bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
How the Releasing Moment of Conical Steel Couplings is Influenced by the Combined Effect of Adhesive and Interference
Authors: Croccolo D. , Cuppini R.
Published: February 2009

Abstract:  The purpose of this work is to carry out a research started some years ago and concerning the evaluation of the releasing moments in conical steel couplings realised with the simultaneous presence of interference and anaerobic adhesive (Loctite 638). The investigation was particularly focused on the effects due to the adhesive defect density and the interference level. The releasing tests have been performed in accordance with the Design of Experimental methodology. Therefore, a factorial experiment was designed with two parameters (interference and adhesive defect density) on different levels, with the goals to evaluate the significance of the main and of the interaction effects and to determine the mathematical model of the failure load by applying the Analysis of Variance and the Fisher’s test to the results.
An Examination of the Medicaid Undercount in the Current Population Survey: Preliminary Results from Record Linking
Authors: Davern Michael , Klerman Jacob Alex , Baugh David K. , Call Kathleen Thiede , Greenberg George D.
Published: January 2009

Objective. To assess reasons why survey estimates of Medicaid enrollment are 43 percent lower than raw Medicaid program enrollment counts (i.e., “Medicaid undercount”).

Data Sources. Linked 2000–2002 Medicaid Statistical Information System (MSIS) and the 2001–2002 Current Population Survey (CPS).

Data Collection Methods. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services provided the Census Bureau with its MSIS file. The Census Bureau linked the MSIS to the CPS data within its secure data analysis facilities.

Study Design. We analyzed how often Medicaid enrollees incorrectly answer the CPS health insurance item and imperfect concept alignment (e.g., inclusion in the MSIS of people who are not included in the CPS sample frame and people who were enrolled in Medicaid in more than one state during the year).

Principal Findings. The extent to which the Medicaid enrollee data were adjusted for imperfect concept alignment reduces the raw Medicaid undercount considerably (by 12 percentage points). However, survey response errors play an even larger role with 43 percent of Medicaid enrollees answering the CPS as though they were not enrolled and 17 percent reported being uninsured.

Conclusions. The CPS is widely used for health policy analysis but is a poor measure of Medicaid enrollment at any time during the year because many people who are enrolled in Medicaid fail to report it and may be incorrectly coded as being uninsured. This discrepancy should be considered when using the CPS for policy research.
A Systematic Review of Health Care Efficiency Measures
Authors: Hussey Peter S. , De Vries Han , Romley John , Wang Margaret C. , Chen Susan S. , Shekelle Paul G. , McGlynn Elizabeth A.
Published: January 2009

Objective. To review and characterize existing health care efficiency measures in order to facilitate a common understanding about the adequacy of these methods.

Data Sources. Review of the MedLine and EconLit databases for articles published from 1990 to 2008, as well as search of the “gray” literature for additional measures developed by private organizations.

Study Design. We performed a systematic review for existing efficiency measures. We classified the efficiency measures by perspective, outputs, inputs, methods used, and reporting of scientific soundness.

Principal Findings. We identified 265 measures in the peer‐reviewed literature and eight measures in the gray literature, with little overlap between the two sets of measures. Almost all of the measures did not explicitly consider the quality of care. Thus, if quality varies substantially across groups, which is likely in some cases, the measures reflect only the costs of care, not efficiency. Evidence on the measures' scientific soundness was mostly lacking: evidence on reliability or validity was reported for six measures (2.3 percent) and sensitivity analyses were reported for 67 measures (25.3 percent).

Conclusions. Efficiency measures have been subjected to few rigorous evaluations of reliability and validity, and methods of accounting for quality of care in efficiency measurement are not well developed at this time. Use of these measures without greater understanding of these issues is likely to engender resistance from providers and could lead to unintended consequences.
Impact of Pharmacy Benefit Design on Prescription Drug Utilization: A Fixed Effects Analysis of Plan Sponsor Data
Authors: Roebuck M. Christopher , Liberman Joshua N.
Published: January 2009

Objective.To study the impact of various elements of pharmacy benefit design on both the absolute and relative utilization of generics, brands, retail pharmacy, and mail service.

Data Source.Panel data on 1,074 plan sponsors covering 21.6 million individuals over 12 calendar quarters (2005–2007).

Study Design.A retrospective analysis of pharmacy claims.

Statistical Methods.To control for potential endogeneity, linear fixed effects models were estimated for each of six dependent variables: the generic utilization rate, the brand utilization rate, the generic dispensing rate (GDR), the retail pharmacy utilization rate, the mail service utilization rate, and the mail distribution rate.

Principal Findings.Most member cost‐share variables were nonlinearly associated with changes in prescription drug utilization. Marginal effects were generally greater in magnitude for brand out‐of‐pocket costs than for generic out‐of‐pocket costs. Time dummies, as well as other pharmacy benefit design elements, also yielded significant results.

