bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adenoviral disease in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients
Authors: Hoffman Jill A.
Published: February 2006

Abstract:  Adenoviral disease in pediatric SOT recipients is emerging as an important viral pathogen, with serious consequences impacting morbidity, mortality and graft survival. The optimal diagnostic techniques, as well as therapy have yet to be established. This article reviews the current epidemiology of AdV in orthotopic liver, intestinal, cardiothoracic and renal transplant recipients. Issues related to diagnosis, notably the use of newer non‐culture based viral detection methods and therapy, including anti‐adenoviral agents and adoptive immunotherapy are discussed.
Biosynthesis of vitamin B2 in plants
Authors: Fischer Markus , Bacher Adelbert
Published: February 2006

The biosynthesis of one riboflavin (vitamin B2) molecule requires one molecule of GTP and two molecules of ribulose 5‐phosphate. The imidazole ring of GTP is hydrolytically opened, yielding a 2,5‐diaminopyrimidine that is converted to 5‐amino‐6‐ribitylamino‐2,4(1H,3H)‐pyrimidinedione by a sequence of deamination, side chain reduction and dephosphorylation. Condensation of 5‐amino‐6‐ribitylamino‐2,4(1H,3H)‐pyrimidinedione with 3,4‐dihydroxy‐2‐butanone 4‐phosphate obtained from ribulose 5‐phosphate yields 6,7‐dimethyl‐8‐ribityllumazine. Dismutation of the lumazine derivative yields riboflavin and 5‐amino‐6‐ribitylamino‐2,4(1H,3H)‐pyrimidinedione, which is recycled in the biosynthetic pathway. Characteristic architectural features of most enzymes involved in the plant riboflavin pathway resemble those of eubacteria, whereas the similarities between plants and yeasts are less pronounced. Moreover, riboflavin biosynthesis in plants proceeds by the same reaction steps as in eubacteria, whereas fungi use a somewhat different pathway.
Progress in the dissection and manipulation of plant vitamin E biosynthesis
Authors: DellaPenna Dean , Last Robert L.
Published: February 2006

Plants contain many unique biosynthetic pathways producing a diverse array of natural products that are important for plant function, agriculture, and human nutrition. The tocochromanols define one such class of compounds, comprised of four tocopherols and four tocotrienols that are collectively termed vitamin E. Tocochromanols are synthesized only by plants and other oxygenic, photosynthetic organisms, and the eight individual compounds vary widely in their vitamin E activities. Vitamin E was recognized as an essential component in mammalian diets in the 1920s and the tocochromanol biosynthetic pathway elucidated from radiotracer studies in the mid 1980s. However, it is only recently that genetic and genomics‐based approaches in model photosynthetic organisms have allowed the genes and proteins for tocochromanol synthesis to be isolated, setting the stage for targeted manipulation of tocochromanol levels and types in various crops. This article reviews advancements in our molecular and genetic understanding of the tocochromanol biosynthetic pathway in the model photosynthetic organisms Arabidopsis thaliana and Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 and highlights ongoing efforts to use this knowledge to manipulate the levels of this essential nutrient in food crops.
Pantothenate biosynthesis in higher plants: advances and challenges
Authors: Chakauya Ereck , Coxon Katy M. , Whitney Heather M. , Ashurst Jennifer L. , Abell Chris , Smith Alison G.
Published: February 2006

Pantothenate (vitamin B5) is the precursor of the 4′‐phosphopantetheine moiety of coenzyme A and acyl‐carrier protein. Plants and microorganisms make the vitamin de novo, whereas animals must obtain it from their diet. Pantothenate is produced commercially by chemical synthesis for vitamin supplements, feed additives and cosmetics. An attractive alternative for production is biotransformation, which would avoid expensive procedures for separation of racemic intermediates. The biosynthetic pathway in bacteria, comprising four enzymic reactions, is well‐established, and enzymes from Escherichia coli have been fully characterized including the overexpression and purification of recombinant enzymes and the determination of their X‐ray crystal structures. Pantothenate biosynthesis in higher plants is beginning to be elucidated, and genes encoding the first and last enzymes have been identified and characterized in Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa (rice). This review describes our current understanding of the pathway in plants and the challenges that lie ahead in engineering plants to make increased amounts of the vitamin.
Engineering and genetic approaches to modulating the glutathione network in plants
Authors: Maughan Spencer , Foyer Christine H.
Published: February 2006

