section examines influences on the author’s personal and scholarly journey that framed his focus on sport in the organizational setting. The focus section of the essay on “Ethnography and Sport Organizations” considers the relative paucity and development of ethnographic research on sport organizations and reflects on the process and findings in the author’s research agenda on sport organizations and stadiums. The essay closes with observations for future communication and sport research and the continued prospects for this area of inquiry to develop.
Reflections on Communication and Sport
Authors: Andrews David L.
Published: December 2012

In this essay, David Andrews examines the intriguing nexus of celebrity and race in the context of mediated sport. As a suggestive, rather than comprehensive examination of the study of sport, celebrity, and race, the treatment attempts to illuminate the derivation, complexities, and absences within this field of intellectual inquiry. After a brief discussion of why the relationship between communication and sport matters in social and cultural terms, insight is given to the author’s engagement with celebrity- and race-focused research. This is followed by a brief overview of the celebrity and race research, highlighting its genesis, major themes, and foci. Paying particular attention to the U.S.-based studies, this discussion provides a rationale for the intensification of sport, celebrity, and race research in the late 1980s and early 1990s, draws attention to studies representative of the major strands of inquiry, and highlights heretofore understudied areas. Finally, the prospects and directions for further inquiry on the nexus of celebrity and race in the context of mediated sport are briefly considered.
Reflections on Communication and Sport
Authors: Bellamy Robert V.
Published: December 2012

In this essay, Robert Bellamy reflects on scholarly work focused on understanding sports media institutions and their strategies over the past 25 years. The first section assesses the economic and cultural importance of sport as a media product, and, in particular, as a television product in an era of structural change. The second section of the article considers the author’s path to focusing research concerns on the institutional dynamics behind sports programming in the media marketplace. The focus section of the essay considers the merits and limitations to using an industrial organizations approach (i.e., structure–conduct–performance) to study sport communication within a larger political–economic context. Considered here are key issues about regulatory policy options, barriers to entry in the marketplace for sport media product, prospects for structural change, responsiveness to changing usage patterns, and the evolution of branding strategies in a multiple channel environment. The essay closes with consideration of future directions for industry and economic studies of media and sport institutions and their strategies for monetizing sport as media product.
Platelet serotonin promotes the recruitment of neutrophils to sites of acute inflammation in mice
Authors: Duerschmied Daniel , Suidan Georgette L. , Demers Melanie , Herr Nadine , Carbo Carla , Brill Alexander , Cifuni Stephen M. , Mauler Maximilian , Cicko Sanja , Bader Michael , Idzko Marco , Bode Christoph , Wagner Denisa D.
Published: December 2012

Key Points

During inflammation, serotonin released by platelets activates vessel wall promoting leukocyte adhesion and recruitment. Absence of platelet serotonin improves survival after lipopolysaccharide-induced endotoxic shock.
An automatic device for detection and classification of malaria parasite species in thick blood film
Authors: Kaewkamnerd Saowaluck , Uthaipibull Chairat , Intarapanich Apichart , Pannarut Montri , Chaotheing Sastra , Tongsima Sissades
Published: December 2012

Background

Current malaria diagnosis relies primarily on microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained thick and thin blood films. This method requires vigorously trained technicians to efficiently detect and classify the malaria parasite species such as Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) and Plasmodium vivax (Pv) for an appropriate drug administration. However, accurate classification of parasite species is difficult to achieve because of inherent technical limitations and human inconsistency. To improve performance of malaria parasite classification, many researchers have proposed automated malaria detection devices using digital image analysis. These image processing tools, however, focus on detection of parasites on thin blood films, which may not detect the existence of parasites due to the parasite scarcity on the thin blood film. The problem is aggravated with low parasitemia condition. Automated detection and classification of parasites on thick blood films, which contain more numbers of parasite per detection area, would address the previous limitation.

Results

The prototype of an automatic malaria parasite identification system is equipped with mountable motorized units for controlling the movements of objective lens and microscope stage. This unit was tested for its precision to move objective lens (vertical movement, z-axis) and microscope stage (in x- and y-horizontal movements). The average precision of x-, y- and z-axes movements were 71.481 ± 7.266 μm, 40.009 ± 0.000 μm, and 7.540 ± 0.889 nm, respectively. Classification of parasites on 60 Giemsa-stained thick blood films (40 blood films containing infected red blood cells and 20 control blood films of normal red blood cells) was tested using the image analysis module. By comparing our results with the ones verified by trained malaria microscopists, the prototype detected parasite-positive and parasite-negative blood films at the rate of 95% and 68.5% accuracy, respectively. For classification performance, the thick blood films with Pv parasite was correctly classified with the success rate of 75% while the accuracy of Pf classification was 90%.