Conclusions.Prior estimates of the effect of member cost sharing on prescription drug utilization may be biased if complex benefit designs, mail service fulfillment, and unmeasured factors such as pharmaceutical pipelines are not accounted for. Commonly cited relative utilization metrics, such as GDR, may be misleading if not examined alongside absolute prescription drug utilization.
Forest Succession Endangers the Special Ant Fauna of Abandoned Quarries along the River Meuse (Wallonia, Belgium)
Authors: Dekoninck Wouter , Hendrickx Frederik , Dethier Michel , Maelfait Jean‐Pierre
Published: February 2009

In Western Europe, old abandoned mining sites and quarries are often of high biodiversity and conservation value due to the presence of a number of endangered species. In the southern part of Belgium (Wallonia), many ancient quarries near the river Meuse are rather small and were abandoned from 50 to more than 100 years ago. In 2003, we collected 26 ant species by pitfall trapping in four of these quarries. In addition to common ones, several rare species, usually associated with mesomorphic to xeromorphic grasslands, were found in high numbers. Quarries undergoing forest succession were dominated by eurytopic species and by species typical of wet shadowy places, a fauna far less valuable in terms of nature conservation. Therefore, we suggest a management that halts further forest succession of open mesomorphic and xeromorphic habitat patches in these quarries. To assess and monitor the nature value of the ant fauna of these sites, we propose a so‐called habitat preference approach, wherein each species is assigned to one of the following three habitat preference categories: (1) eurytopic, (2) bound to wet shadow‐rich habitats, or (3) bound to dry open habitats. The stenotopic species of the last category are all endangered in Belgium and of high conservation value. The proportion of the total number of captured specimens included in the latter habitat preference category group is strongly reduced as scrub and tree encroachment advances. This proportion can therefore be used as a proxy to monitor the effects of management measures that prevent further forest succession.
Urbanization and Socioeconomic Metabolism in Taipei
Authors: Huang Shu‐Li , Chen Chia‐Wen
Published: January 2009

The analysis of socioeconomic metabolism has largely been dominated by quantification of material flows on a mass basis. This neglects the energetic dimensions of the urban metabolism and makes analysis that integrates material and energy flows difficult. The present research applies Odum's emergy concept to integrate energy and material flows for the study of the socioeconomic metabolism of the Taipei area. We also take into consideration the urban sprawl in the Taipei area to study its relationship to the change of socioeconomic metabolism. We interpret SPOT satellite images from 1992 and 2002 to provide a deeper understanding of the whole urban system; results show that Taipei's urban areas increased in size during the past decades. Emergy‐based indicators show decreasing empower densities (total emergy use per area) of undeveloped and agricultural areas, whereas the empower density of urban areas has increased, which signals a convergence of resource flows toward urban areas. Such an increase of empower density is mainly due to fossil fuel use and translates into increased environmental loading and decreased sustainability. An analysis of the relationship between urbanization and socioeconomic metabolism indicates that changes in land use affect the characteristics of socioeconomic metabolism in Taipei. The effects of urban sprawl on Taipei's urban sustainability are also discussed.
Implant Treatment Record Form
Authors: Daher Tony , Goodacre Charles J. , Morgano Steven M.
Published: January 2009

The identification of different dental implants and restorative components is difficult when dental records do not include an inventory of implant components. An implant record form is described. The form should be filled out and retained in the patient's chart for future use and implant maintenance visits.
Time‐Dose‐Response Models for Microbial Risk Assessment
Authors: Huang Yin , Haas Charles N.
Published: January 2009

While microbial risk assessment (MRA) has been used for over 25 years, traditional dose‐response analysis has only predicted the overall risk of adverse consequences from exposure to a given dose. An important issue for consequence assessment from bioterrorist and other microbiological exposure is the distribution of cases over time due to the initial exposure. In this study, the classical exponential and beta‐Poisson dose‐response models were modified to include exponential‐power dependency of time post inoculation (TPI) or its simplified form, exponential‐reciprocal dependency of TPI, to quantify the time of onset of an effect presumably associated with the kinetics of in vivo bacterial growth. Using the maximum likelihood estimation approach, the resulting time‐dose‐response models were found capable of providing statistically acceptable fits to all tested pooled animal survival dose‐response data. These new models can consequently describe the development of animal infectious response over time and represent observed responses fairly accurately. This is the first study showing that a time‐dose‐response model can be developed for describing infections initiated by various pathogens. It provides an advanced approach for future MRA frameworks.
Assessing and Managing Environmental Risk: Connecting Local Government Management with Emergency Management
Authors: Somers Scott , Svara James H.
Published: January 2009

Ensuring that a community is prepared to deal with a disaster is among the many tasks public managers are charged with addressing. Disaster preparedness and response requires adherence to standard planning practices, yet disasters are typically unpredictable. Dealing with disasters, therefore, requires a blend of traditional management skills and improvisation. Furthermore, like other aspects of administrative leadership, the top administrator must blend initiation and responsiveness in interactions with elected officials and a careful delineation of responsibility in handling actual emergencies. This article discusses how local administrators assess risk and balance preparedness needs within a universe of daily operational needs. Managing environmental risk is also explored from a political and legal context.
Managing the “New Normalcy” with Values‐Based Leadership: Lessons from Admiral James Loy
Authors: Getha‐Taylor Heather
Published: January 2009