Reduced glutathione (GSH) is the most abundant low‐molecular weight thiol in plant cells. It accumulates to high concentrations, particularly in stress situations. Because the pathway of GSH synthesis consists of only two enzymes, manipulation of cellular glutathione contents by genetic intervention has proved to be relatively straightforward. The discovery of a new bacterial bifunctional enzyme catalysing GSH synthesis but lacking feedback inhibition characteristics offers new prospects of enhancing GSH production and accumulation by plant cells, while the identification of γ‐glutamyl cysteine and glutathione transporters provides additional possibilities for selective compartment‐specific targeting. Such manipulations might also be used to affect plant biology in disparate ways, because GSH and glutathione disulphide (GSSG) have crucial roles in processes as diverse as the regulation of the cell cycle, systemic acquired resistance and xenobiotic detoxification. For example, depletion of the total glutathione pool can be used to manipulate the shoot : root ratio, because GSH is required specifically for the growth of the root meristem. Similarly, chloroplast γ‐glutamyl cysteine synthetase overexpression could be used to increase the abundance of specific amino acids such as leucine, lysine and tyrosine that are synthesized in the chloroplasts. Here we review the aspects of glutathione biology related to synthesis, compartmentation and transport and related signalling functions that modulate plant growth and development and underpin any assessment of manipulation of GSH homeostasis from the viewpoint of nutritional genomics.
Clinicopathological features and medical management of intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms
Authors: OKABAYASHI TAKEHIRO , KOBAYASHI MICHIYA , NISHIMORI ISAO , SUGIMOTO TAKEKI , NAMIKAWA TSUTOMU , OKAMOTO KEN , OKAMOTO NOBUTO , KOSAKI TAKUHIRO , ONISHI SABURO , ARAKI KEIJIRO
Published: February 2006

Background:  Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMN) are a clinicopathological entity that is being diagnosed with increasing frequency. However, the best approach to medical management of IPMN needs to be clarified. The aim of the present study was to identify preoperative features that may be predictors of malignant IPMN, and to define the medical management of IPMN of the pancreas.

Methods:  A total of 23 patients who underwent surgical resection for IPMN of the pancreas at Kochi Medical School between 1982 and 2004 were examined. Multivariate Cox regression analysis was used to identify factors independently associated with IPM carcinoma.

Results:  Among the 23 patients, 12 had IPMN adenoma, three had borderline IPMN, four had IPMN with carcinoma in situ, and four had IPMN with invasive carcinoma. In multivariate analysis, elevated serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen (CA) 19‐9 levels were found to be preoperative predictors of malignant IPMN. These results suggest that the following IPMN of the pancreas should be resected: (i) IPMN of the pancreas situated in the main duct; (ii) IPMN located in the branch duct if the size of the cystic lesion is >30 mm and the mural nodules are >5 mm in height by endoscopic ultrasound (EUS); and (iii) the diameter of the main pancreatic duct is >10 mm by endoscopic retrograde pancreatography (ERP). Careful observation of patients with branch‐type IPMN with small cysts and/or without mural nodules is recommended as a management strategy.

Conclusion:  The present study reinforces the need for immediate surgical resection of malignant IPMN and suggests indicators for IPMN that should assist physicians in making decisions on treatment options.

© 2005 Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd
Hemorrhagic duodenal lipoma managed by endoscopic resection
Authors: Sou Suketo , Nomura Hideyuki , Takaki Yasuhiro , Nagahama Takashi , Matsubara Fujio , Matsui Toshiyuki , Yao Tsuneyoshi
Published: February 2006

The patient, an 81‐year‐old woman, was admitted to our hospital for a detailed examination; the chief complaint being melena. An upper gastrointestinal roentgenologic study revealed a submucosal tumor with a smooth surface and a stalk measuring 50 mm at the third part of the duodenum. Endoscopy depicted it as a yellowish submucosal tumor. Based on computed tomography and fluoroscopy of the small intestine, a diagnosis of duodenal lipoma was made. The esophagus, stomach, and the small and large intestines were free of lesions so the duodenal lipoma was judged to be the hemorrhagic source. The tumor was endoscopically polypectomized using a 2‐channel scope. The excised specimen, measuring 50 × 20 × 20 mm, was covered by a normal duodenal mucosa with small ulcers in part. Photomicrographic findings included a tumor that was composed of mature adipose tissue in the submucosa, which coincided with a diagnosis of lipoma. Small ulcers had formed in part, exposing vessels, thus indicating the cause for hemorrhage. Lipoma is a benign tumor; and if the lesion is found to be pedunculated and an endoscope can reach it for treatment, minimally invasive endoscopic procedures should be selected.
Helicobacter pylori and hepatocellular carcinoma: Correlated or uncorrelated?
Authors: Wu Xiong‐Zhi , Chen Dan
Published: February 2006

Helicobacter pylori can be detected in liver tissue resected from patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Conflicting reports regarding the relationship between H. pylori and hepatocellular carcinoma mean it is uncertain whether H. pylori acts as a troublemaker, co‐risk factor or innocent bystander to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. Clinical studies in patients without known causes of hepatocellular carcinoma are important to discover whether H. pylori is involved in the carcinogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma. High quality prospective studies in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatitis C virus infection and no cirrhosis are needed to determine whether H. pylori is a co‐risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma.
Mental health of children in foster and kinship care in New South Wales, Australia
Authors: Tarren‐Sweeney Michael , Hazell Philip
Published: February 2006

Objectives: To report baseline mental health measures from the Children in Care study, a prospective epidemiological study of children in court‐ordered foster and kinship care in New South Wales, Australia.

Methods: Mental health, socialization and self‐esteem were assessed in 347 children in a statewide mail survey, using two carer‐report checklists, the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Assessment Checklist for Children (ACC).