Conclusions

This work presents an automatic device for both detection and classification of malaria parasite species on thick blood film. The system is based on digital image analysis and featured with motorized stage units, designed to easily be mounted on most conventional light microscopes used in the endemic areas. The constructed motorized module could control the movements of objective lens and microscope stage at high precision for effective acquisition of quality images for analysis. The analysis program could accurately classify parasite species, into Pf or Pv, based on distribution of chromatin size.
Mathematical modeling of the immune system recognition to mammary carcinoma antigen
Authors: Bianca Carlo , Chiacchio Ferdinando , Pappalardo Francesco , Pennisi Marzio
Published: December 2012

The definition of artificial immunity, realized through vaccinations, is nowadays a practice widely developed in order to eliminate cancer disease. The present paper deals with an improved version of a mathematical model recently analyzed and related to the competition between immune system cells and mammary carcinoma cells under the action of a vaccine (Triplex). The model describes in detail both the humoral and cellular response of the immune system to the tumor associate antigen and the recognition process between B cells, T cells and antigen presenting cells. The control of the tumor cells growth occurs through the definition of different vaccine protocols. The performed numerical simulations of the model are in agreement with in vivo experiments on transgenic mice.
N-acetylation and phosphorylation of Sec complex subunits in the ER membrane
Authors: Soromani Christina , Zeng Naiyan , Hollemeyer Klaus , Heinzle Elmar , Klein Marie-Christine , Tretter Thomas , Seaman Matthew N J , Römisch Karin
Published: December 2012

Background

Covalent modifications of proteins provide a mechanism to control protein function. Here, we have investigated modifications of the heptameric Sec complex which is responsible for post-translational protein import into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). It consists of the Sec61 complex (Sec61p, Sbh1p, Sss1p) which on its own mediates cotranslational protein import into the ER and the Sec63 complex (Sec63p, Sec62p, Sec71p, Sec72p). Little is known about the biogenesis and regulation of individual Sec complex subunits.

Results

We show that Sbh1p when it is part of the Sec61 complex is phosphorylated on T5 which is flanked by proline residues. The phosphorylation site is conserved in mammalian Sec61ß, but only partially in birds, and not in other vertebrates or unicellular eukaryotes, suggesting convergent evolution. Mutation of T5 to A did not affect the ability of mutant Sbh1p to complement the growth defect in a Δsbh1Δsbh2 strain, and did not result in a hypophosphorylated protein which shows that alternate sites can be used by the T5 kinase. A survey of yeast phosphoproteome data shows that Sbh1p can be phosphorylated on multiple sites which are organized in two patches, one at the N-terminus of its cytosolic domain, the other proximal to the transmembrane domain. Surprisingly, although N-acetylation has been shown to interfere with ER targeting, we found that both Sbh1p and Sec62p are cotranslationally N-acetylated by NatA, and N-acetyl-proteome data indicate that Sec61p is modified by the same enzyme. Mutation of the N-acetylation site, however, did not affect Sec62p function in posttranslational protein import into the ER. Disabling NatA resulted in growth retardation, but not in co- or posttranslational translocation defects or instability of Sec62p or Sbh1p.

Conclusions

We conclude that N-acetylation of transmembrane and tail-anchored proteins does not interfere with their ER-targeting, and that Sbh1p phosphorylation on T5, which is not present in Sbh2p, plays a non-essential role specific to the Sec61 complex.
iLOCi: a SNP interaction prioritization technique for detecting epistasis in genome-wide association studies
Authors: Piriyapongsa Jittima , Ngamphiw Chumpol , Intarapanich Apichart , Kulawonganunchai Supasak , Assawamakin Anunchai , Bootchai Chaiwat , Shaw Philip J , Tongsima Sissades
Published: December 2012

Background

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) do not provide a full account of the heritability of genetic diseases since gene-gene interactions, also known as epistasis are not considered in single locus GWAS. To address this problem, a considerable number of methods have been developed for identifying disease-associated gene-gene interactions. However, these methods typically fail to identify interacting markers explaining more of the disease heritability over single locus GWAS, since many of the interactions significant for disease are obscured by uninformative marker interactions e.g., linkage disequilibrium (LD).

Results

In this study, we present a novel SNP interaction prioritization algorithm, named iLOCi (Interacting Loci). This algorithm accounts for marker dependencies separately in case and control groups. Disease-associated interactions are then prioritized according to a novel ranking score calculated from the difference in marker dependencies for every possible pair between case and control groups. The analysis of a typical GWAS dataset can be completed in less than a day on a standard workstation with parallel processing capability. The proposed framework was validated using simulated data and applied to real GWAS datasets using the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium (WTCCC) data. The results from simulated data showed the ability of iLOCi to identify various types of gene-gene interactions, especially for high-order interaction. From the WTCCC data, we found that among the top ranked interacting SNP pairs, several mapped to genes previously known to be associated with disease, and interestingly, other previously unreported genes with biologically related roles.

Conclusion

iLOCi is a powerful tool for uncovering true disease interacting markers and thus can provide a more complete understanding of the genetic basis underlying complex disease. The program is available for download at http://www4a.biotec.or.th/GI/tools/iloci.