Tensions remain in adapting to the “new normalcy”—that is, the balance between national security and other democratic and administrative priorities in the aftermath of 9/11. Perhaps no one appreciates this balance more than Admiral James Loy. Immediately following the September 11 attacks, he left his post as commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard to accept the challenge of standing up the Transportation Security Administration. Next, Loy tackled the role of deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Loy’s efforts to articulate a set of core organizational values in three organizational contexts offer lessons for public managers who seek to enhance internal cohesion. Strong cultural cohesion is expected to support organizational transformation and, ultimately, performance. Loy’s example puts that connection to the test.
Budget Process Reform: Waiting for Godot
Authors: Posner Paul L.
Published: January 2009

The unraveling of the budget process described by Irene Rubin will have extraordinary consequences for the long‐term budget outlook facing the nation. The retirement of the baby boom generation will prompt unprecedented and unsustainable structural fiscal imbalances for decades to come. Early policy action on the spending and revenue sides of the budget is critical to avert fiscal and economic crisis and to phase in changes in order to avoid precipitous and politically perilous actions in the future. Yet such actions constitute what amounts to a politically unnatural act, as one generation of political leaders is asked to make sacrifices in current policies benefiting future generations. Budget process reforms can serve to highlight the salience of these issues and help deal with the significant political hurdles faced by decision makers in making these intertemporal budgeting trade‐offs. Ironically, the need for budget rules and processes has intensified as policy makers have become more vulnerable to polarized political parties, ever more watchful media, and mobilized interest groups. Budget rules and processes can help policy makers cope by protecting their ability to make the hard choices that will be necessary. The pressures for budget process reform will accelerate as the current financial crisis increases near‐term budgetary pressures, promoting greater alignment between near‐term and long‐term fiscal problems.
Institutional Collective Action and Economic Development Joint Ventures
Authors: Feiock Richard C. , Steinacker Annette , Park Hyung Jun
Published: January 2009

There is high interest in economic development efforts involving cooperation or collaboration among metropolitan jurisdictions. To determine why some local governments engage in cooperative agreements while others do not, this paper investigates transaction obstacles, including bargaining, information, agency, enforcement, and division problems. The authors then advance an institutional collective action explanation for intergovernmental cooperation, focusing on the conditions under which these transactions costs are low. This work anticipates that the costs associated with interlocal cooperation are influenced by the demographic characteristics of communities, local political institutions, and the nature of regional government networks. Empirical analysis based on a national survey of local development officials provides support for several predictions from this model and identifies policy variables that, in turn, increase the prospects for cooperation, specifically through the development of informal policy networks.
Explaining Institutional Change in Tough Cases of Collaboration: “Ideas” in the Blackfoot Watershed
Authors: Weber Edward P.
Published: January 2009

Current theories of community‐based collaborative governance arrangements rely on the presence (or absence) of certain antecedent community conditions as well as incentives for institutional change deriving from the sociopolitical and economic environment. The combination of antecedent conditions and incentives is helpful in understanding why collaboratives emerge and succeed in “easy” cases (strong incentives, conducive antecedent conditions). Yet the combination is of little help in understanding the institutional change puzzle for collaboratives in “tough” cases (strong incentives, poor antecedent conditions). Examination of a “tough” case in the Blackfoot watershed (Montana), which eventually blossomed into a successful collaborative, shows the importance of a particular set of new ideas, or shared norms, around which participants coalesced. These new ideas for understanding public problems, the community itself, and the relationships among stakeholders, became a broad conceptual framework for guiding stakeholder interaction as they attempted to manage the many public problems facing the watershed.
Diversity Management, Job Satisfaction, and Performance: Evidence from U.S. Federal Agencies
Authors: Pitts David
Published: January 2009

A number of organizations across sectors have begun efforts toward managing workforce diversity. At the federal level in the United States, almost 90 percent of agencies report that they are actively managing diversity. However, very little empirical research has tied diversity management to work group performance or other work‐related outcomes. This paper uses a survey of U.S. federal employees to test the relationships between diversity management, job satisfaction, and work group performance. The findings indicate that diversity management is strongly linked to both work group performance and job satisfaction, and that people of color see benefits from diversity management above and beyond those experienced by white employees.
Gender and Organizational Rule Abidance
Authors: Portillo Shannon , DeHart‐Davis Leisha
Published: January 2009

A long‐standing contention in the public and private management literatures is that women use rule abidance as a way to compensate for their relative lack of organizational power. Many of the studies making this assertion rely on anecdotal evidence rather than theory‐guided empirical studies. In this paper, the authors use survey data collected from four cities in a midwestern state to empirically test gender dimensions of rule abidance. The findings support long‐asserted gender differences in rule abidance. Contrary to recent scholarship, however, the findings suggest that rule abidance among women is inversely related to organizational status, with higher‐level women abiding by rules more so than women lower in the hierarchy.
Operator Exposure to Scatter Radiation from a Portable Hand‐held Dental Radiation Emitting Device (Aribex™ NOMAD™) While Making 915 Intraoral Dental Radiographs*
Authors: Danforth Robert A. , Herschaft Edward E. , Leonowich John A.
Published: January 2009