Results: Children in the study had exceptionally poor mental health and socialization, both in absolute terms, and relative to normative and in‐care samples. Levels and rates of disturbance for children in foster care exceeded all prior estimates. Rates of disturbance for children in kinship care were high, but within the range of prior estimates. Boys presented with higher scope and severity of mental health problems than girls on the CBCL, while gender‐specific patterns of disturbance were shown on the ACC. A moderate age effect was accounted for by children's age at entry into care.

Conclusions: Children in care are at high risk of mental health problems. Psychological support for the children and their carers is an essential secondary prevention strategy. Implications for service delivery are discussed.
Birthweight and cognitive development during childhood
Authors: Tong Shilu , Baghurst Peter , McMichael Anthony
Published: February 2006

Objectives: Low birthweight has been reported to be associated with lower IQ at school age. Further, some evidence suggests that the association extends across the range of normal birthweights. This study assessed the relationship of birthweight to cognitive development in the Port Pirie birth cohort.

Methods: Of 723 singleton live births recruited into a prospective birth cohort study, 601, 548, 494 and 375 children were followed at ages 2, 4, 7 and 11–13 years, respectively. The children's developmental status was assessed using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development at age 2 years, the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities at age 4 years, and the revised Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children at ages 7 and 11–13 years. The association between birthweight and cognitive function was assessed with multiple linear regression, adjusting for a wide range of possible confounders.

Results: The mean birthweight was 3386 g (SD: 517). There was a statistically significant association between birthweight and cognitive performance at age 2 years (adjusted deficit: 0.97 points per 100 g lighter; 95% CI: 0.4–1.5), but the magnitude of this association gradually decreased and became statistically non‐significant at later childhood.

Conclusions: The relationship between birthweight and cognitive development becomes progressively attenuated at increasing age. At older ages, socioenvironmental factors appear to play an increasingly important part in children's cognitive development.
Diagnostic findings in alleged sexual abuse: Symptoms have no predictive value
Authors: Kelly Patrick , Koh Jean , Thompson John M
Published: February 2006

Aims: To describe demographic characteristics and trends, indications for referral and medical findings in children and young people seen for suspected sexual abuse.

Methods: Retrospective review of consecutive medical records over a 7‐year period.

Results: A total of 2310 new patients were seen for concerns about sexual abuse and/or genital symptoms, resulting in 2162 genital examinations, of which 2134 were statistically analysed. The age ranged from 1 month to 17 years, with peaks at 3 and 14 years. Eighty‐six percent were female. Most were referred by statutory authorities, with a marked reduction in referral numbers from 1997. Where a perpetrator was described, 97% were male and 92% were family members or friends. Medical findings diagnostic of sexual abuse were found in 130 cases (6%). Diagnostic findings were more likely to be found in adolescent girls. For the most part, physical symptoms were of no value in differentiating between those who had been sexually abused and those who had not.

Conclusions: The demographics are concordant with the literature. The reduction in referrals may reflect changes in practice by statutory authorities. In pre‐pubertal children, referrals were often made on the basis of physical symptoms, which have no predictive value in the diagnosis of sexual abuse.
Parental and Stakeholder ‘Voice’ in Schools and Systems
Authors: SLIWKA ANNE , ISTANCE DAVID
Published: February 2006

With the expansion of education, the growth of the middle class and their awareness of the nexus between educational opportunities and socio‐economic success, countries have come to perceive parents as stakeholders in, not just the recipients of, education. With the growing stakes involved, the need to have parental agreement on the broad lines of educational reform has become a more pressing political objective. This article suggests that it is important to examine ‘voice’ in the context of these broader trends as well as in the specific context of assessing whether education is becoming more ‘demand‐led’. It examines the exercise of ‘voice’ in schooling at the ‘micro’ level of schools and more broadly in the extent to which school systems at the macro level encourage the expression of diverse educational demands.

Alongside the formal opportunities and encouragement of parental participation, the practice reveals problems and limitations. In some countries parents tend to believe that the issues on which their engagement is sought are the relatively simple, practical ones rather than fundamentals, and that there may even be active discouragement of parental involvement. Evidence in some countries worryingly suggests that the level of parental interest is not high. There are the familiar equity questions to consider arising from inequalities in parental interest/involvement.
The Impact of Structural Upheavals on Educational Organisation, Attainment and Choice: the experience of post‐Communist Hungary
Authors: LANNERT JUDIT , MÁRTONFI GYÖRGY , VÁGÓ IRÉN
Published: February 2006

During the transition period in Hungary the role of the market has become more significant, and several market elements have appeared in education, as well. The growing social demand for schooling resulted in the huge expansion of secondary and higher education. Schools try to match the demand with the supply in a colourful variety of programmes. However, public education in Hungary struggles with very great problems of inequalities.
Student Choices and Values in England
Authors: KEYS WENDY
Published: February 2006

What do students in England think about school? This article examines the findings of educational research in England on the aspirations and expectations of young people themselves, and how well these are met through schooling. It focuses on the following issues: liking for school; attitudes towards schoolwork; disaffected pupils; attitudes towards teachers; views on the purposes of education; perceptions of parental interest and support; educational aspirations; students’ views on the curriculum; and absence and related factors. It concludes by bringing together and discussing those findings which might well be regarded as positive and those which might instead be regarded as cause for concern.