Abstract:  Operator exposure to backscatter radiation while using an Aribex™ NOMAD™ radiation emitting device (a portable, self‐contained, cordless, hand‐held dental X‐ray unit) was determined while the operator employed various typical and atypical use scenarios during the exposure of 715 digital and/or film‐based dental radiographs and 200 study control exposures. Study data was compared to the radiation safety occupational exposure annual Maximum Permissive Dose (MPD) of 50 mSv (5000 mrem) to determine the possible exposure risk to an unprotected operator using this device. The results showed the reproductive organs received the highest dose and the thyroid the least. The average operator whole body dose for the study was determined to be 0.047 mSv (4.47 mrem) or 0.09% of the annual MPD. Extrapolating the data as an expression of averaged annual operator exposure resulted in a whole body dose of 0.4536 mSv (45.36 mrem) or 0.9% of the annual MPD, These results are well below established occupation exposure limits and are compatible with those published by the manufacturer.
Tiresias in Flammable Shantytown: Toward a Tempography of Domination1
Authors: Auyero Javier , Swistun Débora
Published: January 2009

Based on 30 months of ethnographic fieldwork in Flammable shantytown, a highly contaminated poor barrio in Argentina, this article examines the links between environmental suffering, social domination, and collective perceptions of time. We show that the ways residents think and feel about (and cope with) pollution are deeply entangled with their perceptions of the past and of the future. We thus argue that an ethnographic account of the lived experiences of contamination should also be a tempography, that is, a thick description of the vernacular sociotemporal order.
The Sociology of Unequal Exchange in Ecological Context: A Panel Study of Lower‐Income Countries, 1975–20001
Authors: Jorgenson Andrew K.
Published: January 2009

The structural theory of ecologically unequal exchange posits that through the vertical flow of exports from lower‐income countries, the stratified world economy enables higher‐income countries to misappropriate global environmental space. Tied to their unsustainable consumption levels, this misappropriation by higher‐income countries leads to the suppression of resource consumption in lower‐income countries, well below globally sustainable thresholds, which negatively impacts the well‐being of domestic populations. To evaluate key aspects of the theory, I test the hypothesis that lower‐income countries with elevated levels of exports sent to higher‐income countries exhibit lower consumption‐based environmental demand, measured as per‐capita ecological footprints. Findings for generalized least squares panel regression analyses of 66 lower‐income countries from 1975 to 2000 confirm the hypothesis, providing support for the theory. Additional results indicate that the strength of the hypothesized relationship increased in magnitude during the 25‐year period. These findings hold, net of the effects of economic development, ecological conditions, and other structural factors.
Organizational Variation in Formal Equal Employment Opportunity Structures1
Authors: Kmec Julie A. , Skaggs Sheryl L.
Published: January 2009

This article identifies the factors associated with variation in the complexity of formal equal employment opportunity (EEO) structures across a sample of Washington and Oregon hospitals. Understanding such variation provides insight into two key organizational processes: commitment to workplace equality and response to external pressures for equality. We draw on Oliver’s (1991) organizational strategic response theory to document the extent to which a hospital’s patient demographics, legal regulation, economic sector, geographic location, and health system membership are related to complexity in the level of a hospital’s formal EEO structures. Findings from ordered logistic regression analyses demonstrate that the presence of a nurse union and federal regulation of a hospital by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) are associated with less complex EEO structures. Meanwhile, urbanization is associated with more complex EEO structures. We discuss implications of these results for research and policy and offer the beginnings of a general theory of organizational variation.
The Role of Father’s Occupation on Intergenerational Educational and Occupational Mobility: The Case of Second‐Generation Chinese Americans in New York1
Authors: Kim Dae Young , Kulkarni Veena S.
Published: January 2009

A considerable body of research has found a positive relationship between parents’ socioeconomic status and children’s educational achievement and attainment. The predictive role of parents’ socioeconomic status generally applies for most racial and ethnic groups, but that association does not always hold for groups that exhibit high levels of education, such as Asian Americans. This article considers the role of parents’ education and occupation on children’s educational and occupational attainment for Chinese Americans aged 18–32. The results corroborate the positive link between parents’ socioeconomic status and children’s educational and occupational attainments. Children of professionals command an educational and occupational advantage over children of entrepreneurs and children of manual workers. Yet, the children of entrepreneurs attend selective colleges and obtain professional occupations in proportions closely following those of the children of professionals. Although the educational attainments between the fathers who worked as entrepreneurs and those fathers engaged in manual work were comparable, it was the children of entrepreneurs who surpassed the children of manual workers with respect to educational and occupational achievement and attainment. This suggests that immigrant entrepreneurship contributes in the upward educational and occupational mobility of the children of entrepreneurs.
Forum on Gang Leader for a Day
Authors: Carr Patrick J.
Published: January 2009

This essay introduces a debate on Sudhir Venkatesh's book Gang Leader for a Day:
Gang Leader for a Day: Griot for Life
Authors: Young Jr Alford A.
Published: January 2009

This essay offers reflections on Sudhir Venkatesh's book Gang Leader for a Day:
Low‐fat oxidation may be a factor in obesity among men with schizophrenia
Authors: Sharpe J.‐K. , Stedman T. J. , Byrne N. M. , Hills A. P.
Published: January 2009

Objective: Obesity associated with atypical antipsychotic medications is an important clinical issue for people with schizophrenia. The purpose of this project was to determine whether there were any differences in resting energy expenditure (REE) and respiratory quotient (RQ) between men with schizophrenia and controls.

Method: Thirty‐one men with schizophrenia were individually matched for age and relative body weight with healthy, sedentary controls. Deuterium dilution was used to determine total body water and subsequently fat‐free mass (FFM). Indirect calorimetry using a Deltatrac metabolic cart was used to determine REE and RQ.

Results: When corrected for FFM, there was no significant difference in REE between the groups. However, fasting RQ was significantly higher in the men with schizophrenia than the controls.

Conclusion: Men with schizophrenia oxidised proportionally less fat and more carbohydrate under resting conditions than healthy controls. These differences in substrate utilisation at rest may be an important consideration in obesity in this clinical group.
Angiokeratoma‐like changes in extragenital and genital lichen sclerosus
Authors: Luzar Boštjan , Neil Sallie M. , Calonje Eduardo
Published: January 2009

Hemorrhagic blisters have rarely been described developing in the background of either genital or extragenital lichen sclerosus and have invariably been designated clinically as telangiectatic, hemorrhagic or bullous lichen sclerosus. We describe three patients with extragenital and genital lichen sclerosus, who presented clinically with hemorrhagic plaques and/or papules. In addition to the classical histology of lichen sclerosus, dilated, congested and focally thrombosed vascular channels lined by flat endothelium were seen within the sclerotic dermal collagen. They were in close proximity to and even in contact with the overlying epidermis and thus mimicked an angiokeratoma. Angiokeratoma‐like changes in lichen sclerosus represent secondary features because of damage to the dermis by lichen sclerosus and are characterized histologically by ectatic thin‐walled vascular spaces in the papillary dermis intimately associated with the epidermis. Increased venous pressure, local trauma, degenerative changes in the elastic tissue of the vessel wall and/or surrounding supportive tissue, as well as abnormalities in the extracellular protein network, appear to be implicated in their pathogenesis.
An infiltrative variant of non‐neural granular cell tumor: a case report
Authors: Yeh Iwei , Tran Don T. , Davis Thomas L. , Argenyi Zsolt B.
Published: January 2009

Dermal non‐neural granular cell tumors are rare tumors of indeterminate lineage that typically present as well‐circumscribed tumors with nuclear pleomorphism and mitotic activity. We describe a dermal non‐neural granular cell tumor with a distinctive growth pattern with granular cells interspersed between collagen bundles. This asymptomatic papule arose on the scapula of a 46‐year‐old woman and consisted of a mixture of epithelioid and spindled granular cells. The immunohistochemical characteristics were similar to those of previously reported dermal non‐neural granular cell tumors. Despite mild nuclear pleomorphism and dispersion of lesional cells among collagen bundles, mitoses were not present and Ki‐67 staining indicated a low proliferative rate. In addition to being S‐100 protein negative and NKI/C3 positive, our case was positive for PGP9.5 and weakly positive for neuron‐specific enolase, a staining pattern similar to what has been observed for cellular neurothekeomas. Our case could represent a dermal non‐neural granular cell tumor with unique architecture, a granular cellular neurothekeoma or a granular cell dermatofibroma. As both dermal non‐neural granular cell tumor and cellular neurothekeoma are of indeterminate lineage, our case with features characteristic of both entities may suggest a common precursor or lineage for dermal non‐neural granular cell tumor and cellular neurothekeoma.
Caveats in BerEP4 staining to differentiate basal and squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Yu Limin , Galan Anjela , McNiff Jennifer M.
Published: January 2009

Background: Superficial skin biopsies of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) represent some of the most common dermatopathology specimens. Superficial shave biopsies containing partial samples of lesions with squamatization present difficulties in distinguishing BCC from squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). BerEP4 has been employed as a dependable marker in differentiating between BCCs and SCCs.

Methods: We collected 12 cases of superficial biopsies of BCC with centrally located cords and strands suggesting squamous differentiation at the Yale Dermatopathology Laboratory over a 3‐month period and stained them with BerEP4.

Results: We found that all cases (12 out of 12) showed membranous and cytoplasmic staining with BerEP4 in the obvious areas of basaloid differentiation at the periphery of the tumors, while cords and strands of enlarged cells with squamoid features in the center and surface of the biopsy failed to label with BerEP4.