In order to set these research findings in context, a brief overview of schooling in England is given, followed by information on ways in which educational research is funded and conducted.
Educating Educators in a Volatile Climate — The Challenge of Modernising Higher Business Schools in Serbia and Montenegro
Authors: HOLLINSHEAD GRAHAM
Published: February 2006

This study is set in the rapidly changing higher educational environment that has ensued in Serbia and Montenegro in the post Milošević era. Its primary focus is a ‘Training Trainers’ initiative, mounted by the GTZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit/Society for Technical Co‐operation), designed to upgrade the teaching capacity of academic representatives from four Serbian Higher Business Schools (HBS) in modern business and management education as part of a broader European project to foster democratic citizenship and to spur the political rehabilitation of Serbia. As a consultant employed by the GTZ to deliver a module in Human Resource Management (HRM) I was able to gain first hand insights into problems and issues associated with the assimilation and teaching of new business ideas by local experts. The article draws upon hermeneutic insight in order to understand the potential for misinterpretation and misunderstanding in intercultural educational dialogue in a particularly troubled economic, political and institutional climate. Although the module was perceived as being successful in it own right, institutional inertia in the field of education, cultural dissonance amongst primary stakeholders and an ethnocentric approach to programme formulation impeded the diffusion of new business knowledge into wider Serbian industrial structures. It is concluded that, in future, such initiatives would need to be more finely tuned to local circumstances and founded upon genuine dialogue between international educational actors.
Demand‐led e‐learning and the elusive total solution
Authors: Wong Denis , Clarke Steve , Lodge Nigel , Shephard Kerry
Published: February 2006

Demand‐led learning offers resources to learners when they want them; total solution learning takes the learner from induction to final accreditation through a seamless process. The University of Southampton attempted to deliver basic information technology skills through the support of these processes. Steps in the seamless process were designed, developed and implemented. Face‐to‐face intervention was eliminated, apart from initial learner induction and online‐test invigilation. Feedback loops were planned so that success (eg, in completing the accreditation) might encourage further success through collaborative and competitive peer learning. Critical dependency issues arose whilst implementing the solution. When learning delivery was disrupted by systems failure, the indirect effects on learner motivation and resourcefulness proved as damaging as system breaks themselves. This made the institutionalisation of the learning elusive, but key areas have been identified for further investigation.
Developing a performance measurement framework to enhance the impact orientation of the Food Research Institute, Ghana
Authors: Yawson Robert M. , Amoa‐Awua Wisdom K. , Sutherland Alistair J. , Smith David R. , Noamesi Seewu K.
Published: February 2006

Research institutions in Ghana are facing various challenges. It is the contention that viable research and development institutions are needed for achieving sustainable change in areas of national importance. A key aspect of institutional viability is strong performance management. This implies clear and workable approaches to performance measurement. This paper looks at the initial experiences in a collaborative effort to develop a performance measurement framework for the Food Research Institute (FRI) and the application of the Balanced Score Card (BSC) at institutional level. The process of diagnosing and analysing institutional monitoring and evaluation capacity and systems is described using a mix of diagnostic tools. Stages in applying the BSC approach are documented and the added value of the scorecard perspectives in highlighting focal areas for performance measurement and management within FRI. These are placed in the context of ongoing changes in the external environment posing both threats and opportunities. Changes implied by the introduction of the concept are discussed in the context of current constraints and the way forward is mapped out in terms of enhancing FRIs' impact orientation through the application of improved performance measurement and management.
RESTRAINT ON REASONS AND REASONS FOR RESTRAINT: A PROBLEM FOR RAWLS’ IDEAL OF PUBLIC REASON
Authors: LOTT MICAH
Published: February 2006

Abstract:  It appears that one of the aims of John Rawls’ ideal of public reason is to provide people with good reason for exercising restraint on their nonpublic reasons when they are acting in the public political arena. I will argue, however, that in certain cases Rawls’ ideal of public reason is unable to provide a person with good reason for exercising such restraint, even if the person is already committed to Rawls’ ideal of public reason. Because it is plausible to believe that such cases are widespread, the issue I am raising represents a serious problem for Rawls’ account of public reason. After posing this problem, I consider potential responses on behalf of Rawls’ view, and I reply to those responses. The moral of this story, as I see it, is that the kind of duty an ideal of public reason aims to place on citizens must be more modest than Rawls supposes.
DO CONVERSATIONAL IMPLICATURES EXPLAIN SUBSTITUTIVITY FAILURES?
Authors: SPENCER CARA
Published: February 2006

Abstract:  The Russellian approach to the semantics of attitude ascriptions faces a problem in explaining the robust speaker intuitions that it does not predict. A familiar response to the problem is to claim that utterances of attitude ascriptions may differ in their Gricean conversational implicatures. I argue that the appeal to Grice is ad hoc. First, we find that speakers do not typically judge an utterance false merely because it implicates something false. The apparent cancellability of the putative implicatures is irrelevant, since cancellability does not indicate conversational implicature. Finally, the appeal assumes, implausibly, that ordinary speakers generally subscribe to a particular philosophical theory about belief.
The burden and determinants of dysmenorrhoea: a population‐based survey of 2262 women in Goa, India
Authors: Patel V , Tanksale V , Sahasrabhojanee M , Gupte S , Nevrekar P
Published: February 2006

Objective  To describe the prevalence and determinants of dysmenorrhoea, the most common menstrual complaint, in a community in India.