Conclusions: BerEP4 labeling is not reliable in superficial biopsies of BCC with squamoid features. It is important to be aware of this caveat in interpreting BerEP4 staining for BCC and SCC.
Janeway lesions with inconspicuous histological features
Authors: Loewe Robert , Gattringer Klaus B. , Petzelbauer Peter
Published: January 2009

Septic‐embolic diseases are life threatening; survival critically depends on rapid diagnosis. Clinically, cutaneous manifestations like Janeway lesions are infrequently occurring but highly characteristic. In contrast, histological features are not clearly defined. We report the case of a 59‐year‐old male patient in deteriorating general condition and fever of unknown origin with lesions suggestive for Janeway lesions. Histology showed dilated blood vessels and extravasated erythrocytes throughout the dermis. Only serial sections revealed single, deep dermal vessels occluded by fibrin thrombi. Computed tomography scan identified multiple pulmonary round masses. Blood cultures showed growth of Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis. The knowledge of the described subtle histological features and a clinical‐pathological correlation is essential for the diagnosis of certain cases of septic‐embolic conditions.
Melatonin delivery in solid lipid nanoparticles: prevention of cyclosporine A induced cardiac damage
Authors: Rezzani Rita , Rodella Luigi Fabrizio , Fraschini Franco , Gasco Maria Rosa , Demartini Germana , Musicanti Claudia , Reiter Russel J.
Published: January 2009

Abstract:  Melatonin is a potent antioxidant molecule with a capacity to protect tissues from damage caused by oxidative stress. It reduces cyclosporine A (CsA)‐induced cardiotoxicity; this improvement required melatonin’s binding to its membrane receptors. This experimental study examined whether melatonin is a useful tool for counteracting CsA‐induced apoptosis in the heart of rats. We investigated melatonin’s antiapoptotic efficacy in protecting the heart and tested whether this effect was totally dependent on its binding to membrane receptors or also involved radical scavenging. In some animals, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) as a melatonin delivery system were used. In one group of rats, melatonin (1 mg/kg/day i.p.) was given concurrently with CsA (15 mg/kg/day s.c.; CsA‐MT) for 21 days. In other animals, melatonin loaded in SLN was injected with CsA (CsA‐MTSLN). Oxidative stress in heart tissue was estimated using the evaluation of lipid peroxidation and the expression of the isoform of inducible nitric oxide (iNOS). The antiapoptotic effect of melatonin was evaluated using TUNEL staining and Bcl‐2 protein family expression. CsA administration produced morphological and biochemical changes in the heart of rats, while melatonin reversed the changes. In particular, since the antiapoptotic melatonin’s efficacy is mainly observed when it is loaded in SLN, we suggest that MT1/MT2 pathway is not sufficient for apoptosis antagonism and the additional intracellular effects may be required. Finally, we show that, (i) melatonin significantly reduces CsA cardiotoxicity acting also on apoptotic processes, and (ii) the reduction in CsA‐induced cardiotoxicity is mediated mainly by its antioxidant effect.
Melatonin, as an adjuvant‐like agent, enhances platelet responsiveness
Authors: Regodón Sergio , Del Prado Míguez María , Jardín Isaac , López José J. , Ramos Asunción , Paredes Sergio D. , Rosado Juan A.
Published: January 2009

Abstract:  Melatonin exerts immunomodulatory actions that enhance the magnitude and quality of immune responses specific for certain antigens; this has raised the possibility of using melatonin to design novel vaccine adjuvant systems. The present study investigated the effect of subcutaneous slow‐release melatonin implants and subcutaneous melatonin injections on the responsiveness of circulating platelets in sheep after vaccination against Dichelobacter nodosus (A1 and C serotypes), the bacterium that causes ovine footrot, a major cause of lameness in sheep. The experiments were carried out in sheep from a farm located in an area of Mediterranean‐type ecosystem. Plasma melatonin levels were determined by radioimmunoassay, sheep platelet aggregation was monitored using an aggregometer and Ca2+ mobilization was determined by spectrofluorimetry using fura‐2. Administration of melatonin either by implants or subcutaneous injections increased plasma melatonin concentrations, an effect that was found to be greater and more sustained when melatonin was administered via implants. Vaccination per se, as well as melatonin, increased the percentage and rate of platelet aggregation and reduced the lag‐time in response to the physiological agonist thrombin, an effect that was found to be significantly greater when melatonin was administered to vaccinated animals. Melatonin enhanced thrombin‐evoked Ca2+ release and entry and further increased Ca2+ mobilization observed in platelets from vaccinated sheep. These observations suggest that the use of melatonin, as a novel adjuvant, induces beneficial effects on platelet function and haemostasis, and opens new perspectives for therapeutic manipulation of immune responses to vaccination.
Dermoscopy and entomology (entomodermoscopy)
Authors: Tschandl Philipp , Argenziano Giuseppe , Bakos Renato , Gourhant Jean‐Yves , Hofmann‐Wellenhof Rainer , Kittler Harald , Rosendahl Cliff , Minas Stelios , Zalaudek Iris
Published: January 2009

Although dermoscopy has been primarily designed for aiding the in vivo diagnosis of skin tumors, recent advances indicate it is also useful in the diagnosis of common skin infections and infestations. As such, dermoscopy connects the research fields of dermatology and entomology into one field of “entomodermoscopy”. In this article we give an overview on the current applications of entomodermoscopy.
KNOWLEDGE OF AGEING: AN INTERGENERATIONAL COMPARISON
Authors: Luszcz M. A. , Paull I. , Fitzgerald K. M.
Published: February 2009

Thirty adolescent, middle‐aged, and elderly people participated in a study examining cohort differences in knowledge of ageing. Each responded to Miller and Dodder's10 version of Palmore's1 Facts on Ageing Quiz. Age and percentage correct on the quiz were positively correlated. Adolescents knew significantly less about ageing than the aged but middle aged adults knew about the same. Physical aspects of ageing were known better than psychosocial and demographic characteristics. Cohorts shared the same misconceptions, but to differing degrees.
STATUS OF THE AGED
Authors: Sarantakos Sotirios
Published: February 2009

The paper presents the findings of a study of 1897 Anglo‐Saxon, Greek and German Australians, of whom 687 were elderly persons. The main issues considered in this paper are social status and self‐esteem of the elderly. In addition. comparisons are made between the status and self‐esteem of the elderly on the one hand and status and self‐esteem of other age groups. Further comparisons are undertaken between the status and self‐esteem of the ethnic groups of the aged considered in this study. The paper also reports on the factors which affect the level of status of the elderly and describes the mechanisms employed by them in order to cope with the stress associated with certain levels of social status. Finally, consideration is given to the relevance of the theory of modernisation to our multicultural society.
Structure of the atrial natriuretic peptide receptor extracellular domain in the unbound and hormone‐bound states by single‐particle electron microscopy
Authors: Ogawa Haruo , Qiu Yue , Huang Liming , Tam‐Chang Suk‐Wah , Young Howard S. , Misono Kunio S.
Published: February 2009

Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) plays a major role in blood pressure and volume regulation. ANP activities are mediated by a cell surface, single‐span transmembrane receptor linked to its intrinsic guanylate cyclase activity. The crystal structures of the dimerized ANP receptor extracellular domain (ECD) with and without ANP have revealed a novel hormone‐induced rotation mechanism occurring in the juxtamembrane region that appears to mediate signal transduction [Ogawa H, Qiu Y, Ogata CM & Misono KS (2004) J Biol Chem 279, 28625–28631]. However, the ECD crystal packing contains two major intermolecular contacts that suggest two possible dimer pairs: ‘head‐to‐head’ (hh) and ‘tail‐to‐tail’ (tt) dimers associated via the membrane‐distal and membrane‐proximal subdomains, respectively. The existence of these two potential dimer forms challenges the proposed signaling mechanism. In this study, we performed single‐particle electron microscopy (EM) to determine the ECD dimer structures occurring in the absence of crystal contacts. EM reconstruction yielded the dimer structures with and without ANP in only the hh dimer forms. We further performed steady‐state fluorescence spectroscopy of Trp residues, one of which (Trp74) occurs in the hh dimer interface and none of which occurs in the tt dimer interface. ANP binding caused a time‐dependent decrease in Trp emission at 350 nm that was attributable to partially buried Trp74 in the unbound hh dimer interface becoming exposed to solvent water upon ANP binding. Thus, the results of single‐particle EM and Trp fluorescence studies have provided direct evidence for hh dimer structures for unbound and ANP‐bound receptor. The results also support the proposed rotation mechanism for transmembrane signaling by the ANP receptor.
Protein transport in organelles: The Toc complex way of preprotein import
Authors: Agne Birgit , Kessler Felix
Published: January 2009

Most of the estimated 1000 or so chloroplast proteins are synthesized as cytosolic preproteins with N‐terminal cleavable targeting sequences (transit peptide). Translocon complexes at the outer (Toc) and inner chloroplast envelope membrane (Tic) concertedly facilitate post‐translational import of preproteins into the chloroplast. Three components, the Toc34 and Toc159 GTPases together with the Toc75 channel, form the core of the Toc complex. The two GTPases act as GTP‐dependent receptors at the chloroplast surface and promote insertion of the preprotein across the Toc75 channel. Additional factors guide preproteins to the Toc complex or support their stable ATP‐dependent binding to the chloroplast. This minireview describes the components of the Toc complex and their function during the initial steps of preprotein translocation across the chloroplast envelope.
Protein transport in organelles: The composition, function and regulation of the Tic complex in chloroplast protein import
Authors: Benz J. Philipp , Soll Jürgen , Bölter Bettina
Published: January 2009