Design  Cross‐sectional survey.

Setting  Catchment area of primary health centre in Goa, India.

Population  Three thousand women aged 18–45 years randomly selected. A total of 2494 women consented to participate (83.1%).

Methods  Eligible participants were asked standardised questions regarding menstrual complaints over the past 12 months, and socio‐demographic, psychosocial and reproductive risk factors. Vaginal or urine specimens were collected for the diagnosis of reproductive tract infections.

Main outcome measures  Dysmenorrhoea of moderate to severe intensity.

Results  A total of 2262 women were eligible. More than half reported dysmenorrhoea; moderate to severe dysmenorrhoea was reported by 755 participants (33.4%, 95% CI 31.4–35.4). There was a linear association between severity of pain and impact (medication and taking rest) and the onset of pain (premenstrual onset associated with more severe pain). On multivariate analyses, the risk of moderate–severe dysmenorrhoea was associated with the experience of violence (OR 2.23, 95% CI 1.5–34); other somatic complaints (OR 3.67, 95% CI 2.7–4.9 for highest somatoform symptom score category compared with the lowest); gynaecological complaints (non‐menstrual lower abdominal pain: OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.3–2.3; dysuria: OR 1.98, 1.4–2.7); menorrhagia (OR 1.92, 95% CI 1.4–2.6); and illiteracy (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.0–1.7). Having had a pregnancy (OR 0.53, 95% CI 0.4–0.7), older age of menarche (OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.5–0.9, for age >14 compared with <13 years) and older age (OR 0.43, 0.3–0.6 for age 40–50, compared with 18–24 years) were protective.

Conclusions  The burden of dysmenorrhoea is greater than any other gynaecological complaint, and is associated with significant impact. Social disadvantage, co‐morbidity with other somatic syndromes and reproductive factors are determinants of this complaint.
Chinese parent's use of nonpharmacological methods in children's postoperative pain relief
Authors: He Hong‐Gu , Pölkki Tarja , Pietilä Anna‐Maija , Vehviläinen‐Julkunen Katri
Published: February 2006

Parental participation in paediatric postoperative care is common in China. However, the knowledge is limited on what methods parents use to relieve their children's postoperative pain in hospital. The purpose of this study was to describe what nonpharmacological methods parents use to relieve their children's postoperative pain and factors related to this. A previously validated Scandinavian questionnaire survey was conducted in five provincial hospitals in Fujian, China, in 2004. Parents (n = 206) whose children had undergone operation were asked to complete questionnaires concerning nonpharmacological methods for children's pain relief. The response rate was 88%. Results show that the most commonly used methods by parents were emotional support strategies, helping with daily activities, distraction and imagery. Breathing technique was the method used least frequently. Fathers and parents who were older, more educated, employed and with earlier hospitalization experience with their children used pain alleviation methods more frequently than mothers and parents without these characteristics. Moreover, parents used some methods more frequently with boys, younger children, as well as children admitted for selective operations, with longer duration of hospitalization and with moderate or severe pain. Parents utilized various nonpharmacological methods for children's pain relief, especially those easy to use. This study may serve to focus healthcare providers’ efforts on educating parents with respect to various nonpharmacological pain alleviation methods available for postoperative pain. Furthermore, this study provides parents an opportunity to be aware of their role in their children's pain management.
Support of fathers of infants by the child health nurse
Authors: Fägerskiöld Astrid
Published: February 2006

The child health nurse is considered to be able to support fathers in the transition to parenthood, through utilizing the fathers’ inherent resources for the best development of the child. The aim of present study was to identify what expectations fathers of infants have of the child health care, including the nurse: whether they feel that they have received support in this role and how they think the nurse can support new fathers. A qualitative descriptive design was used with an inductive approach using grounded theory, which was suitable to obtain knowledge and understanding of how fathers perceived and interpreted their interaction with their child health nurse. Twenty fathers of infants gave their informed consent to participate. They were interviewed and data were systematically analysed on three levels by constant comparative method. From the analysis, the core category trustful relationship was discovered, comprising the categories involvement, faith and support. Nurses ought to reflect on that a father of an infant may feel slighted at the child health clinic if, as traditionally, the nurse turns only to the mother. Many fathers of today want to share the infant care and they want more communication with the nurse. It is suggested that in the long run, support in early fatherhood may be of benefit for the child and for the family. If the father has a trustful relationship with the nurse, his involvement in child health care is presumed to increase, as is the possibility of having faith in the nurse, as well as receiving support in his role as father. The findings are discussed in relation to literature in the field.
Microsatellite markers for the pest fruit fly, Bactrocera papayae (Diptera: Tephritidae) and other Bactrocera species
Authors: SHEARMAN D. C. A. , GILCHRIST A. S. , CRISAFULLI D. , GRAHAM G. , LANGE C. , FROMMER M.
Published: February 2006

The dorsalis complex contains some of the most economically important fruit fly pests of the Asia–Pacific regions, including Bactrocera dorsalis, Bactrocera papayae and Bactrocera carambolae. These species are morphologically indistinct and genetically very similar. We describe the development of 12 microsatellite markers isolated from a representative of the dorsalis complex, B. papayae. We show the potential utility of the B. papayae microsatellites and a set of microsatellites isolated from Bactrocera tryoni as population and species markers for the dorsalis complex.
Queenship: Politics and Gender in Tudor England
Authors: Warnicke Retha
Published: February 2006

In the Tudor century both queens consort and queens regnant presided at court. The role of consorts reflected that of noblewomen, who were expected to produce a male heir to continue their husband's line, to oversee some household functions, to supervise their female attendants, and to support religious enterprises deemed appropriate to women. In addition, their royal status offered consorts opportunities to engage in court politics and to influence patronage. Because giving birth to a male heir defined the success of their reign, their inability to reproduce or to protect their honor sometimes endangered their position as consort, as Henry VIII's wives discovered. By contrast, in addition to marrying and securing the succession, Mary and Elizabeth Tudor were expected to rule as monarchs. The perceived inability of women to govern led to demands that they heed their male councilors’ advice. Concerns about whether her husband would dominate royal decision‐making raised questions about Philip II's role in Mary's reign. Elizabeth compensated for her singleness by devising strategies for dealing with her male councilors and through representations of her public persona as male.
Black Freedom Studies: Re‐imagining and Redefining the Fundamentals1
Authors: Theoharis Jeanne
Published: February 2006

A burgeoning body of scholarship over the past decade has begun to reshape popular understandings of the civil rights movement. They have challenged the dominant civil rights story of a nonviolent movement born in the South during the 1950s that emerged triumphant in the early 1960s led by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. but then was derailed by the twin forces of Black Power and white backlash when it sought to move North after 1965. By returning and re‐asking the fundamental questions of origin, direction, and ideology of the movement, this new scholarship has questioned the most basic aspects of the story: who led and undertook these movements, what the movement was actually about, where it took place, when it happened, and why people engaged in a movement (or what they hoped to change). Their answers – if taken together – begin to show us a different movement: a national black freedom movement populated, shaped, and led by local people in communities across the country that began in the 1940s and 1950s and extended through the 1970s, that married self‐defense with nonviolent direct action, radical economic critiques with desegregation protest with international solidarity, that relied on organizing and ground‐level theorizing of local problems as well as charisma and national organizations.
Finding the Middle‐Ground: The Middling Sort in the Eighteenth Century
Authors: Gauci Perry
Published: February 2006

Since the 1980s the debate on the impact of the middle classes in eighteenth‐century Britain has helped to transform current interest and thinking on the period. No consensus has been reached on the degree of social and political change at this time, but our understanding of middling experience has been enhanced by a range of new themes and approaches, the resonance of which continues to enliven the field.
Carnivore‐Livestock Conflicts: Effects of Subsidized Predator Control and Economic Correlates on the Sheep Industry
Authors: BERGER KIM MURRAY
Published: February 2006

Abstract:  Despite the importance of carnivores in terrestrial ecosystems, many nations have implemented well‐coordinated, state‐funded initiatives to remove predators, largely because of conflicts with humans over livestock. Although these control efforts have been successful in terms of the number of carnivores removed, their effects on the viability of the industries they seek to protect are less understood. I assessed the efficacy of long‐term efforts by the U.S. government to improve the viability of the sheep industry by reducing predation losses. I used regression analysis and hierarchical partitioning of a 60‐year data set to explore associations among changes in sheep numbers and factors such as predator control effort, market prices, and production costs. In addition, I compared trends in the sheep industry in the western United States, where predator control is subsidized and coyotes (Canis latrans) are abundant, with trends in eastern states that lack federally subsidized predator control and that were (1) colonized by coyotes before 1950 or (2) colonized by coyotes between 1950 and 1990. Although control efforts were positively correlated with fluctuations in sheep numbers, production costs and market prices explained most of the model variation, with a combined independent contribution of 77%. Trends in sheep numbers in eastern and western states were highly correlated (r ≥0.942) independent of the period during which they were colonized by coyotes, indicating either that control has been ineffective at reducing predation losses or that factors other than predation account for the declines in both regions. These results suggest that government‐subsidized predator control has failed to prevent the decline in the sheep industry and alternative support mechanisms need to be developed if the goal is to increase sheep production and not simply to kill carnivores.
Fire Management Impacts on Invasive Plants in the Western United States
Authors: KEELEY JON E.
Published: February 2006