It is widely accepted that chloroplasts derived from an endosymbiotic event in which an early eukaryotic cell engulfed an ancient cyanobacterial prokaryote. During subsequent evolution, this new organelle lost its autonomy by transferring most of its genetic information to the host cell nucleus and therefore became dependent on protein import from the cytoplasm. The so‐called ‘general import pathway’ makes use of two multisubunit protein translocases located in the two envelope membranes: the Toc and Tic complexes (translocon at the outer/inner envelope membrane of chloroplasts). The main function of both complexes, which are thought to work in parallel, is to provide a protein‐selective channel through the envelope membrane and to exert the necessary driving force for the translocation. To achieve high efficiency of protein import, additional regulatory subunits have been developed that sense, and quickly react to, signals giving information about the status and demand of the organelle. These include calcium‐mediated signals, most likely through a potential plastidic calmodulin, as well as redox sensing (e.g. via the stromal NADP+/NADPH pool). In this minireview, we briefly summarize the present knowledge of how the Tic complex adapted to the tasks outlined above, focusing more on the recent advances in the field, which have brought substantial progress concerning the motor function as well as the regulatory potential of this protein translocation system.
Protein transport in organelles: Protein transport into and across the thylakoid membrane
Authors: Aldridge Cassie , Cain Peter , Robinson Colin
Published: January 2009

The chloroplast thylakoid is the most abundant membrane system in nature, and is responsible for the critical processes of light capture, electron transport and photophosphorylation. Most of the resident proteins are imported from the cytosol and then transported into or across the thylakoid membrane. This minireview describes the multitude of pathways used for these proteins. We discuss the huge differences in the mechanisms involved in the secretory and twin‐arginine translocase pathways used for the transport of proteins into the lumen, with an emphasis on the differing substrate conformations and energy requirements. We also discuss the rationale for the use of two different systems for membrane protein insertion: the signal recognition particle pathway and the so‐called spontaneous pathway. The recent crystallization of a key chloroplast signal recognition particle component provides new insights into this rather unique form of signal recognition particle.
Protein transport in organelles: Dual targeting of proteins to mitochondria and chloroplasts
Authors: Carrie Chris , Giraud Estelle , Whelan James
Published: January 2009

As many as fifty proteins have now been experimentally demonstrated to be targeted to both mitochondria and plastids, a phenomenon referred to as dual targeting. Although the first reported case of dual targeting of a protein was reported in 1995, there is still little understanding of the mechanism of dual targeting and any similarities or differences with respect to the targeting of location‐specific proteins. This minireview summarizes dual targeting in terms of signals, passenger proteins, receptors, regulation, why proteins may need to be dual targeted and the future challenges that remain in this area.
Kinetic and mechanistic characterization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis glutamyl–tRNA synthetase and determination of its oligomeric structure in solution
Authors: Paravisi Stefano , Fumagalli Gianluca , Riva Milena , Morandi Paola , Morosi Rachele , Konarev Peter V. , Petoukhov Maxim V. , Bernier Stéphane , Chênevert Robert , Svergun Dmitri I. , Curti Bruno , Vanoni Maria A.
Published: January 2009

Mycobacterium tuberculosis glutamyl–tRNA synthetase (Mt‐GluRS), encoded by Rv2992c, was overproduced in Escherichia coli cells, and purified to homogeneity. It was found to be similar to the other well‐characterized GluRS, especially the E. coli enzyme, with respect to the requirement for bound tRNAGlu to produce the glutamyl‐AMP intermediate, and the steady‐state kinetic parameters kcat (130 min−1) and KM for tRNA (0.7 μm) and ATP (78 μm), but to differ by a one order of magnitude higher KM value for l‐Glu (2.7 mm). At variance with the E. coli enzyme, among the several compounds tested as inhibitors, only pyrophosphate and the glutamyl‐AMP analog glutamol‐AMP were effective, with Ki values in the μm range. The observed inhibition patterns are consistent with a random binding of ATP and l‐Glu to the enzyme–tRNA complex. Mt‐GluRS, which is predicted by genome analysis to be of the non‐discriminating type, was not toxic when overproduced in E. coli cells indicating that it does not catalyse the mischarging of E. coli tRNAGln with l‐Glu and that GluRS/tRNAGln recognition is species specific. Mt‐GluRS was significantly more sensitive than the E. coli form to tryptic and chymotryptic limited proteolysis. For both enzymes chymotrypsin‐sensitive sites were found in the predicted tRNA stem contact domain next to the ATP binding site. Mt‐GluRS, but not Ec‐GluRS, was fully protected from proteolysis by ATP and glutamol‐AMP. Small‐angle X‐ray scattering showed that, at variance with the E. coli enzyme that is strictly monomeric, the Mt‐GluRS monomer is present in solution in equilibrium with the homodimer. The monomer prevails at low protein concentrations and is stabilized by ATP but not by glutamol‐AMP. Inspection of small‐angle X‐ray scattering‐based models of Mt‐GluRS reveals that both the monomer and the dimer are catalytically active. By using affinity chromatography and His6‐tagged forms of either GluRS or glutamyl–tRNA reductase as the bait it was shown that the M. tuberculosis proteins can form a complex, which may control the flux of Glu–tRNAGlu toward protein or tetrapyrrole biosynthesis.