Abstract: Fire management practices affect alien plant invasions in diverse ways. I considered the impact of six fire management practices on alien invasions: fire suppression, forest fuel reduction, prescription burning in crown‐fire ecosystems, fuel breaks, targeting of noxious aliens, and postfire rehabilitation. Most western United States forests have had fire successfully excluded for unnaturally long periods of time, and this appears to have favored the exclusion of alien plant species. Forest fuel reduction programs have the potential for greatly enhancing forest vulnerability to alien invasions. In part this is due to the focus on reestablishing pre‐Euro‐American fire regimes on a landscape that differs from pre‐Euro‐American landscapes in the abundance of aggressive non‐native species. We may be forced to choose between restoring “natural” fire regimes or altering fire regimes to favor communities of native species. Intensive grazing in many western forests may exacerbate the alien problem after fire and temporally decoupling grazing and fire restoration may reduce the alien threat. Many shrubland ecosystems such as the Intermountain West sagebrush steppe or California chaparral have a natural, high‐intensity crown fire regime that is less amenable to forest restoration tactics. Historical use of prescribed fire for type conversion of shrublands to more useful grazing lands has played some role in the massive annual grass invasion that threatens these shrublands. Fuel breaks pose a special invasive plant risk because they promote alien invasion along corridors into wildland areas. Use of prescription burning to eliminate noxious aliens has had questionable success, particularly when applied to disturbance‐dependent annuals, and success is most likely when coupled with ecosystem restoration that alters the competitive balance between aliens and natives. Artificial seeding of alien species as a form of postfire stabilization appears to cause more problems than it solves and may even enhance alien invasion.
Bioeconomic Modeling in Conservation Pest Management: Effect of Stoat Control on Extinction Risk of an Indigenous New Zealand Passerine, Mohua ochrocephala
Authors: CHOQUENOT DAVID
Published: February 2006

Abstract:  Pest control is a key activity undertaken to conserve threatened and declining species. Although bioeconomic analysis has been used to contrast the relative efficiency of control strategies where pests affect economic resources, the same approaches have been adopted rarely in conservation settings. The Mohua ( Mohoua ochrocephala) is an insectivorous passerine indigenous to beech ( Nothofagus spp.) forests in New Zealand's south island. Mohua have undergone a 75% range contraction since stoats ( Mustela erminea) (which prey on nests and nesting females) were introduced to the south island in the late 1800s. Mohua nests are particularly vulnerable when stoat abundance increases in response to eruptions in the density of introduced house mice ( Mus musculus), which in turn respond to semiperiodic (4–6 year) mass seeding (masting) of beech trees. Controlling stoats only when their abundance poses a threat to Mohua fledging success would theoretically maximize the efficiency with which Mohua are protected. To better synchronize stoat control with periods of high stoat density, control could be initiated according to (1) time since last control, (2) beech seedfall, (3) mouse abundance, or (4) stoat abundance. Monitoring the three environmental cues, however, incurs costs that should be taken into account when considering their relative efficiency. I derived an empirically based stochastic model that links sequential change in beech seedfall, mouse, and stoat abundance to a simple demographic model for Mohua. I used the model to contrast the relative cost‐efficiency of achieving conservation outcomes for Mohua (specified in a quasi‐extinction framework), initiating stoat control according to these cues. The use of environmental cues reduced the frequency with which stoat control had to be undertaken to achieve Mohua conservation outcomes by more than 50%. For some cues, however, the costs of monitoring outweighed the savings that could be achieved through reduced frequency of stoat control. The interplay between costs of monitoring environmental cues and the frequency with which stoat control had to be undertaken meant that the most efficient strategy was dependent on the conservation outcome specified for Mohua. My results demonstrate the utility of bioeconomic analysis in formulation of pest management strategies to achieve conservation outcomes.
Alterations in Long‐term Seizure Susceptibility and the Complex of PSD‐95 with NMDA Receptor from Animals Previously Exposed to Perinatal Hypoxia
Authors: Chen Wu‐Fu , Chang Hong , Huang Li‐Tung , Lai Ming‐Chi , Yang Chun‐Hwa , Wan Tz‐Hisung , Yang San‐Nan
Published: February 2006

Summary:  Purpose: Perinatal hypoxia is an important cause of brain injury in the newborn and has consequences that are potentially devastating and life‐long, such as an increased risk of epilepsy in later life. The postsynaptic density (PSD) is a cytoskeletal specialization involved in the anchoring of neurotransmitter receptors and in regulating the response of postsynaptic neurons to synaptic stimulation. The postsynaptic protein PSD‐95 binds to the N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate receptor (NMDAR) subunit, and hence activates cascades of NMDAR‐mediated events, such as cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)‐responsive element binding protein phosphorylation at serine‐133 (pCREBSerine‐133). Here we studied the effect of perinatal hypoxia on protein interactions involving PSD‐95 and the NMDAR, as well as pCREBSer‐133 expression at an age when the animals show increased seizure susceptibility.

Methods: Rats were assigned randomly to the control rats or the rats exposed to transient global hypoxia at postnatal day 10 (P10). At P45, some rats from both groups were treated with pentylenetetrazol (PTZ) intraperitoneally to test the seizure threshold, and others were studied for neuronal loss, pCREBSerine‐133, PSD‐95, and NMDAR expressions in the midbrain, temporal cortex, and hippocampal CA1 subfield by using immunohistochemistry, co‐immunoprecipitation, and immunoblotting techniques, respectively.

Results: The rats with prior exposure to perinatal hypoxia exhibited increased seizure susceptibility to PTZ, compared with the control rats. Associated with this long‐term change in seizure susceptibility, selective neuronal loss was observed in the midbrain region while pCREBSer‐133 expression was reduced in the midbrain, temporal cortex, and hippocampal CA1 subfield. Perinatal hypoxia led to a decrease in PSD‐95 expression in the both midbrain and hippocampal CA1 subfield, with the exception of temporal cortex. Furthermore, the association between PSD‐95 and NMDAR subunits (NR1, NR2A, and NR2B) in the hippocampal CA1 was also markedly altered by perinatal hypoxia.

Conclusions: This study demonstrates that the decrease in several protein complexes that are essential components of the postsynaptic apparatus is associated with the observed increase in seizure susceptibility in adult rats with prior exposure to perinatal hypoxia. The results indicate that reductions in PSD‐95 expression, PSD‐95 binding of NMDAR subunits, and subsequent NMDAR‐mediated CREB phosphorylation, particularly in hippocampal CA1, are long‐term consequences of perinatal hypoxia and may, at least in part, contribute to perinatal hypoxia‐induced reduction in seizure threshold.
Vigabatrin Retinopathy in an Irish Cohort: Lack of Correlation with Dose
Authors: Kinirons Peter , Cavalleri Gianpiero L. , O'Rourke Dierdre , Doherty Colin P. , Reid Irene , Logan Patricia , Liggan Brenda , Delanty Norman
Published: February 2006

Summary:  Purpose: The anticonvulsant vigabatrin (VGB) causes irreversible visual‐field constriction in 19–92% of patients. It is unclear whether this correlates with dosing, and the natural history of the retinopathy remains obscure. We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients receiving long‐term VGB to examine whether toxicity is related to the daily dose, duration of therapy, or cumulative dose.

Methods
: Information from 93 patients taking long‐term, stable VGB therapy was analyzed. We recorded data on patient demographics, VGB dosing, and all visual‐field assessments. We used the mean redial degrees (MRD) from the right eye to compare the amount of constriction with the dose of VGB.

Results
: The mean number of assessments was two (range, 1–6). Of patients having more than one assessment (n = 65), the mean follow‐up time was 2.4 years (range, 0.7–5.6 years); in 52.7%, visual‐field constriction developed. Male and female patients were affected equally. We found no correlation between the average MRD and either the maximum dose of VGB taken, the duration of exposure, or the cumulative dose. The shortest exposure time to development of constriction was 1.1 years. All patients with normal fields on initial assessment continued to have normal fields on follow‐up. Most patients who had evidence of constriction on initial assessment and remained taking VGB showed no progression on follow‐up. One patient had a substantial recovery of vision after discontinuation of VGB.

Conclusions: Development of visual constriction in patients receiving prolonged, standard doses of VGB does not depend on the daily dose, duration of exposure, or cumulative dose. Other contributing factors were not identified. Our data suggest that field defects may develop within the first few years of therapy and possibly remain stable thereafter.
A Controlled Clinical Trial of Cathodal DC Polarization in Patients with Refractory Epilepsy
Authors: Fregni Felipe , Thome‐Souza Sigride , Nitsche Michael A. , Freedman Steven D. , Valente Kette D. , Pascual‐Leone Alvaro
Published: February 2006

Summary:  Purpose: To study the effects of cathodal DC polarization in patients with refractory epilepsy and malformations of cortical development (MCDs) as indexed by seizure frequency and epileptiform EEG discharges.

Methods: Nineteen patients with MCDs and refractory epilepsy underwent one session of DC polarization (20 min, 1 mA) targeting the epileptogenic focus. The number of epileptiform discharges (EDs) in the EEG and seizures were measured before (baseline), immediately after, and 15 and 30 days after either sham or active DC polarization. Seizure frequency after the treatment was compared with baseline.

Results: Active compared with sham DC polarization was associated with a significant reduction in the number of epileptiform discharges [mean ED reduction of −64.3% (95% CI, −122.5% to −6.0%) for the active treatment group and −5.8% (95% CI, −26.8% to 15.2%) for the sham treatment group]. A trend (p = 0.06) was noted for decrease in seizure frequency after active compared with sham treatment [mean seizure frequency decrease of −44.0% (95% CI, −95.0% to 7.1%) for the active treatment group and −11.1% (95% CI, −22.2% to 44.4%) for the sham treatment group].

Conclusions: This randomized, controlled study shows that cathodal DC polarization does not induce seizures and is well tolerated in patients with refractory epilepsy and MCDs. Furthermore, the results suggest that this technique might have an antiepileptic effect based on clinical and electrophysiological criteria.